Charly chuckles "Wait until you see my truck to wonder about that," she says.
Charly's truck is a few blocks away. It's an old two-tone chevy from the 1950's. On the passenger side of the seat is a bomber's jacket like they had in WWII that she pulls on before climbing in. Despite the age, it looks almost brand new, even the dials on the radio move smoothly.
Once the both of them are in and buckled up, Charly curls up in the corner and turns to Carlos.
"I-I'm sorry about what happened," she says.
He looks at the truck and laughs, "Still beats the bus." He moves some of the stuff over and knocks over a few napkins that fell out of his coat but he's too tired to care.
"Not a problem. Nothing you can do about it. Look, what I did wrought this whole day here, so glass houses and such."
"Maybe, but all I seemed to do was make it worse," Charly says as she looks out the window.
He just nods and starts driving off, "They say regret only happens because of what we know now. Believe me, we may have been worse off otherwise, no point dwelling on it now."
"Okay," she says, not really sounding convinced. She's young though, without the wisdom of experience. She tells Carlos haw to get to her condo and thanks him for getting her home.
"You look beat," she observes before getting out of the truck. "Do you want to crash at my place? I can take you to get your van after we get some sleep."
He nods and barely registers where the couch is before he falls onto it, "Don't mind me."
Charly's place, as it turns out, is a huge penthouse flat. One large room is lined movies, games, and a ten-foot wide tv. The kitchen, living room, and dining area are filled with modern furniture and decorated with all sorts of nerdy memorabilia from anime, to Star Wars, to Lord of the Rings, to Dungeons and Dragons, and more. The couch is an expensive, overstuffed monstrosity of a sectional that could easily seat a dozen people.
Not that Carlos has much of a chance to notice before passing out.
When he wakes up, he finds a blanket over him and Charly curled up in a chair-and-a-half that practically swallows her whole.
Dear Hunter;
My name is Emila, Alpha of the Northern Forest Pack and leader of the Werewolves in this area. You might have heard of us, or more exactly the lack of dead people because of us. We have a situation that I need a little help with. Two of our younger whelps have broken our rules. Normally nice and straight forward, but nothing is ever simple nowadays. Let's just say all the options open to me leave me in a situation where we have a pack war. Since dead humans all over the county gets frowned upon by the powers that be I've evoked the ancient right of bringing in neutral outsides to make a choice on my behalf.
That would be you.
My hope is that you can find a solution that all parties hate enough that they don't feel put out, because everyone else is equally screwed over. Or at the very least something that can keep the violence small and localized. My wolves know Hunters, and knowing them means fearing and respecting them. If anyone can make them behave without killing half our number it's yourselves.
If you can, meet up at the Fairpoint Rest Stop Saturday Afternoon. It's a new moon, so that might help keep tempers under control. I also grant safe passage through the woods. Any wolf loyal to me should respect it, so make a note of any bastard that doesn't.
The neatly folded vellum fit inside the perfectly white envelope with a red wax seal of a wolf paw. It took a little effort to notice each claw was, instead, a wolf's head. The lack of a stamp or address suggested hand delivery, or at least a lack of the USPS being involved in the delivery.
The Fairpoint Rest Stop is relatively busy on a Saturday afternoon, with a number of cars in the parking lot and the forest stretching out behind the building feeling tamed and clear.
Captain had hoped to make this trip under better circumstances. That typically involved trade interesting enough for a chat in a neutral space. This type of invitation for safer travel onto this territory with this much involvement with them was incredibly rare for those not wolfblooded.
She would have to make the best of this chance, and hope this war wouldn't get Adalet attention. They were one of two organizations involved in an incident with a Pack that was largely why many others haven't been getting involved with the kind of conversation Captain has been trying to have for some time now. If either organization showed up, the consequences would not be good and if she called Adalet's in without the Pack's explicit request, it would be even worse and she could let go of any chance of getting anything from any Pack or clan for the foreseeable future.
Captain sat in the driver seat of her vehicle at the Fairpoint Rest Stop as she reviewed her notes and her carefully selected supplies one more time as she waited to see who else might show.
