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renferretIn which the moon is still large, Harper has apologies, and Ex's continued survival boggles the mind. Later, her first visit to the Umbra.
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From: Ex Subject: Art!
To: Moros, Phoebe, Thea, Melodie, April, Stands-Between, Eugene, Twitch, Harper, Iakovos
Bcc: Ex
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Someone seems to have decided the Greek House's kitchen ceiling needed some decoration. There's a large-ish charcoal drawing, ground black and created in swift, harsh strokes, of some sort of humanoid figure, facing the onlooker. Its arms are too long, ape-like, and contain sharp blades rather than hands, long enough to be swords, if not the right shape. Meanwhile, its legs are proportionally too short, and its torso appears slightly stretched. It's face, if it can be called that, is minimal and grotesque: an off-center slit of a mouth, lipless, from which a curling, forked tongue dangles, and two eyes; one, near the rough center of the forehead, bulging, and another positioned squarely in the creature's right cheek, almost, but not quite, on level with what passes for its mouth. It looks hairless, and appears to be wearing a long coat of some kind, though this has not been detailed.
All in all, for what appears to be a fairly rough, rushed job, the drawing is quite good. It's just incredibly creepy, and inexplicably located.
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Greek House: Front Lawn(#3032RJh)
The mottled mosaic pathway heads up to the front porch of an average-sized, four bedroom, two-storey neoclassical house, then splits into a rounding "Y" shape to head towards arched gates on either side. Looking over the house and yard, the first impression is of an elegant yet somewhat stoic home. It appears that some renovations have been done recently. The columns forming the portico look freshly painted, and several bricks on the facade have been recently re-pointed. Vines and other plants have been allowed to grow up along the walls of the house and courtyard, but the gate seems to be mostly kept clear of entangling flora.
Contents:
Harper
April
Obvious exits:
Roof Gate Front Door Pathway
April stands at the split of the pathway where it seperates to go to either side fo the house. her eyes are trained towards the sky above for the moment. It's a good, calm sunny day out and the Theurge seems to be enjoying it in her own way.
No wolf form today as she makes her home from the direction of Edgewood. Her mood is even, though her steps are a little tired. The observant would notice rather dry and chapped knuckles too; rubbed raw from something or another. When she spots the Theurge, her gait quickens though, "April? You have a minute?" she asks, deep breath taken as she approaches.
April stands still for a little longer before slowly lowering her gaze from the sky and turns to face Harper. "I do. What did you need?" she asks, her eyes taking in the sight of the girl slowly.
Harper steps forward. "I need to apologize." Her posture is tall- but in the way of someone determined on their path and full of sincerity. "I don't know if you were even still there or not, but last night I said things about you that were out of line. I was wrong to say them and lash out like that, and I am sorry."
What might have been a small smile on her lips easily fades as APril hears this. "Everyone is entitled to their opinions and I'm sure it's nothing worse than what has already been said about me but you do well to come forward and apologize."
Harper shakes her head, "I don't know you well enough to be a fair judge, and frankly it's not my place anyway. When I went verbally apeshit last night, well, it wasn't me. I am not typically that guy. But, regardless, it came out of my mouth and it's my responsibility to own up. I'm sorry April. You've been really good to me since I got here. Deserve better." A small smile creaks out, "Even if I have seen you act in ways before that I might not understand or agree with."
"I have my reasons for how I act and what I do." April replies with a nod. "If you ever want to know why, choose an appropriate time and place and ask. You might not understand the answer, but I'll answer. Was there anything else you needed?"
The front door creaks as Ex pushes outside. Nothing much has changed from last night; she's still radiating that aura of murderous fury, even if it seems to still be at 'smoldering' rather than 'explosive', still wearing the same clothes, still looking generally disheveled. Her eyes narrow faintly at the sound of voices.
Harper shakes her head, "That was the most of it I suppose." There's a little bit of a deflate there as the response comes a thick shade of grey. "Maybe, sometime soon, you can help me with more wolf form stuff?" Her position has her facing mostly away from the house, so the quiet arrival of the other cub isn't noted quite yet.
April lets a small smile come back to her lips. "Anytime, I would be honored to teach you more. In fact, we need to get your training picked up a little if you hope to make Cliath before the snows come." The creaking of the door does prickle at April's hearing and she looks over towards the house and the one who emerges.
Ex remains near the door, slightly hunched. The look that she directs toward the other two women is unfriendly at best.
Harper nods to that. "I think I have most of the big meaty stuff accepted. Well, more or less. So yeah." April's turn toward the house brings Harper's attention there as well, and there's a shifting of tension back into the girl. Despite this, she turns and starts a slow approach, "Hey Ex." There's a pause at this point, just slight, to perhaps further gauge the danger level. "Can I talk to you quick for a minute?"
April's smile fades as she watches Harper move towards the one that radiates that rage still. "Be careful what you do while visiting on the full moon." she calls out towards Ex.
Ex's narrowed gaze switches between Harper and April, and ends up lingering on the latter. "I'm staying here," she says, words low but challenging. Then her gaze moves back to Harper. "What?"
Harper comes a bit closer, enough to address that this is for Ex and her alone, but with plenty of personal space left between. "I'm sorry." The apology comes out with sincerity, but also some nerves. "For what I said last night. It was hurtful, and I was an ass. And that's not what I want to be. So, I'm sorry for what I said."
April faces the two fully from her spot that she has yet to move from, her hands going to her hips though as she waits to see what Ex does in response to whatever Harper is saying to her.
Ex's attention focuses more fully on Harper. Her eyes narrow a little more. "Are you sorry because you didn't mean it, or sorry because you don't like how you sounded?"
"I'm sorry because I didn't mean it." The answer comes after a moment of hesitant thought. "I mean, yeah, I don't know what to make of you. Or Moros for that matter. Or... any of the Garou that seem so, I guess intense works. And I shouldn't make statements about people I don't know, or about things I don't understand. So, I am sorry. Really. Because I didn't mean to say something that was a hurtful lie." Harper draws in a breath, "And you don't need to say anything, or react any certain way, or anything. But I wanted to let you know because it's important, and it's the right thing to do."
April gives the two just a little bit longer before slowly walking towards them. Her steps are slow as she comes up from behind Harper, eyes on Ex.
Ex's eyes move rapidly over Harper's face. There's a twitch near her mouth. "Okay." Her attention shifts from the other cub, to the approaching April.
