Field Trip

[Suede]

It helped that he thought Kacela was lovely in encouraging him to be patient, and she probably knew it. But he certainly had no problem extending the same sort of grace to someone else, particularly one that had such a similar... just way of being... as his mate did. Her comment on the comfortable shapes had him shrugging helplessly. ~People are silly, and you are in their homeland. Kacela spends time as a wolf in the woods, but if you go to town or around them, you'll be better served appearing as a human.~

Otherwise people were just going to scream and run away from Greets. Which might be amusing, but wouldn't really help her learn to fit in if she wanted to. ~The hunting I could do a little for, but somehow...~ And here his mind trails off as she starts to shift, something he's seen before, but still isn't pleasant to observe. When she finishes and stands there nude he has the good sense to turn around where he's standing and begin to admire the nearest tree while coughing in embarrassment into his hand. If he wasn't covered head to toe he'd likely be utterly red just now.

~Somehow... I think you and Kacela have quite a bit in common, and she will be able to teach you what you need to know.~ Hunting included. Maybe about clothing, clothing would be nice.

[Dulcie]

They could both feel her excitement at the prospect of Greets the Sun needing someone to teach her how to hunt. ~I can teach you where and how to hunt here. I am very good at it and I know the places that are safe for us to be in our other shapes. When I am around humans I walk as they do, but here in the forest I let the wolf hunt.~ She smiled then, pleased that even thought Greets wasn't exactly as she was, that she had now met someone who was so very close.

She watched the girl change with fascination, her eyes following the movements from fur to flesh and the crunch and crackle of bones moving. She was curious and had to ask. ~Does it hurt when you change shapes?~ She herself never would have considered making two shifts so quickly, her skin would have been terribly sensitive.

Completely unabashed by the young woman's nudity she simply addressed it as she thought of it. ~The humans are bothered when you are without clothes. We will need to find you some. I keep some about in the woods in case I need to change while I'm out here. When we go hunting I can show you where some of them are.~ She'd look at the girl for a moment and consider it again ~You are much smaller than I am, we will have to find you your own clothes.~

She'd look to Kals then, to see if that was something he could be of help with. His sister loved clothing after all, and she was nowhere as big and broad as Kacela herself was.

[Greets]

Greets tilts her head to the side quizzically as she picks up the Traders desire for her to have clothes. She turns her attention back to Kacela. ~Is the wolf separate from you? Are you One?~ She echos Kacela’s pleasure at meeting another so like she was. After so long alone it is a very welcome change. ~Some yes and some no. It is a good hurt like running until you can run no further just because you want to.Sometimes like a good morning stretch, the ones that go from your head to the tip of your tail~ She smiles for a moment, remembering her first free run. She blinks as the she-wolf also mentions clothes. ~Alright. How do you get more of their fur? Nothing is just because you can catch it and take it here. They seem to want something in return. I will go get what Menna Wellsmith gave to me.~ She turns and heads back the way she and Kal’s came. ~It’s not far.~

[Suede]

Kals may have, in quite a short amount of time, created an entirely new bundle of problems for Glenn. This was perfect. The two of them running around in the forest hunting would be good for them and irritating for the governor. A double victory.

He leaves them to bantering a few moments, already taking off down the road after the clothes he remembered her abandoning just to get away the nudity... and not have her walking back towards town stark naked. He doesn't get very far before Kacela catches him more with thought than anything and he pauses. The trader doesn't turn around, he's not going to give himself any further blood pressure issues today. ~I'll track something down for her, it won't take long.~

He wasn't sure who Wellsmith was, but Kals had extra coin and experience enough to get clothing similar to Kacela's. It would probably suit a bit more than just a cloak. The cloak he was off once more to get.

He had no comment for the hunting, but he followed the discussion of pain as he went. He knew Kacela had a far less pleasant transition, something that bothered him. An idle thought he'd have to follow later would be asking if it were possible for Kacela to learn to shift differently, if it was less painful.

