He hugged her tightly, burying his face in her shoulder. "I missed you. I missed you so much." *** She put away her blade, looking back for Victor.
She laughed quietly, but it sounded like she might have been crying a little too. "I missed you too. Is everything okay with your tribe?" * * * Victor had one of the baby mice in his arms and was setting it down inside a nearby grove, his brows furrowed in concern and he pulled a piece of nearby grass and wrapped it around the baby's foot.
"Yeah, mostly.. I could get in trouble for being here." *** She came over, looking worried. "Is everything okay?"
She pulled away to look at him, her arms still around him, and she raised an eyebrow. "So could I. I had to sneak away." * * * "His foot got snapped," he said quietly. "I think he should be okay. He just needs to heal." Victor looked up at her. "You shooed him away?"
He looked down. "They said if I spoke to you they would attack our tribe." *** She nodded. "Yeah. Pete's gone."
She watched him for a moment before slipping her head under his neck gently, resting against him and closing her eyes. "Well, I talked to you. You're just being polite." * * * He raised an eyebrow and was quiet for a moment. "Impressive."
He laughed slightly. "I suppose that's true.." *** She gave him a slight grin before looking down at the babies, her whole expression brightening. "They're so cute.."
She was quiet for a moment, her hand still cupping the back of his neck gently. "I can't stay for long," she said. "And, for the record, I'm still pissed at you." * * * He looked back down. "They are, yes. Munsheiner did well. Have you ever ridden a mouse before?"
He was watching her, his brows furrowed. "I know." *** She sat down, crossing her legs. "No, I haven't."
Her eyes were still closed, but her mouth was pressed together in a worried line. She opened her eyes and seemed surprised that he was looking at her. "But... we need to see each other, right?" She shrugged slightly, looking a little embarrassed. "I just... I don't work right when I don't get to see you..." * * * One of the baby mice paddled over to her, squeaking quietly. "It's a bond like nothing else. Even your significant other pales in comparison to your friendship with your mouse."
He nodded slowly. "We need to be careful about meeting, though." *** She grinned at the mouse. "It sounds lovely."
She looked even more embarrassed at his response, avoiding eye contact. "I mean, we don't have to..." * * * He glanced over. "That one likes you. He's Eucalyptus, but we call him Caly for short."
He frowned. "I want to, Dahlia. I just don't want anything bad to happen." *** She reached out to pet him. "Caly. That's cute."
"Bad things have already happened," she retorted, looking up at him. "At least this time I know about it." * * * "I am known for my cute mice names," he replied. "It's why they keep me around."
She frowned, looking down for a moment. "Do you think we should just not see each other, then?" * * * "It's big for morale" he informed her.
"I don't think that," he said. "I still want to see you." *** She rolled her eyes with a smile. "So is Pete a common problem?"
She pulled away from him slightly, her hands slipping away from him. "I don't know. It probably isn't worth the risk." * * * "He normally leaves us alone," Victor said, looking over his shoulder as Caly crawled into her lap. "But since we had the babies, he's been a little more interested. He took one of them three weeks ago."
He frowned. "You don't think so?" *** She frowned. "Hm.. Well he'll have a nice scar to remember me by, now."
She folded her arms, going over to the window again. "I don't know. Your tribe could be annihilated because of it." * * * He laughed slightly, leaning up against the wall of the log. "You're kind of a badass."
