.ೃ࿐thea

under the light of the newly lit moon, lay a rather large canine. her pelt scuffed with dirt and grime, leaves and twigs tucked in between patches of fur. nestled by her belly lay three wriggling bodies, each their own color.

one, the largest of the three, was a light ginger in color, stripes of deep auburn tucked away between his shoulder blades and hip bones. the second, a deep brown in color, rich in the color of not chocolate, but charcoal. the third, a darker version of his mother with brighter blue shading along his spine and tail.

the mother looked at her pups gently, wishing silently that these three would have long and happy lives, with, or without her. that they would find happiness within whatever path in life they chose to follow. that of a hunter- who provided food for the pack, that of a healer- who's expertise was found extremely helpful in times of battle, or that of an outcast- one who ran from home wishing to find something greater.

licking the tops of their heads, her promise swore to the new moon, glistening and shining romantically down on the three new souls. "i promise," she murmured, more to herself than to her brave sleeping pups, "no matter what home you find, i will always love you, no matter what."

that night when the gentle rustling of the forest above and beyond her stirred, she knew the names of her three pups. those that would become the best any wolf has ever seen.

tabby cat, after the slick and shimmering gold feline she had seen running across the forest floor, trying to escape the wolf lying near. thunder, after the distant rumble she heard reach her ears moments after her look-a-like was born. and smoke, for the putrid smell that filled her nose and blinded all of her senses moments after her beautiful ones, also for the color of his pelt. that deep black color, more beautiful and unique than any other color she had seen before.

under the glow of the moonlight, the mother had no idea of what power she had just unleashed. the horror, the love, the heartbreak, that she would endure with these three brothers at hand. for one had orange eyes, the color of the sun setting on the horizon, one had blue eyes, the color of the sky when it was a warm and gorgeous day, and one had brown eyes, almost like the color of soot filling the air after a terrible fire.