Tapestries: Pablo - Sunday, September 17, 2006, 11:54 AM

It's after the moot, and after your conversation with Mammoth. The other cubs have all drifted away and you're back to the cub house, apparently alone for now. Though, perhaps surprisingly, you find Cursor resting on the couch, his glasses sitting next to him on the coffee table.

Anthony cups his hands over his face as he walks in the house, still smelling the warm must from the big wooly totem on his fingers. A comforting scent. 

Noticing Cursor stretched out on the couch, he gives the frame a little knocking. "Hey. Shouldn't you be out partying with the other adults?"

Cursor looks up and gives you a confused look for just a moment. "Wha? Oh? You mean the Revel?" He laughs a little, "That's not a party, that's a big fight, where the sept expends their energy on some particular enemy, or goes hunting for Wyrm in the general, cleaning out the nearby area." Then he shakes his head, "Brother-of-the-Dawn asked me to stick around, said he might have an errand for me a bit later tonight." He sits up, then reaches for his glasses, and puts them on his face, grinning. "How about you, have a good chat with Mammoth?"

Tony puts his back against the wall, grinning back. "Yeah. It was pretty wild. I always thought the spirits and totems would be more vague and intangible and stuff, you know? But he was right there, I touched him and felt his breath. It was awesome." Giving the older boy a curious look now, he asks, "Is Cursor your name, or your deed name?"

Cursor grins back. "Yeah, they're pretty real, all right." He laughs at that other question, "Would you believe, both?" Another laugh. "It's my deed name, I don't use my birth name. So, it's just 'Cursor'."

Tony laughs as well. "Good enough, then. Crystal gave me a deed-name a few days ago. Truth-Seeker. Sounds kind of strange, doesn't it?" He grins, though, with some colour in his cheeks. The name obviously pleases him.

The athro Ragabash shakes his head. "Nah, not at all. It's a good name. I mean, if you were a Glass Walker, or a Gnawer, it'd be a bit odd, but I think it suits you."

He adds, "It's a good name for a Philodox."

"Well, I'm glad. I kind of like it." He looks outside, at the edge of the woods. "So me and the others are going to Pangaea. That's pretty crazy, isn't it? I don't even know much about it. What if I get in a fight with something over there?"

"Well," Cursor says, "I would expect you might. Most everyone has at least some combat on their Rite of Passage. Even a Ragabash like me. I'm sure Night-Spirit has a very good reason for it, though. He's been around for a good fifty-some years, which is a very very long time for any Garou. He's not the type to do something on a whim. At you know where you are going and what to do on your Rite months beforehand! Most Garou don't get that luxury.

Tony nods again, realizing that such knowledge is going to be invaluable. Know the terrain, prepare yourself. These things he knows. "I can fight like this. I know how to fight other humans. But I don't know how to fight beasts and monsters."

Cursor ohs! "Well, yes, a lot of the basics are instinctive, you know. Claw, bite in crinos. That's usually your best bet. I mean, there are a lot of specialized techniques, and some Garou like using weapons, but the basics are pretty simple." He looks around, then back to you. "I'm no ahroun, but I guess I could show you some of those."

Tony considers that, then nods with a grin. "Well, sure. I'm going to want to learn as much as possible before I head into the Land of the Lost, you know?" He goes outside, stretching himself along the way, arms and legs. "How long can you stay in Crinos form, anyway?"

Cursor follows after you. He's considerably shorter, despite his experience, and looks young, especially with that bright smile he often wears. He stretches a little himself, and then slips up into crinos form. Unlike most of the Garou you know, he looks more like a giant dog-monster than a giant wolf-monster. His fur is short, and his coloring black and tan. He's thin an athletic, like a Doberman pinscher. ~Well, as long as you want,~ he says, ~But, you know, most Garou feel most comfortable in their breed form. Also, it's easier to frenzy if you're in crinos, your Rage is, ah, 'closer' to you, so mostly it's only used for combat. It's not too useful in most other circumstances.~

Tony follows suit, rising up into his crinos form and once again trying to see where his pants disappear to. But they elude him as always, simply disappearing as they start to get tight. ~I brushed my teeth like this once,~ he says, grinning. ~It ruined my toothbrush.~ Flexing his big hands, he starts to examine himself, twisting to look at his tail and poking at the big muscles in his chest and arms.

