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Monday evening, Pavel turned up. I discovered this when a buzzard or vulture (it was one of those big carrion-eating birds) glided in and landed on top of the rental Jeep--and then morphed into a naked Pavel. I did not realize he could take different animal forms, but at the same time I am not surprised either. He just said "Hello, Nick. Come inside." And went into his sanctum... as if this might be an everyday occurrence. There's something bit otherworldly about Pavel: He just seems /really/ detached from human culture and customs. He didn't explain where he'd been or what he'd been doing, and I didn't ask. He seemed a little disappointed I hadn't brought him anything interesting or any tass. I apologized, explained how I'd taken a plane and didn't think carrying magic through airport security was a good idea, and assured him I'd bring him something the next time. We talked then. I told him all about my current problem, being careful to not use any names. Pavel said that his experience with the garou was somewhat limited, but the fact that they hadn't immediately hunted me down indicated that they likely did not see me as a threat--and might consider me to be a potential asset. He cautioned me about revealing too much about mages to the garou, as knowledge is power and that knowledge can spread among the garou and used against mages everywhere. I assured him he was preaching to the choir on that front. In the end, Pavel recommended I go to the meeting, address their concerns, and negotiate a peace. (That, ironically, sounds pretty close to what I was thinking after the initial panic wore off--and after the recent panic a day or two earlier. I need to learn to panic less.) So, all in all, a brief-but-good talk with Pavel and he did thank me for bringing him a collection of supplies from the city.
Got back into St. Claire late Tuesday night. The next day, I ran into Riley up on the roof. We squared things with the car--dancing around the elephant in the room (that Val had told Riley earlier that I was a mage)--and then she slapped me (!!!) for not having told her I was a mage earlier. Obviously, if she'd meant to do me harm, she wouldn't have done that. So.... She said we were squared away then. (The garou have a rather "hitty" way of squaring things. I really don't care for it. At all.) We then ended up talking about the utility of kinfolk, and how they're underutilized by the garou--and occasionally stepped upon. I emphasized that kin are of particular use in support roles where garou would fail: police officers, for instance. And any other number of useful careers. Careers seem to elude the garou unless they can make their own hours and not work with the public. Also, I told her I'd looked in on her discreetly after she'd been hit by magic from that umbral dragon that'd turned her from male to female--and that it basically rewrote her pattern so that reality thinks Riley is--and always has been--a girl. Nothing I could do to fix it as Life magic is not my forte. She seemed thankful I'd tried, but pretty much resigned to being a girl instead of a guy.
The talk of sex changes prompted Riley to also ask if I'd had garou hitting on me since I'd been announced as being kin, then warned that Clarice did like me, was lupus and would likely get obvious about liking me at some point (WTF is that supposed to mean?), and--as I mentioned I was seeing someone else (didn't tell her it was Emma)--I needed to break the news to Clarice sooner rather than later. Something "fun" to do when the moon is slimmer, I think. Ugh.
Anyway, I'm just glad that my gamble with telling Riley about my being a mage seems to have been a decent bet. I have to admit, I was worried.
Later, I bumped into Salem. Apologized for Val dragging him into this mess with Jacinta. Salem's not thrilled with Val. He thinks she's a terrible diplomat because half the time she's putting her foot in her beak, Jacinta never forgets slights, and Val's likely never going to be forgiven. Plus? Val--when she does let loose--tends to loose an absolute tidal wave of information all mashed up together and with almost no filters. She's done it with me a few times, usually when I've not told her what she believes she ought to be told. Catch 22, anyone? Salem, despite potentially being in trouble with Jacinta, actually said good things about her. How a lesser garou would have had Val on a spit for the things she'd done in the past. But Jacinta /thinks/ before she acts--and she's careful. Salem seemed to respect those qualities a lot. Salem also advised not bringing any native-themed gifts or speaking Yup'ik while meeting with Jacinta, because she'd likely view it as me bastardizing/cheapening their culture--advice that ran completely counter to what Val'd given me earlier. All things consider, I decided to go with Salem's advice: he knows Jacinta better than Val. Salem advised me to just be honest and open, and to show her I could help.
Told Salem I'd previously met with a former Alpha of the sept, to get a corrupted fetish to the local garou, who knew I was a mage: Andrea. Salem filled in a couple blanks: Andrea "Moon-Laughs-Quiet".... who had a mage for a mother. (Well THAT explains some things. Ten freaking years down the road.) When I meet with Jacinta, I'll be sure to name-drop a past sept Alpha who knew about me but didn't think I was dangerous enough to tell the sept about. Hopefully that'll help her enhance her calm.
About this time, Mouse popped in. I filled her in on Salem getting outed by Val to Jacinta for harboring a known mage, so Mouse'd be aware of it. Mouse seemed irked and asked why Val'd up and decided to play diplomat. I speculated--because I don't know--that Val'd been trying to smooth things over between Jacinta and me prior to our meet-up. I have to agree with Mouse: it'd have been nice if she'd asked beforehand. Mouse also explained that secrets and information in the hands of a corax are simply /going/ to get spread. Mouse likened retained gossip/secrets as probably being the absolute worst kind of itch to the ravens.
