[Kora] It's early afternoon, a clear, cold afternoon. Hard to believe that it is spring. The grass is greening, bulbs are poking through the earth, but the temperature hovers in the low to mid thirties, and each new front brings with it the threat of snow. Mickey's phone rings with a stranger's number. A stranger's number, unless she has programmed the number Jackson passed on as the Fenrir's own into her phone.
There are background sounds of traffic, but they aren't immediate. Kora's sitting on the front steps of the old church her pack calls home, soaking in what sunlight can be had through the frigid temperatures.
[Mickey] The phone nearly goes to voicemail, before she manages to grab the piece of paper Jackson gave her and compare numbers. When the phone picks up, there is a bit of fumbling before it's a woman's voice. "Hello?"
She'd only just woken up, so used working late and sleeping late. But her voice is at least clear on the phone, if a little questioning.
[Kora] "Mickey? This is Kora. Jackson gave me your number. He said you had some issues with your living situation. You wanna talk over the phone? Or we could meet somewhere for lunch." The other woman's voice is low and clear; there's no regional accent. Just the general American English of suburban enclaves everywhere, made distinct only by the careful clarity with which she forms words.
[Mickey] There is some shuffling as she apparently resettles where she is, or maybe checking around to see if anyone else is around. "Meeting is a little hard right now, so over the phone is fine. Thanks... for calling me, I really appreciate it."
She sounds young, mid-twenties. And similiar to Kora, her accent is the nowhere everywhere of the Midwest. The average American to a T.
[Kora] "Alright," the creature returns, voice thinned by the cell connection. There's open sky above her, blue, clear, cold. The church itself is surrounded by a thicket of overgrown trees. The limbs are still bare, but here and there in the tangle are slender whips of forsythia, covered in bright yellow blossoms.
"You're somewhere where you can talk, yeah?" There's a slight lacuna there, enough for Mickey to make a noise of assent before the other woman continues, "So, you wanna tell me what's up?"
[Mickey] A sharp inhale and then a tired exhale. "It's a very long story, but the very short version of it is I caught the unwanted attention of some tainted folks. Until that gets resolved, I'm tryin' to stay with Trueborn, for safety. I'm with my Guardian now, but I'm not totally... comfortable here."
A shift, as the kin pulls blankets around her, closing her eyes. "I just don't know who I should be contacting. I was told Glass Walkers don't have a Tribal Elder. Can I just... go and stay with another True from another tribe? Does that need to be okayed? I'm.. still learning all this, sorry."
[Kora] There's a brief pause on the other end of the line. A moment of rustling as the Fenrir woman shifts the phone from one ear to the next, pulls the strands of her long hair out from around her neck, over the other shoulder. "I'm Fenrir. I don't know many of the Glass Walkers in the city, Mickey."
Her voice thins with speculation, there. There's a hint of distance before it resolves itself again, comes into focus against the mouthpiece. "I don't know much about what your tribe expects of its kin. Can you tell me who your Guardian is? And what the problem is - the more I know, the more I'm likely to be able to help, yeah?"
[Mickey] "Leon, Leon Davenport." She answers, tugging her knees to her. "He's... he's a really good Guardian, he is, and he's kept me safe, we just... "
A shift, the kin's voice... uncomfortable? Uneasy? "The thing we discussed was resolved by all parties involved, but it just... left me feeling like I needed space from him. It was something with another kin, and some things that happened that I didn't think he should have shared with me."
Details, it seems, she can't give. It was a promise to Leon that she wouldn't spread it since it had been resolved, which... makes it hard to explain to Kora.
[Kora] "Listen, Mickey. It sounds like you need to talk to your guardian. If you're uncomfortable living with him, you can always move into the Brotherhood. You've been there, yeah?" There's another pause here for Mickey to insert an assent or a disavowel. Kora - the distant stranger - breathes in, an audible breath over the line. "It's open to everyone. My pack - we're in Cabrini - and there's loads of space here, but I couldn't offer you a place in circumstances like these unless your Guardian was okay with you living with us.
"We're wolves, and we get pretty territorial over things like our kin. Do you know any of your tribesmates? Can you talk to him about why you're uncomfortable there? Is he hurting you somehow?"
[Mickey] There is a soft noise is assent- she does know the Brotherhood. "I'm afraid to go to the Brotherhood because if I am still being followed, I don't want these people knowing where it is. I'm still worried about that, even if I'm pretty sure these crazy fucks are in Tennessee."
