It was Jigano's turn to bristle, throat hackles puffing out at hearing how little Ashetta's threat had meant to one who had the ability and harvest lives like Rory harvested his wheat. The glare he gave her was a hard one, a rattle in his throat that might have been a growl in another form, but which he cut off as the wolf continued to speak. Back then he had not known she was acting out of grief. Since his talk with Vai he had learned more, but her grief did not excuse her lashing out against others, causing them pain as well - especially when they were not the ones who had caused her own.
But... she did not speak defensively, did not try to excuse what she had done by asking for pity or sympathy. He knew honesty when he heard it, and the unvarnished truth she gave him silenced his growling, forcing him to take it and decide what he would do with the gift. The apology was unlooked for, unwanted, but not without worth. Whether he would trust the promise she made was another question she handed him, and he clacked his beak quietly in consideration of it, watching her as she watched him, blue eyes meeting gold with a fierce concentration.
I am not the one who deserves your apology, he said at last, his mental voice cooling from the heat it had previously contained. He is a good man, and in spite of the steel in him he far prefers to be a gentle one. In truth I do not think he would want to see you again... but he is the one who should hear those words. Not me. Even had he wanted to offer Ashetta forgiveness it was not his place to do so, and so she would not receive it from him. But he did not leave just yet, instead tilting his head to the side and pinning her with a single blue eye.
I would ask a question of you as well, if you are willing to hear it, he said, more formally than she had asked, but with the precise courtesy of someone who was trying not to let his complicated personal feelings color his words.
But... she did not speak defensively, did not try to excuse what she had done by asking for pity or sympathy. He knew honesty when he heard it, and the unvarnished truth she gave him silenced his growling, forcing him to take it and decide what he would do with the gift. The apology was unlooked for, unwanted, but not without worth. Whether he would trust the promise she made was another question she handed him, and he clacked his beak quietly in consideration of it, watching her as she watched him, blue eyes meeting gold with a fierce concentration.
I am not the one who deserves your apology, he said at last, his mental voice cooling from the heat it had previously contained. He is a good man, and in spite of the steel in him he far prefers to be a gentle one. In truth I do not think he would want to see you again... but he is the one who should hear those words. Not me. Even had he wanted to offer Ashetta forgiveness it was not his place to do so, and so she would not receive it from him. But he did not leave just yet, instead tilting his head to the side and pinning her with a single blue eye.
I would ask a question of you as well, if you are willing to hear it, he said, more formally than she had asked, but with the precise courtesy of someone who was trying not to let his complicated personal feelings color his words.
