December 02, 2023, 06:28 PM
She couldn't go home. Not yet.
Carrying a slab of jadestone from the grotto, she set it on the edge of the shore. Starlight reflected the green glow. The brine gently lapped against her paws.
It was early winter, and yet the Sound was untouched by snow.
@Caiaphas.
Astera repeated the name of the wolf she owed so much to. None of it was supposed to happen. Miette getting lost, Astera's oceanside accident. But life has a way of making things work out in the end. Even if that meant a ghost would reunite the two sisters.
She didn't know of the things Caiaphas had done. And even if she did, the ghost was redeemed all the same.
Redeemed. Free.
As she turned to leave, Astera thought she saw the last of gold light disappearing beyond the coast, into the horizon.
By morning, the jadestone was gone.