Tapestries: Pablo - Monday, August 28, 2006, 3:43 PM

It's ten O'clock at night. A beautiful night it is, too, with hardly a breeze to disturb the trees. In the cub house, Tony is already suiting up for the coming field trip. Gabrielle and her pack are going hunting 'Leeches', whatever they are, and he's been given permission to come along with the other cubs, provided they only watch. He knows Bits will come, and he's pretty sure Yiska will as well. But there's that new kid, Shay, whom he's only had brief introductions with. Seems like an okay guy, if a little... spaced out. He heads downstairs to find Shay. "Yo, Shay," he calls ahead of himself. "Where are you?"

You whisper, "Little-Smiles, meanwhile, has gone out back to check out Yiska's den, to see how the Galliard is feeling, and to see if he wants to come on the little field trip, too. She approaches the den, carefully, calling out: Yiska, are you here?" to Tryst.

Shay is sitting in the downstairs window, watching the night sky. He has a little radio by his side, listening. It was actually a great find - stuffed in the basement, and took some poking to get it to find anything, but he's rather pleased with it. Given his new clothes and a warm place that's in one spot, he's rather content at the moment. Even if he's rather far from the people he knows. The stuff he does. Is it possible to be homesick of a place that was never what people think of as a "home"? Certainly more comfortable. "Huh?" Pushing a bit of shaggy bang out of his face, Shay looks up to see Tony come down the stairs. 

Tony approaches the other boy, looking curiously at the radio. Good thing no one else is around. They give him annoyed looks when he so much as wears his headphones. 'Weaver' stuff, they call it. Whatever. He's glad to see some technology again. "Hey. My cousin Gabrielle and her pack, they're going into the Umbra tonight to do some hunting. We're invited to go. See how the pros do things. You want to come?"

A little rueful smile finds Shay. "Will there be spiders?"

Tony smirks. "Probably. I don't know if they're actual spiders, though, so much as the idea of a spider."

A nod, though Shay peers over at Tony a second. "Did Cursor tell you about that?" The question is more conversational. It's merely that he'd like to recant the anecdote, rather than the big dog. 

Tony tilts his head. "About what? The spiders? No. I saw them myself. Really weird. They look like spiders, but... I dunno. Too ideal. And they spit web with their mouth rather than their ass, so obviously they aren't keeping up with tradition." He glances at the door impatiently, bobbing on his feet. "So, you coming, or what?"

Turning off the radio, stuffing it behind a pillow on the couch (Since he has taken a notice to Kelly not having any technology in her house), Shay bobs his head. "Sure thing. Though... have you done the rite to keep your clothes when you cross over?"

Tony looks amused, nodding his head. "Yeah, I got it done for me. Pair of pants," he says, patting his thigh to indicate the denims. "Seemed kinda pointless having a shirt, unless it was a really thick one for cold times. What about you?"

Bits shows up at the back door, poking her little head in. "Yiska says that he'll come." She whispers, as if he wouldn't be able to hear from out back. "He's feeling a little unwelcome, though, we should be extra nice to him!"

Shay shakes his head, smiling a little awkwardly. "No. Kelly was planning on doing it in a day or two. Guess she didn't expect this trip." He peeks over at Bits, and gives a wave.

Tony waves a dismissive hand at Shay. "Don't worry about it. I'm pretty sure everyone here has blocked out the idea of genitals anyway." He grins at Bits, nodding. "Good! But why unwelcome? God, I hope those two pinheads didn't leave a bad impression on him," he says, heading outside to find the fourth cub.

Bits waits, back in her human form, in the backyard. She shifts from foot to foot, waiting for everyone to emerge. "We better get going, or we're going to miss them. Were we supposed to meet them at their place, Tony?"

Shay hurries after Tony, staying close behind Bits. He hasn't actually met Yiska yet. The two just havn't run across one another.

Tony nods again at Bits. "We'll go soon as we get Yiska," he agrees, leading all three towards his den. "Heeeey Yiska," he calls out, looking around alertly.

Yiska can be seen maybe 10 feet away from Little-Smiles, stalking in a slow circle, looking pretty downtrodden and preoccupied. He really has every reason to be, though. Having been nearly beaten to an inch of his life by members of his own new caern.. 

