Light the Night

Malachi could still feel the remnants of the howl in his throat as Njal addressed them. As the youth pried his eyes from the Glacier still burning at his alpha's back he caught Njal's gaze, and Malachi diverted his own with a bow of his head. He felt no shame in submitting to Njal, but rather found peace in the motion: to have one to submit to meant he had a place to call home. Malachi felt a stab in his chest as Njal pressed his nose into Tuwawi's fur, imagining again his own parents in their place.

And then it was over: Njal and Tuwawi padded off with their pups, and the remaining adults either split or followed. Malachi swept his gaze around the clearing and tried to commit each wolf's scent to memory. Then, he loped after the alpha pair momentarily before splitting from their small caravan to find shelter under the mountain's trees. Hope and sorrow muddled his thoughts, but sleep numbed them both as he curled up on the forest floor to rest. Tomorrow would be a new day and a new start for every wolf, and he would embrace it with everything he had.