A disjointed lope carried Armistice slowly across a rocky path, an occasional wince flicking across his face as he favored his right forepaw. The thick scent of coyotes lured him in the right direction, but if not for that, the young hybrid would have considered himself quite lost. The trees looked completely unfamiliar to him, their thickness both in girth and placement was rather unlike any scenery he'd called home before now. But was this home? He had only been separated from his traveling companion for just under a fortnight, and was sure a reunion was in store, so the decision to settle down didn't seem like one he could make on his own. All the same, his recent fight with a blackberry brier had left his feet worse for the wear, and this combined with the familiar scent of his own species felt like a good enough reason to stop.



Nose pointed toward the air, Armistice inhaled short puffs of air as he looked around. Yes, this would do it. The border stretched out before him looked less than friendly, and rather than walk senselessly into the heart of what could very well be an aggressive set of coyotes, he chose to remain silently in place next to the base of a pine. It was only a matter of time before one of the residents happened by, and he certainly wasn't about to go looking for them himself. Circling on the spot for a moment, he curled his dusty body up against one of the tree's roots, resting his head tenderly on top of it, and fixing his leafy green eyes on the border before him. It was midday, nearing the evening, and an afternoon doze sounded appealing. Waiting patiently, his eyelids slipped together more and more frequently - vigilance was obviously not at the top of Armistice's list.

With what was clearly deliberate slowness, Armistice raised his head as a harshly punctuated female voice entered his ears, causing them to swivel in the stranger's direction before the coyote's eyes followed. Once his leafy-green gaze had fixed upon the battle-worn woman before him, they widened slightly in mild interest. Her one-eyed stare was hard to miss, as were the numerous streaks of white in her fur caused, undoubtedly, by a number of violent skirmishes. If he were to make the smart move, he would have flopped into submission instantaneously or else risk becoming one of the many skulls within view. What Armistice did, however, was part his jaws in a wide yawn.



Once his teeth had scissored back together, tongue briefly licking over his lips before setting his jaw, he dipped his head low. "I'd do even better to keep a sharper mind. Unfortunately, some things become dull too quickly," he replied, getting slowly to his feet. In doing so, it was clear that he was not making any wrong moves anymore. To remain laying down idly would have been more disrespectful than his yawn, but to stand tall was not his objective - on his feet, he remained close to the ground in passive submission, not quite meeting the female's single golden eye.



"My name is Armistice Shanti," he began again. "I have been wandering for longer than I'd like too, and when I caught scent of your home --" he paused, inhaling deeply, to make sure she was from the pack in front of them (she had woken him up, after all, and he hadn't seen where she'd come from). Scent confirming her to in fact be one of the border markers, he continued: "-- I was overcome by a comforting feeling. I suppose that explains my nap," he said, although the surroundings could hardly be considered "comforting" here. "I suppose I'd like to offer my services, if I can be useful, in return for a more permanent stay."

Armistice had met his share of reprimand for his laid-back attitude in the past. Whether it was because he wasn't paying attention, focusing hard enough on a task at hand, or simply not caring, countless creatures (his mother came to mind) had seen fit to lecture him about good manners and attentiveness. However, very few of these lessons had sunken in. It must have been providence, then, that the bullet-colored coyote before him happened to have a rather laid-back attitude herself. She did not, as he half-expected, bear down on him and show off how powerful she was. Instead, she stated the facts as plainly as he himself had done.



Casting his eyes again to the forest behind her (you know, the nice looking one behind all those... war trophies), he nodded. Inferni. If this was going to be his new haunt, he might as well memorize the name. "Pleasure to meet you, Kaena," he replied, deciding that they were going to be on a first-name basis. With a nod toward the skulls, he rolled his shoulders into a shrug. "I suppose you don't like wolves much, eh? Well, that's okay. I'll just tell my wolf-half he's not welcome, and he'll stay under my skin," he added, a sly grin winding its way onto his features to match Kaena's. It was no use hiding the wolf that flowed in his veins, but, if he wasn't mistaken, the girl before him didn't look so coyote herself.



When the topic of conversation became introspective for Armistice, he took a moment. Selling himself was never something he was good at, so that was not something he was going to say as a thing he could do. "A little of this, a little of that," he said in lieu of remaining silent for two long, arching his back up in a catlike way, and looking the part by brushing lightly against the tree beside him. "I have spent most of life walking - I know my way around, and learn terrain well. I never forget a place or a smell. But I suppose, most of all, I am good at talking. By looking at me, I'm sure you can see I'm no warrior - I prefer to use my tongue rather than my teeth. I talk my way in and out of predicaments daily. I noticed there were several other packs on the way I took to get here. I am sure you must have relations with them, whether peaceful or otherwise? Well, I can be your go-between. You ever hear that saying, 'don't shoot the messenger?' Well, I'm one messenger who's never been shot, and I don't plan on ever taking a bullet."