Heron Lake Plateau Who do you love?
you've still got a little lightning in you
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#1
Joining 
Once she found out that she was near Morningside, it was easy to find her way back to the Redhawk's plateau. She'd taken her time, picking her way along and stopping often to rest and hunt, but eventually found herself on familiar borders, with their well-remembered scent in her nares. Her last meeting with the pack handn't gone very well, but Blackbear chalked that up to circumstance. They probably wouldn't remember her, anyway.

With a steady breath, she tipped back her head and announced her presence with a howl.
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While Niamh had been in the middle of playing with @Vasa and @Kite, a call from the borders pulled her away from one line of duty to another. She left the pups, bestowing a kiss atop each soft head- whether they wanted it or not- and headed toward the edge of their claimed lands where the call had come from. She didn't recognize the voice, so she assumed it was either an ambassador from another pack- sent on official business and therefore, it made sense for them to call out- or a loner. With her rangy stride, Niamh reached the border and picked out the dark form of a female wolf waiting there, but to Niamh's slight disappointment, the wolf did not smell like another pack. 

She approached the female with a stiff-legged pace, tail curling up over her haunches. The loner had called her away from her chosen daily activities, rather than waiting for someone to pass by. Surely she should have noticed that the borders were well patrolled and marked- she'd chosen wisely to stay just beyond where the scent markers were, after all, so clearly she'd chosen to interrupt the flow of their day. She jerked her chin up in the air once, gesturing briskly at the female and narrowed her gaze. She halted abruptly, shoulders squared. "You rang?" She said, but her voice was half drawl, half growl. She didn't have patience for someone who would summon her like a genie and then waste her time, so she leaned forward slightly, intent on getting a quick answer from the dark female.
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Someone came quickly. Blackbear didn't recognize the wolf, but she recognized what she was beginning to consider a typical Redhawk disposition. Not all of Tegan's family seemed mean like this, but enough that she was worried, a little, about how she'd get along with them all. Maybe she just needed to get to know them better.

As the other wolf neared, Blackbear lowered herself accordingly, tail wagging in a friendly manner against her hocks as she tried to make it seem like she was smaller than the older shewolf. The strange non sequitur threw her for a moment, but she figured it was a prompt the same as any one might use when greeting a stranger at the borders. "I'm Blackbear," she introduced. "My friend Tegan lives here - I was hoping you guys might have room for me? I'm a real good hunter, and I'm getting better at navigating, too." Implying she still wasn't great - Blackbear mentally cursed herself for her choice of words.
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tegan isn't technically home until the 5th-- but i kind of disregard my own timelines constantly. if you want me to delete i can ~ <3

NO WAY. BITCH NO WAY. 

haaaaah. there was an insane amount of fuckin snark ass smugness on tegan's face when he heard the call of easy-- a voice he'd never forget. not cause he had a crush on her or any of that pussyshit-- but cause he widely regarded easy as the first bitch he'd ever corralled. she held a special place in his, uh, head. not his heart. miss him w that. 

he trotted up, trying to lose the smug smirk and transition into a more typical tegan smirk. less smug, more annoying. he approached niamh with a quick nudge to the shoulder, his tail wagging. "easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy!" he chirped at her, settling beside niamh into a comfortable standing position, his posture lower than his friends since, after all, his rank was below hers and he still abided by those hierarchy rules or whatever. he looked from easy to niamh. "what's brackin, blood?" he asked, head tilting to one side.
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LOL. Even better :D I figured this had the potential to get interesting >XD

Niamh studied the female's features and posture, and was, at most, appeased when the dark girl lowered her posture. She was in great shape, that was for sure- she had a great, solid build, and height as well- for a lone wolf, that was surprising to see. Even excellent hunters tended to have a slightly more hardened and hungry look about them from the travel, but then again, there was no telling where this female had come from and how she'd managed to keep herself in such good condition. Even living in the pack, Niamh remained slim; she was hardened and strong, but had never put on a great deal of muscle. Too much patrolling and being on the move for her to gather muscle mass, rather than simple muscle strength and density. 

Regardless, she introduced herself and Niamh found herself wondering if this was another Blackthorn. From what she'd been told, a great deal of the Blackthorns had animal names, so this one might not have been an exception. The redhawks were generally named after birds, but the Blackthorns for animals. The name suited her- she wasn't burly enough to lose her feminine appeal, but she was a solid, strong looking wolf who had a decent air about her. Still- healthy, kind face on the border or not, she'd already ruffled a few of Niamh's proverbial feathers by calling out. 

