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Dusty makes his way up from the promontory, guitar case slung over his
back. He doesn't carry it religiously anymore like he used to, but
tonight, he does. He offers a faint and somewhat distant smile to his
tribemates and chooses a tree to lean against, resting one palm flat
against the bark.

Louisa settles somewhere amidst the group, standing with her hands
pushed into her jacket pockets.

Nightflash appears from the Umbra, apparently having arrived on the
island from that side.

Lawrence appears to have been waiting here for a while, having seated
himself comfortably with his back against a tree. He's finishing up
the last few pages of a novel.

John arrives a few minutes after the ahroun, looking around and nodding
to the others.

Andrea has cleared an area and started a fire which lights the
surrounding faces of the tribe. Several wooden bowls are set out, with
both liquids and pastes of various colors. As more and more people
gather, she turns to Nightflash and John. She waves toward the area of
the island John came from and says, "Go there and drag back what you
find."

Louisa smiles tentatively at the elders and moves closer to the fire,
crouching down a comfortable distance from the flames to watch in
silence.

Robert comes around the island into the grove and nods to Andrea,
explaining, "I got Joseph to babysit for the evening. He said he'll be
in touch if anything happens."

Adam approaches the fire slowly, the ceremony calming the Cub quite a
bit. But, he remains standing, staring into the flames.

Andrea smiles at the Arm with a nod, motioning toward Dusty. "I'm glad
both of you could come." She glances toward Lawrence and, smiling
faintly, lets him finish those last few pages before going further.

Louisa touches her tongue to her lips, waiting, listening.

Realizing Andrea's eyes are on him, Lawrence looks up from his book and
around at the crowd that has gathered while he's been engrossed. With
a mild sigh, he rises and closes the book, and then sets it down on
the ground where he's been sitting. After bidding it farewell with a
light pat on the cover, he joins the others nearer the fire, although
he stays some distance from both the other cubs and carefully avoids
meeting their eyes.

John nods to Andrea, heading back in the direction indicated by the
elder theurge with Nightflash. The two return presently, lugging a
good sized deer between them, which is laid near the fire. There is a
small hole in the deer's throat, apparently an arrow wound.

Where Lou would typically greet Lawrence, his avoidance of eye contact
quells her words. She glances to Adam and nods in greeting to him,
then looks back to the preparations.

Dusty's bare feet pad quietly across the dirt and pine needles of the
grove as he straightens to greet the Warder. "Good evening," he
murmurs quietly. His eyes trail down to the preparation, and a small,
reminiscent smiles crinkles a few of the laugh lines on his brow and
tugs his lips upwards.

Louisa comes full circle from her First Change, eyes settling on the
deer.

Adam notices Louisa's greeting, and nods to her, almost absently. His
gaze shifts to Lawrence for a moment, nodding also in greeting. He
turns his head to the approaching Gaians, watching them bring the
deer.

Andrea's smile widens and grows more fond as Lawrence moves into the
circle. She takes a few breaths to look at each cub before she
gestures toward the deer and speaks, "Normally, the Garou law holds.
The first share of the kill to the highest in station. But tonight,
the cubs have need of the food. Shift. Shift and eat until you think
your stomach will burst, because it may be some days before you eat
again.

Louisa shifts adding her own strange shadows to those cast by the flames
of the fire.

It doesn't look like Adam's in any mood to eat, but he nods in reverent
thanks to his elder. He stands still, and shifts downward.

Lawrence looks somewhat pained at the prospect of having to stomach raw
venison, but does as he is bid, taking to the wolf shape and stepping
forward to gnaw at some of the meat.

Weighs-the-Way circles around the fire, sniffs at the deer, then with a
growl begins tearing into the 'meal'.

Barks-Softly approaches the deer, still tentative. After a moment, he
chuffs to himself, and rips a large hunk of meat from the carcass,
eating.

Andrea kneels near the various bowls, waiting for the cubs to finish.
The smell of blood tinges the air like heated copper, but the breeze
off the lake is pleasantly cool.

