Tapestries: Pablo - Saturday, August 19, 2006, 10:46 AM

Tony wobbles as his balance changes again, heels hitting the forest floor. "Whoa. Wow. That's... holy fuck," he huffs, being somewhat more explitive than usual. "I mean, that was crazy. It makes no sense." He palms at his forearms and chest, his nakedness forgotten in the wonder of the moment. "I can't believe I was just that big." He twists around, looking up where he stood a moment before, then glances at the top of your head. He's almost the same height you are, and that was just at his lower chest. "Christ. It makes no sense. How does it all fit in here? Where did he come from? That's nuts."

Tony is more concerned about those sorts of things, obviously. "Magic," he repeats, grinning. "Magic. That's... yeah. Okay. I definitely want to talk to someone about it. I'd win first prize at the science fair for sure, with an exhibit like that." His bemusement fades enough so that his modesty kicks in. He bends down to grab his pants, holding them around his waist. "You said lupus, before. That's... an actual wolf?"

Gabby nods, "Yes. There are five forms all together. Homid, the human form; glabro, the near-man; crinos, the war form; hispo, the near wolf and lupus, the wolf. Hispo is like a giant dire wolf. A lot of lupus-born like to fight in that form, rather than the two-legged form. Glabro is, well, kinda neanderthal-looking. Big, muscular, hairy. More like you see werewolves in movies, you know, strong guys with fur on the face."

Tony ties off his pants, thinking about the possibilities. "Five forms. Okay. Well, let's try lupus next?" He smiles at you, still obviously riding on the adrenaline from the first switch he made. It felt... well, that's the odd thing. He hardly felt anything at all when he changed into the crinos. There must have been one, though, because his boxers are a ruined mess on the ground beside him. "How fast do you change? Can you show me yours again?"

Gabby thinks about this for a moment, "Really, it's only a few seconds to do, depending on how far you are going... like from homid to lupus takes the longest. But you can turn back to your breed form in just a blink of an eye. Usually it's not a problem, except in combat when, if you're not careful, you can get hit while changing. Some Garou are better than others at it, usually lupus and ahrouns tend to be quicker. [OOC: Because it's a roll of Stamina + Primal-Urge]." At your other question, she nods, and pulls her shirt off again, grinning, "We'll get someone to dedicate something for you, so you won't break them during changes, and maybe you'll learn that Rite yourself eventually. I've got these pants dedicated, but not that shirt. You can usually only have a couple things dedicated at a time, otherwise the Rite won't work. [OOC: You can have as many items dedicated as you have Gnosis. I usually consider one 'outfit' as one thing. Some Storytellers aren't as generous. :D]." Then in the blur of moments, she shifts form again. Watching closely, you can see her go up through the war form before melting back down to the shape of a reddish, southwestern wolf.

Tony's eyes try to follow the change as closely as possible, tracking the progress as swiftly as it happens. Fascinating, he thinks to himself, smiling broadly. There's got to be some mechanism, some link to more matter, or something. It will be a phenomenon he strives to learn. He kneels down when his cousin's change is complete, giving her a grin. "That is wild. Let me try, then." Taking a deep breath, the young man sits back on his heels and summons the images in his mind that triggered the first change. This time, focusing on pure wolf. Wolf. A mental nudge in the right direction, and suddenly the world seems to shrink around him, then rebound and grow back out as he swiftly goes through the five forms, stopping at the other end of the spectrum.

Path-Knower steps towards you, nudging against you in what you think must be approval. Unlike the Garou tongue, understanding the 'speech' of wolves is also a skill you'll have to learn, though much of it seems to be instinctive.

Tony steps out of the loop his pants had around his waist. He shakes his head a few times, front paws wobbling as he walks. This feels so strange. Looking up sharply when he is nudged, the wolf tilts his muzzle towards you, unsure of himself. The world looks totally different down here, the perspective is off and colours are strange.

Path-Knower again nudges you, in an encouraging way, like a mother to her newborn cub. She tilts her head, as if to say to follow, and she walks away from you, slowly, so you can get a grasp on which foot to put in front of the other. Walking on four legs is odd, but not unpleasurable, though it's not the same as crawling at all.

The younger wolf paws at the ground a few times, splaying his big toes out into the soil, then taking one step at a time behind you. It's a strange thing to walk like this, but it's not too hard. Front left and back right down when the other two lift. He walks stiltedly at first, almost like a chameleon on a branch, but it doesn't take too long before the motion starts growing smoother. The smells down here, too, are really wild. He can't help but put his nose to the forest floor and snuffle around, positive that he can smell different people and creatures that have passed.

