The gentle roar of the ocean, crashing repeatedly against the shore could be heard from their current position, the cool, tangy breeze that always seemed to flow off of the restless sea ruffling through the silken tendrils of his platinum fur as he shifted his weight off of his injured leg attempting to be as discreet as possible as Ragnar studied the two before him, satisfied that they showed the proper submission and thus far, seemed to be appropriately respectful. That was an easy way to get on the harsh Viking’s good side, and rewarded it with a nod of approval and acknowledgment. It was the girl that spoke up first, though the Viking realized quickly it had been her male companion that had sent up the call. She began with introducing herself and then the male, Julooke and Verrine. Odd names to the Northerner but he supposed, likewise, his name and the names of his children (when he was allowed to give them actual names that is) would probably be just as odd to them. Ragnar listened and assessed both of them in equal measure as she stated why they were at the Ridge’s borders and even went so far as to state her skills without him even having to ask.

Ragnar extended the same courtesy of attention, remaining silent as they passed an invisible baton and the male took his turn stating his own skills. Both seemed qualified and for a small moment, just a sliver of a second, Ragnar wondered if Pump would be ok with him accepting two wolves into the pack without her. She had told him that she got final say over the good of the pack — did that include wolves too? Or did he, as Beta, have the ability to accept or decline at his own discretion? He held her Second in Command, but his powers, as she had told him fairly, were limited. They were not of equal footing and he hated not knowing if he had the ability to make this decision or not; and then decided that since Ragnar was here and it would only prolong this process to call for Pump that he was capable of making this decision and if she didn’t like …the Viking had no doubt she would be the first to let him know.

“Good hunters are always welcome, our caches are too low currently. We had a bear empty several of them and one of them is near empty. He is gone from our lands now but we were not able to kill him, try as I might,” He shifted then so they could see the paste covered wounds on his leg, the only time he acknowledged the wounds before he shifted again so he was facing them once more. “He might return,” The idea displeased the Viking greatly, he did not want their hard work to be destroyed once more, not to mention there was no doubt that his children would be born if the bear decided to return for a round two. “If he does we will be more prepared for him.” That was also part of Ragnar’s new job: preparing for attacks like that. Not just from bears but from other packs, other wolves. “As for your Caretaker skills,” He fixed his gaze on Julooke then. “My wife is about to give birth any day now. Do you have any experience with being a midwife? The pups are not supposed to be seen by anyone but my wife, Thistle, and myself for their first month — it is apart of my culture,” Ragnar explained before he sighed. “But exceptions could be made if you have experience. My wife is young and this is her first litter.” And I fear for her, though Ragnar did not speak these words aloud they were more or less obvious. "As for your dabbling," The word felt strange on his tongue and sounded stranger coming out in his accent. "in Healing. It also happens that my wife is our only Healer. If you're interested in pursuing it as a Trade I'm sure she would be happy to teach you." And having someone else who knew something of medicines might be extremely beneficial to the pack while Thistle was out of commission with the pups.

The Viking then fixed his gaze upon Verrine, ready to address his skills aside from hunting. “I am guessing your Guardian is like a Warden. I am the lead Warden here at the Ridge,” Just so long as it wouldn’t be a problem for Verrine to follow Ragnar’s orders. Ragnar always cautioned that wolves were like him when it came to stepping into a smaller role (even if it was horrendously unfair) after being a lead anything because it was a hard thing to transition back too. At least for Ragnar, it was. Likely, the position of Lead Warden would open in due time considering Ragnar’s on-hold pursuit of his own pack, but for the time being it was occupied. “Pump — the Alpha and I are near constantly on the borders, but Gavriil, an aspiring Warden can also be found patrolling. Another Warden would be welcomed,” Especially considering Ragnar’s priorities were about to shift in a few days time. He was a father and leader first, a warden second. He would not relinquish his patrols but his time would not be able to be spent endlessly at the borders as it was all but now. “We don’t have any Outriders currently but I was thinking, once my children are older that I would train for it,” Ragnar was a busy man because he liked to be doing things. He was not the type of man to sit idle, bored, and lazy. “Perhaps we can assist each other in that?” Or they could do it alone, too, if working together did not sound appealing to Verrine. Ragnar was used to doing things on his own, not trusting others well.

Satisfied that he had addressed the ways in which their skill sets could be useful to the Ridge, and how they could go about earning them quickly, the Beta gave a little smirk to the two creatures behind the borders, realizing that he had not yet introduced himself. He was used to not introducing himself — usually by this point someone else, namely Pump — would have came in and made the introduction for him. He did not, as a habit, freely give out his name along the borders. “I am Ragnar, Beta of this Ridge,” He finally gave them his name and rank. “You both sound and look like good additions to this pack, so you are welcome into our …family,” He told them, gesturing for them to cross over into their borders as their newest additions. “Work hard, earn your rank and place with us. Pump and I are not soft leaders,” He grinned at them once before his face turned serious. “It does not need to be said but I will say it regardless, we will not carry dead weight. Even my wife, who is heavily pregnant with child has been active in her pack and Healer duties, and when our children come of an age where they can help they, too, will be required to apprentice and contribute.” Pump’s ideals on that were extremely similar to Ragnar’s own.

