Redhawk Caldera she is fierce want, blazing ambition

-I’m sorry,- he murmured, the words strained and rough. -I didn’t mean to make it sound like he… like Peregrine was only mine to worry over. I know he’s your brother. I know you care.-

He swallowed hard, breath hitching once as he steadied himself.

-And I didn’t know,- he added quietly, meeting her gaze with something heavier than sympathy—something like respect. -About your husband. Your children. I didn’t know you’d lost them like that.-

He exhaled again, sharp at the start, softer at the end.

-I shouldn’t have told you to pull back. You’ve lived through worse than I have. You know what you’re doing.-

Her gentle nudge to his shoulder cracked something loose in him, easing the tight coil in his chest just a fraction. He leaned into it for a beat—small, instinctive—before straightening again.

He lifted his paw, signing slower this time, the motions steadier:

-Thank you.-

Then, after a pause, another sign:

-For staying.-