Delivering the Verdict

5/8/2007

02:35 AM
Logfile from GarouMUSH.

Currently the moon is in the waning Gibbous Moon phase (60% full).
It is currently 23:31 Pacific Time on Mon May 7 2007.
Currently in Saint Claire, it is clear outside. The temperature is 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 degrees Celsius). The wind is currently coming in from the northwest at 3 mph. The barometric pressure reading is 30.08 and steady, and the relative humidity is 51 percent. The dewpoint is 51 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius.)

The Sept Compound(#2075RAM)
Sweeping branches of trees form a sort of natural roof overshadowing most of this clearing, no more than an open space of grasses and beaten earth in the heart of the forest. Some pains have been taken to keep wear and tear on the area to a minimum, so the firepit tends to shift from time to time. The firepit, several sawn logs polished from use, and a stack of firewood discreetly piled up at the base of an old spruce under a tarp, are the only signs of constant occupation. However, a student of such things might think that some minimal landscaping or planning has been done, for the meadowlike profusion of grasses and other plants has an unusually high concentration of brilliant flowers, which attract a number of bees and butterflies.
A faint trail leads off to the east, and a bit north.
Contents:
Lefty
Aja
Stacey
Obvious exits:
Forest  

Some time has passed since the Children of Gaia gathered to plot, and after dinner, most have wandered off for different reasons. Stacey and Lefty still remain, however, chatting together idly as the Elder tends to the small fire they have going at the Compound's center. "Can you imagine how terrified that poor tree frog must have been? Hell, just from being near me. Was too young and new to really know, though."

Lefty chuckles quietly. "I'm picturing it in my head, which is probably even funnier than the real thing. I've got a good imagination." the Gnawer winks to the Gaian, selecting and carefully placing a new stick of wood in the slowing embers of the fire.

A bit of rustling at the edge of the wood sounds, and off towards the edge of the fire glow moves the black shape of a Shadow Lord. Far-Cry creeps closer, ears pitched forward on his head and listening to the pair. His nose works, sniffing out their scents through the smell of the smoke and flames. His eyes glint gold and that eerie reflection, catching the light.

Stacey chuckles again, shaking her head. "He was a good teacher, Auggie. Miss him a lot. But it's real nice havin' new tribemates. Shoot, havin' tribemates in general again." She pauses in her talk to peer toward the light's edge at that rustling, her brows raising. "Hello?"

Lefty agrees with a simple nod, her gaze lingering in the firelight--thoughts obviously distant and perhaps painful. the Gaian's greeting brings her head up again, glancing around. She'd not heard the shadow Lord's quiet approach and only sees him when light reflects from those yellow eyes. Immediately, the Gnawer stiffens slightly.

Far-Cry shifts position, moving from the edge of the fire's glow further into the light. Now, the pair can see him more than outlined, the light casting its orange hues across his fur. The halfmoon chuffs loudly to announce himself, greeting both and seemingly waiting along the edge to be invited into their circle.

Stacey straightens at the sound of the chuff, her expression brightening, and she motions for the wolf to enter the circle. "Far-Cry! How are ya? We were jus' chattin'. Had a semi-tribal meeting today, which our friend here happened into the end of."

Lefty's eyes shift from Stacey to the black wolf. Despite the Gaian's enthusiasm, the Gnawer's expression changes little. Perhaps her gaze is a little more studious and her posture a little less wary, but not by much. At the end of the explanation, her eyes dart toward Stacey, and she slips into a more casual smile.

Far-Cry does take a few paces forward, coming to a stop just on the invisible edge of things again. It's there that he travels through the shapes, reverting to his breed form. After a beat of silence, he gives a little more verbal a greeting. "Good evening, Stacey. Ferrets-out-the-Wyrm... rhya." The halfmoon brushes a hand on his pants, joining them on a nearby spot to sit. "How was the meeting?"

Stacey smiles as he joins them, shrugging a shoulder. "It went well. Spoke on the Dancer situation and the Wendigo. Among other things. Nothin' ya don't know 'bout yourself. They're a good bunch, Aja and Jacob, if ya haven't met them yet."

Lefty is just a little bit startled that he knows exactly who she is. Though, perhaps she shouldn't be, and that realization settles into her features a moment later. Her smile widens a bit, and she looks between the other two. Something clicks, and she says, "Ah, you must be Kenneth." Suddenly, the ragabash is both a little relieved and a little more self-conscious, all at the same time.

