"It's pathetic," he corrected, staring down at the sand sifting through her fingers with his eyes narrowed. "It's not even a fraction of what I should be able to do."

But it was still a comfort, even as it was a reminder as well. It was better than before.

He smirked, then, and gave a full-bodied shrug. "Hey, if they can hear me over the cat-screams, the sandstorm and that--" he jerked his head to the side to indicate the distance thud-- "then they'd deserve to catch me at it."