Are we written in the stars

Marrah had learned her lesson after the loud swirly wind incident. She was not to go very far from the den without Mama or another one of the bigs along with her. Other pups may have been tempted by the additional freedom of being able to explore, and the girl had been before last week, but now she followed the rules strictly.

That being said, she was hot. And bored. The sun moved lazily in and out from the clouds, but when it was out it was beaming down on the dark pup. She wanted to go out, she wanted to see something new, she wanted to hear new words and new stories. But, she couldn’t do anything until a big came along and helped her with any of those things.

So, she flopped miserably in front of the den entrance, too young to realize that she would be less hot if she moved into the shade. Sighing dramatically she let out a sad, ”woowooowoo,” of a howl, trying to attract the attention of a big, then everything would get better.

or are we written in the sand?

The cubs were getting older, so much so that their little legs could carry them well beyond the clearing outside of their den before they tired, more than that though, their minds were growing rapidly as they began picking up words and phrases they had heard, and soaking up information about the world around them. Watching them grow was endlessly entertaining, and unimaginably rewarding.

Thus, with the sun beaming overhead and the heat blistering against her coat, Saga thought a little adventure was in order. A recent rain had left a few ankle deep puddles not too far from where she'd placed the den, perfect for a safe, but fun romp with the little ones. They'd be able to experience something new and cool off a little bit without her having to worry that they'd be swept away with a wave, or by a deceptive current.

Marrah's sigh and accompanying howl made her smile, though a look of understanding graced her silver brows. It was hard to be a pup. "Is something wrong?"

Are we written in the stars

It seemed like her dramatic sigh and tiny puppy howl worked like magic, because Mama appeared promptly! Keeping up her dramatics - because really, being bored and hot was one of the worst things that could happen to a pup. Sighing again as morosely as possible, she looked at Mama with sorrow, ”I’m hot,” she said matter of factly, and followed it with, ”and, not fun.” She didn’t mean that she wasn’t fun, but couldn’t think of the word for bored.

Shoving herself over, the tubby little pup showed her belly to the sky and let her head loll against the dirt. This was the worst, life was the worst. She might as well just lay here and let the sun make her into a puppy puddle. If only Mama would solve all of her problems and take her somewhere fun and not hot. If only.

or are we written in the sand?

Marrah's dramatic sighs and sorrowful looks were just too much for her. They melted her heart in a way that made it impossible for Saga to be anything but too soft on them. "It is hot, and hot is not fun." She nodded her agreement, understanding her only daughter's meaning though the wording had been off.

"Do you want to do something cool and fun?" She said, a mischievous smile playing at the corner of her maw. Without giving the inky pup time to answer, Saga turned towards the puddles, jerking her maw in their direction, and giving the command, "Hurry up, before we melt!" And then she was off, careful to keep her pace slow enough that a cub Marrah's size could follow.

All that remains is the faces and the names

Her mother seemed to agree with her complaints about being hot and not fun and that was enough for the girl. If Mama agreed, then being hot and bored must really be one of the worst things that could happen to a wolf, besides maybe the big woosh. A tiny shiver ran down her spine at the memory, but she parroted once again, ”hot is not fun,” very matter of factly. In the coming weeks, Marrah would go on to describe anything that was not the most exciting events as “not fun”.

Rolling her pudgy body over as quickly as she could, considering her probably too plump belly it was not very graceful. Leaping onto her paws, she scrambled to catch some purchase on the stone and follow Mama. Yipping in excitement and agreement that she was coming, and hurrying as fast as her tiny legs could move. Rushing up behind her Mama, Marrah grabbed a tuft of silver tail and grasped it tightly in her teeth, afraid to stray too far. The big woosh was still a frightening memory, and she wasn’t going to go too far from the bigs anytime soon.

It made it hard to see anything other than the grey of her mother’s pelt, and so Marrah clenched her eyes shut. Mama would take her where they needed to go, she had no doubt.

of the wives and the sons and the daughters.

