Chapter 29: Chapter 29: Bonding

Hidden Grotto

‘Here.’

A heavy wet thud ripped Shani from a dreamless—thank the Moon Goddess—sleep. She blinked to adjust her eyes to a dreamy dawn sky to find a large hare dropped in front of her, Mingan sitting on her haunches, swiping her tongue over her bloody muzzle, perfectly unbothered by a traditionally loving gesture.

Shani rose into sitting, feeling less loved and more like the end result of a chore. But she thanked the moody Lovell with a soft bop of her nose to hers.

Her tail flicked and she wouldn’t make direct eye contact, luckily not snapping her teeth. ‘The least I can do for you standing up for me even though you don’t know me,’ she grumbled through the mind link.