Tapestries: Pablo - Friday, September 15, 2006, 8:26 PM

It's late in the afternoon, the sun soon to fall behind the trees to the west. The days are getting shorter, and there's finally been a break in the heat. This time of day is 'morning' to the Garou, given their typically nocturnal schedules. Neither Kelly nor Peter are around, though the 'den mother' has left a scrawled note with food instructions for those who remain in the house. Bits and Yiska have spent the last couple days with their tribal elders, presumably learning Important Wendigo Things. At this moment, just the two male homid cubs are in the house.

Shay lounges on the porch. The one thing that he really dislikes about the caern is the lack of the Weaver. Having lived in the city so long, it leaves a certain 'pulse'. The noises, the constant movement of life. But out here, it's so quiet, so dull. Like some stagnant pond instead of a rushing river. Rolling over, putting chin hand, he leans forward and blows on a spider web sitting between two boards on the porch railing, watching the web tingle and the owner batten down the hatches. 

Anthony finds the biggest problem is the lack of books or access to the net. Having to rely on the others for information is like sipping at a nipple when you're used to drinking straight from the tap. All the mythical history he's being taught is fascinating, but he doubts he'll ever truly believe it as it's presented. It's like someone telling him Gravity is one of the Great Forces, and talking about it like it was an entity. "This sucks," he voices to Shay, from where he's seated a few feet down, legs and arms dangling through the porch railings.

The little arachnid friend of Shay quickly goes about reinforcing its web, making sure it is strong enough to withstand the disturbance, and stay solid. From around the corner a voice you both now know as Hope's comes, "What sucks?" just moments before she appears. She's been running, by the looks of it. Like all the cubs, she's been given extra clothes to wear, though they are little more than stuff from Goodwill. She's got on a running suit that just barely fits, and she wipes her brow as she looks at the both of you, expectantly.

Shay hoists himself up and backpeddles to deposit himself into an ancient rocking chair. The wood protests as he eases back and forth. His head lifts up at Hope's voice. He's aware that she's about to burst her clothes. Cough. "It's just... quiet. And there's nothing to really Do." 

Anthony looks to Hope. He, as well, is obviously aware of her state of dress. Why must she have such big and... well... "Yeah," he agrees with Shay, turning his eyes to the setting sun. "We've learned so much, but done so little since that raid on the club. I was hoping they'd at least let us out to the library by now."

Hope can't help but notice the boys' eyes on her, and there's a hint of a blush on her dark-skinned cheeks, and she hurries towards the door, and inside, and perhaps something a little more appropriate. "Yeah," she admits, "But I don't think they're gonna let us out until after the Rite thingy. But, y'know, I don't think they said ya gotta stay here at the house. The... whatcha call it, the bawn, is pretty big." She ducks inside, then, a half-second later, ducks her head back out, "Which reminds me, Crystal said she wants to talk to you." These words are directed at Anthony, and Hope's head is gone inside once more right afterwards.

Shay clucks his tongue. Hiking. It's not... exactly his most preferred method of wasting time. Though, maybe if Yiska and Bits were back, they could all play Hide and Go Seek - that would be really interesting. Especially with wolves. Or maybe too easy. 

Anthony goes to see Crystal.

Great. Left alone again. Bor-ring. So you sit, in relative silence, for a few minutes. And then, a weird thing happens... you feel the hair on the back of your neck stand up, and you have this feeling like someone is watching you, maybe even trying to get your attention.

Naturally, when one of those feelings overcome you, you have a habit to look for the source. Especially given the weird last week. So he turns around, craining his neck around. "Hey?" 

And... there's nothing to be seen. Just the sounds of nature around you, nothing that you can see out of the ordinary at all. And yet, that feeling remains. And, if anything, it grows in intensity. There is /definately/ something trying to get your attention.

There's a pause. Maybe something's trying to flag him down in the Umbra? The Caern's a safe place, he thought, and so shouldn't the Umbra in the Caern be equally safe? He goes inside, in search of a mirror. 

For a house that lacks in so many respects, one thing it doesn't lack in is mirrors. There is at least one in every room, and a very nice one over the fireplace.