Charly reread the letter again as she ate breakfast, well more like an early lunch given the time. As she chewed a bite of bacon and pancake, she pondered why she had been picked, and how they'd managed to get into her place with all of security that was supposed to be in place. It had been rather shocking to find the letter laying on her dining table when she left her bedroom. At first, she had thought a fey trick, but now, that seemed less and less likely. She feels that if they are wanting a mediator, asking a walking disaster like her to attend was asking for trouble. She had been having nightmares about what had happened at the Theatre and the forest before that. Sometimes she woke up screaming as she imagined something mauling her or killing her. Other times she woke up shivering after losing all humanity and turning into a monster herself.
She couldn't accept this invitation, but she did owe them an explanation. She sighed and finished her breakfast before getting a shower. It was going to be a long weekend.
====
The throaty rumble of Charly's truck comes to a stop as she turns the key in the ignition. She hops out dressed in a long-sleeved tee and olive cargo pants that fit over the tops of her boots. She wears her great-grandfather's jacket, a relic from WWII that has been well love and cared for as it has been passed from father to son to daughter to her. Shielding her eyes is a baseball cap with her college's logo on it. She sees the crowd and decides that waiting would be the best option. She also decides that having a better vantage point would be useful, so she climbs up and sits on the sidewall of the bed.
Hopefully the contact would understand. It is too dangerous to have her around, especially when one wrong move could cause a lot of death. Besides, she has to admit that she isn't really cut out for this kind of work.
Jerry turned the ignition to his old truck, letting the engine grumble to a silence. He parked, not too close, not too far from rest stop structure itself, but definitely with a straight shot out of the parking lot if things turned south.
He supposed he understood why Hunters were called in to mediate, but this wasn't anything he was really interested in. He hunted the hunters; he didn't mediate them. But... werewolves. There was bound to be trouble. Maybe then his presence will be relevant.
As he surveyed the rest stop building and the parking lot both out his windows and in his rear view mirror, he murmured aloud, "What the hell am I supposed to do here."
Jessica had waited for several hours at the motel for Jerry and Amelia. It was long enough for others at the place to start noticing her and wondering. She hadn't had to eat or sleep since she became... what she is now, which is helpful because she doesn't have any money with which to buy food or get a place to stay. But if she sticks around long enough with any group of people, it starts to become noticeable that hours can go by with her not showing the slightest pang of hunger.
She had decided to give Jerry and Amelia a few more hours before she figures they weren't coming and move on. But then her "other" self begins to awake. That part of her that terrifies her. The Fury. The erinyes. The angel of vengeance. Androleteira.
She senses something wrong, even though it's just a resident of the motel going from his room to the vending machines. But it was a look he gave her, and the feeling she got when her eyes fell upon him. It was powerful, inexorable, and she was on her feet before she knew it.
The man was returning with a couple bottles of Power-aide when she approaches. He looks her over and Jessica knows instinctively what he was seeing; a dirty teenaged girl in an oversized hoodie, probably a runaway, likely desperate. Easy prey.
He smiles in a kind, paternalistic way, but she could sense the predator underneath. "Hey, darlin', you like to party? You wanna get high? I got some weed, a little coke inside."
Jessica doesn't say anything, but nods and adds a little shiver. The Fury inside is coiled like a snake ready to strike, but she needs to see the sin. Even though she knows, she can't let herself act until she sees whatever transgression this man is committing.
He hands her the bottles of sports drink while he retrieves his key and unlocks the door. He pulls her inside his motel room and shuts the door, standing in front of it in case Jessica were to change her mind and try to get out.
It would have been a good instinct. The curtains were drawn shut so no one could see in from the outside. A camera was set up on a tripod, aimed at the bed where a mostly-naked girl lounged, probably younger than Jessica appeared by a couple years. White powder and baggies of green, leafy substance were on the bedside table along with an assortment of mini bottles.
"What's your name?" the man asks as he takes a hold of her arm in a viselike grip.
"A-- Andi," she replies, as she becomes less and less Jessica and Androleteira comes to the forefront.
"Well, Andi, I'm Jake. And this is Naomi. Why don't you take that dirty old hoodie off? We're all friends here." He pulls her toward the bed.
"Andi" looks up at him. "Okay," she says as she grabs the hem of the sweatshirt and pulls it up over her head, exposing her cuirass.
