Paws of Life

A story of a pack of dogs and one’s troubled past

(Spoilers, but necessary) content warning: panic attack, trauma, nightmares, familial death, faking injury

Tundra sat silently near a cliff edge. The sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon, the sky being set ablaze as it changed from black to orange. The chilly wind swept through Tundra's white and gray coat and she shivered in response. Her divine azure eyes shone in the sunlight. The forest was quiet at this time of morning. No other dog was around, just her and her thoughts. That was, until the Husky could sense the presence of a certain Samoyed coming from behind. Her closest friend out of the pack, Biscuit, sat down next to Tundra.

"Another nightmare?"

Tundra hung her head. "Yeah," she muttered. "I'm sorry for leaving the cave. I find this clearing calming after a nightmare."

Tundra dragged her paw in the Soll. Biscuit's bold lavender eyes grew soft and she put her paw on Tundra's.

"Remember, we're all here if you need to talk," Biscuit stated. Tundra nodded, grateful.

The sun had finished rising, the sky now a bright blue. The two dogs stood up before they both heard heavy panting from behind them. They turned to see Nova, a Border Collie, half the height of Tundra, running towards them. Her enchanting rose red eyes were bright with excitement as she skidded to a stop.

"Biscuit! Did you tell Tundra about the surprise yet?"

Tundra exchanged a slight glance at Biscuit, who gave a cheeky grin before speeding off back to the forest. She was followed momentarily by Nova who gave a bark of amusement.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Tundra called.

As the robins sang, Tundra dashed off after them. Everything around her began to blur as her pace quickened. She was a fast runner, the fastest out of the pack. She managed to bolt past Nova, but even she was no match for Biscuit's agility.

Light from the sun filtered through the trees, leaving patches of shade scattered on the ground. Tundra's mind began to wander as to what the surprise was. It was still early in the morning. They had probably been waiting to tell her since the day before. It would be nice to have something to keep her mind off her nightmare. Biscuit and Tundra came rushing around a large rock and hopped across a peaceful river.

"Come on, bud!" Biscuit yelped.

"What do you want to show me?"

Biscuit suddenly stopped in her tracks. With Tundra running at the speed she was going, she bumped into her and slumped onto the ground. Nova ended up doing the same, crushing into Tundra from behind. They both got back on their paws and Tundra went to the side of Biscuit. Standing before them was a German Shepherd, Bone, along with a Corgi, Sol.

"Perfect. You're all back," Bone greeted.

"You have to see this thing we found, Tundra," Sol said with a smile. "You'll love it."

Biscuit whispered to Tundra. "You'll be cheered up from your nightmare in no time!"

Tundra chuckled. She hoped her friend was right. That nightmare was one of the worst in a while. It was as vivid as the colors of a rainbow, but in the most horrible way possible. The thick flakes blew so severely, you could barely see in front of you. The dreadful sensation of the cold shook her to her core, even in a dreaming state. Her mind began to bring all these images back, before sensing a paw on her back.

She was brought back to the present to the concerned faces of her friends. Not concerned for her - they were used to her staring off into space for a bit, but for the high-pitched howling out in the distance. Wolves. The pack never said a word after that, only Bone giving a deep growl and all running from the howls as they grew closer.

They ran into the trees, hearing the rustle of the leaves in the wind. All their hearts pounded, Biscuit's the hardest. The howling turned to loud growls and they could see at least two wolves from behind. Luckily not in pursuit of them. Tundra outran her friends, her feet merely touching the ground. She was only running for a minute, but it only felt like a single second. Once she came to a stop, her friends were nowhere in sight.

The howls and growls had finally stopped, and Tundra let out a breath of relief. She was in a part of the forest that she was rarely ever in. The landscape appeared unfamiliar, but near where Tundra was standing a large rock was embedded in the ground. She recognized the rock as pointing in the direction of the pack's favorite clearing. They used it before when they were lost a few months before.

Tundra went in that direction. Hoping that, just maybe, the rest of the pack was together there. Suddenly, she picked up the scent of Nova. She smelled like a freshwater river on a sunny day. She followed the scent, twisting and turning around the trees. Then she got the scent of Sol, the smell of honey from beehives. Then, Bone and Biscuit.

"Biscuit...Sol...No- Nova!"

Tundra's blood ran cold. Down on the ground was Nova, lifeless. Tundra's shout echoed off everything in sight. It had alerted the others, as they came running from the right of Tundra. The others yelled Nova's name and ran to her side, all except for Tundra. She could only stare blankly at Nova's body as the others pleaded for her to wake up. She thought the contents of her lunch would spill out onto the ground, bile raising.

Things were silent for what felt like hours. Tundra's claws dug into the dirt and it seemed as if needles were stabbing into her fur. As the sky clouded over, they could hear a small giggle from the lifeless dog. Her tail started to wag as her giggles erupted into roars of laughter. She sat up and gave a grin.

"Got ya! I got y'all real good, did I, guys?" She paused. "Guys?"

Bone's once glistening leaf green eyes were now cold, piercing into Nova. He wore a hard scowl on his face that made her shudder. She gave a whimper in fear as the German Shepherd stared her down. Sol and Biscuit exchanged an anxious glimpse with each other. Yet, Nova was confused. They all knew she was a bit of a prankster, but no one ever reacted with such anger.

Then, she saw Tundra. Biscuit and Sol had hurried over to her. She was trembling and hyperventilating. Tundra's heart thundered and her chest stung with pain. Head pounding, the ground swam. Tundra didn't notice that Nova was fine. Biscuit and Sol were trying their best to calm her down.

