We were too young, too little, and Mother couldn't hunt for herself in such an exhausted state. Leaf died after the second day, Fern the third. Mother fed me, Current and Pine, growing thinner and thinner. Her milk soon dried out with no nourishment.
     Pine lived through almost all of the cold season, but he always was sickly and died from a racking cough that kept us awake for days. It was a miracle he survived so long.
     Mother named all of us after our pack. Silen was the alpha, calm and commanding. Leaf and Fern were Mother's litter mates. Mother's name was Maple. Current was Father's littermate. There were only two pups, Father and Current, that survived. Fathers name was Swift.
    Current takes another swipe at me the instant Mother closes her eyes. I growl back and leap on top of Current, forcing all my weight onto his little body. He squirms and paws at my nose, leaving a faint dent. I yelp and he wriggles out from under me, braced in a fighting position. He lunges to the left and so do I, rearing up so that I am taller than him. I plunge down on top of him and give him a few swipes, pressing down his back legs so he can't swipe at me. He arches his back and flings upward, twisting to the side so he doesn't have to bear my whole weight. We tussle around for a while, careful not to bump into Mother.
    We get tired of playing and I lean my head against Mothers warm flanks. She must be really tired to just sleep without cleansing the rabbit blood flecked around her muzzle. Mother always gives us enough licks to eat a deer. I snuggle against Mothers side and instantly I'm jabbed by something. Does Mother have a thorn? I sniff around for a while, but I can't find it. I grunt as adult wolf as I can and scamper over to Current, snoring peacefully. I resist the urge to poke him. Mothers soft snores are too close to fight.
    I feel another sharp poke and I grumble, searching for the invisible thorn. It's not until I back up a little until I realize it's Mothers bones. I never knew she was so thin. I look up and down her enormous body, seeing things I've never seen before. I never knew she had silver ear tips, or white along her spine. I scramble up a incline in the floor and jump, relishing at how tiny Current looks and how big I feel. I jump, soaring over the rise in the floor and towards Mother. I crouch low, leaning against Mothers white belly fur so I don't have to sleep against bones. I settle down against Current and slowly drift off to sleep.