Verdigris Ravine the smoke between our fingers

Her chest expands with an upsurge of many emotions; she fears that there might not be enough room to contain it all.

There is love, of course, for Kusuma and Harta (and how their names went together, hand-in-hand!), but also anger towards the absent father, and perhaps even an ugly pearl of jealousy which sits in her stomach like an accumulation of heavy metals.

It isn't fair, she doesn't know the whole story, nor does she need to -- but despite herself, despite the girding of countless rational reasons, the vexation persists, an unsightly cockroach skittering along the woodwork of her interior.

She prunes these ill humors at the root. What matters most is that Kusuma and Harta are safe.

When the coyjackal sighs into the junction of her neck and shoulder, she cannot suppress a shiver, and pulls back so she can see her smile.

Yes, she responds, in the same reverent whisper. Will Kusuma and Harta have Asun?