Jake's hand drops to his side as he gapes at the ancient armor. Androleteira's eyes shift to terrifying pits of condemnation and her flaming sword appears in her hand. With her unnatural strength, she grabs Jake's shirt and forces him against the wall. He whimpers in shock and terror.
"Predator of the young and defenseless. Stealer and peddler of innocence. For your transgressions, the punishment is de--"
"NO!!" Jessica is able to stay her hand at the last possible moment. The flaming sword is centimeters from the man's throat where it stays, trembling. Jake looses control of his bladder and cries as he is nearly struck down by an angel of vengeance. He puts his hands over his face to try to ward away her terrifying eyes.
Jessica sends her sword away, her fury still at its zenith. She digs into his pockets and pulls out a cell phone. She hits the emergency number for it to start calling 911. Then she finds his wallet, fat with cash. Something about the money sings to her. Ill-gotten. She realizes she can claim it and she does, shunting it into her otherspace. "Making a profit, are we?" she hisses.
She grabs him with both hands and summons her large, ash-gray wings. Before she even has a chance to consider whether they'll be able to carry the both of them, she has dragged Jake outside and taken flight. She flies up to a telephone pole at the entrance to the motel and hooks his belt upon one of the rungs, leaving him dangling like a rag doll just underneath the street light.
She moves and she's back in Jake's room. The girl, Naomi, is staring at Jessica with blood-shot, stoned eyes. Seeing that she was barely clothed, Jessica picks up her hoodie and hands it to her. "Here, put this on. The police are on their way. They'll help you."
Then Jessica moves and she is several hundred miles away.
=====================
When the Hancock Hills Shopping Plaza opened, a strange girl in an old Greek-style suit of armor was waiting outside. She smiled at the confused staff and headed straight to the teen fashion section. She made several selections and headed into the fitting rooms. After a while she stepped out in a tight pair of jeans and a t-shirt, the armor curiously absent. She made a few other selections and checked out, paying in cash.
When the curious staff checked out the fitting rooms, they could find no sign of the armor.
The fact that Jessica could claim ill-gotten money as hers was a revelation. After buying some new clothes, she splurged on a new haircut, some makeup, sunglasses, and a prepaid phone -- no contract.
She had pretty much ran through all the money she got from Jake, so she started looking for more. Without a need for sleep, she started prowling the dive motels, waiting for her inner Fury to alert to someone doing something terrible.
Unfortunately, weeks passed and she found no one like Jake. She stopped a few domestic incidents and discovered a pair of burglars who returned to their motel room after pillaging a number of homes and vehicles. However, none of them were lucrative. The stolen items, while ill-gotten, still had owners who wanted them back.
Her frustration mounted. Where were the criminals making money off of other criminals? That, she concluded, was how she could claim the ill-gotten money. She just needed a method to find them rather than blind luck. And there was the perfect way.
The Internet.
=======================
Jerry was sitting in his truck when Jessica appeared in the passenger seat. She was dressed a little nicer; her clothes were cleaner and better fitting. She looked a lot less like a homeless girl.
"--So I've figured it out! I can claim ill-gotten money! It works! If someone spends money on illegal things, the money is technically no one's!"
Her hands are animated as she talks to him rapid-fire, though she pauses to pull the fast food wrappers out from under her. "So all you and I need to do is get on the internet, pose as, you know, a dumb underage kid and let the pedos come out of the woodwork! They send a few pics, we agree to meet, and then--" She pauses and looks out of the window at the rest stop.
"Whatcha doing here?"
Jerry's trembling hand releases his grip on his 9mm and releases it back into its holster as he breathes deep, trying to get his adrenaline under control. He ignores her talk of money and pedophiles as he tries to convey how stupid she just was with his eyes.
After a moment, he answers her last question by pointing to the rest stop building and saying, "Werewolf spat. They need a neutral party."
Jessica looks abashed at Jerry's glare. She gives him a hurt look back. "All right. Sorry, I'm still figuring all this out, and... wait. Did you say werewolves? They're a thing? I mean, I guess most stuff is real after all, but really? Like, there really are wolf men? Do they turn at the full moon and all? And, don't we need silver bullets or something?"
