Totoka River have faith in yourself.

two far flung stars at last colliding into their orbit. skaigona's a waning neutron star compressing in on itself, ava's a protostar arcing into its first breadth of life.

and skaigona's energy passing through ava like wind through a sieve. draining, draining, draining until at last --

all the warmth in her mother's fur could not hide the death on her breath.

ava pulled away at last, eyes searching. what had her mother gone through, and what now would she become?