She could obviously hunt- she was alone, so it wasn't likely someone else had been feeding her, unless she'd been raiding caches. But she should have had injuries or scars if that had been the case. When she mentioned Tegan's name, Niamh's stern expression didn't change, though she realized the female likely expected a warmer reception from the name drop. Instead, she didn't quite know what to think. Tegan had brought one of his little girlfriends to the pack before- and she'd been allowed to join after she, like many others, had sworn up and down that she'd be useful and dedicated...And like many others, she'd left. Tegan's vouching, unfortunately, had sullied his recommendation. 

He showed up and greeted the female in a silly way, leaving Niamh to suspect that this was nothing but another girltoy he'd led to believe could join the pack simple as could be. As much as she liked Tegan, there was a certain amount of doubt that had begun to creep into her mind that he was the best judge of character, when it came to ideal packmates. She nevertheless gave his shoulder a soft bump with her own, and gestured with her slim muzzle toward Blackbear. 

"Blackbear here says she's a friend of yours." She said, but their relationship wasn't exactly something she doubted- given his casual, but somewhat nonsensical greeting. "She wants to join the pack but...I'm afraid the last girl you vouched for split without contributing to the pack or offering an explanation; Sapphira. Remember her?" She said, her tone inferring perhaps that she assumed this was just another fling of his that he wanted to keep around for proximity's sake. She felt bad almost instantly, knowing that it must have sounded as though she was chastizing Tegan...He was her friend far before she made a name for herself in the pack. She had a duty as a leader, but also needed to maintain some semblance of there being standards within the pack. The confliction showed on her features. Her tone softened, and she regarded him for a moment, and began to sign to him, the expression on her face apologetic. -I'm sorry, dude...I don't mean to doubt you...But I can't go too easy with this...I can't be the leader that accepts wolves that are just going to turn into deserters.- Her movements were swift and fluid; any wolf not thoroughly versed in ptero wouldn't have been able to pull any meaning from her fleeting gestures.
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A tiny flinch went through the dark girl when she realized Tegan was on his way over - and again at the sound of her old name. She wanted to tell him now that she didn't go by that anymore, that she couldn't, but it seemed rude to start that conversation in front of the other wolf. What if she felt left out or ignored?

"I don't need anyone to vouch for me," she cut in as politely as she could, kind of wishing Tegan would disappear back into the ether for the moment. He'd seemed fun and exciting when they were littler, but now that her moods leaned more and more toward ruminative or melancholy, he just seemed like a little much, most of the time. "If there's something I can do to prove myself, I'll do it. If not, I'll... I'll figure something else out."

The truth of it was - she was doing alright for herself. Better than her family on the plains (not that she knew this). The real reason she was trying to join a pack - and this pack specifically - was that she was young and lonely and tired of her own company.
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-you're making me look bad-- and cock-blocking- tegan signed to his friend, scowling, -but easy isn't a broad anyway, she's an old friend. it's platonic, only good christian reasons for wanting her in here.- i mean, she could be a broad if she wanted to be a broad... but... besides the point. but anyhow, tegan shrugged. -but... yeah, i got it. i won't hold it to you.-

"fine, i won't vouch for you then," tegan said with a goofy, furrowed brow, sticking a tongue out and plopping his butt right onto the grass. but, he couldn't keep himself quiet-- "you could fight niamh, show off those mean muscles and prove your worth." haha! two bitches fighting? hell yeah, what a show.
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Niamh was somewhat impressed when the female declared her independance of Tegan, and that she didn't need someone to vouch for her. It was always better to have some link to the pack, for sure- but she seemed to believe that she was good enough to get in without using a friend as a crutch. That was actually kind of nice to hear, and Niamh kept that in mind, and gave the female a thoughtful nod in response. 

Tegan, though, got a concerned expression from Niamh. Not a broad, eh? -Then why are you calling her Easy?- She signed, and refused to believe that Tegan had good Christian reasons for anyone or anything. That whole concept was laughable. He ceded, though, but proceded to put forth the idea that Niamh should challenge Blackbear to a fight- something she had no interest in. She wasn't about to fight a stranger- one she didn't know and didn't trust. Even if Blackbear agreed verbally to a blood-free spar, Niamh couldn't trust she'd stick to her word, so she shook her head. "Where are you from?" She asked, then. "What's your past pack experience, past ranks and roles?" That's right- Niamh was going to go all job interview on this whole thing, as it seemed the best way to suss things out.
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"A nomadic pack to the east," she answered promptly, relieved that the other seemed to be a bit more open to her, now. That was her impression, at least. "I'm only just a yearling, but my dad was really serious about hunting - he's been teaching me since I could walk, and I was a core member of the hunting party by the time I was six months old. I was also my dad's guide - he was blind - and I went on a few diplomatic missions with him. More as a guard than a diplomat, though."