Kavax shifted and stretched. He'd been right that curling up in the back of the Captain's van was actually much more comfortable than sitting on a seat. Someday he'd just soar to places like this... but his wings still hadn't grown in.
"Still got no idea why they actually want ME here. Though I guess I am one of the few things around that just about every monster in the know takes seriously."
"Did you say werewolves? They're a thing? I mean, I guess most stuff is real after all, but really? Like, there really are wolf men? Do they turn at the full moon and all? And, don't we need silver bullets or something?"
"Yes, to all of those questions.
"I'm waiting to see who all shows up before going in, but I'm not seeing anybody."
He looks over at her.
"I'd be happy to have you as backup."
Jessica meets Jerry's eyes. Backup. She wasn't sure at first, but she quickly remembered she came to him wanting him to help her go after internet pedophiles. It was only fair. "Sure. I'll help you out. What do they need a neutral party for?"
Jessica looks around at the cars and people at the rest stop and puts her hand on the door handle. "I can go out and look around if you'd like. I can get around pretty fast, you know."
After a little while, Charly finds her stomach complaining and decides that something to snack on and drink is in order. As she walks up to the building, she sees a familiar looking truck and not having anything better to do, walks up and taps on the window.
"Hey Jerry, long time no see," she says before seeing Jessica sitting in the passenger seat. "Uh, having a family outing?"
Jerry has to consciously let go of his sidearm again, but this time it's not because he was surprised.
"Charly. Hi."
There's a long, awkward pause where Jerry doesn't meet anybody's eye.
"We're here for the same reason you're here, I imagine." He juts his chin towards the rest stop building. "This is Jessica. She's a Hunter."
Jerry opens his door part way to prompt Charly to step back so she doesn't get bumped by the door. He gets out, bringing his nightstick with him.
Jessica slips out of the passenger door and walks around Jerry's truck. She looks to be somewhere in her late teens, dressed in tight jeans, sneakers, and a vintage-washed t-shirt.
At being called a Hunter, Jessica just waves it away self-deprecatingly. "I'm just his backup, that's all." She sticks her hand out for a shake after wiping off the slight clamminess that suddenly appeared. "Hi. Charly, was it? Jessica Andr-- Andrews. Andrews is my name."
She leans in conspiratorially and whispers, "So, apparently werewolves are real? So weird." An idea suddenly strikes her and she takes a step back. "Unless you're a werewolf? If so, sorry about the weird thing."
"She's not a werewolf."
Jerry turns and heads towards the building.
Jessica stares at Jerry's back as he walks off. He'd been on edge when she showed up, but now she could sense her summmoner's hate and pain radiating off of him.
She turns back around and looks at Charly. She seemed normal, but the way had Jerry said she wasn't a werewolf left it wide open that she could be anything else. Okay, then. Time to keep an eye on her.
She smiles and asks, "So, how do you know Jerry?"
Captain used the rearview mirror to glance back, "Looks like we'll need to head out quickly, other company has arrived." before she secured her seat and left the vehicle, still considering Kavax's words.
She opened the back, both to make it easier for Kavax to get out comfortable and to grab a grey bag. With her grey tailored suit and boots, Captain had a muted but still highly polished look - even with the large gun tucked under her bag.
Captain was more used to dealing with those who broke protocol than being an arbitrator, but as long as she got enough information to consider the rules, and time to discuss other important information, this could be an excellent opportunity.
"It's hard to know, but sometimes neutral can mean being equally an ear or a concern to all sides..." she finally responded with consideration as she stepped aside to give Kavax space, prepared to lock up and finish securing the vehicle once everyone was ready. "Anything else before we go? in a matter-of-fact tone that was probably as eager sounding as Captain was going to get these days...
"No, I'm pretty good. Got my blade with me already"
Kavax carefully clambered out of the back and took a look around. He caught some familiar scents on the wind, and soon saw the people as well.
He stretched out one more time, and started ambling over toward the impromptu gathering.
After the events of the theater he knew what he needed to do. When he looked at the city from the penthouse Charly lived in, it made him feel small, but not only that, alone. So many people in a city, but so few he actually knew. Sure there were his work friends... but it wasn't the same.
