Blacktail Deer Plateau coming to a close, we're down by ten.

Grayday considered letting the matter lie. Though he would always consider the personal lives of his packmates his business, he knew that wasn't a free pass to delve right into delicate matters like nightmares and painful pasts. Trust had to be established first, and sometimes - like with Gwen - trust just didn't come fast enough for some wolves.

But he had to start somewhere.

"I sleep light," he told her, not wanting to come right out and say that she'd woken him up. He didn't know if she was the type to blame herself for silly things like that, but it was better safe than sorry.

"So what were you planning? Hunting or border marking?" he asked. They didn't need to hunt tonight, but an extra meal never hurt anyone this time of year. He was already encouraging his children to eat past their appetites; they'd need the extra layer of fat to keep them warm and healthy in the wintertime. His mother always used to say, "An extra meal in autumn can be an extra day in winter."