makeover.

[Katherine] The newest member of the Unbroken had a dire situation.

An emergency for which only the wisdom of the pack's Half Moon [and resident fashionista extraordinaire] could assist in resolving -- she had, in short -- a date. Now, Katherine Bellamonte might not have had a great deal of experience with the opposite sex, and Gaia only knew when she had things had not gone exactly, how shall we say, smoothly.

But she was rather talented at helping when it came to crisis's of fashion. Or make up. Or shoes. Or -- well, one got the idea.

So, after Iona's phone-call, the Silver Fang had directed her to come by the Loft in the evening and Katherine would see what she could do, spoken precisely thus in a very serious tone. Now, when Iona arrives and is let in by Lucille, looking quite startlingly feminine with her hair curled around her shoulders and dramatic high-lighting applied to her dark lashes -- ah, Katherine's first victim of the evening, then -- she can hear the young Aristocrat wheeling something into her dining area. When Banchee emerges into the open area, she finds the sofas have been taken over by clothing from Katherine's wardrobe; an enormous box of make-up, with drawers that opened outward on either side with layers of lipstick, nail varnish, false eyelashes, blusher, foundation, the contents went on and on was set on the coffee table beside a hair curler.

And the Garou herself was busy wheeling in some evening cocktail dresses that she deemed fitting for the night. When Iona appeared, the young blond smiled, and waved her in. "Good timing, Iona! I believe I am about ready to begin."

[Edward Bellamonte] Ed had gone yesterday without saying where, or when he'd be back; now, though, he's returned. The bike parks in its accustomed spot and he heads inside . . .

. . . to find that Katherine's closets have exploded and are attempting a hostile takeover of the loft. "I'll help!" He says, in apparent earnest, ready to dive into the fray.

[Katherine] [Lucille's make over: Intel + Crafts]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 6, 7, 8, 8 (Success x 3 at target 7)

[Iona McNevin] Iona came in just after work. Her latest after hours project was nearly complete, and she believed Lukas would be pleased with it. But as she walked in to the living room, her eyes went wide.

"Och! I dinnah know ye would be going to such lengths, my sister. But I am verah grateful."

She was beginning to blush, which only deepened when she heard Edward.

"Tis my first date in...." counting on her fingers... "6 years. An' my work is noh what ye call 'girlie', so I really appreciate this immensely."

Her eyes were going over everything. "Just...wow."

[Katherine] [Dex + Crafts to like, do some shit, I dunno.]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 1, 2, 8, 10 (Success x 1 at target 7)

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] After the disaster in the wee hours of Sunday, and after all evidence of that disaster had been safely dumped, Lukas and Danicka exchanged cars and drove both to the den. It was too late and too dark then to do anything. When it was light out again, Lukas removed all salvageables from the interior and hosed the entire car down, rather mercilessly pouring water in through the sunroof and the windows.

Monday morning, when the dealerships opened: Yeah... um... this is my girlfriend's car. I kinda left the windows open, and it rained.

Lukas gets the call today: Danicka's car will be ready for pickup first thing in the morning. He texts her, Car ready tomorrow morning. Pick you up from class, drop you off @dealer's in morning?

In the parking lot nearest her compsci class at UChicago they meet, the Shadow Lord leaning against his car, dark colors from head to toe. He pulls his flat cap off as Danicka nears, beginning to smile, straightening to put his gloved hands on her face. He greets her with a kiss, silently, so it's not until they're in his car and he's starting the ignition that she hears it:

His voice is back. Low and smooth and courteous.

"I wanted to drop some talens off at the Loft. Do you mind if we make a stop?" A glance her way; it was an honest question. "It shouldn't take long."

Twenty, thirty minutes later, Lukas's M3 pulls up outside the Loft. They're just in time to see Iona go inside, Lucille closing the door behind her.

"Huh," Lukas says. "Lucille looks good tonight."

[Katherine] "Now," Katherine says, apparently deciding that a firm hand was in order with the Fianna, and clearing out a spot for her to sit amongst the designer items of Katherine's closet, which are, it seems apparent to her brother, returning through the side entrance to the garage, staged a hostile take-over and are demanding equal rights of time spent being worn outside of the Loft's walls. "The first thing we need to do is work on your nails, so, I think a manicure, and then some color swabs to test the best shade for your skin-tone."

Truth's Meridian casts her brother a pleased, entirely enterprising look. "Oh, Edward, could you fetch me a small bowl from the kitchen?" The Philodox plants herself before Iona and begins examining her blacksmith's hands with a nail technician's focus.

[Danicka Musil] From the look of the car itself, it's newness and shininess and so on and so forth, the dealers imagine this guy's girlfriend to be at least three times as high-maintenance as the Infiniti. Water trickles out when they open the doors. They try to calculate how long it will be before the dark-haired man gets laid again.