He had to go home and see mama. He needed to confront himself and his past and try to come to terms with it all. The PTSD didn't help but he knew that going at it alone wasn't the way, he had tried that and it almost led to him stumbling to his death in a burning building when push came to shove.
So he booked the first flight he could back home.
Time had always felt different there, the average person would call it lazy but it wasn't that at all. It was more at peace, and while he knew that the peace was a veneer hiding so much corruption underneath, there was still truth to that peace. He remembered the smell of her cooking before he even landed. He knew that she would still be there with open arms after it all. Taking a quick trip over, he saw the stream that held a lot of bad memories and a lot of good, almost a mirror of the place he loved so much. Seeing the small statues of the saints and the lights all still strung up, he knew this was what he needed right now.
And when he embraced his mother he knew he was right.
---
Sadly all things have to come to an end and he awoke one morning to his mama holding a letter. She had that look on her face, that look that knew that there was something nearly magical on it. He took it, read it out and set it aside, it could wait until after dinner tonight. Besides he couldn't flap his arms and get there under such circumstances.
There was the nagging voice in his head though. How did they find me? And why me?
It ultimately didn't matter and he booked his flight, said his goodbyes and promised to be back more often. Of course when he opened his bag at the airport he found food stuffed in it, she still didn't quite understand that this kind of thing was frowned upon. He gave what he could away, stuffed his face with the rest and boarded.
The entire time on the flight back he had wondered how they had found him. He was sure that there was some valid explanation, probably with coyote folk or something else, but he didn't really care right now. He had a job to do, and he knew that his papa would want him to follow that path.
---
He gambled on taking a taxi straight from the airport there. If experience had taught him anything it was that he was bound to run into some of his coworkers... And could get a ride back.
Getting out he stood taller than the defeated person that left the country, he felt renewed and alive again.
"It's showtime."
He put his glasses on and walked into the rest stop.
Jessica stares at Jerry's back as he walks off. He'd been on edge when she showed up, but now she could sense her summmoner's hate and pain radiating off of him.
She turns back around and looks at Charly. She seemed normal, but the way had Jerry said she wasn't a werewolf left it wide open that she could be anything else. Okay, then. Time to keep an eye on her.
She smiles and asks, "So, how do you know Jerry?"
Charly shrinks into her jacket as Jerry walks off. It seems he still doesn't trust her.
"We worked together on a case," she answers, "I... I guess you're gonna find out anyway. Jerry and I met in the woods while my glamer was glitching. He and his partner, a big bear of a man named Zeke, saw that I was a vampire. I saw them see, and I ran. Hunters tend not to ask questions when a monster's about and there'd been disappearances in the area, which is why I was there to begin with." Charly sighs, and Jessica can see that she was probably only a few years older than the fury is, at most, when she was turned.
"I wouldn't worry about it. I just came to apologize and turn them down. I'm not going to be in your hair long," Charly adds after an awkward moment of silence. "I'd just make things worse anyhow."
Jessica's eyes go wide. There was a lot to unpack just then. First and foremost, that Charly just dropped that she was a vampire. She starts nodding. "Okay. Huh. Vampire."
Well, that explains why my summ-- why Jerry's all flipped out. "Yeah, he's got a problem with... your kind."
She looks into the sky briefly and then back at Charly. "Isn't it kind of... bright for you?"
"A little, but I'm not about to burst into flames or anything," Charly says with a chuckle. "And before you ask, no, I don't sparkle in the sun either. I do burn like a lobster, but I did that when I was still human."
Jessica's mouth twists in annoyance when Charly infers that she'd think Twilight was accurate. "Geez, I was like, six or something when that movie came out. I never even saw it."
She hooks her thumbs in her pockets and scuffs the ground. The vampires she'd fought when Jerry had called her back to the world were bloodthirsty creatures that didn't seem interested in conversation. It was strange standing there and not having her sword out. "So, you're not going to stick around for the werewolves, huh? Is there, like, a vampire-werewolf war or something?"
"I was ten or eleven, and I had an older cousin that was obsessed with it. She never did let me pick what we watched when I was over at her house," Charly said with the air of someone who has seen something they hate over and over again, only to have the hatred grow stronger.
