A Matter of Trust

8/2/2007

04:35 PM
Logfile from GarouMUSH.

Currently the moon is in the waning Gibbous Moon phase (73% full).
It is currently 16:31 Pacific Time on Thu Aug 2 2007.
Currently in Saint Claire, it's a sunny day. The temperature is 83 degrees Fahrenheit (28 degrees Celsius). The wind is calm today. The barometric pressure reading is 29.98 and falling, and the relative humidity is 38 percent. The dewpoint is 55 degrees Fahrenheit (12 degrees Celsius.)

Dark Woods
This patch of forest is dominated by a single, massive, ancient oak tree, its secondary and tertiary limbs thicker than many of the trunks of the trees around it. The age of the trees, even at the height of day, makes the light levels here exceptionally dim.
Owls abound at night throughout the woods, especially in this area. How they find enough food in such sparse surroundings is a mystery; perhaps they hunt the larger forest to the east. Strings have been tied to the branches of the huge oak, with their ends dangling. The hanging tips seem snapped off, and are frayed.
A steep ravine plunges rockily away beyond the oak, making travel in most directions impossible.
Contents:
Stacey
Obvious exits:
Lighter Woods  

Despite the hot day, the lack of strong light in these dark woods assures the ground to be cool. The sun is on its downward arc now. Resting against the massive oak tree's roots, Kenneth is actually found in his breed form. His jacket lays over him, his head resting against a familiar, old tennis racquet bag. The philodox's chest rises and falls gently, indicative of sleep.

Walks-Middle pads quietly into the area around the giant oak, sniffing the ground just to check who's been around, although her path continues to take her closer to the sleeping Philodox. She stands nearby with a rather impish look to her, pawing at the ground, but seems to give up on whatever mischievous plan she'd had and instead shifts up into her homid form, stepping over to grab one of the lower ropes, testing its strength.

And still the philodox sleeps on, unaware of his watcher, unaware of there being an audience. Even with the strings hung from lower branches being tested, he doesn't move, nor stir.

Stacey gives an evil grin as the rope tests strong enough, using both that and the trunk to pull herself up onto one of the branches, as quietly as she can manage. She takes a moment to position herself securely, then reaches out to pluck a few acorns out of the tree. Eyeing the Philodox below, she considers distance, aims, and drops one.

The rustling from treeclimbing stirs the halfmoon just a touch, but not enough to wake. And when she drops her acorn, the unmatured nut plummets, and spluts, right against the Shadow Lord's nose before bouncing off and to the side. Kenneth grunts, face wrinkling at the impact and turns. He resumes sleeping after a few long exhales of breath and resettling.

Stacey puts a hand to her mouth to keep from snickering, waiting until she's recovered enough before taking yet another small acorn, aiming it, and dropping it down upon the napping Shadow Lord.

Plok! The second acorn, aimed true again, smacks right onto the ear of the philodox after being diverted by a twig on the way down. That one gets a stronger reaction, one that wakes the halfmoon with a curse like he'd been stung. A hand slaps up against his struck ear as he sits up. When it comes away, and he finds the nut in his palm instead of a smashed bee, the Shadow Lord stares groggily at the oaken seed for a few seconds. His head cranes up at the tree above.

As Kenneth finally wakes up, Stacey starts slightly, still holding back another snicker as she tucks in her legs, trying to hide among the branches. Of course, in her panicked effort to hide, she drops the fistful of acorns, sending a scattered shower down toward the ground.

Kenneth squints up through the branches but spots the Child elder. Right before the number of nuts come sailing down and strike like little pebbles right on the philodox's face. His immediate reflex is a scramble from the assault, escaping the majority of the nutty assault. "S-Stacey? What the-- What are you /doing/?" He pushes up to his feet, again looking in her direction with furrowed brow and bewilderment. A beat skips. "Did you just throw nuts at me while I was sleeping?"

Stacey shifts her position again, to allow her legs to dangle from the branch, and grins down at Kenneth. "Hey, Kenneth. Well, they more dropped, really. This tree is great for climbing, if a bit spooky," she notes. "It's like, the haunted house of climbing trees. Ever see the Secret of Nimh? Bet the Great Owl would so live here."

Kenneth runs a hand through his hair as if checking for stray leaves and other oddities. Nothing there, though. "So you /dropped/ acorns on my face," grumps the halfmoon with a look down to his previous sleeping area, now littered with green nuts. He stoops to pick some of them up, turning them over in his hand, eyes up through the branches, and tosses one of them up back at the ahroun. "Never saw it!" he adds in reply.

Stacey grins impishly down at the Shadow Lord. "Yep!" she answers back, only to gasp and throw up her hand as he tosses one back, laughing as it hits her. "See, now /that's/ throwing. You should see it sometime."

Kenneth smirks, satisfied when that one acorn strikes the girl's shielded palm. The rest of the seeds are scattered off to a side, and after some evaluating the halfmoon picks his own route to ascend to the tree. Unlike the lighter ahroun, he climbs up from the large trunk and scoots out from the branches from there. Once he's satisfied with where he is, the philodox glances down to the ground below for a moment. "Where'd you see it, then? The movie, that is."