Kenneth lifts a hand to scratch beneath his chin in thought. "Aja. Might've met her. Jacob introduced himself at moot. Stills-the-Dance. He fought with us, during the hunt for the scrag pack. As did you," he notes with a nod to Lefty. "The rest is a little hazy." Despite the smiles he's getting, he doesn't return the expression so readily. Also, Lefty gets quite a bit of peripheral glances and sideways eyeing. "There's another halfmoon in my tribe hanging about too. Was at the meeting of the philodoxes. Name was Felix." At the name drop, he turns pointedly to look at Lefty.

Stacey nods to Kenneth. "That would be Jacob, yeah. He's just finished up his chiminage." She doesn't offer much more than that, though, frowning as this new philodox is mentioned. "Haven't heard of him," she notes, also glancing toward Lefty.

Lefty remembers the scrag fight, lifting her chin when she recollects Far-Cry's part in it. "Oh yeah!' she exclaims then. the rest of the Shadow Lord's attitude and actions come as no surprise to her, and she tries to remain still and unassuming. There is no hiding her reaction to the name drop, however--even if she were to try. The Gnawer's brow knits in deep scowl, a cloud of distrust, anger and resentment darkening her eyes. "Yeah. I know him. He followed me from Painted Rocks. That's...why I'm confined to the bawn." A vivid shake of her head follows quickly, and she corrects herself, "Not /why/, but the catalyst anyway. My crime would be why, of course."

Kenneth narrows his eyes in his regard of the fostern. "You were the main reason the halfmoons here met." He separates his gaze just once, to look to Stacey, as if to say, 'This is the company you keep' with his dark eyed look. "Have you been told of our decision yet?"

Stacey narrows her eyes at the explanation of who this Felix is, then raises a brow. "Should be interesting if he and I ever meet." At Kenneth's look toward her, Stacey spreads her hands and offers a smirk, as if to say 'You know who I am. Can't help it.' Her head tilts at that last question, curious.

Lefty stiffens further, the wariness from earlier returning. It brings with it a sudden dryness to the Gnawer's mouth, as well, so that she has to clear her throat before answering. "N-no. I haven't seen or heard anything--not even that they'd actually met tonight. I've been...a little preoccupied with my own internal thoughts, really." Lefty glances once toward Stacey, apprehension clear, before she looks back to Kenneth expectantly.

"He's like every other Shadow Lord you'll meet. An ass in all the right places and the lips to kiss 'em with," replies Kenneth. He wets his lips, eyes flicking between the two one more time before settling on the nervous Gnawer. "It isn't my place to announce the decision," the halfmoon remarks. "But I feel I should ask." He leans forward towards Lefty, hunching his shoulders in a vulturine manner and staring right at her. "What in God's name were you thinking when you decided to do what you did?"

Lefty blinks but does not back off from the Shadow Lord. Her answer is even, as well as honest. "I think it's fairly obvious I wasnt thinking at all," she says. Realizing that isn't much of an answer, she adds, "I don't expect anyone to understand this, and it's certainly not meant as an excuse--or reason to condone the act--but you asked what I was thinking. The truth is, I was in a lot of pain. Someone real close to me had been killed not long before that. She and I...well, we were close. Kin are nice, but it's niot like they can ever really /know/ what we go through. And what's more, they're never right there when it happens. At least, you /pray/ they never are. It happened...because we were drunk, overwhelmed, and, yeah, I was pissed off even know to think, maybe, a little bit in the back of my mind, those pricks deserved it."

Stacey smirks at Kenneth's first answer, then shrugs. "Then maybe I'm better off just lettin' ya deal with him." She glances toward Lefty, almost offering a reassuring smile, although under the circumstances, well... Instead she lifts her brows at Kenneth's last question, looking back toward the Gnawer to listen to the explanation. The Child offers no comment, though, letting the Shadow Lord consider the words.

"Pricks or not," Kenneth says with increasing tension as he stands from his spot, straightening and glaring at Lefty, "it was a caern. A goddamned caern you did it in. And then you hid it from us. Did you not think it was going to catch up to you?"

Lefty bristles a little under the scrutiny, though the truth of Kenneth's words keeps her from either acting on or even really embracing that anger. She lets her breath out slowly to try and calm herself. "What difference does it make what I was thinking? It was wrong, we both know that. And right now, I'm here, owning up to it, and ready to take what you dish out. What more would you like from me? If I can manage it, I'll give it to you."