When the question of a Vampire-Werewolf war comes up, she just laughs it off.
"No, nothing like that. Just... Seems like any time I try and help, I wind up making things worse. Do you remember the George Hudson Theatre getting blown up several weeks back?"
Jessica thinks back and comes up empty. Several weeks back she was either underground and fighting a plague bringer or on a shopping binge after finding some ill-gotten money that she could claim. She shakes her head and shrugs. "No, I don't really pay much attention to current events."
Obviously, Charly must have been somehow involved. Her imagination starts to run. "Were there a lot of people killed in the explosion?" She hoped it wasn't a full house.
Though, there was a curious absence of voices of the wronged crying out for vengeance around her if she was truly responsible for a lot of deaths. She closes her eyes and listens closely. "No, no I don't sense anything like that. So you're either not responsible or no one was killed. Though you've got--"
Jessica cuts herself off as she's suddenly assailed by a series of visions. She shakes herself free from them after a second, and then gapes at this so-called vampire in front of her. "You're not just a vampire..." she stammers under her breath.
She starts taking a few steps in the direction Jerry went. "Umm, okay, then. Nice meeting you. I should go see if my summ-- I mean, if Jerry needs anything."
"No, but that was more due to everyone else than... me," Charly's voice trails off as she sees Jessica beginning to gape at her. She looks away before the young girl could get a better look at the expression on her face.
"N-nice meeting... you... too." She sighs. Jessica is long gone by the time she gets the words out. No longer hungry or thirsty, she heads towards the building and hopes she can find their contact before Jerry or Jessica.
Charly is able to spot a lanky woman with messily tied back blonde hair sitting in the corner of the restaurant, watching the group with obvious bemusement. As she noticed Charly looking at her she smiled in a way that could only be described as wolfishly and stood up, smoothing down her t-shirt and heading over to the group.
"I take you're all here at Emila's invitation?" She glanced over at Kavax with a raised eyebrow. "Least, I hope that's why you're all here."
Carlos sauntered toward the meeting spot, he was sure he would be late but as long as the moon wasn't up he wasn't too worried about the people he was supposed to mediate. They knew he had to fly over, so hopefully it wasn't an issue; he hardly wanted angry werewolves snapping at his heels to get there faster... figuratively or literally.
He felt the warmness in the air, the little charm at his side dangled and changed colour. Sulfur. Brimstone. Kavax. There wasn't anything wrong with the dragon-man, in fact he found him pleasant company all things considered, but it never meant good news. Turning in the direction of the unease he spotted a familiar van, obviously parked in such a way to not draw attention; he knew full well who it's driver was. Seeing it empty he knew for sure he was late. She was the benchmark for promptness.
I wonder who else was called. We really should consider unionizing. He chuckled at the joke, and made a mental note to say the exact same one as soon as the opportunity arose. No one had to know he planned his quips in advance.
He opened the door and stepped in.
"Table for..." Seeing the extremely obvious hunters, he flipped his glasses onto his forehead, "... Six? Seven?"
Jerry approached the building, assuming Jessica and Charly would also come. As he walked through the parking lot, he noticed a couple other Hunters he'd worked with in the past--and one other who was new to him--get out and also approach. He and Charly weren't the only ones to get the invitation, it seems.
Before going in, he nodded to Kavax and the woman he was with. Once inside, when the group was approached by the lanky woman, he let the others answer. Zeke was always better at that sort of thing. That new girl Amelia was, also. As Carlos enters, he shakes the man's hand in greeting.
Jessica was trying to shake out the strange and confusing visions she had somehow downloaded into her brain when she tried to sense the strings of vengeance that may have surrounded the vampire Charly. Her name's Charly. And there weren't any screaming souls, there was just-- Her mind flinched away again.
And then suddenly it caught up to her. The brimstone stench and the real source of agony -- Kavax was here. Except, of course, her fallen nature just didn't care. She would rage against a sweet-talker who led a girl astray and broke her heart, but she couldn't feel true outrage at a beast that has some kind of role in the apocalypse? It was enough to drive her insane.
