spring cleaning

Alarik used to think winter was his favorite season. He was a large brute, with an incredibly thick coat, so it only made sense for him to prefer the colder weather. Maybe the temperatures suited him, but the overall mood of winter didn't suit him at all. It was too quiet and depressing. He liked the mood of spring was much more uplifting. New life, a bit of snow and a bit of rain, green grasses and blooming flowers. And sure, it was warmer, but not nearly as warm as summer.

So, Alarik had changed his mind. Spring was his favorite season now. He'd spent the morning walking through mud and melting snow, not even bothering to avoid the mess. He didn't care if it was childish, it had been fun while it lasted. He'd practically rolled in the mushy stuff, and now the entire lower half of his body looked brown instead of grey. So you can imagine his relief when he saw the delta up ahead. Plenty of moving water in which to bathe himself. The brute ran forward, tongue dangling from the side of his mouth as mud and globs of slushy snow sprayed in every direction from his moving legs and paws. It was too bad none of his siblings were here to enjoy this with him. He knew they would enjoy it. They always had.

But he didn't want to have those sad, sobering thoughts in his head right now. He wanted to romp around and be a muddy mess, and he wanted to take a bath in one of these ice cold rivers. Maybe it wasn't the smartest idea, but who ever lived a life of adventure and excitement by only making smart, sensible decisions?