Redhawk Caldera On into the gold river

For a moment, while they waited, Shrike watched Allure out of the corner of his eye. Even in the blur of peripheral vision, he found her stunning. The touch of her shoulder against his- not only now but as they’d walked, had been an immeasurable reassuring agent for Shrike. While some small part of him still felt that a wolf like Allure was simply settling when it came to seeing a wolf like him- her affection and attentiveness told him otherwise. She trusted him; and though she seemed a bit hesitant about joining the Caldera, she trusted his judgement, and that meant the world to him.

It wasn’t long before a pack member came along; her step wasn’t particularly quiet, and the young female was bristly as she approached them. Her features and mannerisms well almost unmistakeable, and given the age Shrike estimated her to be, he had a pretty good idea of who this was. He turned his ears back respectfully, tilted his muzzle to the side- toward his mate- and dipped his head in a respectful greeting. Given this was likely exactly qho he thought she might be, he felt it was important to be respectful. 

...Even though one thought kept nagging him; that down some other possible timeline, she might have been his daughter. 

Her speech was difficult to understand, to say the least. There was something about the way she pronounced her S’s and R’s, and the low monotone of her voice that seemed...Off. A speech impediment, he figured- having never met a deaf wolf before. Still, he assumed she’d asked what most guardians would ask, and after he took a minute to run her jumbled words over in his brain, he decided that yes, ahe had just asked for his name and business. 

”Shrike Redleaf, and this is my mate, Allure.” He said, gesturing to her by nosing her cheek, allowing her a moment to say something if she wanted. ”I’m close friends with Elwood and Finley; we were hoping we might join the pack.” He said. He hoped his friend would come soon- just in case he had to engage in conversation with this wolf for a while...She was difficult to understand, and also just gave Shrike the feeling she had something blunt wedged where the sun doesn’t ahine.