She opens her eyes again and realizes she's still standing in the parking lot and probably everyone was already inside learning about the problem and she'd come in late and not know what was going on and she'd look stupid or like some sort of horrible ditz... She almost moved elsewhere. But she shakes her head and jogs inside.
Captain gave a faint nod and finished securing her vehicle after Kavax left.
After doing so she noticed a few familiar faces going into the restaurant. As the note had said nothing about meeting anyone here, she had intended to go straight into the woods as her typical trade strategy with them wasn't going to work if they were going to be hiking so soon. While she considered for a moment heading out on her own, she knew that with the potential threats out there that at least checking in with the others first was a more solid strategy.
Skirting around the group, she approached and answered the woman in Captain's typical direct-to-business fashion, "Yes. As I wasn't sure if we would have time for the typical meal I'd get us, at least if we want to get there within the next couple of hours, I've brought this spice mix and recipe from one of my Kyrgyr contacts. holding out a clear envelope with a folded piece of paper and reddish-orange grains that she suspected the werewolf could tell had a spicy-sweet aroma. Captain had been trading with werewolf packs for years now and if she couldn't sweeten things with food directly, unusual ways for them to do that themselves was a second option.
Charly takes in a deep breath as she sees the others and barely resists the urge to turn around and go back to her truck and leave. She tries to keep what Carlos had told her after the incident at the theatre in mind, but words are a thin shield against the weight of her own doubts and the steadily darkening depression she is sinking into. She lets out the breath and walks in, hoping that she can get this over with quickly.
"I did get the invitation," she tells the lanky woman she guesses is their contact, "but I'm not sure you want me around it things are as delicate as that invitation said they were. I'm sorry," she says with a bow. "I know most of the rest and they'll be good help. I know things will work out with them helping you."
She starts to turn and leave, but something keeps her from moving much as she waits for the others to say something, anything.
Jessica slips inside the restaurant and finds Jerry quickly. What she didn't expect was the reunion of the others: Captain Rose and Carlos Garcia. Kavax, she already knew was here.
She gives Charly a wide berth, but comes up to the man who found her humanity. "Hey, Mr. Garcia! Good to see you again." She bites the inside of her lip, wondering if she should share, but ultimately she can't resist. "I've got something to show you," she whispers.
She holds up a hand and then from the otherspace she stores things calls forth a large pinfeather. It's an uneven gray, almost looking like it's been blackened or singed by fire. "Here." She hands it to him. "Whaddya think?"
"Yeah. Don't really get why I was invited. Though my best guess is as a deterrent."
He looked over to Charly, one of the familiar faces here. Possibly the one most able to understand his position.
"...I don't know what the situation is, but you were probably invited for a reason, Charly. Don't leave just yet. Not until we've heard things out at least. Might be that a storm is brewing either way."
"Table for lots. Gotcha. Just head through the side section, and pull together what you need. We can put it back together later." The server smiled at Carlos and looked over at the others who had gathered, and pointed past them to a small side section that seemed unoccupied.
~~~~
The guide grinned. "I won't say I know Emilia's mind, you understand - she's the boss for good reasons. But I imagine a lot of you are here because some wolves aren't going to respond well to pretty words or hollow threats - try getting into a pissing contest and you'll find there's a lot of wolves, and your ankles are all wet. Better to break some heads and put the fear into anyone being stupid. Most will see reason, but some will only see it with a boot lodged in their ass. Don't worry. We heal."
She shrugged. "Which isn't to say it has to go that way, but it's as good a backup plan as any. Ooooh, spices. Maybe we can do some barbeque rubs when the breaks happen. It'll be tasty."
Hearing Kavax saying she should stay is enough to make her take a seat. She practically hides in her jacket, a bomber style jacket that was made for someone nearly a foot taller than she is. Listening to the woman, er werewolfess? Were-she-wolf? Their guide, yeah, that'd probably be safest. Listening to their guide, Charly finds that she has more questions than answers. If Emilia wants muscle and brains then the others made sense. Even Jessica seems better suited to this since Jerry appears to like and actually trust her, which speaks volumes about how competent the supposed teenager is.
"So does that make us a carrot or a stick," she asks before she can clamp her mouth shut on the joke that only she was likely to get.
