The joke about Erne being relieved earns a grin and a small shake of her head. And then a few moments later, Maze shares with his delight when Gale successfully gets rid of the wings with (presumably) a thought. There’s a smile dancing on her expression when he turns back to her. She wants to know how far his shifting extends - can he become animals like her? - but that can be something to explore at a later time. Having not ever been under a family curse, she wasn’t sure what the timeframe was for recovering from the news it may have picked you next. What she wants is for him to enjoy shifting as much as she does - to share that joy with him - and this first success feels like a good step.
She utterly loses whatever thought had been in her mind when Gale brushes against her to get past. Maze feels her breath catch and she loses her hold on the feline eyes, her world plunging into a thicker darkness. A very soft, nervous laugh escapes her, expelling that caught air. She has the cat eyes back in a quick moment and tries not to focus on how much it unnerves her that she had lost control of them at all.
As he continues to step past her, her head turns to watch as if pulled by a magnetic force. She half expects to see a mark where he had touched her, but of course, there’s no outward sign of what she feels there. Maze is dazed, electrified, and lightheaded. It takes an extra beat of her still thundering heart to register his challenge and she muscles her way back to sanity as her body reacts and she surges after him.
Although part of her is annoyed to be trailing, she maintains enough common sense to know she can not surge past Gale to “win” the race because she has no idea where they are going. Any disappointment fades away as her legs continue to carry her across the tropical terrain. The race through the dark is reckless and thrilling - the perfect combination. It requires her to focus, which suits her just fine.
A wild smile blazes across Mazikeen’s features when they stop and she relishes in the exhilaration. The long, stretching strides had torn open a few of the cuts on her shoulder and her legs, and a few trails of blood weave against her white and black legs down to the sand, but it is not enough to hold her attention. She’s breathing heavily and she wonders idly how long her heart can go at this pace before it explodes? It had, after all, been racing long before them.
She watches, curious, as he steps onto the riverbed and plucks some kind of plant before tossing them over. She eats without hesitation - and it's only after she’s swallowed her first mouthful that she wonders at how easily she's come to trust Gale. All of this has been remarkably easy and that frightens her. She should be more careful so she's ready for when this peace crumbles.
And yet, the idea of coming back and being welcome causes her less-empty stomach to flip a little with pleasure. And the tail end of what he says inspires a laugh. “Wow. Grass, huh? What an exotic treat.” She teases with an easy sarcasm, eyes bright as she regards him.
“I’d like to come back.” And there’s a warmth in those words and the soft smile that accompanies them while she focuses on him before her eyes drift upwards to the starless expanse of the sky. “Maybe the sun will be back by then.” Maze attempts to keep her tone light but she can hear the worry that creeps in on the edges. The endless night would not see her cower but she also wouldn’t mind seeing the sun rise once again.
@[Gale]