Head south, young man...

[Jonas Last Howl]

Jonas steps out of the elevator into a cold, Umbral Tuesday night. He can hear City Mother watching her stories, and decides to poke his head in.

"I see you're all done with the Council meeting?"

"Yeah, just wrapped up. I'm heading south for enlightenment."

"Mmmhmm..." she continues knitting a small black ring, "seems like it's that time again."

"Fetch and I were tossing ideas back and forth about how to end this war with City Father, possibly get reconciliation. Who knows..." Jonas shrugs, part from the odd uncertainty, part from the sudden cold he was not dressed for.

"Mayhap, and won't that be a day? Go on to that old Lonely Mountain, Last-Howl."

Jonas nods and steps out onto Crow's Airt to Lonely Mountain. When Jonas leaves the trail, he give his howl of introduction. In a short bit, Stone-born, the Get Warder, answers the howl, arrives before Jonas, then leads him out to the lodgehouse. On the way, Stone-born was uncharacteristically verbose. "You're back sooner than I expected," he says to Jonas, not really looking at him.

"It's really the bar-b-que. The only ones that really cook other than my pack at the sept are the Gnawers...and well, you'll find shoes and license plates and pizza boxes...you don't really care, do you?"

"Nope. Well, I didn't until you mentined the bar-b-que...it's my brother's recipe. I'll send him your praises," he smiled, "Honestly, he takes that stuff seriously."

They continue walking for a bit and arrive at the lodgehouse.

[Mike]

The longhouse was brimming with activity: eating, drinking, games, singing, storytelling, and sometimes the occassional fight. The Get, intermixed with their Shadow Lord septmates, filled the longhouse with noise.

In the back of the sept's longhouse, the spaced reserved for the seats of the Council of Elders, "Twice-blooded" and the Ragabash elder Elaine "Seeker-in-Twilight" sat opposite one another engrossed with something on the table between them. Upon closer inspection, they're both focused on a chessboard. The pieces were spread out over the board, the game in progress. Though, the odd thing about this game was that the pieces for both sides were black. Confusing as this may seem, neither "Twice-Blooded" nor "Seeker-in-Twilight" had any trouble distinguishing their pieces.

On the surface, the game was polite with friendly smiles on both sides and conversations about different family members...children and wives. However, when dealing with Shadow Lords, what is happening on the surface is not always what is actually happening.

As Jonas approached, "Twice-blooded's" attention shifted from the game to the Ahroun. "Seeker-in-Twilight" looked over her shoulder to Jonas, giving him a kind grandmotherly smile.

[Jonas Last Howl]

Jonas raises a mug of whatever grog had been poured out of the keg to the two playing chess and smiles. He chats it up with some of the other sept members. He tells them stories of Gargoyles and Vampires that can turn your blood to fire, shoot lightning, or even steal your blood away at a gesture. In turn, he listens to stories of Black Ice banes and Yetis and even tales of battles with the minions of Czernobog and the Voivodes from the Old Country. Occasionally, these tales turn from story and toward something very reminiscent of rugby songs.

Jonas, all the while, watches the play between the veteran Philodox and Ragabash, both on the table, and across it. Finally, the game ends. Jonas approaches the table, sits on his heels, and states humbly...quietly, "Twice-Blooded-rhya, I come before you tonight to challenge you for the honor of becoming an Athro."