Harper gives a resolute nod, and then lets out the last of what must been a shaking held breath. She turns around as well, offering April a little grin. "Is it a bad time to work on lupus form? I spent the day in the garage, trying to figure out how to make that rage useful." A pause, "I failed lots."
April grins towards Harper and shakes her head. "It's fine to work on lupus, though right now I think you'll have an easier time with Hispo. You'll find several advantages in that form over Lupus." she looks towards Ex then once more. "Staying here, are you? Good, there's plenty you can learn as well with Harper and Twitch."
"Fezzik is teaching me," Ex says, flatly. "And the dirty girl with the quiver is going to teach me how to use bows."
Harper looks over, grinning. "Fezzik. Have you always called him that? I... well, nevermind." She chuckles a little and then turns back to April, "I don't think I've ever been in that one."
April shakes her head as she listens to Ex. "Let's hope they teach you well." she states before smiling towards Harper. "Imagine a wolf, then make it two or three times larger, faster and stronger."
"Well /you/ aren't going to," Ex says, heatedly.
Harper consider the instruction, but is halted in her concentration by the budding 'converation'. Her eyes close for a moment and she takes a few steps out of any direct pathway between the two, "Is it okay to do this stuff in the open? Front yard and all?"
April smiles with hard eyes towards Ex. "Oh, don't I know it. We'd have too many incidents such as at Edgewood." she states before turning her back on Ex and looking to Harper. "You're fine as long as you stick by the houses. The bawn too, once the wyld rebalances itself and it's safe to go there."
Ex's too-bright eyes flash as April turns her back, and in the very next moment she makes a grab for the back of the Theurge's clothing, homid teeth bared, and shrieks a wordless, furious scream at the back of April's head. She doesn't shift, but it's clear that's only just barely averted.
Harper hisses a sharp intake of air as Ex launches forward, but makes no move to step forward. Where she stands, her hands go up, "No no no no no. Don't. Guys. Calm. Caaaalm." The words forced from her mouth in anything but a calm manner for irony sake.
April tenses but doesn't make a move in response to Ex as she instead looks towards Harper. "I'm a child of Grandmother Tree, she helps slow the rage in its building in times like these." she explains towards Harper though it's clear even she is getting to a boiling point. "I will get the cub a moment to release me and recognize her place before I react and /put/ her in it."
Ex digs her gloved fingers into the back of April's shirt, and hisses, almost voicelessly, "I am Ex Seven Five Vee Dash Three One, and /you do not fucking scare me/." She releases April, but it's more push than letting go, and the look in her eyes as she steps back is pure, unadulterated murder. "You aren't the fucking doctors."
Harper blinks a little, eyes turning more on Ex than on April. She, perhaps wisely, clamps her mouth shut and opts for just letting it play out.
April takes a slow deep breath when she comes to a stop and then slowly turns around to face Harper. "You have five seconds to make amends, cub. You stay here, you show respect to those who above you." As she speaks, she shifts up to Glabro form, almost as if in preparation of the attack she's sure is to come from the cub before her.
Ex doesn't attack. She remains where she is, hands clenched, glaring death at April.
"Ex. Just." Harper bites at her lower lip for a moment, head shaking. "Just say sorry and try to calm down. That's all she's asking for."
April glares at Ex from where she stands. "One.. Two.." she starts counting before pausing a moment. "Your beligerence brings shame upon your teacher and bringing shame upon your tribe is not something I will countenance. Now, Submit."
"I'm /not/ sorry," Ex says, still flat. Her eyes narrow as April speaks. "Do what?"
"Then... then don't say sorry, but," Harper struggles for the right words. "Admit she's boss."
April raises a hand and motions towards the house. "Just go back inside. Stay there until your teacher decides to let you out. Maybe when Luna's face is not so full, you won't be so full of yourself."
"She's /not/," Ex says to Harper, and then, to April, "/No/."
Harper looks from April to Ex. "The Litany says she is. We're kinda low man on the totem pole right now."
April closes her eyes for just a moment before nodding her head and opening her eyes again. "If only you were showing as much drive as Harper has been showing." she murmurs before her voice grows hard, almost a growl. "NOw get inside before I throw you inside. Go take a cold shower or something."
Ex sounds a little more exasperated now. "What the /fuck/ is the Litany?" She glares back at April, her gaze hot and feverish. "/Nobody/ is fucking locking me inside."
Harper winces a bit at the comparison, "Nono, I got my share of hiccups going on. And no Ex. No one is locking you anywhere. She's just saying to go chill out, take a shower, give her some space, and she'll give you some space. Let everyone calm down. More talking is just gonna lead to more growling, so take a break from it."
April glances back over her shoulder towards Harper and the words that come from the cub. "You and me will speak later. You should go explore the form of Hispo." she states before promptly turning back to Ex, a small smile once more back upon her lips. "I don't know your history, I don't know why you're always so angry, but do what she suggests if you don't want to listen to me. We're sisters here and I don't want to have to force to do anything, but if you do not back down, I will."
Ex looks slowly from Harper to April. "Space," she echoes, making the word sound quite unpleasant. She slides a step backward. "Okay. But if you try to make me stay, I'll burn the fucking place down." Another step backward. And then she turns to go inside.
When Ex turns to head inward, Harper visibly slumps at shoulder level as if she just saw someone talked off a bridge. "That moon-rage-thing? Yeah. I'm kinda feeling it a lot more now. I'm gonna ... find a quiet spot and, think wolf. Or something. If that's cool?"
April waits for the cub to turn to go inside before shifting back down to homid form once more and turning to face Harper. "Go relax and practice. JUst take it easy. Luna will not be so full for much longer. And thank you, Harper."
Ex stalks back into the house. She doesn't slam the door, at least; rather, she barely closes it at all.
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Greek House: Courtyard(#2280RJh)
A walled-in Greco-Roman courtyard exists here in the clearing behind the house. The western side columns look new, the others freshly cleaned and repaired in patches. The courtyard is more or less open, in a sense, the columns creating more of a border than an actual wall. There are four arched gateways that provide entrance into the courtyard, one at each cardinal direction. Near the house, in the north-west corner, there is a small fountain that adds the soothing sound of water to a calm, almost serene atmosphere. The pond around the fountain contains a few waterplants along with a handful of orange-gold koi fish swim lazily about. Diagonally across from that, on the western side, is a statue of the "Winged Victory of Samothrace", more popularly known as the "Headless Nike." By the house is another statue, a copy of Michelangelo's David. This one has been modified by someone hacking off its... equipment. Fairly violently. There are three archery butts, set up at the far southern end of the courtyard, which look fairly new, though already show the signs of heavy use.