The wolf is large for .. well, a wolf. Not as large as Tony, though, but plenty bigger than Little-Smiles. But really, it's those eyes of his that really catch ones attention. Something in them just makes you want to smile and welcome him as a brother. Or in this case, comfort him and offer a hug.

Yiska looks up at Tony Meyer's call and winds himself in the direction of the three humans - though he stops a few feet away to sniff at the air and murmur in wolf-speak - Another cub? Yiska glances at Shay, then announces himself - I am The-Night-Has-Passed, Wendigo Galliard, cub of the Great North Woods. The cub emphasizes the Great North sept, as if he were actively trying to distance himself from the current sept.

Shay smells like girly soaps that Kelly has, and despite her using some that are non-offensive to canine noses, the Amount that he uses is probably an issue. Yet beneath that, there's the smell of the city, the streets, humans and dirt and the pulse of life, and odder, organic things. The kid pauses. He's not sure what to do here - is he supposed to call Yiska Yiska, or The-Night-Has-Passed? He shuffles his shoes a second, then says, "Hi. Shay, Theurge cub of the Children of Gaia." Since, well, he isn't certain whose sept or pack or whatnot he is a part of just yet. 

Bits, a.k.a. Little-Smiles is still hopping from foot to foot. She looks back and forth between them all, grinning that big grin she has. She moves towards the east, slowly, anxious as heck to get going, it seems.

Tony looks pleased as Shay and Yiska share introductions. Noting Bits impatience, he gives her a grin and pats her shoulder. "Hold on, now. There's something... very... very important," he says with grave seriousness. Bringing her over to the other two, he makes sure everyone is close enough for his tastes. The boy pulls himself into a proud posture and points to the northeast. "Werewolves; transform and roll out."

A sudden burst of laughter comes from Shay. He watched a few cartoons when he was a kid, and... A look over at Bits, as he wiggles fingers. "Hi there. You're...?"

Yiska pads forward after Shay's introduction, moving more to follow Little-Smiles.. he seems to be giving Shay a rather wide berth, probably the smell. And he just stares blankly at Tony Meyer's joke, not understanding it in even the remotest of sense.

And with that, he turns to face Little-Smiles and pads off after her, tail low, but still swishing over the grass.. at least he's a little excited about what's been promised.

Bits looks at Tony as if he'd lost his mind. Then she, um, ohs, at Shay. "I'm Bits, Little-Smiles, Ragabash cub of the Wendigo. Sorry!" She slips into lupus form then, changing into a tiny, scrawny little buff-colored wolf, her bracelet still on her ankle, and she's heading out in the direction Tony indicated, her tail tucked but pleased.

Noting the fact that Yiska gives him room, he steps aside. Sharing a smile with Bits, he strips first - then changes into a nearly blonde-brown wolf, tail at back level. With that, he follows after the other two.

Tony looks sad that only one person got his joke. Well, he can't expect Yiska too, but still. He drops down into wolf form as well; a big black and rusty-red slashed wolf with a splotch of red between his eyes. He trots off with the other three through the forest, eating up the distance with all four paws slapping the earth. He isn't as noisey as he used to be, but he's still far louder than Yiska, and Bits continues to show him up with her stealthy strides. He doesn't mind, though.

The distance is not great; in a few minutes the house of the questing pack comes into view, a few lights already on. Once he is near enough, Tony smoothly slides back onto two feet.

Shay is the green horn. He's none too quiet, and once he sees Tony take two legs, the wolf shakes his head, looking around suddenly. 

Yiska makes an almost bland passing comment as both humans drop to all fours.. You shouldn't show your teeth so much - the cub just seems so weirded out by humans, almost to the point of seemingly ignoring them when he can. It might just be how he was raised or it might be a distrust that has been slowly building, accentuated by the recent 'problems'.

The wolf cub lopes ahead, joining Little-Smiles, walking just inches ahead of her - making as if to be leading her along, though he seems to be keeping one ear on her, keeping abreast on her movements. He is very quiet.. but not a ghost like Little-Smiles appears to be. As the group approaches yet another human, Yiska slows his pace, now only keeping to Little-Smiles' side..