He's not seen her immediately after class before. When Lukas texts her, she replies with a basic affirmative, and when he sees her next, she's far away, and talking to people outside of the building where her last class of every Monday and Wednesday meets. She looks energized, by the warming weather, by the class, by the conversation. She's animated, yet not talking with her hands -- never does, that he's seen. She's wearing skinny jeans with high heels, her coat over her arm and her bag slung across her chest, her long hair up in a high ponytail, a cropped cream-colored jacket over a light purple camisole, a long chain with multiple charms at the end hanging down her front, a pair of pearls dangling from her ears.

She's grinning when she walks over to him, and putting her arms around him. She's recovered quite nicely from the monsters in her car. She hasn't had to get in her car since, though. Yet.

Her only reaction to his restored voice is a smile, her hand going to his knee while he drives. Just for a moment, before she takes it back to herself. There's a beat when he mentions the Loft, while she considers. And then nods. "Alright."

"Who's the blonde girl?" Danicka asks, after his comment on Lucille, as they're getting out of the car. This time she takes her bag with her.

[Iona McNevin] She sat where told, and just looked amazed. She blushed, embarrassed, when Kate began with her hands. She hand the hands of a hard worker, calloused and strong. Her nails were bitterly short, most of which were broken from work. But it seemed she wasn't a biter. The dirt under her fingers being soot from work.

"I dinnah know if ye know him. It's tha new Lord kin, Ray. He said it would be a noght I would nevah fo'get."

[Edward Bellamonte] This is what happens when one spends a lot of time in the company of one's mother and sisters; one gets drafted into this sort of thing. "Why are we playing Pretty Princess Dress-Me-Up?" That's asked as he gets the requested bowl, three wine glasses and a bottle - because obviously, this sort of thing calls for fortification, but not necessarily of the scotch variety.

[Katherine] Katherine's hands are quite the contrast to Iona's strong, capable worker's ones. The Silver Fang's possess the sort of lily-white perfection that only being hand-reared on nothing but the best of everything and being required to do absolutely nothing can achieve. Her nails are shaped, and manicured to within an inch of their life, but not outrageously so. Could you imagine a Garou with fake nails in battle, honestly?

Katherine accepts the bowl from Edward with a vaguely bemused smile and sets a towel over her lap, she pours a small amount of liquid from a bottle into it, and takes out a nail file, and three bottles of vanish. Then, dipping the Fianna's fingertips into it to clean out the dirt and soften the cuticles, she answers Edward lightly, as though he ought to have known already.

"Iona has a date," here a gleam at her packsister. "And she asked for my help in getting ready for it, because," she sniffs, and thrusts out her chin. "I am very good at playing, as you call it, Dress-Me-Up." To the mention of Ray, and being Lord Kin, the fair Philodox's brows rise. "Oh, oui? I admit I have not yet had the pleasure of his company. Is he very charming?"

[Edward Bellamonte] "Ray, Shadow Lord kin? I've met him." There's something amused, there, something he's not telling. "A bit old for you, isn't he?" But it's mostly teasing as he pours the wine - first for the ladies [gentleman (Omega)], then for himself.

"Anyway, he seems alright. Last I saw, he was talking to Lee, and then some other Shadow Lord that I don't know. A kinswoman."

[Edward Bellamonte] "And yes, you are very good at it," he says, leaning in to kiss his sister's cheek; still smiling, amused, a teasing brother. "I remember."

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] "That would Iona McNevin, called 'Banshee'." The M3's lights flash as the locks click. Lukas steps up on the curb after Danicka, his hand briefly at her lower back as they approach the door. "Fianna out of Stark Falls. She's our newest packmate, though we might be recruiting a Fang soon."

Lukas has a key to the Loft. Moments after Iona arrives, the front door opens again. There are voices inside. "Sounds like Kate and Ed are here too," he says to Danicka, then raises his voice to call out, "It's me, and Dani&+269;ka."

The Shadow Lord is developing a familiarity with this place. It's possible he'll never think of it as wholly his the way he thinks of Room 2, the M3, and the den as his. Still, he shrugs out of his coat and tosses it easily over the rack as he's stepping out of his shoes. Under his coat, Lukas is in dark-wash jeans and pale blue shirt, a few shades off white.

Once the thick front door is shut, the interior of the Loft is a good twenty degrees warmer than even the springlike weather outside. This is the home of a Silver Fang, and it shows. It's the home of -- remarkably, all things considered -- fairly modernistic Fang, and that also shows in the open, minimalistic design; the blonde woods and vast, high-ceilinged spaces. When he rounds the corner and see the mess in the living room, Lukas blinks. "I know I nag you about the importance of action over pedigree, Kate, but seriously: becoming a beautician might be pushing it."

