Nayru had slept soundly throughout the night, her belly full for the first time in days and her sore feet finally stilled. Conor had been very kind and accommodating the day before, he had told her a bit about the pack and her place here but she had asked nothing of him. And when he woke and left in the morning, she rolled over and went back to bed after mumbling something about being good and not going too far from his home. Her sleep took her far into the afternoon, her tiny muscles relishing in the rest, her mind soaking in the silence. Of course she dreamt, but it was not of her parents or sisters or back home or even Conor and all the new wolves she might meet. It was the white lady again, her navy eyes constantly peering at and following Nayru through her dream world, reprimanding her now and then when she took a wrong turn, said the wrong thing, or thought the wrong thing. Only when she was dreaming could the white lady really read Nayru's heart, but in the short time they had spent together the grandmother wolf had learned to read the girl pretty well. And Nayru knew even in her dreams that this woman was wise, worth listening to.
Only when the sun beat too strongly against her lidded eyes did Nayru finally stir, the images of the white lady falling away as Nayru struggled to remember where she was. Conor's house. Woozily she brought herself to her feet, peering about the room as if, like in her sleep, it might suddenly vanish and she would be swept away to somewhere else. When the room stayed stable and Nayru was certain she was in the waking world she stumbled over to the food left for her that morning, ate her meal and turned towards the door. For a moment her intentions wavered. What exactly was out there? The black and white splashed pup could remember only vaguely what they had passed on their way here yesterday, she hadn’t stepped outside since. Inhaling, as if to take a dive underwater where the air was scarce, she burst out into the world.
The world was just as she left it. Grass on the ground and clouds in the sky, nothing had really changed since the day before and this comforted Nayru, who took a few tentative steps away from the haven Conor had brought her to. When those steps away from the house brought no harm, she took a few more, turning back to see if suddenly anyone would appear, beckoning her back. No one appeared and she took a few more steps away. When she was far enough away, still able to see it of course, she paused. There. That was done. Now what? Nayru did really want to go much further, she didn’t know where to go. The pack was safe, or it should be. Still, it was best to wait for instructions, and the dream child seated herself easily, cherry eyes wandering up to the sky. It was at least a nice day for sitting.
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