Her rap sheet wasn't all that impressive - especially because she hadn't exactly been raised to understand ranks the way a lot of wolves had. A rank in Morningside was not a measure of the esteem you ought to be showed, but of how well and often you put the pack before yourself. She - and most of her line - were humble by nature and nurture both, and she did quite know how to say that she'd been as respectable a member of her birth pack as any child could be.

She ignored Tegan, on the theory that if she just pretended not to hear him, he might get bored and go away. She'd track him down when she was less focused on putting her best foot forward - since, of course, there was no way to do that while goofing off with her childhood friend.
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[align=justfy]damn. they didn't like his idea. he bet, if towhee wasn't so crippled right now, she would've fought blackbear. that's like, a totally valuable way to test new members skills entering a pack. i mean, yeah, tegan suggested it for some fuckass reasoning but all the same. it wasn't a bad idea. he went ignored, so he just shut up and sat as respectfully as he could beside niamh, listening. he nodded to what easy had to say about her dad, his tail waving at his butt.[/align]
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From the look of her, Niamh couldn't believe she was from a nomadic pack. She'd seen nomadic wolves before- and she'd been one. Out of the two of them, Niamh still looked more like a nomadic wolf than Blackbear did; but of course Niamh wasn't willing to accept the fact that some wolves were just built differently. Something with this girl's story had to be amiss, and she thought she spotted it when Blackbear went on to elaborate about her history, which didn't quite line up, in her opinion. 

"So...You're telling me...A blind wolf taught you how to hunt...But at the same time, you were his guide?" She asked rhetorically. How could a blind wolf even hunt, let alone instruct another wolf what to do? She could imaging a blind wolf being a good tracker- but there was no possible way a blind wolf could run full tilt to bring down prey without bashing into obstacles or tripping and harming themselves. Blackbear's story didn't make sense to Niamh, and she'd had just about enough of it. "Core member of a hunting party by six months...Led by a blind wolf. This some kind of joke?" She asked, looking then to Tegan, but expecting no response. "Nah. I'm not havin' it. Either you've actually got pack experience you're not proud of, or you're blowing your skills and training completely out of proportion, or both of those. Get your story straight next time you try to join a pack; but this one sure isn't having you." She said, and bared her teeth. Not interested in hearing any more incredulous information which may or may not have been true, the close-minded Niamh moved toward Blackbear with the intention of forcing her away from the pack's borders if she didn't leave of her own accord.
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Blackbear was naive enough to think that things were going well, even as the woman went to pick apart her story with that expression on her face. "Well, not by himself," she cut in, and also, Blackbear felt as though maybe he'd not been completely blind up to a certain point in her life, but for the life of her, she couldn't remember when that'd changed. The woman, however, did not seem concerned with the semantics.

"I'm telling the truth," Blackbear said stoutly, falling back several steps in deference as the other advanced toward her, unwilling to physically stand her ground on the edges of someone else's land - it seemed unforgiveably. "And I'm a good pack wolf. Isn't there anything I can do to change your mind?" She hated that Tegan was there to witness this, but she did not allow her eyes to cut to him no matter how desperately she wished he would lend - and that she could accept - his support. If it wasn't meant to be, it just wasn't, and Blackbear would have to go her own way.
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tegan's ears fell flat to his head. what the fuck? why was niamh being so fucking aggressive? easy-- blackbear, whatever-- hadn't done anything wrong! he cut in, really not caring if he got his face bit off. "he probably went blind later in life," he said defensively, because that was kinda common sense, in his opinion. though, honestly, he wasn't sure-- easy had never said that. 

"what about towhee, niamh? towhee has been deaf her whole life and she was made alpha of this pack as a yearling-- it's not that unheard of. she has the same credentials," he said, taking a few steps forward as niamh began to bare her teeth. though he was being rather bold with his words, tegan remembered his place (kinda), his posture low and his ears slicked back against his head. "easy's one of the best wolves i know-- please reconsider..." 
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When Tegan spoke, Niamh whipped her head around to flash her teeth at him, ears pricking and then falling with the mention of Towhee. She realized her best friend had a disability- but at least Towhee could see. If Niamh had a choice, she would have chosen being deaf over being blind one hundred times over, considering how much more difficult it would be to hunt without sight as opposed to sound. 