Then, as Danicka comes into view, "Ed, you remember Dani&+269;ka from New York. Iona, this is Dani&+269;ka Musil, my mate. Dani&+269;ka, Iona, my packmate." Pause. "What's this about Ray?"

[Katherine]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 1, 1, 8, 8 (Failure at target 6)

[Katherine] [Oh hell no.]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 4, 6, 8, 9 (Success x 2 at target 7)

[Iona McNevin] She watched as Kate worked her magic on the Fianna's poor hands. She was so much the tomboy, but that was out of work and other things her pack had yet to find out.

"Aye, verah charming. We met at tha Brotha'hood. He was having dinner, an' I came down fro' my apartment to eat as well. We started tae talk, an' he was so sweet. I dih my best tae flirt with him, an' I guess it worked. Och, an' we kissed. It was so......I felt like I could nah breathe, ~rhya. Then I....~me~... I asked him out, an' he said yes."

Then, here came their Alpha, and she looked up to see. A warm smile was given to Danicka "Áthas chun bualadh leat. Tha would be ~pleased tae meet ye~ in Irish." Then she looked to Lukas. "I have a date with Ray. Tha' is alright, aye?"

[Danicka Musil] "That was your sept." She knows this about Stark Falls less because Lukas has talked overmuch about it -- he hasn't -- but because she remembers things she overheard about it, years ago, when she and her brother both lived in the same house. "Oh," she says dryly, "another Fang. Won't that be fabulous."

She walks in behind him, heels tapping quietly with her steps, lightly because she herself is light, backpack laden with laptop and books over one shoulder or not. She brought her coat in with her, but doesn't toss it anywhere. The likelihood of her feeling at home here, even at ease, is next to nil. It's not the first time she's been here, but it is the first time since --

"Dobrý b&+367;h," she mutters, seeing what's become of the pool, how it's overtaken half the downstairs.

Shaking her head slightly, she follows Lukas further in, readying herself into a sort of placid quietude utterly different from her exuberance outside of UChicago. She gives a nod to Edward and Kate, then turns to Iona and smiles warmly. "A pleasure," she says, and does not ask who Ray is. She hangs back a bit, observing what Kate's doing to this much-accented Fianna who is so

so very

obviously a-twitter.

[Edward Bellamonte] "Dani&+269;ka," Edward says with a nod, and a face briefly closed off as he studies her; he's not seen her since before he left, after all, though of course he knows that she's Lukas' mate now. But then it's amusement, back to Kate - Ed is, in fact, the closest to his old self he's been since his return. Which isn't to say he's there, but is to say that he's lighter, that he actually smiles on occasion. "Remember the pink dye with . . . oh, what was the girl's name? Simca? I think that was it."

And then, a raised eyebrow. "Do we need two more glasses?"

[Katherine] Lucille, her customary severe bun missing tonight in favor of softer, becoming curls framing her lined face is present only to greet Lukas and Danicka in passing, though she does spare the arriving Shadow Lord and his mate the benefit of shared amusement at the state of Katherine's living area, and her retort as her brother bends down to peck her cheek.

"I am doing a favor for our pack-mate, though with that tone, Lukas, I now shall not offer you a manicure, you can simply go without." She carefully pats down Iona's fingertips as the Fianna speaks of her new-found romantic interest, pausing to raise her pale eyes Danicka's way and offer her a warmer smile than perhaps, in recent times, has been seen cast the Kinwoman's way. "Welcome, Danicka. Make yourself at home, if you can find a spot I have not tossed things upon."

There's pleasure radiating from Katherine, she has not had the chance to play at decorating since Gabriella had lived with her, and the enjoyment she takes out of dolling up Banchee is clear. She begins to paint the Fianna's fingertips, carefully bend over her task as if it were equally as important to her as any judgment she had been called upon to give as Philodox Elder.

Edward mentions pink dye: "That was not my doing, she would not sit still."

[Iona McNevin] She had to giggle a bit. This was actually feeling fun. "I grew up around boys. So I nevah had such luxuries like thih. I dih nah get any visions off him so I think he is pretty safe ae be with."

She looked to Danicka, and tilted her head. "Good God what?" Wondering what Danicka was commenting on.

[Katherine] [For the make up scheme.]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 2, 7, 9, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6) [WP]

[Katherine] [For application of said scheme to Iona.]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 1, 1, 5, 5 (Failure at target 6) [WP]

[Katherine] [Oh, GTFO. NO.]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 6, 6, 7, 10 (Success x 3 at target 7) [WP]

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] "Mine and Theron's," Lukas confirms. And, "She's not so bad. Asha Singh, from House Blood Red Crest. She does have a herald, though."

They pass the pool, which has grown immensely and crowded the sitting room furniture into the living room. Lukas laughs at Danicka's comment: "I'll have you know Sinclair and I campaigned very hard for that."

