Cole's Fostern Challenge

6/28/2007

12:47 PM
Logfile from GarouMUSH.

[Set back around the waxing half moon on June 22nd/23rd, Yi meets with Cole and Blackriver, Master of the Challenge, to complete the fostern challenge terms set for during the April moot. The delay caused by RL is explained as Yi going to meet an NPC to learn a new rite.
Thanks to Nivek for GMing!]

Around the Story Tree
This quiet little clearing is home to soft grasses and bright flowers almost year-round.  Near the center stands the Story Tree.  The squat pine has broad branches for sitting under, and a thick, climbable trunk for a Garou to sit in.  Sharp, green needles can be found buried in the grass.
A pathway leads out to the northwest toward the Caern, and a much less-worn path leads into the forested foothills to the east.
Contents:
Blackriver
Nivek
Cole
Obvious exits:
Forest  

Under the branches of the Story Tree, Yi stands with her hands linked back behind her head. Through the dense foliage, the light of the waxing half moon hanging in the sky shines in tiny rays. She has nothing with her, and no one, as she waits expectantly for the appearance of her challenger and the Master of the Challenge.

Yi doesn't have long to wait. Coming from the direction of Widlfire's territory are the Alpha and Beta of the pack, respectively. Cole arrives in lupus out of deference to the Silver Fang, and springs up into his birthform the second he makes the clearing around the Story Tree.

Blackriver's long pink tongue comes out and she smoothes back her whiskers, settling down onto the grass a short distance away from Yi and Cole, and looking between the two expectantly, ears pricked forward in anticipation.

Yi unhooks her hands when she spots the Silver Fang and Fianna entering the arena, a small smile flitting up to her lips and glittering in her eyes. "Cole, I see you made it. For a little while, I thought you had forgotten about our meeting." To Blackriver, the Fostern Gnawer nods as well in respect to her position and mediation of the event. Yi gestures around to the area. "This will be our arena."

Cole shoves his hands in his pockets, stepping forward. His smile is much in evidence as he answers, a wry tone to his voice. "Forget about this? Oh, I've been busy, but not -that- busy. Thank you once again, Yi-rhya." He looks around the area indicated by the Ragabash, nodding. "One of my favorite places in the entire Bawn." He steps forward, casting a nod back toward Blackriver as he does.

Blackriver flicks an ear in recognition of the two, and settles back to wait for the challenge to begin.

"Oh? You've been busy," Yi does begin, though her transition is smooth as conversation. Her tone is a little curious, a little sardonic. "With what? Arranging for more hunts in the city? Planning on having another of your packmates fall to the Wyrm?"

Cole looks surprised at the transition for a moment in the midst of reaching out a hand to extend to Yi. He clears his throat, hand still out. "Ah. Though we might actually start off with a bit of civility here. So yeah, in that spirit, I was actually pretty busy. Killing a Leech that was about to snack on a Septmate who'd gotten in over her head. Also, yeah, getting married. Been reeeaaal busy. Haven't heard much out of you, recently, though."

Blackriver's ears slick back and she growls at Yi. Looks like that attack hit a vein in the Philodox as well, and she's not so good at keeping her feelings hidden.

Yi smiles thinly, hand extending to take the shake and make it quick. There's something about mentioning vampires in the Gnawer's vicinity that causes just a little bit of tension, evidenced in the handshake. "Oh, you know me. I've not been about very much. I asked an old teacher of mine to teach a rite to me, rather complicated. I was told, actually, that it was a Galliard's duty to know the ritual, not a ragabash's." Her lips purse, brows arching. "So, you're married now? May I see the ring?"

Cole takes the offered hand, shaking it firmly. He seems to rankle a little bit at the unspoken jab about Galliards and rituals. "Oh? Hope it was worth it. Leeches running about, peddling drugs in your area of the town. Could get dangerous if no one watches these things." The delivery is put in a neutral, even friendly tone. He shows his left hand, which has a plain-looking golden band on it. "Married Ellie just a few days back."

Yi narrows her eyes there, casting a glance citywards upon mention of drugs and vampires. Sniffing in a quick breath, she makes it a point to wipe her hand on her clothing after shaking. "Sorry, vampire cooties," she jokes lightly before leaning in to look at the band. "Hm. Looks fake," she comments thoughtfully, eyes flicking back up to the Fianna's. "What's the matter, did the sheep you married not have enough wool on her body to sell at the market?"

Blackriver pushes her forepaws out until she's laying on her belly, head resting on the ground and tail curled out behind her. Her ears flicker back and forth to follow the challenge, but it's unclear how much of the English she's picking up.