”Being deaf’s different than being blind, Tegan. Towhee can see where she’s running, and like 98% of a hunt- once tracked by smell, is visual.” She snapped, and returned her stony gaze to Blackbear. Tegan pleaded with her once more, and she turned one ear back toward him, which could have easily been interpreted as either vague interest, or annoyance. ”Why’d you leave.” She demanded, tone not altogether implying she was asking a question, but her voice had quieted considerably, and she softened her facial features a tad. ”And what other packs have you been with?” She tested the female with a low growl. What she wanted to hear was the truth. No wolf who looked that healthy came from a nomadic pack led in hunts by a blind wolf. It simply didn’t add up, because Niamh wasn’t the sort to have faith in in a stranger’s words. ”And why,” She demanded, glancing at Tegan out of the corner of her eye, ”Does he keep calling you ‘Easy’?” Maybe she didn’t want to know the answer- but she wasn’t about to leave that stone unturned.
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Of course she'd ask that question. Blackbear had been anticipating it, but the truth was, she still didn't have an answer ready. The truth was that she hadn't really meant to. She'd gone on a trip and gotten lost, and there'd been so much time spent wandering, wasting time at the creek when her family had been right there, and then finally finding out from a stranger that her father had died while she was away. And it hadn't been any of that, specifically. It had just seemed like too much by the time she'd reached Round Valley, and had run into her aunt again.

She remembered Sunspot telling her there was no shame in it, but somehow, Blackbear couldn't quite make herself believe the words. And she couldn't stop the mask of grief from falling over her face, or the shame that was leaking through all the cracks in her carefully constructed armor.

"My dad..." 

But she stopped there, feeling awful for trying to use that as an excuse. She hadn't left because of Daddy's death. She hadn't even been there.

"I'll go. I'm sorry to have wasted your time," she said, her voice somewhat choked. Her eyes skated past Tegan as she spun away, unwilling to see the expression on his face. Blackbear took off as quickly as she could, planning to put as much distance as she could between herself and her problems before the day was done.
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tegan shut up, for once (i always write for once but i want to emphasis that this dumb bitch usually never shuts up). niamh asked a bunch of questions and, since tegan knew the answers, he couldn't help but wince. and when blackbear-- he preferred easy, but apparently that was causing some problems-- suddenly choked on her words and ran, tegan couldn't help but feel absolutely flamed. 

he watched as she bolted, holding himself back from chasing after her. he'd track her down-- no one could escape master scouter tegan-- but he had to explain all this to niamh. or try to, maybe she'd bite him for being disrespectful earlier. lmao, we'll see.

he glanced to niamh, trying to hold back a scowl and use something more neutral, but tegan was-- again-- pretty flamed. "i've known easy since we were pups-- like, little pups, but that's the name her dad gave her and thats the name i knew her by when i met her," he explained with a soft sigh, ears flattening. "her dad died, recently, i don't know when but the last trip i made up the coast i ran into her, and she said she left her pack because all of her family had gone, there wasn't anything left for her."

and, if niamh hadn't cut him off and bitten his head off by now (which was absolutely justified), tegan added, "and i'm not arguing with you, i'm not expecting you to have let her in-- especially now-- i know my judgement sucks, okay? i got it," and reluctantly, but unable to hide some of his fucking sass, tacked on, "but i make some good decisions, okay? easy's a good decision."
 
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Given the way the girl’s features sank and darkened, Niamh could tell immediately what had happened to her father. Naturally, a death in the family wasn’t something Niamh ever would have used to justify abandoning a pack- but she had yet to experience a loss like that; her own reasons for leaving her birth pack were much more fickle than Blackbear’s had been. She would have softened her decision considerably, but Blackbear took off, and Niamh wasn’t the type to chase off after a stranger. 

She felt bad, though, and the look of regret did show on her face when she looked at Tegan as he yet again put forth a solid word for Blackbear. Niamh frowned, unsure exactly what she was meant to do then. ”Does anyone else in the pack know her at all?” She asked. ”Not that I doubt your judgement that she’s a nice wolf but...Where did she live, Tegan? If you’ve known her since you were a kid, then like...That means she must’ve been from a nearby pack, not like a nomadic one, right?”  Niamh’s concern, naturally, was taking in a wolf from another pack in the area that might’ve begrudged her for her abandonment. Niamh wasn’t interested in harbouring a wolf that would bring another angry pack to their borders. Apologetically, she touched her nose to his cheek. ”I know you make good choice. I just....I have to make good ones too, and it’s hard, with strangers.” She admitted. After all, Niamh was still young, and new to leadership. There wasn’t exactly any big crash course or cliff’s notes for how to lead a pac.
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"yeah, but not as well as i do. towhee just met her once, and i've told mom about her," tegan said, avoiding eye contact as he remembered that one time he got in deep trouble, "when we moved from the caldera here, i accidentally disobeyed towhee and went all the way to her pack to say goodbye, and she came with travelling back. we both got chewed out by towhee." he shrugged a bit, in a 'but it's whatever' kind of way. "and when i visited they were... uh, on the other side of the mountains. in a valley, i think."