Cursor follows after you. He's considerably shorter, despite his experience, and looks young, especially with that bright smile he often wears. He stretches a little himself, and then slips up into crinos form. Unlike most of the Garou you know, he looks more like a giant dog-monster than a giant wolf-monster. His fur is short, and his coloring black and tan. He's thin an athletic, like a Doberman pinscher. ~Well, as long as you want,~ he says, ~But, you know, most Garou feel most comfortable in their breed form. Also, it's easier to frenzy if you're in crinos, your Rage is, ah, 'closer' to you, so mostly it's only used for combat. It's not too useful in most other circumstances.~

Tony follows suit, rising up into his crinos form and once again trying to see where his pants disappear to. But they elude him as always, simply disappearing as they start to get tight. ~I brushed my teeth like this once,~ he says, grinning. ~It ruined my toothbrush.~ Flexing his big hands, he starts to examine himself, twisting to look at his tail and poking at the big muscles in his chest and arms.

Cursor returns the grin. You know he's grinning, but it's still a mildly threatening looking display, it can't be helped. ~Yes, our teeth and claws are very deadly. Supernaturally sharp, even. Have you had any lessons on combat at all, or been taught how to access your Rage?~

Tony takes up a position across from Cursor, standing straight and looking expectant. He shakes his big head at the questions. ~No. All my lessons have been... academic,~ he admits, tail doing a back and forth shaking as he accesses the new muscles.

Cursor nods, unsurprised, really, given who is teaching lessons in the house. He doesn't speak that aloud, though. ~All right, before we tussle, though, you have to understand just how dangerous a weapon you are. We Garou can heal most normal wounds extremely fast, when we're in any form but our breed form, but the claws and teeth of other Garou, and some other supernatural creature cause more grevious wounds. [OOC: Called Aggravated Damage. I've never been satisfied on what the Garou call it IC, if anything.] Silver causes even worse damage. This, plus the fact that it's easy to lose oneself into Frenzy at the scent of blood, or by being wounded at all... well, it can make a little sparring escalate very fast. Do you understand?~

Pablo (OOC) laughs. "It gets a bit cumbersome, because you'd be rolling a whole lot of dice. I'll roll some IRL and tell you the results, and explain the system, okay?"
Charlene (OOC) says, "Alright, then."

Tony nods slowly, feeling that same sense of impatience he always feels in this form. He tells himself to sit still and just listen for now. The fun will come soon enough. ~I understand. I supose I will apologize now in case I do hurt you, okay?~ His big toeclaws dig troughs through the soil as he shifts his weight back and forth.

Cursor grins, watching your impatience, "All right, the first, and easiest, most natural type of fighting is biting and clawing. We want to save those claws for the bad guys, so stick with punching. It's basically the same as clawing, but with a closed fist. Keeping your paw open comes pretty naturally. So, first, let's see if you can hit me. Just try and punch me. Don't get too frustrated if you miss, I'm pretty good at getting out of the way of things, it's how a Ragabash stays alive.~ He spreads his legs a little, getting a little bet balance, and bounces from foot to foot, ready to move.

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, the first thing to remember is that you are in Crinos form, and in crinos form, your stats are different than homid form. You add +4 to Strength, +1 to Dexterity, +3 to Stamina, -3 to Manipulation and your Appearance is set to 0."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Then, when having combat, first thing to determine is initiative. When fighting as a pack, generally your pack all moves at the same initiative number (the alpha's) because you packs work so well together. Your initiative is determined by rolling 1d10 and adding Dexterity and Wits to it."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Since it's only one die, you can go ahead and roll it. :)"
 >> Charlene rolls 1 10-sided die getting 6.
Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, 6, plus Dex 5, plus Wits 3 is 14. Cursor got a 16. Lower intiative would pose what they are trying to do, first, followed by higher initiative (because the higher init gets to react to what the slower one does)."
Tony closes his big hands, tapping his knuckles together. He begins to circle the smaller Garou, watching how he moves and pondering his attack. He's not a very strong person as a homid, but he is very agile. Lowering himself to a more ground-hugging crouch, he throws a few testing punches.

