Sprite woke up with a start. All her worries had piled up and spilled out in her sleep. She felt groggy and a little bit disconnected. Mother raised her head, studied her, and settled her head back on her paws. But her eyes were still open, and she studied Sprite in near darkness.

"I'm sorry, Mother, you can go back to sleep. Just a bad dream."

Mother still studied Sprite, her eyes sparkling back in the dim light.

Sprite got up and exited the shelter. A full moon was out, casting its light in the golden night. Sprite loved the bright, ultra-warm light. It was her favorite kind of night. Still, quiet but for a whisper in the trees, gold.

They had barely believed her when she had told others that the light she saw on a moonlit night was golden instead of a cold white or blue. But that shows how she saw the world then and, indeed, now. A rich golden glow. She also saw more than others saw. She saw further across the open fields and farther into the dense shadows. When asked to prove it, she had. That had shut the others up quickly. Now, as they had traveled across the land, it had proved an asset. While others saw it as freakish, her companions saw it as valuable. It was as good as gold.

Mother sidled up to Sprite, standing tall next to the girl, ears forward, staring into the same night. Sprite wondered how Mother saw the night before her. Did she see it in gold, too? The wolfhound couldn't say, and so Sprite resigned herself to never knowing. Mother's hearing had already proven her most valuable gift.

"Maybe you see gold too, girl," Sprite said, patting the massive hound on her back. Mother exhaled slowly, and they stared into the night together.