“If you have any questions or concerns or anything you can always come find me or call for me,” Ragnar was a harsh man, ruthless, merciless, a heathen to many and then some, but he was a fair and attentive leader. He would make time for them if they needed him. “It wouldn’t be a bad idea to introduce yourselves to Pump, when you get the chance. You can’t miss her. She is all black, and is a mix of domesticated dog and wolf.” It was the nicest way Ragnar could explain that she was a hybrid without coming out and directly calling her a hybrid. “Have you been traveling together, long?” Were they a couple? Mates? Or siblings? They had the look of two wolves in love but it wasn’t Ragnar’s place to assume their relationship to one another.

Ragnar nodded to Julooke when she admitted that her experience was in dealing with the children themselves instead of giving birth. All of his, admittedly desperate, attempts to find Thistle a midwife had ended in vain. He would just have to hope that her body and instincts knew what to do and trust that they did. “It will be good for her and the Ridge if you would allow her to teach you to have another Healer among us. She is relied upon too heavily and sometimes stretched to thin, something they will not be able to do once our children are born.” Ragnar’s personal thoughts regarding that were rather cruel and heartless — he was cruel, period — but their children, squealing newborns were going to be Thistle’s first priority for quite some time and if anyone thought Ragnar would let them near his children until he had performed the rite of child birth on them so they were protected they were absolutely silly. If he would make exceptions he had yet to be aware of, though currently it stood that he would not.

Ragnar’s attention had been turned onto Verrine when the other man admitted that he wasn’t sure what an Outrider was. “It is more or less a scout; it also doubles as a pack ambassador if needed.” In a way it was kind of like a Scout and a Peacekeeper combined. Of course Odinn’s Cove had never had anything even remotely similar to a ‘peacekeeper’ and the Jarl himself (or Earl if it was a female who led) had handled everything ‘diplomatic’. Then again, the Cove was constantly upheavling their neighbors by raiding them every winter. There had been no sense in having a ‘peacekeeper’ because the Jarl handled disputes among the members personally, and there was never to be any peace between them and other packs.

Ragnar listened as Julooke explained that they had lived here for a short time before but upon returning to their home had found that their pack had disbanded. It was a harsh thing to go home too, Ragnar admitted to himself, but that was the way of the world. Harsh. Fluid. Things were constantly shifting and changing. It was probably why the Cove was wiltering and crumbling to ruins under Váli’s rule because he was a change and the Cove had never taken change well sticking to their barbaric ways of life through many, many generations. He was silent, having nothing to really offer her because Ragnar did not offer condolences and even if he did they would only be hollow; there was nothing worse than hollow words to the Viking.

Attention was given back to Verrine when the male inquired about alliances and enemies, about the size of the pack. “We are twelve, including you two, Pump and myself, strong,” Ragnar informed Verrine easily. He did not count his unborn children because even if they had been born they wouldn’t count towards the pack total until they were at least a year of age. “We have grown in the last few months,” Nothing like the little five band they had been after the landslide. “Nearly doubled in size, actually,” They were strong in numbers but horrendously off track of one another if the lack of attendance with the bear situation was testament to anything. It had been pathetic. If more had answered Pump’s call they could have killed it and ended it once and for all.

Ragnar tucked his displeasure away about that though, saving it for another time, for other wolves. Julooke and Verrine did not need to suffer his ire because they had nothing to do with it. “I cannot speak for enemies and if we have any I am not aware of it, but we do not harbor any alliances,” Pump shared in that with Ragnar. “We have kept to ourselves mostly. For a long while as we dealt with the aftermath of the landslide we had too.” They had been weak, exposed, vulnerable. Everything Ragnar hated to be.

“I would not bother. We have no alliances with them and no friendships. It would likely be only a waste of trip.” Ragnar spoke remembering the way in which Peregrine had been uninterested in what Ragnar had to share about the going-on in the Ridge, which hadn’t been entirely surprising. If Ragnar would have been in Peregrine’s position he would not have cared about a pack that was not his, either.

Ragnar offered Julooke a rare, genuine smile, small though it was when she expressed that she hoped that everyone was alright. He supposed he could have told her that the original Alpha of these lands had disappeared — as well as a few others during the chaos of the landslide and that they had been decided as either missing in action or killed in action. Those who had been able had searched for a small while but it was not like they could waste the precious few lives left on an endless man hunt and eventually they had moved on with their lives. It was the only way in which Horizon Ridge had been able to prosper: by moving forward. Ragnar did not mourn for the lives lost (deceased or otherwise) simply because he had not known them until the landslide had forced the remaining few together. While Ragnar could have told her, he didn’t simply because it was a scar better left in the past.

“Come, I will show you around,” He gestured in agreement to Verrine’s question and with a limping and slow pace showed them around their new home.