Rosewater Oasis I dream in oily fluorescent swirls

His utterings had not been intended to be a schooling lesson- merely an outlet for him to discuss one of his most favourite topics- bargaining. He wanted to sort out a system with Widower so that they could both give the same answer when asked the value of a stone. He had hoped to include her in the process of determining those parameters, but when she shoved her shoulder against his and snapped first at his busy feet and then at his muzzle, he lifted his head suddenly to notice how upset she looked, with mild shock. He didn't pull away, in spite of it, and weathered the flurry of movements as though not bothered by the repercussions. 

Fortunately for both of them, Tumbleweed was a patient man and for those whom he held dear, his fuse grew much longer. He looked upon her apologetically, though fondly as well. He couldn't talk to Widower the way he spoke with just anyone. More often than not, Widower was alone. He didn't imagine she had many long, wordy conversations with other creatures. He was very lucky indeed that she chose to humour him at all. 

Calmly, he brushed away a slight trickle of blood that ran from his cheekbone where her teeth had clipped him. With the blood smeared below his eye, he looked at her, wondering how he'd forgotten that at times, it was best not to be quite so chatty with Widower. 

"I know," He agreed. "I say all this because I'm going to have to say all of it to every creature clutching treasure that comes within a mile of this Oasis. He flicked a paw in her direction. "Widower, I know that you know all of these things. I am sorry if it felt like I was lecturing you..." Another drop of blood fell from his cheek and into the water, causing him to smile faintly. "Glad to see you've been keeping your fangs sharp," He mused.