Bloodbath

We always popped open a bottle of wine every time we succeeded. It became one of our customs. She told us that it only takes one slight misstep to fall into indifferent habit if we get too used to success. Thus, we should always smile, rejoice, and celebrate every little thing in the wake of success. And we should never neglect failure, as success can be born from a pile of failures. When I saw the latticework of wounds in her paw, I was reminded of our wine cabinet. We had used up so many of the bottles; there was only one left. That day, I popped the cork off the last one.