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His explanation didn't quench her desire to know, about the spirits and whatever else he had learned in his travels, but it satisfied her for the moment being. She didn't want to make him linger in the snow any longer than he had to. Her eyes stayed far from Marlowe's private feast, but one ear swiveled in his direction as he crowed. She didn't understand what he said, but she knew it wasn't flattering; if Ezekiel hadn't been present, she might have swiped at the bird. One day, she was sure he'd insult the wrong creature, and though she might feel sorry for the men who had known him, she would think nothing of his death. The Lykoi washed away the thoughts of the raven with the thought of food, her stomach aching at the prospect.
Ezekiel reassured her, in more words than she expected, that he didn't mind her presence at his meal. He unfolded the hide, piled the pieces on top of it, and set out to cut off more while she studied his movements. Since her time with him at his den, she had tried to learn how to be self-sufficient. She had hunted more, though she hadn't eaten much of what she killed. She had studied animals in the forest and out in other places. None of it really stuck, but it made her feel better about what she knew. Watching Ezekiel added to her fading knowledge, but as he worked, she realized that hunting was simply not a strong point. The golden coyote's rusty twin was an artist who bled prismatic colors and dreamed in abstract concepts that littered the world around her. Killing wasn't beyond her capabilities, but she was sure she'd always lack finesse in creating death.
But she hoped she could be useful in other ways. "Could you teach me how to cook?" she requested, pulling herself up from her smaller pose to look down at the sight. "Maybe I could learn and then you wouldn't have to do it. I could cook for you." It wasn't a question, but her voice rose at the end regardless, as if seeking approval from the man. He lived alone, without a mate, and it gave Talitha ample opportunity to make a place in the life of her brother once more. She hadn't been taught 'roles', not like the creatures long since dead and gone had known, but she saw ways she might make the life of her brother easier. If he hunted, she could learn to cook. If he needed something, she could learn to make it. She could try and take the place of whatever woman he would later take into his home, at least for the time being.
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