First Change, Dinner and Chaos

<This ocurred when Auggie was in the barn being taught how to change. Miguel has slinked away to avoid having to change, something he has been afraid of, and avoided several times before. At this point he gets tired of being away from the others and comes in to see what's going on.

Opening one of the two doorways, you are able to gain passage into the vastness of the farm's barn.

Big Red Barn

The barn is built in the old style, a vast three level structure that is greater in height than a mere three stories, actually closer to five. Great wooden posts support the weight of the upper levels and roof, sunk into the hard-packed dirt floor of the first level like a sparse forest of regularly spaced, naked trees. The stalls and flagstones which once were here have been torn out to leave a rather open area where even crinos Garou may roam freely without fear of running into anything but the supports or the walls or the ladder at the back which allows access to the other two levels.

The first two levels are relatively open to each other, the second being only little wider than a catwalk going around all the walls but the front one, which has massive, twenty foot tall doors set into it. The third level is a true second floor except for a place cut out that allowed hay to be tossed down to the ground floor when the farm was actually worked. Now, it is a hayloft where Garou can sleep outside of the house.

(Non-Garou, please "+view curse")

Contents:

Helen

Rusty

Auggie(#2597PVc)

Alicia

Obvious exits:

BarnYard

Auggie 's eyes flash as he squirrels away the information about clothes in the attic. "Good to know." He looks around, and kind of hunches up his shoulders. "So... I'm supposed to like, get on all fours and pretend to be a wolf?" He's a bit averse to the idea, and doesn't like looking silly in front of others.

Rusty smiles at Auggie. "It helps." he chuckles. "It's how I learned...."

Alicia steps closer to Helen and gives her a nudge as she talks to her silently, watching the other pair for a moment, offering an encouraging. "You can do it Auggie."

Miguel slips in silently, his desire to avoid the situation finally overcome by curiosity, and loneliness.

"Do what Alicia said," Helen advises with a bright grin. "Act as silly and stupid as you want. It helps."

Auggie wrinkles his nose. "I guess if that's the only way," he grumbles, and drops to his knees. He scoots on the dusty floor a bit, away from the others, and then lowers his hands to the ground. "Hm." He looks at the others, and his face flushes a little when he sees Miguel is in attendance. Then he whips his head the other way, looking at the far side of the barn, and not at the other Garou watching him in what he feels is a ridiculous situation.

Alicia starts to make loud barking noises on purpose to throw off Auggie, chuckling to herself. "C'mon Augster, don't be embarrased. Like I said, look for that switch."

Rusty finds himself a seat out of the way, and settles down to watch the training.

Miguel notices Auggie feels weird to have him watching. He's not sure what to do, but doesn't want the younger cub to feel strange, so he drops to his hands and knees and moves over towards Auggie to show support.

Auggie snickers slightly at Alicia's encouragement. "Okay," he saids, and makes a noise somewhere in the ballpark of a wolf's chuff. He tries a succession of growls, the first clearly a human's fascimile of a wolf's sound. But gradually the sounds become more and more guttural. The last one scares the boy so much that he stops, rises to his knees, and blinks.

Alicia can't help but grin as she watches, still swaying from side to side on the balls of her feet. She watches them with keen interest, calling out. "What? You afraid of yourself now Auggie? C'mon! Do it!"

Smirking at both Alicia's comments and Auggie's behavior, Helen says, "Go on, keep trying. Looking like an idiot won't kill ya."

Rusty snickers quietly at Helen, but grins over at Auggie. "C'mon. You can do it."

Auggie shakes his head, not in denial but like a dog shaking off water. "All right," he says, determination now in his voice. His drops back down to all fours and resumes gruffing and chuffing.

Miguel says nothing, but nods encouragement to Auggie.

Alicia leans against Helen and grins slightly. "You know, it'd be easier to walk over there, kick em' both in the guts an get 'em pissed off enough they do it on their own, but this is kinda more fun."

Helen murmurs back to Alicia, "Yeah. That's what happened to me. Let's go beat up the cubs! B'sides, you're not supposed to, you shameless peace-lovin' hippie chick." She grins and shoves her friend.

Slowly, the shallow-sounding wolf noises eminating from the Ahroun become deeper, more guttural... more authentic. The boys form warps and contorts, just slightly at first - his face lengthens, his fingers and hands shrink in on themselves. Auggie's eyes, which were closed, open wide in a sudden burst of panic. But it's too late to do anything now but ride it out. His body shifts more quickly now, still slower than an experienced Garou, but within a few more moments the cub has fully shifted to lupus.

Miguel stands up, no longer feeling the need to embarass himself to show support for Auggie, "Way to go man. Congratulations. Can you still understand me?"

Alicia whistles loudly, exploding in an applaude. "Woo! Go Auggie! Yer' now a wolf!" She says with a wide grin, glancing over towards Miguel. "Your turn."

Rusty grins in delight. "Congrats, Auggie." He snickers quietly as Alicia turns her attention to Miguel, and gets to his feet, going over to Auggie. "Hey there. Welcome to the world of the occasionally furry." He reaches down..and scritches the cub's ears.

Auggie shivers, and plops down hard on his haunches. He looks around, taking in his surroundings all over again with new senses. He allows Rusty's touch, but is too distracted and distraught right now to really enjoy the sensation. He sniffs - a new discovery - and sniffs again. And, sniffs the air a third time, drinking deep the myriad of smells.

"Good for you," Helen says, smiling yet unmoving, not all that interested; she's seen it enough times where it's so boring she doesn't care. "Now you've got to get *used* to it, that's a pain."

Miguel crosses his arms and breathes deeply, not sure what Alicia is going to do. He is trying to think of something to say, but so far is coming up blank.

Alicia motions to Miguel. "C'mon, yer turn to become a wolf." She says with a grin, turning her attention over towards Auggie and smiles. She looks pleased as punch.

Rusty chuckles at Helen. "That's it...encourage him." He grins mischievously, and smiles down at the newly-changed cub. "Different, isn't it."