Pablo (OOC) says, "All right, to hit, since you are punching, (or if you were biting or clawing), you would roll Dexterity + Brawl. That's a total of 8 dice for you. I rolled, and got 1, 2, 5, 5, 6, 6, 10, 10. The difficulty to punch is 6, so all 6s or higher count as successes. 1s count as -1 success and 10s count as 2 successes, for our purposes. So, you have a total of 5 successes. Does that make sense?"
Charlene (OOC) says, "So far."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, normally, to hit, all you need is 1 success. (To do more complicated or longer actions, in or out of combat, you might need more). However, Cursor is dodging, so I'm going to roll his Dexterity + Dodge, and he got 4 successes. Those subtract from your hits, but it still leaves you with 1 success, so you've hit him!"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Now, we roll damage. Damage for punching is equal to your Strength, which in crinos is 6. I've rolled 4, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10. Again, the difficulty is 6 (which is the standard difficulty for most actions), which means you do 4 levels of damage to him... before he gets to soak some."

Charlene (OOC) says, "Okay."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Soaking is a Stamina roll. He gets 4 successes, so soaks all the damage. If you have one of the character sheets handy, you can see the health chart on it. You can take up to 6 levels of damage and still remain upright. More than that and you're either knocked unconscious (if it's normal damage) or well, dead, if it's Aggravated damage (one exception to that, we'll talk about when we talk about Rage)."

Pablo (OOC) says, "So, you can see how Garou are kind of killing machines."

Pablo (OOC) poses Cursor's reaction now.

Charlene (OOC) studies it.

Cursor takes one of your test strikes to the gut, his eyes wide in shock. ~Whoah,~ he says, surprised, but apparently uninjured by the blow. ~You're good, kid. Either a natural... or been in a couple fights.~ He lolls his tongue. ~I underestimated you.~

Tony jumps back quickly as he feels his fist connect, feeling joyful over the aggressive act. Much more than when he was forced to spar with his father and his father's buddies. ~I was taught,~ he agrees, arms held out in somewhat of a boxer's stance, fists still clenched tightly. He doesn't want to use those claws.

Cursor nods approvingly, ~That's good. It'll probably mean you should stick to clawing, then, when you're fighting, since it's something you already know, at least sort of.~ He grins and is still moving around. ~There are a couple more basic maneuvers, but hell if I can think of them right now. An ahroun will, I'm sure, walk you through techniques.~ A smirk appears on the Walker's muzzle. ~Make sure you surprise them, with that punch, too. So, give me another one, eh?~

Pablo (OOC) says, "Again, initiative roll is first."
 >> Charlene rolls 1 10-sided die getting 7.
Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, this time you have 15, and Cursor has 12. If he was planning anything sneaky (you never can tell with those Ragabash) you might be able to tell, but it seems he's just waiting for you, ready to dodge."

Pablo (OOC) says, "We can go ahead and roll your attack, and then let you pose it."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Are you going to punch again?"

Tony's tongue lolls in return, the cub pleased by the praise. His breath puffs out in a large clouds of steam, the bite of Autumn present in the air at last. He jumps forward on his springy legs and throws a downward jab and upward swing with his right hook.

Charlene (OOC) says, "Uhm. yes. :)"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, this time, I rolled 4, 5, 5, 5, 6, 6, 9, 10 for you, so that's 5 successes for you. Cursor gets only 3, so you connect again. For your damage, I roll 2, 6, 7, 8, 10, 10, so that's 7. He only soaks 5, so..."

Charlene (OOC) says, "You add the number of your successive damage rolls to your strength?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "No, your strength is the number of dice you roll."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Sometimes it will be strength + a dice or two, if you are using a weapon, or something."

Cursor sees that jab coming and tilts his head out of the way, unfortunately, right into your other hand, which connects under his jaw, sending his head flipping backwards, little bits of blood and saliva spraying out of it as he staggers back. He refocuses himself, and eyes you, ~Who is teaching who here?~ he laughs, spitting out another bit of blood. ~Give a moment to heal that up.~ He relaxes himself, and within a few seconds, the wound knits itself closed. ~Let's try /you/ dodging this time. Or, if you feel confident, try and just stand and suck it up.~

Tony can't help but grin sheepishly at the older garou, bouncing on his toes quite actively. ~You're nuts if you think I'll stand and suck it up. Try to hit me if you can!~ he taunts, circling around slowly, hands open a little now to try and grasp any incoming blows.

Charlene (OOC) says, "I take it in a 'normal' fight, that moment to heal up isn't something the garou would have?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Right."