Saga felt the small tug of Marrah's teeth at her tail and slowed her pace just enough so that her daughter wouldn't end up dragging across the terrain. She would have to find something equally as fun to do with the boys eventually, but for now, she was content to pour her attention onto the sooty girl clinging to her pelt.

She slowed as they came upon a series of puddles, angling herself so that she could see both her cub and the silver plume of tail in between her jaws. "We are here." She said, finally noting that Marrah's eyes had been shut. "You can open your eyes and let go." She offered her daughter a warm smile before dipping a paw into the water in hopes that Marrah might do the same.

All that remains is the faces and the names

Marrah had been trotting along with her eyes closed, teeth clenched tightly around her mom’s tail totally trustingly. There was a zero percent chance that her mom would take her anywhere scary, or not fun, she had never done such a thing before. Despite forcing the child to have baths on a regular basis, her mom was a fun big, and the daughter liked to spend time with her. Especially when her mom told her stories.

They came to a halt, and at the announcement that they had arrived, Marrah’s tail swayed in excitement. In fact, she was so excited that she forgot she needed to open her eyes. When Saga told her to, the puppy’s eyes popped open in surprise, and if she had been able to she would have blushed in embarrassment. Spitting out her Ma’s tails dramatically, and pawing at her tongue to get a few spare silver hairs off, she was curiously as her mother stepped into the pond.

Tilting her head this way, then that way, she chewed on her cheek. Her Ma had never put her in danger before, and had told her this was going to be fun, but this was something a little bit scary. Looking to her mother for reassurance, she steeled herself for everything bad that could happen. And then she committed. Rushing forward in a sprint, Marrah plowed into the puddle at full speed, and quickly lost her footing once it got past knee height.

Falling face first into the puddle, she came back up sputtering, but laughing. It certainly wasn’t hot in the puddle, and it was more fun than doing nothing! Marrah looked to her Ma for approval for her bravery.

of the wives and the sons and the daughters.

Saga couldn't help but notice a change in Marrah after the tornado. At first she had thought that it might have been for the better, that her child's willingness to stick around the den and keep out of danger was a good thing, but she still wasn't sure how far she was supposed to let it go, or when she should step in and handle it.. or really if she was supposed to do anything at all, and maybe it was a good thing. Either way, she would continue offering what she could, boosting the cub's confidence when she could, and ensuring that they became as comfortable and familiar with the world around them as she could.

She gave Marrah a reassuring nod and that was all it took for the cub to come rushing forward, crashing into the puddle with about as much grace as she imagined a bobcat might have in the water. Her smile grew with the chuckle that fell from her throat as Marrah's head surfaced. She was quick to place a proud lick to the child's crown before lowering her forelimbs into the puddle in a low play-bow.

All that remains is the faces and the names

Maybe she would have been scared if she had been with anyone but her Mama. But, when Marrah’s head went under the water for a brief second when she tripped, she didn’t feel the usual panic that she experienced when trying something new. Instead after a moment of sputtering the water out of her mouth, and shaking the droplets from her eyes, she was giggling while Saga chuckled. Accepting the kiss on her head, dark tail wagging behind her excitedly she gasped when her mother sank into a play bow.

Leaping forward enthusiastically, Marrah splashed some of the puddle water towards Mama’s face. Giggling again, her paws stomped as hard as possible in the water, trying to send the droplets flying as far as she could. Normally she hated being wet because that meant it was raining or storming, but this was way more fun than that. If only her sister friend was here to see it, panting from exertion from her stomping, she asked her mom, ”’Nera?” They could bring her sister friend here to play too right?

of the wives and the sons and the daughters.

Water slapped Saga across the maw as Marrah landed, prompting another round of giggles before the child began taking advantage of her new splashing abilities. Careful not to send too big of a wave, the mother dipped her nose into the water and with a single, sharp flick of her nose sent a wave of her own toward her daughter. These precious moments wouldn't last forever. Someday she would wake up to find her kids had all grown, and thoughts of splashing around in puddles gone, but today was not that day, and she planned on soaking up every single second she had until then.

To Marrah's question, Saga could only nod. "Of course. Next time we will bring Nera." Perhaps she could even goad Rhae into coming.

(fade)