Hati moved grumpily through the land, tracking Daegmar. Damnit, where the fuck did she get to this time? Wasn't she part of some pack with some crazy viking bitch at some point? There was no pack there now and all of his slow tracking pointed him in this direction, to this pack. Why was he even bothering? It wasn't like she had really looked for him. And maybe that was why... she wasn't a clingy, needy little female. She was a competent, intelligent warrior. A bro. He needed that right now, that undemanding and nonjudgmental pseudo-friendship they had. There were... things, clawing at the inside of his head. Things he knew would overwhelm him and leave him a mindless killer. Hati had no issue with either of those things really but he didn't want to lose this sense of self he clung to so tenaciously, not again. The skull he wore gave him an odd sense of safety, hidden within the dark sockets like a bear brooding in a cave, but after his confrontation with Akemi... that wasn't enough anymore. With Daegmar he'd always had some outlet for the darkness. She grounded him, allowed him to indulge his darkness without being lost in it. Damnit where was she? Foiled by the pack's border, he considered stopping there to wait. He even threw back his heavy head to let loose a gravely howl for Daegmar. But then he eyed that invisible border... What the fuck ever. Growling softly under his breath, shaking his head just the slightest every few steps to rattle that Something around his brain, he stomped over the border and into Imperium territory. ""

 

Seirously, what had she done to fucking deserve this?  The mottled wraith rolled violently in the snow attempting to cool herself down.  She was in bloody heat again and it just wasn't fair!  Dægmar had no time for this nonsense.  Stalking along the border she practiced her cursing when a sudden familiar scent hit her nose.  Malicious grin spread across the femme's face.  Why…. it was the scent of her dearest Hati.  Where the hell had he gotten off to?  

She glared at the invisible scent marker.  Waltzing right into Imperium territory, hm?  Well he always did have more balls than brains.  With a deep breath and a scowl she took off after the male, thought twisting in her head as she tried to decide if she should maul him or screw him….. maybe both.  Both was good.

It didn't take her long to find the grumpy, stalking form of her companion and she strode right up next to him with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.  "To what do I owe a visit from a handsome gentleman caller?  Hati, what the hell have you been up to?  I was starting to wonder if you'd gotten eaten by a bear.  Not that I think any living creature could choke down your flavor."

"Speech"

Hati's ear twitched toward the sound of approaching paws, and then suddenly Daegmar's voice was in his ear and her scent wrapped around him. He twisted his head to look at her, nose wrinkling beneath his mask at her words. "I'll bet you could choke me down just fine," he growled back, words tumbling unbidden from his muzzle, then stopped walking abruptly. Crude he may be but the sexual was something to be avoided, it's potential for unwanted drama and entanglements too great. So why the fuck... Gold eyes glared her way, and he snorted her pheromone-laced scent from his nose. "Damn it Daegmar you need to warn a man before you go waving that smell around at them." He snorted again, retreating away from the raging hormones awakened by that scent. Even fucking Daegmar, man, even she had those womanly wiles that annoyed him so much. But gods it was hard to resist. "I've been lookin' for you," he rumbled in answer to her question, eyeing her. "Haven't been having a lot of luck with the pack gig, have you?" ""

Dægmar had to admit she missed this cantankerous old curmudgeon and she let out a laugh as he turned to speak with her.  The woman offered a wink, "Well, I am known for my strong stomach."  She watched him recoil from her scent and that only made her want to throw herself on him, just to tease, just to watch him writhe with his own uncomfortable heat.  It was only fair after all.  Why did the women always get the raw deal?  However, Dægmar stayed where she was and just kept grinning. "Oh, I'm not worried.  I can take care of myself quite well and it's funny you should say so since I've been wondering where you've been." The militant woman moved to sit down, tail curling around her paws and lightly dusting the snow before she let out a barking laugh. "NO, I haven't.  It's been absolutely ridiculous but I've decided I don't care.  I'll be a traveling mercenary if I must but you can find more battle in a pack.  Opponents galore and if your'e lucky even war.  But…. here's hoping this pack actually sticks around for awhile.  I've almost half a mind to challenge for my own if I thought I could actually rule it.  Anywya… how have you been?  Get into anything interesting?  Oh… and we really should do something about your trespassing habit.  I'm supposed to be maiming you on sight but for fun let's say you're interested in joining, mm?" ""

"Maybe I am joining," he fired back, dropping his haunches next to her and doing his best to not breath. "Maybe I miss getting bossed around by dumbasses and then having the pack dropped like a maggoty chunk of meat a couple weeks later. Eh?" Maybe he did. No, he wasn't here to join another damn pack. He was here to find Daegmar, and he'd done that. So now what? Her presence put a pause to the throbbing within his skull, but her scent... it set him on fire. Damnit Daegmar why did you have to be born a female? He tucked his nose against his chest fur as if to block the scent, glaring balefully at her beneath the shadows of his mask. If he left... the pain would just come back. If he stayed... he'd be stuck in a pack again. "Say I do join up with your little gang, Daeg. What's your boss like? She as much a moron as the others?" He trusted Daeg's opinions, he really did... she was smart, she was cunning, she knew how to use it. But she really did have the shittiest luck with packs. ""

Dægmar stepped back and looked at Hati skeptically.  Him? Join a pack?  Well… she supposed he had joined a pack before but after the constant falling empires they'd been privvy to witness she was terribly surprised he'd consider joining another.  "Well, if you're going to join a pack, I'd prefer you join the one with me in it… "  Dægmar moved to close the gap between them, seeking to stop a few inches in front of him with a grin on her face.

She laughed lightly and took a few steps back to give him some space.  "The boss is a he this time. A young hormonal he that loves to rut but believe it or not he's the most competent alpha I've come across lately.  Level-headed but not the kind to let others walk over him.  An excellent fighter who can understand a warrior's mind.  I have faith he won't let go of Imperium so easily but the fact that his mother is one of the wolves that dropped her pack before…who knows." She shrugged.

A foreign scent on the wrong side of the border made him abandon his patrol. Hackles lifting, Valentine took off in the direction the intruder had taken, hellbent on enacting justice. Shortly thereafter the invader's scent was crossed by a scent trail (a very lovely scent trail - wow, did she smell good!) that belonged to his newest member and the brute's righteous rage cooled somewhat to a smug excitement. If there was one Imperium wolf who he thought was capable of punishing a trespasser, it was Daegmar. He fully expected to come upon a murder scene. Much to his disappoint, when he finally got to the "face off" it was just that - them standing there looking at one another. Well, that was a bunch of crap. Where was the blood, the guts, the gore? And more importantly, why was the intruder wearing a horned skull? Upon further inspection Valentine came to the conclusion that the pair was amicable - something that was both a shame and intriguing. Quirking a brow at Daegmar, he queried lazily, “Friend of yours?” “”

NOTE: Valentine has a female striped skunk companion named Lefty. Unless stated otherwise assume she's present.