I'll show you how a heart can never fail

Well that was one pack down now there was just one more to go. it would have been two more, but the one pack next to the last one had stale scents as though it wasn't there anymore. He'd wanted to go investigate to find out what had happened to it, but it still felt like trespassing despite the fact there were no borders there anymore. Besides he had another goal to keep him occupied and it wasn't like he couldn't go find out what had happened on the way home. He still had a few more days until he needed to be home anyways.

He arrived at the borders of this pack and he was surprised to find that its scent markings spread farther than he could smell. His nose twitched as he tried to get an estimate of how many wolves there were, but he didn't smell that many. Why did they have so much space if there weren't that many of them? He didn't linger on it as his head rose to the sky as he let out a call for someone. Best to get it over with so he could go back home and check up on things.

"Speech"

Sparrow heard the call just as she had set to hunt her lunch. It was an unfamiliar voice at her borders, however, and that couldn't go ignored. Sighing softly, Sparrow rose, startling her prey. With one last, longing look, Sparrow turned in the direction of the call.

As she approached, she saw a yearling waiting. Sparrow smiled lightly, "Hello, I'm the Alpha of Abaven, Sparrow Destruction. Is there something you need?"

Sparrow tilted her head slightly. This wolf was a pack wolf.

"May I ask who you are and from where do you hail?" Sparrow tacked on for good measure, settling to her haunches.

I'll show you how a heart can never fail

Rory didn't have to wait long before a wolf arrived. Judging by the scents along to border and the way she carried herself, she was the leader of the pack. At the very least she was certainly someone important. He returned the smile and listened as she introduced herself. Well he was the right, she was definitely the alpha. While he wouldn't have minded talking to someone else, this certainly made it a lot easier.

"My name is Ruaidhrí Adravendi, it's nice to meet you Sparrow." Was she named after the bird? He didn't get to ask though considering she'd asked him a question. "I'm from the pack Lirim, in the west. I'm it's alpha." He explained quickly. Well she was pretty blunt and straight to the point. He might as well do the same. "I just came to establish pack relations and figure out standings. I don't think I've heard anything about Abaven."

"Speech"

The male introduced himself as the alpha of Lirim, Ruaidhrí Adravendi. Sparrow nodded and smiled lightly. He said he came to settle some pack relations and that he hadn't heard about Abaven before. That was surprising, seeing as Abaven was such an old pack. She had not heard a lot of Lirim, though, so maybe it was simply because of their respective origins.

"Well then, alpha of Lirim. What is it you would like to know? For a brief history, my father founded this pack a while back. It has seen war and disaster, plagues and sickness. It has also seen the births of many. It has experienced plentiful hunts- both in prey and in herbs. We have been fortunate to last so long as a pack, despite any adversary."

Sparrow smiled, thinking of her father forming this pack with such hope and promise in his mind.

"Abaven is meant to be a pack in which other packs can find use of. We are meant to lend out healers and warriors or whatever another may be looking for in exchange for favors. As the alpha, I want to see Abaven grow into a hub of activity, hosting visitors, trading, training together with other packs and loners alike. Never afraid to lend a hand or host those in need, but always willing to learn and benefit from one another. With rules, of course. "

Sparrow shifted a little, "With that, may I ask what sort of pack Lirim is?"

I'll show you how a heart can never fail

Rory listened as she explained her pack and he was surprised to hear that they'd been a long standing pack. Should he have known about Abaven if they really had been around this long? He couldn't imagine that they were recluses. Maybe it was just because he hadn't had the chance to talk to his mother about the other packs? She had left in a hurry after all and he hadn't completed his training before that. He could just chalk it up to a lack of experience with political interactions and call it a day.

Instead, he was far more interested when she explained that her pack lent out whoever was needed. He honestly hadn't thought much about trading with other packs, or doing anything at all really, until recently. Maybe it was something he could try to work out in the future. He mulled it over in his head for a moment, choosing to remain silent, before her question caught his attention again.

"Family oriented mostly, though I suppose most, if not all, packs are like that." He said with a nervous chuckle. "My mom created the pack in the hopes that anyone who joined could be a part of a pack without the worries of a strong hierarchy. Everyone has a voice within the pack and is encouraged to be open within the decisions of the pack. It's very free reign really, though the pack still leans more towards lawful good." It probably wasn't the best explanation he could have given, but it had been his mother's vision and not his own. She would have explained it a lot better than he did. "You mentioned lending out healers and warriors, what do you normally expect in return for those services?"