Pablo (OOC) says, "But you can try to heal even while doing other things, it's just a roll instead of automatic. :)"

Charlene (OOC) says, "Gotcha."

Pablo (OOC) is re-reading the rules here. "It looks like I'm misremembering. You /do/ get more dice on your damage, +1 per success beyond the first. Hmm. I think doing that and doubling 10s is going to cause combat to be a bit more lethal than I intend."

Pablo (OOC) says, "So, my inclination is just to treat a 10 as a normal success, but I'm going to page mail everyone and put it up to a vote. Both of the others are fairly familiar with the White Wolf system."

Charlene (OOC) isn't familiar at all, so you can abuse the rules around her. :D

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, back to the fight. Initiative."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Go ahead and roll a d10 for me. :)"
 >> Charlene rolls 1 10-sided die getting 1.
Charlene (OOC) flails.

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, that gives you a 9. Cursor has a 12. :) You are just trying to dodge, yes?"

Charlene (OOC) says, "Right."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, Cursor got 5 successes to hit. A roll for Dodge is Dexterity + Dodge, so you have 8 dice. I rolled 2, 3, 3, 5, 6, 7, 10, 10. Since I decided 10s are normal successes, you only got 4, so he makes contact. ;) He manages to roll no successes on his damage, though, so it was a pansy-ass hit anyway. I shall pose such."

Cursor watches you, studying your movement for a while before taking a surprise move by swinging his leg around to try and cut you off. He misjudged where you'd be, though, and barely swipes his footpad against your knee. He swears, and says, ~Your pack is going to do well to have you around, kid. I'm impressed.~
Tony wobbles briefly as he backs up, still not completely used to his center of gravity like this, but apparently manages to miss just as well. His tail wags at the further praise. ~I honestly never thought my father's training would ever be useful,~ he admits. Then dashes forward to throw another short flurry of jabs into Cursor's midsection and ribs.

Pablo (OOC) says, "Initiative, roll d10 :)"
 >> Charlene rolls 1 10-sided die getting 9.
Pablo (OOC) says, "That makes 17 for you, and 10 for Cursor. Surprised, he's just ducking. :)"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, so we roll to hit for you, 3, 4, 6, 8, 8, 8, 8, 10. 6 successes. 4 successes in his dodge, so you connect. Damage: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 7, 9. 4 successes, but he soaks it."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Roll initiatve again before I pose. :)"
 >> Charlene rolls 1 10-sided die getting 6.

Cursor ducks, taken a bit off guard by your quick comeback, and you hit him right into the werewolf's muscular, wiry chest. He laughs again, ~I think I'm off tonight, or something. You keep surprising me.~ This time, he's coming back at you, his fist circling around towards your jaw even before he stops talking.

Pablo (OOC) says, "You won initiative, so get to see what he was doing. So, let's talk about splitting dice pools. Which gets complicated, and I often forget to do it. :)"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay, you have, in this form, 8 dice to either attack or dodge. So, what you could do is roll 4 dice to attack and 4 to dodge, and hope you do well enough on each to both avoid damage, and hit something."

Pablo (OOC) says, "You know that he's not dodging, since you have initiative, so 4 dice might be enough to hit."

Charlene (OOC) says, "Hmmm."

Pablo (OOC) says, "You can also spend Rage to take extra actions in a round, but you don't know how to do it, IC, yes, so we'll leave that for another lesson."

Charlene (OOC) says, "Okay, I'll do the split, then."

Pablo (OOC) says, "Okay. :) Your dodge roll is 4, 7, 8, 9, which beats his 1 success to hit, plus, you roll 5, 6, 6, 8 to hit, 3 successes. Damage is 2, 2, 3, 5, 5, 6, 8, 10. 3 successes, which he soaks, but you can pose the results."

Tony sees the hit coming, he hears the intake of breath from the smaller garou and anticipates the incoming hit, dodging his big head out of the way. Just as quickly, he swings his left hand inwards to return the blow, landing solidly against his upper arm to send him reeling back. Such a hit would probably make a person's arm go numb, but he is learning already that even a solid land like that isn't going to really hurt a crinos.

