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"Hey, Windy! Evie's here!"

Windthor Leon Pryas looked up from the red and white electric guitar on his lap - the thing was almost longer than he was tall - a wide smile splitting his white muzzle. The six year old husky jumped up from his bed, placing the instrument down against his wall. "I'll be right down!" he called back to his mother, Kia, as he picked up his shoes and a shirt, bouncing around his room as he put them on.

The husky pup paused in front of his full-length mirror, brushing his already long bangs out of his face to look at the single solid black spot around his left eye, both of which were a deep, dark blue. Windthor pulled the also fairly long braid over his right shoulder, giving it a small tug. He'd always refused to get an actual haircut; his step-sisters loved to trim his bangs and braid his hair, and he certainly didn't mind.

"Windy!" called his mother again, this time outside his door. "Evie's downstairs. Are you going to keep a lady waiting?"

"No," said Windthor, a bit defensively as he grabbed a pair of old brown leather aviator goggles with round, tinted lenses that he had to tighten quite a bit for him to wear. "Just grabbing my goggles!"

"Well, hurry up!" said Kia as Windthor pulled his door open, looking down at her son. Kia Pryas had her shoulder against the frame of her son's door, arms crossed and tail swishing back and forth. While she was predominantly white, like Windthor, she had more natural husky markings of black, most noticeably on her head and shoulders, though her hair was still just as white as her son's, though only to the length of her shoulder blades. She pressed her palm to Windthor's head, ruffling up his hair and grinning. "Going to have another adventure?" she asked.

"Uh-huh!" said the pup, his tail wagging at the attention. Kia bent forward, pressing her lips to her son's forehead.

"Well, be back by seven-thirty, okay?" She scratched behind her son's ear. "I'm making lasagna, so you better be home for that."

"I will, Mom," promised Windthor, hugging around his mother's waist before running down the hall and taking the stairs two at a time. "Evie?" he called, coming to a stop in the living room.

"In here!" called a female voice from in the kitchen, to Windthor's left. Pushing the door open, he caught sight of a calico cat. Evelyn Robertson looked over from the kitchen's island, the tip of her long, thin tail twitching back and forth in a constant tic. She was sitting on a tall stool, reading a magazine as one of Wind's older step-sisters, Liza, leaned against the island, pointing at something on the magazine.

They both waved, and Evie placed the magazine on the island before dropping onto the floor. "What're you guys talking about?" asked Windthor curiously.

"Girly stuff," said the fourteen-year old lioness offhand, brushing back her long black hair. "You wouldn't understand." The husky pup frowned and pouted.

"I understand a lot of things, Eliza..."

Evie merely rolled her brown eyes, grabbing Windthor's hand and pulling him along as she walked back to where her friend had come out of the living room. "Don't worry about it, Windy. Come on! We got an adventure to go on!"

"Right!" said Windthor, shaking his head and following behind his friend as Liza called out to them.

"Kia said she's making lasagna tonight!"

"I know!" called back Windthor, taking the brief pause Evie used to get his front door open to pull the goggles onto his head and snap them onto his face. "Ow!"

Evie let out a giggle. "You do that every time you put those on, Windy. I'm pretty sure it doesn't stop hurting the more you do it."

Windthor pouted again, closing the door behind him as they left the house and rubbing his cheek. "I figured I would have gotten a tolerance for it by now."

"Silly," said the kitten, pulling the canine into a headlock. Windthor didn't resist, though he did bounce on one foot; even at a young age, he was growing fast, already several inches taller than Evie. "So, where are we going?" asked Evie. "The beach?"

"Nah, it's Friday. Remember what our parents said? We're not allowed to go to the beach on Fridays." He pouted, and Evie mirrored him.

"My mother said we're too young, but wouldn't ever tell me why when I asked... What's so special about the beach on Fridays that we can't go there right now?" she asked. Windthor shrugged, still bent double from the headlock.

Windthor and Evie lived in a small suburban neighborhood on the southeastern coast of the United States called Springsong, just on the entrance of the cul-de-sac. With a population of barely over two-hundred within the town's limits, not including the beach that was a part of the town, it would be very difficult for them to go against the rules to go to the beach and the news get back to their parents before they even got home.

"Well, how about we go to the haunted house?" suggested Windthor, finally pulling himself free of Evie's grip, since it was starting to make him sore.

"Nah, we went there yesterday." Evie pursed her lips, her hands placing themselves on her hips as she looked around as a cool breeze ruffled their fur and hair. "Mm, there's the park near the beach. It's got some rocks we can climb on."

"That sounds good!"

The "park" was actually a thirty square foot patch of grass with a fence surrounding it, benches, a flagpole, and in the middle was what Windthor had always thought was just a pile of rocks, but eventually came to realize that the rocks were arranged in a specific pattern: The rock went from smallest to largest in a circle like stairs around a much larger stone that was twice his current height. He'd been told that it was some kind of memorial, but there wasn't a plaque anywhere that confirmed that.

Walking through one of the four entrances to the "park", the two children made a bee-line to the rocks. "Okay, so what are we today?" asked Evie.

