#atiena

Rowan skipped through the closest shadow back into Mama’s twilight realm. He came out in the forest and trotted happily through her ancient woods. All the things there were long dead, plant and animal species long extinct, but even the huge predators there were no danger to him. He was a better hunter than all of them anyway. Rowan slipped into Mama’s den and then galloped down the tunnel until he’d reached the main chamber where his mother rested.

“Mama!” the white wolf cried as he entered. With the human, Fox, there earlier they’d had to be professional, lest they be a distraction, but right now there was nobody to see. 

“Hello pup!” the goddess of death whuffed at him. She was laying down in her wolf shape, huge and dark-furred with captured stars shimmering in her coat, but upright and alert rather than resting. Rowan pranced up to her, his tail wagging, and she lowered her head so he could greet her by licking her chin and cheeks happily. She nuzzled him with her nose and he sat down in front of her, his tail still wagging.

“How goes your hunt, pup?” Mama asked him kindly.

“Slowly,” Rowan complained, “Fox is still figuring out how to navigate everything.”

Mama let out an amused huff, “She will get the hang of it before long, patience.”

“Patience is so hard, Mama!” Rowan whined and she laughed lightly.

“Oh I know, little one, but you’ll get better at it the more you practice, just like any skill. How are you getting along?”

“Rafa’s still on the fence about it,” Rowan huffed, although of course he knew his brother was just a grouch at heart, “You know how he is with new people, but Fox is nice! She showed us a hunting game.”

“Oh?” Mama hummed, “Tell me of this game of hers?”

Rowan nodded along to this, his tail brushing the packed earth of the floor, “She calls it ‘fetch.’ It’s a game where she throws something and we chase and capture it so we may return it to her.”

“Sounds familiar,” Mama said with a chuckle.

“It’s a dog’s game,” Rowan told her dryly, “I’ve seen it played before, but I always thought it looked like fun. It’s a good excuse to stretch my legs.”

“Dogs have their own wisdom,” Mama hummed in agreement, “They are simply wolves that saw an opportunity and took hold of it. A line as old as any other.”

“They chose the easy path,” Rowan pointed out, but Mama shook her head.

“A different path, it can be rewarding to form packs with humans and live off their spoils, but you know as well as I do the types of battery and suffering that they can endure. A dog left to starve, chained out in the weather, dies as much as a wolf in a scuffle over a carcass with a grizzly, and the death is far slower and more miserable.”

Rowan sighed, “Perhaps I am being unfair.”

“A little,” Mama teased, “tell me, who won your game, you or Rafa?”

“I won!” Rowan laughed, “Rafa got distracted and I stole the prey from him.”

“Oh, how quick of you!” Mama laughed in return, “Rafa was always easily distracted. What was the prey this time?”

Rowan laid down in front of his mother, his tail still swishing across the floor, “A pinecone, easy prey, even against Rafa.”

“What else have you been up to, pup, surely it’s not all waiting?” she asked him kindly.

“Hmm,” Rowan hummed, “Fox gives good scratches. She is not afraid of us at all, even though we could tear her apart. She’s brave…or perhaps foolish.”

“Ah, that sounds like fun,” Mama said, her tone light, “I’m glad you’re happy, pup, even with a slow chase like this.”

“Rafa thinks it’s undignified to accept the scratches, even though he can’t resist them either,” Rowan told her wryly.

“Always full of bluster that pup,” Mama chuckled, “Eventually he’ll learn life isn’t about depriving yourself.”

“Maybe someday. He’s a slow learner,” Rowan teased, only for Mama to nip his ear.

“Be nice,” she chided lightheartedly, “He’s clever, merely stubborn as a bull.”

“Far more stubborn than a bull,” Rowan agreed, “but he knows he’s full of it, he lets Fox scratch him even while speaking ill of it. He pouts, but he likes the attention.”

“Who wouldn’t?” Mama asked cheerfully, “he has not bitten her?”

Rowan laughed, “Not even close! Worst he does is glare, he hasn't even growled at her!”

Mama laughed with him, her great tail swishing and brushing up a cloud of dust, “Ah he is having a good time then! My ridiculous grouchy pup, normally he snaps at everyone.”

“I think he is taking our duties very seriously,” Rowan confided, “We haven’t even started the chase yet but he is so vigilant.”

“As he should be, this is a serious matter,” Mama hummed, “and I would not put it past the Prince in White to try and take Fox back. The elf lords are the epitome of entitlement. They do not realize that if they do not defend what is theirs, it will be stolen.”

“Fae always think the world turns on words,” Rowan agreed and Mama nodded her head.

“‘Civilized,’ they call it. The magics they weave in their words are powerful, but they cannot withstand tooth and claw. They think themselves immortal, but it is merely arrogance. I will take them as surely as any other. I am very patient.”

“All prey falls before you, Mama,” Rowan praised and Mama nuzzled her nose into Rowan’s side affectionately.

“Always such flattery from you,” she teased.

“Of course,” Rowan yipped, “You created me, how could I not love you?”

Mama smiled at him warmly, but then nudged him to his feet, “I love you too, pup, thank you for visiting, but Rafa will pout terribly if he’s left too long. You should return to your hunt.”

“We will find the prey before long,” Rowan assured her and she nodded.

“I trust you will, but remember, patience. This prey is not easily caught, better to be careful than make mistakes in your excitement.”

Rowan nodded, “Of course, Mama. I will send Rafa to visit you if this goes on for another week, it’s his turn.”

“Good, hunt well, pup,” Mama said, nudging him again towards the exit, although not without giving him a lick that mussed his fur.

Rowan barked in acknowledgment and then took off, back into the forest, back to his brother and Fox, back to the hunt. This was a good one, challenging, but they would not disappoint Mama, the kill would be theirs eventually. As she had said, patience.