The girl nodded again, her eyes flicking to the cottage.
She dropped from the branch to the forest floor with a soft thud, landing gracefully, and returned quickly with two thin sticks clutched in her hands.
She held them up like dolls, moving them side by side, then tilted the "female" stick toward the "male," making a faint, breathy mmm sound, her lips pursed in imitation.
Liss's jaw tightened, her teeth grinding as understanding hit.
"They're kissing," she muttered, her voice low and laced with irritation.
The girl nodded innocently, her wide eyes flicking between Liss and the sticks, as if confirming her point.
"Enough," Liss snapped, smacking the branches from the girl's hands with a quick swipe.
They clattered to the dirt below, the sound sharp in the quiet forest.
The girl flinched, her shoulders curving inward, her face dimming with a flicker of hurt, but she didn't argue, didn't make a sound.
