Big Salmon Lake Laughing Fairies

The ochre-shaded wolf was getting fond of the open fields. One could travel dozens of miles padding on pale grass having the wind for a compass and the distant shades of the mountains for company.

For a long time, Akari shivered with the idea of being left alone with her thoughts. Her mind was obscured by bad memories and choices she only wished to undo. But if there's one thing an errant way of life teaches you is that everything in the world is ephemeral: all things come and go, like the wind, like the rain, like herself. And her sorrows and her dreams.

Akari felt a dampness in the air, guiding her to a water source. The scent of bears was ominous. The lake ahead was full of signs of being trampled by these enormous predators, that sought out these waters at this time of the year to devour the  fattest parts of the salmon, as they raced against time to gain weight for the winter.
She scavenged what little she could, trying not to linger any longer than necessary.

She followed the river that fed the lake, stopping from time to time to quench her thirst. The clear water mingled with the mist and its turbulent flow was the only sound echoing around the riverbanks. Akari allowed herself to be drawn into the landscape, detached from everything: her spirit was pried open, her heartbeat counting the seconds, holding on to the moment.

And then, suddenly, she spotted another wolf, its brightly-colored pelt fighting the haze. A female whose jade eyes were mesmerisingly beautiful, so warm, and yet so full of water. The she-wolf wasn't a loner, like Akari: her body carried the scent of others. She belongs to a pack. Which only added to the feeling of loneliness that was imprinted in her eyes.

Akari lifted her tail and waved it slightly, in a shy greeting, hoping that the other female wouldn't take it as an invasion of privacy.