[Dulcie]

The other woman asked about the wolf and she considered a moment before she answered. ~Yes and No. We are separate, but we are one. We share our forms, but sometimes we feel things separately. It is difficult to explain. We have not always been together, I believe you were born the way you are? I was born human and made wolf. For my people it is an honor to carry the wolf spirit in you.~

She listened carefully to Greets's thoughts about the pain in shifting and for a moment Kacela almost seemed disappointed, finding it a small indicator that although they were similar they were still quite different. ~It is not that way for me. I can feel everything, every piece of my body that moves and tears. When I shift like you just did into my human shape my skin hurts very badly, like it is all brand new. I try not to change twice in one day, the pain is so strong.~

She would let Greets go first, and the Kals to intercept her to go track down the clothing. ~Ocean Walker will get it, don't worry. I can show you how to hunt your own clothing. I wear the skins of the animals I kill, I can teach you to make your own. It was the way of my people, and it can be your way too if you would like.~ She'd speak in the common tongue then, touching her clothing and showing Greets the image at the same time. "Leather."

[Greets]

Greets quietly turns back around and rejoins Kacela. ~I am cha’har. Mother ….showed...me? I changed when I came here. I wanted your paws, she gave them to me. Yes, changing hurts. I feel everything, but pain tells us we are alive. If it did not hurt I would not be alive.~ She reaches up and brushes her fingers across Kacela's forehead. ~You think too much about things that don't matter. Think of the pain as water and you are rock. Let the water pass over you and don't...~ She ponders for a moment. ~...fight? Mother has reasons for everything. Even if we only see the trees, the forest and rest of the world are still out there. I can share what it feels like so you understand?~

She reaches out and touches the leather. She mimics the word “leather”, the word sounding exotic in her heavy accent. ~What was this? Whose skin do you wear? Did you give thanks for its sacrifice?" Greets closes her eyes and holds her hands over the garment. ~Everything has Lovaas. When it allows its life to be taken we need to give it thanks. Thanks for the sacrifice and to The Mother for allowing her cub to return home.~ “Please and thank you.” She opens her eyes again and pulls her hands back. She shivers, now clearly cold. Again. ~Fur would be nice now. Yes. Very nice now.~

[Suede]

Fur would be nice, fur would be appropriate. Fur would be forthcoming as Kals returns, announcing himself by tossing her garments to land on her head after having called out for her to catch. Kals had a better appreciation these days for sentiments about offering thanks, appreciating the sacrifice of what you kill, and respecting nature, but he wouldn't have had anything intelligent to add to the conversation if he had tried, so he just kept quiet in the mind.

Particularly with all the discussion around changing shape and the pain of it. He knew it hurt, he knew it was an unusual experience, but he didn't change shape and was trying to understand it as an outsider looking in. After he returned he'd lean back against the tree he was near before, steadfastly not looking at Greets until she had put some clothing on.

"Thank you." ~Please is a request, not a thanks.~ At least he could help in one regard.

[Dulcie]

She let the other woman touch her fingers across her forehead and she smiled slightly. She could sense that she was much older than this other creature, who felt to be barely older than a cub, but she'd nod her head in response to the other woman's offer to share what it feels like to let the pain go. ~Yes I would like that, for you to show me how you manage to change without pain.

A hand would touch the leather of her tunic and Kacela would laugh softly, as if there could be no other option than giving thanks. Or perhaps it was the memory of Kals trying to understand what she meant when she talked about giving thanks to the Spirits who gave their lives for them. ~I wear the skin of the brave buck. He ran through much of the forest and gave me great chase. His death was a noble one. And yes, I offered my thanks for his sacrifice. It is the way of my people to do so.~

She'd let both Kals and Greets feel how happy she was to have met someone who thought so similarly to her. She'd watch Kals throw the clothing towards Greets and she'd look back to him and smile. He had done well helping the pair of them to meet.