Auggie cautiously rises to his feet and looks down at himself. The lupine cub strains his head over his shoulders to look down his back, and chuffs in surprise when his tail waves up, almost to greet him, of its own accord. Then he takes a few steps forward. Having accomplished this, he relaxes a bit and looks expectantly at Miguel.

Helen glances over to Miguel, and harrasses him with, "Come on. Now that he did it you have to, too."

Miguel nods, "So... I'm just supposed to pretend I am a wolf? And that will make me change?" he walks over to stand by Auggie, and gets down on all fours after giving Auggie a slight pat.

Alicia grins slightly. "It worked for him, didn't it?" She asks with a grin. "So, give it a shot. You gotta close your eyes, growl, paw at the ground, look inside yourself and force the change."

Helen adds, ever so helpfully, "Or get really pissed off. That helps."

Rusty sits down next to Auggie, patting the cub's head and grinning...then looks to Miguel and nods. "You can do it."

Miguel feels a little less awkward, since Auggie already did it. He closes his eyes, and begins to attempt to make growling noises. Really poor ones.

Auggie is still distracted, smelling things. He acknowledges the pats with a brief look, and manages to give Miguel a portion of his attention.

"Come on," Helen says to Miguel, purposefully sounding harsh. "Louder. Get angry."

Rusty is quiet....just watching for now.

Miguel recalls his dreams of being a wolf, and starts growling, sounding more and more convincing, until he finds himself getting angrier, and very genuine sounding. He looks up, and his eyes are wild-looking.

Auggie 's ears twist and fold back at the new noises Miguel produces. He chuffs encouragement to his fellow cub, a strange sound since he doesn't really have the lupine vocal range down yet.

Dakota enters the ground level of the barn through one of the doors.

Dakota has arrived.

Alicia grins slightly as she watches Miguel, calling out her encouragement to him. She leans back on the ground some, watching as his eyes soon turn.

Miguel's growl sounds more and more natural, as hair slowly sprouts on his body, and he gains in mass, as his face becomes more wolf-like. He reverses his growth and shrinks slightly half-way through as his joints reaccomodate a 4-legged posture, and a completely animalistic face. He finally shrinks down to a size just a little smaller than Auggie, having smoothly gone through all five forms.

You have shifted to Lupus form.

Miguel(#3494Pc)

A slightly smaller than average wolf, with the appearance of a typical Mexican gray wolf. His coat consists of a mix of black, gray, and white, with the white mostly on his belly, and face. His fur is sleek, but slightly thicker or tufted around his face. What seperates him from others of his species are his face, full of expression, and his mannerisms, of a feral nature kept strongly in check by a forceful will. He oozes a sense of peace, and calm, thickly veneered over an unnatural ferocity.

The barn is soon to be occupied by two more Children of Gaia, leaving only one of the Sept's hippies unaccounted for. But he's probably out gardening. Dakota and Karl come in through the door, chatting between themselves.

Though only 5'4", her slim athletic body is well toned with tight, sleek muscles. Her skin is a pale cream, left free of most cosmetics. Faded lines of white mark her wrists and arms, barely seen on her light complexion. Noticeably, however, is an ash-darkened scar running the length of the top of her right hand - though lately it has been covered with fingerless black gloves. Naturally dark brown eyes have been given contacts to alter their color, changing them to a very deep and dark blue. From her childhood, her hair has been long and wavy, a rich, dark auburn brown. Now, it's been straightened out and dyed dark, a black that still holds highlights of red. Clothing, normally casual, has taken on a gothic twist, and pants dripping with chains and shirts with smartassed saying now appear on her person. Around her neck can sometimes be found a golden chain, but the golden ring that was once on it has been moved, this time to where it belongs - on the finger of her left hand. The only other piece of jewelry she seems to wear is a barbell through her right eyebrow, gold in color.

(( Picture: http://www.rachelsmusic.com/gallery/soak/1.html ))

Auggie watches Miguel's transformation silently, eyes wide. He takes a step backwards and trips a bit, in awe of witnessing the bizarre transformation he himself just went through earlier.

Alicia lets out a loud whoop from her throat as she grins wildly. "Awesome job Miguel!" She calls out, whirling around quickly to the door to spy the other two. She is dancing, literally on her feet as she sways from left to right. "Check it out. Two lupines."

Miguel looks pleased with himself, and talks a few stumbling baby steps as a wolf, towards Dakota and Karl.

"Well, well," Karl says with a grin. "Not bad!"

Dakota looks over the two cubs and gives them both an enthusiastic round of clapping. "Excellent!" She looks over them both, making sure she'd be able to recognize them by sight.

Ever-Grinning enters the ground level of the barn through one of the doors.

Ever-Grinning has arrived.

"You two did a good job. Now, lets see you get out of the wolf form. You have to imagine yourself back in your human bodies." Alicia instructs. "Same as you got into the wolf ones. You gotta make it click and push youself into it."

You paged the room with 'Lest we forget, our clothes are ripped on the ground here... haha.'.

Auggie give a quiet chuff of congratulations to the other cub, and then blinks at Alicia's words. The Ahroun cub closes his eyes, and concentrates.

Alicia pages to the room: Haha. Nope :) Ali dedicated your clothing last night while you slept. :D I thought ahead.

Dakota pages to the room: We like to avoid nekkid bodies here.

Karl pages to the room: Coggies have a bad rep as it is, so...

You paged the room with 'haha'.

You paged the room with 'Good thinking'.

</End OOC CONVO>

Ever-Grinning steps inside the bawn and blinks at all the people. "Jeez, somebody throw a party and forget to invite me or something?

Miguel sits up, and starts to concentrate on his human form.

Auggie remains in his present form for a good minute of trying, but the cub doesn't give up.

Rusty looks up, and smiles. "Heya, Unc."

It seems that Eamon doesn't grin as much as he used to, as if he's been through something traumatic recently. His bright red hair has grown back fully now and the green eyes still sparkle, but some of the humor has left them. He wears a weathered black leather jacket and a black Harley-Davidson t-shirt. With the black jeans and motorcycle boots, he almost looks like a biker. Indeed, he can be seen tooling around town on a Harley, but not quite as often as usual. His left ear is pierced twice, a gold hoop through each pierce. A scruffy red goatee adorns his chin and below his lower lip. When in public, he wears thin, black leather gloves in all weather, completely covering both hands. Both hands seem to function normally, however.