Path-Knower seems proud of you as she brings you down the trail. You do smell many ... one or two whose scents your recognize, but many many more who you do not. It's incredible the amount of detail you can detect ... how healthy someone is ... how long ago they passed ... and that sort of thing. It does give you the urge to stick your nose closer to Gabby to check her out.

Tony pads along, finding it easier to walk if he doesn't actually pay attention to the mechanics of it. He sniffs into the air several times, then moves himself closer to you to snuffle awkwardly at your shoulder. Mmm, that is a good smell, he thinks. Healthy and female. Gabrielle, the scent screams. No one else will smell like that. Good. Suddenly your cousin stops, head canted in one direction, upwind. A small hare is shuffling around, he can see it. 

Path-Knower stops when you do, and her gaze follows yours. She shakes her head in a rather human manner, and nudges your shoulder to follow her. No hunting here, is what you think she is saying.

The wolf isn't sure what he was thinking, just that the rabbit's presence came to him by smell and by sight, and it had a distinctly different kind of feel. Could he run down that bunny? Probably. That would be fun. Not to eat it, he's not hungry, but he could run and run... Snapping out of his thoughts at the nudge, he gives a little chuffing noise and continues to follow, looking disappointed.

Path-Knower seems to catch a little bit of your thoughts... they do tend to radiate in a wolf's posture. She lolls her tongue in bemusement and starts to pick up speed, loping off through the woods in a trot, at first, then faster yet, into a full run.

Tony gives a curious look at you, trotting to keep up. He at first thinks you're running from him, but then realizes you want him to run as well. Muzzle parting in a wolfy grin, he runs after you, paws thumping quietly against the ground. Faster and faster, into a full sprint, he feels like some kind of speed demon. The world rushing by so fast, and yet he feels so in control of where each foot lands, twisting around each tree or obstacle. Just like on two legs, he didn't think he could maneouver so easily on four! Or go so fast!

Path-Knower seems to live up to her name, as she darts and weaves around trees, jumps over fallen logs, runs through an open field or two, before returning to the thicker woods. Soon thereafter, there's another clearing, and a small, one-story house emerges from the woods. Here, she pauses, having enjoyed the run, and sits back on her haunches.

Tony comes out of the woods with a rustle, and seeing you already stopped, comes to an awkward halt that has him tumbling onto his side, legs flailing. He rights himself quickly with a sound of frustration and embarrassment and tries to regain his posture. Standing near you, tongue lolling as he pants, it looks like the cub's first run was something he enjoyed emensely.

In a blur of motion, Gabby is back in her homid form, on her knees, laughing at you. "Nice finish there, cub. But I'm glad you've enjoyed yourself." She brushes a strand of hair out of her eyes and glances back at the house behind her. "This place is where the Questing Pack lives. The sept's current Questing Pack is Stag's Burning Hooves -- my pack. So this is where you'll find my packmates hanging out or sleeping when not busy elsewhere. Having a roof over one's head is one of those nice perks. It used to be that everyone had a place, but since the Get came, there's not always been enough room."

Tony takes a moment to realize you probably want him back in homid as well. He finds going back to 'normal' is far easier than going the other way, and in a few seconds, the human boy is pushing up to his feet from the ground. "Question pack?" he asks, brushing his knees off. "What does that imply?"

Gabby smiles, "Questing, not Question. What it means is that we're the ones out on the front lines, bascially. It's our job to seek out the Wyrm in the area... and I mean like, the whole area our sept protects, which is pretty huge, and to either deal with it, or call in the big guns." A bit wryly, she notes, "We're at about that right level of being both experienced, yet expendable. But that's where all the fun is!" She laughs, then reaches out and taps under your chin. "Look at my face, not my chest. I know you're a teenage boy, but you have to be very careful about that. It will get you in big trouble, understand?"

Tony gives an understanding nod. "The front line wolves. Right. Gotcha." He blinks again, eyes darting upwards, and a warm blush crossing his cheeks. "Sorry. It's hard to ignore, is all." He then gives a long suffering sigh. "I always thought the myth that all your female cousins will be hot was untrue. Anyways, who are the Get?"

Maybe, just maybe, there's a hint of a blush in Gabby's cheeks at that, but she quickly pushes it away. "Yeah, though, you gotta think of everyone here as 'brother' or 'sister' or 'mom' or 'dad' or something, and that makes it easier. At least for me." She scratches her cheek. "And, you know, once you've passed your Rite of Passage, you'll be an adult here, and you can go socialize with the humans, if you want. As long as you keep the Litany, you know, and keep yourself safe, you can do what you want." She smiles, changing the subject. "The Get of Fenris are a tribe. Mostly, like, German or Viking types. There are about ten here, they moved from the sept in Milwaukee about, um, six years ago, because they were kicked out there, but Night-Spirit said they could be here.

