I have always thought you strong. The fox paused from dropping a stick in his pile and looked over at his friend fondly. All the more so now, knowing that you have kept moving forward and helping others in spite of your fear. Was that not the definition of courage? To overcome fear, rather than to not feel it at all. Someone who felt no fear was a fool, and not likely to survive long without the luck of the gods themselves watching over them. Even if Amalia didn't face her fears directly, she still did not let them stop her.
Just do not become so addicted to the leopard that you lose the woman, he warned her gently, collecting a last piece of deadfall from the Shrine's confines and trotting it out of the circle of stones. The trick will be in keeping a piece of the leopard in your heart when you change back..." He trailed off ruefully, a faint feeling of wry humor traveling along his thoughts as he realized he was ill-equipped to giveAmalia advice when they came by their animal shapes so differently.
The peaceful afternoon was sundered by Amalia's growl, and Jigano's head shot around at the sound of Isuma's name in his friend's mind. The gryphon couldn't hear the leopardess, but before she could cross the final line that separated her from the snapflower's range a bristling shape of fur and claws and bared white fangs interposed itself.
It was threatening Isuma. It was threatening Amalia!
The fox snarled and twisted his body to race across the lush green lawn. He bounded onto a glowstone, then a second, using the height to fling himself at the carnivorous plant. Its blossoms had opened wide to reveal rows of sharp, sharklike teeth that clashed unsettlingly, but he managed to land on top of one and clung with all four paws while he sank his teeth into the stem behind the blossom and chewed with all his might. It jerked and flung itself beneath him while one of its sibling heads tried to bite his tail and pull him off.
The other faced down Amalia, striking swiftly and unexpectedly as it tried to get around the guard of her claws to sink its teeth into tender feline flesh.
Just do not become so addicted to the leopard that you lose the woman, he warned her gently, collecting a last piece of deadfall from the Shrine's confines and trotting it out of the circle of stones. The trick will be in keeping a piece of the leopard in your heart when you change back..." He trailed off ruefully, a faint feeling of wry humor traveling along his thoughts as he realized he was ill-equipped to give
The peaceful afternoon was sundered by Amalia's growl, and Jigano's head shot around at the sound of Isuma's name in his friend's mind. The gryphon couldn't hear the leopardess, but before she could cross the final line that separated her from the snapflower's range a bristling shape of fur and claws and bared white fangs interposed itself.
It was threatening Isuma. It was threatening Amalia!
The fox snarled and twisted his body to race across the lush green lawn. He bounded onto a glowstone, then a second, using the height to fling himself at the carnivorous plant. Its blossoms had opened wide to reveal rows of sharp, sharklike teeth that clashed unsettlingly, but he managed to land on top of one and clung with all four paws while he sank his teeth into the stem behind the blossom and chewed with all his might. It jerked and flung itself beneath him while one of its sibling heads tried to bite his tail and pull him off.
The other faced down Amalia, striking swiftly and unexpectedly as it tried to get around the guard of her claws to sink its teeth into tender feline flesh.
