Valley of Gold i wear my soul on my sleeve at night

ever since foxglove and dusty rose had come back, dahlia had doubled down on her efforts to be the whole pack's favorite child. she shelved all suspicions about her less familiar packmates and abused her sister only in private (although, she still lacked the subtlety of an adult and was not as sneaky as she thought she was).

today, she slept until the sun was high, then set about finding @Dusty Rose.

His love was not so fickle that one could oust another from their place in his heart. But it was his fatherly duty to encourage good behavior, and the ways he did so likely easy to confuse with love. And it was Dahlia who received much of his praise and attention, lately, as she was demonstrating most that she was a proper coyote who would one day rule her little corner of the wilds.

He was pleased to see her when she showed up. Perhaps it was easy to confuse her behavior of love as well, and the coywolf liked few things better than being loved.

"Hey, squeaker!" he called out, hailing her. "Come look at this!"

she loved it when he called her squeaker. it was something just the two of them had. it didn’t matter to her that dusty had something special with the other kids, too — if she even knew about their secret nicknames. it just mattered that she was squeaker, and nobody else. 

her tail end wagged eagerly as she ran up to him; with anyone else, she may have stuck her face directly into whatever she was being beckoned towards, but she swelled beneath his pride and paused to linger there instead.

It was good she didn't stick her nose right in it. Probably even better that Dusty Rose still stood a ways off from the point of interest.

"Listen," he said, sotto voce, one ear cupped toward the offending buzz. "You hear that?"

There was a scent, too — something hot and heavy. Damp earth made sweet by an unearthly drip. Honey. Something Dusty Rose had tasted only once in his life, thanks to the efforts of his loving father. He wasn't sure he was up for the same effort today.

"That sound means something dangerous," he told her, his voice serious. "I'm gonna show you and you'll be safe with me, but we gotta be ready to run, just in case. Got it?"

there is some thrill about the threat of danger, in the discontented drone that comes from underground. the little girl’s demeanor turns. suddenly, she is serious, and well behaved. 

i can always run. an ode to her boundless energy, and her ability to take directions. 

she waited for his next move.