Shy Deer Steppes Down east

Since Wildfire's dangerous encounter near Haunted Wood, Peregrine had redoubled his patrols on the northeastern edges of the caldera's territory. Twice now Sebastian's piece of shit father had shown up in their neck of the woods, threatening his family, and if Peregrine saw him again, he would be sure to add head and all four legs to his list of amputated appendages.

He had never explored much in this direction, yet as he wrapped up his patrol, the scent of game drew Peregrine outward, directly east. He found himself on a flat plain made arid by the July sun. His nose twitched as he scanned the horizon. A mesa hovered to the north and he knew Blackfeather Woods lay beyond it. Slightly south of his current position, he saw a distant tiered waterfall. Unlike the Outriders in his life, these exotic landmarks did not really draw his attention.

No, what appealed to him was the herd of deer milling perhaps half a mile further east. He crept in that direction, feeling a lot like a lion on the African Savannah prowling after gazelles. The hot sun beat down on his dark back, yet he paid no heed to this mild discomfort. The pack had been reeling somewhat in the wake of Dove's death and everyone knew there was nothing better than some hearty comfort food.

This wasnt a region Colt intended to stick around in long.  It wasn't that he had anything particular against the warmer south.  Just one of the individuals who already appeared to be living there.  After stumbling across her scent completely coincidentally, he'd briefly entertained the idea of dropping by to pay his dear sister a visit. Seemed that she had a posse behind her, though, and reckless as the Blackthorn might be, he knew better than to cross that literal line of fire. He doubted Finley would have much to say in his defense either should he try it. It just wasn't worth it.

He was heading north when he saw the herd, and the strange wolf stalking them. He faltered in his path, then a slight grin appeared, and he shifted his trajectory to one with the promise of a little more fun. One of two thjnfs could happen here... The wolf was friendly, and together they could take down some prey, or he wasn't, and Colt would get to try his hand at a bit of thievery.

While the first was the easier, he wouldn't be disappointed should the second be the case. It had been a while since he'd pissed someone off.

He skulked closer, every bit the masterful hunter in his approach. But when the wind shifted suddenly, he could only watch in as the herd caught his scent and scattered, bounding away toward the greener meadows yonder. Peregrine drew up to his full height, a frown causing his mouth to droop. The tip of his tail twitched, yet he did not make any attempt to chase after them. The distance was too great, the ground too open and he had already lost the advantage. Besides, he was only one wolf.

He turned and that's when Peregrine caught sight of the tawny stranger trotting this way. His ears immediately folded back and his hackles bristled. His tail stiffened, held out behind him without arching. He kept his head level too, dusky jade eyes tracking the other wolf's movements. He had an air of youthful mischief about him. Peregrine studied him silently, wondering if he was part of a pack, his eyes widening slightly when he noticed the black streak down the stranger's back.

"Finley," he said loud enough for the other wolf to hear, wondering if he would react to the name.

Or, you know, the deer could choose a third option instead, taking off before either of the first two were chosen.  C'est la vie.  Were Peregrine not there Colt definitely would have followed, the joy of a run and the (surely impossible) challenge of catching up too much to bear.  Instead, he slowed to a stop before him.

Peregrine's posture didn't bother him one bit, since the way he saw it, there was no need for posturing here.  No territory to guard, no food to steal, and definitely no reason to fight.  Unless of course he wanted to.  That could be interesting, even if the Blackthorn could tell just from looking at Peregrine's size that it would likely not go his way.

Eyes alert and interested, he fell to his haunches in a non-threatening way, gaze flicking to watch the last of the deer disappear before addressing the word that had left the other's lips... One that surprised him for a brief moment, before he recovered and came to an assumption as to why one would know that name.  "Nope.  Why, you think I look like a Finley? I'd take myself more as a Phil or Phinneus personally.  No offense."  Ok, maybe not the best of responses, but he wasn't expecting to run into someone who knew his sister before he left this place far behind him.  "I don't know if I should be flattered or not, you mistaking me for my sister."  Yep, family. Get that out of the way right off the bat.  He had no reason to hide his presence here from her, though.  He knew she likely would be avoiding him just as avidly.

While the wolf felt comfortable enough to take a seat, Peregrine remained firmly planted on all fours. Just as casual as his posture, the stranger struck up a conversation that began with a joke about the name, then ended in revealing his relationship to Peregrine's Beta female. For a good twenty seconds, the Alpha made no reply as several thoughts passed through his head. Was he looking for Finley? Did he know about her mate and kid? Did he know about Tiger?

"You two have the same marking," the swarthy wolf finally said. "I'd ask you your name but I think Phil does suit you. Are you close to your sister, Phil?" Peregrine wondered, his tone pointed but not unfriendly.

He nodded, figuring it was that which had given him away.  The Blackthorn spine was a hard trait to hide, and one that most of them wore proudly.  His family was a bunch of crazies (present company not excluded, of course) but he was not sorry to be easily recognized as one of them.  Even if in this instance it was a bit inconvenient.  His smile grew at his new name, dubbed by Peregrine as being appropriate.  See what Frog thought of that when she heard he'd met her brother 'Phil'.

