Sea Legs

Their little game of hide and seek enabled Dova to wander far from where she was accustomed to exploring, and soon enough she found herself wandering the sandy shores of a bay the pup had never before seen. Familiar with the smell of salt in the air, she followed her nose to the shoreline, briefly dipping her head to taste a hint of the saline waters. Unlike any river or pond, the sea spread out endlessly before her, reaching to the horizon where it fell away, presumably marking where the world simply ceased to exist. To know that the world was so vast was incomprehensible to the little puppy, who had yet to develop any sense of distance or time. There was far, and father still, which summed up the total of what she understood.

Yet Dova was still learning, and she was quick to pick up on things. She could see dark grey clouds brewing in the distance, and knew that it meant that a storm was coming. Sooner or later, she would have to go back to where she was safe from turbulent weather, but as long as no one was dragging her back home, she figured that she was safe to venture onward just a little longer. Besides, she had yet to find Sinclair, who was nowhere to be seen.

Realizing this, she resumed her search once again, leaving behind her the dark blue tide. The winds seemed to pick up just as she turned about, the chilly gusts buffeting her as she tried to hold a straight line, marching back towards the cliffs as quickly as she could without being blown over. An obscured shadow moved ahead, and erroneously assuming it was her companion, Dova scampered up to greet it. "Found you!" She yapped, gleefully turning her cheek as she barreled towards the back of the stranger's legs.

The only issue was that the legs did not belong to Sinclair. Instead, Dova very quickly realized that the canine was much larger, and much older than her companion. Issuing a hasty alarm bark, she skittered back, lowering herself so that her stomach nearly grazed the ground. "Hey! You're not my friend!" She stated, surprised rather than accusing. If this wasn't Sinclair, then where was he?