Paws trampled on the grounds with the notion that was ringing in his ears, but he was exhausted. Worse, he was hungry. That was never a good thing for the moodier of the twins to be in a state with, and there was nothing missing the glint in his eyes as he climbs down the rocky slide that was punishing him. Such was a reason why he found his nose twitching, and his tail fairly low. Everything about him read that something was off, playing on his mind.

@Nico would know exactly how to cheer him up. There was no doubt about that in his mind, and such was why he found himself eager to suddenly join his twin. The notion that they needed perhaps a good long drink, and some plans of action had not escaped his mind. In fact, he was not one to even begin to think that there might have been reasoning for him to be punished with. Fury was lacking, but he was excited.

Everything was coming to pass in the most sensible of manners. It was all he could do to know that he was headed for a spot where his heart would be singing in ways that could not be whispered about. His mind was not about to be softened over the fact that he needed to meet things with fire as the burn could set in. The male had changed in a short time, some of the looseness in his shoulders had never returned as he had stood there thinking that his brother might die, and that there would be nothing he could do about it.

"Nico," His voice summoned gruffly as soon as he saw the swish of a tail that matched his own. The rocks were always wide open, but the shapes... it was the perfect place for two with an intent to make the world their own. To survive without being challenged. It was safe, and thus, the protector had confidence that he would drive and potential suitor of the rocks away.

"You look ravishing dear brother, my drool on your head for once makes you look tougher with that fur-do." Jesting, his eyes twinkled as he moved into the space of his closest companion, his everything in this world.

"This is speech."

Rico always seemed to wake up first.  Always.  The younger of the pair could bed down hours before his sibling was ready to settle, and all the same, his mirror image would be bright and bouncing well before the russet wolf was ready to drag himself from the pleasant embrace of sleep.  There, it was warm, safe, blanketed in the cloak of darkness as his the sound of his brother's soft breathing soothed him to sleep like a well-loved lullaby.  Even now, as the first signs of thoughts began to stir in the vagrant's mind, he was aware the elder was awake.  It was in the air all around him, the feel of Rico's side pressed against his own, the gentle rhythm of his breathing.

One swish of his tail informed his twin that he was awake, though not quite willing to enter the waking world just yet.

Unfortunately, his brother cared not for his plight.  Forced to pry his eyes open, ears flattered out into the perfect airplane position as Nico considered his brother thoughtfully.  "Could stop using me for a pillow," he drawled, voice thick from his slumber.  His bushy tail swept again, indicating the presented irritation was only just that – presented.  Making no effort to hoist himself up, he instead twisted his neck in an effort to smear his sibling's saliva back across his identical coat.  It would serve him right, a wet pelt, for drooling across his head.

Closing his eyes once more, Nico dropped his chin back to his forelimbs with a soft thud.  He would relish every last ounce of the dreamy weightlessness wrapped upon his bones before they fled entirely.  "Wha's the plan for today?"

Ears were swishing on top of his head as he found the light was opening up and his anticipation was boiling through him with no way that could be explained. It was why there was no missing with the shine in his gaze, and there was no need to keep his half smile that was playing on his lips. It was why there was no missing the need to be able to stand up and his legs were stiff with the notion that was humming in his ears.

"Gettin' something to eat." Words seemed to slip out of his mouth easily enough as the question seemed to take on his ears. It was why there was no missing the swish of the tail, and the concentration was not about to be denied. Such things were not about to be whispered on anyone's tongue but the reality, and his ears pulled back against his head with the consideration that was singing in his ears.

Stretching himself out, he found himself stiffer than he could have ever remembered, and his lips seemed to turn up at the edge. The ache was in his ears before he could even stop it, and there was no missing the shine in his eyes with every intent that could be helped. "I wonder if any nearby packs have anything good... have you noticed anything on the air, Nico?" His frown was settled on his features for a few moments, turning his head back to look at his brother.

"Everything appears... quiet." Words were soft on his tongue, finding some difficulty in making sense of things. His head was shaking lightly, and he found himself unable to stop the motions that were making him find difficulty in breathing. "Smells like trouble."

"This is speech."

If only Rico relished the embrace of sleep the same way Nico did. The adult gave a soft sigh, allowing his umber eyes to slip shut for another moment. Everything was slowly coming back to him – an unfortunate event, truly, but one that took place daily. It could not be avoided. Fortunately, his welcome back to the waking world came with the promise of breakfast, and the smaller male made a soft noise, tail swishing again in definite approval.

"I like food," he agreed easily, wondering if this meant that his twin would go hunting and allow the younger to catch a few more minutes of rest. It was improbably, if not utterly impossible, but Nico clung on to the hope all the same, wiggling his toes as he stretched out his front limbs. Sadly, it did not seem like his brother much agreed with his notions on sleep (and being fed in his nest), and the smaller wolf slowly brought himself forth to the waking world.