In one corner sits a collection of around twenty glass bottles, of varying shapes, sizes and colors - clear, green, amber, cobalt blue - all of them clean and with the labels removed.
Contents:
Phoebe
Obvious exits:
Roof North Eastern Arch Gate Doorway
Phoebe heads out of the eastern archway, into the woods.
Phoebe has left.
Phoebe has arrived.
Kavi has arrived.
Moros has arrived.
Ex's compliance, begrudging as it was at /best/, has let to her being recently showered. Her short hair is still bristling with water, even as she's sitting out in the courtyard once again, dragging a pencil over one of her sketchbook pages.
Kavi looks back toward the main part of the house as he steps out into the courtyard, brows furrowed. There's still a visible crease as he turns to the cub. "Hey," he calls to her from the doorway.
Moros lumbers through one of the arched gateways, head lowered and greasy hair hanging over his face, entering the courtyard from the nearby woods.
Life on the Line is not far behind Moros, though there's certainty that they'd been traveling together. Coincidence, it seems, brings them back to the courtyard at the same time. She's traveling in wolf, but as soon as she slips into the courtyard, the ahroun shifts up to her birthform.
Phoebe: er no certainty,
Ex glances up to Kavi, and then, at the arrival of the others, she abruptly closes her sketchbook and stands up. There's tension with her, oh yes. She's practically radiating Rage, but it does seem to be under at least minimal control.
Kavi swallows once, at what he sees in the cub, and then again when Moros and Phoebe arrive. He steps further into the courtyard, but only to clear the doorway and put the wall at his back. "Is... Is everything okay?" he asks Ex, gaze ticking to each of the others without formally addressing either.
Moros lifts his head slightly to stare at Kavi with narrowed eyes, then flips his hair back with a sharp jerk of his head and moves to stand near Ex, just out of arm's reach (his arm's reach, that is). He says nothing, though his mood is distinctly unfriendly, simmering with wordless fury.
Phoebe's no stranger to the moon, and the tension in the courtyard only adds to that burden. The ahroun takes several deep breaths before nodding a silent greeting to Moros and Ex. Looking to Kavi, she says simply, "Hey, nice to see you." It's not really an answer to the Walker's question, but her amiable tone at least attempts to convey things are ok.
"Yeah," Ex replies to Kavi, sullen as ever. "The Other Bitch is /bossy as fuck/."
Kavi pulls in a breath and nods briefly at Ex's reply before he looks across to Phoebe. "Thank you," he offers to the fostern and then crosses toward the cub. He doesn't speak to the bigger ahroun, doesn't look up at him at all. Instead, he moves to sit beside where she had, apparently ignoring the fact that she rose from her seat. "Rina said... You've still been drawing a lot."
Moros's angry, suspicious gaze follows Kavi closely, though he hardly moves but for the turn of his head and a slight inward curling of his fingers.
Ex doesn't sit back down, though she does angle her head so that she can still see the Glass Walker out of the corner of her eye. "Yeah," she says again. "And doing research."
Phoebe opens her mouth to say something, but for some reason she decides to bite back on whatever it was. Instead, she simply takes a few more steps towards the others. She stops short of actually "joining" them, deciding instead to remain just outside that imaginary boundary of proximity that current society defines as conversational.
Kavi's gaze again ticks to Phoebe, as she nears, but he keeps most of his attention on Ex, and seems to be doing a fair job of pretending Moros doesn't exist. "Are you... Are you learning a lot?"
Moros, for his part, keeps staring at Kavi as though by looks alone he could make the Glass Walker go away. Or suddenly collapse screaming in pain.
Phoebe can't help but notice Moros's glares at Kavi. The female ahroun is content to stay back, watch, and listen.
Ex actually manages something that might be the distant cousin of a grin. "Fezzik's teaching me how to fight too. And she," she looks toward Phoebe, "said she'd show me how to shoot a bow. The Other Bitch isn't because she's a fucking bossy /bitch/, and Phil isn't because he's a whiny shit. And I did research on my own too."
Kavi glances to Phoebe when Ex indicates her, but only just. The latter two names each promote a slight increase in the tension in his shoulders, though he doesn't remark on them. "I'm sorry I couldn't come, before. I'm... I'm glad you're learning. I'm glad you... chose to research on your own, too. It always... I always feel like I understand something better, when I choose it."
Moros takes a single step closer to Ex, his attention (and unconcealed hostility) still directed at Kavi. His scowl deepens, nose giving an occasional twitch as he almost goes into a full snarl.
Phoebe speaks up, taking one more step closer to the others. "We haven't had a chance yet to start the archery training. But, we did try and learn how to cross the gauntlet. Didn't have much success. Yet."
Ex looks from Moros to Kavi, and her own tension seems to heighten. Phoebe's words are what she latches onto, however. "Yeah, what the fuck. I'm staring at my reflection for hours and nothing's happening."
Ex: HOURs, man, hours!
Phoebe giggles.
Kavi's shoulders roll, forward and then back, the tension in him obvious as well. Still, he doesn't acknowledge Moros. "Oh," he says to Phoebe, gaze dropping briefly before it returns to Ex. "You... It can be hard, at first? It's something you have to... You have to be relaxed enough to feel it. But once you do? It won't be that hard, again."
Moros finally moves his eyes away from Kavi and tilts his head toward Ex. "You ready to try again?"
Phoebe was about to ask Ex the same thing. A tiny grin appears when Moros beats her to the punch. She looks to Ex, waiting eagerly for an answer. "What'dya think? Up for another try?"
Ex's jaw tightens, and she gives a single nod. "Okay." She tucks the sketchbook under her arm.
Kavi rises to stand next to Ex, and his thumbs hook into his pockets. The posture is one that should be relaxed, though the galliard is clearly not. "I... I know you can do it. It just... It will just... take time."
Moros bares his teeth in an expression that should be a grin but only bears a passing resemblence to one.
Phoebe turns to head back to the woods when Ex agrees to try again. The Fury leads them to a quiet spot, away from most of the chaos of the current bawn situation, but not too far from the familiar surroundings of the house. It's a serene open meadow in the woods. Phoe crouches, looking expectantly to Ex without rushing or (hopefully) in any other way pressuring. "Just try and breath, and do like we talked about yesterday. Try and feel it."
