Heron Lake Plateau Being a boss is also about image

Careful to avoid his brother's scent, Bruges made his way toward the borders, meandering along in search of any sign that Ambrose had at least infiltrated the pack. He couldn't quite tell- so if Ambrose had, he'd not been along this side of the borders- and it wasn't like too much time had passed, so perhaps he was still trying to impress them. All Bruges could do, though, was hope that his brother succeeded- what he wanted more than anything was to see his brother turn up, in a month, with a role in the pack and a girl on his arm. 

Still- checking in wasn't cheating, was it? Not really...But if nothing else, he didn't need to ask questions about his brother- he simply needed to imply a few things, just to get the ball rolling. Whether Ambrose was a part of the pack by now or not, Bruges had a few things he could do to keep himself busy- and make things more interesting for his younger brother. So, harmlessly, he meandered through the thcket near the borders- but not too close. Naturally, he didn't want to get too close, lest he appear to be a threat, and mess things up.

Colt tried to pretty well split his time between keepin an eye on the territory edges and hunting.  They had a ton of mouths to feed and he was feelin the stress a little, though not enough to let it get him down of course.  Never that much.  

Today he was doing both.  He'd already found a beaver nearby, and returned it as a bite for the kids.  Now he was ranging just outside the border, on the trail of what smelled like a stoat.

The sounds of another nearby alerted him that he was alone, and it was far too large to be what he chased.  

"Who's there?" He called out, pretty non aggressively.  Normally he'd have told anyone nearby to shove it in not so many words, but this one was pretty well back, and Colt was in a rather good mood.  No use jumpin to conclusions!

Though he couldn't quite pinpoint a tonne of Ambrose's scent, Niamh's was definitely everywhere. He hadn't gotten too many details from her- but she was either a very proficient guardian, or had stepped into a leadership rank...But the latter seemed somewhat laughable. Niamh? The 'don't hold me down' DeMonte, stepping into leadership? She likely just traipsed the borders so much in order to keep herself from wanting to wander off from the pack. 

A voice called out, and he moved toward it. The tone had been fairly friendly and casual, so he took that as an invitation. "Hello," He called back, lifting his head above the thicket until he could pinpoint the other male's location. He was of a fair zise- definitely thicker and more muscled than Bruges- and had a dark dorsal stripe running down the flat of his brown back. When he got a look at the male's face, he guessed that this was one of the senior members of the pack- but then again, everyone who was older than Bruges was therefore deemed 'old' in the male's mind. 

It was fortunate for Colt that Bruges' younger sister did not see things the same way. 

"Hi there; I'm Bruges." He said, tipping his head in greeting. "I'm Niamh's older brother...I was just hoping to see a bit of her new home, make sure she's all settled and such." He said. He wanted to seem as harmless as possible, of course- make a good impression, seem believable and trustworthy. This fella didn't look too hard to impress- so surely Bruges would be able to pull it off.

He was a friendly enough sort on first impression, and Colt was glad he hadn't done business as usual.  Especially when the other male revealed who he was.  Niamh's brother? Well whaddya know.

"Bruges, eh? Name's Colt.  Any family of Niamh's is a friend of mine.  Want me to give her a howl?"  He wasn't sure if she was around or if she'd jetted off to another section of territory; he didn't keep close tabs, they had space too.  But there was a good chance if they called she'd hear and could come say hey.  

And aside from that, he thought wryly, it was nice to meet family around these parts that wasn't his.

A friend of Niamh's? Bruges leaned forward slightly, nose quivering- yes, this was definitely a friend of Niamh's...He could tell by the fact that the male carried a significant amount of his sister's scent, and if he squinted- he was almost sure he saw a few golden hairs intwined in the much darker strands belonging to the male's coat. Bruges' brow raised, intrigued by this fact, and he had to wonder why exactly it was that his sister was hanging around so....Closely...To someone who was basically a senior citizen. There was also a certain warmth and sincerity to his voice when he spoke about Niamh, and naturally, as her older brother, Bruges needed to know more. 

"Not necessary- I saw her not long ago, she knows I'm around. And her littermate, Ambrose, as well. I suspect he'll likely try to join the pack, if he hasn't already...Those two have always been attached at the hip," He drawled. Now- back to business. "You say you're...A friend, of Niamh's?" He asked, tone inferring that he was indeed asking more than what he was distinctly saying.