Tony looks surprised by that. "Get of Fenris? Fenris, like... Fenrisulfr? The big wolf that Loki and Angrybull... er... Angerboda, or something, they had. Norse werewolves. Awesome. I wonder if there were werewolf battalions during World War one or two? Nazi werewolves? Oh man." He goes off on a spin of the possibilities briefly, then gathers himself with a laugh. "Ten? Didn't you say there were about thirty werewolves here? That's a pretty big chunk for one tribe, isn't it?"

Gabby shakes her head at your pondering of the implications of this. To her, most European Garou are inherently un-awesome, until they prove themselves. But she doesn't voice that concern yet. Her only response is, "You'd have to ask a Galliard, they might know. Or maybe even of the Get themselves, though they don't tend to think a whole lot of us." She shrugs, "And, yeah, they are a good portion of the sept. The Warder and his Guardians are Get, and there's another pack of just Get, called Blackbones. But, well ... " She looks around, then back to you. "They are fucking idiots. Like the worst metalhead loser you knew in school, but with actual strength and power."

Seeming truly surprised by your words, he looks around the area himself as if for others who might be listening. He wasn't expecting to hear any badmouthing between Garou given how family-like they seemed to be so far. "Right, well. I never really got to know many people in school, so I'm gonna postpone judgement until I meet 'em," he says for himself. "So what other things should I be taught?" he asks.

Gabby's mood brightens again at your question, "Well, let's go back and get our clothes, hmm, and if you have any specific questions I can answer you think of, and then we can grab some food, and maybe nap, so we're ready to go into the Umbra tonight?" She pauses, then, says, "Oh, in case you were wondering, the reason that there's no hunting is because we have to leave the prey here for the lupus; there's not enough to sustain us all."

Tony nods at you, smiling again. "Sounds good to me. Should we run on all fours again? That was pretty cool." He doesn't wait for you to answer, though, as he's already dropping to his hands and knees as he puts himself back into lupus. Seems he's picking up the shifting of forms rather easily. He trots around you in a circle, looking up at you with his muzzle open.

Gabby doesn't wait until you are finished speaking to shift as well, her tongue lolling a little bit. She nudges you affectionately, then turns and starts off down the trail, in a long, ground-eating trot. It's not long until you're back at the spot where you dropped your clothes, and they're still there, and you realize this trail leads directly from the Cub House to the Questing Pack's House, which might be something you need to know.

He does make note of it, already a map of the area forming in his head. He's pretty good at directions and spatial orientation. Nosing his clothes a few times as a wolf, he finds the smell of them interesting. Fabric, and human, and the smell of the cabin on them. After a quick shift back to human, he tugs his pants on and then his shirt, still breathing deeply from the run. "So, if there are Lupus garou out there," he converses when you're on two legs again, "That means that some werewolves have sex with... and as, wolves?"

Pulling her own shirt back on over her chest, Gabby laughs, and nods. "Yes. Though I suppose it was a lot more common in the old days, when there were more wolves. There aren't any wild wolves around here, so," she shrugs, "I've heard that almost all wolves left in the world are Kinfolk, and the Garou who live near them tend to be very protective of them. I'm sure you can understand why."

Tony nods. "To keep the species alive, I imagine, since we can't mate with other Garou." He runs his hands through his hair, looking rather happy right now. This place is just great. "I want to... I don't know. Play baseball, or sing or something. This place makes me feel like I'm on a first date and it's going so well, you know?"

Gabby spontaneously hugs you when you say that. "That's great. I'm so glad. The caern should feel special, you know, like home. This is Gaia's sacred place, and you're one of her chosen ones. This," she indicates the area around her, spreading her arm out, "This is why we fight. To save this. To protect this."

Laughing, he returns the hug, patting your shoulder and smiling broadly. "I can understand it. I want to understand it even more. It's interesting, but I do feel like I've found something special. Or, at least, kidnapped and taken somewhere special," he amends, pushing your arm playfully. "Speaking of which. I really should contact my dad. He's gonna have the police and stuff looking for me, by now."

Gabby nods, "All right. Let's go talk to Whisper about that, over lunch?" It's not /really/ a question, as she's already jogging back towards the Cub House.

