Blacktail Deer Plateau stardust

it is night and his body is tired, but his mind remains restless, even curled in the warm den, nestled against his mate's body. sleep evades him. with a quiet murmur to dawn--i won't be long, or far--aditya crawls out of the den and stretches, relishing the sensation of the chilly air on his warmed pelt. under the stars, the brown-and-cream wolf travels, trotting the short distance to the border.

a sound catches his ear, and he sees a young woman already at the border, having cursed aloud and now pacing and spraying the edge of the territory. raid, he believed her name was; they had not formally met. warily keeping his two failed encounters with aviana in mind, aditya approached the girl with a smile, giving a low sound in greeting so as not to startle her.

"can't sleep, too?" adi remarked, casting his golden eyes up at the star-spangled sky. he fell in gentle step alongside her, keeping close enough for friendliness but at a distance where it was unlikely--hopefully--she'd take offense to his presence.