Stacey watches him ascend the tree, turning in her own perch so that she can face him. "It's been out for a long time," she explains. "I saw it way back when I lived in California. With my parents. This place just makes me think of the part where they go to get advice from the Great Owl. He's very wise. And old."

Sitting up on that tree in the quiet part of the woods, Kenneth turns his gaze back up and over to the ahroun. "So you're pretty sure we're going to do this?" he asks the fullmoon. "There's always a possibility, you know. Things might not... turn out the way they ought to."

Stacey gives a confident nod to Kenneth, no hesitation. "Yes. This is the path I believe we should walk, a path of Wisdom. We'll find another who understands us, who values Wisdom as well. If Owl does not answer, perhaps another Totem of Wisdom will end up better suited. Chimera? We will see."

"Wisdom isn't normally any concern of ahrouns and philodoxes to start," Kenneth makes sure to point out. His fingers drum against the branch he sits on. "But with careful thought comes the opportunities for Honor, and Glory," he follows. "Plus, look at all the war packs we've got."

Stacey grins over at Kenneth. "Yeah, but we've never been the most normal of our kind, have we? But I am a Child and you a Shadow Lord, both tribes that value wisdom, am I right? And as you say, we've many war packs, which should be tempered by the Wisdom. You've packed in one of Glory previously, I of Honor. Let's try the third and see where it takes us."

Leaning a little more off the branch, Kenneth idly tests his balance as he listens and nods to the ahroun. "Fenris was strong. Strong, but... angry." The balance starts to slip, and the philodox goes back to leaning against the more sturdy trunk. He goes quiet at his own words, breathing out a slow sigh.

Stacey nods to Kenneth's words, letting out a sigh of her own. "Almost seems like a lifetime since those days." She is silent for a time, leaning back to peer at the branches above. "Have you met the cub Viktoriya? Demands-Answers? I can't recall if you said you had or not."

Kenneth's eyes close in the silence, though luckily he's not about to fall asleep up in the trees. When that quiet is pierced again, he cracks open an eye, peering back at the ahroun. "I have. She's a philodox, like myself. Shadow Lord, at least by claim from Moon Otter and her announcement at the moot." Then his other eye opens and he peers at the ahroun. "She's got a good head, but I only met her in passing. Was actually planning on searching her out again to see what she's got buzzing around in her skull now, making sure she's learning the right stuff. Why?"

"I've been asked to consider trying to challenge her," answers Stacey simply, honestly. "By another of my tribemates. Actually, she seems to have impressed most of my tribe, including myself, when I finally spoke to her. Some of the others are... not very inclined to trust your tribe much..."

"My... tribe." Kenneth echoes the words spoken. Neutrality, cold and grey as storm clouds, comes over the Shadow Lord's features. "She impressed 'my' tribe too, which is why we took her into our teachings. But what are you really trying to say, Stace? Shadow Lords aren't good enough? That we're going to turn her into a backstabbing, poison-spewing judge of doom and gloom?"

Stacey glances over at him with a raised brow, then shakes her head, for a second almost looking hurt. "I would hope you'd know me better than that. If I saw your tribe in that light, I'd hardly seek them out as much as I do. Individuals might be, maybe, but hardly most of you. Same for any tribe. Personally, after speaking with her, I'm leaning toward not challenging. She sounds to be in good hands. I'm just considering my response to the one that requested it."

Kenneth doesn't lean back, but the roiling aggression seems to leave much of its pressure behind the neutral mask. "And who was that?" he inquires thinly. "I'm not saying I don't know any better about you. It was just a comment. Sarcasm." His eyes go back to the Gaian, evaluating from afar. "What'd she say to you anyway?"

Stacey considers a moment, as if torn between telling or not, but then shrugs. "Jacob. He found Vika and has a soft spot for her. I didn't tell her I was considering the challenge when I met her, mind. Nor anything to sway her own mind," she's quick to note. "But she really is working hard to learn as much as she can, about all she can. She seems to be trying to understand the other tribes as well, which is something I admire. I think it'd be better to have such folk in more than just my tribe, you know?"

Nodding slowly, Kenneth chips his expression when Jacob is mentioned, but is quick to level things out again. "She understands what it means to find out everything before making judgments. Like I said. She's got a good head, and it's what appeals. The cubs were put out on the bawn so they'd learn about their positions relative to the others around them. If we kept cubs locked up somewhere or hidden away..." Here he pauses, looking more directly at the ahroun in a manner of past significance, "we'd end up with them having skewed visions. Or, they'd be weak with social skills. It's not necessarily what Jacob wants for her, but it's best she learn from those who'll understand and help her that way."

Stacey returns that significant look, then nods, offering a smile. "Like I said, I see no reason to uproot her from where she is. Shoot, that might even likely cause confusion or ill feelings that she doesn't need. I wish I could get him to see past the perceptions he has, though. He's a passionate sort, which is so very Galliard of him. But sometimes I wish he'd calm the... calm down and see other possibilities. Bigger pictures and all that."

"He's a Galliard," Kenneth remarks with a flippant gesture, "he's prone to those sorts of wild theories that he can change the world by will and passion alone." Sitting up a little further, he leans towards the ahroun on the branch. "What bigger picture are we talking about, though?"

