Living with just his brother was not a spot that he would swing his tongue about, and there was not a moment that could be held on the mind where there was a value to be sought out. So much had happened, so many women had came and gone through his gaze - the most recent, of course, being @Avari that had set his nerves on edge. Definitely not the sort of woman he would be wanting to make a tag-team on, although the fact being that romance was so far off his tongue - he could still wish.

But now was the time for him and his Brother to talk, to make choices. Nico was a good boy, he had a good heart. Rico was getting downright antsy, and the call to be able to get a scoping lay of the land was on his mind. His mouth was all but watering with the thought of catching a bite to eat, then returning to an ever building mound of bobbles. Was that too much to ask? Was that such a hard reality to consider for his brother and him?

Urging Nico out on his own was not an easy thing to do, but it was something he was pushing toward. Expectant to be able to have solutions on his tongue, and while at the same time he was finding the tug within him to urge him forward. This was the way of life, this was the burden on the soul. A life for a Barreda was not supposed to be mundane, thus they had to get off their paws. They had to live up to their calling, or what was it worth having the name?

Ears flat against his head, but tail raised the wolf seemed to find the scents crossing closer and closer to home. The nearby pack was definitely a risk, and it was something that was beginning to make Rico feel irksome. Issuing a commanding bark, he cocked his head - eyes skimming hungrily for the sight of his brother. Perhaps Nico was out for a drink or a stroll, but he was impatient on the grounds beneath his home - knowing that Nico would not like being pushed.

"This is speech."

After the run-in with the dreaded stream, Nico was more than relieved to be back to the mundane day-to-day of curling up with his brother in their makeshift den. If he wasn’t sleeping, than he was hunting (as the narrow Barreda often thought of food if he wasn’t thinking about his immediate safety), and the youngest was happy enough with this. Meeting other wolves was frightening, and going off on his own was nearly avoided disaster. He was more than content to live just like this, a pair of loners banding together. They had no need for a pack, and the smaller twin had stopped searching.

The rogue was in the middle of a hunt when his brother’s bark caught his ears. For a moment, he paused, wishing for nothing more than to please Rico – but it was his stomach that won out. He did not arrive at the den site for near an hour, but when he returned, it was with a squirrel dangling from his mouth. The chestnut rodent was placed at his brother’s feet before the smaller wolf sat, licking his lips to clean the blood. It was obvious he’d already eaten his meal before arrival and had spent the time catching another prize to bring to his older brother.

Once he’d given the other wolf a few moments of peace to eat, he hummed softly, settling onto his belly. Only in Rico’s presence could he ever be so relaxed. Glancing up, he twitched his tail and waited impatiently for the cause of his summons. “What did you want to talk about, Ri?”

Strewn across the pebbled grounds was a reminder that he felt the need to feast, that it twisted and called within his soul to have the most desirable of outcomes. His ears swung on his head, and he questioned what might have been something to stumble upon. As his energy seemed to perk up, he was eager to hear of his brother's travels - what he might have learned. The craving was taking him alive, and he salivated faintly as his brother revealed to himself to be at leisure; an envious stab ringing through Rico.

Nico was at ease in this world without a thousand rules and expectations. But as Nico came to him, everything softened - in his heart of hearts, he would give his brother everything. Head came across his brother in thanks, brushing cheeks and managing to offer a nip to the shoulder in mockery. Such was a reality that was hard to believe, that they would thrive at all when the world was in such a chaotic poise.

"We cannot stay hidden much longer." As the wolf settled down, he ate with the thrill of the flesh and the blood upon his face; but the conversation did not take long to take priority. While he knew the protest was coming, Rico's tail slapped the ground. "There are too many loners here, there's too much instability for us to be hiding - and I suspect packs are being raided, and how much easier is it to pick the fault of a neighboring loner." No need to mince words, but something softer was not going to go over any easier.

"Nico, we're at risk being unsheltered..." Eyes were wrapped up in taking in the meeker features of the other wolf who he adored more than anything else in the world, his heart absently aching as he attempted to be sensible on the matter. It was not something he wanted to do, not something he was particularly willing to handle - but it was a necessity. "A pack, provided we're not left too comfortable, is something we must consider now. Brother mine, we've hidden away longer than I've ever wanted to... y'know?"

"This is speech."

“Hiding is what we do, brother mine,” Nico argued, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. They were a pair of criminals, with little talent outside the realm of dishonesty and tricky. Neither of these things flourished when left out in the open for all the world to see. In truth, he was satisfied wearing his cloak of shadows, becoming part of the earth and no one in particular. But that had always been one of the stark contrasts between them, hadn’t it? The smaller Barreda was always the true thief, while his brother served as a distraction, a bruiser, or whatever the situation called upon the older wolf to be.

This argument was nothing new, and the russet male allowed himself a heavy sigh, ears flung out to the side as he shook his head. Every time the winter rolled around, resources got more scare, and loners got more desperate. They’d either move, or join a pack – after their enlightening experience with the wolves of Crow’s Crossing, Nico had little interest in banding together with others ever again. They could not be trusted.

It was a shame, then, that Rico did not agree. Exhaling heavily, he shook his head. ”Hiding is fine. Hiding is good. Hiding keeps us safe,” the smaller twin insisted, tail lashing behind him, betraying how uncomfortable he was. “Don’t you remember what happened last time? If we make a cache now, I am sure we can ride the winter out comfortably. It will be fine. It always works out fine, right? We don’t need anyone else. Just you and me, Rico, ‘gainst the world.”