Fianna Family

[hazlogs]

Grotto(#2863RJ)
The woods part suddenly, here, amidst the quiet roar of falling water. A wide
stream spills over the edge of a rocky face that is the western edge of a
hill some thirty feet high. The stones are worn smooth with the passing of
time, and are slick with moisture and soft mosses, but a climb up the drier
rocks would not be impossible, and there is a sense of space behind the
falls.
Faint trails, between the trees, lead off in all directions, while a
determined climb eastwards would crest the rock face.

It is currently 17:52 Pacific Time on Mon Apr 7 1997.
Currently the moon is in the waxing No Moon phase (1% full).
Currently on this gusty and crisp spring evening in the general St. Claire
area, it is 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15.0 degrees Celsius). The wind is coming
from the south-southwest at 14.7 mph. The ground is dry. Skies are clear
with a possible chance of precipitation.

Eamon enters the grotto, coming in through the woods.
Erik doesn't notice, but that's hardly surprising, for the Metis is curled up
near the entrance of the cave. He seems awake, but not exactly aware,
certainly not perceptive.
Shea is actually perched up on the lip of the cliff, overhead. Sort of a
grotto-wide vantage point.
Eamon looks around and eventually sees Shea. "Hey there."
Erik glances up, jerking out of his reverie as Eamon speaks. He ducks his head
again, nodding meekly, and sits up, pulling his knees to his chest.
Eamon waves to Erik too.
Shea waves down.
Eamon says "What's up?"
Eamon says "Besides you."
Rusty appears from behind the falls, about halfway up the cliff face, then
clambers down to the ground.
Rusty has arrived.
Shea grins. "Nothin', really. Any trouble?"
Rusty comes out of the cave, stretching a little. He comes down to perch on a
rock near the pool, nodding to the others, giving his uncle a faint smile.
Eamon shakes his head. "Nope." He grins and waves to Rusty.
Erik rests his head on his knees, long arms wrapped around ungainly legs.
Between hat and mask, his eyes are in shadow.
Rusty nods to Eamon, not looking quite as cheerful as he normally does. He
just sits on the rock, watching the others.
Shea mmphs. "How boring," she calls down, from clifftop.
Eamon says "Yea. So how you doin', Rusty?"
Rusty shrugs, looking at Eamon. "All right, I guess." He gets to his feet,
walking nervously about. "Just...feelin' kinda twitchy."
Eamon looks at Rusty. "Oh yeah?" He looks up. "Well, it's the new moon
tonight." He grins.
Erik tilts his head slightly, obviously watching the pair, but silent.
Shea says "Aye, new moon, when all sorts of creepy crawlies are about."
Rusty glances over at Shea...then manages a grin. "Like my uncle?"
Eamon chuckles.
Shea nods, quite solemnly. "He's the worst of 'em."
Rusty grins at Shea, looking a little more cheerful for a moment, though that
quickly drops back into some nervous pacing...as if he's got too much energy
to keep still.
Erik seems affected by the cub's energy, and he stirs, restlessly.
Shea calls, "If you're going t'pace a rut into the grotto, lad, at least do it
from eastward on. Follow the wheel," she teases.
Eamon grins. "What's up, Rusty? You seem jittery tonight."
Rusty shrugs at Eamon. "Not sure. Feel like I've been eating sugar and
drinking Jolt...."
Eamon glances at Shea, then back at Rusty. "Been havin' any more of those
dreams lately?"
Rusty blinks, and looks at his uncle. "Um....yeah, some..."
Shea squints. "What dreams are these?"
Rusty shrugs. "Just...bein' in the woods an' all...."
Erik shivers, as though with sudden chill.
Shea says "Bein' in the woods for.. what?"
Rusty shrugs. "Running....out in the moonlight." He frowns. "Only lately, it's
been darker. No moon out."
Shea continues her narrow-eyed scrutiny. "On two legs or four?"
Rusty closes his eyes, thinking. "Um....lately, four...it varies..."
Shea's gaze shifts to Eamon, and she shrugs. "He needs t'shift."
Erik shifts his weight, but remains seated and silent.
Rusty stands in place, looking between Eamon and Shea..but he's shifting
nervously from one foot to the other.
Eamon nods to Shea and grins at Rusty. "I think so too. What do you think,
Rusty?"
Rusty shrugs. "Guess so. Need t' do something, anyway. Feel like an engine on
overload."
Shea climbs to her feet, and stretches. "However it goes, try not t'get blood
in my grotto, hey?" She's teasing. "An' don' run over Erik."
Erik jerks slightly, turning a head in a startled look at Shea.
Rusty grins faintly at Shea. "I won't...."
Eamon says "Okay, then. There's a part of you that wants to be a wolf, see?
It's deep down inside you, you have to reach down and feel for it. Feel for
the moon, too, the moon gives us the ability to change. Be a wolf, try to
think like a wolf and act like a wolf."
Rusty looks at Eamon. "Try to act like one? What d'ya mean?"
Eamon nods. "Yup. Pretend you're a wolf. Howl at the moon, even though it's
not there. It's an appropriate moon, the new moon. It's there even when you
can't see it, just like us sometimes. But I'll teach you that trick later.
Close your eyes, feel the wolf inside you."
Rusty closes his eyes, tilting his head a little as he tries to follow his
uncle's words. After a moment, he lets out a soft howl...but he looks as if
he's feeling a little sheepish, doing it.
Shea disappears from the top of the cliff.
Shea walks into the woods to the south, disappearing between the trees.
Erik shifts his weight again and rises, quietly, to his feet, listening and
watching.
Eamon chuckles. "C'mon, you can do better than that. Belt it out, man!"
Rusty takes a deep breath, his eyes still closed, and tilts his head back,
letting out a loud howl....
Eamon grins. "There, that's better."
Erik stands uncomfortably to one side, hugging himself as if cold.
Rusty bites his lip, as if concentrating...then sniffs at the air.
Erik shivers again, then quickly slips away from cub and mentor.