Shay pauses a second. He got sucked into the Umbra before, so he very carefully looks into the mirror. Almost peeking around the corner. Because he doesn't remember how he's supposed to get back out, even if he does go in.
Peeking is exactly what happens, almost instinctively. You can tell you haven't entered the Umbra, there's not that ripping sensation, that splash of cold, but what you see certainly changes. Once more, the world turns black and white, shadowy, a reflection of reality. But unlike in the city, here there are barely any webs. And everything is so /alive/. The silence, the emptiness, the order of the city's Umbra is matched by the chaos, the activity, the busyness here. Your attention is quickly, drawn, though, to a little bouncing grey bird with a black head, which is flitting from shadowy branch to shadowy branch saying, "Wake up, wolf! Wake up, wolf! Intruder! Intruder!"

Shay waves to the bird. "Hey!" He calls to it, trying to flag down it's attention. "What's up? What's going on? Is the intruder in the Umbra, or on the Bawn grounds?" 

Even if you can see it, apparently, it can't see you from where you are. It keeps flitting around, repeating it's little warning. Another voice speaks, however. You hear Hope, but can't /see/ her. "Uh," she asks. "Who are you talking to?"

Pablo (OOC) might have been unclear. You're apparently looking into the Umbra without actually going there.

Christin (OOC) says, "Right. But I assume if I can hear him he should be able to hear me. o.o"

Pablo (OOC) says, "It doesn't seem to be able to. :)"

Really weird. Shay looks around. "Um, Hope? I'm looking in the mirror here, and I can see the Umbra, and there's a spirit telling me that there's an intruder. But I can't get its attention. I don’t' want to step into the Umbra and get stuck there, though."

"Freaky!" is Hope's response. "Can't you just go back in and back out the same way?" Then your words apparently sink in, and her voice sounds considerably more worried: "Um, should, I, like, go get someone, or something?"

"Well, I can try. I'm going to step into the Umbra, and I just hope that I can see the mirror on the other side. You go get someone. If I'm not back, um, yell something into the mirror or something." And with that, Shay focuses on the Umbra, and tries to walk into it. How the hell did he do this by accident the Last time?

It's a lot easier, this time, and a lot less traumatic. You seem to almost slip into the Umbra, into this shadowy parallel world. The barrier seems more fluid, easier to pass here. Still, it's a bit wrenching. The little bird seems quite happy when you appear and it quickly flies over to you. When it speaks, you realize that it's not really 'talking' so much as projecting thoughts at you, in the Garou tongue. *About time! About time! I was getting very worried! Go! Go! Intruder! Intruder!* Oh, and as far as getting back out, a quick glance around the Umbral version of this room shows the mirror shining at you, rippling, as if it had a big sign declaring 'EXIT' on it.

While he is aware of which direction is 'up', this time Shay is still a little queasy on the switch back. Though the sight of the mirror does give him a sigh of relief. Only as long as he can with the bird weaving around his head. "Hey, hold on a second." He waves at the bird. "You, where is the intruder? Is the introder in the Caern? The Bawn? In the Umbra, or the Realm?"

Christin (OOC) says, "Realm refers to the real world, right?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Right! And here's what the bird looks like, in case you're interested. They're terribly common in Wisconsin, in rural and suburban areas. http://www.birds.cornell.edu/bow/bcch/"

*Oh! Oh!* says the little bird. *Yes! Yes! In the Realm! Looks like human! On the bawn! Through the fence it came, near where the wolfs park their cars!*

"Is it a Garou in Homid? Or human?" Shay is starting to feel rather silly. Is this bird little more than a doorbell?

If insulted, the bird does not show it, instead, it's just more insistent about it's alarm. *Chickadee does not alarm for friends! Intruder! If it is a wolf, it is one Chickadee doesn't know! And it doesn't say hello to you other wolfs! No, no, it is Intruder! Intruder!*

Shay bobs his head. "Okay, okay. Thanks for the warning, um..." He reaches for something to call the bird. "Spirit?" 

The little bird tilts its head one way, then the other, before it apparently comes to a realization. *Wolf is fledgling wolf! Chickadee gets the wrong wolf! Oh dear, oh dear!* Rather than bother to instruct you, or correct you, it instead goes flying off to the north, singing its *Alarm, Alarm! Intruder, Intruder!* song.

Oy. Hoping this is just a "chicken little" situation, Shay runs back through the mirror. He ignores the wrenching and skids to a halt in the living room. "Hope!" He's calling the girl's name as he sprints to the front window, peeking out in the general direction that Chickadee said.