Auggie remains in his present form for a good minute of trying, but the cub doesn't give up. Without warning, his form flows up into that of the dire wolf, then crinos, where the changes stop for a moment. It seems the cub has some difficulty getting out of that one. Finally, the cub shifts down to his homid form. He gasps and stumbles, but catches himself and doesn't fall.

"K' and I just got here ourselves." Dakota says over her shoulder to Eamon, offering him a wide grin before she goes back to watching the two cubs. "Well done." She says with a grin.

Eamon grins at Dakota and Alicia. "Hey. What do we have here, coupla new cubs?"

Rusty grins at Miguel and Auggie. "Good going."

Karl watches the shifting in awed silence. Sure, he's seen it all countless times, but those /first/ times are something special.

Alicia grins at Auggie, clapping for him, looking proud. "Hey Eamon, word up. Got a couple of Coggie cubs that I picked up this week by way of fetch." She says. "Thats Auggie who just shifted, an Ahroun. And over there is David Miguel, a Galliard."

Miguel grows into Hispo, and slowly rocks to his feet as he transforms into Crinos. He gradually shrinks in size as the fur reabsorbs into his body, revealing his normal clothing.

You have shifted to Homid form.

Eamon says "Both Coggies? Sheesh, the rumors must be true about you guys."

Dakota makes her way over and claims a haybale as a seat, lifting at brow at Eamon. "Hey! You Fianna got two cubs in, what, a week?"

Rusty chuckles softly, keeping out of it for now.

Eamon buffs his nails. "Hey, what can I say?"

Alicia grins wryly. "We got three, we're just missing one right now." She says with a chuckle, glancing over towards the two cubs. "Guys, this is Eamon. He packs with Dakota and I."

Auggie is out of it. He's looking at his hand right now. He glances up breifly, and blinks at the new Garou. "Hi."

Eamon waves to the cubs. "Hey." He looks at Alicia. "About that missing cub, any news? I'm still up for hunting if you're interested."

Miguel announces himself to Eamon, and gives a polite nod to those he already knows, "David Miguel, Moon Dancer, cub, Son of Unicorn."

"Huh? There's /another/ one?" Karl asks Alicia.

The barn door creaks open, letting in another figure -- in this case, a skinny beanpole with dark almost-brown blond hair. Flash is dressed in flip-flops, gym shorts, and a _Toxic Avenger_ t-shirt, and he's licking chocolate off his fingers as he enters.

Eamon grins. "You know, maybe we could get Stag to lead him back to the caern for us. He's good for that sort of thing."

"Sly." Dakota says in a half-murmur. She frowns a bit and looks up to Eamon, "I doubt we're gonna find him alive, but I want to know what happened."

Stranger things have happened, Dakota." Alicia says with an attempt to boost her packmate's morale.

Miguel looks curiously at Flash as he enters. He's certainly an interesting looking fellow.

Eve opens the large Barn doors and pokes her head inside, biting her lower lip when she sees the small crowd.

Alicia glances over towards Flash and smirks slightly at the sight of him, then squints her eyes over towards Eve. "Hey sis, c'mon in. Check out my new cubs."

Flash sides to the side as Eve enters, giving the girl a curious look and a faint, crooked smile. Then he flicks hair out of his eyes and turns his gaze over at the crowd in general. He quickly spots the 'fresh meat' and leers. "Ooooo," he says, with relish. "/Newbies/."

The fascination Auggie's newly-changed-back body once held fades. He stops navel-gazing, literally, and he looks at all the new faces. "Ah, sorry," he murmurs to Alicia. "Auggie Kvintos, Children of Gaia cub, Ahroun," he spouts off his introduction, for anyone who's interested in hearing it.

Eve rubs at the back of her neck and steps fully into the Barn, making her way over to Alicia's side.

Karl now turns his attention from the cubs to silently greet the others present in the barn, though his attention lingers noticeably on Eve.

Eamon nods. "I'm Ever-Grinning, fostern Fianna ragabash." He shrugs at Dakota, "Well, then, we can at least bring his body back to bury him."

Dakota nods her head to Eamon. "Well, we should go search soon, before the moon gets too much smaller."

Alicia nods her head. "Lets try for Tuesday." She says to the pair of packies, then glances over to Flash. "Yes, newbies, and my newbies. Don't fuck with 'em, they are just a few days old in their new life and we are just now working on the basics with them." As Eve approaches, she leans over and nudges her slightly with a grin.

Miguel comes back to himself, undazed finally from having changed, and walks over to in turn greet both Eve and Dakota with a hug and kiss on the cheek.

Dakota gives Miguel a proud grin in return, "So now that you've Changed, what do you think about it?"

Eve doesn't seem to know quite how to react to that, as she stiffens up a touch. "Oh, hi, nice to see you too kid."

Flash actually looks rather affronted and places a hand over his heart. "ME? Me, fuck with the wee little bitty baby cubbie-boys?" He sniffs, then eyeballs Miguel and Auggie again consideringly. "...Though they /are/ rather cute. Hey, boys! Pitcher or catcher?"

Karl groans quietly at Flash's remark.

Rusty arches an eyebrow, then laughs at Flash. "Hey...stop stealing MY lines...." He grins.

Auggie pretends like he doesn't hear Flash. He's used to much worse teasing. He also chooses to ignore the talk of searching for a possibly dead cub, more for his sanity's sake right now than anything else. He just focuses on the Garou he knows - mainly, Rusty and Alicia. "Is *everybody* in here a Garou?" he asks incredulously.

Alicia blanches slightly. "Yes, everyone here is a Garou, and Flash is about to /catch/ my foot up his ass." She says with a snort in the StarGazer's direction.

Miguel has attached himself to Dakota, obviously feeling a little shy around so many people. "How do I feel about it, Dakota-Rhya? I don't know. I guess it makes it feel all a little more real. It felt like both an end, and a beginning. It's hard to explain."

