Otter Creek songbird

He felt his whole body tense as she stirred, though his hesitation did not stem from fear and more from the assumption that nothing was ever as it seemed. But once the woman drew herself to her full height, Emilio was pleased to see she was nothing special to look at. 

And she was alone, by the looks of it. 

"No," his voice was tinged with youth, and the boy winced inwardly at the sound. "Not lost. You?" Her use of his tongue caught his attention and he followed up with a confident wag of his tail. "¿Hablas español?"