Her brooding is short-lived when dearest Judah appears, shuffling up beside her and making a reach for her rock. Hi Ju, she doesn't hesitate for long before she noses it over to him, a soft smile gracing her features. She knew it would make him happy; and her family being happy made her happy!
She was pleased to get time with him without Kai breathing down his neck, although instinctively, she looks over her shoulder in search of him should the other ash-coated twin rain on her parade. However, it wasn't for long — the coast is decidedly clear. She watches Judah with big round eyes, and her tender little heart soars.
That rock is kinda lame, she snorts, resting her head between her now empty forepaws. we could go get a better one. A smirk toys at her mouth, eyebrows raised; the real question was if he would accept and go with her.

Out there! She exclaims, eagerly pointing to the foothills outside the den with a raise of her snout. I know aaaaaall the best rock-finding spots. I'm the best forager, don't'cha know? the mischievous grin grows, snaking up to crinkle her eyes at the edges and bring roundness to her cheeks.
She considers it for a moment — was he still frightened by the outdoors? You don't gotta be scared, she says, then, voice lowered to a gentle tone. I'll protect you. Jus' follow my lead, yeah? she rises to a stand, nudging her brother's shoulder with the tip of a cold little nose and a happy beat of her tail.

He is not scared, and it's because of her.
Her heart swells. A beaming milkteeth smile so wide it flushes her dimpled cheeks, and a hearty, mischievous giggle flutters from deep in her chest.
She guides him shoulder-to-shoulder out into the sunbathed Isle, the rolling reed-laden foothills and the saltsea that awaits them just on the other side of them. What color rock do you want? she inquires, pace slowing, ears quirked. I wanna find a big white one with a li'l black stripe on it. Like you!
Her nose finds his cheek as she gives it a gentle, but excited bump. Look how far we are from the den! One paw outstretched, she gestures to the great big Isle in all its God-given glory. She didn't know if Judah had ever been this far out; but either way, she felt great pride! Thank God for His strength, the strength that now found Judah! You're doin' it!

Gray? Gray! Okay!
That shouldn't be too hard to find! There were many gray rocks, and all kinds of shades, too! Silver, ash, pale, slate, soot, warm, cool — some gray rocks had patterns, others were smooth. She'd now made it her mission to find the best gray rock ever.
The shoreline is a long stretch of white sand and murky blue oceanwater, with waves that peel back and clap against your feet and make you feel like you're being swept away. Eagerly, she romps right up to the coast where the very edge of foam-flecked sea touches the earth.
Sometimes the ocean washes up cool things, like gray rocks, she invites Judah closer with a stretch of her paw outward. the water might tickle though. Stand close to me!

Dinah stares down at her feet as the first foam bubbles reach her ankles. The water is a shock of cold to her system, and she lets out a whoop of excitement. It's freezing!
When the tide pulls back again, she sees something — a little spiral seashell, ribbed and patterned with silver stripes against a dark gray body. Look! it wasn't a rock, but it was gray!
She leans down to nestle it between her teeth, just as another wave begins to descend upon them. She's too late to notice it; her eyes squeeze shut as her face is dunked in a bath of saltwater. She crouches beneath the pressure as the sand at her paws ripples and moves with the tide. It feels a bit like she's being sucked in with it!
But instead of being afraid, she is exhilarated, and a laugh billows from deep in her chest. Her head swivels to Judah, wild eyed. You okay?

Judah has prevailed through the wrath of the sea, even as Dinah drips with a coating of briny water and flecks of white foam. Her eyes crinkle as she opens her mouth to present her gift; the little gray shell that which she saved from being swept away!
But then her glee melts into concern. He is concerned. I'm okay! Look! she whirls around in a little dance, kicking wet sand up behind her as she lopes toward him and careens into his side, the shell dropped safely where the tide cannot reach it. She didn't want to give him a heart attack; not today, not ever.
Her lip juts out as she lowers her head to examine it once more, turning her head to gauge his reaction. Do you like it? It's gray, but it's not a rock.

