Her breath hangs white in the moonlight, curling into the cold. She wanders from her mother’s side, indifferent to the dangers of walking alone at night. A distant wolf cry sends a shiver of excited fear and curiosity up her pale spine. She takes a hurried glance at her mother. Satisfied that her guardian still sleeps, Minu slips from the shelter of the herd towards the outer edges of the meadow.
The white of her coat gleams like starlight, young and bright. But she is not the only speck of moondust that glimmers this night. Something flits around the edge of her field of vision, but when she turns her head to see, there is nothing but the yawning black mouth of pine tree and mountain. She searches the shadow for a moment, her mismatched gaze wide with the delight of being where she should not be.
Then, suddenly, she isn’t so alone. A soft “oh” escapes her lips as she turns her head to resume her midnight escapade, nearly bumping into the golden creature that stands where there had been emptiness only a moment before.
Minu tilts her head, her mismatched eyes only enhancing the display. Her father has many children, but this one she does not recognize.
Minu smiles wickedly, scampering fleet footedly around the glowing star, kicking once or twice at the empty air. Surely this night was made for reveling in the moonlight.
m a j d a
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