Cole actually lets out a laugh at that, though it perhaps sounds a bit forced. "You call -that- a slam? Dillen, a Get of fucking Fenris, comes up with more original sheep jokes. Here. Since you obviously need some help, let me give you one. 'How do Fianna find their sheep in tall grass?' Give up? Very satisfying! So, did you get Jackaled recently? I mean I haven't talked to you for a week, so I'd expect your voice to be squeaky." The ring hand is dropped, curled up as if to try and hide the ring, even so.

Yi doesn't laugh at the joke, even if her eyes've narrowed. "Ouch, Cole. You might need to tell Dillen to stop getting his jokes from a book. That was terrible." And then, the Fianna mentions the Jackaling. Yi's thin smile flattens out with the barest curl of her lips, and she turns her gaze ever so slowly towards the Silver Fang. "That was some time ago, actually. My voice is /quite/ back to normal now, thank you for noticing." The Gnawer fidgets a moment, resisting a bit of an urge to move her hands at her side.

Cole touches his finger to his chin, assuming an attitude of pensive thought. "Yeah, I'll get right on that. Don't get to a Get for your humor, I guess." He taps his chin. "Oh, is it? I hadn't noticed the difference." He gives a shrug. "Are you sure? I don't know. Maybe after the second time, it's permanent, and your ears just adjusted?" He leans a bit forward, a too-white smile. "Just a theory."

Blackriver does notice when Yi's eyes turn to her, and she returns her gaze with a blank look.

Yi tries forcing a smile, but the galliard's definitely hit a sore point. "Maybe it's that every Garou around me's gone deaf instead. My old pack didn't seem to min--..." The ragabash pauses, lips coming back together, her hand coming up to cover them. Something else must've made a sore point. So instead, she just fixes Cole a bit of a glare.

Cole cocks his head. "Your old pack? Wouldn't that be Resonance?" He makes a show of rolling his eyes upward, considering that. "Hey, it's funny. You know when I came to you for help, and you told me I wasn't ready yet? You said something...what was it. Ah! You berated me for letting Birdseye fall apart! Letting Jana die and not being able to stop Auggie from leaving for the Western Eye! Good times, good times." He returns the glare. "Resonance isn't still around, is it, Yi? What did you do? Or did they just not care to be friends with someone who promised to keep a secret? And I mean a -big- secret. Litany-breaking, even! And then, to top it off, you sold them out!" He takes a breath. "How is Squeaks these days, anyhow? She must be something like your niece, if you think about it."

Things are heating up now, with the talk of old friends and those gone. The Gnawer twitches even more, her smile that comes being more a baring of her teeth. "Oh sure, you're one to talk about metis. How about that four-armed freak you call sister, mm? Any /real/ Fianna wouldn't be caught dead breathing the same air as her," she continues with a shove of her hand into her pocket and a light scratch of the other hand along her neck. "But you took her in and embraced her. Maybe you should reconsider Renouncing and joining the Gnawers. We could use another pretty face like yours. Male prostitution is getting to be pret-ty popular."

Ouch! A nerve seems to have been struck. Cole scowls. "Should I have killed her? You're being pretty harsh on her for someone who's a known aider of Charachs. What's the matter? You think that the result is all that's bad? That as long as you want it, fucking another Garou is kosher?" His voice shows the tension in his voice, if his expression isn't abundant enough hint. At the mention of prostitution, he forces a knife-thin smile. "I'm sure I could clean up nice...ly..." He looks to the side for a moment. "Mmmph. Nice. Trick." The words grit out of his teeth as he swishes one hand through the air. "So, out of curiosity, do you help Litany breakers because you are one, and have just hidden it? I've always wondered about you, not coming from America and all." Despite his cocky attitude, the ease of his voice has declined.

Blackriver's ears perk and she starts to pay more attention as the atmosphere grows more tense.

Yi's scratching gets a little more fervent, the tips curling into more claw like gestures that leave red streaks. The verbal stab strikes deep though, causing her to straighten considerably. "I may be many things, but I am NOT a charach, you bloody backwards-raised sheepfucker. Did they call you Duck-to-Water because all you knew how to do was beg for breadcrumbs and stick your ass in the air? Maybe you should go back to the waters at the Grotto and /drown/ yourself. Sing your songs to the fishes, because your voice is terribly dull to anyone who has a real sense of hearing."

Cole stiffens his spine, his own upper lip sliding back. "You make me sound so cute," he ventures venomously. "Are you -sure- you don't have a crush on me? It's okay if you want to admit it. I mean, you don't have a husband or anything. I kinda thought you batted for the other team, myself." He sucks in a breath, his hands fisted at his sides. "Well, I've heard others say differently about my voice. But better dull than" And here his voice rises in mockery, as close to the Jackal-voice as he can. "Like this!" He shakes his head heavily, trying to dislodge something. "But maybe not. I think your Litany violation of choice is endangering the Caern! Tsk tsk. Letting a self-admitted, scorned Charach go? He could have run to the spirals! Are you dumb? And letting in a fucking four-eyed metis without even asking permission of the Guardians? She could have been a damned Spiral herself!"