Hmm.  Colt liked this guy well enough on first impression; he was the type who that he usually would make friends with.  Friendly, brash, with it seemed like a dry wit, unafraid to poke at another.  

But his last question made Colt give a long look before answering.  Colt had never been the type of brother to berudge his sisters a relationship.  Hell, he'd offered to wingman for Fire plenty, though she didn't seem keen on taking him up for that (or talking with him at all, but that was another matter).  Some guys were, and if he was, that might put a bit of a damper on this.

"You could say that, though a little past friends now."  He finally said, with a small smile.  "Your sis knows what she wants, and she isn't the type not to take it."  She was a hell of a catch, and their relationship was in no way one sided.... but for now, he left it at that.  He wouldn't be much for listening to a guy gush about his own sisters; so long as they were happy, he was happy.  And woe to any that made them unhappy.

A little....past...friends. This guy? Bruges' brow lifted and he tried his best to simply nod and shrug it off. This guy? Seriously? He was practically old enough to be their grandfather! "Well, then," He said, a touch gracelessly. "That's...Really," He said, trying his hardest not to picture his little sister with this wolf that Bruges would've childishly considered to be practically geriatric. In truth, Colt didn't look too old- he wasn't limping or stiff or slow-moving...But he was older than Bruges, and anyone older than Bruges was too old for Niamh, in his opinion. 

He tried to recover a bit, and chuckled. "Yes, that's Niamh." He said, though he still couldn't imagine why she'd settle for someone who was so vastly her senior. Surely there were other, younger males in the pack- or at least in the area. "Well that's nice...I mean, I probably don't have to give the older brother, 'do anything to hurt my sister and I'll kick your ass' speech, but...You know..." He said, finally recovering, "I will totally kick your ass if you do anything that pisses her off. Though she'll probably kick your ass first," He laughed.

Colt didn't take his hesitation personally, and honestly, the age difference didn't even cross his mind as being a potential issue.  Age had never really factored much into Colt's view on relationships - he'd been with women way older himself, in the past.

He shook his head and chuckled.  "Had that thought myself too many times to not know it by heart already.  Got a good number of sisters myself." Though they were pretty good about keepin themselves happy.  Honestly the only one he really worried about lately was Fire.

"She'd definitely kick my ass," he added appreciatively.  "You two train under the same wolves? She's a badass."  Sometimes a little too much of one for Colt's liking.  Bruges looked to be around the same size and build as Colt (though I'm too lazy to check and goin by memory here), rangy rather than bulked out.  Still, if he was anything like Niamh, Colt wouldn't want him after him either.

Fortunately, the man seemed to take everything in stride, which would definitely help him when it came to dealing with Niamh, who could be a handful in the best of times. Colt also came from a large family, or so it sounded, so in all likelihood, when it came to Niamh and Colt's relationship, all Bruges could imagine would be the amount of pups they'd want to have together. He knew Niamh well enough to know she'd likely have her eyes set on building her own army of children. 

He shrugged when Colt suggested that Bruges, like Niamh, was good in combat. "I didn't take as much interest in being an ass-" He had to stop himself. He couldn't exactly call his sister an asshole in front of her boyfriend (or was he an oldmanfriend? He'd have to tease Niamh about it later) "Assassin, as Niamh and Ambrose. They enjoyed that sort of training more than I did; only learned as much as I had to," He said.

Colt got the sister thing - shit, he had Finley after all - but took the correction at face value.  "Assassin huh? Can't say I've heard of it.  That a big thing where you're from?" Colt's pack didn't do much with formal ranks (Starr assumes), and even if they had, he sure as hell hadn't paid attention.  Fight, hunt, and look pretty.  His skills were more than adequate.  "Training's well and good, but sometimes I think some forget life's about enjoying it."

Bruges couldn't help but bite his lip and flatten his ears when Colt took him seriously. He shook his head; lightly surprised that Colt didn't know what an assassin was, but relieved as well that he didn't freak out. "No no," He said, trying to correct the situation. "They weren't actual assassins...Niamh and Ambrose would never be the bloodthirsty type. They just liked to rough-house a lot, and felt they were both invincible," He said, a tired tone creeping into his voice. Having been put in charge of babysitting them when they'd been little, he'd certainly had his hands full trying to keep the two from picking a fight with something they couldn't handle. "They were trained to be guardians, but sparred a lot, just for fun. So if you ever challenge her...Just watch out. She's tougher than she looks," He warned playfully. Naturally, he could have stepped in and planted a seed of suspicion in Colt's mind that Niamh was secretly a killer- but Bruges was rather fond of his younger sister, and had fortunately decided not to do so. Ambrose was his target at present, and that was giving him tonnes of joy. 

