Sun Mote Copse What a fool believes

She started, and Phox braced himself for a tirade, but she stopped herself. It was a sign of restraint he wasn't sure that he would see. When she began again, she was more clear, more honest, and more truthful about why she had felt betrayed, which was more than he'd been able to get out of her before. She had expressed before that she was worried for Nellie, that she wanted her back, but Phox hadn't known that she thought Nellie was dead. If he had, he probably would have fessed up to her whereabouts.

I'm genuinely sorry, he replied, lowering his eyes. I didn't know you thought Nellie was... you know. I knew you were worried about her, but not to what extent. That much was true, and he wondered if anybody had thought he was dead when he had been at the Frosthawks. He'd had plenty of thoughts about Fennec, but she was blind and couldn't actually fend for herself.

Phox could have debated the semantics of lying, considering he only withheld information, but that was not a fight worth picking. And... thank you, for telling me. And communicating. He genuinely meant that, too. Just tossing insults at him without giving the full story didn't sit well with Phox, so this was a big step. It wasn't the end, or even a resolution, but it felt like a small move of the pendulum from the beginning of something unkind to at least neutrality.