Boundary Line

I pushed past the sliding track onto the balcony tiles. Air here smelled sharp... raw. Right at the ledge sat a wide, shallow terracotta saucer, filled with dried gravel. Spines flared... locked rigid. Five breaths. Nothing stirred. Sliding my round belly forward, I nudged a single smooth gray pebble with my snout. It clicked into place, wedged tight beneath my lower flank spine. The open sky stretches high above... but my anchor is set.