Flash smirks over at Rusty. "Not my fault if you're too slow, runt." He headflicks, looking all cock-of-the-walk, and makes kiss-kiss motions in Alicia's direction.

Rusty nods to Auggie, and grins. "Yeah. There are a number of us around here." He pauses at the runt comment, eyeing Flash with another arched eyebrow.

Alicia starts over in Flash's direction, glancing about for a moment. Scooping herself over as she moves, she snags up the old football she brought over earlier off the ground and grins. She tosses it over towards Flash, then starts darting forward, as if she was going to tackle him.

Eamon turns his head to glare at Flash, clicking his thumb and index finger together in a pincer-like manner. "Behave yourself, boy."

Dakota ruffles the Galliard cub's hair affectionatly before she turns to regard Flash, snorting some under her breath. "Oy." She mumbles, shaking her head.

Eve watches Alicia move to tackle Flash, then takes a step over to Dakota. "Umm, Dakota, who is Walker Elder these days?"

Flash catches the ball with a grunt, his eyes widening slightly as Alicia charges at him, the Gaian Elder's move making him miss Eamon and Rusty's remarks altogether. He sets his feet, crouching slightly, then attempts to twist aside the last minute, the football tucked under one arm.

Dakota looks then to Eve and replies. "It was Natalie for awhile, but then Leala challenged her and won. She's the boss now."

Auggie nods silently at Rusty and Alicia's answers, folds his arms, and watches the impromptu football session with a befuddled expression on his face.

Eamon peers over at Eve. "Renee? Hey, haven't seen you around in a while. How you been?

Karl's attention snaps from the game back to Eamon and Eve.

As Alicia charges, she shifts her feet and leaps out, waist high and barrels into the StarGazer, tackling him into the ground as the pair go tumbling into the hay and dust, kicking up a small cloud. "WOO!" She cheers out, laughing as she scrambles up a bit, heading back towards the others.

Flash lies sprawled on the barn floor, the football tumbling out of one outstretched hand, looking dazed for a moment.

Rusty laughs...clearly enjoying watching Flash get tackled.

Miguel gently tries to smooth his hair back into place, carefully finger-combing it back, and then slightly tousling it just so.

"Now that is what we need to do. Grab the football, head out to the field and play. That'd be so typical Easter normal shit to do." Alicia states as she heads into the new conversation, glancing from Eve, to Eamon, then Dakota.

Auggie leans against a nearby support post and laughs at the sight of Flash being tackled by his elder.

"Or some baseball," says Flash from his position on the floor. "The All-American pasttime." Getting to his feet, he scrubes one hand quickly though his hair, scattering dust, then stoops to pick up the football.

Eve shrinks back into her shirt a little, before drawing in a careful breath and looking over at Eamon. "Eve Walks-The-Darkened-Path," she extends her hand in greeting toward the Fianna. "Theurge and Cliath of the Bone Gnawers."

Dakota slowly turns her gaze from Eve to Eamon, biting her lower lip slightly and chooses to distract herself with Alicia. "I'm all for hitting the woods tonight. Head to th Compound and heave a good bonfire."

Karl turns back to Alicia. "Uh... when do break out the food?"

Miguel turns to Auggie, "How you doing with all this, little brother?"

Alicia grins widely. "Now if you guys want. I cooked up a shit load of food people. So whatcha say? We eat, play some football, have a bonfire?" She asks, pooling all ideas together.

Flash snorts and, when Alicia's not looking at him, pegs the football in the direction of her head.

Dakota eyes Flash and gets a broad smirk. "Not just normal football. I vote for some tackle football, Crinos-style."

Auggie shrugs at Miguel's question. He's not going to open up that quickly to anyone. "Okay, I guess. You?" He perks up at the mention of food, and interjects, "I'm all for eatin' first!"

Eamon arches an eyebrow, but takes Eve's hand nevertheless. "Eve? Not Renee? Did you change you r name, too, or is this something else?"

Miguel shrugs to Auggie, taking the hint, "I guess I'm okay too."

Rusty chuckles at Auggie's reaction to the thought of food. And grins at Dakota's thought for a game.

"Its Eve now," the Bone Gnawer comferms, returning the handshake.

Bop! Getting pegged in the head, Alicia stumbles forward a few steps, blinking her eyes. Slowly, she turns around, and the look on her face isn't a happy one.

Karl is back studying Eve again, looking slightly uncomfortable.

Dakota silently goes about retrieving the football, drumming her fingertips against the brown leather.

Flash smiles sweetly at the Child of Gaia elder, then makes a break for the door.

Alicia stares at him as he runs, her eyes narrowed, hands slowly turning into fists as she grips her fingers tightly.

Miguel watches Alicia carefully, curious as to what his elder will do next.

"Loved you on _Baywatch_, darling!" the Stargazer calls, just before he vanishes back out into the yard.

Flash leaves the barn through one of the doors.

Flash has left.

Eamon nods and shrugs at Eve. "Okay, whatever. Good to see you again. 'Scuse me a minute." He moves to intercept Alicia before she does something stupid.

"Crazy bastard." Dakota says with a shake of her head, depositing the ball on the hay.

Rusty rolls his eyes. "Awww. Don't stop her, unc....he's got it coming."

Alicia takes a few moments as she stares at the door, then slowly lets out a breath. Leaning over, she picks up the ball and tucks it under her arm, shaking her head.

Eve frowns faintly, as Eamon moves away. Lightly shaking her head, she makes her way over to one corner of the barn and sits down. Back against one of the walls.

"...anyway... I think it's long past time for dinner." Dakota says as the conversation plummets.

"I second that," Karl states.

Eve continues sitting in her corner, looking vaugely uncomfortable and slightly out of place.

Dakota looks to those still in the barn and says, "Well, let's go eat, then. Maybe the smell of the food in the farmhouse'll draw more folks in, because we have a lot of food."

Miguel falls in step behind Dakota.

Rusty chuckles quietly. "Go on...I'll be in in a few minutes."

Karl crosses the barn to approach Eve. "Hi. Uh... are you joining us for the feast?" he asks nervously.