There are two major clues to the fact that Hope's run off as you said. One, she doesn't answer your call and two, there's a pile of fresh clothes on the ground, that she probably discarded as she chose the faster lupus form to run in search of help. After just a few moments, however, something appears out of the woods right in the direction you are looking. Stumbling into the clearing is ... a young woman. It's hard to tell her age from this distance, but she looks, well, not in the best of shape. Her clothes are torn, her feet are bare. She looks up right at you, or at least at the house and, taking a deep breath, heads in its direction.

Seeing the girl makes Shay remember something: he's naked. He has Got to get Kelly to do that rite for him. He shimmies into his pants (because he doesn't want to spook the newcomer) and then promptly runs out onto the porch. "Hey there!" A wave towards the girl. "You okay?" 

Meanwhile (insert appropriate transition noise here) ... as Anthony trudges off somewhat reluctantly towards whatever fate Crystal has in mind for him, he's caught up to by a young, but large black-furred wolf bitch. She grabs at him with her jaws and then slips into homid form, showing herself as a panting, and quite naked, Hope. "Shay heard a spirit say that there's an intruder. I'm getting help!" And without further ado, or even waiting for a response, she runs off in the direction Tony was heading, slipping back into the wolf form as she does. She's certainly taken to shifting quickly and easily.

Anthony certainly wasn't going to hop into lupus form and go prancing off to see Crystal. No, he'll just stroll casually through the woods and enjoy the encroaching twilight. And he really was enjoying it, too, when Hope buzzes him. He blinks owlishly at her and the warning, his cheeks colouring up hotly as she runs off. What the fuck? Intruder? He looks after Hope's path, then makes a decision to go back to Shay. He can't leave him alone with something like an intruder warning. So, he shifts into lupus and dashes back to the house.

It doesn't take Anthony long to return to the house, though in that time, Shay's taken a little dip into the Umbra, taken in the spirit's warning, and returned (after putting his pants back on) to confront the intruder in his own easy-going way. The young blond woman startles at his greeting, and then she straightens up, and tries to wipe some of the mess off her face. She's probably in her late teens or early twenties, and she smiles a bright, winning smile. She's wearing the remnants of some very nice clothes and, though they cover her modesty, they are ripped and torn, and quite dirty. "Ah, ja," she speaks in a accent that sounds like something halfway in between Swedish and Russian. "I am looking for Bettencourt house? You are knowing this, please?"

Christin (OOC) says, "Do I know this?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "That name sound vaguely familiar, but you can't place it."

Christin (OOC) says, "I assume the 'mess on her face' is sweat? Mud?"

Brad (OOC) says, "No, she just got out of a circle jerk."

Christin (OOC) says, "Could be blood, assface."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Mud, dirt, yes. No obvious blood."

Shay shakes his head, sending his long mop of hair in disarray. "Sounds familiar, but..." A shrug. "Might be one of our neighbors. C'mon up on the porch, though." He steps inside, going to the kitchen. Ice, water, and some wet paper towels are collected, and then he heads back out onto the porch, to offer the woman some refreshment. "How far've you been walking?" 

Anthony comes out of the forest, panting, looking around with quick jerks of his head. He can smell someone new, someone he doesn't recognize... a female... His ears perk at the sound of voices from the house, and he quickly shifts back into homid to jog the rest of the distance to the front door. "Shay?" he calls.

The young woman's crystal blue eyes shift between each boy, as if gauging them. Her response is slow, measured, translating the words in her head. Warily, she follows Shay up to the porch: "You are trying nothing funny!" she warns, "I am knowing how to defend myself." Deeming that sufficient, she answers the question asked with a vague: "Many days I have been walking to here. I am being told Bettencourt is house next to park, near town of Eagle."

Christin (OOC) says, "Also, are these landmarks ringing any bells? Park? Eagle?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Eagle is the name of the nearby little town. The caern is in the middle of a state forest."

Pablo (OOC) says, "You can speak some basic concepts, but not well."

Pablo (OOC) says, "And it does sound like growls and barks to those who don't understand it."
Brad (OOC) says, "Bark... woof... Squeak, squeakity squeaker."

