Heron Lake Plateau Who do you love?

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.