With a hefty sigh, he regarded his twin for a second time, ears slowly falling back at the mention of trouble. "I don't like trouble," the lad whispered unhappily, anxiety settling in his chest like a caged bird. At least he was awake now, but at what price? "We don't- We don't need to go looking for trouble, brothermine. We're just…just fine without a pack. Just you and me. That's all we need. Let's forget about that – you said, you said food, right?"

Nico had been through a lot, and that was not about to be something that Rico would ignore. On the other paw, endlessly sitting and expecting the world to pass one or two by with the notion of sitting in a cave would not do. Rico was not actually as good at social situations as his twin, but he was far more confident in them. Boisterous, flirtatious - he was a fool with his knowledge, and his nose flared with wonder.

At the protests, which were not about to be put into a quieter state. it was why tail was lashing and he found himself unable to stop the realization that he was growing lazy with every passing day; if they did not keep their skills up - what use would they be later on? "Nico, we can't just sit in a little cave forever. Come now, Des taught us to be stronger than that." His voice was gentle, but still rough. It would not be an argument his brother would win.

As he stretched, the groan seemed to take him as his body shifted from one side to the other. Readying himself to start the descent, although his ears swept against his head as he pondered the trials in which would come. "Barreda is not Barreda for sitting on their behinds and looking cute, regardless." A hint of disapproval was on the tongue with that, and his body slunk to the entrance. Twisting around the side, his head stuck back out until he could look at his twin with fair seriousness.

"Maybe we'll go keep wandering until we find some rogue cow or something," Agreement was accompanied with a naughty grin, Rico's enjoyment of teasing his brother was endless. "If it gores me, you'll have time to slip under and take the belly... sounds like a strong plan, for just you and me - right?"

"This is speech."

"Sure we could," Nico groused, though his argument came without heat.  It was not as if he really wished for such a lifestyle – it was simply that the lad was often argumentative, especially if he was not particularly fond of the answer his twin was offering.  Regardless, the younger wolf got to his feet, bowing in a long stretch.  Joints popped and a satisfied sigh wooshed from his nostrils, the loner pausing to shake out his ruddy coat before he finally found himself ready for the day.  Once he reached out, brushing his nose against his twin's cheek, and he stepped out into the bright sunshine.

"If it gores you, I'll make it pay for your harm," the Barreda growled, one ear swept back.  Rico was goading him.  He knew Rico was trying to goad him, and it even still, he couldn't help the clench in his heart or the simmer of his blood at the very notion of a reckless cow tossing his brother through the air.  He'd lost one sibling to the chaotic forces of nature – he'd not lose a second so easily.  The youngest was always prone to atrabilious thoughts, and his brother's fierce imagination was certainly not helping.

Tail swishing, Nico decided to take the lead, trotting from their den site with his nose to the air.  There would be no rogue cows, perhaps, but the two of them were healthy males.  They could take a fawn, even grown as they were this time of year, or perhaps a groundhog or some other small, earthy mammal.  He'd never eaten one of those before.  "Just you and me," he tossed over his shoulder.  "Des is gone now.  We gotta look out for each other.  You know that means I watch out for you, too.  Means keeping you from finding trouble."

Which was, for the record, utterly impossible.  It didn't stop the youngest member of the family from trying to prevent his twin from coming to undue harm, but even he was well aware how futile his efforts were.  All the same, when did that stop a Barreda?  He was a Barreda, through and through – whether that meant stealing, lying, or keeping an eye on his own, Nico knew he was all of it.  There was no love lost on his mother or father, and there was little hope of ever seeing his sister again – they were long separated from the desert clan, forced to live now where it was much cooler, wetter, and more densely inhabited by plants – but the boys were still Barredas, and the youngest refused to let the clan down.  Refused to let their bloodline die out so easily.

He was a coward, perhaps, as his folk often were, but he was a survivalist.

"C'mon.  You said food, and I'm hungry.  If we get a big kill today, we'll be good for a bit.  Won't have to hunt, and then we can keep traveling.  We'll find the right place, eventually."  Nico paused, giving a small shudder.  "'long as it's not near a river.  But what do you say, Ri?  Breakfast time?"

Rico's keen orange gaze was not about to run away from looking upon his brother with something that was akin to thoughtfulness.
While Nico had always been a bit of a spook, now was not the time to be rehashing things that would have to come to pass. While Nico was a strong body, deep within - Rico was not about about to deny that his smile was lackluster as he watched his other half of his soul. They had been alone a fair while now, and it was difficult to find places that would be open to a pair a brothers, siblings of any sort were often a problem.