In the living room, then, where they'd have to paw aside mountains of clothing and cosmetics to find a seat, Lukas decides to just stand. Next to wherever Danicka sits, if she sits. He's relaxed, though, at ease and at home, his presence and his rage filling the room to its vast corners, high ceilings. As Iona asks permission, rather belatedly, his good humor slips a moment. That sounded familiar; he's heard that before. I asked your kin on a date -- that's fine, right?

A beat; the Ahroun shrugs, slips his hands into his back pockets. "If Ray's fine with it I'm fine with it. If it gets serious, though, you'll need to challenge me just like anyone else.

"You should also know," he adds, "Ray mentioned the Bone Gnawer Marni -- the one that digs in Kate's trash? -- has apparently also 'shown interest'."

That tidbit is offered up without further comment. His attention flicks to Kate, and he smirks suddenly. "Oh no," he says, dry, and pretends to examine his nails. "Whatever shall I do?"

[Iona McNevin] She gave Lukas a nod. "Aye, he told me about Marni. Right now, thih is mo' tae see if we are ..compatable." That was the word. She listened to what else he said and another nod. "Aye, iffn it comes tae that, I will let ye know, ~rhya."

[Edward Bellamonte] ".....wasn't my doing either," he says as a too innocent aside, but ready to get more wine glasses if requested . . . which they aren't, and so he simply takes up his own. "But the girl was an insufferable brat."

[Danicka Musil] Her eyebrows lift when Kate says she will not give Lukas a manicure now. Danicka turns her head towards the Shadow Lord. "My, you'll never manage," she says, with some mild and half-buried amusement. Then there's talk of this 'Ray' person, and a Bone Gnawer named Marni, and she doesn't go looking for a seat. As far as she knows, they're here to drop off some talens. But she knows he's their Alpha.

They aren't getting out of here dropping off a box of talens and getting back to the car. She decides, thus, to look to Edward: "I would love a glass of wine, actually."

[Katherine] Her pack-mates may well laugh at the insanity that would lead a Fostern Half Moon to expend so much of her will in securing perfection from a trifling thing like a make-over, but Edward would not. He would recall the absolute focus that his younger sibling would bring to any such endeavor and the repercussions when it did not all go according to plan. For a short span thereafter when Katherine addresses Lukas and Danicka, she falls silent with an almost unearthly amount of concentration to her task.

She carefully paints the Fianna's fingernails, then turns and lifts her chin, her eyes intense as they studied the flecks of color in the other blonde's gaze and made some quiet sound of certainty. "Yes, this would work best," She digs through her large make-up kit and takes out a powered foundation; tapping away the excess with the corner of the brush and then turning to face Iona once again. "Look straight ahead for me, and try to keep still," Katherine murmurs, and begins.

And works.
And works.

Her focus is so precise that it is as if the world around her, her brother's voice, the voices of her guests fall away and filter through to her only distantly; barely enough to break through into the tiny bubble that existed with herself, and her palette of beauty existing within it. When she finally draws back, turning Iona's face this way and that, fluffing with the young woman's hair -- there's an unusual amount of energy prickling the air around Truth's Meridian. She looks -- drained, but at the same time, rather more primal than was normal for her.

"Voila." She says, and holds up a small mirror for Iona to glimpse herself in.

[Iona McNevin] Iona took up the mirror and gazed in amazement. She turned her head this way and that. Looked at her painted nails, and was just aghast. "It's perfect, Kate! What colors dih ye use fo' it all?" She wanted to see those colors badly but says nothing. Atleast she would be able to see them in her mind.

[Edward Bellamonte] He takes up his own . . . which he doesn't drink from and hands to Danicka [ladies first] instead, before moving to get another two glasses instead, just in case Lukas decides he does want some of the offered wine. "I went to the plantation for a day," he says largely for Kate when she's back to herself. "There was a small problem starting that might have affected the yield, but it's seen to now."

Because of course, hair and make-up and nails are fascinating. Really they are. But now, his glass rises and his attention turns to Danicka. "Cheers."

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] [*cough* rolling for talens! -1Gn, soak talens!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 3, 4, 6, 6, 6, 7 (Success x 3 at target 6)
to Danicka Musil

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] [and Gaia's Breaths! -1Gn]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 4, 7, 9, 10 (Success x 2 at target 4)
to Danicka Musil

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] [YOU CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT. -1Gn]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 8, 10 (Success x 4 at target 4)
to Danicka Musil

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] meditate!
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 10 (Failure at target 8) [WP]
to Danicka Musil

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] [...NEXT NIGHT!]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 5, 8, 8, 10 (Success x 4 at target 8) [WP]
to Danicka Musil

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] Lukas studies the finished product with a keen eye as Kate steps back. "Well, if you ever lose the Wolf, Kate, you could always get a job doing makeup."