Ex brings her sketchbook with her. While it was explained last night that she wouldn't be able to take it across the Gauntlet, she's apparently unwilling to leave it at the Greek House. She settles down as expected, and fairly glares into her own reflection. Barely thirty seconds pass before she gives an irritable, agitated, "I don't feel /anything/."
Kneeling nearby, Kavi looks to Ex when she speaks. His brow furrows, and for a moment, he catches his lip between his teeth. "Do you... Do you hear the buzzing?" he asks.
Moros paces slowly a short distance away, doing a kind of patrol, working off a bit of exceess energy.
Phoebe's advice is quiet. "I know it's hard, but you have to try and have patience." Kavi's question draws her attention, and she looks at him questioningly.
"Buzzing, whispering," Ex says through gritted teeth, no less irritable. She glares at her reflection, and tries again, this time attempt to sit very, very still.
"Let go of it," Kavi says, his voice now soft. "All the buzzing. All the voices. Let them fade. Let them... be like the wind, here, and the insects." He swallows, glancing up to Phoebe and then back to Ex. "When you look? You can't hit this, or stab it. This... This is something you need to be gentle with. This is... yours."
Moros's hair has fallen back over his face. He flips it back as he walks, one ear cocked toward the others' talk.
Phoebe's curiosity is intense, but the ahroun remains silent, simply watching the interaction between Kavi and Ex. As Kavi finishes speaking, her eyes shift to Ex to study the reaction.
Ex sighs, and once more refocuses. She sits still, she doesn't immediately pull back or complain. For the next few minutes she is actually quiet.
Kavi watches, silent now.
Moros's pace slows, then halts. He tilts his head, not quite looking at Ex, not quite looking at Kavi.
Phoebe, likewise, does nothing to break the cub's concentration. She's still and silent.
As before, it ends in failure, though this time the noise of sheer frustration Ex makes has a somewhat different cause. "/Fuck/ this, I felt something." She scowls all the harder, readjusts her position, and /stares/. And this time, though it takes several more minutes, and the result is nearly a literally clawing her way through, the cub eventually pushes to the other side. It's certainly slow enough that more experienced Garou could start and finish before her, even if they start afterward.
Kavi draws in a sharp breath at the outburst, but doesn't otherwise interrupt. Once it's clear that Ex is going to succeed, the galliard finds his own reflection and works to cross. Faster than the cub, it's still not the simple step it may be for the more spirit oriented garou.
Moros gives a sharp nod and heads across the gauntlet as well.
Phoebe, when Ex begins the process of crossing, looks into the reflective surface to cross herself. The experienced ahroun is there waiting for the cub on the other side.
To say that she's disoriented when she comes out the other side is an understatement. As soon as Ex has solidified, and is able to get a look at her surroundings, she's up into a crouch and looking ready to bolt. "What the /fuck/."
Kavi is still nearby, rising to his feet even as the cub reacts to what she sees. "Calm," he says, his voice still soft. "You did it. This is the spirit world." He doesn't turn from her, but his gaze ticks briefly to some of the other nearby spirits. "You're safe. Here. With us."
Moros rolls his shoulders and walks around to a spot behind the Glass Walker, slowly. "Full moon, away from the city, away from... blighted spots." His voice is a low growl, as unhurried as his pace. "Safe as it can be, except at a caern."
Phoebe breathes deeply when she's fully arrived. The cub's reaction is noted, and indeed the Fury's attention is continually drawn to Ex, but she does take a few moments to get herself oriented. This includes greeting a lune nearby and noting the drift of ghost like ephemera that wafts by overhead.
Ex's eyes go everywhere; to the ground, the sky, the trees, the /spirits/. She doesn't actually attempt to run, but calm is about the furthest thing from her. Her attention settles, if briefly, on the lune Phoebe greets. "What the /fuck/ is that?"
"A spirit," Kavi answers. "It's called a lune. One of Luna's, the moon's, children." He takes a few steps as Moros circles, keeping the metis within his range of vision. "I... I could call Skokiaan. If you want to see her, again. Where she really lives."
"Who's Skokiaan?" Moros asks, rather sharply.
The lune darts away from the Fury to circle around Ex's head, the silver light that emanates from it making it difficult for the cub to see. A moment later it flits away again, to circle back around Phoebe and then up into the air. The prospect of seeing Skokiaan seems to excite Phoebe. "Oh, wow. Cool."
Ex does the only thing she can think of doing. She swats at the lune, and, failing to even come close to hitting it without being able to see, drops straight down into lupus, where she hunkers against the ground, panting, her eyes far too wide and her ears flattened to either side of her head.
"The totem for Fidelity," Kavi says to Moros, but he's already dropping down to his hands and knees near the cub. "A sphinx."
Moros's upper lip curls, baring teeth in response to Kavi's movement. His right hand tightens into a fist. He turns away sharply and starts walking off.
Phoebe interjects, "I...I'd show you Ferahgo, the totem of my pack? But, I don't have the power to just call him to me." Her tone is vaguely apologetic, and she offers a small shrug as well. Ex's swat at the lune produces a slight grin, which disappears immediately at Moros's reaction.
Rogue's nose works furiously, despite her refusal to move from the spot she's claimed. Back. Let's go back.
Kavi's breathing is slow and deep, carefully controlled. He gives Moros only a single glance, and there's a slight shift in the tension in his shoulders as he settles back onto his heels. "We can," he tells Ex. "But. You have to be calm. You do the same thing to go back, as to come here. Okay?" He casts a glance to Phoebe, but whatever he thought to say, isn't given voice.
Phoebe crouches down, joining Kavi near the cub. Her voice attempts to be soothing. "Remember, you're safe here. With us. Nothing can hurt you. So, you concentrate on going back. On your reflection. We'll be here to watch over you. Promise."
Rogue's nose quivers, but she carefully turns her head so that she's once more looking into her reflection. The second crossing isn't quite as frustrating as the first, but it still takes her quite some time, and a number of failed attempts, before she wiggles back through.
Kavi once again waits until it's clear the cub is going to succeed, and then, with a glance to the Fury, he finds his reflection to follow.
Phoebe meets the Walker's gaze and then she too follows back across the gauntlet.
Once again, the two more experienced Garou beat the cub to the other side. She eventually gets through, and relief floods through her body language the moment she inhales familiar scents.
Still on his knees, Kavi looks to the cub and his brow furrows. "It's okay," he whispers.
Phoebe doesn't add her own reassurances to Kavi's, but it's clear on the Fury's face that she's concerned about the cub.