"I chose what we were yesterday," Windthor reminded his friend. "It's your turn."

Evie was already at the rocks, biting her bottom lip as she thought. "Hmmm... I got it. These rocks are a really tall mountain! And... You're a hero."

"Aww, that's nice of you to say," said Windthor, and Evie's smile became a very twisted - one might say evil - smirk.

"And I'm the evil witch on top of the mountain!" screeched Evie in a very impressive imitation of a witch as she started climbing the rocks, stumbling only a little until she reached the top, standing up and holding both her arms up over her head as she let out an evil, screeching laugh. "Hee-hee-hee! This town belongs to me, now! Come, Hero! Just try to stop me! You'll have to avoid my magic to get up this mountain with your life!"

"Child's play!" boasted Windthor, adopting a character himself and jutting out his chest, like a hero might do, holding up one hand as if he were holding a shining blade, pointing in Evie's direction. "Your magic is no match for me! I have armor that is immune-"

"That's not fair!" said Evie, dropping character. "You can't be immune to magic; there's no fun in that." Windthor blinked, his arm lowering again.

"Well, then... My armor makes me... Resistant? Y'know, so you can't just immediately kill me?" he suggested.

Evie smiled. "That's fine." The calico cleared her throat, getting back into character easily. "There's more than one way to destroy a hero!"

"The same to you, witch!" he boomed, and pulled himself up onto the first, smallest rock.

"First, taste my lightning!" screeched Evie, bringing down her hands and wiggling her fingers as her friend. "Pshew!"

"Agh!" Windthor stumbled back, then made quite a show of "fighting" through Evie's pretend magic and making the ascent towards her around the larger rock she was standing on. "You'll have to do better than that!"

"Fine! Have some fire!" Evie waved her arms around, "shooting" invisible fire at her friend, who lifted his left arm, as if he were holding a shield, though he still acted as if it were a great effort to get to the next step.

This went on for a good ten minutes, Windthor slowly ascending to the "mountaintop", as Evie brought down "spells" upon him.

"I'm nearly to your lair, witch!" shouted the husky, placing a hand on the "peak" near Evie's feet. The feline gasped dramatically.

"Impossible!" shrieked Evie, taking a step back. "You couldn't have gotten past my- Agh!" The feline took one too many steps back and her foot suddenly slipped off the large rock. What happened next was a blur of color and a strange whooshing sound in Windthor's ears. The next thing he knew, he was holding onto Evie's ankle, and she hung limply in his grip, staring down at the grass below.

The young puppy used his free hand to lift his goggles to his forehead, and Evie looked up at him, her eyes slightly wide. "...I think that's enough adventuring for one day," said Windthor after a few moments, and Evie nodded, bending upwards and reaching for him. Evie said nothing as Windthor grasped her hand, letting her foot go in order to grab her with both of his own hands and pull her onto the rock. "Are you okay?" he asked, concern lining his young face.

"Y-yeah," said the kitten quietly, panting softly and reaching up to pull her hair out of her face. "Thank you." Windthor smiled, nodding. They sat on the rock for a few moments of silence before Evie spoke again. "...I guess I became the damsel for the hero to save, instead..."

"Hey, maybe the witch had a change of heart," he suggested, and they both snickered, before Windy grasped Evie's hand and carefully lead the calico back down the rocks. "It's probably too early to get back..." They both simply sat in the grass now, leaning against the stone structure, Windy pulling his goggles down to his neck as Evie held her knees up to her chin while she picked at the grass with a free hand.

"Yeah..." The calico looked up at the sky, Windy following suit. They were silent for a long time, watching clouds go by. "Hey, Windy?" asked Evie, looking to her friend.

"Hm?"

"...Do you miss your dad?" she asked, the insides of her ears flushing a hot pink. Obviously, she wanted to ask something else, but changed it at the last moment.

Windy tilted his head back, resting it against the rock as he reached up to grasp the goggles. "I never really knew him. Aside from Mom's stories, I don't know anything about him, either." He looked back at Evie. "Do you miss yours?"

"He went to the hospital when I was three," she answered, mirroring his previous action of leaning back against the rock again, though she resumed picking at the grass. "And he never came back. Mama never talks about my dad... I thought I would remember him, it's only been three years, but we don't have any pictures, I don't remember his face..."

"I don't have any pictures of my dad, either," said Windthor, reaching out to hug around Evie's shoulders with one arm. "At least your dad was there, for a little while."

Evie took a deep breath, resting her head on her friend's shoulder before letting out a long sigh. They went silent again, neither really able to think of anything to say, the sun slowly dipping down to the west. "Do you think I would have died?" asked Evie suddenly, but she clamped a hand over her mouth. Windy blinked, looking over to Evie, whose ears nearly glowed red.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said, shaking her head. "I-I didn't..." Evie looked over to Windy, whose head was tilted forward slightly as he looked up with her, one brow slightly raised. "...I... I meant when I fell just now..."

"I don't know." Windy's voice had gone quite soft, and he was watching her. "I would have gone to get help, though," he promised. "You would have gotten better."

