Whatever Curnen had been expecting, it had not been Miguel's bouncy enthusiasm. But was that really fair? A boy who had been to the land of the dead, who had... well, she didn't entirely understand what Dante was other than knowing he was no ordinary dog. If he knew what she was, and she wasn't sure he did understand that, why would he be frightened of her after all that?

Because you kept it secret? Because you effectively lied to him? People were often kind of pissed after that. Pissed or confused.

She didn't realize how much she was shaking until she put her arms around Miguel and hugged him, kissing his hair. "Thank you, love." When she got the shaking a little under control, she went on, very soft, "The wings were just glamour. Mine are... I can't find them." It was the best way she'd found to express what had happened to them.