beauty on the breeze

Theory closed her eyes as he approached, soaking up the sunshine. They'd have a light-hearted chat, maybe a splash in the waters. She could almost see how the day would unfold before her, ripples of a perfect summer afternoon. A faint smile curled up the ends of her lips. And then he opened his mouth. From the beginning she could tell that something was off. Corvus exuded every emotion he felt and they were far too close for him to pretend otherwise. Theory staggered to her feet, completely covered on one side with sand. If his announcement hadn't rankled her so deeply, it would almost be funny. Instead, her hackles raised so sharply that some sand dislodged from her fur and scattered to the ground.

"Excuse me? How could he do this..." she sputtered. "He knows how much we've suffered!" A raid wasn't friendly no matter how you framed it. There was some end goal. Even if no captives were taken, there would be some sort of victory. Why was he doing this? Although her blood was rushing straight to her head, so fast it almost made her dizzy, Theory took a deep breath. "Did he say why?"