"They might have taken me to the hospital, though," she said, and she wrapped both arms around her knees. "People don't come back from those."

"Leona did," said Windy, referring to another of his older sisters. "She went for a checkup, Mom said, and she came back, and she was fine."

"I know," replied Evie, "but I... I don't want to go there and never come back..." She sniffled, and Windy wrapped both of his arms around her with a sigh.

"I'll bring you back," he whispered softly. "I'm your friend. That's what friends do, they help. I'll help you." The corners of Evie's lips twitched, and turned upwards before her smaller muzzle split into a smile.

"Thank you," she said, reciprocating the hug, wrapping around his waist. "For saving the witch."

"Heh." Windy reached up to muss up Evie's scalp between her ears, and the kitten let out a small yowl before pushing the puppy away. Windthor stood up and Evie gave chase, running around the stone monument, both of them laughing.

"See you later, Evie!" called Windthor, waving to Mrs. Robertson as well as Evie, who both waved back. Turning his back on the house, he looked both ways, to the cul-de-sac to his left, and the street to his right, before jogging across to his house, where his mother was waiting.

"Come on in, Windy," said Kia, holding the screen door open. The puppy could smell the sauce and the meat of the pasta dish, his fluffy tail wagging madly and his mouth drooling already. "You're five minutes later than I told you to get in, and your sisters already ate the whole thing." Windy froze, staring incredulously up at his mother.

"No! It wasn't supposed to be like that!" He'd started to muster up some tears when his sisters came up behind him; Leona, Eliza and Thalia all came up to grab him into an awkward six-armed hug. The three lionesses were fraternal triplets, Leona was the tallest with shorter, blond hair, while Eliza's hair was long and black, and Thalia's was an auburn color, and she was the only one who wore glasses.

"I'm kidding, Windy," said Kia as the triplets started to tickle their little brother, who burst out laughing, wriggling in their grip. "Alright, let him go, you three, and let's get some dinner..."

Three hours later, the girls had gone to their room, while Windy sat in his bed, his mother starting to tuck him in. "Can I hear a story about Dad?" he asked excitedly, placing his goggles on the bedside table.

Kia's ears twitched and she sat on the edge of Windy's bed, biting her lip. "Mm," she hummed softly as she thought. "How about the mountain climb?"

"Yeah!" said Windy, his feet kicking under the covers in excitement.

"Okay... Now, your dad, Leon--"

"That's my middle name!" said Windy, and Kia let out a soft laugh.

"Yes, it is," she said, poking her son gently on the nose. "Your dad heard of a cave full of treasure on the top of a high mountain."

"He brought his partner with him, because he couldn't make the trip on his own!" Kia smiled.

"And what was his partner's name?"

"My name!" Windy wiggled back and forth.

"That's right," said Kia, poking gently at Windy's ribs, making the puppy giggle. "Now, Windthor couldn't fly the whole way, do you know why?"

"The high evel... eve... evelation would have made him lose energy."

"Elevation," corrected Kia. "Way too cold. Windthor would have gotten too cold and wouldn't be able to fly again. So he was only able to fly halfway, but Leon was able to ride on Windthor's back like a horse." Kia paused a moment.

"They went for three days and nights!" continued Windy. "They went through a giant blizzard that made them almost freeze!"

"Yes," said Kia, smiling to her son, her tail curling around to rest on her lap. "Now, they'd finally reached the cave, but the storm was too much, so they stayed overnight, too tired and cold to search it. Windthor made a good bed, because he was very warm naturally."

"Kept my dad from getting hyper... hypah..."

"Hypothermia," said Kia, nodding. "The storm kept them in that cave for another night. The next day everything was clear."

"But the cave was empty! No treasure was in it!"

"No, and Leon was very sad and disappointed. But when he and his partner turned to leave the cave, they looked out from on top of that huge, huge mountain."

"It was so pretty up there, that Dad started to cry."

"He thought he could see everything around him, all the colors. Even Windthor sniffled a little."

"Because it was so pretty!"

"Yes, Windy." Kia giggled. "Now, that day, Leon learned that what you look for might not exist..."

"...But what's there will be worth every minute of the journey!" finished Windy, bouncing slightly.

"...Yes," said Kia, letting out a soft sigh.

"You okay, Mom?" asked the puppy. Kia nodded, looking away. "Are you sad that Dad's not around anymore?"

"Yes," she said, closing her eyes and letting her head dip down slightly. Windthor rose up from under his blanket and crawled to his mother, hugging her around the waist, pressing his cheek into her chest.

"Don't be said, Mama, I'm here. I always will be. I promise." Kia's bottom lip trembled, and she clutched her knees for just a moment before wrapping her arms around Windthor.

"Thank you," she said, before grasping him under the arms and placing him back on the bed. "Now, it's bedtime, Windy."

"Night-night!" The puppy pulled his blanket up to his chin as Kia walked to his door, hunching over to turn on the Batman nightlight and reaching back up to place a hand on the light switch.

A single tear stained the fur on her cheek in a small line before dripping off and onto her shirt. "Sleep well, Windy," she whispered, and flipped the switch down to turn out the light in her son's room.