Standing in the clearing in front of the house, by herself, with her arms crossed, is Gabby. She's a Hispanic woman with long, black hair in her early 20s. She wears a t-shirt proclaiming her love for Captain Jack Sparrow on it, and a pair of tight boot-cut jeans. She grins at Tony, "Thought you weren't..." then she counts four cubs. "Oh, dear. I thought it was just going to be the two of you." She chuckles. "Well, the more the merrier, I guess, c'mon," she waves and starts walking east, towards the edge of the bawn.

Tony gives a small laugh, looking both sheepish and amused at Gabby. "Well, I figured this would be a learning lesson we'll all be wanting," he says, looking back at the other three, all still wolves. For a moment he is weirded out - was he just a wolf, too, running through the woods with them? Man, he was, too. He just had a Werewolf moment. "Righty-O," he says, following his cousin as she now leads.

Shay's tail wags as he looks from Gabbie to the others, then follows close to Tony. It seems to be the best course of action, to avoid getting close to Bits, which means close to Yiska. 

Bits seems happy to be in the middle for now. She's not needed for scouting or anything, so she just stays in between the three other Garou.

Yiska keeps abreast of Little-Smiles, almost protectivly.. or even possessively .. crazy machismo wolves.

Gabby leads the group of cubs off the bawn (where that warm, happy feeling of home disappears), and over the barbed-wire boundary fence, to a small gravel parking lot that both Tony and Shay have seen before. Leaning against a blue panel van is a short, stocky woman in overalls, a torn t-shirt and a mess of blond hair. She looks over the approaching group and tosses a cigarette onto the ground, stomping it out. "Shit, Gabby, bring the whole kindergarten? I hope you don't expect us to watch them all." She speaks with a deep voice, and is obviously a lifelong smoker. She shakes her head and opens the door, getting in the driver's seat. "Wolves in the back with Stands," she growls out. "Kids in the last row of the van. Let's get this party started."

Tony smiles at the hoarse sounding woman. "Hi again, Sam," he greets amiably. More amiably than the first time they met, anyway, when he was kidnapped. He nods at her directions, hopping into the van and shuffling himself to the very back. "Alright, I think all of these guys have been car-trained," he voices as the other cubs start four-pawing up into the van with him, giving them all impish grins.

Yiska really doesn't seem to be taking this very well. All these humans! He steels himself and climbs, as instructed, into the back of the weaver-beast. He's also looking for the one named Stands.. if he hasn't caught scent of them already.

Little-Smiles slides up into homid form and joins Tony in the back seat. Behind the back seat is a small area where Yiska crawls. Sitting there is a large, reddish-furred wolf bitch. She looks at the Wendigo when he climbs in with an appraising eye, and an ear flick. Her posture is dominant, but she does allow the cub to get in the back with her. Gabby sits in the second row, next to a buff, muscular black girl in corn rows. In the front is Sam, the cigarette-smoking driver tonight, and a Jewish guy with an easy grin and black, curly hair. Tony might notice that there is one missing from Gabby's pack -- the red head, Caitlin. Sam grates the gears as she tosses the van in reverse and peels out of the parking lot, gravel being tossed everywhere as the van's wheels spin and she heads towards the paved road.

There's a soft growl from the wolf bitch. Now we are going. Introduce yourself, cubs.

Tony hasn't seen Stands-Firm-Against-The-Wyrm since his first night here. He can tell now that she is alpha of her pack. It's so obvious that he wonders how he missed it the first time. "Tony Meyer, Philodox cub of Uktena," he offers, bowing his head to the large wolf.

Shay wobbles on his four paws a moment in the back of the van, before he settles down, sitting on his haunches while standing up on his forepaws. Sniffing at the air, ears perked forwards, he just takes all the sensory input in. So interesting. Eyes then turn to Tony, noting his head posture. Kelly hadn't went over general etiquette just yet, but he's a good chameleon when he has to be. ~Shay, theurge cub of the Children of Gaia.~ Down dips his muzzle towards the red wolf in a similar gesture to Tony's, ears flatting. 

Yiska stumbles some as the van starts to move, a little startled by the weaver-beast AND the very very large wolf bitch he's sharing his seat with. He slumps down onto his stomach and folds his ears back, tail tucked as he whines submissivly to the larger wolf - Yiska, Wendigo Galliard, cub of the Great North.