When Ed returns with two extra glasses, Lukas accepts one. He pours his own wine, then passes the bottle back to the Fang.

"So when's the date, Iona?"

[Iona McNevin] "Friday, Lukas. I asked Kate fo' help since I dinnah usually....dress so nicely." She blushed a bit. Her attention went to Kate. "Ye dinnah mind if I borrow these colors til then, do ye? I've been making sure I watch how ye are putting it on, so I can redo it."

[Katherine] Katherine points out the differing shades of green and blue and palest purple used on Iona's eyes to her, and the matching eye-liner and blush, then she holds out a lipstick to her, with the reminder to excuse herself to freshen it up every hour or so. Then, grasping her wine glass and taking a generous mouthful of the liquid, she moves across to the rack of cocktail dresses set up on a portable rack and slides through them.

Two are off the shoulder, short and black, one in gun-powder gray with a V-neck that tied around and came to mid-thigh, the back was plunging on it and beside it was a short sleeved, pale pink evening dress, decorated with tiny sequins across the bodice. "I think perhaps the gray, to off-set the color of your eyes, or perhaps the blue." She takes up another hanger and studies a strapless cocktail number. "I have shoes to match all of them, though I cannot be certain about sizing."

Then, with a flicker of agitation, Katherine looks sharply at Edward.

"Oh so? I had not heard of any issues, but it is well that you saw to it. How are the staff? How is Madam De Bois? I made sure to send her a gift basket at Christmas for her family. I hope she received it."

[Danicka Musil] "Na zdravi," Danicka murmurs, returning Ed's toast and then sipping at her wine. She finally lowers her backpack off her arm and puts it on an available seat, setting her coat over it. She doesn't sit, though, staying relatively close to Lukas. Her eyes track over to him when he says something about Kate losing the Wolf, but she doesn't speak up. She just takes another drink, winding down from school. From her day. From being in a room with four werewolves.

Then: "Don't try to replicate exactly what Kate's done, Iona," she says gently. "Take it as a guide and tone it down to something simple you can handle. Might be a good idea to practice." A beat. "It took me ages to learn how to apply liquid eyeliner, that's all I'm saying."

She drinks again.

[Iona McNevin] She looked to both the dresses, and she was just ..... "I think I will go with ye judgement. I...kinnah really tell them apart except by the design o' each. I....." She frowned. "Tha change took my sense o' color. I kin only see like...those ol' black an' white movies."

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] "You should also keep in mind," Lukas adds, "that you might not want to go all-out. There's something to be said for putting yourself together well, but if it's not something you're willing to do every day, then you're just misrepresenting yourself."

He downs his wine rather quickly, in a few swallows, and then leaves the empty glass on the coffee table -- out of the way of the glossy black cosmetic compacts, palettes, cases and tubes.

"Theron's chest of talens still upstairs, Kate?"

[Iona McNevin] She took in mind the advice from both Danicka and Lukas. And, she hoped, after hearing she was color-blind, they might understand -why- she doesn't dazzle up like this every day.

[Edward Bellamonte] "Everyone is well, yes," he says, giving Kate a reassuring smile, "and many asked after you."

And after toasting with everyone there is to toast with, Ed sips his wine slowly, watching and listening quietly (as he does often) before saying, "I should wash the airplane off me. I'll see you all later." Lukas gets a look, and then, after hesitation, Ed adds, "We should have drinks soon, you and I. As friends." With the nuances they can't avoid, of course, but the two men have been friends for a long time. It stands to reason that there's both more and less to it than the complicated nature of pack dynamics. Then, he's heading for that shower, as he said.

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] The Lord's eyes meet the Fang's for a moment as he's standing to depart. A beat of pause; then Lukas nods.

"Sure, Ed. Goodnight."

[Iona McNevin] She smiled to the other Raggie of the Pack. "Aye, sleep well, Edward."

[Danicka Musil] She's one to talk, the blonde sipping her wine, wearing high-end jeans and that high-end camisole and that silk-blend jacket and those heels that probably cost a hundred dollars or more and are yet on the lower end of what she owns in shoes. She's one to talk of simple makeup, though that's what she's wearing, applied with a decade or more of practice behind her hand, so light that it's hard to tell she's got any on at all but for the glossiness of her lips. She sips carefully, and leaves only the vaguest imprint of color on her wineglass.

"Go with the gray one," she says, then -- since she's not deaf -- she points. "With the low back."

[Katherine] "I'll check in with you later, Edward," Katherine calls in her elder sibling's wake, and then nods and gestures up the staircase to Lukas. After a beat, she's frowning at Iona's words and clearing away some of the mess from the coffee table the Fianna had constructed herself -- it now had pride of place in Katherine's living area.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Iona. It must be difficult not to know the colors of the world." A smile tests the corner of the Half Moon's lips. "You have beautiful eyes, and I used colors to compliment, and draw attention to them with the blues and greens." Danicka points out the gray dress, and Katherine nods, and fetches it to lay across the arm of the sofa by Iona.