Cursor spins and snarls at the strike, growling at you, dewlaps pulled back, teeth bared, before he takes a deep breath and a step back. ~Hold on,~ he says, and just breathes for a moment. ~Okay, I was getting a little too fired up there. Sometimes, er, getting embarrassed, can lead you to Frenzy as well.~

Tony steps back quickly, his own hackles raising in alarm at the snarls. He feels the embers of returning anger start to smolder inside him, but he listens to your advice and does the same, simply breathing for a minute. ~I didn't mean to embarrass you,~ he says, sounding apologetic with his tail held low and ears drooped. This is one of his elders, after all.

Cursor is fairly easy going for a Garou... the Rage is not terribly strong in him, and he's laid back, but, still, you can tell he appreciates the apology, even if his words are dismissive. ~It's all right,~ he gives a sharp bark of a laugh, ~It's just that athros are not supposed to be beaten by cubs. I have just to remind myself that we're just doing basics, and you're not beating me at my own game.~

Tony looks curious at this, leaning forward. ~And what is your own game?~ he asks, wondering what other tricks might be lurking in Cursor's head. He would like to get beaten, too. It's the best way to learn.

This question amuses Cursor, ~Well,~ he says, ~it's cheating,~ he says, and disappears into nothingness, right before your eyes. A few seconds later, you think you catch a glimpse of something out of the corner of your eye (someone not as perceptive would probably notice nothing), but as you turn in that direction you're struck firmly right in the crotch by his foot. (Though you soak all damage but 1), at least you assume it his foot, because you still can't see him.

Tony blinks once, then lowers himself, arms held up once more as the other wolf goes invisible. Very interesting! He scans the area slowly, twisting just as he sees something. Just in time to get a solid crack between his legs, making the big crinos yowl in pain and crumple down onto his knees, hands cupping his groin. He whines pitifully for just a moment, but it quickly turns into a growl. What a cheap move! he thinks. Be invisible, huh? His eyes move downward, looking at the dirt, watching for footprints now as he stands back up with a little wobble in his step. ~Sneaky bastard,~ he growls, waiting for any sign or sound at all before acting.

And ... there's nothing. You hear no sound, see no footprints. Either he's that stealthy, or the gift's that impressive. Or both.

Charlene (OOC) says, "So what gift is it?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Two gifts. Blur of the Milky Eye while he's moving, and Blissful Ignorance while he's still."

Charlene (OOC) says, "How do they work?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "BotME: 'The Garou's form becomes a shimmering blur, allowing him to pass unnoticed among others.' BI: 'The Garou can become completely invisible to all senses, spirits or monitoring devices by remaining still.' They both involve Stealth rolls vs. your Perception + Alertness, which is pretty high."

Pablo (OOC) says, "They are both Ragabash gifts, though. :)"

Charlene (OOC) says, "So how often does one roll to see if they spot them?"

Pablo (OOC) says, "Once per turn, if you're actively searching for him."
So, eventually, you'll probably see him. :)

Tony isn't sure how you're doing this. You may be invisible, he can't even see any tracks. He saw something ever so briefly, though. The nature of this trick you're using is lost on him, but he'll try one more thing, stepping back from the direction he was hit from, hopefully keeping you in front of him. Then crouching a little, fingertips touching the ground, and closing his eyes. See if he can hear him with these nice ears of his. Please don't let me get kicked in the nuts again, he whines inwardly.

After what seems a long time, though was probably only a few seconds, you do hear Cursor moving, though you still can't see him, and he speaks from a bit of a distance away to your left, near the tree line. ~Also, I try to avoid hand-to-hand combat. I'm not the biggest Garou around. Really, the Ragabash way is hit and run, or from a distance, or cheating. You know, all the dishonorable shit that annoy the half-moons and ahrouns.~

Tony tilts his head towards the voice. Noting the distance, he gives a snort and stands up, eyes open. He'll give up on that chace for now. ~You're right, it is very annoying,~ he agrees, growling briefly. ~We'll have to try this again soon. I want to put some ice on my nuts.~

Actually, once you stand up and rest for just a second, you notice the pain's gone. Even a crotch-shot heals quickly when you're Garou. Cursor reappears, dropping his gifts. ~Yeah. But really, you'll be better off learning from an ahroun. They know the /appropriate/ way to fight. Anyway, I have to go check in with B-O-D anyway. Take care of yourself, Truth-Seeker.~ He slips into lupus form, and lopes off into the night.