Ah, that was another factor that they had learned to overcome with choices. It was why his ears swung on top of his head, and he found himself unable to keep his voice from softening as he murmured, "Everything will be fine." There was a cheekiness about bringing up something that would leave Nico feeling speechless, frustrated. It was a game and it was a set of jabs that he could not often avoid, not at any cost. Something about being able to engage himself in such an effortlessly way always made him wonder.

Cocking his head, he did not manage to quiet the pressures that were singing in his heart. While there was a touch that seemed to take his body, he knew there was another reason to come to the brink where passion might have met the face of something beyond understanding. With his body twisting, he found himself looking down the ledge, knowing how otherwise dangerous it might have been. In other cases, he would have been happier about the ledge - but now in the early morning, he could not help but deny what a burden it seemed to be.

Nico, as always, would come up on the rear and attempt to right Rico's feelings back on the proper track, but the irritation was still nagging at him. A reason that he would not always deny, but then he would make it clear in his gaze as he turned his head back over his shoulder. Stubbornly, the thought of Des had not totally evacuated his mind, and he shook himself briskly; "We'll find her, you know. It won't just be us two for long - family doesn't... they don't just give up on one another. Not for anything in this world." It was a reminder, even though his mouth was pressed in a thin line as the thoughts washed through his head.

Grunting, Rico finally let himself give into the notion that he had to focus on going to find food. With a bob of the head, his amusement seemed to be trickling over his features for a few long moments, then he was gone. Slipping down the side of the mountain, leaving himself with the notion that he should have been in a state of pleasure. It was why he found himself unable to stop the pressure on his tongue, and his swift appearance was not about to be forgotten.

By the time he reached the even ground, the more solid platform - well, his eyes were already scanning. Paranoid, thoughtless, and he found himself unable to stop the notions that were singing in his ears. Flesh would be his to participate in, his to make use of without needing the time for a second thought, and the wolf was already salivating. Breakfast, yes.

"Jus' don't to anything stupid, Nico." The dominant twin teased, scoffing as he eased himself forward without a second thought, head tossing as the pain in his ear was sudden, but fleeting; undoubtedly from one of the pesky wet-climate beetles and bugs that were just about everywhere.

"This is speech."

"Mom gave up on us," Nico replied bitterly, ears flat against his head as he thought of his dam. Sure, it was a bit unfair to judge her given the poor situation they'd all been in, but he was pretty certain if not for Desideria, he and his brother would have starved before their first year. The mother had hardly enough milk for them, and hadn't the time to teach them to hunt once old enough. "Dad left us." This was announced with even more acid, the emotion finally surfacing now that the boy had fully awoken. He was always the brother more prone to being ruled by his heart, and that was an organ that had been broken over and over again. "And Mom did, too, in the end."

As far as the youngest was concerned, that was all there was to it. Des might have been taken not of her own will, but she hadn't come back. He huffed softly as his ears flicked back, not entirely willing to be grouped into the same box as their parents. Nico wasn't entirely sure why it was up to them to find her when she was the oldest, but his desire was not to argue with Rico any further.

Not on an empty stomach, at least.

Fortunately, his brother had finally agreed to the notion of breakfast time and he gave as a satisfied hum, tail swishing as he fell in like two strides behind his brother. "C'mon. We'll get a few mice and we'll be good for a little bit, yeah? We can keep going…wherever you wanted to go. Deal?"

Somewhere along the way, Rico would have done anything in the world to save his brother. To give him a reason to keep on living, no matter what the cost. Such was why his eyes never changed from watching as the almost depressive words seemed to come slipping off his lips, and his tail swished from one side to the other with the consideration that was bouncing off his head. This was why he always had to be careful, he had to be sweet with his intentions.

"And yet we're stronger for it," Words were crisp to the bitterness seemed to take his tongue, making things in a sharp tongue that was supposed to be reassuring. As it stood, there was no answer for him that would have made things sensible, and his tail lashed from one side to the other as he motioned with his paws to keep coming. It was the truth he felt inside and out, he was stronger for not having his parents around.

Being without Des, however, was not the same. It was why his body seemed to come off the hold motionless, and he nodded his head wordlessly to Nico's insistence. While Rico had been hoping for something a little bigger - maybe something of a pleasure-filled application. It was why his paws seemed to stretch out, and he groaned as he started making his way forward. When they were on better grounds, Rico's ears were already swinging. This was what he needed, this was the choice that had been made.

His paws took him forward restlessly, and he found himself all but dancing. He was starving, and he found himself unable to stop the grin that accompanied his features in quiet. Nico was certainly one individual who was bothered by the world and everything that went wrong, while the reactive Rico could take on anything thrown at him with vigor. It was their mutual way of handling abandonment, not knowing what to do in any other situation.

As he snaked into the grass, he hoped only the mice were out and ready to be chewed on. He was hungry indeed, and if his brother and him were going to scuffle on argument, well... they would have to be fully on the stomach. Or else the cuteness would be lost.

"This is speech."