Sister's Keeper - A Playlist for Kael

A/N: Kael has long been one of my favorite characters in TROUF. She's a lot like her sister, calm and thoughtful, but without the aggressive streak that Shadow can sometimes exhibit. She is the runt of the litter and more of a caretaker than a hunter like her sister. - Rachel

Sister's Keeper - A Playlist for Kael

1. What the Water Gave Me - Florence + The Machine
"Time, it took us to where the water was. That's what the water gave me."
(The water, in this case, being the corrupted spring Kael's pack drank from.)

2. Eden - Sarah Bareilles
"There was a time when I was taking all bets that this place was even better than as good as it gets."
(When Kael and Shadow are forced to leave their pack's territory. they are leaving the only home they ever knew.)

3. Keeping Your Head Up - Birdy
"Everyone needs a darker place to lose control, you're not alone. And when you come looking for embrace, I know your soul, I'll be your home."

4. Dog Years - Maggie Rogers
"I count my time in dog years. Swimming in sevens, slow dancing in seconds."

5. Compass - Zella Day
"Wild flowers crushed beneath your fingers, clinging to the wild things that raised us."

6. Let It All Go - Birdy, RHODES
"If we're strong enough to let it in, we're strong enough to let it go."
(I always imagined that Kael was good at counseling the other members of the group, particularly her sister, but also Alaster as times. She knows what it means to let go of the past and do what needs to be done.)

7. Safe & Sound - Taylor Swift, The Civil Wars
"I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I'll never let you go, when all those shadows almost killed your light."
(A sort of lullaby from Kael to Shadow.)

8. Wherever You Will Go - Charlene Soraia
"So lately, been wondering who will be there to take my place. When I'm gone you'll need love to light the shadows on your face."
(Before Shadow was transformed, she and Kael had about the same expected lifespan. However, as a human, Shadow will likely live longer than her sister.)

9. Skinny Love - Birdy
"I told you to be patient, I told you to be fine. I told you to be balanced and I told you to be kind."
(Kael helps Shadow adjust to being human, which Shadow struggles with.)

10. All About Us - t.A.T.u.
"If they hurt you, they hurt me too. So we'll rise up, won't stop, and it's all about us."

11. Fix You - Boyce Avenue, Tyler Ward
"Lights will guide you home and ignite your bones and I will try to fix you."
(Another Kael tries to help Shadow heal song.)

12. Wildest Moments - Jessie Ware
"Looking back, I miss it - our wildest moments."

13. Human - Daughter
"Underneath this skin, there's a human. Buried deep within, there's a human."
(The thing about Kael is that even though she looks like a wolf, she's fully sentient and highly intelligent. She's not exactly a human but she's self aware like the rest of her companions. Throughout a large portion of the story, there is a language barrier between Kael and the others. She can understand what is said to her but cannot speak in return.)

14. These Wilder Things - Ruth Moody
"And I will waste my heart on fear no more. I will find a secret bell and make it ring."