[Greets]

The world went dark for a moment as her discarded clothes covered her head. She reaches up and pulls them off, dropping them at her feet. She grins toothily at Kacela and the familiar morbid melody begins. ~Never said it doesn’t hurt…~ this time both Kals and Kacela are treated to both sides of the gruesome melody. Every grate of bone, every pull and tear of muscle and tendon is felt. Her entire skin alights as fur blossoms again. It hurts - a lot, but playing counterpoint to the pain is an acceptance, a joy that softens the otherwise excruciating experience and makes it bearable. An image of a boulder in a large river is seen for a moment. Once again, at its completion she stands on four massive paws. Greets shakes herself and then the process begins again in reverse. She retrieves her dress and pulls it over her head followed in quick succession by the cloak, wrapped close. ~Hungry now. Have not changed shapes so many times all so close together.~ Her tummy growls, putting its two cents in as well. She rubs her arms, shooing away any residual ache. ~It hurts. It is a little time thing. I spend more time as one or the other, not in between. I also don’t dwell on it. It simply is.~ Greets looks at the two of them. ~Food now?~ "Please."

[Suede]

Kals remained quiet, let them discuss the pain, and when Greets started to let them feel it he closed himself off very quickly before she could even start. He may be interested in the conversation, but that didn't mean he wanted to double over in pain the way he'd seen Kacela do before. That didn't stop him from watching the shifting curiously. Kacela wasn't particularly fond of him seeing her shift, so he didn't often get to see what happens.

Please, for food. Kals didn't have any food on him, and looking at the great cat before him, he couldn't very well help an animal hunt. He was barely competent with a bow and sorely lacking in claws. He smiled, though it was hidden, back at Kacela and shrugged. "Do you want to go hunting with her?"

[Dulcie]

She cocked her head to the side slightly, as if studying how Greets managed the pain. She shook her head a bit, as if somehow tht wouldn't work for her. She had been around long enough to try all sorts of mental tricks, and never had she found one that worked very well. Still, she let Greets feel her appreciation for showing her.

The woman asked for food and her mate offered for her to go hunting. She considered it a minute, but was thoughtful of the number of times that the tiger had shifted back and forth. I have dried meat that I store near here, for when I've changed shapes. I will share that if you like and perhaps we could go hunting at another time? When you've had time to rest?~

[Greets]

Greets smiles at the thought of hunting, even as inexperienced and unskilled as she was. It is in a tigers nature to hunt. ~I was thinking more of what was at the place I sleep. I do not want to take what is required for you.~ Her belly grumbles again. ~It has been a time since I ate. They want shiny metal pieces before they will give anything. But I am not starving so I am not worried. Things will happen in their own time. I did catch the Long Ear once, I can do it again.”

[Suede]

~Kacela doesn't like the inn food, she thinks they ruin it with the cooking. All the spices and such.~ He wasn't going to openly admit it, but Kacela could probably realize that he'd been eating his meat a bit more rare and untouched these days. Kals himself hadn't picked up on it yet, at least.

He hadn't considered the need for rest, but if they were going to the Dagger, Kacela could likely suffer the food there. He'd eat what she didn't anyways. Maybe they could explain to her the purpose of money in the process. The trader glanced at his make, scratched the side of his face, and looked back at Greets. ~I'll explain the metal disks later.~ Because he didn't think Kacela grasped them beyond the necessity of them here. From what he knew her own people were very barter based. ~If you need to rest I can keep Kacela distracted a while till you want to hunt.~

[Dulcie]

~They do ruin it.~ She agreed emphatically as she nodded her head, motioning for the pair of them to start walking. The inn made the most sense as far as ensuring that the other woman got food and rest. ~We have coins, let us trade them for a meal for you. I have more than I need.~ It was a simple truth. She needed to hunt for food, and the skins that were left from it offered her enough of a living. She had little need of anything other than the food and shelter that it provided.

At the comment about keeping her distracted she'd give a curious glance towards Kals, offering the look and nothing else.

[Greets]

Greets answer to both of them is simply to slip out of the dress again, dropping it on the ground beside her. Bones grind and tendons reconfigure as her form warps once more. She looks at Kacela when she is done with a grin on her furred, bewhiskered face. ~I am ready.~