Following behind obediently, Anthony rubs his hands together, eyeing his fingers. Strange, strange. How could they get so big? Or be paws, like that? He'll figure it out later. Once inside the house, he looks for a place to sit down and relax comfortably. Probably in the living room area, on the couch.

After a quick, but filling meal of sandwiches, Gabby leaves you in the living room for a few minutes while she heads upstairs to fetch Whisper. A few minutes later, the two of them emerge at the top of the stairs and make their way down. In her typical soft voice, Whisper says to you, as she reaches the ground floor: "I understand you want to get a hold of your father?"

Tony is reclining on the couch when the two arrive. He gets to his feet quickly, however, and nods to Whisper. "Yes, please. He's got to be worried sick about me, and... I can't just let him think I'm dead or in trouble or something."

Whisper rubs her ear in thought, and nods. "Is your father the type who would have contacted the police? Because we must be careful, then. We do not wish to break the Veil, you understand, or draw the attention of the human authorities on this place. It would put ... undue ... pressure on our Kin.

Tony takes a moment to think about that. Would his father call the police? Or get some of his war buddies to look around, first? Probably both. "It's possible he called the police. But I can call him, and just let him know I'm alright?"

Whisper rests a hand on your shoulder, and in a very motherly, affectionate way says, "I understand. But we have to worry about our security, too. What if there were police listening to your call, and they traced it to wherever you called from. They would come, regardless of what you said." She pauses, taking a breath, "But I have an alternative idea, hmm? This evening, one of our septmates, named Cursor, will return, and I believe he carries the sort of phone that can be used and then thrown away. And we will let you use that?"

Tony looks at first rather upset at the idea of being unable to contact his father. The dejected expression on his face fades, however. "A disposable?  Well, yeah, that'd work just as well," he agrees. "If one of you had a computer, I could hook the phone line into it, too, and make an untraceable call. But whatever works."

Both Whisper and Gabby get a bemused look on their faces. "No. There are no computers here. No phones, either," murmurs Whisper, with Gabby adding, "It's lucky we have electricity. A lot of Garou are suspicious of that." And Whisper responds, shaking her head, "But Gaia's way is not making our cubs... or our warriors... uncomfortable." She gives a little snort.

"No computers or phones?" he asks. "Why not?" He hopes these people aren't technophobes, some kind of werewolf Amish.

There's a short visual exchange between the two women, and, a moment later you realize that there's the understanding that Gabby is okay with Whisper teaching about this. Both of them sit down, and Whisper begins: "You have heard us talk of the Wyrm, yes? The Wyrm is an ancient power, not a god, per se, but more. It represents destruction and entropy. But there are two other powers, too: The Weaver, which builds and creates and makes static, and the Wyld, which is change, and chaos. A long time ago, those powers were in balance, and everything was as it should be."

Tony wasn't expecting the reason to start back at the beginning, but he's glad it is. Slowly taking a seat on the opposite armchair from the couch, he shuffles forward to listen close, arms folded across his lap. "Alright," he says quietly, following so far.

Whisper leans forward, used to being close so she is easier to hear. "We call these three great powers the Triat. But, a very long time ago, something went wrong. Some say the Wyrm became mad and turned to corruption and evil, instead of balancing. Some say it was the Weaver who went mad and spun too much, and dragged the Wyrm with her. Regardless, it resulted in the Severing; the seperation of the spirit with the material worlds. Humans, now seperated from their spirits, turned to the Weaver for protection. And it is under her web that the world is being trapped, being calcified, even as the Wyrm writhes and lashes and corrupts and destroys... and there is so little room left for the Wyld. The balance is long gone." She takes a breath, "Technology... it is of the Weaver. Using her tools ... may lead us down the wrong path, because we are creatures of the Wyld, creatures of change, creatures of two worlds." She purses her lips, unsure if she is being clear.

Leaning back in his chair, the boy has the expression of someone who is being told something he doesn't particularly care for. His young eyes are distant, perhaps trying to recreate these events in his head. But it all is so conceptual, so metaphysical, an idea of a happening rather than an actual account. "There are no claims the Wyld went mad, and changed too much too fast?" he eventually asks.

Whisper almost laughs a little, but tries not to mock. "When you visit the Umbra, you will see, but, no. The wilderness is disappearing, it has been for millenia, Anthony. I'm not going to tell you that all technology is bad, we do have some, we do use some. But its overuse, its abuse... is a problem."

Tony says, "I want to see the Wyrm. I want to make up my own mind. History is something I love, but I know it's something that melts so easily over time until the original events are lost."

Gabby interrupts. "We will. We will tonight. Once the moon has risen, we will go to the spirit world and you will see." She nods, firmly.