i know your hope is heavy

Amusement flickered in his eyes at this woman's joyful nature as she greeted him. She seemed just as full of life as he typically felt, and her positive energy was absorbed by him and reflected back tenfold. "I'm not a big fan of berries," he admitted, a bit regretfully. "Though blood.. that's a different story." Briefly, his smile would fade as he struggled to keep a serious face. Unsurprisingly, he quickly faltered; letting out a sound that sounded a bit like a snort mixed with a laugh.

She seemed willing to play along their playful banter, and he found himself laughing a bit more softly now as he regarded her. "Let's be honest," he started, his head swiveling as she danced around him, her bells jingling in a soft tune. "What's in a name, really? It's not much more than a sound, if you think about it," he offered, shrugging his wide shoulders. As he felt her nose on his tail, he flicked it against her face and then away again, spinning to face her as she moved to the riverside, tilting his tusked head down slightly to face her.

Joining her there didn't sound like a terrible idea. Thinking on it for a moment, he decided to move to stand by her at the edge of the water. "What's the plan, lovely?" he'd ask her with amusement in his voice. "Planning an evening swim?" Though not much of a swimmer, truth be told, he wasn't opposed to trying most anything in this world - except for tree-climbing. He shuddered slightly when he recalled his most recent encounter with a wolf who'd been up in the treetops.