Big Red Barn

(Non-Garou, please "+view curse")

Contents:

Eve

Eamon

Dakota

Rusty

Alicia

Karl

Obvious exits:

BarnYard

Eve looks up at Karl and offers a weak smile. "I suppose."

Alicia smiles and pushes her way out, having calmed down.

Alicia leaves the barn through one of the doors.

Alicia has left.

Dakota looks to Eve and offers her a warm smile. "We'll set you a place at the table." Looking back to grin at Miguel, she follows off after Alicia.

Dakota leaves the barn through one of the doors.

Dakota has left.

You pass through one of the doorways of the barn, out to the farm's barnyard.

Barnyard

The lane wends its way back and around the farmhouse to here, where it widens into a broad, grassy sward contained only by the woods which encircle it on three sides. Buildings break up the purity of the landscape: an open-sided structure which serves as a garage and the big barn, empty of livestock, to the east. A good-sized vegetable and herb garden furrows the land south of the barn, while a pyramid-like pile of rocks, of similar consistency to the gravel of the lane, rests a few yards south of the garage.

North of the buildings, the fields have long been fallow, hastening a conversion from farmland to natural prairie. A sliding glass door allows admittance to the farmhouse, the interior obscured by Levolor(tm) blinds in a wood-grain pattern. The lane leads out around the house to the southwest. The discerning can just barely pick out the beginnings of a faint path into the woods towards the southeast.

(Non-Garou, please "+view curse")

Contents:

Dakota

Alicia

Obvious exits:

FIelds BArn Farmhouse Lane Woods

Sliding the glass door open, you walk through into the dining room of the farmhouse.

Farmhouse: Kitchen and Dining Room

Homey is the first word to come to mind when looking at the farmhouse's kitchen. Dark, wood-paneled wainscoting covers the walls to about waist height, dark beige wallpaper continuing to the ceiling. Twin refrigerators occupy the north wall, facing the large six-burner stove on the south. The kitchen counter runs the length of the eastern wall, broken only by the double-basin sink. Cabinets run above and below the counter and a twin-pane window is set in the wall above the sink. A small pantry is set into an alcove alongside the refrigerators, presumably holding the deep freezer as well as shelves of dry goods.

Some twelve feet above the floor, a large chandelier hangs from the ceiling, lighting the dining room and casting long shadows over the bar to the kitchen. A long table occupies the center of the dining room, three chairs setting along each side, and one on each end. On the west wall, a large window looks out on the trees alongside the western pasture. Set into the north wall is a large cabinet, its glass doors closed on shelves containing a full compliment of fine china and glassware as well as a few decorative nicknacks. On the east, a wide bar separates the dining room from the kitchen.

An opening in the southern wall allows passage to the front entryway of the house, while a sliding glass door in the kitchen opens to a clearing behind the house.

(Non-Garou, please "+view curse")

Contents:

Dakota

Alicia

Obvious exits:

Hallway/Living Room Back Door

Eve steps into the dining room through the sliding glass door.

Eve has arrived.

Karl steps into the dining room through the sliding glass door.

Karl has arrived.

The sliding door opens to let in Eve, and not far behind her at all, is Karl.

Dakota is busy about the kitchen, making sure the food is hot and ready to be served. The table is mostly set, save for the food itself. "Sit, sit!" She says to those arriving with a beaming grin, looking for all the world like some goth-dressed housewife who's perfectly at home in the kitchen. "Hey Miguel, wanna see what anyone wants to drink?"

Miguel nods to Dakota, "Yes ma'am, Dakota-Rhya." he walks to each person individually, and asks them their preference.

Eve picks a chair and sits down at it, looking over the food that has been set at the table.

Karl pages to the room: phone

Dakota pulls out an assortment of glasses from the cabinets and sets them on the counter, the goes back to remove the mountain of ham from the oven where it's been keeping warm. This is placed on the table, followed by equally monumental and mouthwatering portions of cheesy potatoes, vegetables, and salads of both fresh greens and fruit varieties. There's a pile of brightly colored eggs in the center of the table, some of them decorated in fancy waxed glyphs. Someone couldn't help themselves.

After a moment of hesitation, Eve starts to help herself to the food. Piling it onto her plat, creating a small mountain before setting it back down infront of her.

"Whoa, we're set for a banquet," Karl says, eyeballing all the food and pulling up a chair. "Just a coke, thanks," he replies to Miguel.

Miguel brings each person their preferred drink, and grabs a beer for himself, testing to see if any of the older Garou say something about his age.

Eve downs a whole mass of potatoes, before going for seconds and a lot of ham. Setting aside her knife and fork, Eve gets up and heads over to the fridge, where she helps herself to a beer. | Emma has arrived (oocly).

Karl sips from his coke and looks about briefly, before tucking into his meal.

Miguel pours the beer into his glass, and avoids Dakota's gaze, watching for what she will do. He timidly starts to take a sip.

Dakota reaches over the table, post-sip, and wraps her fingers around the glass in Miguel's hand to casually removes it from the cub. "After you Rite." She says with a grin and places her fruit next to her plate which is soon heaped with food.

The stairs from the other room creak slightly as Emma steps her way down. She turns into the kitchen, stopping rather abruptly upon seeing the capacity. "Well shit. When it rains it pours. New cubs in here?" She scans the beer-denied male, and the blonde female, squinting curiously.

Eve cracks open her own can of beer, before returning to her seat and continuing to eat.

Miguel says nothing, but quietly sneaks off, and slinks back with just a coke.

Alicia heads over to Dakota, reaching out and taking the beer from her, grinning. "After you become Fostern." She says with a teasing smirk, then waves to Emma. "Hey. Yah.. This is Miguel."

The ham on Eve's plate disapears and she leansback in her seat, patting her very full belly.

The table is crowded with mountains of food and colorful, glyph-decorated easter eggs. Dakota, somewhere among the feast, flashes a wide grin at the Get. "Emma! Come eat!" She waves her over, nudging out a chair for her. She laughs at Alicia but doesn't protest.

Karl finishes a mouthful of cheesey potato then smirks at Alicia. "Hey Em. Pull up a chair."