"It suits you very well, Ray will have no idea what's hit him when you show up."

[Iona McNevin] She dropped her head for a moment, then lifted it smiling. "Ye have helped so much, Kate, and I dinnah know how I kin show my appreciation. I will take care o' ye things an' have them back tae ye after I have tha dress cleaned, an' such. Perhaps one day, we kin go out, an' ye kin help spruce up my wardrobe. Fo' now, I should probably get some rest tae finishing healing up." She lifted her shirt a bit, showing her abdomen, and the regrowing healing going on as most of her stomach was torn away the other night. "If ye are nah busy Friday, befo' my date, I would like ye help once tae get ready."

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] "Night, Iona," Lukas says, and then heads for the stairs. "Have a good time with Ray on Friday."

His footsteps up the steps, then, and then over their heads as he takes talens to the ornate chest set upstairs. Three soak talens join the Gaia's Breaths.

[Danicka Musil] At the lift of Iona's shirt, Danicka turns her head away, expression flashing briefly with some mutable reaction. She exhales through her nose as Lukas heads upstairs to put the talens away. She stands right where she is still, glancing at Katherine, sipping her wine. She's quiet. It's understandable... at least to Kate. And Lukas.

[Theron Locke] THeron Locke arrives at the Loft at some point. The engine of his car idling as he had remained seated in it for the past half hour. Quiet and thoughtful as his eyes gazed out the window at nothing in particular. Eventually the engine was cut off, the keys withdrawn as he exits the car and makes his way to the front door of the Loft.

A jingle of keys as he unlocks and opens the door and heads inside. A jacket slung over his shoulders, Theron looks rather tired tonight or unhappy about something. His eyes worn around the edges as he steps into the lounge room , drawn by voices or perhaps wanting nothing more than to get too the kitchen and pour himself a glass of wine or three.

His eyes spot Danicka and Kate, and briefly Iona before she heads upto bed "Evening Kate, Danicka" a small smile and a polite nod given to each of them.

[Katherine] Katherine's eyes do flit over to Danicka when Iona lifts up her shirt, and there is a brief flicker of Rage that suffices the area around the young Half Moon at the action. But, in the end, she merely nods and offers her a tight-lipped farewell, as she gathers together her borrowed beauty products and departs.

Leaving Katherine and Danicka together, for the time being.

"I heard about the Coalition that you formed," she says, leaning her head back against the cradle of one arm. "How has it been progressing? I hope some of my Kinfolk have been helpful to you," she quirks a brow. "Goodness knows put together they have resource and connections enough." Then, the door, and another Garou to add to the collection around the Shadow Lord Kinswoman.

"Hello, Theron." Katherine greets, and then studying his expression, adds: "You seem perturbed, Sir."

[Katherine] [suffuses, not suffices. Ah ken speel.]

[Danicka Musil] "Truth be told, Katherine?" Danicka says, only half-genuine in her questioning, "Two of them were invited but did not deign to so much as R.S.V.P., while two more came to a meeting out of what seems to be nothing more than curiosity." A beat. "They were, at least, not disruptive."

She turns her head over her shoulder when she hears the door open, watching for whoever comes in. Danicka has a nod and a small smile of greeting for Theron.

[Katherine] The Half Moon frowns, clearly unimpressed at this revelation. "I am disappointed to hear that, Danicka. I had thought that my tribe-mates, especially the Kin, would comprehend the benefits of such a union of strengths." She takes a slow, considering sip of wine. "I do not suppose it would help if I were to speak to them about it?

Were they quite dismissive of the idea?"

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] Not too long thereafter, Lukas comes back down the stairs. In that time, Iona has departed; Edward has gone to his quarters; Theron has arrived, earning a nod from Lukas as he rejoins them. As before, though the sitting area is marginally tidier now, the Ahroun does not sit. Something in his body language -- some alertness, some readiness -- indicates he'll be leaving soon.

"Added a few talens to your chest," he mentions to the Theurge, offhand.

[Theron Locke] He gives Katherine a small nod acknowledging her assessment of him "Hmm yes a little Kate, a long day I think. Had to do something that I had been dreading for awhile, but it had to be done. I'm hoping that there is a nice bottle of red with my name on it waiting for me in your kitchen". A small smile as a glimmer of his usual good humour returns briefly to his eyes.

"I also apologise if I am interrupting anything. I can excuse myself if need be?" a look between Kate and Danicka as he asks the question.

"A kinfolk coalition... sounds like an intriguing idea. Danicka I was wondering if Dr Imogen Slaughter made an appearance at all? Though I do not think it likely." and before he could comment further Lukas is arriving back downstairs.

