With a spring chores list a mile long, it wasn't a good season to be leaving pack lands. But a new pack had sprung up while she'd been busy getting ready for lambing, and she didn't feel it was wise to leave it for later to investigate. Summer and autumn had their own extensive to-do lists, and if she put it off til winter she could very well be too late to learn of a potential danger to her people and flocks. So despite the timing, she set out with Ren to learn more about this new pack, its alpha, and their intentions. Coming to a stop at the border of the pack's territory, she raised her muzzle to call out politely for the pack's alpha, or ranking wolves.

Though she had yet to call her pack together, she would be soon. Lurid moved through the halls of her ship, languidly rubbing her scent into the walls, claiming it intimately. There would be no other who could live here without smelling butterscotch and rum for the rest of forever, she would be sure of it. She was on the top deck of the ship when she finished her claiming spree, getting ready to call her pack for a meeting when another call came up. Golden ears perked up as she looked in the direction of the call. Raising her muzzle she called back to the stranger that she would be coming. Lurid moved back through the cavernous halls to their bed chambers, where Requiem sat sharpening his knives. "My love, we have a visitor at our door. They are calling for us." She said it warmly, lovingly as she always spoke to him. Saying nothing else, Lurid moved to find the exit of the ship, setting off with Requiem in tow to greet this new wolf.

Upon arriving where the woman had called from, Lurid gave one look to the monochrome woman and smiled politely. This one was much smaller than she expected, but not as small as her sister. Lurid was not one to underestimate others based on size, but she dwarfed the mostly white woman. Her tail was held proudly over her hips in a display of her position, Lurid giving a small tip of her head. "Hello, you rang?" The greeting was friendly enough, but those holographic lavender eyes said she was guarded. Who was this wolf, why did she call them, what did she want? The devil could not tell if she held ill intentions, but it seemed she didn't. Perhaps it was simply a social call, who knew? She would play her cards close to her chest, nothing would slip passed her guarded expression.

T hough Mirovis was still a fledgling pack by time's standards, much had already been accomplished to bring the Amarix dynasty back from the brink of oblivion. Many of Lurid's family had returned to swear fealty to her as their Empress, and others had joined in the wake of her victory to claim these lands as hers. And Requiem... well, Requiem was reaping the spoils and rewards that came with his new station. As Haihefa to the Blodreina, he had been busy shoring up their defenses, establishing an undeniable scent boundary around their borders and ensuring all dangerous predators had been chased from the lands or laid to rest. While Lurid went through their new home covering the halls and rooms in her delectable scent, Req had been tending to his instruments of his profession and passion, much like a barber would tend to his razors or a butcher to his cleaver. Requiem fancied himself more of an artist in this case, and his blades were his brushes.

A call from a strange voice to their southern border caught his attention, paws pausing mid-stroke of a whetstone down the sharp edges of his dagger as he read the intent behind the call. A stranger come to speak to him and Lurid, eh? How curious. A moment later and Lurid's response would ring out in beautiful dual vocals, and then the specter was at the door, summoning her to him with that loving tone he was still getting used to. Every time he heard it, it was like living a dream. The brute flashed a tooth-filled grin to his beloved and gave the dagger a bit of a flourish between his paw before sliding it into the sheath worn on his foreleg. "Then let's not keep our guest waiting, pulchra." Rising with a graceful fluidity to his movements, the crimson brute followed his alabaster queen out of the ship and across the tundra to greet their guest.

R equiem studied the newcomer with careful curiosity. She was a titchy thing, a solid two feet shorter than himself, yet she carried herself with poise and confidence that spoke of some degree of authority. A noblewoman or a fellow alpha, perhaps? Although nothing about her screamed danger, Req remained on guard. He'd been fooled by those who hid their true deadliness behind unassuming exteriors before and he was not in the business of judging books by their covers. "Good day, miss," he greeted her in turn with Lurid, allowing the Blodreina to lead this interaction, though making it apparent with his calm demeanor and closeness to his pale queen that he was a wolf of note as well, and here with a purpose.


"Requiem" | "Latin"

Being of only average height for any wolf, and fairly rare among alphas in that size, Corbie was used to her peers towering over her, so she merely tilted her head back to regard the two dire-sized strangers who moved in towards her. Ren narrowed her own eyes watchfully, though, and settled into a more ready stance. "Hello," Corbie greeted them in return, calmly. "I am Corbie Silverwind, alpha of Avalon. I heard tales of your pack claim - " It would have been difficult not to hear the rumors, with all the drama of a challenge to the claim - "so came to introduce myself, and learn more about your pack rather than depend on rumor."

Lurid looked over the smaller woman, and her strange companion, as she introduced herself. "Corbie, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am Lurid, Blodreina of Mirovis, and this is my Haihefa, Requiem." She listened to the rest of what the woman had to say, apparently, rumors flew fast here in Boreas if they already needed to be put to rest. Lurid wasn't sure if she liked that others were already loose-lipped with the name of Mirovis on their tongues, but she supposed it was inevitable.

With her pack claim having been challenged and her own subsequent victory, it was bound to be that a few wolves would be talking about her and her pack. She had made no moves to interact with anyone, they all came to her. "What would you like to know about Mirovis?" Lurid's dual-toned vocals were sweet, but only Requiem would know her tone was a false sweetness. Internally, Lurid was ready to end this interaction and go back to her pack duties. There was still much to be done, and Lurid simply didn't have enough time to stand around talking. Her companion was interesting though, and Lurid found herself wanting to know more about it than any other pack.

