Cloud's words were faint, her voice growing quiet as she recounted the tale in her vacant eyes. "The story starts with two wolves, growing up together in the sky. Not made of flesh and blood like us, but formed from dust in the dark expanse above. One called Sol, and the other, Luna."

My ears straightened, and I locked my eyes on her muzzle. Those very words, I'd heard them before.

"The two were so different," she said, "yet so alike. Sol was a wolf of brightness, joy, excitement, and love. Luna was the opposite, shy and content on her own. But she couldn't help but be drawn to Sol's glow. She noticed the changes he made in her, the way he shared his light and it bounced off her fur. It made her bright too."

Cloud paused for a moment. "Sol would give every drop of light he had to make her happy, and Luna, she shed her darkness like a second pelt." Then, her voice grew quiet. "Until Luna grew ill. With pups in her belly, she lay in her twilight den, growing weaker as the days went by.

"Sol set off alone in a desperate attempt to find her a cure. But there was nothing in the empty sky that would help her, so he turned to the earth. It was a place that neither wolf knew much about, or ever dared to go. He wasn't sure if he could even make it, an expanse of nothing between the clouds and the darkened soil on the other side." Cloud clawed the earth beneath her paws, the brown crumbling between her toes.

I closed my eyes, and warmth tugged at my chest. The feeling swaddled me, and the gentle pulse of their bodies pressed against my sides. Heartbeats filled my ears, like small, rhythmic footsteps. Blood pumped through their veins, the same blood as mine.

A single heart thundered even louder, like the beastly storms that roared from outside. My head lay against her belly. A thick layer of fur was the only thing between my ears and the life-giving stomp inside. I curled up in her snug and silky coat, letting the sweet scent of milk fill my nose and remind me fondly of my full belly. I took in the dark and hazy sights, but all I could see were her deep brown eyes, glowing with something she called love.

"But Sol wouldn't let anything get in his way," her soft voice thrummed. "With his eyes shut tightly, he soared down from the clouds with a mighty leap." Growing in volume and pitch, it paused at its peak. My tail tapped the ground, and the tense silence crumbled with the echo of my siblings' eager wags. "And he landed on the earth. Safe and sound." She released the breath she'd been holding, a long sigh of relief.

Safe. Just like we were with our mother, who cuddled our hearts with gentle words. Even playing with my littermates, rolling around in yipping laughter, or piling together with their soft and cozy forms––it couldn't make me happier than breathing in her scent, listening to her soothing stories, and feeling her affection with a tender tongue.

"But as for Luna..." My attention snapped back to the deep, saddened softness of her tone. "Away from her love, her light began to dim. Her glow dwindled each night, sliver by sliver till a mere, curving glimmer was left in the sky."

It was strange to hear Mother speak of it with drooping ears, the source of the pale blue light that seeped into the den from the mouth of the tunnel. Usually, her voice was filled with awe and wonder. First there was a gentle hiss, followed by a sharp, cracking stone in the middle. She sighed the wide-lipped ending, and it faded into the air. I'd never seen it, but Mother said that it stood high above us all.

I whispered it beneath my breath, mimicking each sound of the strange and foreign place. "Sssss-k-yyyyy."

"Sol looked up from his place on the earth as it happened, watching her fade away." She stopped to lick her chops. "He longed to be by her side, knowing his mate didn't have much time. But still, he'd found no cure. He couldn't stop just yet.

"Light seeped from his fur as he ran, giving brightness to the soil, and to the seeds left in each of his pawprints. His tears watered the ground with each desperate bound. He ran around the entire world, leaving a trail of life in his path.

"He chased the horizon the whole day through, until finally he reached it. There, he found what he was looking for: a round flower with pale, glowing petals that bloomed in the nighttime. Just like Luna." Our amazement grew audible at the sound of something so beautiful, but Mother shushed us. "In his absence, darkness filled the sky," she said. "Only a dim light covered the ground, Luna's fading glow––and that of her newborn pups, who sparkled alongside her."

At the mention of her offspring, our ears perked in excitement. The story was always near its end when the pups were born. It meant that love had won, that happiness would fill our bellies with warmth.

Sol had the flower, it would all be okay.

"But as crept back up from the other side, he saw the last of her fleeting light."

The story wasn't over. Mother's meager tone told of another ending, one that wasn't so happy.

"Her light––it finally went out." Her voice faltered with a strange twinge, an unfamiliar feeling. "Sol hadn't been fast enough."

Worry twisted in my stomach. The wolves in the story always made it. What did it mean if they didn't?

"Luna fell to the earth," she said. "Her body held no warmth, no glow. She had returned to mere dust." Mother placed her muzzle around me as tears filled my eyes. What did she mean? Luna was... dead?

I'd only heard the word once, from my older sister the time she spoke of Father, when she buried her face and cried into Mother's fur. A memory that dug its claws deep into my mind. I didn't know what it meant, only that whenever it came, the wolf in its place was gone. Forever.

I began to cry as Mother pulled her head away. I tried to tell myself that it wasn't real, that it was only a story. But my heart still ached for the fallen wolf––and for the pups who'd grow up without their mother. I couldn't imagine not having her here.

"Sol ran to the side of his lifeless lover," she continued, gloom still growling in her voice. "He sobbed at her side, blaming himself for her..." The she-wolf's voice trailed with a sniffle. Before the sadness could well in her eyes in the form of wet and bitter droplets, she shook it away. "He didn't know what to do without her, how to raise pups on his own or live his life with this burden of darkness in his heart.

