In the Meeting Hall

Venis' message had been delivered to De'Ryanna. De'Ryanna's message had been delivered to Venis. Venis put Krys to work on the receipts and slipped into her heels. Shamus had carved some Jack-o-lanterns out of coal and she had made them into diamonds earlier that day as a break from her work. She gathered them up now. There were 12. She had made them as close to orange as possible. They still seemed rather yellow to her, but dark yellow at least.

She told Krys that she would be back as fast as she could. She placed the diamonds, each only palm sized, into a velvet drawstring bag. She grabbed up a ledger and pen and headed to the meeting hall.

Soft footsteps carried her to her destination. The area outside the meeting hall was carpeted, serving to silence her heels even more. She reached the door just in time to hear those words. 'Will you walk into my parlor?' said the male voice. She stepped through the door. She paused as he finished his sentence. "Monsieur Adams." Again with the polite acknowledgment of his presence. "But are you sure that you are the spider here?" She smiled and winked before she proceeded to the two across the room.

"Lady De'Ryanna I presume." She smiled as she extended her right hand to the woman. She was going to change from her heather grey dress, it was a simple cotton dress with short sleeves and full skirt. Drawn in at the waist and without adornment, but she figured it was nice enough for discussing business. "And would you be Armandeus sir?" She was going from the description from Bo and Derek and the faint smell of food coming from him. "I appreciate you taking time to grant me an audience. May I help while we talk? Oh, and I brought a gift." She placed the bag of diamonds on the table. "I just finished these this morning."

Venis looked at the woman and her eyes widened. Her mouth opened but words could not escape her crimson lips. She forgot all things business related and was completely speechless. After what seemed like minutes, but was actually only seconds, she finally spoke.

"Tell me child, how is your mother? I have missed her so." Her voice was soft and calm. Surprising even herself. "Oh, I'm sorry, no. Those are just a gift, not payment. I have gold for payment. That's what I wanted to discuss with you. Make sure I knew what I was paying for and things like that. Did you want that tangle to look like dead tree's?" Yep, Venis was in shock.

Venis turned her attention back to the lycan. "Down boy. I'm not in the mood for you to make love to my leg." She smiled. She wasn't mad at him or otherwise. The way she saw it, they were even. He asked a direct question and she didn't answer and she asked a direct question and he didn't answer. Plus they had both threatened to make each other part of their respective collections. So even.

She set her ledger down on the table and started gathering up the limbs, she would finish her conversation with De'Ryanna when she was done with Monsieur Adams. Venis didn't think he was here to cause harm at the moment. And if he was, he would be sorry for it. De'Ryanna's parents were two of Venis' best friends. Especially her father. But the ladies would discuss that later. For now she would decorate.

Venis snickered. There was something to be said for someone who could run into her son while he was eating and not get grossed out. But first, Armandeus. "Tis a pleasure to meet you Armandeus. My men speak very highly about you." She looked at the shirt and hearing what he said she couldn't resist. "Tease. Be careful pup, my husband is away, and so quickly after I've returned from a very long absence. Besides, lycan blood gets me high. You should add your name to my dance card in the battle gym. Might release some of that pent up frustration you're suffering from."

She picked up the shirt and tore it like it had been caught on the bushes and ripped from it's owner. "Thanks for the prop." Yep, she still had manors. She let them talk, but was worried when De'Ryanna's tone of voice had changed. She was glad Armandeus was standing with her. She probably welcomed the support.

The first thing that brought his attention was the scent. There was another, one he had no record nor knowledge of. Well, he thought, you KNOW it isn't your brother, now don't you?

Shaking his head in frustration, more at the stray thought than at the frequency in which he had been hearing it of late, Gawain stepped into the room. A slight wave went to both Venis and De'Ryanna, along with a simple salute to Armandeus, fingertips touching forehead, something he had picked up long, long ago. He hoped the elf he was travellling with at the time hadn't been having a laugh at his expense, but it was supposed to be good manners. Besides, the Celts notion of elves being "pinty-eared wee beasties, an' shoor nae ain ye wanna ken!" had never rang true in this part of the world. But still, he couldn't help but notice the other male in the room, and he felt a familiar, almost comforting feeling.

