Welcome to Gaia! ::

Svana glanced over at the newest member of the band. Rook was on his very first viking and so far he had done a decent enough job of it. He was older than she had been when she obtained her reaver rank, but she supposed some lions took longer to do things. No harm in that, really.. Still, she had been watching him all morning, trying to assess him even though they had done little but meet up and set off. So far he had been polite enough, if a little wary, and he clearly knew how to track as he had already pointed out several different trails since they had started. She did get the feeling he wouldn’t normally offer up so much information, but Lucivar had told him he was being assessed and he had to show his skills off, or Lucivar wouldn’t be able to judge him. So far he seemed to have taken that to heart and had stuck to the front of the group, taking orders without question but also using his own initiative.

“Hmm…”

Røkkr, commonly referred to as Rook by his family, had spent quite a long time scouting out which Captain he wanted to apprentice under. There had been many to choose from but eventually his choice had been forced. He wasn’t getting any younger and his stalling had made some of the Captains and their reavers suspicious. Eventually he had followed a friend’s advice and sought out the brown male named Lucivar. Supposedly he was a fair Captain who was willing to take any reaver-trainee willing to put in the effort. He was certainly a safer choice than Ragnvard, a notoriously rough Captain who, they said, had dubious secrets in his history. Though no one was really sure what those secrets actually were. Just that the big rust-red male was bad news…

Pausing as he walked along ahead of the band of reavers he wanted to join, he felt eyes prickling over his pitch black fur. He didn’t have to turn round to know who it was. She had been staring his way constantly since he had arrived and asked to join the band on their next Viking. Of course he hadn’t expected it to be barely a breath later that the Captain stood and ordered all reavers to attend him. Svana had mentioned that Lucivar usually didn’t make a youngster wait, but it had still been weird, all these mature lions going out on a viking just because he asked.

Still, he wasn’t going to complain. He was finally earning his rank. That was all he desired.

Still watching him she smirked to herself, noticing his ears and neck twitching. She knew he had felt her staring at him, she wasn’t trying to be subtle about it after all. She had already spoken with Lucivar about her future plans, specifically, wanting to start her own band. It had been his idea that she scout out the younger reavers. Though she was sure he had his own personal reasons for suggesting it, not least his own son. Fenrir was a good reaver though, steady and reliable, so she was happy enough to consider him for when she struck out on her own. But right now she had her eye on another… Rook was around her age, but much less experienced, as was obvious by his only now requesting to join a reaver band. But he did have skill and she thought he looked like a promising addition to her -as yet unformed- group.

Glancing back she saw Lucivar’s subtle nod. With her Captain’s permission granted, the confident female increased her pace, drawing up alongside the young new reaver.

“How’s it?” She asked, glancing around from habit before focusing on the dark male.

There it was again, the prickly sensation running along his spine. He really wished she would stop staring at him, it was distracting as anything. A moment later she drew level with him and he glanced at her, dark eyes unreadable. Her question received an ear flick in return as the young male studied her a moment longer before turning forwards once again. They were after all supposed to be the forward guard.

“Alright so far.” He murmured, his voice crisp and succinct despite its low tone. “But nothing has happened yet has it..” He pointed out, glancing at her again with narrowed gaze. He knew she wasn’t up here to ask how he was doing, there was way too much intellect behind those moon-glow eyes of hers. And besides, no female ever stared at him so openly and for so long without having some kind of motive.

She knew she had already been rumbled, his assessing and wary look was proof that he hadn’t been taken in by her casual approach. Grinning, and more certain than ever that she had made the right choice in picking him, she tipped her head at the young male, silently acquiescing him the point. Apparently there was no point beating around the bush with this one.

“Do you want to join my reaver band?” She asked, still grinning but her expression deadly serious. “I’m going to advance soon, Captain Lucivar is sponsoring me.” She knew he would need more than that small comment to make a decision, but it did show she was serious and not just pulling his leg, or poking fun at him because he was the newest member, as so often happened on these things, so she had heard anyway. Lucivar didn’t hold much stock in hazing the newbies.

OK, so her grin was starting to creep him out. She had something on her mind and he had the feeling that she wouldn’t leave him alone until she had spoken it. Eyeing her again with a slight frown he squinted as she finally showed her paw. “Join?” He queried, glancing round suspiciously. She could have been put up to this by the Captain, to test his loyalty or something… though that didn’t seem like the lion everyone spoke of when they mentioned Captain Lucivar. But as he glanced back he caught the Captain’s eye and received a tiny nod. So he obviously knew what was being discussed… and apparently approved?

Turning back to the bold female he looked her up and down, giving her his own assessment. After all she was offering to be his Captain for the foreseeable future.. he didn’t want to rush in and then regret going with such a young Captain. But then.. she had already proved herself a very competent reaver, and had been since she was an adolescent. Not too many in the pride could claim that accolade.

Tail flicking he glanced forwards again before returning his narrow-eyed gaze back to her. “I need some answers first…” he finally replied.

She had expected that. It was only reasonable that he would need to ask her some things before making his decision. Nodding to give him the go-ahead she waited. She wasn’t overly concerned, and didn’t expect him to say no. She had after all been planning this for a while, even if it was only in her head. Her talk with Lucivar had solidified her desire to try for captain, and the older male had given her some very useful advice and tips. Not only in how to be a good Captain for her reavers, but also in the fine art of picking out her band. Of course she was hoping her brother would agree to join her, already assuming he would be Captain alongside her. She hadn’t ever heard of two Captains running a reaver band together, but they had been sparring and fighting partners since cubhood. The only time they had been apart was for their first vikings, and even then, Kale had changed from his first Captain to join her under Lucivar. The idea of not reaving with Kale was simply not one that had ever crossed her mind.

Rook took a moment to order his thoughts. He didn’t want to seem uncertain, but he had to ask the right questions. This would, after all, dictate the rest of his future. Finally he began, questioning her on everything he could think of that would affect his career, such as her motives, how she planned to lead, what kind of vikings would she undertake and how often. Her opinion on thrall captures was discussed at great length and in much detail, along with her view of personal time and what that meant. He also forced her to give his specifics on how active a reaver had to be before she would consider them an unfit addition to the band. He didn’t want to be obliged to go on every single viking, but likewise if a lion never turned up, he couldn’t expect a share of the spoils. Eventually he was satisfied with her answers and told her he would give his answer at the end of the viking.

The grilling he gave her was intense but interesting. It was not only an insight into how the young black male’s mind worked, but it actually made her consider things she had given no thought to previously. Such as loot distribution according to performance and how much she would really demand of her reavers. All in all it was as useful an exercise for that alone, regardless of whether he ended up joining her or not. Nodding her head to his final offer she grinned. “That will be fine. You can take longer if you wish, or if you want to consult with others before making up your mind. His determined head shake was a surprise, but she had offered and it was up to him. With the first part of her mission for the day accomplished, she focused on their current task, that of tracking something useful down for their viking.

The band performed a successful viking and Rook couldn’t help but take it as a sign. He was officially a reaver now, and they had gathered a decent amount of goods. None of them had been hurt badly in the fight either and even Rook himself had scored a few good hits on their quarry. Now they were making their way back to the pride and he spotted Svana walking along towards the edge of the group. Angling himself so he eventually ended up padding along beside her he didn’t glance over, but simply gave his answer, as he had promised that morning.

“I’m in.”