An almost audible lick of her lips, hand running back through her hair as she speaks again. "No, no, he's not hurting me at all. Not mentally, not physically, nothing like that. He... might have hurt another kin on accident, but it was all resolved, like I said. He's okay with me leaving here, he told me if was okay if I felt I had to go somewhere else, and he'd still remain my Guardian. The only other Tribemates I know are Delilah, and she's kin and I think... I think Sinclair?
"I mean, if he's okay with me leaving- and he said so- am I allowed to stay with other tribes? I just don't know if that's okay."
[Kora] "Those boundaries, yeah?" Kora returns, her voice still low. Just audible over the connection. The insistent BEEP BEEP BEEP of a truck backing up backgrounds her voice then. She makes a low noise of irritation, and can be heard standing. It's not easy for her anymore - she's not fluid as she was, her frame is unbalanced, center of gravity wholly changed. " - you've got to ask him that. You need his approval, especially if you want to live with a Garou of another tribe.
"Can you speak to him about it? Do you want me to?"
[Mickey] "No, no," the kin answers softly, even though she wants to groan. "This is my problem, and I promised him honesty, so I shouldn't foist it upon someone else."
There is quiet on the other end, maybe a sniffle, but it's really hard to tell as she seems to shuffle, pulling sheets tighter around herself. "Okay. Okay. Uhm... thank you Kora, for calling and for speaking to me. For listening to me. I know I haven't... made a ton of sense this whole time. I just didn't know who to speak to, and I trust Jackson."
[Kora] "That's the right choice, Mickey." There's a brief, warmer note in the other woman's voice when Mickey pledges to both face her guardian and ask him the questions she has about her boundaries more directly. "You said yourself that he's been good to you, and if you trust his honor that fair, you'll need to trust him in this, too. These things mean more when they're difficult, you know." A brief, narrow pause there is followed by a soft, quiet snort against the phone. "Doing the right thing's pretty straightforward when it's easy.
"But easy doesn't define us, yeah?" The last is offered with a brief, wry note at the end. "Do you have a place to go after you talk to him?"
[Mickey] "He has been good to me," quiet, from the kin. "And I trust him to protect me, I just... don't know if he can keep my secrets. Not that I have any, I just..."
A long sigh, and an almost smile in her voice. "No, easy doesn't define us. If... my first place to go stay doesn't pan out, I can at least stay with Jackson for a little awhile, while I figure out a safe place. I'd prefer not to because, again, crazy tainted people who have a file on me, but... I've got places, mostly."
[Kora] "Mickey, have you told Leon about the tainted people following you? If they are really tracking you, you need to make sure we have as much information about them as possible, so that someone can track them down and end them." A faint, darkling pause. There's no way that the feeling of rage - the goosebump certainty of it - can translate across the phone lines. Just a voice, reproduced; sound waves, without physical immediacy. Still: it's there, underneath. "Someone needs to hear this story, you know?"
[Mickey] "Leon is aware, as are other people initially involved in the mess," she assures, much more confidant about this. "There was a laptop, and we're currently trying to fix some corrupted files on it to get more information and try and figure out what these guys are up to. I was the only one with a file, but from what I can ascertain between news, an' internet stuff, and relay from a True involved, that they're likely closer to Tennessee and or Kentucky right now. "
There is a pause, and then one can almost hear the smile in her voice. "I made sure people knew right away, as soon as I found it in that laptop. Hence the staying with True, and avoiding the Brotherhood. I'm keeping an eye on the news and relaying information as best I can."
[Kora] "Alright, Mickey. You need to go find Leon and clear this up. Make sure he knows where you want to go; make sure he checks out the Garou. If you can deal with the uncertainties you're dealing with right now," there's a half-smile on her generous mouth, which informs her voice. Shapes it, gives it a different resonance. " - you can talk to Leon. If you need a place to stay, you can give me a call. Cool?"
[Mickey] "... cool." A pause, and then a release of breath, like tension is leaving. "Thank you Kora. I guess I just needed some sense talked at me. I really... really do appreciate this. If you ever need an extra body or someone who knows the streets, lemme know, please?"
A way to pay back the kindness. Kora didn't have to call her, or talk to her, or advise her- but she did. And to Mickey, that deserves repayment.
[Kora] "Got it," quiet in return, the suggestion of a smile lingering there in her voice. "Will do. Good luck with Leon Mickey, yeah? And good night."