T he wary stare from the kinkajou was not missed by Requiem. He had served as the Amarix family’s sword and shield for far too long to drop those old habits any time soon. He did not return the companion’s cautious leer, instead giving it a passive glance, yet remained alert at Lurid’s side. He did not suspect anything would turn violent in this interaction, but he had been surprised by bouts of aggression before. The wolf introduced herself as Corbie Silverwind and the alpha of the pack Avalon. Requiem tipped his head to Corbie, committing her name, her pack, and her role to memory. Lurid met her pleasantries with some of her own, introducing herself and him as well. At Corbie’s mention of rumors of Mirovis making their rounds across Boreas, Requiem couldn’t help but chuckle. If there were any certainties to life, it was that death came for everyone and that wolves would gossip like old women. "Only bad things, I hope," he joked in reply, though there was a surreptitious touch of genuineness to his jest. Lurid was destined to lead an empire of monsters, after all.

W hile Lurid addressed Corbie’s curiosity in tones the dire brute knew were saccharine sweet to cover for her irritation at being disrupted, Req would give a little cautionary glance towards his mate, yet said nothing to allow the two alphas to speak. He could understand Lurid’s frustrations having to entertain idle curiosity and inane rumors, but these were wolves they would need to know and work with while they built their empire. They came from packs and families that had withstood time and trial. They could be powerful allies or dangerous foes. Setting the initial tone went a long way to fostering good will—at least for now. Best to play nice with the new strangers.


"Requiem" | "Latin"

Corbie mostly ignored dog companion's change in posture - she trusted Ren's judgement, though the dog had a tendency to overproductiveness she wouldn't interfere with Corbie's work by acting aggressively... until she needed to. Ayer, though, took the dog's wariness to heart and settled deeper onto Corbie's shoulders, tail wrapping snuggly around the base of her neck to hold on if they needed to run. The kinkajou wasn't happy about the attention she was getting, Corbie knew. Perhaps she'd have been more comfortable to have been left back on pack lands.

Corbie of the three of them remained calmly neutral, though she took note of large male word's, and odd glances toward the alpha. There was definitely something off about the encounter, in a way that made her pelt itch. She inclined her head towards the female. "All I know of your pack is that you fought to protect your claim. I would appreciate any information you are comfortable sharing about Mirovas. How you intend to interact, or not, with other packs, whether you wish trade," she added in prompt.

Her father had to deal with other alphas when he ran Mirovis in their homeland, but Lurid had skipped the diplomacy lessons. Alastor had a way of distracting her from those, and she would pay for it. How much trouble had the black bastard really gotten her into that she couldn't stand idle prattle? "I fought for my family, so they might have a stable place to live, nothing more. I only want the best for my family, I have only their best interests at heart. As far as interaction with other packs goes, we will have to see."  The unrest she and her fiance made in the woman's companions brought a smile to the devil's face, though she disguised her pleasure as manners. To have them so uncomfortable meant they would leave soon and Lurid could get back to her job.

C orbie inquired into the purposes of Mirovis and their intentions with other packs, whether diplomacy and trade would be something they’d be partaking in. For everything she was, Lurid wasn’t always the most… amicable of wolves to interact with when she was in a mood, and today she seemed particularly testy. Requiem kept his attention on his Empress’ behaviors and responses, allowing her to do most of the explaining of their pack to their guest while cautiously preparing to interject in case Lurid’s temper came to an abrupt and volatile end. Thankfully, she seemed to be minding her manners so far, responding cordially if not a bit coolly to Corbie.

"M  irovis is a pack built upon a lot of history from a place long gone," Requiem summarized to Corbie. "To try and surmise Mirovis’ purposes in a few short sentences would be impossible, but Lurid said it best as a home for our family. How we interact with other packs depends entirely on how they interact with us. The golden rule, and all that, you know?" He offered Corbie a smile, then added a question of his own, half out of curiosity, half to spare Lurid any more chatter and weathering away her patience. "You are the alpha of Avalon, you said? I’d be interested to know what your pack specializes in, Corbie, if you’ll entertain my curiosity. You’re one of the first to visit us, and we’d be remiss if we didn’t take the chance to learn more about you and your wolves as well."


"Requiem" | "Latin"

The abrupt nature of the alpha's explanation, or lack thereof, did not pass Corbie's notice, nor the way the seemingly deliberate way the big red male played the honey to the alpha's vinegar. Whether true or not, she was beginning to suspect that they were trying to play her, to get her off stride with the alpha's barely-veiled rudeness and then draw her out into vulnerability with the red male's friendliness. She returned their crocodilian-grins with a bland, polite smile of her own. "Of course. I certainly understand wanting a safe place to have a family," she said. "We are not blood, Avalon, but we too are a family. We, ourselves, consider ourselves to be stewards of our land and our livestock, and that is what we specialize in. Avalon's wolves have grown quite skilled at protecting them from predators, so that our family can have a safe place to live and grow as well." This meeting, she judged, had gone as long as she could go with it without putting the pack at risk, if Requiem's friendliness was bait to trap her into giving them too much. "If you will excuse me, though, I'm afraid that I have some distance to go before nightfall, so I must be going now. A pleasure to have met you both." Still with that same deliberately bland expression, she inclined her head in farewell and turned to stride away, seemingly unconcerned about turning her back on them. Ren, after all, was guarding it.