Salem left, then Mouse and I headed over to Harbor Park, where she used a gift she'd recently learned to haul me across into the umbra with her. Have to admit it was less jarring than using my cat's eye marble talisman to cross over. Didn't get that brief moment of vertigo. (Someone damaged that talisman in the past. I wonder if that's why it's why it does some of the things it does?) Mouse checked me over with Sense Wyrm and I came up clean. She was afraid if there was any taint at all on me the meeting with Jacinta'd immediately go south. We spent a while in the umbral glade afterwards. I got a good look at the fountain/wellspring, then spent some time eyeballing the fetish that keeps the area cloaked in a full-moon night regardless of what the sky looks like in reality outside of the umbral glade. As a treat, I lessened gravity's pull on Mouse to alleviate her back pain and allow her to turn into a wolf and run about more freely. I can remember, nearly two years back, her taking me out to the Walkers' territory out in the woods to give me a secluded area to practice magic. It's sad: I doubt she could make that journey today. Not easily, at least. And not without significant pain.
Got back into St. Claire late Tuesday night. The next day, I ran into Riley up on the roof. We squared things with the car--dancing around the elephant in the room (that Val had told Riley earlier that I was a mage)--and then she slapped me (!!!) for not having told her I was a mage earlier. Obviously, if she'd meant to do me harm, she wouldn't have done that. So.... She said we were squared away then. (The garou have a rather "hitty" way of squaring things. I really don't care for it. At all.) We then ended up talking about the utility of kinfolk, and how they're underutilized by the garou--and occasionally stepped upon. I emphasized that kin are of particular use in support roles where garou would fail: police officers, for instance. And any other number of useful careers. Careers seem to elude the garou unless they can make their own hours and not work with the public. Also, I told her I'd looked in on her discreetly after she'd been hit by magic from that umbral dragon that'd turned her from male to female--and that it basically rewrote her pattern so that reality thinks Riley is--and always has been--a girl. Nothing I could do to fix it as Life magic is not my forte. She seemed thankful I'd tried, but pretty much resigned to being a girl instead of a guy.
The talk of sex changes prompted Riley to also ask if I'd had garou hitting on me since I'd been announced as being kin, then warned that Clarice did like me, was lupus and would likely get obvious about liking me at some point (WTF is that supposed to mean?), and--as I mentioned I was seeing someone else (didn't tell her it was Emma)--I needed to break the news to Clarice sooner rather than later. Something "fun" to do when the moon is slimmer, I think. Ugh.
Anyway, I'm just glad that my gamble with telling Riley about my being a mage seems to have been a decent bet. I have to admit, I was worried.
Later, I bumped into Salem. Apologized for Val dragging him into this mess with Jacinta. Salem's not thrilled with Val. He thinks she's a terrible diplomat because half the time she's putting her foot in her beak, Jacinta never forgets slights, and Val's likely never going to be forgiven. Plus? Val--when she does let loose--tends to loose an absolute tidal wave of information all mashed up together and with almost no filters. She's done it with me a few times, usually when I've not told her what she believes she ought to be told. Catch 22, anyone? Salem, despite potentially being in trouble with Jacinta, actually said good things about her. How a lesser garou would have had Val on a spit for the things she'd done in the past. But Jacinta /thinks/ before she acts--and she's careful. Salem seemed to respect those qualities a lot. Salem also advised not bringing any native-themed gifts or speaking Yup'ik while meeting with Jacinta, because she'd likely view it as me bastardizing/cheapening their culture--advice that ran completely counter to what Val'd given me earlier. All things consider, I decided to go with Salem's advice: he knows Jacinta better than Val. Salem advised me to just be honest and open, and to show her I could help.
Told Salem I'd previously met with a former Alpha of the sept, to get a corrupted fetish to the local garou, who knew I was a mage: Andrea. Salem filled in a couple blanks: Andrea "Moon-Laughs-Quiet".... who had a mage for a mother. (Well THAT explains some things. Ten freaking years down the road.) When I meet with Jacinta, I'll be sure to name-drop a past sept Alpha who knew about me but didn't think I was dangerous enough to tell the sept about. Hopefully that'll help her enhance her calm.
About this time, Mouse popped in. I filled her in on Salem getting outed by Val to Jacinta for harboring a known mage, so Mouse'd be aware of it. Mouse seemed irked and asked why Val'd up and decided to play diplomat. I speculated--because I don't know--that Val'd been trying to smooth things over between Jacinta and me prior to our meet-up. I have to agree with Mouse: it'd have been nice if she'd asked beforehand. Mouse also explained that secrets and information in the hands of a corax are simply /going/ to get spread. Mouse likened retained gossip/secrets as probably being the absolute worst kind of itch to the ravens.
Salem left, then Mouse and I headed over to Harbor Park, where she used a gift she'd recently learned to haul me across into the umbra with her. Have to admit it was less jarring than using my cat's eye marble talisman to cross over. Didn't get that brief moment of vertigo. (Someone damaged that talisman in the past. I wonder if that's why it's why it does some of the things it does?) Mouse checked me over with Sense Wyrm and I came up clean. She was afraid if there was any taint at all on me the meeting with Jacinta'd immediately go south. We spent a while in the umbral glade afterwards. I got a good look at the fountain/wellspring, then spent some time eyeballing the fetish that keeps the area cloaked in a full-moon night regardless of what the sky looks like in reality outside of the umbral glade. As a treat, I lessened gravity's pull on Mouse to alleviate her back pain and allow her to turn into a wolf and run about more freely. I can remember, nearly two years back, her taking me out to the Walkers' territory out in the woods to give me a secluded area to practice magic. It's sad: I doubt she could make that journey today. Not easily, at least. And not without significant pain.