"Fair enough.  Phil it is."  The grin was short-lived, however, and fell away slightly as Peregrine asked the not-unexpected follow up.  Perhaps he thought Colt had come this way to find her.  Funny.  "We were.  But shit happens.  You know how that goes, with siblings."  Even if he had none of his own, presumably he could imagine.  Some stayed close, and some did not.  He and his sister happened to be the latter, oh-so-functional case.

The way he answered, it made Peregrine wonder if there had been a falling out between the two siblings. It made him think of his own brothers and sisters. He had many, though the older and younger were nowhere near as close to him as his litter mates. Well, they had been close. Peregrine didn't want to dwell on that, so he brushed those thoughts aside.

"I do know," he answered with a bob of his head. "So, what're you doing around these parts? Are you part of one of the local packs?" If not, he wondered if he could recruit "Phil." He was young and able-bodied. He came from a good family. Hopefully he wasn't estranged from Finley, otherwise he surely wouldn't want anything to do with the caldera.

The suredness with which the dark male agreed made Colt assume that the wolf, like most, had a couple siblings out there in the world as well.  Thankfully only one of Colt's had crashed and burned... and of course that was the singular one he had come across since leaving home.  Couldn't be Tiger, or maybe one of his brothers.  Nope.  Frog.

"Nah, living loose for the moment.  Can't say I don't like these parts, just haven't found that one particular place that tickles my fancy.  I'm a picky guy."  That was a little bit of a lie.  It wasn't like he had a laundry list of things he wanted, or much of any standards.  Colt had no problems trying a place out and moving on if he found something better, but describing it as such was easier than trying to put words to what exactly he wanted in a home.  Mainly because he wasn't exactly sure he wanted the permanence that a home generally required.

He hadn't had recruitment in mind when coming out this way. The scent of prey had lured him in this direction. Peregrine had wanted to provide some comfort food to his mourning family. On that note, that meant there was one more open space in the pack than before. It was never too soon to try filling that space and the others, especially after losing an able-bodied hunter like Dove.

But he wasn't really in the mood and he said as much, "I'm not really in the mood to make a sales pitch but if you're shopping around, you should consider Redhawk Caldera. That's where I'm from... and where Finley lives with her mate and newborn son." Maybe that would hook him, with very little effort on the Alpha's part. "On that note, we don't do visitors. So if you want to see her pup, you'll have to be a member of the pack, or wait until he's old enough to venture outside of the caldera."

Hold up.... no way.  He had to be joking.  Finley couldn't have a kid.  His suggestion that Colt keep his pack in mind was almost disregarded with this little tidbit, and his surprise likely showed on his face, it was so unexpected. A mate and kid. Instead of happiness, he felt old resentment begin to surface once more, though this he kept better hidden.

"I'll keep it in mind." He said, some of the levity having left. He had no interest in seeing his nephew, not really. Colt didn't mind kids (they were too fun to mess with) but with everything that had happened, it dredged up too many unresolved issues and hard memories to hear his sister had taken a mate.

Did he know? Or had she managed to forget?

"I'll let you get back to it. And I'll find you some way if I decide to go with it." Doubtless someone would be out and about to catch should he choose to give it a try. But he figured it likely he would try to catch Frog first if that were to happen. Because no matter how fun it might be for a while to make her life a living hell, she was family. And any shit they had between them was just that - between them.. Colt was an ass, but he wasn't about to drag her new pack into that shit heap.

The mention of Finley's husband and child did not have the effect Peregrine thought it would. "Phil" offered a vague and noncommittal reply. The Alpha could find no fault in this. If he wasn't particularly attached to his sister, then Redhawk Caldera wouldn't be anything special to him. Still, Peregrine hoped he really would consider it. Finley's last sibling had turned out pretty great (well, until she went and died).

He wondered if he should mention that, then decided against it. "Sure thing, Phil. I'll let Finley know I ran into you, unless you'd rather I not mention it?" Peregrine pictured the look on her face when he told her he had run into her brother, "Phil." He snickered. He would describe the wolf in question and then maybe Finley would try to seek him out somewhere in neutral territory.

He only waited long enough for an answer (all the while crossing his fingers that the dude wouldn't rob him of a fun opportunity), then nodded his head and trotted away.

Colt had no intention of revealing his real name at this point, and he was glad Peregrine seemed taken by the idea of giving her false info as well. Doubtless she'd know exactly who it was once some description was given. Colt was a striking dude, after all.

"Go ahead." She might not react so favorably to the news, but he offered no warning about that. Let her deal with it however she did, he was sure they were used to her crazy by this point. There was a time he'd loved it as they might. But, as he'd said - shit happened.

"Let her know I'll be around. In case, y'know." If she sought him out, he wouldn't avoid her. While he hadn't actively been looking for her, he wasn't really the type to run away from confrontation. With the news of her new life here, he was actually kind of hoping she would. He had a few things he would like to get straight. After Peregrine acknowledged this, Colt too departed. He'd remain a bit at least, until he changed his mind and determined it wasn't worth the trouble of addressing the past.