Bits looks around at the other Garou, a bit overwhelmed as well. "Bits Little-Smiles, Ragabash cub of the Wendigo." These introductions seems to satisfy the pack. The lupus in back speaks first, pleased at Yiska's show of submission, in the wolf tongue. I am Stands-Firm-Against-The-Wyrm, fostern ahroun of the Fianna, and alpha of this pack: Stag's Burning Hooves. Tony's cousin is next to introduce herself: "Gabby Knows-The-Lune's-Path, cliath theurge of the Uktena." The black woman speaks next: "Athena Shares-Her-Strength, cliath ahroun of the Black Furies." The man in the passenger seat is: "Alex Truce-Bringer, fostern Philodox of the Children of Gaia." And, finally, the poor driver, "Sam, Severe-Tire-Damage, fostern Ragabash of the Bone Gnawers, and finest driver at the sept!" This brings a series of groans from the homids in the pack, and Gabby mutters, "I so wish Caitlin was here."

Tony is glad to get this second round of introductions from the crew of Gabby's pack. The first time, all this shit was just gibberish. Now it makes sense. To Alex, he says, "I found Hagrid," with a little grin. "Where is Caitlin?" he asks Gabby now, looking at her as the van bounces along.

Smiling in more of a canine fashion, ears flicking and following all the intros. Shay has a grasp of all this, and all these folk - though he doesn't quite follow all the rankings, just yet. 

Bits has settled into silence, chosing to watch, listen and observe for now. She also peers out the window occasionally.

Yiska simply stays where he is, head lowered to the bumpy floor of the van, keeping his eyes focused on the ground in front of Stands. Otherwise, he seems a little more .. relieved .. to be in the company of another lupus.

Alex grins at Tony, giving him a thumbs-up, then there is a bit of choked back nervous laughter at Tony's question, and Gabby answers, "Um, she had to work tonight, and couldn't get anyone to cover for her, so, you know, we’re a wolf short. But we'll be fine, I'm sure." She sits up straighter and says, "I guess I should give you cubs the low-down since I invited you here. We're heading up towards the suburbs. We'd heard," there's a grunt from the driver's seat, "Okay, /Sam/'s contacts had heard that there was some weird shit going down at this underground rave thing going on in the 'burbs. We've tracked it down to a group of leeches, which is weird because they don't usually work in groups, and they usually stay well into the city, not out in the 'burbs. So, we kinda figure they're young and stupid. Last night, we cleared out some hanger-on banes from the Umbra around their place, and tonight we're going in to clear the place out. You cubs need to stay a fair distance away, okay? Because we will be in s
You cubs need to stay a fair distance away, okay? Because we will be in such deep shit if any of you gets hurt. Especially you Wendigo. The last thing I need is Night-Spirit whipping my ass." She gives a look at Yiska and Bits, which only makes Bits giggle a little.

Tony doesn't understand the humour in having to work, but does seem relieved that the answer wasn't 'We lost her on the last raid' or some shit. "How far is a fair distance, exactly? And what is a leech?" he asks. The idea of watching an actual pack of werewolves lay the smack down is getting him excited, and it shows in his posture.

Shay gives Tony a look that says plainly, even on his canine face, 'What the hell was all that?'. Though, he glances back towards Gabby, his ears perked, tail lowering. It's possible he knows some people there. And the thought of... whatever this stuff is, doing whatever they're doing to those people... it raises the fur on the back of his neck. 

Bits grins a bit, like she knows, but she still doesn't say anything. How not to be seen, lesson one: Don't say anything.

Yiska flats his ears and groans low, his head turning away from the homids. It wasn't his fault, he was simply trying to fend off what he considered an attack.. the twins should have been killed outright, not given a weak slap on the wrist for what they had done.

The cub huffs softly and curls up in his corner of the weaver-beast, not making another sound for a good long while.

Athena turns around to answer Tony's first question. Being tactical, it seems best answered by an ahroun. "There's a stand of trees about 75 feet behind the building. Stay back there. And stay quiet. Be wolves, not clumsy humans, understand?" Gabby seems surprised at that second question, as if she was sure she'd already covered that. "Oh! Leeches are vampires. Though leeches are more what they are, really. They don't deserve the haughty sexy rep they have among some humans." There's a soft whuff in the back seat as Stands gives a nudge towards Yiska. She did not mean it as an attack, cub. Her human words were only meant to show her concern for your safety.