Emma grins at the gathered and gives a nod, "Alright, guess so." She gives a fond smile to Karl as she pulls up next to Dakota, reaching for the beer that Alicia took from the other. "Once you become Get." She smirks playfully and flops into the chair.

Miguel introduces himself to Emma, smiling at repeating the same introduction for what seems the 90th time in the last few days, "David Miguel, cub, Moon Dancer, Son of Unicorn." he nods politely to her, and goes to picking at his beef and potatoes.

Eve looks up at Emma as she arrives and offers a weak smile. "Hello."

Alicia chuckles slightly. "See, our cubs rule. They are polite." She says proudly, offering the beer back to Miguel with a grin.

Dakota nearly snorts out her potatoes at Alicia's words, giggling.

In the front rooms, Aubrey steps in from the porch, closing the front door behind her.

In the front rooms, Aubrey goes through the aperture at the northern end of the front hallway to enter the back room of the house.

Aubrey has arrived.

Karl chuckles a moment before returning to his ham and chewing it with a smile.

Emma gives a nod to Eve, still processing the image of the girl. Her eyes drift back to Miguel, nodding. "Emma Mahler, Eats-Bad-Cubs, Ahroun of Fenrir and Cliath." She winks a bit, obviously in a good mood. "What about you?" she asks of the blonde girl.

Miguel takes the beer back, and appears thoroughly amused. His food looks barely touched.

Aubrey walks in from the direction of the front door, which can be heard opening and closing fairly quickly as the Fianna makes her way towards the kitchen. "Happy Easter!" she calls, grinning cheerifully. In the Theurge's arms is a plush rabbit, old and tattered but still good.

Karl nods happily to Aubrey with a mouthful of food, then looks between Eve and Emma, wondering when the latter is going to click.

Dakota pokes Emma with the blunt end of her fork, chewing before she asks her. "So what's up, Em'? We still gotta go hunting again sometime."

Eve yawns and covers her mouth with the back of her hand.

"I could not bring a real one, so this will have to do." Aubrey says with light amusement as she takes the plushes arm and makes a gesturing wave-motion towards everyone. She places the object on her head, balencing it carefully as she walks towards the smell of food. "I sense that this mush be... Alicia's cooking? Or maybe Taslyn's?" she questions. Her gaze is drawn towards Eve for a moment before she turns back towards the food and grabs out a plate to pile it on.

Eve says "Eve, Walks-The-Darkened-Path. Cliath and Theurge of the Bone Gnawers."

Alicia grins slightly. "This is the entire tribe of the Children of Gaia's, cooking." She says with a grin, motioning towards the wide spread. "Dig in guys."

Miguel smiles proudly at the mention of his tribe, the likes of which he is getting like quite well.

Emma nods to Eve, "Nice to meet you then..." she remains unsure, and her eyes stay focused on the other. She turns to answer Dakota with a nod, "Yeah, we do. Need to get my fur on soon, it's been a while. Cubnapping has been a bit, hectic lately." Karl gets an elbow and a soft glare, "What?"

Eve rubs at her mouth, then turns her seat a little. So she can look outside, while sipping quietly at her beer.

"Amen to that." Replies Dakota with a grin and looks to her two old partners-in-crime. "What'dya say to all three of us goin' hunting? I know I could use a camping trip back up to the mountains here, maybe once the weather gets a bit warmer."

Karl shakes his head dismissively as he is caught by Emma. "No, nothing," he murmurs. "And yes, that's sounds great," he says in regard to the camping.

"Hey Emma, Dakota and I are packing together now, under Stag with Megan." Alicia says, kicking out the news as always. "Isn't that cool?"

Emma chuckles a soft 'heh'. "Yah, well that is cool. Not surprising, as you two seem attached at the hip like always. But cool." She rolls a shoulder and turns her attention back at the quiet one. "Man, you are like... really weirding me out. I swear you remind me...well, not really. Just.." she shakes her head and turns back to Karl, clearly confused.

Aubrey finishes dishing out her dinner and places her plate at the table. The plush is plopped into the chair that she is reserving as she takes a trip to the fridge to grab out a drink but not before walking behind Eve's chair. The Fianna crouches and wraps her arms around the woman for a moment in a friendly gesture, "I had forgotten..." she murmurs softly. Strightening, she goes directly towards the fridge without further adu and takes out a beer for herself. Aubrey straightens and looks to Karl, her eyebrows knoting. "When were you going to tell me this?" she demands.

"Hmm? Tell you what?" Karl asks, completely oblivious and now fearing he's done something terrible.

Miguel has finished his coke, but barely touched the beer, subtly displaying that he was trying mostly to test the unspoken rules he has to follow.

"When were you going to tell me that you were going to pack with someone else?" Aubrey repeats, looking slightly hurt. She places the plush into her lap as she takes a seat in the chair.

Dakota huffs softly, looking over to Alicia. "Speaking of the pack, did Flash ambush Eamon or is he still out in the barn?"

Eve frowns and watches Aubrey as she heads toward the fridge, then to her seat. She seems vaugely confused.

Alicia glances over towards Dakota, but finds her attention drawn towards Karl and Aubrey again.

"Huh? Where did you get this?" Karl frowns, then shakes his head. "Save for the Totem Quest, I'm Crescent Wing all over," he states.

Miguel pays close attention the adults, his attention ping-ponging back and forth as he tries to make sense of what is going on around the table. He starts drinking his beer in earnest. He hasn't really drank it before. Hrm... this stuff is pretty good.

"Oh," Aubrey says suddenly as she relaxes. "I thought that you were going to be packing with them," she gestures towards Alicia and the others in the pack under the Stag. "Sorry, Karl..." she apologies. Then, she looks across to Eve and says nothing for now as she eats her dinner.

"Oh," Karl utters. "Heck no. Uh, no offense to you guys, but... yeah. I need a sign. 'Property of The Merlin'," he jokes.

Alicia looks a bit confused, then chuckles slightly. "No Aubrey. um.. Dakota and I are packing under Stag with Megan." She grins.