Kenneth levels his eyes. The line of his lips goes thin. And then, he relents. The Shadow Lord slips back down to seat himself, falling into his thoughts for a moment as he stares into the fire. "They wanted to perform the Satire Rite on you," he speaks after that long moment. "Said after all of what you'd done, you didn't deserve to remain a fostern." He glances back up. "But that's not what you'll be getting. In a way... you could say you came to the right place."

Lefty cannot help but recoil emotionally from the words 'Satire Rite'. It drains the color from the Gnawer's features, leaving her cold and nearly panic-sticken. It seems death /might/ have been preferred to that judgment. When the Shadow Lord reveals they changed their minds, it is almost like the Gnawer ragabash deflates. Her head bows, shakey fingers running through long red hair. She makes no retort to his comment about the sept, only letting her breath out to calm herself.

Stacey also pales at the mention of the Satire Rite, her brows lifting in concern as she watches the pair, only to let out a sigh of relief as he mentions the change in decision. A reaction that's likely enough to let Kenneth know Stace had had some sort of interest in the outcome. Still, she keeps quite a bit longer.

Nodding as if to confirm this statement with his own memory, Kenneth doesn't take his eyes off the Gnawer. "This sept has had its fair share of Litany breakers and lowlifes. Charachs and criminals. It's almost like a black pit you can't crawl out of, once you're in it." The halfmoon runs a hand through his own hair again. "But it's our pit. Our hole. And as such, everyone who comes through here's gotta follow the rules one way or another. Since you're a part of this place now, you'll have to deal with what you're given. Own up, like you said. All things considered, I think Felix was a little pissed off with the final judgment. Voice of the Jackal, until you prove honorable once again."

Lefty lifts her head again to regard the sharp tongued Shadow Lord. Her eyes narrow to reveal her own steely side, but she says nothing to either contradict or argue with anything he says. Her jaw clenches faintly, not from any kind of dissatisfaction with the revealed judgment, but only with th weight of the judges displeasure, and heavy-handed recitation. Nodding, she gets to her feet quickly. "Gaia's will be done," she says quietly, an apologetic look given to Stacey as she starts to take her leave. "If you'll excuse me, it's late. Think I'll head back to my place in the barn. See you tomorrow?"

Stacey lifts her brows at Kenneth, finally deciding to speak up. "Careful, Kenneth, that /almost/ sounded optimistic. Especially that whole black pit part. Got it's dark moments, but the Sept pulls through. Still here, isn't it." As Lefty stands, she glances up at the Gnawer and offers a reassuring smile. "Good night, Lefty. I'll see ya around, huh? Thanks for the talk."

Kenneth stands as Lefty does, though the gesture doesn't seem to be strictly out of polite response. Stacey's comment garners a look and /almost/ a smirk. "Just a way to keep from crying," he replies in gallows humor. Then he nods to the fostern. "For what it's worth, I believe you're worth more to Gaia alive than dead. And the Satire Rite would have done nothing but kill you. Maybe not physically, but... well. You know."

Lefty hesitates at that, her brows knitting further as she regards the Shadow Lord. He has the fostern Gnawer more than a little bemused tonight, but she nods in response, saying quietly, "Thank you."

Stacey grins over at that bit of humor from the Lord, then sobers as she nods her agreement to his words. "I agree, as does the rest of my tribe, with what Kenneth just said." She offers another faint smile. "Luna light your path, Lefty."

Kenneth says no more on that note, returning to sit beside the Gaian once he's said his piece.

Stacey watches as the Gnawer leaves, then turns to look at Kenneth as he sits. "So, what has you particularly cheerful? The meeting with the Philos? Dancers? Wendigo? Or just the moon?" She raises a brow. "You know, you might not have been far off with that speech of yours," she says dryly.

"I'll use every opportunity I can to get my voice heard," Kenneth rumbles. "Though I'm finding it a pain in the ass to speak up. Saved her ass from the worst," he says with a nudge of his head in the direction Lefty departed. "And for what? Guess I was just feeling generous, that's all." He flops back, falling from the log to thump against the ground and stare up into the night sky.

Stacey smirks. "Dealing with stubborn, prideful Garou... Wonder why you find it a pain? But it is worth it, Kenneth, even if it isn't evident. I think you were right in saving her. Jacob and Aja would back me in saying that. Call us soft-hearted Gaians if you want, but..." She shrugs a shoulder.