Why did I have to have such an oddball sense of humor?
Carlos gives Jerry a shake and sees a couple of familiar faces. "I suppose you've worked with them before? Must make you one of the good ones too." He smiles, "If you need to know things, I am your man. I've been studying actually." He had hoped he didn't come off as arrogant but in this field it was important to know where everyone fit in.
Hearing the familiar 'Mister' in the air he turned to see Jessica, although she looked different than before. "Nice seeing you too. I had hoped that everything started working out for the better for you after well..." He waved his hand in the air, "Never mind. What do you have there?"
Taking the feather and looking at it, he wondered what it could be. "Can't say I can tell off the top of my head. It seems like a curiosity I would find buried somewhere in my house, but without me taking a closer look, I'm not really sure." He cringed internally and shot a half laughing look at Jerry, "Ignore what I just said. I do still know things."
He had heard the little sound of Charly but before he had a chance to kick in and give her a hand, Kavax seemed to raise her spirits. There was something almost poignant about it and it lifted his as well.
Giving a nod to Captain Rose, he knew that she was working and thought better than ask about that theoretical vacation that she was supposed to go on. He would save it for a time when they weren't on the clock, which for her meant the end of the world.
Jessica finds herself grinning when Carlos doesn't immediately recognize what the feather might represent. She starts to whisper to him, but is interrupted by the guide. She stops and turns to pay attention to what is said.
After listening close to the guide, she couldn't say she really understood what they were supposed to do. She glances over to Jerry, hoping that he knew more. Well, I'm just 'backup' anyway. I'll let him or Captain Rose do the talking.
Explaining that werewolf situations sometimes required violence felt to Captain like explaining the sky is blue or shadow shards are valuable. Well, maybe not the latter, buying them at trinket prices from those with no idea had more benefits. Maybe more like water is wet and, much like even a second to her CEO, no one should expect an Alpha's reasoning beyond generalities. They might get it, but Captain had long learned there was no benefit to expecting it.
As the topic changed to her spices, Captain's eyes got a bit of warmth to them, "Barbeque would suit this well. I can bring up more next time if it's well liked. Hopefully it won't be so long, it seems to have been busy on all sides recently."
A glance back towards the door and the forest beyond Will Emilia prefer if we get in sooner to get started or... as she looked into the unoccupied seating area that would have been fine for meal and trade, but she was unsure about it as a place to discuss sensitive werewolf matters or anything that move things along in that direction. While she had no issue either way, she strongly preferred heading now. Might disappoint the staff, but she could tip them well later. The longer she had among the other werewolves, the more likely something of interest would come her way. At the moment she just had to hope that no one's behaviour so far would be off-putting to someone who had enough of Emilia's trust to send her to meet them.
He cringed internally and shot a half laughing look at Jerry, "Ignore what I just said. I do still know things."
Jerry smiles and nods.
"I wasn't thinking you knew less."
Then he turns his attention to what the werewolf is saying.
He hears a whisper from Jessica but is interrupted when Jerry pops in, giving him a nod back he listens in to the disguised werewolf. He shoots a quick puzzled look to Jessica then after hearing Captain Rose speak he adds his insight.
"I hope it doesn't have to come to violence. I have limited experience with their... culture but I can't imagine it being any different than talking to jarheads and their idea of hyper intensity." But with more fur and possibly way more danger.
Looking toward the guide he extended a hand, "Carlos. And you might be? Can't surely go without asking you that much, considering its the least I could do for the offer of safe passage." He pauses for a moment and scans the others, "I mean that is still valid right?"
Jessica's head whips back and forth between Jerry and Carlos, suddenly realizing that the two men had never met before.
"Oh! Mr. Garcia, this is my summoner -- no, too blatant! Jerry Harris. He's... the one who called me here? No. The one who brought me into the world? No, that sounds like he's my dad. My reason for being here? No, that's worse!
"He's... like, we go back... with history, and stuff..." Ugh.
She turns away, cheeks fully flushed, and sits down at a spot in the dining room. She puts her elbow on the table and props her head up against her hand. She tries to push away the embarrassment by focusing on the werewolf problem. "So the werewolves want to invite us to a barbecue? Does anyone else here see a problem with that?"