Dakota reaches out and plucks a decorated egg from the center of the table, going about quietly peeling off the shell. "That's cool, Karl. We don't like you anyway." This said with a grin, of course.

Miguel thinks he has it all sorted out with the packs, but doesn't entirely understand the significance of packing 'under stag'. "Dakota-Rhya, what does it mean to pack under stag?"

Karl laughs at Dakota's teasing and sets back into his vegetables, trying not to chuckle as he does so.

Alicia grins and reaches over, nudging Karl on the shoulder, then ruffles up your hair.

Eve gives her head a light shakes and goes back to looking out the window.

"Phew," Aubrey answers with a smile. "There is too much conversation in here," she chuckles softly. Then, she looks towards Alicia before Dakota. "I forgotten to mention that I had heard about your hunting adventure in the umbra, Dakota."

Alicia pages to the room: Haha. Dak is getting renown like crazy. *sniff*

Dakota is a bite into her hard-boiled egg when Miguel's question is heard. She swallows and then goes about explaining, "Well, it's like the Totems of each of the tribes, only not so powerful. See, we Garou, like wolves, run in packs. Each pack has a totem spirit that watches over it. Stag is one, but so is Merlin and Wolverine." She says, gesturing to Aubrey and Emma in turn. "There are many others besides that." Then she looks up to Aubrey and smile, "Oh, yeah... was a trip, that's for sure."

Miguel nods in understanding, "Okay, I see. So, Stag watches over your pack, in the same sense as Unicorn watches over the Children of Gaia?"

Karl only takes enough of a break from his eating to mmmhmmm at Miguel.

Emma looks to Eve as she munches on her Easter meal. Her brain tick tick ticking away. All of a sudden she drops her fork and and stares hard at the woman. "You got to be fucking kidding me!"

"Took you long enough Emma." Alicia says between bites of Apple pie.

Eve turns her head just enough to look at Emee through the corner of one eye, then goes back to looking out the window. Diffrent name and a fucking Theurge, riiiiiight.

Emma shakes her head, staring at Alicia. "No. Can't be. I mean, something similar about her. But one, that girl ain't at my throat, /or/ pissing me off. Two, she hasn't opened her mouth up more than to say a name and introduction."

Dakota chuckles and nods to Miguel. "Yes, in the basic terms. Pack totems are not as powerful as tribal totems, but that doesn't mean they're no--" She blinks and jerks her head to look at Emma and then follows her eyes over to Eve. Wetting her lips, she looks back to Miguel and finished. "...no less important in their own ways."

Miguel thinks to himself that there is obviously something very interesting about Eve, even though she seemed fairly regular to him when he first met her.

Aubrey finishes off the last portion from off her plate, licking the fork. Her eyes dart between Emma and Eve before she rises from out of her chair, chugging down the beer and heads towards the sink to place away her dirty dishes. She walks back to her chair to pick up the plush that she had carried in with her as she looks around the room with a blank expression.

Okay, that's enough to make Karl pause in his eating. He puts down his cutlery and chews very slowly, eyeing those around the table.

Dakota glances aside to Emma, prodding her ham with her fork. "...things change, Em'." She says quietly, turning her eyes back to her food.

Aubrey looks to Eve for a moment. "I think I am going outside for a breath of freh air. Would you like to join me, Eve?" she asks the Bone Gnawer.

Eve finishes off the last of her beer and sets it down on the table, before standing. "Thankyou for the food Alicia, Dakota," she says, in a perfectly normal voice. Not the grating rough tone that Renee always used. "Sure Aubrey, I'd like that."

Aubrey steps out to the back porch, holding onto the door as she waits for Eve to join her outside.

Aubrey slides open the door in the kitchen, passing through into the back yard.

Aubrey has left.

Emma stands up, leaving the rest of her plate unfinished. "Bullshit. Things don't change." She shakes her head, pushing her chair out of the way in a bit of a rage. "Geezus christ, put a fucking sign up outside our Sept that reads, Come on in, we don't care."

Eve slides open the door in the kitchen, passing through into the back yard.

Eve has left.

Alicia glances over to Emma. "What is wrong with Renee coming back with a new life and a new name? She's changed, a lot."

Miguel swallows hard, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. He sneaks out to the fridge to grab another coke for a chance to get away.

Karl frowns harshly at Emma, and despite having a mouth clear of food, he doesn't use it to say anything. Just... frowning harshly.

Dakota bites her tongue for the moment, tension reading in the muscles of her jaw as she sits in silence.

Emma grits her teeth. "What's wrong? Let me see...we have a Sept where the Walkers can Rite a cub, then dump him, then have the Alpha force him back in. We have fucking mules dropped off here, what seems like at least twice a month now. We have people giving up, leaving entire tribes hanging, then waltzing back in, thinking it's gonna be all fine and dandy. Then we have people getting killed, and instead of going out there to do a damn thing about it, we sit here welcoming back the very charachs that left, and opening our arms to the mules they breed!"

Emma glowers, "This Sept is turning into a fucking joke!"

"Mules, who are Cliaths, have obviously proven themself." Alicia says calmly. "And just because Craig is dead, doesn't mean we aren't doing anything 'bout it. Renee left for good reason. She had to find herself, and pay for the mistakes she made on a personal level. /No one/ is perfect, at all. Remember, I covered up for her the entire time, and I was punished just like she was. Do you still hold something against -me- also? Or are you able to look back mistakes that have been learned from, and still see me as a valuable asset to this Sept?"

Dakota snorts softly. "So you'd have us turn away warriors, which we need here, just because of a mistake that was not of their making? You would damn people for wanting to change and make up for what they've done wrong?" She shakes her head and collects some of the plates, walking them to the dish washer.

"It's not like she even /planned/ on being a Charach," Karl says in Eve's defense, pissed at Emma's outburst.

Miguel comes back from the kitchen, and runs his fingers carefully through his hair. He makes another mental note. /OBVIOUSLY the Garou don't all get along as well as it first seemed./

Emma grumbles. "Fine, think what you want. You don't come waltzing back after fucking up like that, and expect hugs and kisses. This Sept is in a lot of trouble, if we keep this attitude up. Because all it does is reek of weakness. Softness. We have so many fucking issues, and we let them slide like spilled milk. It's not spilled milk, it's a fucking kitching fire, and if we don't stop it, the whole place gonna go up in flames."