"That damn Strider," Yi hisses angrily now, "was at the farmhouse. Haven of our sept's cubs, and sanctuary for our wounded. Tell me, Caretaker, you would turn help away just because she has four eyes? How about four arms? 'All the better to jack me off with', was that /your/ theory, you Big Bad Wolf? Maybe one of your drunken nights turned into a little more renowned Fianna passion than you could remember. Next time I see a Black Spiral Dancer with six arms, I'll be sure to let them know you'd welcome them with open arms into your tribe. /Your/ tribe, that /admits/ to being brothers with those that became the Wyrm's warriors."

Cole's eyes open widely. "You righteous bitch," he hisses at her. "My point, in case you were just too goddamned dumb to get it, is that you let a stranger in! Without even a by your leave!" At the Spiral comment, he snarls openly. "I'd be more worried about the Mules coming out of your tribe. At least I put mine in their place! You just hide yours! Scuttling around like the rats you follow!" He sets his feet in a wider stance. "C'mon, stop dicking around with me. You're just making wild guesses. Got nothing real? Almost like you're running on empty, sister. Whereas you...hooboy. Black sheep of the family, you are. Bet you're here because they kicked your ass out of China-town." Another swat of his hands through the air, and a huff of breath.

There it goes. The scratching pauses, Yi stiffening up to a point that a strong tap might break her proverbially in two. "You know /nothing/ about what I went through." Her words come slow, soft, but anyone who knows Yi knows that it's when her volume drops is when there's that danger zone. "I have fought long and hard for many more years than you have, defending this caern and Gaia. /I/ was cliath before you popped a hair of fur on your head, Cole Howls-For-Glory, and by Gaia I will not have you telling me where I am and am not welcome."

Cole snorts at that, putting every last ounce of contempt he can into it. His eyes narrow. His breathing is getting heavy, and he's hunching his shoulders inward, as if trying to cut off his head from the air. "And yet I challenged in shorter time than you. I guess that just means you fucked up too goddamned much to hit the mark quickly. You've been here for years, sure. And I bet those years have been happy for your home Sept, Black Sheep. Why don't you go back? You only fuck. Up. Here."

The tension is so thick it can be cut with a knife, and Blackriver is paying close attention to the challenge, head raised and muscles tightening.

Yi's eyes widen at the Fianna, as surprised at his words as if he'd stepped right up, tapped her on the shoulder, and slapped her in the face when she turned around. The Gnawer trembles for a moment longer, jaw working, and then she simply loses control. In a flash, the ragabash lunges forward, form surging up in an instant to her red and ivory warform. Claws and fangs leap for him, her strikes meant to be, well, lethal by nature.

In retrospect, despite securing a win, that last comment should have been initiated some yards back. It's all Cole can do to force his weary body into his warform and try to skip back out of range. ~Snap out of it!~ For all the good that will do!

Blackriver zips forward and nips at the crinosed-Yi, darting back out of her attack range as the Ragabash turns around. She lets out several high-pitched yelps and tries to distract Yi from Cole, darting this way and that in an attempt to avoid any attacks that might come her way.

Runner is beyond reasoning at the moment, but there is a reason why there's a third party. Distraction. Blackriver's white furred form zooming around and added barking turns the Gnawer's attention to the Silver Fang. Like an angered boar, Runner roars in frenzied fury as she claws and bites for the smaller lupus philodox.

Howls-For-Glory takes that chance. Biting his tongue against letting out a roar, the Fianna charges the distracted Runner's back. He attempts to slam low into the Gnawer's back and to pin her to the ground should he be successful.

The surprise attack is in fact successful with Runner's attention on the white Fang darting to and fro. Football player or not, she hits the dirt under hundreds of pounds of crinos and just gets crazier. Claws swipe at ground, at the Fianna, at Blackriver... the throes of frenzy are still on.

Howls-For-Glory, now that he's caught the tiger by the tail, can do nothing but hold on. He tries to lock his arms through hers to hold them off. He pants with the exertion of the attempt, nearly worn out. Blackriver, fresh from her distraction, takes the opportunity afforded by the fall. Boiling up into her own Crinos, she leaps to add her weight atop the pile.

