The expansion of the Northern parts of Alacritia were far colder than the boy could have ever expected. He had been told that the snow bound lands were cooler than the other masses of land here, but no words could prepare him for the bite that was on the wind. Even in summer he felt the chill tug at his fur, causing the gray boy to fluff up his coat as much as he could, trying to aid his body in staying warm. Would he truly be able to survive in such a place? He was sure as hell determined to try. Cathaoir had been asking around about the packs that resided here, but there was only one that really captured his attention. Yfir. He wasn't quite sure what a Viking was, his parents had had no tales of the group, so he was going in a bit blind. But he had heard all about their strength and poweress, something that captured the warriors heart. When the scent marker tickles his senses, his large frame came to a jolting halt. His excitement seemed to be keeping his mood swings in check, at least for now. He really hoped that he would be able to make a good impression, and that for once his emotions would not bog him down. He was in pretty good control of his episodes, but there were times that his mind took it and ran with it. As much as he disliked his handicap, it wasn't as bad as his mother's. Deep breathing and counting helped, where for her she had very little control of it. He was lucky that she was able to teach him how to twist it to his advantage rather than view it as a hindrance, b ut at times the yearling found it hard to focus on the positive notes. Shaking his head to settle his wandering mind, he tipped back his gray head and let out a call for the woman who ruled these parts. It was hard to not feel a bit nervous in meeting her, who he had heard was named Katja. Would she accept him into her pack, or would she find his awkward approach at conversation too much? He knew that he would grow used to the bitter winds, his monotone coat would grow thicker over time. If he was let in. If his own abilities proved good enough. Shuffling from paw to paw slightly, he lowered his head as his pale green eyes scanned the forest, waiting for the alphess to appear. "Talk" "You" Think

A call alerted the alpha to a call from borders that had been relatively quiet of late. She made a note to go on a reconnaissance soon, to choose a target for Yfir's next raids - even with the possibility of her trades to supplement Yfir's stores winter was coming and with it the starving season - and to learn what events had the southern packs' attention so focused in the south. But for now...

She ghosted through the tall, silent trees toward the dying echos of the call to find a pale wolf with strange markings and mint eyes waiting for her. "Yes?" she asked simply, hooded silver eyes measuring him. He was a loner, not a messenger from another pack, so there were very few options as to what he wanted, but she would make no assumptions. Simply... watched.

His wait was not a long one, the black alpha gracing her way through the trees to the borders where he waited. From the very way that she carried herself he could tell that she was in charge of this pack, that and her scent was the most dominant one along the border line. He dipped his grey head to her as she made her way to him, feeling his paws tingle with anticipation. The question she asked was simple and to the point, something that he appreciated even with his lack of communication skills. Realizing that he had been silent for a few moments, he cleared his throat and shuffled on his paws, his sense of awkwardness taking over again. "Joining. I would... like to join." He said in his broken way, his minty eyes shifting away from her features as she watched him. "I've heard. About Yfir. As well as you. Katja, right?" He asked in his heavy baritone, head shaking slowly as he tried to shrug off his awkward way of speaking. "I'm a... fighter. Good fighter, but. Things to learn, still." Cathaoir said with a nod of his head, his weight still shifting about as he tried to calm his nerves. "Name's Cathaoir." "Talk" "You" Think

She watched and listened as the boy stumbled over his words, seeming to struggle with finding the line of his answer, but Katja remained quite as he dragged each word into being. She gave a curt nod of her head when he asked if she was Katja, but otherwise waited for him to finish. There was something subtly off about the youth, but it didn't alarm Katja in any particular way. He was no more "off" than Kapra, or Harekr. Just a subtle difference that she pondered as her gaze probed his. She was confident in her ability to rein in the excesses of her pack, but there was a degree of mental instability that would just begin to cause more trouble to Yfir than it was worth. "Hmm," she murmured. It did not strike her that whatever ailed him, whether it was simple nerves or what, was a danger to Yfir. Moreso, Yfir was a sanctuary to those who needed a home that would accept them, and she would not turn this awkward would-be warrior away either. "Very well. You will need to prove yourself a warrior if that is a rank you wish to aspire to," she told him, "Though Yfir's true warriors require an oath as well, as do their students."

He felt slightly uncomfortable under the constant, unwavering gaze of Katja, confirmed by her nod. So even as he shuffled his weight from paw to paw in order to ease his wary mind, he worked hard to keep a stoic look on his face. He knew that first impressions could make or break a relationship, and with one as important as his could-be alpha he didn't want to royally screw up. She seemed to be studying him after his broken speech, before she herself spoke. Cathaoir's ears pulled forward with the meaning behind them, the tip of his grey tail twitching in his sudden rush of excitement. Even though the yearling was trying to keep a stony expression he knew that some of his emotion was displayed clearly on his face, and he cleared his throat to try and settle himself. "I will work hard. Very hard, to prove myself." he murmured, this was something that he strove to do in his life. She spoke of warriors and students, which made him curious. Would there be someone who would want to take him on? "I have heard a bit. Of Yfir that is. Trades, mercenaries, strong warriors and ceremonies." Cath said softly, his head tilting to the side a bit. He wanted to know everything of Yfir, of a place that he really did hope to call home. "But. I know there is more. Is there anything that I should... know?" "Talk" "You" Think

The male continued in his broken speech patterns, ending in a question that Katja took a moment to consider. There was much anyone should know before joining a pack, but this male knew much more already than most should of her pack. What would he need to know that he did not? "Yfir's oaths are taken with the utmost of solemnity," she spoke slowly, her eyes not leaving his. "If you choose to join us, or you choose to take the oaths of a full warrior in your time, those oaths are binding. By joining you are tying your life to that of Yfir, to all that Yfir is and does. It's members are to be your family and treated as such. To that end - what questions have you that you would see being an obstacle to your... comfort?"

The more she spoke, the more Cath knew that he had made the right choice. His head nodded slowly along with her words, excitement bubbling in his belly. It would seem that here in Yfir he could shine as a fighter, and learn more than he would anywhere else. Katja asked him if he had any questions, and he fell silent to think about it for a moment. He had a feeling that he could keep her here with many questions about her pack and the other lands that surrounded them. But it was all things that he would discover in time, and he was sure that she had better things to do. "No. Not right now." He said with a polite dip of his head. He was eager to move on to whatever came next, to explore pack lands and meet those who already called this place home. "Talk" "You" Think