Felicity's eyes followed Raven's and she watched the fight as well, though perhaps with a different intrigue than the other wolf. For a while the two gazed into the pit in silence. Felicity was more comfortable in the silence, more comfortable with Raven's attention on something other than Felicity herself. She was more comfortable, as well, having something to capture her own attention; she was so used to isolation that actively paying mutual attention to another individual drained her energy. With a third party to pull that attention away from the individuals, Felicity felt like she could rest and be ready for further conversation if it came.

When it did, the inky wolf chuckled unexpectedly. "I appreciate it, but right now my stomach is rather overwhelmed. It'll be a few hours before I can eat again," she said. "But, I am grateful for my stomach being overwhelmed. It's been too long since I've been full and it's a welcome feeling." She turned her muzzle toward her water; she hadn't even noticed it before, and realized she was thirsty now that it was in front of her. She lapped lazily at it, taking care not to spill. It was cold, and chilled her throat as it went down, making her squint her eyes happily. The contrast between the cold water and the warm air was pleasant, and the chill actually woke her up a bit.

As she sat and felt the cold water travel down her body, its chill hugging her spine, the black wolf tried to sort out her thoughts. She wasn't sure how she felt about the other wolf; they were not packmates, and for all intents and purposes Felicity was an alien in this territory. The other wolf was probably being far kinder than most would be to a stranger within their borders, and that confused Felicity and made her conflicted in her gratitude. Felicity herself had little love for pack life, and being around this other wolf -- the first one in a very long time -- did not invoke feelings of obligation or friendliness. The jet she-wolf should forever be a loner, a stranger among her species, and yet she found some warmth toward the other wolf for reasons she could not at first put down. If anything, another wolf should be seen as a social opponent of sorts. With her preferences in such disparity with most other lupines, this interaction should be awkward in a way interactions with other species were not; and in a way, she found that it was. At first, it had been for the obvious reasons, but now she thought the discomfort was due only to her confliction. She was not supposed to like this other wolf, and part of her instinctively did not -- but a larger part of her did.

If she had any friendly feelings toward Raven at this point, she decided, it was because of the other wolf's generosity toward her. She could not tell if that generosity was attributed to the fact that the two of them were sisters of a sort, but it did not necessarily matter; she had helped a stranger despite basic territory rules, and Felicity's gratitude overrode both her instinctive drive for solitude and the resentment she had first felt when she glimpsed pity in the other woman's eyes.

Felicity shifted her attention back to the other wolf, avoiding direct eye-contact and so avoiding the basic signal for a challenge.

"I appreciate your help," she said sincerely. "I'm glad it was you who found me in my state and not someone else. I can tell you're stronger than I am, but if for whatever reason you need my help, I'd be glad to give it." With that she turned her attention once more to the fighting pit, allowing the other wolf to respond if she wished but leaving the statement otherwise as it was, requiring no more acknowledgement than a glance.

Felicity Crow