Colt, on the other hand, seemed a lot more relaxed than Ambrose and Niamh, and Bruges liked that about him. He was a chill dude; likely well paired with Niamh who was a bit of a firebrand when she wanted to be. "I'd agree. Can't really be held down to much these days," He confessed happily.

Sounded familiar.  Though in Colt's case, he and Finley hadn't really had the hovering sort of older sibling to keep them in check.  Just parents who barely did so and a whole lot of nonsense encounters to try and knock a little sense into them.  Those were the days.  Shit they'd been stupid.

"Sounds a lot like the Blackthorns."  He said with a grin, "and I've no doubt."  He had seen Niamh fight - he had no intentions on getting on the wrong side of that.  Colt would fight if there was something to protect, but since he'd spent so much of his life alone, he had rarely had reason to choose fight over flee.  Unless the fight was fun, he saw little purpose to it if fighting didn't get you anything.

"The best kind of life. Even if you pick a place to settle, doesn't mean you have to only do one thing."  Colt didn't have many intentions towards putting his own skill set in a box.  "You got an eye on anywhere, or just wanderin?"  He thought he remembered Niamh saying something about a brother and a pack, but wasn't sure that was this particular brother.  He seemed a little loose to be runnin anything, and that was a compliment in Colt's eyes.

WC: 647

If the Blackthorns really were anything like what Niamh and Ambrose were like, then they would be in good company but at the same time...What kind of a pack would that be? A pack full of egotistical, outspoken, opinionated and brash wolves who were rambunctious and enjoyed their uncultured sparring matches to no end. In Bruges' opinion, Niamh and Ambrose were basically the equivalent of cavemen, dragging knuckles around and swinging clubs at shadows simply because they thought it was another opponent. He loved them, of course, but they were certainly cut from a different cloth, even though they came from the same cloth factory. He and his own littermate were almost identical in spirit, the same way Ambrose and Niamh were...But he supposed his parents' skills at really parenting had been going down over the last few years, resulting in a brood of two children who were nearly feral after having had several children who were all intelligent, well-spoken and well-mannered. Of course, that wasn't necessarily the truth for Bruges and his sister- sure, they had those qualities, but they had also developed their darker, more cynical nature and their lust for everything beautiful- not to mention their vanity- which wasn't present in earlier generations.

From the way Colt talked, it sounded as though they had a lot in common when it came to living a life free of restraints or laws. An old fellow like Colt had likely spent a fair share of his many years wandering on his own, and Bruges found himself wondering if perhaps Colt hadn't been a bit like him, many years ago, when he too had been young and handsome. It was a bit unsettling to think about it- the same way no young person likes to think of the elderly still having sex, but Bruges still had some maturing to do even if he thought of himself as a highly refined specimen of the male gender. If Colt had had his days wandering as a lone wolf, he had clearly enjoyed it- but had given it up for the life of a pack wolf instead. Why he'd made that choice was beyond Bruges, who had no intentions of having any responsibilities or being tied down to anyone or anything. He didn't deal well with others having expectations for him.

”Not presently,” He said, deciding against saying that he never intended to settle down, as he figured it might come across as criticism. ”I have a sister- a littermate- who I believe is also roaming, so I may simply wander until our paths cross and see what she has for ideas.” He said. Like Niamh, he too had eventually chosen to part ways from his littermate, but it didn't mean that he didn't miss her. He considered going into more detail about what he might look for in his travels, but decided to put the topic back on Colt. He thought it might be prudent to gain a bit more insight into why and how Colt had decided to give up a life that he had clearly enjoyed for something much more rigid and formal. ”What was it that made you settle down?” He asked. Surely he hadn't given up his free life for Niamh...Though she was a wild one, she certainly couldn't fill in the void of having the whole world to explore and no jobs to do but survive.

The two had a pleasant chat, but Bruges- still the wandering playboy- couldn't be convinced that a settled life was the life for him. He had a lot in common with Colt, so he wondered vaguely if Niamh had any idea what she was getting herself into, but assumed that she would be fine as long as his wandering eye had been put to rest. Eventually, they would part ways, with Bruges departing for the wilderness he so loved.