[Mickey] "Thanks. Later Kora." And a soft click, as the phone is hung up.
[Kora] transcript!
to Kora
There are background sounds of traffic, but they aren't immediate. Kora's sitting on the front steps of the old church her pack calls home, soaking in what sunlight can be had through the frigid temperatures.
[Mickey] The phone nearly goes to voicemail, before she manages to grab the piece of paper Jackson gave her and compare numbers. When the phone picks up, there is a bit of fumbling before it's a woman's voice. "Hello?"
She'd only just woken up, so used working late and sleeping late. But her voice is at least clear on the phone, if a little questioning.
[Kora] "Mickey? This is Kora. Jackson gave me your number. He said you had some issues with your living situation. You wanna talk over the phone? Or we could meet somewhere for lunch." The other woman's voice is low and clear; there's no regional accent. Just the general American English of suburban enclaves everywhere, made distinct only by the careful clarity with which she forms words.
[Mickey] There is some shuffling as she apparently resettles where she is, or maybe checking around to see if anyone else is around. "Meeting is a little hard right now, so over the phone is fine. Thanks... for calling me, I really appreciate it."
She sounds young, mid-twenties. And similiar to Kora, her accent is the nowhere everywhere of the Midwest. The average American to a T.
[Kora] "Alright," the creature returns, voice thinned by the cell connection. There's open sky above her, blue, clear, cold. The church itself is surrounded by a thicket of overgrown trees. The limbs are still bare, but here and there in the tangle are slender whips of forsythia, covered in bright yellow blossoms.
"You're somewhere where you can talk, yeah?" There's a slight lacuna there, enough for Mickey to make a noise of assent before the other woman continues, "So, you wanna tell me what's up?"
[Mickey] A sharp inhale and then a tired exhale. "It's a very long story, but the very short version of it is I caught the unwanted attention of some tainted folks. Until that gets resolved, I'm tryin' to stay with Trueborn, for safety. I'm with my Guardian now, but I'm not totally... comfortable here."
A shift, as the kin pulls blankets around her, closing her eyes. "I just don't know who I should be contacting. I was told Glass Walkers don't have a Tribal Elder. Can I just... go and stay with another True from another tribe? Does that need to be okayed? I'm.. still learning all this, sorry."
[Kora] There's a brief pause on the other end of the line. A moment of rustling as the Fenrir woman shifts the phone from one ear to the next, pulls the strands of her long hair out from around her neck, over the other shoulder. "I'm Fenrir. I don't know many of the Glass Walkers in the city, Mickey."
Her voice thins with speculation, there. There's a hint of distance before it resolves itself again, comes into focus against the mouthpiece. "I don't know much about what your tribe expects of its kin. Can you tell me who your Guardian is? And what the problem is - the more I know, the more I'm likely to be able to help, yeah?"
[Mickey] "Leon, Leon Davenport." She answers, tugging her knees to her. "He's... he's a really good Guardian, he is, and he's kept me safe, we just... "
A shift, the kin's voice... uncomfortable? Uneasy? "The thing we discussed was resolved by all parties involved, but it just... left me feeling like I needed space from him. It was something with another kin, and some things that happened that I didn't think he should have shared with me."
Details, it seems, she can't give. It was a promise to Leon that she wouldn't spread it since it had been resolved, which... makes it hard to explain to Kora.
[Kora] "Listen, Mickey. It sounds like you need to talk to your guardian. If you're uncomfortable living with him, you can always move into the Brotherhood. You've been there, yeah?" There's another pause here for Mickey to insert an assent or a disavowel. Kora - the distant stranger - breathes in, an audible breath over the line. "It's open to everyone. My pack - we're in Cabrini - and there's loads of space here, but I couldn't offer you a place in circumstances like these unless your Guardian was okay with you living with us.
"We're wolves, and we get pretty territorial over things like our kin. Do you know any of your tribesmates? Can you talk to him about why you're uncomfortable there? Is he hurting you somehow?"
[Mickey] There is a soft noise is assent- she does know the Brotherhood. "I'm afraid to go to the Brotherhood because if I am still being followed, I don't want these people knowing where it is. I'm still worried about that, even if I'm pretty sure these crazy fucks are in Tennessee."
