Maybe it was better this way.
It was undeniably better than having clearly failed somewhere -- the silver-hued woman could not recall a specific instance in which she had acted against the interests of the clan, whether accidental or otherwise. There was no example they could make of her, some situation they'd refer to later in history for younger leaders to avoid. She hadn't faltered or floundered in one single instance; her body was simply beginning to decay with age, and it clouded her sharp mind. She knew it, and knew it well -- she did not know she'd failed so miserably in hiding it. Her scarred face was taut now, drawn up tightly in a forced continuation of her indifference. She did meet his eyes, refusing to break his gaze, but there was that same masked indifference there, a hard shield that, in all likelihood, did little to obscure her truer emotions. He knew her too well.
“Then it was my choice,” she replied slowly, her voice so even it surprised the silvery coyote herself. This conversation hadn't happened, or at least it hadn't happened as it just did where others were concerned. The truth of it would stay between them, and after too short a moment there was a hint of pleading in her brow, or very nearly pleading. What did it matter anyway? Whether or not she'd chosen this or had it forced upon her, the end result was the same -- maybe there was simply some faint hope for saving face in presenting it this way, as her own idea and her own choice.
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