As one of those stubborn, prideful Garou, Kenneth snorts and quickly and flatly gives his rejoinder. "You're a soft-hearted Gaian." And that said, he rolls his legs up off the log and sits back up, this time on the ground. "You heard Cedric was going to try and make a pack for Kent Crossing? Said so at moot. Reminded me about us."

Stacey snickers at the rejoinder, then leans forward at the mention of packs. "Yeah, we need to find a third person you can get along with," the Child teases gently, then offers a more genuine smile. "Was thinking... I don't know what you'll think of it... But maybe after all this has settled down, well, Jacob, Aja, and Lefty had been talkin' of packing, it seems. Might be possible we could combine the ideas, if you can stand being around more than one soft-hearted Gaian and Lefty turns out to be as okay as we think."

Kenneth clambers over the log again, brushing off bits of grass from his person. The brushing all stops when the Gnawer is again mentioned. "She's deemed a charach and a Litany breaker," the Shadow Lord replies stiffly. "A caern violator, Stacey. I know I'm not one to talk, given what happened before with Lucas and Jarred, but the last time I tried packing with a Gnawer ragabash, she punked out. Couldn't take Fenris."

Stacey starts to reply with some biting remark, but stops herself, letting out a brief, sharp sigh before she shrugs. "It was just an idea I'd heard. Forget it if it's one that doesn't sit well with you. But as for what she's done, Kenneth, you know better than most how I think. Can't help but look beyond to what they might do once given the chance."

Kenneth lets the silence between them sit a while. "I do know. Which is why," he breaks the quiet after a bit of pondering, "if she pulls through this then it might be worth a shot. Might. I'm not guaranteeing anything here." He glances towards the ahroun out of the corner of his eye.

Stacey looks vaguely relieved at the response. "Don't need a guarantee. Just thought it might be a possibility, should things end up well. I'm goin' with them when they go to scout for the Dancers again," she adds, in a perhaps sudden change of subject. "Gonna talk to Yi, see if I can get her or Masao to come along."

More Gnawer ragabashes. The mention of them elicit a minor frown out of the Shadow Lord, but he says little about their character. His response sounds like he's rather glad for the change of subject. "You just make sure you come back. Maybe even get 'em to follow you so those of us staying behind could have a taste of the battle. Don't stay if it gets too hot."

Stacey lifts her brows. "Honestly, I'm hoping the scouting doesn't yield any actual fighting. I'd like more information, not a battle. I just... want to see this well planned. I remember Clemency's death too well." She frowns. "I am not all that sure who else I should tell or ask. I just fear that if we don't keep planning or pushing this, it will not get done."

Kenneth holds up a hand to stop further musing. "Take the ragabash. You'd be smallish, but you'd be the muscle, being ahroun and all. Not to mention, you could act the warleader if things did go south. And really? Stop planning and get to it already. There's only so much you can do without more info. Hell if you're going to take the ragabash, then take Lefty with you too, before the Fangs and Felix get to her. You'll need your scouts at their best, right?"

Stacey lifts her brows. "Could be tough to get to her before then, but damn, if I could... Any idea when they plan on actually performing the Rite? Wouldn't be a bad idea to take her anyways. Fostern Ragabash, in trouble or not, would be damn useful as a scout. Few Ragabash, a Galliard, and myself... Not a bad group."

Kenneth sits up more, peering at the Gaian. "I'm not going to ask what you expect to find just yet. No use in musing when I'm not going. But I know that you'll have to clear with Blackriver if you're taking Lefty, especially if she's not allowed to be off the bawn."

Stacey shrugs a shoulder. "Not all that sure what we'll find either. If the trip is planned beforehand, I would clear it, of course. No need to stir up more trouble for any of us." She tilts her head as she looks over at Kenneth. "I'd take you along if you wanted to come, too, but I'd also feel more at ease if I know there were people I could count on back here watching things, too."

Kenneth shakes his head at the ahroun this time. "It's a scouting mission, not a fight. You take who you know are good with sneaking around. Let the ragabash do their job, and I do mine. Meaning, if you need someone to come keep Blackriver occupied while you shuffle Lefty off to do this thing, then you know who you should grab."

Stacey grins broadly over at Kenneth. "Sounds like a plan, then. And when we return, hopefully we will have what we need to plan a real attack." She stands to her feet. "I'm going to go stretch my legs, been sitting here talking and planning all night. Welcome to come, if you want."

Kenneth takes a moment to consider, and then stands up pre-emptively. "Sure," he answers her with a rather easy, smooth shift down to his lupus form again. Less talk, more walk.

Back | Next | 2007 Logs | Main