At the Edge [Open]

Slate moved silently, quite close to the borders of the land, not daring to step over the line. He was new to these parts, and had no interest at all in a fight at the moment. A meeting in peace, perhaps, an offer of shelter for the night, but the thought of any battling did not sit well with him at the moment. He had been wandering for quite a while, and would rather rest than anything else. Still, he knew better than to cross into another's territory uninvited, and kept clear of the border.

Slate paused as he caught the scent of a female wolf approaching him from within the territory, the fact that she was in heat quickly registering in his mind. He watched her as she approached, guessing by the way she held herself that she was the alpha of the pack that dwelled in the territory. "I'm not here to cause any trouble, if you're wondering," He said to her, making an attempt to retain his composure despite her alluring scent.

Slate narrowed his eyes, his ears pointing back in annoyance as she began to wag her tail slightly, fanning the scent of her heat towards him. What was the she-wolf's problem? "I'm not in your territory," He growled, "I've been careful not to step over the border. And either way, I'm only passing through."

Slate was hesitant to accept her offer. She did seem to be all over the place, after all. Still, he was reluctant to spend a night out in the wilderness as well when there a den being offered to him. "Alright," He told her after some debate, "It'd be nice to spend a night in a den."

He nodded, following after her. He continued to try and ignore the scent of her heat as best she could. He would be leaving in the morning, after all, and there'd probably a male waiting for her back at her camp, ready to tear into him if it even seemed like he was going to try anything.

She didn't have a mate? That came as quite a surprise to him; he thought for certain there'd be an alpha male of the pack, there usually was. If there wasn't yet, he figured there were probably males within the pack gunning for the top spot; they'd likely be none to pleased to see him leaving their leader's den in the morning. Best slip out early, then. "Alright, then," He said, following her up the stones to her high den.

"I'm surprised," He said, settling down in the den, "Even when I lived in a pack when I was young, we were used to strangers passing close to the territory..."