"Evenin Lukas.... and I'm glad it's getting used. I'm working on a few projects for it as well, hopefully I will be able to contribute them soon." and then a pause "Oh and Lukas .. before one of us leaves. I'd like to set a time to talk with you, it will also be with Lila the Galliard Elder. It concerns a rather sensitive issue."

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] In the midst of pouring himself another half-glass of wine, Lukas quirks an eyebrow. "Now I'm intrigued. What's it about?"

The bottle goes back on the coffee table. The Shadow Lord straightens, glass in hand, attention on Theron.

[Danicka Musil] She shrugs one shoulder, seeming unconcerned. "Involvement is strictly at-will. Any kind of pressure or coercion would make this particular group only more persnickety, I think."

Theron asks about Dr. Slaughter, and she shakes her head. "Given what I've seen of Dr. Slaughter, I never contacted her to invite her. I'm sure she's heard of it by now, and would be welcome if she had any interest, but..."

A shrug, dismissive.

That's what they're talking about when Lukas comes back downstairs. Danicka's made rather good time with that glass of wine Edward poured her; it's almost empty. She goes quiet, listening now.

[Theron Locke] He nods to Danicka's response "Yes she gave me the impression that she doesn't tend to get too involved in the issues of the Nation. A shame really."

Lukas tell him that he's intrigued. Theron looks around the group gathered and frowns slightly as if trying to make a decision.

"Well I was going to discuss it with you and Lila, but given my involvement with the person in question. I would value all your opinions on how to handle this matter. It actually involves one of our Tribe Lukas, the Theurge Ezra Turk. It has been brought to my attention that he has been keeping Lonna Larson almost a hostage in her own apartment. Disallowing her to make contact with people he doesn't want her to see. But making no claim of his own."

[Katherine] Katherine's eyes shoot to Theron, she sits up, her attention wholly focused on their conversation, she does not, however, yet say a word about it. Her attention shifts to Ezra Turk's elder in the city, and she holds her tongue until he reacts. Her own feelings on the matter, however, are clear from the abrupt spike of Rage ebbing from her.

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] Lukas halts for a second, brow furrowing faintly. Then he takes a swallow of wine, lowers the glass to his side.

"Ezra strikes me as being a bit of a dick," he says, "but ultimately it's the Children's responsibility to watch their own kin. Of course, if someone were abusing my kin and a Garou of a different tribe found out, I'd appreciate the heads-up. But even then, responsibility falls to me.

"What I'm saying is, you should let Lila know. And if Lila wants to take it up with me as Ezra's tribal elder, she's welcome to come to me. But it's not your place -- or mine -- to play the white knight."

[Katherine] Ezra strikes me as being a bit of a dick.

There's a quiet snort from the Silver Fang, she buries it with another sip of wine. "I have little doubt that he is doing precisely as you say, Theron. He's about as slippery as an eel, that one and I would not trust him as far as I could toss him." A beat, a spark of malicious amusement resides in Katherine's eyes. "Which, in this form, is not far."

[Danicka Musil] Katherine's rage is riding the edge of Katherine's control. Theron tells them of what's happening with Lonna, and Danicka's mind flashes to Ezra. A Theurge of their tribe. She hears what Theron has to tell them and how Lukas responds, and takes a breath. "Excuse me," she demurs quietly, and exits to the kitchen to rinse out her wine glass in the sink. They can hear water run, turn off, hear glass clink softly on granite.

[Theron Locke] Theron nods and listens as Lukas speaks, appreciating the advice as it's given. Somewhat of a look of relief comes over his face.

"Yes that's what I thought. But Ezra is still my tribal brother, I did not want to be seen as betraying him. But I will do as you say and approach Lila, I actually spoke to her briefly this afternoon to arrange a meeting. But I also wanted to give you the heads up so you weren't unprepared."

He chuckles somewhat at Lukas' last comment "Lukas I don't think anyone will ever accuse me of being the White Knight. I think I've possibly become a bit too tarnished for that role. Personally I just worry about Lonna's safety and well being regardless of anything else. So I will take what I know to Lila and let her deal with it as she sees fit. I just don't want any actions I take to bring further dishonor on my pack."

Theron turns and tilts his head towards Kate "You have had a run-in with the man yourself? I'm just worried that if he is as slippery as you say, he will somehow use this to turn it back on me.." and then he is chuckling softly at Kate's joke. shaking his head amused. However he soon looks up to watch as he watches Danicka excuses herself politely, a curious look following her. But then looking back at his packmates when she is out of the room.

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] Lukas's clear blue eyes turn from Theron as Danicka excuses herself. He watches her go for a moment, then returns his attention to his packmates.

"Ezra's already disgracing himself in the eyes of the Nation if he's been abusing a kin he has no claim to." And there it is: the cold hard truth. A kin he has no claim to. Most of the Nation -- and certainly their tribe -- wouldn't give a damn if Ezra were beating his own kin nightly. "He should thank you for saving him from himself."

