Sun Mote Copse Can the child within my heart rise above

It was Meerkat's favorite time of day (second only to lunchtime): time to go! She bounded excitedly at Towhee's side as the Regent led her away from the den site, taking the puppy on her daily venture through the copse. They wandered further afield every day, though still hadn't strayed much beyond the heart of the territory. Of course, little Meerkat didn't really realize any of this. Her world grew a little bigger every day but she was still too young to grasp the true scope of the wilderness.

Her mother fell a little behind, ever watchful but giving Meerkat some space to explore on her own. The puppy happily zoomed ahead, her nose to the ground and her little tail in the air, whipping back and forth. She spotted Fennec first and immediately burst into a sprint toward her older sister. She did not yet grasp Fen's blindness any more than she did her mother's (or her own partial) deafness, though the happy whimpers and thumping of her paws hopefully gave the yearling some warning.

-"FEN!"- the youngster greeted, signing enthusiastically since she didn't know any better. She none too gently headbutted her sister's shoulder, like an overenthusiastic cat. -"HI, FEN!"-