Askan found that sleeping in the Shallows communal den was far more tolerable than it had been back in the Field. There were about the same amount of bodies squished into the small space but at least with these wolves he liked them all, considered them family. Hell, he didn't even mind it when Remington accidentally brushed against him. Though, it went without saying that he always had Reyes at his side, curled up close just as it was meant to be.

Askan had been up for hours, gone about his usual patrol of the borders and was now heading back with a spring in his step. The snow was mounting, soon enough it would be more than just a dusting on the ground but he didn't mind it too much. At least here they didn't have to worry about hilly terrain, back in the Field that had almost been the death of him. Or at least it felt like it.

Weaving through the trees, some evergreen and others not, Askan continued on south till he ran into a certain orange eyed pup.

A smile tugged at his lips till he came to a stop and chuffed in greeting. He hadn't expected to see her about yet, as she had crawled into the den pretty damn late last night.

"Morning sleepy head."He teased, stepping forward to nip teasingly at her nose.

Last night sure must have been tiring for her, as even now in the light of day she looked ready to conk out at any moment. Poor thing. He'd suspected that this would happen but he was feeling nice today, so he wasn't gonna rub it in her face. Yet,maybe another time.

There was no way he couldn't have noticed how tall she was getting, hell they were round about the same height. He selfishly hoped that she'd stop growing, that this was as tall as she was going to get but he had a feeling that she wouldn't. That he'd be dwarfed her, even when she wasn't quite a yearling yet. It was frustrating as hell, he hated his stubby little legs but what could he do? Walk on his tip toes? No, that sounded painful, if not impossible.

Whatever, it wasn't a big deal and it certainly wasn't something he should take out on Hawthorn.

At her question he tilted his head in thought. He'd noticed her come in, only because it had woken Gabe up but had it bothered him? Not really, he'd managed to fall back asleep with ease. Especially since he knew all of his pack mates were accounted for.

"You did but it's not a big problem. One day you'll be sneaky enough to slip in unnoticed, but not today."He said with grin."Did anything catch your interest?" He wouldn't admit it, but Askan was a massive gossip-monger. The way he saw it though, was that he was in charge around here, wasn't it in his best interests to know what happened? Yeah, totally.

Muskrats. Nothing out of the ordinary then, good. As much as he liked a bit of drama to spice things up, the last thing the Edge Lord wanted was for things to get too hectic too fast. They had only just settled in, sorted out the borders and made these woods their own. If shit started hitting the fan now he'd start to feel as though they weren't welcome in these parts. Not that he believed in that sort of superstitious stuff but...Whatever, it was fine. Nothing had happened, all was well.

"Give them hell kid."Askan rumbled, knowing full well that if she saw them again she'd give it her all. Though hopefully this time she wouldn't screw up."By all means."Askan flicked his tail, motioning for her to walk along beside him."I've just finished my patrol, you'll be pleased to know everything is clear."

Which of course it was, Askan ran a tight ship and had a sharp attention to detail. If anything, no matter how faint, was amiss he'd investigate and wouldn't stop till he was content. That habit had served him well in the Field, so he wasn't going to let it go anytime soon.

"Right now though...Was thinking of heading back to the Shallows, was gonna glare at anyone laying on their arse."He said,only half-joking."How have you been getting on with the others? Anything I need to hear about?"His question had multiple facets. On one hand he was asking if Hawthorne and Sachiel had been getting into trouble behind his back. Whilst on the other, he wanted to know how she felt about her pack mates in general.

Percy was...Percy. So he didn't expect anything out of the ordinary there, but what of Cotton and Remington?

"Cottongrass." Askan correctly gently as she struggled to think of the fluffball's name.

Understandably really, as it was a pretty odd name, though, by this point the Edge Lord wouldn't have it any other way. As for him teaching her owl sounds, well he shook his head at that. Typical. That boy-along with Reyes-was owl obsessed. Askan didn't see the allure at all, but it was a harmless hobby he supposed.

"Good."Askan said with a nod, pleased she was making herself busy."You know I'm glad I ran into Sachiel that night. It was weird at the time but...you two get along, it's good to have friends. I grew up with a few siblings but I can imagine that it's...not fun being the only young'un in a pack. At least you two have each other's back."

As far as he was aware, Sachiel had been the only pup where he'd come from. Not having any playmates, even someone to cuddle up with for an afternoon nap sounded pretty awful. They were an odd pair, that much was obvious, but they were a good team.