He drains his own glass then. A glass and a half in a man his size won't dull his senses much for the purposes of driving. A glass and a half in a Garou is nothing at all.

"But what's the story, Kate? You've had a run in with him? All I've ever seen of him was his cagey little face at moots. And maybe once on the street."

[Katherine] "We have met," she confirms dryly, and then fostering her wine glass aloft, conditions to add with a haughty crossing of her legs. "He sought to embarrass me during my rank challenge by asking questions of my decision making in regards to Gabriella."

Katherine lifts her eyebrows.

"I have no comfort to offer you in regards to his nature, Theron, I'm afraid. He is one of your own, and of your auspice to boot. Go in prepared to be questioned, and turned upside down."

[Theron Locke] Theron gives Lukas a wry look when he tells him Ezra should be thankful "Well if it was anyone else, that may be the case. But I have my doubts he will be."

He listens to how Ezra tried to twist stories to embrass Kate and just nods as he takes that news on board.

"Oh well that's okay Kate. At least now I am going into this prepared, rather than blind. If I am to be questioned perhaps it would be wise of me to man upto my own mistakes to Lila before hand. So as to deny Ezra using it as ammunition against me.?"

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] "Ah. I remember that now." Lukas heads for the kitchen himself, his wineglass empty, a bare drop or two of red left at the bottom. "Truth be told, Kate, I thought his questions were somewhat valid. Those were weaknesses and errors, and he did find them. I don't think they make you unfit for your rank, and he was definitely trying to tear you down more than you deserved, but ... well." The Ahroun's smirk is humorless. "At least he wasn't making shit up."

He turns at the archway to the kitchen to add, "If you think he might use it against you, then you should get it on the table first, Theron. Consensual sex is a long way from kidnap and abuse, but Ezra may well twist it against you if he can. Are you calling him before Lila as well, or just planning to chat with Lila alone?"

[Danicka Musil] When Lukas enters the kitchen, Danicka is standing at the sink. Her glass is to the right, but she's just standing there, head cocked slightly to one side, ponytail falling across her shoulder, hands on the edge of the sink. When Lukas comes near, to rinse out and wash his glass, she simply takes it from him rather than getting out of his way. Her jacket's sleeves are already -- still -- rucked up, and she rinses her mate's wineglass out, setting it beside her own.

What is Lucille for, if not to wash the goddamn dishes? And yet: motherfucking Fangs. She still probably looks down her stubby little nose at Danicka for being of a lesser tribe.

"You're a Fostern now?" is the first thing she says, looking at Kate rather than following Lukas and Theron's conversation any further. Kate nods, or says yes, or regales Danicka with the tale of her challenge. Danicka just smiles, and offers her congratulations. She touches Lukas on the arm before she leaves the kitchen, but she definitely leaves the kitchen, walking ahead of the Garou back towards her backpack.

[Theron Locke] Theron nods to Lukas "That was my thought that he would, so yeah I might get it on the table first. Just as proof that I don't have ulterior motives and just honestly want to see Lonna removed from that situation. As for Ezra no, I wasn't planning on calling him... I didn't want to give him advance warning, as he might try to intimidate Lonna into giving certain response. It was my thought anyway, and to chat with Lila alone."

[Lukas Wyrmbreaker] Lukas nods. "If that's the case, then it should just be you and Lila. If she calls me, then I'll bring Ezra with me. Or if she wants to be nonconfrontational, she might just pluck her kin out of ... wherever it is Ezra's keeping her. Which is certainly within her rights."

Into the kitchen, then. Where he frowns to see Danicka just standing there, though he says nothing. Where she takes his glass, though he would've washed it himself. Water runs. A second glass joins the first. Danicka leaves the kitchen, and Lukas stands there a moment, hands on the counter, listening as she asks Kate her rank; congratulates her.

A little later, Lukas follows his mate out of the kitchen.

"We're taking off," he says to Theron and Kate. "Let me know how the business with Lila goes."

[Theron Locke] "Okay Lukas, that sounds like the best plan. Thanks for the advice.... I didn't feel like struggling with it on my own and I will keep in touch about it." He nodes and offers another smile to Danicka and a nod to Lukas as he lets them depart.

[Katherine] Katherine frowns at Lukas when he notes that Ezra's points had pointed out valid weaknesses, and contemplates reminding the Ahroun of precisely some of the wording his tribesmate used to describe Gabriella Bellamonte, but in the end she cannot bring herself to repeat the words, so settles for her frown, that soon after blossoms into something a little brighter at Danicka.

"Merci," she says to the Kinswoman, and soon after this, Lukas announces their impending departure. Katherine sees them to the door, and is the one to close it in their wake.

[Katherine] [wrap dis!]