Rogue breathes deeply, over and over again. She eventually licks her whiskers and notes, with reluctant stubbornness, that she'll try again tomorrow.
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From: Ex Subject: Art!
To: Moros, Phoebe, Thea, Melodie, April, Stands-Between, Eugene, Twitch, Harper, Iakovos
Bcc: Ex
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Someone seems to have decided the Greek House's kitchen ceiling needed some decoration. There's a large-ish charcoal drawing, ground black and created in swift, harsh strokes, of some sort of humanoid figure, facing the onlooker. Its arms are too long, ape-like, and contain sharp blades rather than hands, long enough to be swords, if not the right shape. Meanwhile, its legs are proportionally too short, and its torso appears slightly stretched. It's face, if it can be called that, is minimal and grotesque: an off-center slit of a mouth, lipless, from which a curling, forked tongue dangles, and two eyes; one, near the rough center of the forehead, bulging, and another positioned squarely in the creature's right cheek, almost, but not quite, on level with what passes for its mouth. It looks hairless, and appears to be wearing a long coat of some kind, though this has not been detailed.
All in all, for what appears to be a fairly rough, rushed job, the drawing is quite good. It's just incredibly creepy, and inexplicably located.
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Greek House: Front Lawn(#3032RJh)
The mottled mosaic pathway heads up to the front porch of an average-sized, four bedroom, two-storey neoclassical house, then splits into a rounding "Y" shape to head towards arched gates on either side. Looking over the house and yard, the first impression is of an elegant yet somewhat stoic home. It appears that some renovations have been done recently. The columns forming the portico look freshly painted, and several bricks on the facade have been recently re-pointed. Vines and other plants have been allowed to grow up along the walls of the house and courtyard, but the gate seems to be mostly kept clear of entangling flora.
Contents:
Harper
April
Obvious exits:
Roof Gate Front Door Pathway
April stands at the split of the pathway where it seperates to go to either side fo the house. her eyes are trained towards the sky above for the moment. It's a good, calm sunny day out and the Theurge seems to be enjoying it in her own way.
No wolf form today as she makes her home from the direction of Edgewood. Her mood is even, though her steps are a little tired. The observant would notice rather dry and chapped knuckles too; rubbed raw from something or another. When she spots the Theurge, her gait quickens though, "April? You have a minute?" she asks, deep breath taken as she approaches.
April stands still for a little longer before slowly lowering her gaze from the sky and turns to face Harper. "I do. What did you need?" she asks, her eyes taking in the sight of the girl slowly.
Harper steps forward. "I need to apologize." Her posture is tall- but in the way of someone determined on their path and full of sincerity. "I don't know if you were even still there or not, but last night I said things about you that were out of line. I was wrong to say them and lash out like that, and I am sorry."
What might have been a small smile on her lips easily fades as APril hears this. "Everyone is entitled to their opinions and I'm sure it's nothing worse than what has already been said about me but you do well to come forward and apologize."
Harper shakes her head, "I don't know you well enough to be a fair judge, and frankly it's not my place anyway. When I went verbally apeshit last night, well, it wasn't me. I am not typically that guy. But, regardless, it came out of my mouth and it's my responsibility to own up. I'm sorry April. You've been really good to me since I got here. Deserve better." A small smile creaks out, "Even if I have seen you act in ways before that I might not understand or agree with."
"I have my reasons for how I act and what I do." April replies with a nod. "If you ever want to know why, choose an appropriate time and place and ask. You might not understand the answer, but I'll answer. Was there anything else you needed?"
The front door creaks as Ex pushes outside. Nothing much has changed from last night; she's still radiating that aura of murderous fury, even if it seems to still be at 'smoldering' rather than 'explosive', still wearing the same clothes, still looking generally disheveled. Her eyes narrow faintly at the sound of voices.
Harper shakes her head, "That was the most of it I suppose." There's a little bit of a deflate there as the response comes a thick shade of grey. "Maybe, sometime soon, you can help me with more wolf form stuff?" Her position has her facing mostly away from the house, so the quiet arrival of the other cub isn't noted quite yet.
April lets a small smile come back to her lips. "Anytime, I would be honored to teach you more. In fact, we need to get your training picked up a little if you hope to make Cliath before the snows come." The creaking of the door does prickle at April's hearing and she looks over towards the house and the one who emerges.
Ex remains near the door, slightly hunched. The look that she directs toward the other two women is unfriendly at best.
Harper nods to that. "I think I have most of the big meaty stuff accepted. Well, more or less. So yeah." April's turn toward the house brings Harper's attention there as well, and there's a shifting of tension back into the girl. Despite this, she turns and starts a slow approach, "Hey Ex." There's a pause at this point, just slight, to perhaps further gauge the danger level. "Can I talk to you quick for a minute?"
April's smile fades as she watches Harper move towards the one that radiates that rage still. "Be careful what you do while visiting on the full moon." she calls out towards Ex.
Ex's narrowed gaze switches between Harper and April, and ends up lingering on the latter. "I'm staying here," she says, words low but challenging. Then her gaze moves back to Harper. "What?"
Harper comes a bit closer, enough to address that this is for Ex and her alone, but with plenty of personal space left between. "I'm sorry." The apology comes out with sincerity, but also some nerves. "For what I said last night. It was hurtful, and I was an ass. And that's not what I want to be. So, I'm sorry for what I said."
April faces the two fully from her spot that she has yet to move from, her hands going to her hips though as she waits to see what Ex does in response to whatever Harper is saying to her.
Ex's attention focuses more fully on Harper. Her eyes narrow a little more. "Are you sorry because you didn't mean it, or sorry because you don't like how you sounded?"
"I'm sorry because I didn't mean it." The answer comes after a moment of hesitant thought. "I mean, yeah, I don't know what to make of you. Or Moros for that matter. Or... any of the Garou that seem so, I guess intense works. And I shouldn't make statements about people I don't know, or about things I don't understand. So, I am sorry. Really. Because I didn't mean to say something that was a hurtful lie." Harper draws in a breath, "And you don't need to say anything, or react any certain way, or anything. But I wanted to let you know because it's important, and it's the right thing to do."
April gives the two just a little bit longer before slowly walking towards them. Her steps are slow as she comes up from behind Harper, eyes on Ex.
Ex's eyes move rapidly over Harper's face. There's a twitch near her mouth. "Okay." Her attention shifts from the other cub, to the approaching April.