"Speech"

Sparrow nodded along as Ruaidhri spoke. So Lirim was a family pack, then? Sparrow remembered when Abaven was a family pack. Now, however, she wasn't sure how she felt.

She bet Ruaidhri's mother was probably a lot like her father in the beginning.

He asked about the system of lending out wolves and Sparrow thought carefully before answering.

"You see," Sparrow began, "It depends on the pack. We're always in need of more supplies. Perhaps in exchange for help, you let us look for herbs in your land, or you specify wolves to look for them for us. Maybe if a pack has strong warriors, say we lend them healers, in exchange maybe they can train some of our wolves in the ways of fighting."

Sparrow smiled lightly, "There's a lot of possibilities depending on the packs. I'd like loners to feel like they can also come if they need help, as long as they're willing to give help back."

I'll show you how a heart can never fail

There was a lot to mull over as Sparrow gave him a more in depth description of how her pack worked. The idea of trading and lending out her own members intrigued him, but would it be impulsive of him to ask her about it already? He knew there weren't enough warriors in his pack or trained healers for that matter. His mother leaving had put a little kink in his and his siblings' training. So far they had a bunch of young adults who didn't even really know what they were doing. He supposed there was only one way of finding out if she'd shoot him down or not. Asking certainly couldn't hurt anything.

"I know you don't really know me that well, but I am intrigued by your trading system. Would it be possible to borrow a few of your trained fighters? In return you could search our lands for herbs - both our territories typically have a great array of them, although I'm not very familiar with plants myself. If that doesn't interest you, you could always hold a hunt in one of our territories, or if you have something better in mind then I'm willing to negotiate." Mostly he was just hoping to train everyone. With all the things that had happened with Jewell he wanted everyone to at least be able to defend themselves, even the healers.

"Speech"

The man seemed interested and Sparrow couldn't help but feel a little flattered and proud. He offered many suggestions. Sparrow mulled over each of them for a while.

"I will bring it up at the next meeting. As you can scent, we are also a little low on members at the moment, so I will allow them to choose if they wish to stay or aid Lirim. Perhaps the new seasons will bring more members. Until then, I will ask the ones I have."

She silently hoped someone would go.

She needed to hold a meeting soon.

Sparrow offered a genuine smile. "I would love to be able to have negotiations with Lirim. I think it would be mutually beneficial for both packs. I believe my members will have a similar enthusiasm when I tell them of this opportunity."

That was the best she could offer the male at the moment. She hoped he wasn't disappointed in her waiting for a meeting. Sparrow refused to be a leader who simply ordered her pack mates around, and she figured this male would understand... She hoped.

ooc: crappy tag

I'll show you how a heart can never fail

Rory waited patiently as she mulled her options over and he wasn't entirely disappointed with her decision. It wasn't a no, that much was certain, and his tail waved softly behind him at the prospect of this actually working out in both pack's favor. Of course he'd have to call a meeting to see who all would be interested in something like this. He'd probably jumped the gun a bit by asking her about it, but Lirim hadn't had any interaction with any other packs yet. If things went well then it seemed as though he'd get the opportunity to change that.

"I'll hold a meeting soon to bring it up to my pack and see what they have to say about it. Does spring sound like a good time to come back?"

It would give them ample time to discuss things with their members and figure out some sort of plan. That and winter just sucked in general to get things done - even Lirim wasn't far enough in the desert to completely escape the full chill of the winter. Things would certainly be better once spring rolled around.

"Speech"

Spring sounded like a great time to reconvene. Sparrow nodded, a small smile growing on her maw.

"Spring sounds wonderful, Sparrow said. "I will bring it up to my pack before that time."

Once it was spring, the plants would be in bloom and many prey would move back in. It would open a great opportunity to hold a joint hunting or healing training in Abaven. Perhaps they could even negotiate an herb trade. If the packs were in different regions, surely they would foster different herbs.

Now she just needed to go ahead and see what her pack thought of it.

Sparrow offered another self-assured nod, "I look forward to having blended pack interactions."