Weighs-the-Way eats as much as she can, then backs away, carefully
licking the blood from her fur and grooming herself as the other two
cubs finish eating their fill.

Dusty unslings his guitar and takes up a position at the base of one of
the trees near the hidden mouth of the cave, stillwatching quietly and
balancing he end of the case on one foot.

Reaches-High's hesitance about eating manifests itself in him stepping
away from the carcass without having done much more than pick at it.
He looks to Andrea.

Barks-Softly tries, really tries, to eat as much as he can, and drown
the butterflies in his stomach in raw, bloody venison. He turns away,
finally, from the deer, and faces Andrea.

You sense Robert observes quietly, "They need more practice and poise in
the lupus form."

Andrea nods shallowly to something Robert murmurs. After replying
quietly, she motions again to the cubs. "Go down to the water and
drink, then come to me."

You whisper "That is something that will come with time, I hope." to
Robert.

Barks-Softly pads slowly to the water, drinking deeply. He's calming,
just a little bit, as he shakes himself off of dust and such.

Weighs-the-Way, finished grooming, lopes off toward the water and
returns after she's done as she is told.

Reaches-High, also, does as told. He shows more interest in drinking
than in eating, for he's the last of the three to return to the
fireside.

Weighs-the-Way noses first Barks, then Reaches as they return, whuffing
at each of them. Together.

Barks-Softly looks to Weighs, and chuffs.

When all three are back, Andrea nods. "I am sending you into Dream," she
begins. You can almost hear the capital letter. "You will deal with
what you find there. You may be together, or you may not. When you
come back, you will tell your stories, and we will know whether your
passed or failed." She looks at each again, solemnly. "I will not say
that all wake from these dreams, though most do. If you have words you
want to say before you begin, now is the time."

Barks-Softly lowers his head, going still. Thank you.

Reaches-High takes this as an opportunity to take his birth form. "I
need a favor."

Weighs-the-Way tilts her head, ears pricked. Into wolf-Dream?

Andrea shakes her head at Louisa. "True dreams don't depend on form."
She then turns to Lawrence, nodding her permission.

Weighs-the-Way follows Lawrence back to homid, then. She settles back to
her usual crouch and waits her turn to speak again.

Pack> Touch Deer's voice floats over the link, quiet enough that Andrea
could ignore it if she liked: "Andrea, the cubs' Rite goes well?"
Pack> Andrea says "It's just starting."

Barks-Softly thinks on it for a moment, and elects to also shift upward.
He doesn't say anything else for the moment.

From his knees, Lawrence says, quietly, "I haven't seen my mom and dad
in more than half a year. I'd... I'd like it if someone could look out
for them, if..." He trails off, shrugs, and waits for an answer.

Andrea's dark eyes are hard to read in the flickering light, but her
face shows sympathy. "We are the Children of Gaia. We will do
everything we can to protect the innocent. It will be done." Her voice
drops a little, becoming less formal. "I wish we could have found out
whether they were kin." She then turns to Adam and nods to him as
well. Her voice returns to its normal projecting alto. "And you're
welcome, though we only did as you deserved. You have all been cubs we
can be proud of. Know that, as you go."

Dusty is silent through all of this, watching with a curiously detached
and almost lost expression.

Louisa folds her hands together between her knees and speaks quietly
toward the elders, toward the fire, toward the sky. "I would like it
remembered that I go not only in my name and for the honor of Gaia's
children, but in the name of Alexandras Rytis Ambrazevicius."

Adam lowers his head at Andrea's words, the meaning striking him to his
core. As Louisa speaks, he nods, remembering the fallen Cub.

Lawrence glances towards the ground and shoves his hands into his
pockets. He shifts on his feat uneasily.

Andrea just nods, saying merely, "Each of you is going for yourself.
This is your test of adulthood." She adjusts her postion, feet digging
into the soil as she continues to kneel by the bowls. "Lawrence
Reaches-High, come forward."

Lawrence looks up and takes his hands from his pockets. He takes two
bold steps forward, which carry him to stand right before Andrea.

