Ouroboros Spine you know you're on my mind

While Nantahala was blessed with the most powerful lungs, little Lariat possessed perhaps the most impressive gift of all: patience. Often would she let her sisters use her as a fuzzy climbing frame, accepting the playful bats of their paws with sweet giggles of her own. It was only when they interrupted her most important tasks of eating and napping that she drew the line.

Momma was absent today, but daddy was here. And Yuralria had discovered something fascinating. Shapes and colours swirled in a blurry kaleidoscope - nestled in the furs of his tail, her father's soft breath was followed by a squint of her newly-opened eyes. The thistledown girl lay on her back, mouth ajar in the shape of an "o" as she gazed in awe at the suddenly very exciting den ceiling.