Maze welcomes the brief hug from her friend, finding comfort there and marvelling, not for the first time, how her home had become a group of friends more than it had ever been a place. The concern doesn’t fade as she listens to Breach’s tale, both relief and sadness welling up within her. Relief that it was not the true end for the tigress, but sadness for her friend at having lost her mother - even temporarily - and the weight of all that had happened on Breach’s young shoulders.
It makes her think of her own mom, and the white girl promises herself to check in on Agetta a little more often than she does currently.
“I’m so sorry, I hope she wakes soon. But…” Here Maze grins, though the words that follow are genuine whatever the mischievous glint in her eye may suggest. “I’d follow you anywhere, Breach.” Such a simple statement and it contains so many layers too. Mazikeen will always admire Sochi and certainly will look forward to the day when the tigress wakes again, but her friendship with Breach is more than that. It’s tied up in comradery and loyalty, a bond formed as they both grew and learned.
Still - as genuine as even that much emotional honesty is, it’s still uncomfortable for Maze to let it linger - better to brush it aside before it can be rejected. So her grin grows a little, fire dancing in her orange eyes. “So there’s a panther now too, huh? I’m going to pick a possum as my favourite shape just to stand out from all the cats.”
@[breach]