Andrea motions the cub to kneel. She then digs her finger into the red
paste, drawing the glyph for homid on his forehead. "Red for blood and
blood for birth." The philodox moon is drawn in a gray grainy paste on
the left cheek, and the mark for the Children on the right in a waxy
green. She then motions him up and calls out, "Adam Barks-Softly, step
forward."

Louisa quiets and watches solemnly, drawing into herself a bit at the
response to her words.

Adam raises his head, stepping forward, kneeling before the Arden.

Andrea makes the exact same marks on Adam's face. "Grey for Luna's face
as she watches above." She doesn't smile at the cub, though her
fingers are as gentle as they are deft. She motions him to stand with
Lawrence. "Louisa Weighs-the-Law, step forward."

Louisa pushes upward from her crouch and steps up to Andrea, then kneels
just as the others did.

Andrea again duplicates the marks, the births of the cubs not calling
for the slightest deviation. As she makes the last, she says, "Green
for life which all her Children share." She motions Louisa up as well,
and then takes the bowl full of a vile greenish liquid. She again goes
first to Lawrence and offers the wooden bowl. "Drink, so that you may
dream."

Louisa stands and watches, pulling the leather jacket close around
herself.

Lawrence wrinkles his nose at the brew, but takes the bowl and raises it
to his lips, and drinks several swallows before passing it onwards to
Adam while supressing a grimace.

Adam takes the bowl reverently. The tall blond boy stares at the bowl
for a moment, then raises it to his lips, drinking deeply. He remains
stolid, but pushes his breath out in a slow hiss as he brings the bowl
down, passing it to Louisa.

Louisa takes the bowl just as the other two cubs did. What is left, she
drinks, drawing it's bitterness and earthen essence into herself
completely, eyes closed. When she offers the bowl back to Andrea, the
liquid is left still on her lips and she only then remembers to
breathe.

Andrea takes the bowl back and nods. She gestures toward the clear area.
"Lie back and close your eyes." She then looks at Dusty. "You can sing
them away, if you would." She goes to get a final bowl, this one full
of black paste that smells vaguely like nutmeg.

Adam quietly takes a seat on the ground, taking another look at the
assembled tribesmates before laying down on his back, letting his
eyelids close.

Lawrence does as told, moving over towards the clear area and settling
down on his back. He folds his arms across his chest and stares up at
the sky for a few moments before allowing his eyes to close.

Louisa looks to the other two before she moves, seeking them each out
with her blue-lensed brown eyes before following finally to sit down.
Next she allows her attention to slide to each of the tribesmembers
before laying back with her arms still crossed over her middle. Her
lips move soundlessly toward the darkening sky and then she closes her
eyes.

Dusty blinks at this request, but nods and lays the guitar down next to
him, opening the case and fingering the strings. He cocks his head,
tuning quickly by ear and by humming a few bars of the song he's
apparently chosen. When finished, he strikes up the soft but
complicated guitar ballad. For those who have not heard him sing
before, his voice is a smooth, complex, and trained tenor,
now-deepened to tenor-baritone, that starts out quiet and caressing at
first.

Hush now, don't you cry

Wipe away the teardrop from your eye

You're lying safe in bed

It was all a bad dream spinning inside your head...

Andrea gives Dusty a look that's a mixture of bemusement and humor as
she kneels a final time. She smears the paste on closed eyelids and
lips, whispering to each, "Mother watch your path."

John watches the three cubs intently, murmuring under his breath after
they sleep, "Good luck to you all."

Dusty continues, voice still soft and caressing, completely ignoring
anyone else and a soft smile on his lips. His eyes lose the lost look
they had earlier.

Your mind tricked you to feel the pain

Of someone close to you leaving the game...

Nightflash doesn't do his usual sendoff for cubs going on a Rite of
Passage, which consists of howling. Instead, he silently wishes them
well.