Tony wants to retort the claim of being a clumsy human; one thing he knows he is not is clumsy. But, no arguing with elders. He nods in agreement with Athena. "Yes, understood," he murmurs, then gives Gabby a surprised and fearful look. "VAMPIRES? But... shouldn't we have more people, then?" he asks with nervousness, a pack of five Garou feeling inadequate.

Ears flick back. Shay sits up some. Vampires? Can those really be attacked in the Umbra? He shakes his head and wrfs, laying down on his belly. He doesn't like this. Though he doesn't like the fact that they're there, praying on the humans... Well, that is what they do, after all. 

Bits gets a little nervous herself, when Tony and Shay do. She looks around for reassurance from the elders.

Yiska lifts his head and turns back to Stands, nodding a little, but staying in his corner for the rest of the ride.. he's not feeling so good about this whole thing anymore. The conversation going on behind him about vampires and cities and clubs.. it's all just too confusing for him to figure out now. So he just lets it go.. he'll watch and learn.. and try not to die. 

Athena and Sam laugh a little at Tony's concern, "Nah, leeches are pretty fragile, especially when they are the young ones. We'll be fine, don't you worry." Stands gives an odd look towards Shay, cocking her head slightly. This is not to be a fight in Umbra. Whomever told you that is mistaken. The ride isn't much further, and the scenery outside changes from rural to suburban. Finally, the van slows down a street, the lights turning off. Sam parks it, this time amazing without any jerking movements or grinding of gears. The doors roll open and the Garou tumble out of it. Athena comes around towards the back and opens the back of the van. Almost under her breath, she points to a tiny little set of bushes and small trees that are, indeed, a short distance away from the warehouse. "There." It's the only word she, or the rest of her pack says. They gather up, look at each other, give some nods and hand signals, then everyone, except Sam, looks at their reflections in the mirror of the van and disappear, stepping sideways into the Umbra. Once they are gone, Sam quietly hums the A-Team theme, and pulls a couple of liquor bottles out of her pockets, and starts making her way, alone, towards the warehouse. Her form blurs about halfway there, and she becomes hard to see.

Tony is surprised by Stands' words. Not in the Umbra? He thought they almost always fought there. Well, you live and learn. Staying silent as the van stops, he follows Athena's directions, leading the other cubs to the copse of trees and shifting down to lupus. Once there, and the others hidden with him hopefully, he watches the events unfold silently.

In lupus form, from this distance, you can all hear the pulsing bass beat of dance/goth music coming from inside the rarely-used warehouse. The blurry figure that is Sam approaches the door. The light of fire appears near her form, and suddenly what was a small fire is two large flames, one in each hand. Perhaps the bottles she was carrying. Suddenly, she slips up into the war form, appears solid once more, and bashes open the door, howling out some words in the Garou tongue: ~Any men don't wanna get killed better clear on out the back.~ The air is filled with screams and cries of terror, along with some shouted words that you don't understand from this distance. Then there is the sound of smashing glass, and the acrid smell of burning alcohol fills the air along with the tongue licks of fire.

Before the fire even starts, dozens of black-clothed humans pour out of the building, running in every which direction, most of them with expressions of pure, unadulterated terror on their faces. A few seconds later, however, there are stragglers, maybe five or six of them. One, a slim, pale woman, is shouting: "To me, to me, it's just a single Lupine!" This seems to work on a couple of them, which move over towards her, but the remainder start to scatter. Which seems to be the wrong thing to have done, because as they do, the rest of Stag's Burning Hooves appear from the Umbra. They've been watching the goings-on, apparently, because each of Alex, Gabby and Athena are matched one-on-one with the stragglers. Stands-Firm, on the other hand, is going after the grouped leeches, along with Sam. As the Garou appear from the Umbra, there is, well, a lot of cursing among the pale humans, follows by blinding strikes of claw and tooth. The pack seems to strike as one, a well-oiled unit, rending these apparently helpless creatures to shreds. The battle is a bit longer for Stands and Sam, though, as they are outnumbered.

It's only a few more seconds, though, as the ahroun and ragabash make short work of their undead victims. In perhaps less than 30 seconds, all six of the leeches are torn limb from limb. The pack gather up the remains and toss them on the buring pyre of the warehouse. And there you have it, 90 seconds from beginning to end. The pack shifts back to their birth forms once they are a fair distance away from the fire, and head at a brisk pace back towards the van, beckoning the cubs to follow.