"She never expected, nor does she /want/, hugs and kisses." Alicia says with gritted teeth. "You know how much it hurts for her to be back here? The shame she feels? She has come home to find out that Craig, her best friend and someone she still cared a whole lot for, is dead. Have some compassion, Emma. You said you didn't want to be like /every other/ Get, well, here is your chance." She shakes her head, standing up and making her way to the sink. "Try and look through someone else's eyes for a change. Her being back is a good thing, it shows she is still strong and she hasn't gaven up on herself or us."

Dakota stands with her back to Emma as she crams dishes roughly in the racks, perhaps a bit too roughly, still biting back words that are better left unsaid.

Karl continues to give harsh looks to Emma. Thank Gaia Alicia is doing the talking for him.

Miguel chews another bite of meat, very slowly.

Emma glares at Alicia, "Maybe there is a reason that Get are like they are, because if the whole fucking Garou Nation were made of you guys, we'd be in a piss poor sorry state, and the Dancers would walk all over us. I'll tell you what I'd think, if I were an outside source watching us. That we'd be easy pickings, too forgiving, and not willing to put a god damn foot down. Ever. She didn't look through the eyes of the Gnawers when she fucking up and left them... and her fucking mule kid, for everyone else to deal with. Thing shoulda been killed far before it breathed it's first breath."

Dakota whirls around and fixes Emma with a deadly stare. There's a sharp sound of shattering glass as the cup in her hand is squeeze beyond what it can take, and blood trickles down through her white knuckles.

Aliciastands up swiftly and turns on Emma, marching her way towards her, giving her a poke in the chest. "I lived through this place being taken over once when we were at our /strongest/, Emma." She says with gritted teeth. "I fought, and I killed, and I /slaughtered/ Spiral dancers, to get this place back. Do you know why we were such an easy target the first time? Cuz we were too busy putting our foot down, pointing the finger at one another, and not paying a single fucking bit of detail to what was -important-. I will not disagree that perhaps we are too forgiven at times, but you know what, kid? If we were more forgiven in the /past/, our number wouldn't be one third the size of what it used to be as a Garou nation and this war would have been over with." She snarls. "But we were too busy killing each other off, and 'putting our foot down', and taking the lives of warriors that could have gaven up their lives fighting the Wyrm instead. Don't for a second, that /us guys/ are pansies, or any less the warrior than the great Get of Fenris, because we like to /think/ before we shoot."

Karl merely fumes in his chair. It's through sheer will that he can remain seated with his mouth closed.

Miguel feels sorry for Emma. She is definitely outnumbered in here. He looks to how far the door is in case things escalate, because he doesn't yet feel enough loyalty to his tribe to mindlessly jump into any sort of argument or fight based on the others.

Emma lets out a growling sigh. "Well fuck it all anyway. That woman gave me nothing but shit, and ya know what? Now we're on even ground, and as far as I am concerned, she's a charach, and a deserter, and if she wants to be back here, she needs to prove herself." She slams her chair back towards the table, turning away from Alicia and the others.

"Emma.. " Alicia says with a growl, shaking her head quickly and letting the rage slip away from her veins as she cools herself off. "She was a charach by accident, and she left the tribe in care with Craig because she was not mentally able to deal with everything. It was either leave or kill herself. I'm not defending her actions Emma, because I know they were wrong, but I'm also able to forgive and forget and look past the mistakes and see through her new eyes. She is changed, hopefully for the better and if she has to prove herself to you again, fine, I have all my faith that she can."

Dakota grits her teeth tightly together, drops of blood still finding their way through the tightly clenched fist. Turning away from the arguement, she yanks a paper towl (dragging half the roll with her) and begins to collect the pieces of shattered glass on the floor.

Karl forces himself to drain his hardly-touched coke. Maybe that'll cool him off or something.

Miguel silently gets out of his chair, slides it in, and wordlessly begins to pick up glass with Dakota. When he manages to meet her eyes with his, he says softly, "Let me see your hand, please, Dakota-Rhya."

Emma is still clenching her jaw, waving a hand and nodding to Alicia as she steps out the back door. She doesn't cast a look at Karl or Dakota as she leaves, and Miguel is all but forgotten.

Alicia watches her go sadly and calls after. "May Luna light your path home, and snag some pie before you go." Always the mother hen. She looks over towards the other Children of Gaia, taking a deep breath.

The eyes Miguel meets are brimming with Rage, and Dakota forces herself to suck in a very deep breath to keep it back so as not to snap at the cub. "I'm fine." She grinds out slowly through her teeth, taking what glass she has collected in her towel and rising, tossing it into the trash.

Miguel makes another mental note, don't try to talk to Dakota when she's angry. Rage is serious stuff.

Karl lets out a loud burp. At least, he would if he was impolite and didn't keep his mouth closed. He forces the excess gas out through his lips after his throat has gargled. There's no humour in his expression though, it is marked with deep creases and he forces himself to finish off the food on his plate.

OOC Note: <This was a bit later. A lot of the other players were leaving at this point...>

Miguel is trying to be really careful not to erupt tempers again. He really quietly asks Karl, "Karl-Rhya, what is a... Charach?" After asking, he moves aways slightly bracing himself for a possible bad reaction.

Emma has left.

Karl looks about to grumble, but he calms himself down and replies, without looking up and while stabbing at his cold ham with a fork, "Someone who breaks the first tenet of the Litany. That was Eve. Who used to be Renee. Who I was talking to Rusty about last night."

Miguel solemnly nods. His eyes look sad. He definitely doesn't have any more questions for tonight.

Dakota stands with her back to the others, by the trash. She opens up her hand, which releases the pressure and actually allows it to bleed normally. Scowling, she yanks a piece of glass out of the wound and jams a wad of paper towel against it, clenching her fist back up again. "M'ganna go home." She announces, then adds. "...walk there, get some air."