Harper gives a resolute nod, and then lets out the last of what must been a shaking held breath. She turns around as well, offering April a little grin. "Is it a bad time to work on lupus form? I spent the day in the garage, trying to figure out how to make that rage useful." A pause, "I failed lots."
April grins towards Harper and shakes her head. "It's fine to work on lupus, though right now I think you'll have an easier time with Hispo. You'll find several advantages in that form over Lupus." she looks towards Ex then once more. "Staying here, are you? Good, there's plenty you can learn as well with Harper and Twitch."
"Fezzik is teaching me," Ex says, flatly. "And the dirty girl with the quiver is going to teach me how to use bows."
Harper looks over, grinning. "Fezzik. Have you always called him that? I... well, nevermind." She chuckles a little and then turns back to April, "I don't think I've ever been in that one."
April shakes her head as she listens to Ex. "Let's hope they teach you well." she states before smiling towards Harper. "Imagine a wolf, then make it two or three times larger, faster and stronger."
"Well /you/ aren't going to," Ex says, heatedly.
Harper consider the instruction, but is halted in her concentration by the budding 'converation'. Her eyes close for a moment and she takes a few steps out of any direct pathway between the two, "Is it okay to do this stuff in the open? Front yard and all?"
April smiles with hard eyes towards Ex. "Oh, don't I know it. We'd have too many incidents such as at Edgewood." she states before turning her back on Ex and looking to Harper. "You're fine as long as you stick by the houses. The bawn too, once the wyld rebalances itself and it's safe to go there."
Ex's too-bright eyes flash as April turns her back, and in the very next moment she makes a grab for the back of the Theurge's clothing, homid teeth bared, and shrieks a wordless, furious scream at the back of April's head. She doesn't shift, but it's clear that's only just barely averted.
Harper hisses a sharp intake of air as Ex launches forward, but makes no move to step forward. Where she stands, her hands go up, "No no no no no. Don't. Guys. Calm. Caaaalm." The words forced from her mouth in anything but a calm manner for irony sake.
April tenses but doesn't make a move in response to Ex as she instead looks towards Harper. "I'm a child of Grandmother Tree, she helps slow the rage in its building in times like these." she explains towards Harper though it's clear even she is getting to a boiling point. "I will get the cub a moment to release me and recognize her place before I react and /put/ her in it."
Ex digs her gloved fingers into the back of April's shirt, and hisses, almost voicelessly, "I am Ex Seven Five Vee Dash Three One, and /you do not fucking scare me/." She releases April, but it's more push than letting go, and the look in her eyes as she steps back is pure, unadulterated murder. "You aren't the fucking doctors."
Harper blinks a little, eyes turning more on Ex than on April. She, perhaps wisely, clamps her mouth shut and opts for just letting it play out.
April takes a slow deep breath when she comes to a stop and then slowly turns around to face Harper. "You have five seconds to make amends, cub. You stay here, you show respect to those who above you." As she speaks, she shifts up to Glabro form, almost as if in preparation of the attack she's sure is to come from the cub before her.
Ex doesn't attack. She remains where she is, hands clenched, glaring death at April.
"Ex. Just." Harper bites at her lower lip for a moment, head shaking. "Just say sorry and try to calm down. That's all she's asking for."
April glares at Ex from where she stands. "One.. Two.." she starts counting before pausing a moment. "Your beligerence brings shame upon your teacher and bringing shame upon your tribe is not something I will countenance. Now, Submit."
"I'm /not/ sorry," Ex says, still flat. Her eyes narrow as April speaks. "Do what?"
"Then... then don't say sorry, but," Harper struggles for the right words. "Admit she's boss."
April raises a hand and motions towards the house. "Just go back inside. Stay there until your teacher decides to let you out. Maybe when Luna's face is not so full, you won't be so full of yourself."
"She's /not/," Ex says to Harper, and then, to April, "/No/."
Harper looks from April to Ex. "The Litany says she is. We're kinda low man on the totem pole right now."
April closes her eyes for just a moment before nodding her head and opening her eyes again. "If only you were showing as much drive as Harper has been showing." she murmurs before her voice grows hard, almost a growl. "NOw get inside before I throw you inside. Go take a cold shower or something."
Ex sounds a little more exasperated now. "What the /fuck/ is the Litany?" She glares back at April, her gaze hot and feverish. "/Nobody/ is fucking locking me inside."
Harper winces a bit at the comparison, "Nono, I got my share of hiccups going on. And no Ex. No one is locking you anywhere. She's just saying to go chill out, take a shower, give her some space, and she'll give you some space. Let everyone calm down. More talking is just gonna lead to more growling, so take a break from it."
April glances back over her shoulder towards Harper and the words that come from the cub. "You and me will speak later. You should go explore the form of Hispo." she states before promptly turning back to Ex, a small smile once more back upon her lips. "I don't know your history, I don't know why you're always so angry, but do what she suggests if you don't want to listen to me. We're sisters here and I don't want to have to force to do anything, but if you do not back down, I will."
Ex looks slowly from Harper to April. "Space," she echoes, making the word sound quite unpleasant. She slides a step backward. "Okay. But if you try to make me stay, I'll burn the fucking place down." Another step backward. And then she turns to go inside.
When Ex turns to head inward, Harper visibly slumps at shoulder level as if she just saw someone talked off a bridge. "That moon-rage-thing? Yeah. I'm kinda feeling it a lot more now. I'm gonna ... find a quiet spot and, think wolf. Or something. If that's cool?"
April waits for the cub to turn to go inside before shifting back down to homid form once more and turning to face Harper. "Go relax and practice. JUst take it easy. Luna will not be so full for much longer. And thank you, Harper."
Ex stalks back into the house. She doesn't slam the door, at least; rather, she barely closes it at all.
----
Greek House: Courtyard(#2280RJh)
A walled-in Greco-Roman courtyard exists here in the clearing behind the house. The western side columns look new, the others freshly cleaned and repaired in patches. The courtyard is more or less open, in a sense, the columns creating more of a border than an actual wall. There are four arched gateways that provide entrance into the courtyard, one at each cardinal direction. Near the house, in the north-west corner, there is a small fountain that adds the soothing sound of water to a calm, almost serene atmosphere. The pond around the fountain contains a few waterplants along with a handful of orange-gold koi fish swim lazily about. Diagonally across from that, on the western side, is a statue of the "Winged Victory of Samothrace", more popularly known as the "Headless Nike." By the house is another statue, a copy of Michelangelo's David. This one has been modified by someone hacking off its... equipment. Fairly violently. There are three archery butts, set up at the far southern end of the courtyard, which look fairly new, though already show the signs of heavy use.
