(SE) long shot

Maea

And I only needed one more touch
Another taste of devouring rush

The fire spewed hot and blinding from his jaws, and washed over the tigress as she tried to approach him. She did not flinch, nor balk at the panicked state he was in. The fire could not harm her - it was fortunately not acid, which would have been a different matter entirely - and with a shake of her pale scruff the lingering smoke and ash dispersed into the air.

Assessing the fyrhund for a moment, Maea was unsure which approach to take. She could humor this penchant for violence and let him work it out into exhaustion. Or she could attempt to calm him, to soothe that frenzied distress. Both had their own merits, the problem was that she didn't know Asta well enough to pick one for him.

In the end, she simply sat down. Winding the long striped tail around her paws, white-gold eyes blinked slowly at him, waiting to see what he would do next. If he attacked, she would fight back. If he ran, she would follow. The only thing she wouldn't do, was leave him be. At least not until she could be certain beyond all doubt that he wasn't going to run himself off a cliff or into a fight he couldn't get out of on his own.

But the room was so quiet
Whose side am I on?

Base by Skylark, Art by Midjourney