Stacey chuckles slightly. "Well, as long as he gets the right theory in the end. He's got a good heart, Jacob, and he means well, but he's been hurt bad in the past. You can see it." She then grins over at Kenneth. "Why, uniting the tribes, stopping the Apocalypse, and bringing balance and peace to earth! What else?"

Kenneth just gives Stacey a Look at her answer, brows pulling down and lip corner up. He's quiet after that, however, and gazes back down to the ground below. The philodox doesn't move his eyes from the spot. "You're such a kid," he says after that long silence.

Stacey just chuckles before raising a brow at his words. "Hey, now, don't /make/ me drop more acorns on you." She even reaches toward one of the branches threateningly. "We need to get the challenge pack together soon. Jonathan has spoken with the spirits, and I want folks together to learn of the targets and so we can plan."

Kenneth looks up at that, eyes narrowing slightly but the topic digresses before he replies. "He's gotten sight of the goal? That's good. And you told Kaz yet, then?" Back on business, the philodox looks focused again.

"From what I hear, yeah," answers Stacey, but then she shakes her head. "Haven't crossed paths with Kaz yet, but I'm gonna have her round everyone up, spread the word of the time and place we'll meet to talk."

"And you're not just going to tell me now?" Kenneth comments in jest. "What's the matter, don't you trust me? I'll make sure to act surprised when you tell everyone else, honest. On my word as a Shadow Lord." He levels a smirk at the ahroun that's just completely teasing, and yet... not.

For some reason, Stace doesn't take that jest well, suddenly looking annoyed. "I'd tell you if I knew more!" she growls. "I haven't gotten a chance to question the theurge alone. Might as well do it altogether. I swear, I hear one more person mention lack of trust, I'm gonna deck them."

The Shadow Lord definitely notices the sudden change, though not having expected it as evidenced by the stiffening and lean back against the trunk further of his body on instinct. The smirk falls away, replaced by a furrowing of his brow and sort of placating, but investigative manner. "What? I was just joking, Stace. Jesus, don't get your p--" The halfmoon's words screech to a halt as he catches himself, his own turn of phrase drawing a frown out of him. After a moment and a shake of his head, he swings a leg around from the branch and prepares to descend.

Stacey lets out a rough sigh, looking faintly apologetic as she watches his preparations. "Jus' was a stressful moon. An' Jacob's also got it into his head that I don't trust him enough or something. And I can't for the life of me think what I did to make him think that." She gives a dismissive shrug. "Hey, you heard 'bout Jacinta's return and all that, right? Her contrition an' the revel?"

Kenneth sits there with his legs dangling off the branch, not yet making his way down. He is, though, looking down again to gauge the distance just long enough to do so. But, the ahroun's words bring his gaze back up again and at her. "What'd he say to you?" he inquires with a small quirk of his head. "About not trusting him and junk." The bit about Jacinta's return is shrugged at. "I heard she came back and apologized, yeah. The howls from the rite reached pretty far. But not about the revel... Wait, weren't you there?"

Stacey shrugs a shoulder. "I guess my trust in you makes him feel that my trust in him is lesser or something. It's just... different. And maybe lesser." She shrugs again, then nods. "Yeah, I was there. What a way for her to return! It wasn't what they expected, you could tell that from their faces. Think it might be a good first step toward bringing this place together again."

Kenneth drums his fingers again against the branch, but looks sharply back to the ahroun. "I'm not trying to compete with your tribemates for your trust," he states firmly. "As if there was a, a quantity, for it that would run out if we didn't take care of it or something." Then Kenneth looks conflicted himself, and with a sigh, pulls his leg back over the branch to reposition himself within the tree. "Last time Jacob and I met, wasn't the best of impressions."

Stacey nods to Kenneth's words, letting out a faint sigh. "There is no competition. Shouldn't be considered one. You can't just change who ya trust. You trust who you trust, because ya know you can." She frowns, then nods again. "Yeah, I remember. Impressions can change, though."

"Can they?" Kenneth muses quietly, his gaze shifted down to somewhere around the ahroun's dangling feet. The way he utters those two words, though, puts them in reference to his other thoughts now. "Some people stick by their first impressions, no matter what. And it's like, changing their minds afterwards would be a thing that kicks down their gut instinct about a person." He looks up afterwards, blinking at the ahroun. "But you are right. You can't just change who you trust." His already quieted demeanor lapses back to silence for a few seconds, and then he slips his leg back around the trunk and starts on his way down. "You gonna come hunt with me, or are you gonna stay up there like some squirrel girl?"

Stacey smiles. "They can, under the right circumstances. That's what I say. Although for the stubborn people, ya know, that's why even the Children need Ahrouns." She nods firmly, then straightens as he starts to descend, starting to scoot closer to the trunk herself. "Hell, yes, I'll hunt with ya. I'm starving."

Kenneth reaches the ground in a matter of moments, dropping lightly and then glancing upwards. "Hurry up then," he quips back at her, a smirk forming on his lips. But what he does do, is offer a hand to help her down before doing any shifting.

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