Tony watches Cursor head off, raising a hand in a departing wave. Then, switching back to homid, he goes back to the cub house, still amazed that he doesn't ache or burn at all after taking those blows. "I'm frickin' Wolverine," he muses to himself with a lopsided grin.

As you enter the front door, you hear, from the kitchen beyond, a couple of voices whispering to each other. You can't really make out the details yet, but one is fairly distinct, even though you've only heard it once before -- the odd accent of the trespasser, Katrikki.

Tony is instantly drawn to the kitchen. She's back? He doesn't want to seem like he's sneaking, so he simply walks straight into the room, seeing who the woman is talking to.

You hear the last few murmured words, and recognize Whisper's hushed voice, "Well... Rowan can be ... difficult," she says, perhaps a bit apologetically. Two cups of water sit on the table, mostly drunk. When you enter, Katrikki is on her feet immediately. You know it's the same girl, because you heard her talk, but she looks about two-thousand percent better. Cleaned up and in elegant clothing, her bright blond hair done in an elegant braid. She has finely-chisled features, and is, frankly, beautiful. If a bit taller, she might be walking down the runways of Paris as you speak. She curtsies fluidly at your entrance, saying brightly, "Hello, it is a pleasure to be seeing you again under better circumstances!"

Tony looks undisguisedly surprised by Katrikki's appearance. He smiles amiably, though, and bows politely in return. "Yes, nice to meet you again," he greets. "So I guess if you're here talking to Whisper, you must be... uh... in the club?" He looks to Whisper for help. "What exactly IS the protocol for establishing if someone is Garou, without breaking the Veil?"

Katrikki remains standing for now, while Kelly pushes a chair out for you. The stranger explains first, "Ah, first proper introduction, ja? I am Katrikki Heikkinen, daugher of Kyllikki Strength-of-Many and Kalevi Heikkinen, the son of Paavo Heikkinen, Calls-The-Wyrm-From-Hiding, kinfolk to the Silver Fangs. Kelly smiles wryly, "You find a Philodox who knows Scent of the True Form. Though it would not have mattered in this case. As you hear, Katrikki is our kin, but not one of us." Katrikki looks to be 20 years old or so.

Tony is surprised again. "Ooh, you're a kinfolk? That's cool." Then, remembering himself, he gives his own greeting. "I'm Tony Meyer. Philodox cub of Uktena. Oh! And, er, Truth-Seeker." He'll have to work on making sure he pops that new name after his first one. "Why were you so roughed up, Katrikki?"

Katrikki laughs melodiously, standing still, at your introduction. Then she glances to Kelly, who gives a subtle little nod, before she explains: "I was telling you! I walk for three days." Then she frowns deeply, concerned, "I was being surprised, no one to meet me at airport! But bodyguard and I, we come anyway, ja? But then we are being attacked, is by fomori, I am thinking." Kelly interrupts at this point, murmuring: "Apparently, the letter that told Rowan she was coming never arrived. And then an attack... it's very odd, very odd." She shakes her head and then looks up, "Both of you, sit down, for Gaia's sake, you're making me nervous."

Tony frowns as well, taking the offered seat. "Attacked by fomori?" He looks between the two women. "So, where is your bodyguard?" he asks, not remembering having seen anyone with her the other day. "And what brings you all the way to America? Er... not to pry. I'm just curious."

Katrikki settles herself down once you've sat, holding her dress as she resumes her place opposite Kelly. The Gaian doesn't interrupt right now, letting the kin tell her story. “Ah, yes, he is not making it.” She frowns. “He was good man. But I am doing best I can now, ja?” She listens to your second question, then, and replies: “I am here to pay debt, ja? Mother's family is owing debt to Bettencourt family, for helping of them many years ago.”

Tony makes a face. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize." Resting his hands on the table, folded neatly, he listens to the foreign woman, then nods slowly. "So you're doing a... chiminage, isn't it?" He glances to Whisper for verification on the term.

Whisper nods, though she corrects, "Chiminage is usually the object itself, rather than the act. So, you bring chiminage rather than do it." Still smiling brightly, the kinfolk adds, "Ja, and in my case, I am the chiminage. Which is being good, because I am coming with nothing except purse."

