don't paint me black when i used to be golden

Things were... they were different now. He'd taken on a rank, a real rank. Hazel's plans had been put on hold, with the whole nearly dying thing and all. That, and she'd picked up her first confirmed kill. Would there be more? If it came down to protecting her family, then she knew that she wouldn't hesitate to do it again. A yearling, and she already had an actual... an actual murder on her record. She'd killed someone. Though Lis would always be a part of her story, their coming of age looked... different. It looked so different, despite being raised right alongside each other. Hell, he'd been there on that fateful day. He'd seen it happen, or at least, some of it. The weight of the differences seemed so much heavier now.

I guess, Hazel couldn't help but reach out and bat at his shoulder with her paw, though there was something more somber about her smile now. "I had to make a break for it, she left for a bit to do... whatever it is that she does. Something in the garden, I think she said?" Hazel thought for a moment, then shrugged. With the shrug came a grimace, feeling the still-healing flesh tug.

It was a long moment before she spoke again. "I um..." Hazel trailed off, feeling the words die on her lips. It was hard to actually voice what she felt. She was never going to ask anyone to stay. She knew it wasn't her place to take up space in someone else's life unless they wanted it, but she couldn't help it. Not with Lis. Not with him. "I missed you." The words were softer now, looking away from her friend's face, finding something to focus on in the nearby treeline instead. She couldn't make eye contact, not in this moment.

"Speech"