Grayson smelled no deceit from Luc, and if he was honest he felt a wave of anger for the needless deaths.  He had killed to defend his pack, and he had killed the leaders of rival packs who pressed too far into his territory, but the wholesale slaughter of a pack, men, women and children?  That was something he couldn’t condone even among other wolves, but for it to be an outsider?  That made it far more serious a crime, and one he knew he would have sought retribution for had it been his people slaughtered.<br/><br/>“I will not endanger my pack.  They are my top priority, and we are heavy on non-combatants at the moment,” he said, admitting a weakness as a sign of his trust in Luc.  He would never say that he believed him, but admitting that might as well have been the same thing.<br/><br/>“I can give you shelter here, and resources.  I make no promises yet beyond that,” he conceded.  “If you step one foot out of line with my people I will kill you and your pack will go un-avenged.  No posturing.  No threats to my leadership will be tolerated.  If you’re on my land you obey me.  Understand?”<br/><br/><div align="center">~~*~~*~~*~~</div><br/>The cub’s ears flattened when she shifted, but his tail swayed back and forth.  After a moment he jumped into the water and splashed around, purposefully kicking some of it in her direction before he ended up on the opposite bank again, his paws out as he crouched, obviously ready to play.<br/><br/>All Ryan could think was that there was someone new, someone he could play with out in the woods, and Grayson couldn’t be mad at him if he was with an adult!  He didn’t recognize the flaws in his logic, his excitement at his discovery outweighing common sense.<br/><br/>He was about to cross the river when the sudden echo of gunfire made him flinch, his stomach pressed against the ground as he made himself as small a target as he could and looked down the river towards the outer edge of pack territory, where the shot had originated, a whine in the back of his throat.  When he glanced at the stranger again it was with fear instead of curiosity, and he wondered to himself if he had gone too far this time.<br/>