There is no better way to know us
than as two wolves, come separately to a wood
Sinopa made a small sound of exasperation, but the way her eyes lingered on the stallion made it clear that she was far from annoyed. She shifted her weight, watched as he turned and approached. “Yes,” she murmured. “The Hunt. One of the greatest games of all. Don’t mean to brag, but my sister and I are really good at this game.” She chuckled at his words, glancing at Tolinka out of the corner of her eye, as if waiting for her to move to meet the stallion. Tolinka always met challenges head on, but Sinopa, sometimes she liked to have a little fun first. “That’s because we weren’t tryin’ to scare you, handsome. Not yet, at least.”
Tolinka, silent and stoic as ever, did not waver in her stare. His confidence… The way he responded to them satisfied her in some way. And when he flicked his head (all the better to see them), she tried not to fall too deeply into his striking eyes. Appearances had never mattered to her, or at least, she never tried to place importance on such a thing. She and Sinopa used their own appearances in their games sometimes, but they were by no means shallow. They were just smart. And yet, here and now, Tolinka found herself thinking just how beautiful her mystery man was. A snort escaped her. It was unfair, wasn’t it? To be so caught up in what he looked like that she couldn’t see who he really was. It was suddenly very hard to keep her mouth closed, but she fought to keep her silence, afraid of what she might say.
Sinopa knew something was wrong. She could see it in the hunch of Tolinka’s shoulders, and the stiffness along the lines of her neck. Puzzled, a tiny seed of worry bloomed in her heart, and she stepped forwards, intending to draw the stallion’s attention. “Oh, I like the sound of that.” She was being vague on purpose. “Maybe, Asche-of-the-Ridge, we'll have to come and find you later.” she said, trailing her muzzle through the air as she turned to look at her sister. The only recognition she got was a small flick of Tolinka’s white ear. “I’m Sinopa,” the bay mare added, her dark eyes drifting back towards Asche. She flicked one of her own ears. That was all he was getting for now, it seemed.
SINOPA + TOLINKA
the fox && the hound
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