apparently cows kill more people than wolves

She grinned, all wide and toothy, ears flopping a little lopsided for a moment. No airs and graces, no fancy Hattori-Klein stuff, just wonderfully and happily Maki. And it was just so comfortable when folks played along, didn't look at her funny or tell her to act her age, that she was almost grown.

Oleander Fatalis. She knew of that name, Grammy used to see Sirius as family, but time and distance had sort of just...made things quiet, fade away slowly but surely. It was kind of sad, that even without a dramatic finale things could still just end if you weren't paying attention. A lot of her old stories had fallen to such a fate, something she'd never really realised before, a sudden pang of guilt hit her, like she should have tried harder to keep them alive, you know?

But then he'd asked a question, and it'd be rude to just blank him, least of all when Oleander was being so gracious. She hopped over to catch up, fell instep as her tail wagged behind her.

"Well, folks say I stay home too much, that I need to go out and earn my keep and do stuff." Daydreaming about rippling shoulders and muscular rumps didn't keep anyone fed, after all. "I bet you're good at stuff Ollie."