The struggle goes on for a short time more, though with two ablebodied Garou holding her pinned down, Runner is eventually, successfully, calmed. She comes out of the haze of frenzy with no small amount of disorientation and lots of quick panting. Eyes affix on the packmates of Wildfire, and soon she realizes where in reality she is. It's marked with a low groan. ~Oh... shit.~

Howls-For-Glory, when he hears the groan, scrambles off of the Ragabash. He's cut several cuts and even one minor gash along his muzzle, still bleeding. Blackriver is quick to hop off, assuming her more comfortable lupine form. Howls-for-Glory wins, comes her matter of fact announcement, with a pant as an afterthought. Howls, for his part, remains warily looking down at the Challengee.

Runner rolls up to a sit, her own face sporting some minor scrapes and fast healing bruising. A taloned hand rubs at the back of her head, and she looks up to the Fianna standing. Blackriver's statement bows the Gnawer's head and she looks solemn, long enough to drive home her defeat. And then she lifts her eyes and gets to her feet. ~You... have a little scratch there,~ she comments with a point to her own muzzle, mirroring the wound on the galliard's jaw. Yi grins toothily.

Howls-For-Glory lifts his hand, even as he drops into homid. He touches it, looks at the blood, and then nods. "Yeah...I do." He looks back and forth, as if suddenly disoriented. "I don't want you to go home, Yi-rhya." The voice, as he speaks, is a bit dazed.

Runner slowly but surely joins the Fianna in her breed form as well, noticing her own weary state when things stop shifting. Still, there's a brightness to her eyes as she regards to Fianna. "This is my home, Cole-yuf," she replies. The suffix is a little emphasized, accompanied with an outstretch of her hand towards him for a shake.

Cole looks down at his hand, then to the outstretched one. With a quick movement, he takes takes something from off his finger and puts it into pocket. A quick flash of dull grey metal might be seen. He puts out his hand again, and shakes it. "Good. Thank you, Yi-yuf." He manages a smile, and seems to consider something for a moment. In a display of exuberance, he tries to hug the Gnawer, instead.

The hug is a bit unexpected, but Yi returns it gladly after the initial moment of surprise passes. "The rite I spoke of," she mentions after they break away again, "is called the Rite of Accomplishment. Look for it when the next moot comes. Oh and by the way, I did meet Ellie. She is a beautiful lady. I wish you many good fortunes with her."

Cole steps back, still smiling. "I'll look for it," he promises. The smile only deepens when Ellie's mentioned. "You had quite the effect on her, too. I think she admires you. Which says alot when most Garou scare her silly." He shakes his head, then. "I know I'm not going to be able to hold it in anymore." The Fianna drops into lupus and tilts his head back. What comes out is nothing less than a cacaphony of pure, exultant joy.

The howl brings a grey wolf with a ragged coat loping out of the woods in investigation of its source, ears perked in inquiry, nose busily sniffing at the scents.

Yi takes a step back as Cole drops back down to lupus form and merely stands, listening to the brilliant not-at-all dull howl of the galliard. Letting its echoes fade, the Gnawer gives a moment of silence for appreciation, and then turns to Fianna. "Well. Back to work," she says with a small brush off of her clothes. Despite her loss, she looks truly elated to be here - the first real sign of the ragabash's happiness in a long while. Glancing over at the new arrival, Yi gives him a smile too.

Cole looks over to Yi and gives the lupine equivalent of a nod. Work to be done, he agrees. As this one will be Guardian here for three moons. His tail is still drifting from side to side slowly.

That much said, Yi reaches down to give the Fianna lupus a scratch between the ears and by the same motion examine the wound she caused on his muzzle. "Good, good. I could use the help," she jokes lightly. "And now if you'll excuse me, I should be attending to a couple of other things further out on the bawn. Gaia grant you good hunting, and I'll see you at the moot."

If Gaia wills, comes the tired yet happy reply. Good hunting, Runner-yuf. The Fianna takes a moment to enjoy the scratch before rising into birthform once more.

[And just for the curious, the description of the talen the Cole brought with him to the challenge:
Nivek | James had a talen created for his challenge against Yi. It's an old well-used but well-maintained and cleaned handbuzzer. It's designed to be concealed well in the palm of the hand as most are, that said, Yi still has a chance of spotting it if she happens to catch a glimpse of it. Cole has to make contact, 'buzzing' her with it for the effect to take place. In the talen is a minor jaggling of Coyote. If Cole spends a gnosis then makes contact with the buzzer the follow effects will occur: +Yi will have distracting itches all over her body, ala an itching powder effect (-1 to rolls for scene and WP rolls to not be scratching during her own deliveries); +If Yi moves her feet, she'll manage to trip on something (Must make rage check if/when the trip happens and a definite disruption of her speech); +At some GM determined point Yi, during a direct jab at Cole, will painfully bite her own tongue. (Another rage check required and a diisrupted delivery of a taunt, likely ruining the zinger punchline).

Congrats Cole!]

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