Noctisardor Bypass Hold on, if you're an Angel, how come you ain't got no wings?

@Alexandre, other tag for ref, though others can threadcrash if they want, heh.

He'd left @Royal with a packmate, telling her that he was going to check for signs of Arbiter or her siblings nearby. At the very least, check the borders. If they knew how much trouble they were probably in, they'd probably sneak on back and hide. Or at least, that sounded smart to him. He'd be back quick, so he figured, and even Warlock was getting concerned. Where were they?

So, the young man trotted along the borders, nose sniffing for a sign, but eyes scraping across the horizon for some sort of sign of their return. He wasn't spotting any familiar figures out there -- not yet at least. But he'd keep watch on the section nearest to where they left and try to make sure nothing crazy happened while they were gone. He didn't like it.

He'd been separated from Tahoe for a while now - they'd dipped apart at the mountain, with McBride going west and St. Clair going east. Seeking out adventure and excitement. He'd gotten it with Tahoe, for the most part, but... that was never going to last forever. Not with winter encroaching and a need for a stable pack rising. 

The borders of a pack were nearby - pretty strong, too. Alexandre paused there, sniffing for a few moments, before he saw a shape lurking through the brush on the other side. 

"Hey!" he called out, ice-colored eyes scanning over the other form. "You from the pack that lives here?"

Perhaps not the best way to lead into conversation, but he had to get his attention.

He didn't spot Arbiter, Kaertok, or a rogue sibling. But there was someone out there, who spotted him before he was able to do so. Uh! What did he do when this happened? The last time he ran into someone at the borders it was a kid, that was easier to deal with. An adult? Umm. Mini mental panic there.

The guy was pretty striking looking, or at least way out of the ordinary from Warlock's point of view. He wasn't a particularly worldly wolf, though. So after a couple of blinks, he moved forward to better be able to talk. Uh -- yes. This is Legion. I'm Warlock. Are you wanting to talk to someone here? Or um. I mean about something specific. Because obviously he was talking to someone here. But it seemed likely that he wasn't the one this guy was looking for. Warlock was just one of the legate's children, not someone super important. But despite Warlock being out of his element, he tried to look reasonably professional. Goddamn it, what would his mom do besides look scary?

This was just a kid, really - spooked out of his mind, from what Alexandre could tell. A fond smile tugged at the spotted man's maw. It was endearing, how nervous he was, and from such a friendly greeting too.

Distantly, Alexandre wondered if he had kids of his own somewhere. Probably not - he's always been very careful - but would the idea be so bad?

"Nice to meet you, Warlock," he responded with a light flourish, a bow of his head. "My name is Alexandre St. Clair. Scout, hunter, fighter-" lover was thought but not said aloud. "I've been searching out a pack that might make use of me. Your Legion wouldn't happen to need a jack of all trades, would it?"

Speaking to someone specific? He didn't think he needed to ask for that, but he might as well. "You the leader around here?" That seemed unlikely, but he didn't mind. He'd be happy to speak with the kid until someone else came by.

He shook his head. My mom is the leader here. She's out at the moment. He was smart enough to not mention the situation behind it, especially since he wasn't totally sure either. But either way, at least it sounded like Arbiter might like what Alexandre could provide later on. How did that work when she was gone and Kaertok was MIA? Uhh. Deal with that a bit later. I'm pretty sure we wouldn't mind having another around to help out. But what are you looking for in a pack and stuff? 

But he didn't quite leave a gap for reply there, feeling like he should explain a bit more. Like uh. She set up a whole thing to encourage people to improve at their skills and stuff. And it's important to her for people to have respect for the pack -- like not just run off without a word kind of thing -- because the pack is supposed to benefit everyone. And not be Kaertok! Warlock at least felt justified in not liking the dude, especially if he didn't turn up horribly wounded in a few days or something. If he just left? Good riddance! Warlock was totally a better man than him, and his younger siblings could just have a big brother instead of a dad. Or something.

No leader at the moment? That was strange. Perhaps there was only one single leader here, which... would possibly be good for Ale in the future, should he desire a leadership position. But for now, he was content to play the charming and helpful underling that he would need to portray to earn this boy's trust. Not that he had any nefarious schemes boiling at the moment, but there was always tomorrow. 

Alexandre smiled a bit as the boy babbled, and waited for him to be fully finished before he even began to reply. "I'm looking for a pack with strong leadership, and... hopefully one that isn't fueding with too many other packs," he remarked, recalling Kynareth's speech about their many enemies. "I can fight, but I'm not looking to actively fight every single wolf I see, you know? I'd prefer a little strategy. Pick your battles and all that." And Alexandre had had to fight in the past, but it wasn't his favorite thing to do. He wasn't the brawniest, after all.

"She sounds pretty smart," he commented, tail swishing once or twice. "I wouldn't leave without a word. I'd want my skills to help you all just as you will help me." Was he the most respectful? No, but he could at the very least pretend to be. Respect was earned, not given, and he'd have to actually see how the pack worked before he respected it. But still, he wouldn't leave without a word. Alexandre was a sneaky bastard, but he wasn't that bad. 

"I take it you've had some people leave on you in the past?" he questioned, brow rising as he studied the boy.

Well, we don't go out of our way to piss people off -- and we're far enough out here that things are quiet. There's a couple of packs farther out that I think try to cause trouble, but that sounds like it's with everyone. So I don't think that'd be an issue for you. My mom puts us all first. Well, sort of. Her own pack was put before another pack, at least. He tried to think of what else might be of interest... So far at least he wasn't saying anything that he was thinking would be a really big red flag to Arbiter, but it wasn't going to be his call in the end anyway.

Warlock wasn't gonna share too much right now, We've had a few. Some definitely broke promises when they did so. Kaertok mostly. Warlock hadn't given a damn about him disappearing, but his siblings apparently had. Hopefully they'd realize he was a jerk and that the people still here were way better people. He'd work on it.

He wasn't sure what else he should do. When was Arbiter gonna be back anyway? Is there anything else you'd want to know? I mean, I'm sure when she gets back my mom might have her own to ask you, but... Shrug. He didn't know what she'd want to know beyond what he'd already asked. Probably depended on what mood she was in.