The lines around his eyes go a little tight, did you hear what I just said exasperation pent up grim at the back of jaw. The absence of Merrill is only part of the equation.

Ire twists into a persistent thread of dark humor as he redirects down into the bite of his spoon into rabbit, breaking hunks of meat away into his stew. The pak pak pak of Thot chasing a cave cricket nearby stutters into an uncertain pause, only for her to start back up again on her own.

“I could attempt it.”