Part of her wanted to revert back to her old ways. She yearned to lunge forward, speed along with the pups and join the dog-pile. In fact, she was quite proud of just how much of her urged her to be reckless and leap onto her unsuspecting brother once again. Yet something held her back, and it was more than just the motherly worry that she might jump right on the pile and crush one of her little darlings.
Still, this was the first genuine smile that Orin felt in a long time. It pulled the corners of her mouth and even reflected in the sparkle of her eyes, a luster that was dulled but still lurked somewhere, just beneath the surface. It wound only take one prince, one hero, one adventure, to polish it up again. And before her was something so beautiful, something she never thought she would see again. A vision of pure hope...
She dueled with herself for a moment, half wanting to joing the fray, the other half wanting to stand there and enjoy this sight for eternity. But finally something set her in motion; and she was pretty sure it was the thought of just how sopping wet and muddy her pups were getting. Oh, motherhood, what a way to ruin the fun. Still, she had visions of trying to wash her light-toned and impatient daughters of the mud; visions that were not pretty.
Footpaws sloshing in the mud, Orin walked through the drizzle until she was near the churning mound of fur and slop. Despite the rain that leaked down on her from the clouds and the trees, the woman still had several brown splotches all over her body. She was not as muddy as her offspring; these were the remnants of the disguise she had worn to hide from the world. The roots of her hair were grown out a couple inches, though, exposing the white fur underneath, and the rain collected in her tresses, sticking them together in a vague mockery of the hairstyle she once wore.
“I have taught them well, don't you think?” She laughed, her voice barely cutting over the clucking, yipping, and random high-pitched words. Titania had a mouthful of her uncle's muddy fur; Juliet lunged for a tail but missed and nipped close to Jiva, an action that looked like it might set off a good tussle. “That's Titania,” she motioned, “and the one trying to eat that pup is Juliet.”
The fun was infectious, and although Orin could not break free and join the play, she did manage to scoop a handful of mud and slosh the watery ball towards her brother. Oh well, her daughters were as soaked as they were going to be by now.