Spring had come back and found me laying outside my new den, resting after a long morning. My paws were still covered in dirt after I had dug out a brand new place for me, and only me, to sleep at night. Mom had taken off with some male that had come and swept her off her paws, saying that she needed a vacation and that Athena and I were old enough to take care of ourselves. Well, good riddance. She was right, however. I could take care of myself and as soon as the winter thaw made the ground easier to dig out, I went to work building myself a den. It wasn’t anything as spectacular as the one Mom had, but it didn’t smell like rotting herbs and it was mine. Built into the side of a large hill and carefully hidden behind a thicket of bushes, it was the perfect place for me to go when I needed some me time. Which was most of the time.
The spring sun was warm on my white pelt and soon, it had lulled me into a nice, semi-sleep that allowed me to nap peacefully. A few hours later, I woke up to the disgusting mud now dried and caked to my paws. Gross!! Whining, I thought about licking them clean but decided against it. Nothing tasted worse than dirt, except for berries. Ew, don’t even get me started on those nasty, bitter things. Looking around, I could see the stream that ran through Asteraia not too far away, so I stood up and made my way there.
Cold! The water was so cold and I danced on the river rocks as I waited for the frigid liquid to wash away the dirt. When I was satisfied my paws were both clean and frozen solid, I darted out of the river and quickly licked the warmth back to them. I had such cute, little paws! Oh, but I must look a mess too. Returning to the river bank, I stared down at my reflection and was greeted by my own pale, blue eyes. What a lovely creature. The perfection clear on my face, despite my smaller size. I never told anyone I had been the runt of the littler, but was obvious when I was compared to my sister. Athena was a monster of a wolf and she sort of looked like it. I love my sister, but she was nothing like me. I should go see her more, but she was hardly ever around much.
My personal grooming finished, I continued to rest next to the stream, enjoying the sound of the running water. But I was alone. I didn’t really like being alone. Who else would marvel in my beauty if I was alone? Perhaps I would go and find someone to talk to in a minute. For now, I wanted to look at my reflection one more time before moving off towards the center of the pack. I really am such a pretty wolf, aren’t I?