As the sun began its descent towards the western horizon, I feasted quietly upon a hare. I had caught it myself, no longer needing to rely on Leonidas to provide my meals for me. My wounds were all but healed, pink puckered scars forming over my neck and tail. Soon enough the hair would begin to cover the former wounds, and unless one looked close enough, they would become nearly invisible. Of course I would never forget them, never cast them from my memory. The fight with Skully had been a new experience to me, and one that I had learned much from. I had won back my rightful place upon the mountain, and I would not forfeit it any time soon. But these were not matters that passed through my mind in that moment. No, I merely relished in the taste of warm flesh between my teeth, hot blood bathing my tongue. I tore my quarry apart, devouring every bit and attaining my fill. Licking my lips, I grasped a bone between my teeth and bit down, cracking it so that I could access the delectable marrow within. It was while I gnawed on the remnants of my meal that a call went up.

Lifting my head I pointed my nose in the direction from which the call originated. I listened for a moment, noting the deep and powerful tones that echoed across the mountain. It was a general call, seeking audience with someone of the pack. Though it had been three moons since I had taken over Spirane, we had not had many strangers come calling at our borders. Mostly the past weeks had been dedicated to reestablishing the pack within Moladion, mending relationships with other packs and setting the wolves of the mountain to tasks so that they might have a sense of fulfillment in their lives once more. Something that neither Purge nor Snowshoe had ever truly offered the pack.

Once the call had faded, I rose from the ground and set off at a lope across the realm that was my own. As the sun pulled closer to the western horizon, she hid behind the peaks of the mountain and long shadows were cast down the sharp inclines of the range. I moved smoothly along ridges and valleys, knowing the land better than any, until I came upon the borders. My tail was carried high and proud, once more fully flexible and causing me no pain whatsoever. Ears, too, were erect, and my head was raised slightly. He was hard to miss, the behemoth who stood boldly just beyond the boundary of my territory. White, with black and grey points, he stood out against the shadows the crept out from the trees as dusk fell upon us. But I did not hesitate in my movements towards him, confident as my strides slowed to a jog to bring me before him.

My greeting was silent at first, as I came to a halt and lifted my posture slightly, displaying my rank here so that he could not mistake me for anything but the alpha that I was. Mahogany eyes rested upon his face as I spoke. “Good evening,” was all that I said. Though his intentions were not clear, I did not think him to be a challenger. Nostrils flared slightly, inviting his scent in and as I took a deep breath, I thought that perhaps he was not a wolf of another pack here on diplomatic business, for he held no other pack’s scent. What business then, I was curious, might he have brought to my borders as the moon was only just becoming visible in the fading light of day?