Once the cubs are well and truly gone to sleep, the music trails off and
Dusty looks up, that lost and detached look seeping back gradually
into his eyes. He sighs quietly and tucks the guitar away, a small
smile on his lips.

Nightflash looks around. How long will they sleep?

Robert mutters softly, "It starts."

Andrea's hands are now scented with multiple herbal mixtures, some of
which she rubs on her own face absent-mindedly as she pushes back her
hair. She nods at Robert, then turns toward Nightflash. "I'm sorry.
What'd you say?"

Nightflash wonders how long they will sleep. Their bodies cannot last
long without water.

Dusty shoots a look up at Robert, his hands busy with setting the guitar
back in its case. "The question is, will it ever end?" he murmurs
quietly, almost to himself as he snaps the case shut.

You say "If they stay out more than a few days, we'll feed them water."
She smiles, ruefully, "My packmate Cassandra has gotten a sort of
gleeful pleasure at her skill at forcing the tranced to drink. They
should sleep no longer than a week or two, at worst. They may wake as
soon as the morning."

Dusty shrugs and stands up smoothly, murmuring, "Most of your packmates
strike me as odd, Andrea-rhya." He reaches for teh strap of rthe
guitar case, carefully not looking in her direction.

Robert smiles wryly at Dusty, then looks back to Andrea. "Do you need
someone to watch them tonight?"

Andrea shakes her head. "I would welcome either or both of you, but I
know the caern needs you both. I'll watch them for a while. When one
of my packmates comes off patrol, we'll move them into the cave."

Dusty nods slowly and stands, murmuring, "I guess we'd best go back,
then...Derrick seems to wander off the Bawn periodically, so I don't
know how many are actually patrolling tonight.

Robert smiles slightly and shakes his head. "Iustus was offering to keep
an eye onthem, if you'd like. Myself, yes, I need to get back to the
bawn."

Andrea's smile softens. "They can do no better than to have one of
Unicorn's children watching them. If he's willing." She then goes over
to hug Dusty, then Robert. "They'll be fine." She seems perhaps a
quarter trying to convince herself.

Dusty blinks in surprise at the hug, but returns it carefully. "It
reminded me an awful lot of one winter evening too many years ago."
Hre smiles faintly, an expression that quickly fades.

Andrea looks back at the sleeping bodies. "The circle repeats, though it
never returns to the same place."

Dusty shrugs one shoulder and runs a hand through his thick, long hair.
He frowns as his fingers tangle in the mass, and he sighs. "Perhaps
one day I should get this cut off," he musses.

Andrea smiles slightly. "I've wondered the same. It can be a liability,
if you fight in glabro."

Dusty shrugs a shoulder. "At the time, such was...unimportant." He
manages a faint smile, one that almost takes a boyish tinge. He
scrapes at the five o'clock shadow on his face, and sighs.

Robert nods to Andrea. "Good night. Gaia guide your path."
Robert leaves the grove, heading east.

Dusty blinks as he watches Robert go, then hefts the case. "I should go
too," he murmurs, a hint of guilt in his tone.

Andrea nods. "I know you have duties." There's a hint of regret in her
tone. "Mother watch you, Dusty."

Dusty nods, unsmiling. "And you, Andrea-rhya. Perhaps one day there will
be time for a lesson or two. "

Andrea tilts her head. "Who teaching who?" Her tone is somewhat
abstract, rather than probing.

Dusty shrugs a shoulder diffidently, apparently caught off guard by the
comment. "Um...I don't know anymore...I suppose it would depend."

Andrea's lips curve gently. "I will be willing for either."

"I'm not really accustomed to teaching, much," Dusty admits, ducking his
head. "But I suppose there is a first time for everything."

Andrea motions toward the sleepers, again. "These won't be the first
cubs you help with."

Dusty nods slowly. "I know." His eyes darken a bit.

Andrea tilts her head again. "That isn't a bad thing," she says lightly.

Seeing that expression, Dusty forces a smile to twitch at his lips. "I
suppose. Good night to you, though. Maybe we cna arrange some other
time...but for now, I really should get back to the Bawn."

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