-- Forest --

Dusty is leaning against a tree, sorting through a pile of leaves and flowers 
 on his lap. He seems totally absorbed in whatever it is he's doing, but a set
 of long, deep claw marks in his left shoulder are clearly visible.
Derrick comes trotting in from a brief morning patrol. He whuffs in alarm at 
 Dusty's shoulder.
You shift into Homid form.
Derrick says, "Yo, Dillan didn't mention you'd gotten whomped on. You ok?"
Dusty looks up at the whuff, and grins faintly, raising his good arm in 
 acknowledgement, flowers and all. "I'll be ok, I guess. Wanted to tell you 
 guys something, but haven't seen anybody."
Derrick raises his hands. "I'm somebody. 'Least, I think I am. What say we, 
 uh, take a walk."
Dusty nods and stands carefully, first tucking the flowers carefully away in 
 the bandanna he uses for such things. "So long as we're not going too far."
Derrick shakes his head. "Just... a little bit." Wandering off away from the 
 tree, and listeners, and such, he says, "So what's up?"
Dusty considers the greenery around him, then leans against a tree. "I got a 
 general idea where we are yesterday. Mom taught me a little bit about 
 medicinal plants and stuff before all this happened...lotta stuff she 
 mentioned that she always bought cuz it didn't grow anywhere in the States, 
 only in some parts of Europe and occasionally in Asia."
Derrick nods. "And we're in...?"
"Central Europe someplace." Dusty looks up at the tree he's leaning against. 
 "I saw some wild stuff on my way back that she said she got from someplace in
 Europe."
Derrick nods thoughtfully. "That'd make sense, really. If we're in the past 
 somewhere, and this is a bunch of mostly Get... Right area."
Dusty nods. "Along with a hell of a lot of stuff I don't recognize at all."
Derrick pokes a passing caterpillar. "Well, sure, It's the past, it's Europe 
 (apparently), you're not gonna understand everything. I'm content just to get
 vague ideas, at the moment, truth to tell. Man, am I gonna quiz people when I
 get home..."
Dusty snorts. "I'm gonna ask some stuff too, cuz it's only when you try doing 
 stuff on your own that you realize just how much you don't know. You seen 
 Dante around?" He grimaces as he moves the wrong way, despite all attempts to
 hide it.
Derrick nods. "Exactly. I'm sittin' here wishing I'd had time to quiz Brittany
 exhaustively on every little historical detail." He shakes his head. "Haven't
 seen him yet today. Saw Dillan last night - he said y'all ran into a couple 
 of Spirals. Yow."
Dusty nods, making a face. "Damn things came outta nowhere almost. 
 Wyrm-Crusher said it was hte bears that defiled the pool, then mentioned 
 Wyrm-taint. Didn't make sense, somehow, but now it does."
Derrick pounces. "Is the bears supposedly tainting the pool what started this 
 all?"
Dusty nods. "Yeah. You don't want to know what was in it, because I helped 
 clean it out afterwards. Trees were slashed, shit in the water, the whole 
 nine yards."
Derrick nods thoughtfully, watching the caterpiller wandering along a twig. 
 "Yeah, so the Get were whompin' on the bear-guys for it... So we *should* 
 talk to the bear-guys sometime real soon now, so we can get our _own_ proof 
 that the bear-guys _didn't_ do it." He sighs. "Pity none of our folks are 
 philo types, t'tell if they're lying. But some of us can at least smell out 
 Wyrm, so that's something..."
Dusty nods. "What was weird was that them Dancers were up near the caves where
 Wyrm-Crusher said the bear-caves were."
Dusty says "Didn't Quiet say something about them living underground? So what 
 if what we're dealing with isn't bears at all, but Dancers?"
Derrick helpfully gives the caterpillar a bridge from one twig to another. He 
 glances at Dusty and says, "A _ha_. Proves Dillan's theory, then. Dancers're 
 prolly trying to get the bear-caves Wyrmy. Or at least tryin' t'make it look 
 like the Bears're more guilty than they are." He blinks at that last 
 statement. "I haven't a bloody clue where Dancers live. But that's 
 fascinating. Maybe I need more backup than I thought, if I'm gonna go lookin'
 for a Bearguy to talk to."
Dusty smirks. "I'd go with you, but gettin' up close and personal with a 
 Dancer is a stinky business at best. Fortunately, you don't get time to think
 about it."
The Gaian's smile fades, and he picks gingerly at one of the scabs.
Derrick says, politely not noticing Dusty in a non-healing form, "Yeah, well, 
 you need t'heal up. I was figurin' on tryin' to find Maddy. And maybe Dillan.
 In case they don't speak Garou or English but do speak spirit-stuff."
Dusty nods. "Yeah, guess so." He looks down at himself, and chews on his lip. 
 "You mind if we switch to wolf? I'm not getting anywhere like this."
Derrick shrugs. "I'm not the one that needs healin', but I'd be glad to keep 
 you company."
You shift into Lupus form.
Derrick whurfs. Any other news?
Dusty shifts into Lupus form.
Dusty lies down carefully in the grass. No. He puts his head down. This one 
 wonders how much longer we will be here, or how we will return.
Derrick pokes the caterpillar, to see how it'll respond. It curls into a ball,
 and Derrick decides not to terrify it anymore. In the story I heard of 
 Distant Sun's Rite, they simply came home when they had done the allotted 
 task. Went to sleep, and *poof* home again.
Dusty whuffs. We do not yet know what our task is.
Derrick lays his nose down in front of the caterpillar and watches it, 
 cross-eyed. We have a suspicion, at least. I think the bear-folks being 
 blamed unfairly for something is a strong suspicion. I did hear of an entire 
 war against other shifters, once... So perhaps this is related.
Derrick adds, and Spirals hanging about looking suspicious is nothing to 
 sneeze at.
Dusty flicks an ear. Dancers about always looks suspicious, but this does 
 think they are involved. How else does one explain the Enemy's taint around 
 the pool, near the edge of the bawn?
Derrick raises his head. Exactly. This is why I wish to meet a bear, to make 
 certain they are not the cause. He rises, and brushes your uninjured shoulder
 with his nose. I go to look for my tribesmate. Heal well.
Dusty raises his head as well, and turns it towards you. Run well, and take 
 care you do not become the ~Enemy's~ prey.
Derrick taps his nose with a paw. I can smell the enemy coming.
Derrick legs off.