Shay just smiles his best innocent smile at the warning, and leans against the front of the house. "We're in the middle of a State forest. Eagle's close by. So um, I'm sure Bettencourt's around here somewhere. I'm sure someone'll be here soon who can answer." He looks over to Anthony then, and suspicion is on his face. Girls just... just don't walk days without Stuff. No pack, no nothing. ~She one of us?~ Following the garouspeak, he coughs. That hurts the human throat. 

Anthony regards this woman with surprise and mild distrust. Who is this, then? Is this the intruder? Looks, and sounds, like she walked the whole way from Europe. "An easy way to find out," he replies to Shay. Walking up the porch to stand at the other cub's side, he gives this new woman a brief looking over. "What's your tribe?"

The woman looks between the two cubs, while Shay growls at Anthony, and while he asks her the question that most Americans and Europeans would find quite odd. There is likely an equal amount of distrust in her gaze as there is in his. After a few moments of silence, she says, "I am not thinking that answering either question of those is being appropriate, as nobody is wanting rules to be broken, Ja? But I am telling you my name. I am Katrikki Heikkenen, of Vaasa, Soumi. I am being expected at Bettencourt house. If you are knowing where it is, please be telling me, if not, that is okay, and I will be leaving, Ja?"

The woman does, however, accept the offer of the water from Shay, drinking a whole glass in a manner that seems somehow both terribly proper, yet very quick and thirstily. She dabs her face with the towels.

Shay shoots Tony another look, before shrugging helplessly to Katrikki. "Sorry. I don't know where that is." If Hope found anyone, they should be on their way, but the girl can't get that far that lupine noses and fast feet can't find her and give her the accurate directions. So he's not too worried.

Anthony looks mildly amused at her reply. Apparently she knows something, anyway. "Oh, the Bettencourt place!" he says suddenly, realization coming to his face. "I know where that is. Gabby said it was at the intersection of the highways to the north. It's just further up the road from the place where everyone parks."

Now /these/ words make the dirty, wary woman brighten into a winning smile. "Ja! Thank you, that I am very grateful to be knowing! Back on other side of fence is probably better way to be going, ja?"

"Right." Shay smiles, for want of little else to really react to. "Hope you find it before moonrise," He says to her. 

Anthony nods again to the woman, smiling back. "Probably, yes. Just back out on the road, and go north. I haven't been there myself, but I'm sure you'll find it," he says.

Katrikki straightens again, does a curtsey, as best she can in her tattered state, and moves back into the woods, the way she came, and away from the heart of the caern.
"That was weird." Shay pauses. "Even weirder, no one's come to check on us yet."

There's a grunt in response to Shay's comment, a tall stern, bearded man with a scar across his face answers the question. "That is because the longest possible path to get the attention of a Get of Fenris is through a Black Fury." His voice is gruff, and packed with annoyance, though it's most likely not at the two of you. "I am Jacob Grim-Scowl, athro ahroun of the Get of Fenris, child of Hrafn, and Warder of the Winter Night Sept." He pauses just a moment, before explaining: "That means I am in charge of the defenses of the caern, and problems... such as intruders... should be brought to me, or my packmates, immediately." He looks over Anthony, "You... I have met, but not you," his gaze turns towards Shay, "You are the one the spirit talked to? A theurge then, perhaps?"

Anthony stands straight as Grim-Scowl shows up, bowing his head respectfully to the elder garou. He was introduced to him once before, very briefly, when the twin morons were getting chewed out. "There was a woman here," he explains. "Katrikki Heikkenen, she said her name was. Of... Vasaila... Soomy, or something."

Grim-Scowl nods at Anthony's words. "I heard. The rest of my pack is intercepting her now, and we'll take care of it. But I wanted to see what the two of you would do, on your own."

Shay jumps slightly at the voice. He gives the Garou a nod of greeting and a smile. "Shay, theurge Child of Gaia. The spirit got my attention, and I sent Hope to get help while I found out what Chickadee was chirping about." He rubs the back of his neck, looking out towards the way that the Black Fury went. "Is she going to be okay? I mean, if she was hostile she woulda hurt us, seeing how wet behind the ears we are."

Grim-Scowl gives Shay a long, considering look. "We'll see. Our enemies do not always leap out, fangs bared. Sometimes they are more subtle. Regardless, though, in the future, if there is an intruder, come to us first, let /us/ determine the problem, and do not interact with the intruder yourself. Understand?" He figures you do, as he turns, and heads off into the forest.