"But he had to. Like every wolf, he had to adapt to his trials, find a way to cope and survive. So he did." She dipped her nose with an adamant nod, and her tone grew hardened. "Sol carried his pups down from the sky, countless twinkling lights in the vast expanse above, and he raised them here on the earth. But Luna had never really left him. A sliver of her glow lived on in each pup, not only in their bodies, but also their hearts. Sol's light only grew brighter with the pride he had for them, the way they each reminded him of the wolf he would always love.

"To pay her respects, he buried her cinders deep in the earth, but planted the flower meant to save her high above in the clouds." Mother's voice fell to a whisper. It was like her heart ached with each word. "And every morning, he would leap up into the sky, and spend his day mourning her, watering her roots in the sky with his tears. And every night he would race around the bottom of the earth, allowing the night's shadows to fill the skies. Her flower would bloom in his dim absence, casting her pale light over the land.

"Over time, the curved petals of her flower wilt," she explained. "One by one they fall, as a reminder to each of her children that time is always passing, that it shouldn't be spent in vain or regret. Life is fleeting, but it doesn't mean we can't start again. Just like her flower blooms over and over, we know that light always lives on in another blossom.

"When we die, our bodies join the earth," she said, using the word I so despised. But the way she said it, there was no sadness, only calm and contentment. Like there was nothing wrong with death. "Sol grows flowers from the life in our flesh, but we're never really gone. The light we left behind, in everything we did, every wolf we loved––it's formed together in a single, glowing star. And each night, all of Luna's fallen children gather together to join their mother in the sky." Mother glanced upward, even though the only sight was the short roof of stone hanging over our heads. I imagined their glow there above us anyway, Luna and her children dancing in the air.

"They look over the flower in the times of darkness, so that we can always look to the stars and remember there's light. Just like a star, you will always glow brightly. The wolves around you will always look up and remember the way you shone in their hearts. You'll never burn out, for the stars connect us all."

Mother looked down at us as we yawned, begrudgingly accepting what had become of our story. The ending wasn't like any she'd told us before, and I wasn't sure if I could be happy with the way things were. I didn't want Luna to be gone.

Our drowsy demeanor had rubbed off on her, and Mother opened her jowls with a yawn. "Most of all, I thank them each day for the stars I've been given, in the form of three bundles of fur." She lowered her nose to my head, licking the fur between my ears. "First, there's my Drizzle. A drizzle of light in the shadows." Then, she reached her snout further behind me to nuzzle my sister. A giggle emerged from her muzzle, and Mother smiled. "And my Ripple, with sparks of happiness in every wave of laughter."

Then she turned to the smallest pup, curled at her flank. His small form was nearly lost in Mother's fur. "And finally, my Wade, my smallest, purest droplet of joy, who's still brave enough to face the water––no matter his size." Wade was already dozing, but she placed her tongue gently on his nose.

"Like Sol, I would give my everything to see you thrive. To help you find where you belong, knowing you'll bring light to every other wolf you meet." Her calm tone faded with a heavy breath, and another wave of sweet, warm safety washed over me. "I love you, my little stars."

"I l–uh–ve y–ou," I sputtered back, trying to imitate her sounds of affection. I reached up to lick her chin before returning my head to her fur, nestling deeper as I closed my eyes.

"Sweet dreams, pups."

My chest filled with deep, slumbering breaths, and darkness reclaimed my vision. I blinked away the haze, the image of my mother and siblings, finding a pale wolf in her place. Cloud turned her muzzle away from the stream, gazing at me with brows furrowed.

"That's pretty much it," she muttered. "Weird story, huh?"

I swallowed, still trying to ground my swirling mind back in the present. All I managed was a nod.

Cloud opened her muzzle to speak, but hesitated. "When we were pups, Mist told us that it held lessons we should always remember," she explained. "That's why she mentions them whenever we have a meal––why they're a part of a lot of things we do. It gives us something to be thankful for, and it reminds us of the sacrifice they made..." She swallowed. "For each other."

It took all I had to focus on her words, to keep my thoughts from spiraling back to my family and the questions that came with it. But there were questions about Cloud's family too, why she said "we" when she was sitting here alone. Why she muttered "us" with the same loss-filled eyes of my mother when speaking of Luna's sacrifice.

It reminded her of someone.

Her lips curled downward as something else blossomed in her silver irises. She blinked a couple times, water glistening on the surface of her eyes.

"Cloud?" I called. She didn't respond, dazed and distracted. I stood up and stepped closer. "Are you okay?"

This time, she jumped. "Huh?" Her pupils narrowed, and her gaze darted back and forth. "I'm sorry," she said, quickly getting to her paws. She wouldn't meet my eyes as she backed away from the stream.

"We need to go." Cloud whirled around to face the trail in the way we came. Without a word, she started walking, leaving my startled frame behind. I closed my gaping muzzle and followed.

The answers would have to wait, just like my own. But at least there was a spark, a drizzle of light in the darkness shrouding my past. I had a family, somewhere out there, at some point in my life. I'd been loved. I had a name. A home. 

It meant I could find another.

~★~

A/N

Hopefully you're liking the story so far, because I'm having an absolute blast with each chapter! Moments like these are my favorite to write, moments with closeness, cuteness and emotion. The little bit of world-building I get to do here is pretty cool too, and may play a larger role somewhere down the line...

Our wolf friend certainly needs some of this love right now, amidst all the questions and doubts about his future. At least he's found some temporary safety, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on what you think is next for him!

This chapter has a special dedication to a wonderful friend of mine, Blue, who absolutely adored this chapter way more than I thought it deserved. They have been an absolute star, providing wonderfully helpful feedback on my story since day one. A ton of credit for the current, and future, improvements goes right to them. I'm so thankful to have you as a reader and bookclub buddy!

Artwork by BlueStarrySky1