A Wolf Called Molly

The earth beneath the fallen cedar was cold and damp, but it was the only hollow left in the plains that didn't carry Fang's suffocating scent.

Sarah rested her chin on her paws, her rich brown fur matted with dried mud and pine needles. Her sharp, purple-hued eyes scanned the treeline through the thick curtain of moss hanging over the den's entrance.

Beside her, Molly squirmed. her tiny, fuzzy grey body a blur of boundless, restless energy. The pup pounced on a stray leaf, her striking, bright pink eyes glowing in the dim shade as she let out a muffled, high-pitched growl.

Molly was too young to understand why they were hiding in the dirt instead of running with the pack.

She didn't know about William, or why her father couldn't protect them anymore, or how Fang’s jaw had snapped with lethal intent when he was denied leadership. To Molly, the warm, sunny plain was just a giant playground waiting to be explored.

A sharp cramp twisted in Sarah’s stomach, a harsh reminder that her ribs were showing and her milk was running dry. She couldn't afford to wait any longer.

Nudging Molly back toward the dark rear of the burrow, Sarah pressed her nose firmly against the small pup’s head.

Molly let out a soft yip, tail thumping against the packed dirt as she nipped playfully at Sarah’s snout.

"Listen to me, little one," Sarah whispered, her purple eyes locking onto Molly's pink ones with desperate intensity. "You do not cross into the light. You do not peak outside. No matter what sound the wind makes, no matter who calls your name. You stay hidden in the dark."

Molly tilted her head, her ears twitching as she let out a confused whine, sensing the heavy shift in her mother's tone.

Sarah didn't give her time to protest. Bending low, the brown wolf slunk through the hanging moss and stepped into the open air. She paused for a single breath, her fur bristling as she tested the breeze for any sign of Fang, before vanishing into the shadows, leaving the tiny grey pup alone in the quiet den.

The dark rear of the burrow grew colder by the minute, filled only with the faint scent of damp earth and the memory of Sarah’s fur.

Molly fidgeted, her tiny grey tail giving a hopeful flick every time the wind rustled the curtain of moss overhead. She waited for the familiar nudge of her mother's nose, but the shadows stayed still, empty and heavy.

A sliver of brilliant sunlight cut through the hanging greenery, carrying with it a spark of motion.

A butterfly, wings glowing a vivid, sapphire blue, fluttered lazily into the clearing just beyond the den's mouth. It hovered for a fleeting second before settling upon the pink petal of a wild lilly.

Molly's eyes went wide. The strict warning in her Mother's voice echoed faintly in her mind, but the glowing blue intruder was far too captivating to ignore. She squirmed closer to the entrance, her nose twitching as she sniffed the warm, open air.

The light didn't feel dangerous, it felt like an invitation.

Taking a cautious step forward, her tiny paws pressed into the soft soil outside the burrow. The moss blew over her back like a whisper.

'Just one pounce.' She thought, her tiny body crouching low.

She took another creeping step, her focus entirely locked onto the shimmering blue wings resting on the flower. But just as her hind legs coiled to spring, the butterfly unfurled its wings and took to the air, dancing upward into the breeze. Molly let out a high-pitched, frustrated squeak and lunged forward, missing the flower entirely. The butterfly drifted higher, floating past a cedar tree and toward the tall grass of the open plain.

Forgetting the shadows,

Forgetting her mother’s plea to stay hidden,

The small grey pup tumbled into the bright sunlight, chasing a flash of blue deeper into the unknown.