WC 540
She beamed with pride as she watched her brother’s reaction to his first birthday gift from her. As he lit up in awe of the bauble (though that was far too insignificant of a word to call the item) she brightened in happiness. She knew he would like it, but sometimes you’re never quite positive until you see someone’s reaction to their present. “You like it? I’m so glad!” She marveled as she took his wrist and knotted the thong, then stepped back for a moment to admire the stunning ornament.
“You’re welcome!” She leaped into his arms and exchanged a tight embrace, and even when it seemed they should break she still held on to her brother for a few minutes more. It seemed that for so long, this was all they could do – hold on to each other – but now everything was different. Everything was so wonderful, here in the Northern lands, and they were really celebrating their first birthday at peace! The emotion welled up inside her and pooled at the corners of her eyes, but she grinned against her tears and when they finally ended their hug, she dabbed gently at her eyes before they could fall. She giggled lightly, feeling a bit foolish. “I’m sorry, it’s just. . .” but she didn’t finish; she didn’t have to. She knew Niro felt it, too, there was no way he couldn’t. He had done so much fighting for them in the past, he was now finally able to rest and take some time to get in touch with himself. That place they came from would have eventually robbed her of Niro, if not by death then because its seasons of abuse are enough to harden and destroy even the strongest, noblest of Souls. . . Souls just like her brother.
She took a deep breath, and soon enough the urge to burst into happy tears abated. “It’s crazy, isn’t it? That after all we’ve been through . . . It’s a wonder we even made it to our first birthday, let alone are here!” She made a gesture with her hand.
“Eat cake, silly!” She hopped over to the desk and snatched the plate off of it, holding the mini-cake out to him. It was just big enough for the both of them to have a very generous slice, minus the chunk Orin had already scooped out of it with her fingers. “Sorry, I forgot forks.” She shrugged as she apologized; digging in with bare hands would be no problem for her. She was certainly no girly-girl that couldn’t handle a cake just because there were no utensils. After all, wolves were not meant to eat with utensils . . . not even werewolves. She scooped another bite and stuffed it into her mouth.
“Ooh! I know,” she turned and headed for the door before Niro could take a taste of the cake. “Lets go to the great hall and see if the fire’s still going. I’m sure there’s a few more treats around here we could rustle up, too. Hey! Let’s stay up all day today! That way we’ll know everything that happened on our birthday!” Her voice trailed off as she pattered out the door.