Kaukab did not have a normal sleep cycle.

Hyperactivity followed by long periods of rest were to be expected of young pups—their brains were rapidly wiring themselves, synapses forming frantically in their little skulls, firing explosive bursts of information that would solidify while they dreamed. It was not odd to force a child to bed kicking and screaming, insisting he still had the energy to play, only for him to pass out in a few seconds. After that much-needed rest, the tyke should blink sleepily and wiggle awake . . . ready to go for another round all at once. That was the pattern of normal pups. But Kab . . . wasn’t normal. He still had plenty of growing to do, plenty of time for his mind to sort itself out and his body to understand its own shape, yet at this moment in time? If one had to judge him based on their initial impression? One word described Kaukab better than all the rest—weird.

No period of immature grumpiness and irritation preluded his exhaustion. Kaukab would simply drop on the spot, one moment chattering animatedly or chasing his tail and the next dead to the world wherever he’d fallen. The little star-spangled prince could fall asleep anywhere. Seriously. Anywhere. In ditches, under bushes, flat out in the open, draped over a log he’d been trying to climb over . . . it didn’t appear to matter to the innocent lad. Waking up happened just as abruptly as passing out. It was as if his dreams were merely a “pause button,” and opening his eyes reinitiated whatever he’d been trying to accomplish before dormancy. Most might consider it eerie, how clear his inquisitive mis-matched gaze seemed just seconds after yawning and standing upright.

When his mother’s low lyrics crooned into his ears, that’s precisely how Kaukab “turned on.” He stretched a bit to get the kinks out of his coltish legs; snuffled out a tiny sneeze to clear his nostrils of dust; thumped his brother on the back with a too-large forepaw, testing to see how alert Kenryk felt. Then he turned those gold-and-black portals expectantly toward his dam, fluffy tail wagging with excitement. “Good morning mama. It feels warm outside. What will we see today?”