Once he had cleared his throat, he spoke slowly, careful not to show teeth. He had too many at the moment, anyway....."I have no information on any lord named Le'Cree, but whomever the man is, one thing he isn't is her father. That's my job. Well, among others, that is." With two slow strides, he was roughly between Venis and Ryanna before he spoke again. "I've heard that argument before, Gai'din. However, I am sure that there were reasons why you did not fit the bill. Maybe your lack of manners? Hmm, I don't know, what do you Ladies think?"

He brought both fists together, cracking knuckles loudly. Too loudly. A few bones had broken and reset in the right hand, and he had to shove it into his pocket before anyone saw the claws forming. Light-blinded idiot!, he thought, cursing himself for overdoing it. It was always hard not to assume his other skin in the presence of others of the kin, not to mention Venis, who always assumed she'd get a nightcap when he went hybrid.

"Well, you know, we could do this all night....and trust me, I have, whelp.....but why don't we just come to a point, such as what you want and how firmly will I have to tell you that Sister De'Ryanna goes where she pleases, as it is with all Sisters, Light preserve them. Even an Asha'man doesn't impede his Sister when she wishes to go.....or stay."

Think, furball, think.....~De'Ryanna, I don't know this one. He smells.....odd. Not bad, just.....wrong. Say the word, and I will gladly act. Oh, and the mental link....sorry, I usually ask permission, but under the circumstances...well, you know. Awkward, sort of. At any rate, if I must, I'll do it quick and clean. M'Hael won't notice a little Balefire this far away, if I'm any judge.~ He knew she'd look to see if he was joking, (which was, sadly, a family trait, endearing, yet often revealing), and would notice his eyes, and the set of his jaw. The eyes, he knew, had been described to her by her mother, and right now, they glistened like two golden coins. Your move, pal... he thought, feeling a little guilty about being kind of excited.

Just a little, mind.

As she was arranging the shirt in place a smile spread across her face. A huge smile. She even started to giggle, yes giggle. She looked up just as he walked through the door. She waved back and finished placing the shirt just right.

She chuckled at Gawain's lack of manors comment. "Have to agree with you there hon." She continued with the task that De'Ryanna had asked of her. She was going to be on her best behavior unless Gawain said she didn't have to be. Not many men could say that they held that kind of power, but Gawain had that right for a reason.

She heard his bones and stepped back one step. That put him within reach. She reached over with one hand and touched his arm in an attempt to calm him slightly. She had a certain weakness for his hybrid form, well all his forms actualy, but this was not the time or place for her to be thinking those thoughts. They would play later, and maybe she would even get a night cap out of him.

But right now, it was best for him to calm down a little. She would back up her alpha male upon request, but he was in charge of this party, she wasn't going to get in his way. Someone needed to learn his place in the food chain.

Tasha had gone looking for Venis. Krys was in her room working on some files. She said that Venis had gone to the meeting hall to take care of something. So Tasha went back to her room and got dressed. She pulled out an old personal favorite. Her black spandex mini-dress with the long sleeves and the heart shaped cut out at the off the shoulder neckline. Slipping on a pair of six inch black leather stiletto heels she headed out the door.

Once she found the meeting hall she also found a scent she didn't much like. She had smelt it starting from around the stairs, but the stronger the smell got, the more she didn't much care for it. In fact, before she could even see the door a slight roar escaped her throat.

Approaching the door she heard Gawain speaking. That was her que to enter in silence. And that was just what she did. She walked over to where her friends were standing. They were with the one whose smell was off. She joined her friends, standing near Venis and out of Furball's way,

Oh, the puppy can growl, but it's teeth, they are so short....

"No, I don't know you. I don't care to know you. You, however, have no idea the levels of Hell I have passed through to make it here. Some hopped-up yearling with delusions of grandeur is not worth my time." Gawain raised his hand, closing his eyes, and allowed his third to guide his hand. Seizing the Source fiercely, he flattened the palm out, facing toward (?) Benjamin, thumb folded neatly into the palm.

