Redtail Rise Never Bet the Devil Your Head

He repeated the word back to her, his inflection leading her to believe he maybe didn’t understand its meaning. Masque’s lips parted to explain when he shook his head and mentioned a game. Her lips pressed together, twitching into a small smile.

Sort of, she said, pausing to think for a moment before saying, Remember when I brought you that snack? It came from a cache, which is where wolves store meat. Did you know squirrels keep caches too? But they don’t eat meat, so they put things like acorns in theirs.

Was that the most words she’d ever spoken at once? It felt like it. But she wanted Reki to understand. Perhaps he might even join her as she continued observing this unexpected behavior. If he’d managed to sneak up on her, Masquerade supposed she could rely on him to be quiet.

But before she invited him along, she wondered, What’s your name? Mine’s Masque.