He likes it! Dinah is overjoyed, ears splayed outward as she stumbles with the force of his embrace. Her eyes flutter closed, and silently, she revels in the connection.
Her brother, her wonderful brother; in a time where so much else seemed fruitless, where the world slung curveballs at her and yapped at her to duck much too late for her to be able to; where the stability she once thought she knew wavered and changed with the tide and the color of leaves; through all the confusion and worry and anger and time whizzing by much too fast for her to keep up with, she still had him. And never would that change, she thinks, as her nose is buried in the briny scruff of his neck. I love you too, Juju.
But he pulls away all too soon, and she watches as he begins his own exploration of her latest treasure. When his tongue pokes out, she giggles, and when he stares with bright eyes blown wide, she stares back. You wanna find another one?

Dinah was almost sure they both went through all seven stages of grief in a matter of moments. She watches, slack-jawed, as Judah so valiantly leaps right for the current — oh, how proud she was! — until she then notices the burling roar of water that stood as tall as his head. She hadn't the time to warn him.
Within seconds, she is at his side. Oh, shat! Towhee's influence is strong as she hurtles the expletive in an oh-so incorrect fashion, brushing her paws over his face and haplessly pressing her tongue to his muzzle to ensure he is breathing. Are you okay? Oh my gosh, dude!
She hadn't even noticed that his present for her had been lost.

In truth, Dinah is just happy to see Judah has not been turned to mush by the current. Jude, she sweeps him into a big embrace, muzzle wedged into the space between his batty ears. She hears the coolness of his voice, the crestfallen turn. you don't gotta like it just because I do. I like getting you gifts. But the ocean can be scary too.
She pauses momentarily to blow sand particles from her nostrils. There's other stuff, like, um, her eyes dance up to the little black birds and big white gulls just a hair further up the beach, pecking at something on the ground. you could be a bird-hunter! Or, um, another glance, this time in the direction of the greenhills. you could be the big scary protector! Keep bad guys away from us.
But no matter what, Dinah would love him all the same, she thinks, and there is nothing that could take that from her. I still think you're cool.

He thinks she's cool, and that very sentiment brings an array of giggles from her chest. I'm not that cool, her teeth poke from her lips in a jagged grin of mismatched teeth. I can think of a bajillion people cooler than me! Like Gramma Towhee! She's cool.
And so too was Judah; righteously devoted to God above, devout and honest in his love; facing new fears every day. He was not the shivering little boy she first knew him to be, but a proud, smiling young man who takes the ocean head on, and that was cooler than anything she could think of.
Hmmmmmmmmm, she hums, moving to idly brush more sand from the wire at his nape. I wanna study the world! The plants n' rocks, n' stuff. And the stars, she tilts her head upward to the swath of silver sky above. did you know there's patterns in 'em?! I see it at night when there's no clouds!
There were so many things she could choose to be, to specialize in; but born from God's Earth she was, and to know all of His creations would be her greatest honor. Maybe we could learn about the stars together!

I'onno, Dinah mumbles. I think maybe they're little gifts from God. To help us see at night.
She parts from her brother's form for only a moment to pace further along the wet saltshore, flopping firmly at the hilt of the sand in a bow before coming into a full lay. They needed to dry off before they tracked muck up into the den again.
I wonder what God made the patterns in 'em for. Maybe to tell us things about ourselves! Like, if we see a certain one at a certain time, she reaches a briny paw outward in search of Judah, and for a fleeting moment, she considers staying like this forever. like secret messages.

We'll learn 'em together!
Together. Forever and always.
Dinah flashes him a big, corny grin, shaking away the sand that coats her legs and belly. She wonders what the stars would say about their future, about where they'll be when they grow up. Who they'll be.
It seems so far away, so nonsensical, the idea of them parting ways to form families of their own. To only see each other on special occasions instead of waking up side by side every morning, to shed the skin of downy fur and toothless smiles, of high-pitched laughter and biting at ocean waves. Of Mama and Daddy growing old; of future children with each other's eyes.
Would the stars tell them good things?
We'll come back tonight.
And she would, she thought; she would stare at the curve of Judah's cheek, bluelit from the moon, and she hopes he will find love in the constellations.