(No, he isn't going to do Final Flash. Although....that would be cool...nah.)

A vertical slit formed in the air directly behind Benjamin, which spun and coalesced into a Gateway. "Go back to your master and tell him you failed. Tell him that one who stood with The Dragon Reborn stands against him. Most of all....tell him I said to leave my daughter alone, because I haven't hunted in ages, and even though I try not to, I still feel the longing for that crushing kill, the bite that flows so sweetly into my fangs, the....no. No. You must leave. Now. You have-have no idea what I can do. What I have done. Leave, or be burned out of the Pattern. Remember, the Sisters don't Gentle us anymore, especially those few of us who remained loyal and wear the dragon pin." At that point, he tied off the Gateway, and formed his outstretched hand into a fist. Fitting form for Balefire, the fist. It hammers you, burns you out of the Pattern of Time backwards. So that you were never there.

Which would suit Gawain just fine.

Gawain's eyes shot open, and honestly, he had to fight to not glare at her. Instead, he nodded, his eyes turning steely grey. The Gateway winked out, vanishing almost instantly. However, Gawain's fist was still raised. "Ryanna, I don't know whether you could cut me off, and I don't want to know. Blood and ashes, woman, you're more like your mother than even I knew."

Oh, right. "Venis, Tasha, it's alright. If De'Ryanna says she knows what she's doing, she does. Trust me, if he jumps, he won't do so twice." ~Thanks, though. Parenthood. Sheesh. I've had meals that weighed less than her, and she actually.....bloody hell, I just backed dow....you two had better not say a word! Especially not to Dre! I would never live it down!~

Venis had simply stood there behind Gawain. De'Ryanna was his daughter, so she was backup, were it one of her children, he would most assuredly back her up. It was her place at this moment. And she was sure that the puppy would read way more into it than was even necessary. But she didn't care. She knew who the alpha's were in the room. And the puppy just wasn't that high on the food chain.

"Gawain, she's your daughter. You know I respect your wishes in regards to your children as you do mine with my children. And De'Ryanna, I mean no disrespect to you. But I will say this. This place has somehow managed to fill up with a very large family. Mine. And we protect our own. So if you choose to appear as a threat to one of us, you will go against all of us."

She was growing tired of his barking. Her body temperature began to rise, Gawain would know instantly given her hand on his shoulder. She watched as De'Ryanna stopped the two men. Darn. She loved to watch Gawain in action. But he wasn't completely done, she saw his fist still clenched. There was hope for some fun yet.

She listened to what the puppy had to say, yep, puppy was going to stick, after all, they already had a furball and a furgirl. "De'Ryanna, you owe us no explanation." She was still a little 'hot under the collar', but she was second the her alpha male in this situation, so she attempted to control herself.

He patted Venis' hand, and tried to reassure her without turning to face her too much. Anyway, he had just heard...oh, no he didn't.

"The children you speak of both, by blood, are mine. Tai'shar Cauthon. This Lord le'Cree, as you say, is as yet unknown to me, but my daughter spoke of him. She mentioned something about someone trying to force her to marry, as well. Wouldn't be a good idea to be that guy. Not a good idea at all. See, I've been through Hell....quite literally, in fact...to get where I am today. I'll not see everything that taught me how to be one of these humans torn away or used for pawns of political gain, and Daes Daemar be damned under the Light!" He stopped, breathing in a panting manner, sweat beading on his brow. "Let's back up and try again. I am Gawain Cauthon, father of De'Ryanna and Alexander Cauthon, husband of Airtia Shadoan, Loyal Asha'man and, finally, Lycan Alpha. I won't bore you with my age, how I came to be here, or anything else. Maybe we can ease up and sort things out............but know this. De'Ryanna is not leaving these grounds unless she bloody flaming well wants to. And then, there had better be a damned good reason, along with the God of Dog-Catchers around."