In one corner sits a collection of around twenty glass bottles, of varying shapes, sizes and colors - clear, green, amber, cobalt blue - all of them clean and with the labels removed.
Contents:
Phoebe
Obvious exits:
Roof North Eastern Arch Gate Doorway
Phoebe heads out of the eastern archway, into the woods.
Phoebe has left.
Phoebe has arrived.
Kavi has arrived.
Moros has arrived.
Ex's compliance, begrudging as it was at /best/, has let to her being recently showered. Her short hair is still bristling with water, even as she's sitting out in the courtyard once again, dragging a pencil over one of her sketchbook pages.
Kavi looks back toward the main part of the house as he steps out into the courtyard, brows furrowed. There's still a visible crease as he turns to the cub. "Hey," he calls to her from the doorway.
Moros lumbers through one of the arched gateways, head lowered and greasy hair hanging over his face, entering the courtyard from the nearby woods.
Life on the Line is not far behind Moros, though there's certainty that they'd been traveling together. Coincidence, it seems, brings them back to the courtyard at the same time. She's traveling in wolf, but as soon as she slips into the courtyard, the ahroun shifts up to her birthform.
Ex glances up to Kavi, and then, at the arrival of the others, she abruptly closes her sketchbook and stands up. There's tension with her, oh yes. She's practically radiating Rage, but it does seem to be under at least minimal control.
Kavi swallows once, at what he sees in the cub, and then again when Moros and Phoebe arrive. He steps further into the courtyard, but only to clear the doorway and put the wall at his back. "Is... Is everything okay?" he asks Ex, gaze ticking to each of the others without formally addressing either.
Moros lifts his head slightly to stare at Kavi with narrowed eyes, then flips his hair back with a sharp jerk of his head and moves to stand near Ex, just out of arm's reach (his arm's reach, that is). He says nothing, though his mood is distinctly unfriendly, simmering with wordless fury.
Phoebe's no stranger to the moon, and the tension in the courtyard only adds to that burden. The ahroun takes several deep breaths before nodding a silent greeting to Moros and Ex. Looking to Kavi, she says simply, "Hey, nice to see you." It's not really an answer to the Walker's question, but her amiable tone at least attempts to convey things are ok.
"Yeah," Ex replies to Kavi, sullen as ever. "The Other Bitch is /bossy as fuck/."
Kavi pulls in a breath and nods briefly at Ex's reply before he looks across to Phoebe. "Thank you," he offers to the fostern and then crosses toward the cub. He doesn't speak to the bigger ahroun, doesn't look up at him at all. Instead, he moves to sit beside where she had, apparently ignoring the fact that she rose from her seat. "Rina said... You've still been drawing a lot."
Moros's angry, suspicious gaze follows Kavi closely, though he hardly moves but for the turn of his head and a slight inward curling of his fingers.
Ex doesn't sit back down, though she does angle her head so that she can still see the Glass Walker out of the corner of her eye. "Yeah," she says again. "And doing research."
Phoebe opens her mouth to say something, but for some reason she decides to bite back on whatever it was. Instead, she simply takes a few more steps towards the others. She stops short of actually "joining" them, deciding instead to remain just outside that imaginary boundary of proximity that current society defines as conversational.
Kavi's gaze again ticks to Phoebe, as she nears, but he keeps most of his attention on Ex, and seems to be doing a fair job of pretending Moros doesn't exist. "Are you... Are you learning a lot?"
Moros, for his part, keeps staring at Kavi as though by looks alone he could make the Glass Walker go away. Or suddenly collapse screaming in pain.
Phoebe can't help but notice Moros's glares at Kavi. The female ahroun is content to stay back, watch, and listen.
Ex actually manages something that might be the distant cousin of a grin. "Fezzik's teaching me how to fight too. And she," she looks toward Phoebe, "said she'd show me how to shoot a bow. The Other Bitch isn't because she's a fucking bossy /bitch/, and Phil isn't because he's a whiny shit. And I did research on my own too."
Kavi glances to Phoebe when Ex indicates her, but only just. The latter two names each promote a slight increase in the tension in his shoulders, though he doesn't remark on them. "I'm sorry I couldn't come, before. I'm... I'm glad you're learning. I'm glad you... chose to research on your own, too. It always... I always feel like I understand something better, when I choose it."
Moros takes a single step closer to Ex, his attention (and unconcealed hostility) still directed at Kavi. His scowl deepens, nose giving an occasional twitch as he almost goes into a full snarl.
Phoebe speaks up, taking one more step closer to the others. "We haven't had a chance yet to start the archery training. But, we did try and learn how to cross the gauntlet. Didn't have much success. Yet."
Ex looks from Moros to Kavi, and her own tension seems to heighten. Phoebe's words are what she latches onto, however. "Yeah, what the fuck. I'm staring at my reflection for hours and nothing's happening."
Kavi's shoulders roll, forward and then back, the tension in him obvious as well. Still, he doesn't acknowledge Moros. "Oh," he says to Phoebe, gaze dropping briefly before it returns to Ex. "You... It can be hard, at first? It's something you have to... You have to be relaxed enough to feel it. But once you do? It won't be that hard, again."
Moros finally moves his eyes away from Kavi and tilts his head toward Ex. "You ready to try again?"
Phoebe was about to ask Ex the same thing. A tiny grin appears when Moros beats her to the punch. She looks to Ex, waiting eagerly for an answer. "What'dya think? Up for another try?"
Ex's jaw tightens, and she gives a single nod. "Okay." She tucks the sketchbook under her arm.
Kavi rises to stand next to Ex, and his thumbs hook into his pockets. The posture is one that should be relaxed, though the galliard is clearly not. "I... I know you can do it. It just... It will just... take time."
Moros bares his teeth in an expression that should be a grin but only bears a passing resemblence to one.
Phoebe turns to head back to the woods when Ex agrees to try again. The Fury leads them to a quiet spot, away from most of the chaos of the current bawn situation, but not too far from the familiar surroundings of the house. It's a serene open meadow in the woods. Phoe crouches, looking expectantly to Ex without rushing or (hopefully) in any other way pressuring. "Just try and breath, and do like we talked about yesterday. Try and feel it."
Ex brings her sketchbook with her. While it was explained last night that she wouldn't be able to take it across the Gauntlet, she's apparently unwilling to leave it at the Greek House. She settles down as expected, and fairly glares into her own reflection. Barely thirty seconds pass before she gives an irritable, agitated, "I don't feel /anything/."