"You're safe, you're safe," Biscuit whispered. "This won't last long."

"Keep breathing, you got this." Sol's sunny yellow eyes were filled with sympathy.

Nova watched with guilt building in her chest. Her gaze met the ground. Bone's eyes were now softer, seeing Tundra in her state.

"Nova." Bone said. "Nova, follow me."

Nova did what was asked of her and followed Bone to a quiet stream. They sat down next to it and Nova watched her reflection in the water. Bone avoided the Border Collie's eyes for a few seconds.

"Look, I know you were just trying to prank us," Bone finally breathed. "But you really shouldn't have done that."

"I get that now and I'm sorry." A small smile emerged on Bone's face. "But, what was wrong with Tundra?"

Bone closed his eyes tightly. He was briefly brought back to that fateful day five winters ago. He looked away from Nova and took a deep breath.

"Tundra...she has been through a lot," Bone mustered up. "I don't think you're ready to know."

"But I want to know! Please?" Nova's small voice piped up.

Bone was surprised at her request. He thought she was still too young to know the whole story. That it might have been too much to handle. But seeing that pleading look in her eyes, he decided she deserved to know.

"Fine. First, have you ever heard anyone address Tundra as Blizza?"

Nova clocked her head to the side. "Yes, once I think. It was like she was stuck in her mind for a few seconds."

"Well, this is why," Bone said. "Five winters ago, there was this rough blizzard that went through the forest. Trees were toppled and the snow was so high, Sol could barely plow through it."

Nova fought a snicker, imagining Sol and his short body trying to move through the snow. She listened intently to Bones' explanation.

"We found Tundra hiding in a cave, pretty banged up, and brought her in. She was almost frozen from the cold. Her tail was sprained and it's never fully healed. It's why you don't see her wag her tail."

The thought of a sprained tail made Nova wince. She had accidentally got her tail caught in some rocks before and she could barely withstand that pain. She couldn't imagine the pain of a sprained tail.

"When she was finally rested enough to speak to us, she...she was a total wreck. Hysterical. She told us that...that," Bone composed himself, "her parents were killed from an avalanche caused by the blizzard."

Nova gasped. "Is that why she never plays in the snow with me?"

"Yes." Bone replied. "She changed her name from Blizza to Tundra as well, her old name reminded her too much of what happened."

Nova nodded.

"The whole ordeal left her afraid of losing anyone close to her, it's why your prank sent her off. She started having nightmares and these strange attacks that come on whenever she feels threatened, terrified, or stressed out."

It was all starting to come together for Nova. Her guilt began to build more and more with each new piece of information. She whimpered and snuggled up next to Bone. It caught him off guard, but a sad smile spread on his face. He put a paw beneath Nova's muzzle and brought it up to face her.

"Come on, we should see how Tundra's doing."

Nova didn't reply, she just followed far behind Bone with her eyes meeting the ground. She could barely comprehend the walk back, even if it only took little time to return. Nova's mind was fixated on what she was told. She couldn't shake the feeling that she may have ruined her and Tundra's friendship. And she was terrified.

The clearing they had been in appeared abandoned. Then, Bone and Nova heard the splash of water off to the side into the trees. They followed the sound to a river of fresh water where the rest of the pack was. Tundra was drinking from the river with Biscuit and Sol by her side. Bone gave Nova a nudge, an indication to talk to Tundra. She gulped and walked up to Tundra, who had already turned to her.

"Tundra...I'm sor-"

Tundra placed a paw over Nova's mouth, stopping her apology dead in its tracks.

"I forgive you."

The two of them smiled. Bone looked on with his own smile of approval. Tundra appeared to be back to her normal, happy self. She wasn't shaking anymore and her heart had steadied.

"Wait. Wasn't there a surprise you wanted me to see?" Tundra asked.

Bone smirked, as he, Sol, Biscuit and Nova got in a running stance. Sol looked behind him.

"You'll love it, but first..."

Tundra looked on, confused. Sol gave a wink and the four dogs suddenly sped off though the forest.

"Race you there!" Biscuit called.

"Wait! Not again!"

Tundra began to chase after them, hoping to keep her eyes on them. Sol was the best leader. His sense of direction was most accurate in the pack. Tundra found herself right behind them, but stayed behind enough to see the path being taken.

After racing through the forest, following Sol lead, they all stopped outside the entrance to a large cave. The inside was consumed by darkness.

"Is this it?" Tundra asked, peeking in.

"Not quite. There's more," Sol replied.

Bone led the way through the dark. He had the best night vision out of them all. The others stayed close to Tundra, helping guide her through the cave since they had already gone through before her. Around the corner, Tundra caught sight of a luminous blue glow. She ran in front of the rest of the pack before she suddenly stopped. She stared down the cave, in awe at what was right in front of her.

Crystals.

Yellow, green, blue, red and lavender crystals lined the walls and ceiling of the cave. Lighting it up like a candle. Tundra saw her friends come to her side.

"We wanted to show you last night, but you fell asleep before we could tell you," Nova said.

And then, looking between them and the crystals, Tundra realized the colours' meanings.

"They're...the colours of our eyes."

They all walked closer to the crystals, seeing their reflections as they passed. The shapes of the crystals distorted their figures. Tundra put a paw to a blue crystal, feeling the smooth texture of the surface. They each stopped at the back wall of the cave with each crystal lined up in a row. The reflections blended in with their eyes. They realized what this meant. Life is precious, like the beautiful colours of the shiny crystals. The crystals showed how precious life truly is. The friends were all in this life together.