but tegan didn't really know the answer. so he didn't lie, but  "well, i dunno if they were actually nomadic, i never asked, but that doesn't mean they didn't move-- but we weren't like neighbors. we accidentally met at some ravine way far away from both of us, and we just met up there once a month to hang out," he explained, and shrugged again, "but i dunno why she'd lie about that." 

he appreciated her touch. it felt apologetic. and after sapphira, tegan did understand, and he voiced that. "i mean, no, i get it-- i fucked up with sapphira, but she was a babe and you can't deny me that," he said, a small bit of teasing in his voice, eyes flashing, "but, i dunno. i wish you could've taken my word for easy. i gave her way more than a 'yeah she's cool'... and sapphira was my only recruitment error." more like his only recruitment but, i digress.

"but don't like, accept her cause you feel obligated--" he eyed her, "if you even do, i dunno, i know i gotta way with words."
  y
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Niamh listened to her friend, hearing him out and all she could gather from the situation was maybe there was more to Blackbear’s story than she’d said, but that it wasn’t likely something Niamh would have to be concerned about. Tegan seemed to know Blackbear fairly well, and was really trying to be diplomatic with how he was talking to her about her decision. She didn’t regret interrogating Blackbear- she’d crumpled under a tiny bit of stress, and who was to say she wouldn’t do the same again at a crucial moment and let the pack down...Still, the loss of her father must have been hard, and Niamh could empathize when she wanted to. 

Towhee, apparently, had chased Blackbear off once before, which caused Niamh to frown; what would Towhee think if she’d allowed Blackbear to join? Then again, Colt had been tossed out of the pack and then invited back by Quixote, and now the two of them were cool, so the rift between Towhee and Blackbear could likely be mended as well. 

”I can’t honestly just take back all I’ve said, and the judgement call...And I still have a hard time believing all her credentials, ‘cause I just can’t imagine a blind wolf being any good at hunting...But I get the feeling she’s probably not a bad wolf. I don’t know where she’s gone...But if she’s willing to take on a task to prove herself, I’d give her a chance.” She said.
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"i get it," tegan said, it might've sounded sort of blunt and bitter but he wasn't. he really did get it, it just fucking sucked. for once in his life, tegan wished he was taken a little more seriously-- which made him regret all the fuckass shit he'd ever done. maybe he should start taking things more seriously himself, maybe that'd help. if he'd done that in the past maybe easy would've been in the pack now.

his ears pricked, slanting forwards thoughtfully. "well, i think he went blind later in life..." he said, then eyed her with a smirk, "not that it matters, anyhow..." and then, still thoughtfully, eyes glinting. "what kinda task?"
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sorry- still on tour with the band on my phone but wanted to prioritize this hence the short post <3
 

Niamh sensed a bit of judgement from Tegan, bit that she let slide- she had to have confidence in her own convictions and decisions, and had to roll with the choices she made if she wanted to be a believable leader. Still, in this case, Blackbear’s case was pleaded and she wasn’t immune to Tegan’s charm. Call it fault or frailty or what, but he still had some sway over her. 

”A hunting challenge.” was all she answered. ”So if you really believe she’ll be a fit for the pack, go and talk to her. If she wants, she can come back and I’ll give her a challenge, and we’ll see how she does. If she’s all she...and you...Say she is, I’ll let her in.” of course, Niamh was willing to be a bit lenient- but she wasn’t about to let Tegan know that. She also still had to design some fair but realistic challenge for Blackbear to face just to see if she could commit to what the pack would require her to do.
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tegan nodded. "deal-- i better go find her before she gets too far out," he said, glancing over his shoulder with a soft sigh. he stared for a moment before turning back to niamh. lips pursed a bit, gaze angled more at her chest, tegan nodded a few times before looking up at her. "thanks, b," he said, leaning forwards to give her should a quick touch before fuckin off outta the territory to chase down his friend.
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Tegan seemed to accept the compromise she offered, and she still felt bad as she watched him go. As his friend, she wanted to cater to his whims and feelings and let him do what he wanted. It hurt, having to disappoint someone she cared about....But at the same time, her role would mot exactly allow her to abandon reason and judgement for emotions. She felt a bit off, but tried to tell herself she’d done the right thing; it would take some convincing.