Kneeling nearby, Kavi looks to Ex when she speaks. His brow furrows, and for a moment, he catches his lip between his teeth. "Do you... Do you hear the buzzing?" he asks.
Moros paces slowly a short distance away, doing a kind of patrol, working off a bit of exceess energy.
Phoebe's advice is quiet. "I know it's hard, but you have to try and have patience." Kavi's question draws her attention, and she looks at him questioningly.
"Buzzing, whispering," Ex says through gritted teeth, no less irritable. She glares at her reflection, and tries again, this time attempt to sit very, very still.
"Let go of it," Kavi says, his voice now soft. "All the buzzing. All the voices. Let them fade. Let them... be like the wind, here, and the insects." He swallows, glancing up to Phoebe and then back to Ex. "When you look? You can't hit this, or stab it. This... This is something you need to be gentle with. This is... yours."
Moros's hair has fallen back over his face. He flips it back as he walks, one ear cocked toward the others' talk.
Phoebe's curiosity is intense, but the ahroun remains silent, simply watching the interaction between Kavi and Ex. As Kavi finishes speaking, her eyes shift to Ex to study the reaction.
Ex sighs, and once more refocuses. She sits still, she doesn't immediately pull back or complain. For the next few minutes she is actually quiet.
Kavi watches, silent now.
Moros's pace slows, then halts. He tilts his head, not quite looking at Ex, not quite looking at Kavi.
Phoebe, likewise, does nothing to break the cub's concentration. She's still and silent.
As before, it ends in failure, though this time the noise of sheer frustration Ex makes has a somewhat different cause. "/Fuck/ this, I felt something." She scowls all the harder, readjusts her position, and /stares/. And this time, though it takes several more minutes, and the result is nearly a literally clawing her way through, the cub eventually pushes to the other side. It's certainly slow enough that more experienced Garou could start and finish before her, even if they start afterward.
Kavi draws in a sharp breath at the outburst, but doesn't otherwise interrupt. Once it's clear that Ex is going to succeed, the galliard finds his own reflection and works to cross. Faster than the cub, it's still not the simple step it may be for the more spirit oriented garou.
Moros gives a sharp nod and heads across the gauntlet as well.
Phoebe, when Ex begins the process of crossing, looks into the reflective surface to cross herself. The experienced ahroun is there waiting for the cub on the other side.
To say that she's disoriented when she comes out the other side is an understatement. As soon as Ex has solidified, and is able to get a look at her surroundings, she's up into a crouch and looking ready to bolt. "What the /fuck/."
Kavi is still nearby, rising to his feet even as the cub reacts to what she sees. "Calm," he says, his voice still soft. "You did it. This is the spirit world." He doesn't turn from her, but his gaze ticks briefly to some of the other nearby spirits. "You're safe. Here. With us."
Moros rolls his shoulders and walks around to a spot behind the Glass Walker, slowly. "Full moon, away from the city, away from... blighted spots." His voice is a low growl, as unhurried as his pace. "Safe as it can be, except at a caern."
Phoebe breathes deeply when she's fully arrived. The cub's reaction is noted, and indeed the Fury's attention is continually drawn to Ex, but she does take a few moments to get herself oriented. This includes greeting a lune nearby and noting the drift of ghost like ephemera that wafts by overhead.
Ex's eyes go everywhere; to the ground, the sky, the trees, the /spirits/. She doesn't actually attempt to run, but calm is about the furthest thing from her. Her attention settles, if briefly, on the lune Phoebe greets. "What the /fuck/ is that?"
"A spirit," Kavi answers. "It's called a lune. One of Luna's, the moon's, children." He takes a few steps as Moros circles, keeping the metis within his range of vision. "I... I could call Skokiaan. If you want to see her, again. Where she really lives."
"Who's Skokiaan?" Moros asks, rather sharply.
The lune darts away from the Fury to circle around Ex's head, the silver light that emanates from it making it difficult for the cub to see. A moment later it flits away again, to circle back around Phoebe and then up into the air. The prospect of seeing Skokiaan seems to excite Phoebe. "Oh, wow. Cool."
Ex does the only thing she can think of doing. She swats at the lune, and, failing to even come close to hitting it without being able to see, drops straight down into lupus, where she hunkers against the ground, panting, her eyes far too wide and her ears flattened to either side of her head.
"The totem for Fidelity," Kavi says to Moros, but he's already dropping down to his hands and knees near the cub. "A sphinx."
Moros's upper lip curls, baring teeth in response to Kavi's movement. His right hand tightens into a fist. He turns away sharply and starts walking off.
Phoebe interjects, "I...I'd show you Ferahgo, the totem of my pack? But, I don't have the power to just call him to me." Her tone is vaguely apologetic, and she offers a small shrug as well. Ex's swat at the lune produces a slight grin, which disappears immediately at Moros's reaction.
Rogue's nose works furiously, despite her refusal to move from the spot she's claimed. Back. Let's go back.
Kavi's breathing is slow and deep, carefully controlled. He gives Moros only a single glance, and there's a slight shift in the tension in his shoulders as he settles back onto his heels. "We can," he tells Ex. "But. You have to be calm. You do the same thing to go back, as to come here. Okay?" He casts a glance to Phoebe, but whatever he thought to say, isn't given voice.
Phoebe crouches down, joining Kavi near the cub. Her voice attempts to be soothing. "Remember, you're safe here. With us. Nothing can hurt you. So, you concentrate on going back. On your reflection. We'll be here to watch over you. Promise."
Rogue's nose quivers, but she carefully turns her head so that she's once more looking into her reflection. The second crossing isn't quite as frustrating as the first, but it still takes her quite some time, and a number of failed attempts, before she wiggles back through.
Kavi once again waits until it's clear the cub is going to succeed, and then, with a glance to the Fury, he finds his reflection to follow.
Phoebe meets the Walker's gaze and then she too follows back across the gauntlet.
Once again, the two more experienced Garou beat the cub to the other side. She eventually gets through, and relief floods through her body language the moment she inhales familiar scents.
Still on his knees, Kavi looks to the cub and his brow furrows. "It's okay," he whispers.
Phoebe doesn't add her own reassurances to Kavi's, but it's clear on the Fury's face that she's concerned about the cub.
Rogue breathes deeply, over and over again. She eventually licks her whiskers and notes, with reluctant stubbornness, that she'll try again tomorrow.