Tony gives Katrikki a welcoming smile. "You're staying? Well, that's just great! It'll be awesome having a new face around here," he enthuses. There's also the fact that this is the first woman he's met among the Garou that he would be allowed to flirt with. Her accent IS attractive, after all, and she's certainly gorgeous. These thoughts are perhaps easy to see in the way he just smiles.

Katrikki giggles a little, and Whisper shakes her head. "Yes, she will be staying with Rowan and his pack at their home, but the reason she is here tonight is to talk about helping out around here, which is fine by me..." She gives a little glance towards the newcomer, and flashes a small smile. Katrikki bows her head, "That is being very gracious of you, Whispers-with-Spirits-rhya." To which Kelly waves a hand dismissively, "Just call me Kelly, please." "All right, Kelly-rhya," the young woman replies.

Tony realizes this is a good time to ask Kelly about something. "I was sparring with Cursor," he tells her. "Fighting a bit. He told me I should request an Ahroun to teach me how to fight properly. Who would you suggest I go to?"

Kelly nods, considering this. "Well, I had not decided whom to ask to come teach the cubs to fight, yet, but if you're eager, you could talk to Stands-Firm or Athena." Katrikki pipes up, "How about Arnest? He is bright young man, so I have been seeing." Kelly looks at the kinfolk, and you can certainly tell that there is something about her that gets on the nerves of the Gaian, though either Katrikki doesn't notice it, or she's too polite to say anything. Kelly continues, "Yes, or you could go to Rowan's cousin Arnest. He might be easier to talk to than either Stands or Athena," she says, equitably, "But I do believe most of his focus has been fighting with a klaive."

Tony mmms, smiling. Athena. Yeah, he could see going at it with her. She irked him when he first came here, and the few times they've met since, she hasn't done anything to alleviate his small feeling of annoyance. "Arnest? Well, sure, if you think that'd be best," he says, though he doesn't know who this person is. "A klaive? What's a klaive?" Is it like a Bat-leth, he wonders.

Kelly straightens, in sort of her teacher-posture and she explains while the kin looks on quietly. "A klaive is a large fetish blade, typically silver, with a handle long enough to be used while in crinos form. They are fairly rare, and treasured, as forging isn't a skill that's common among our people, especially these days. I believe Arnest's blade's been passed down in his family for some time."

Pablo (OOC) says, "http://www.brightblades.com/others/2323.html"

Tony looks quite surprised by this. "Silver? I thought we got sick around silver?" he questions.

Kelly smiles at that, "No, no, not sick, per se. But it can be uncomfortable. But there are those who believe it is worth it, because of how silver affects us..." She pauses, then frowns for a moment. "I had hoped to wait to talk about them, but I guess this is as good as time as ever. There are ... Garou ... who have turned to the Wyrm. A tribe that works for the Enemy. They are some of our most terrible adversaries, and that's why some Garou carry silver."

Tony looks troubled. Turned to the Wyrm? That sounds really bad. He can't imagine having to truly fight to the death with another Garou. We are such killing machines! Imagining if Cursor decided that, while invisible, to stick him with a knife. Yikes. "I see. I don't have any knives myself. So where is Arnest?"

Katrikki pipes up at this point. "Oh, their whole pack is living at the Bettencourt Estate." She smiles again, brightly, her face lighting up with that smile. Kelly just silently nods in agreement, while Katrikki continues, "Speaking of that, I should be going back now! It was being very nice to meet you both, all properly, ja!"

Tony raises his hand. "Nice to meet you again. I'll see you soon, I'm sure," he says, smiling amiably. "I think I'll hit the hay. It's been a really long night," he goes on.

Kelly nods and leans back a little. "All right, good night to both of you." Katrikki stands up, curtsies, and then bustles out the back door. Kelly watches the kin as she leaves, then turns to you. "Athena might be better for you. Arnest is a bit of a jerk."

Tony laughs at that, propping his cheek in his palm. "You guys confuse me so much. I supose I'll go to both of them. I can handle jerks, and I'd rather learn as much as possible."

Kelly takes a deep breath and nods. "That's a good attitude. I apologize if I came off sharp, or snarky. You know, Garou are people too, and sometimes there's ... history and such things which color our views. Even when we try to be objective."

Tony stands up, stretching his arms out, and yawns quietly. "I understand. Truth-Seeker, to bed!" he announces, then laughs. "Goodnight, Whisper."
She nods, already half lost in her own thoughts, "Good night, Anthony," she whisper back.