"That won't be insulting?"
Once again, he shakes his head, then tips forward to place his hands on the ground. I'm disappointed to no longer be holding one.
My mind gets momentarily distracted thinking about how that works for him compared to a cat's paws. He pulls his fingers inlike he's making a fist and his thumbs wrap around the fingers in a tight grip.
It reminds me of how a gorilla would run, except nothing else about him is like a primate.
I shake myself out of my staring and try to figure out how I'm going to scramble up on his back. Thivoll solves the issue by crouching down so his stomach is almost against the ground and sticking one of his fisted hands out to the side.
"Step on my arm and I'll boost you up," he offers and I move to comply, then freeze when a random memory flits into my head.
It was some old classic movie,Star TrekI think, where the alien's genitals were on its knee.
I feel like my life really must have turned into a complete joke if my mind is pulling up William Shatner to help me navigate.
"What's wrong?" Thivoll asks, his eyes intent on me, but ears suddenly swiveling around frantically.
I'm being weird.
"Oh, nothing. I just . . . uh . . ."
Now is not the time to explain, but some questions might help.
"What gender do you identify as?" I begin with, then cringe at how invasive it sounds.
"Male," he responds in a slow harsh drawl that lets me know he's confused.
His whiskers droop.
I feel my face getting bright red.
"I won't, um . . ." I clear my throat, resisting the urge to put my hands on my burning face. "You know, uh, smash any delicate parts?"
The last word is said in as much of a mortified squeak as one can manage in his rough language.
"No. Nothing delicate at all," he replies with a twinkle in his eyes and his whiskers pushed forward.
He seems to lose some sort of battle at keeping his composure and breaks into the chuffing sound he already admitted was laughter.
I scowl back at him, feeling silly, but also knowing it was a legitimate concern based on extreme ignorance.
"You really are so enchanting," he says. "We should leave now, Ree."
I shake myself out of my embarrassed outrage and unceremoniously grab some of his fur and clamber onto his back.
"You won't hurt me. Grab my mane and hang on tight."
I do as he asks a moment before he springs forward. My heart is in my throat for the first few strides, then I realize his gait is incredibly smooth.
Nothing like the few times I've ridden horses.
His body seems to flow from one stride to the next without feeling like his paws or fists impact the ground at all. I can see why he thought this would be better. It's almost as if we're floating instead of running.
When he speaks to me, I can feel the rumble all over.
"Do you feel secure?" he asks.
"Oh, yes. This is wonderful. You are amazing!"