Tony stands up on slightly wobbly legs as the older Garou head back to the van. That was not what he was expecting. Those things looked human enough to him. They didn't seem any stronger than a human, either. Though they obviously knew about werewolves, and they couldn't have BEEN human - don't humans go nuts when they see a crinos? Still, he can't help but feel slightly bad. It seemed so overwhelmingly brutal. Perhaps if he saw what those vampires actually do, he wouldn't feel so bad, but from way up here, it looked like his friends just slaughtered a bunch of ravers. He pads to the van, shivering.

Shay is left... shaking his head. He's just not sure what to really make of all this. It's messy, to say the least - he can smell the blood of the vampires, their taint. Though, in a way, he can't help but feel rather bad for them. After all, it wasn't a fair fight. Even though a fair fight has a chance of harming, there's a sense of fair play that pangs him. Despite the fact that these were 'leeches' preying on his people. His crowd. Shay didn't recognize anyone though - not that he'd recognize their scents, regardless. He follows Tony in much the same, somber manner, tail down, like the rest of him, trying to hide the scent of burning vampire from his nostrils.

Little-Smiles slips back into her birth form to quickly follow the older pack. She's quiet, as she often is in these situations, but then the little Indian girl stops short, suddenly, looking around. She makes a sudden turn to the left, heading the other way.

Yiska, having been crouched low and watching intently the whole time.. as if he were memorizing the scene and repeating it over and over in his head. He finally snaps out of his reverie and hops to his feet, instantly bolting out of the cover and towards the van. His empathy may be skewed in the opposite direction of the two homids, instead of questioning the demonstration, he just seems to be treating it as .. well, a demonstration. This is what we do. This is what he will be doing.

Being the last to leave however, he ends up stopping short as Little-Smiles suddenly darts in the opposite direction. 'Little-Smiles!' he calls out, before turning around and following after her.. he's got a bad feeling about this.

The pack doesn't seem to notice Bits' odd behavior, instead, they are still going towards the van, in hopes of outrunning the fire department. Bits does not respond to Yiska's call, and heads in between houses, in the opposite direction where you're /supposed/ to be headed.

Tony switches back to homid on his way to the van, rubbing his hands together and frowning at the ground. He twists at Yiska's outburst, looking down at him oddly. What the hell, why...? Then he notices Bits' is running off the wrong way. "What the fuck? Bits!" he yells, suddenly bouncing on his toes. He looks between her and the adults, gnashing on the decision for only a split second. "Yiska, follow her, keep her in sight and howl to let us know where you are!" he huffs as he runs towards the adults now as fast as he can. "Gabby! We got a problem here, Bits just split!"

Shay opens his mouth and... realizes Tony beats him to the punch. Bits is being odd, but he doesn't need to compound the problem by chasing after her. He stands there a moment, looking lost, before scurrying after Tony, over to the van. 

Bits hasn't gone too far, though she's out of sight of anyone but Yiska. When the other Wendigo comes upon her, she is limp in the arms of a pale-skinned black-clothed humanish male who has his reddish lips pressed against her neck, sucking the life out of the poor cub.

A horrible flash of red pierces Yiska's vision. At first though, a simple chase of a misguided cub.. he's done the same in the past but.. but now. Face with this. The fury and rage simply have no place to go. The cub's form ripples, muscles and bones rearrange, flesh tears and regrows to accommodate much larger muscles and bones. What was once a wolf cub is now a hulking monster - a hideous nightmare from old folklore. Yiska simply lets himself go - the cub thinking only one thought. He will devour this 'leech'.

There's really not much of a chance for the creature. It looks up, it drops Bits's unconcious form on the ground, and then says, "Oh, sh..." and there's a furious flash of claw and fang as the cub moves at preternatural speed, ripping the leech into itty bitty little pieces of undead. Newly acquired blood goes spurting and flying and covering the back of the house they are behind, and some into the bushes, and some into a pool. It's... messy, to say the least. The fight's over before Gabby and the others have time to react, but they do, immediately turning around at Tony's call, every one of them, even Stands, having a look of serious concern on their faces.