It was her hair.
Something about her hair captivated him, mesmerised him, and drove him to distraction.
The way it gleamed in the dappled sunlight, how it blazed on a summer's day. He couldn't remember ever finding something so...intriguing? No, that wasn't the right word. Fascinating? Attractive?
Bale once told him that his favourite part of Renn was her eyes; they were the deepest indigo, like the name-souls of storm clouds reflected in water. Mysterious and alluring with hidden depths, but dangerous too. You could tell a lot about a person from their eyes.
Torak had to disagree. Yes, Renn had wonderful eyes and a very pretty face, and not forgetting, although not remarking to her lest you wished to get slapped, that everything below her face was lovely too. But her mother, the Viper Mage, had all of these as well, down to irises the exact same shade of azure, and yet he had not recognised her until it was pointed out to him.
The thing that made Renn Renn was her cascade of crimson hair. Where Veshru's tresses were midnight black, sleek but lifeless, Renn's were blood red and flowed with the same grace as her body. As long as her spirit burned as bright as her hair, she would never be like her mother.
"Torak!"
"Sorry, Renn."
Torak gave her a sheepish, wolfish grin, face a little flushed, and she rolled her eyes at him and stalked off. He'd gotten distracted again, daydreaming, but at least she didn't know she was the subject of them. Or more specifically, her hair.
He clambered to his feet and stumbled after her, catching her shoulder.
"What now?" she exclaimed, exasperated with his absent-mindedness.
With one swift, fluid movement, his fingers stroked down the silky twines of her plait and brought forth a leaf. She blinked in surprise.
"Erm...thanks." she gave him a strange look, blushing at little at his close proximity. Then her face hardened, "Now get your head out of spirit-land and get hunting!"
Torak laughed and obeyed, squatting beside her to peer at some elk tracks printed in the riverbank mud, feeling rather pleased with himself, casually dropping the leaf back on the floor where he had found it.
Yes, his favourite part of Renn was definitely her hair.