Blacktail Deer Plateau Family matters

Mou sank to his haunches as Vesper fidgeted and rolled, and when he saw her next she was all legs. She resembled his lost son so greatly in that moment; the same dark coat, the same abundance of energy — at least until he had grown older and begun to suffer through sleeplessness, which curtailed all of Hypnos' childish antics. The memory of his son hit him hard, and Mou felt a weight in his chest.

He staved off the worst of his regret before it could snare him. The day was young, there was no taste of smoke to the air here, no ash falling upon the plateau (or in his mind's eye), only the happy, playful girl with an entire life ahead of her.

With a little snort, Mou dove nose-first towards the girl's exposed belly and lightly grazed at the fur there, or at her toes, or reaching for her tail. Little touches and playful antics to keep her entertained.