An almost audible lick of her lips, hand running back through her hair as she speaks again. "No, no, he's not hurting me at all. Not mentally, not physically, nothing like that. He... might have hurt another kin on accident, but it was all resolved, like I said. He's okay with me leaving here, he told me if was okay if I felt I had to go somewhere else, and he'd still remain my Guardian. The only other Tribemates I know are Delilah, and she's kin and I think... I think Sinclair?
"I mean, if he's okay with me leaving- and he said so- am I allowed to stay with other tribes? I just don't know if that's okay."
[Kora] "Those boundaries, yeah?" Kora returns, her voice still low. Just audible over the connection. The insistent BEEP BEEP BEEP of a truck backing up backgrounds her voice then. She makes a low noise of irritation, and can be heard standing. It's not easy for her anymore - she's not fluid as she was, her frame is unbalanced, center of gravity wholly changed. " - you've got to ask him that. You need his approval, especially if you want to live with a Garou of another tribe.
"Can you speak to him about it? Do you want me to?"
[Mickey] "No, no," the kin answers softly, even though she wants to groan. "This is my problem, and I promised him honesty, so I shouldn't foist it upon someone else."
There is quiet on the other end, maybe a sniffle, but it's really hard to tell as she seems to shuffle, pulling sheets tighter around herself. "Okay. Okay. Uhm... thank you Kora, for calling and for speaking to me. For listening to me. I know I haven't... made a ton of sense this whole time. I just didn't know who to speak to, and I trust Jackson."
[Kora] "That's the right choice, Mickey." There's a brief, warmer note in the other woman's voice when Mickey pledges to both face her guardian and ask him the questions she has about her boundaries more directly. "You said yourself that he's been good to you, and if you trust his honor that fair, you'll need to trust him in this, too. These things mean more when they're difficult, you know." A brief, narrow pause there is followed by a soft, quiet snort against the phone. "Doing the right thing's pretty straightforward when it's easy.
"But easy doesn't define us, yeah?" The last is offered with a brief, wry note at the end. "Do you have a place to go after you talk to him?"
[Mickey] "He has been good to me," quiet, from the kin. "And I trust him to protect me, I just... don't know if he can keep my secrets. Not that I have any, I just..."
A long sigh, and an almost smile in her voice. "No, easy doesn't define us. If... my first place to go stay doesn't pan out, I can at least stay with Jackson for a little awhile, while I figure out a safe place. I'd prefer not to because, again, crazy tainted people who have a file on me, but... I've got places, mostly."
[Kora] "Mickey, have you told Leon about the tainted people following you? If they are really tracking you, you need to make sure we have as much information about them as possible, so that someone can track them down and end them." A faint, darkling pause. There's no way that the feeling of rage - the goosebump certainty of it - can translate across the phone lines. Just a voice, reproduced; sound waves, without physical immediacy. Still: it's there, underneath. "Someone needs to hear this story, you know?"
[Mickey] "Leon is aware, as are other people initially involved in the mess," she assures, much more confidant about this. "There was a laptop, and we're currently trying to fix some corrupted files on it to get more information and try and figure out what these guys are up to. I was the only one with a file, but from what I can ascertain between news, an' internet stuff, and relay from a True involved, that they're likely closer to Tennessee and or Kentucky right now. "
There is a pause, and then one can almost hear the smile in her voice. "I made sure people knew right away, as soon as I found it in that laptop. Hence the staying with True, and avoiding the Brotherhood. I'm keeping an eye on the news and relaying information as best I can."
[Kora] "Alright, Mickey. You need to go find Leon and clear this up. Make sure he knows where you want to go; make sure he checks out the Garou. If you can deal with the uncertainties you're dealing with right now," there's a half-smile on her generous mouth, which informs her voice. Shapes it, gives it a different resonance. " - you can talk to Leon. If you need a place to stay, you can give me a call. Cool?"
[Mickey] "... cool." A pause, and then a release of breath, like tension is leaving. "Thank you Kora. I guess I just needed some sense talked at me. I really... really do appreciate this. If you ever need an extra body or someone who knows the streets, lemme know, please?"
A way to pay back the kindness. Kora didn't have to call her, or talk to her, or advise her- but she did. And to Mickey, that deserves repayment.
[Kora] "Got it," quiet in return, the suggestion of a smile lingering there in her voice. "Will do. Good luck with Leon Mickey, yeah? And good night."
[Mickey] "Thanks. Later Kora." And a soft click, as the phone is hung up.
[Kora] transcript!
to Kora
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