She hadn't for a moment considered not answering the question, or thought that it had been rude or intrusive of Mati to ask it. It was only natural to ask it and she was glad that she had. The girl had been grasping at smoke all day, trying to decipher what was blossoming in her chest but hadn't been able to actually pause and think about it. The Church fey had given her that opportunity and while it was a little uncomfortable, it was necessary. If she had learned one thing in her life, it was that many times it was better to say things out loud than to keep them bottled up inside. The principle didn't particularly apply to her accident when she was younger, but to other things it did. Like when she had confessed to Anu that she thought she liked other females. A whirlwind of confusion had been raging inside her and it was only after she said it aloud and spoke about it with the more experienced wolfess that things began to settle and become clear to her. It had helped on that occasion and she thought it might help in this one as well.
Cambria hoped it would help, but she knew it had the possibility of hurting things as well. If Mati didn't feel the same then it could complete alienate the two Dreamers. She would feel completely embarrassed and probably wouldn't ever be able to face the elder femme again. Also, as of yet, no one else knew of her preferences. She didn't think that Mati would be the type to gossip or spread this around, but it was a possibility that made the Marino nervous. The worst would be if her parents caught wind of it from someone else and not her. She did intend to tell them and she would feel awful if they found out about it before she got the chance to tell them. Having the rest of the pack suddenly know too wasn't exactly what she wanted either. She had planned to keep it mostly under wraps for a long while. With this bold step though that had the chance of disintegrating. Cambi's eyes stared intensely down at the table, her stomach twisting uneasily into knots as she waited to hear how Mati would react to her admission. Each millisecond that ticked by with continued silence seemed an agonizing eternity. Had she made a horrible mistake?
Then a single utterance split the air, but Cambria couldn't read it. Was that a bad "Oh" or a good "Oh"? For a few more minutes her gaze remained trained on the table, too terrified at what she might see when she shifted her sights to the fey next to her. Would it be disgust? Confusion? A longing to run from the room and to never set eyes on her again? Honestly she wanted to run and avoid having to face the probable negative reaction that awaited her. As she felt those violets turn to her face again though hesitantly her eyes move to look at Mati and she was surprised by the sight that was before her. She was...smiling. A broader smile than she had ever seen on the elder wolf before. Her heart tripped in its rhythm before its pace increased dramatically. Their eyes were locked and nothing could make her look away now. She wanted to reach out, to touch her, but she couldn't find the will to do it. What if she was misunderstanding? It didn't seem possible to misunderstand such a smile, but the situation seemed so fragile, as if the slightest wrong move would shatter it.