Redhawk Caldera to pronounce apathy

:')

Half a second later, Peregrine realized those words were just as ominous as, "We need to talk." He didn't mean them that way. He didn't know what he meant. He just knew he couldn't go through with Fox what he had gone through with Hawkeye, where she had treated him like crap and he had just let her walk all over him. He knew he wasn't perfect but he didn't think he deserved that. He wanted a partnership, built on equality and mutual respect. He—

Fox came crashing into him so suddenly that it knocked the wind out of him. For a split second, Peregrine thought she was attacking him and made a strange choking sound. Then she whined and it dawned on him that she was hugging him, not attempting to maul him. He was still surprised, though he reacted instantaneously. A long forelimb rose to pull her even closer (if that was possible) and he rested his chin atop her head with a sigh that was more about his inability to breathe than any particular emotion.

"You are nothing like Hawkeye," he said, too quietly for her to hear even with her ears on either side of his mouth. Louder, he said, "I'm sorry if I hurt or upset you, babe." Fuck his pride right now. That whine had pierced him straight through the heart. "I love you. I just... we had a communication breakdown. It happens. We can work it out." His clutch on her tightened and he kissed the soft fur between her ears once, twice, three times.