Firefly Glen fill our cups with profanity

@Osiris! <3

So many times she had come here, how familiar it all was. Yet, as Lyra travelled towards the Glen, she found herself looking upon the territory in a new light, noticing things she hadn't seen before: signs that deer had come through here recently, a hollowed out tree that looked suspiciously like a badger den, a fallen log rich with mushrooms and herbs. All things one should keep in mind when establishing a territory.

She stopped as she noticed scratch marks upon a nearby sapling, a telltale sign of border marking. Perhaps Osiris' own? His scent seemed to permeate the entire area. With a twitch of her tail, Lyra cast her head back and let out a soft howl, calling for an audience with her nephew.

Osiris had paused his patrol to quench his thirst. He stood on the shore of one of the creeks that neighbored the foothills and drank, not intending to forego his duties for too long.  When Lyra called, he promptly cast his head back, recognizing her voice instantly, and howled in reply: I'll be right there! With water still dribbling down his chin, he turned and set off towards her. 

"Aunt Lyra!" he called once he spotted her from a distance, breaking into a light-footed gallop; he didn't want to keep her waiting long. Once stilled, he reached out to sharply nip her chin in greeting. "It's good to see you!" he greeted, pulling away and giving her a once-over; she appeared to be in good health, as always. "You know you don't have to howl, right?" he added after a beat in jest; she was always welcomed in the glen, and did not need him to act as an escort.

Osiris' reply came in the form of a howl, and shortly after that he appeared, bright-eyed and chipper. Her tail waved as he approached, and as he nipped at her, she reached out to touch her nose to his cheek with an affectionate growl. His remark was met with a small shrug. "I was testing your reaction time." He passed the test, for what it was worth. "Though intruders won't always give you the privilege of howling before they trespass," she added with a sly wink.

Not that Osiris had much to prove in the way of guarding borders; he had demonstrated himself plenty capable enough defending Moonspear. With a nod of her head, Lyra motioned for them to walk into the woodland, and she looked to her nephew curiously. "How many wolves have you gathered now? I know your brothers have joined you, who else?"

"Oh?" Osiris hummed in reply; he should have expected Lyra to test him. "How did I do?" he asked, grinning slyly. Her mention of intruders caused the yearling to roll his eyes, and he nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we've had many of those types," he replied.

Osiris turned as Lyra beckoned towards the woodlands, and they set off from there towards the glen's heartlands. "A good amount," but how many—it took him a moment to count all of their members, "Around ten," he answered. "Bronco and Meerkat joined us from the Firebirds, and Leta and Charles joined from Easthollow," he elaborated; their pack was a melting-pot, "Toad, from the mountain..." As far as Osiris was aware, that was the entirety of who Lyra knew. "We've had some newcomers, too."

She didn't respond immediately to his toothy reply, but she looked to him with a knowing smile. He had done well. It wasn't just intruders he had to attend to quickly, but potential recruits and ambassadors from other packs as well; many did not particularly like to be kept waiting on a foreign packs' borders. As he went on to agree with her comment, however, her brow fell. "Already?" she sighed with irritation.

She listened as he listed off some names, nodding along. She knew of Leta and the Firebird duo through word of mouth, though this Charles was new to her. The general tenor of wolves from Easthollow hadn't impressed Lyra so far; perhaps Leta and Charles were different if they wanted to join forces with the Glen.

Toad, however, would be a good asset. She was strong, capable, if not a little naive (or so she seemed to the Ostrega). "Let's hope they match the quality of members so far," she said of the newcomers her nephew mentioned. "And what do you think of them?"

Lyra's knowing smile told Osiris everything that he needed to know; he had done well. He smiled back, acknowledging the looking briefly before the tone of the conversation changed. "Already," he confirmed with a sigh.

"Yes, lets," he agreed. So far, he felt that they were set up for success—with one exception.  "There is only one that I have very little faith in," Osiris informed Lyra, grimacing at the thought of the coywolf, "Charles—from Easthollow. He has no idea how to talk to authority figures, and I've already had to put him in his place," Charles had been given so many chances, "he'll be an Omega until he can prove himself otherwise."

The hopeful look in her eye dimmed slightly as Osiris spoke, bringing up the very wolf who was, as of yet, unknown to the Ostrega. He didn't help her sour view of Easthollow wolves as her nephew explained the boy's faults. "Good," she said as he mentioned he had put him in his place. It wouldn't do to let any form of weakness into their ranks, especially those who did not respect the one in charge.

"Do not let him forget who leads the pack," she said with a proud lift of her chin as she looked to Osiris. "You have the power now to choose who has the honour of following you..." If he had learnt anything from the incident with Arcturus and Revui, she hoped he at least learned to weed out the trouble-makers early before blood was forced to be drawn. "...and who does not."

"I won't," Osiris promised. Charles was already walking on thin ice, and his only saving grace was his friendship with Leta. He would need to prove himself if he wanted any stake in the glen—or else he'd live in the Omega rank for the remainder of his days. 

Osiris rolled his shoulders and shook his pelt, thinking of Charles' place within the pack. "His time here will be short if he doesn't start showing me some respect," he said.

She smiled again as Osiris assured her he would not forget her advice, and that Charles' place in the Glen would indeed be cut short if he didn't fall into line. She didn't think to tell him of how he could help Charles better himself, for she believed wolves should instinctively know how to act around their superiors. Or, if they didn't, were corrected when they were young like she and her sisters had been. No, those who were still defiant upon reaching a year of age had to have something...wrong with them.

"If you're anything like your mother, you shouldn't have any issue commanding that respect," she said with a cant of her head towards her nephew, grinning. Despite his age, he had already shown her how much like Hydra he was, with the added benefit of Dirge's charm.

Her nose then wiggled as they passed by a strongly-scented rock, and she nodded towards it. "The borders seem strong, so far."

Tags for reference!

 
Lyra's compliment brought a smile to Osiris's face. "Thank you," he replied softly, knowing that it would be improper to respond otherwise; she didn't often offer such feedback. 

When she noted the strength of the pack's borders, his nose twitched as well. They had worked hard to establish their presence, and it was beginning to show. "We have multiple guardians working endlessly to make sure they're secure," he said, thinking of @Atlas, @Antares, and @Bronco in particular. 

Still, some trouble lingered within the glen. 

"We've had some trouble with badgers," he began, his nose scrunching at the mention of their territory's vermin. "If we catch the scent of one during our patrol, I'd like to follow it."