Sun Mote Copse paradise

It was relatively easy to side-step the heavy topics, as she'd been doing for almost a year now. She could still sense a weight that hung about Eljay, like a cloud that refused to give away and let the sun shine. While he had always been on the quiet side, and a bit timid around her, there was something sad about his eyes, and the way his smile would only linger for a moment- only as long as he consciously told it too. Otherwise, his features seemed to fall back into what seemed to be his new neutral. 

When he mentioned Phox, Niamh pricked her ears. "Huh?" She asked, seemingly oblivious to whatever it was he was implying. "Me and Phox what?" She asked, still feigning perfect cluelessness, before she smiled and cackled softly, and nodded. "Jus' kiddin' ya. Yeah, he's...He's pretty great. It's been pretty good, nice to have someone." She said, with a slight shrug. "An' he's gonna be a great father," She said softly, trying to steer the topic back to the children. Eljay liked pups- so that was a happy topic, right?