Anything you can feel …

[flint_garou]

… can turn to frenzy.
18 January, 2012
The moon is in the waning Crescent (Theurge) Moon phase (32% full).

The room smells like… food. Good Italian food, redolent with garlic and tomato and onion. Rina's busy dishing out lasagna from a big pan.

There are a few hesitant steps at the doorway, but the smell of food has drawn Flint out from where he'd been sitting on his bunk since he returned to the tenement earlier in the evening. The cub seems subdued, thoughtful, though his face brightens immensely at the sight of both Rina and dinner. "Hi," he calls out, taking a few steps further into the room. "Smells awesome." Not that the boy ever dislikes her cooking, but he's always good about complimenting it.

Rina looks over her shoulder, her crooked smile accentuating the lines around her eyes. "Oh, hey. You gettin' along all right?"

Flint makes his way towards the kitchen, nodding slightly and there's a shrug, followed by a smile. "Yeah," he says, eventually. Still, subdued, and there's a note of general uncertainty to his posture.

"We haven't had much chance to talk," the woman says hoarsely. "You had dinner yet?"

Flint shakes his head. "No, not yet," Flint says, leaning on the edge of the table and out of the way. "Had a bit of a snack when I got back, but." A grin follows, and the boy glances down at the food.

Rina smiles a little, wryly. "Well, then. You got good timing. I had a cousin like that, growing up…" She puts a plate in the microwave. "He'd always be late, but then he'd show up right when it was time t'sit down for dinner."

"Could smell it from down in the bunkroom," the boy says, grin widening. "Had to come out."

At the far end of the hall, a door opens and closes again as Kavi makes his way toward the breakroom.

"Ah ha, you have discovered my secret strategy," Rina says dryly.

Flint grins at Rina. "Well, it works," Flint responds. "Plus, couldn't just say in there all night, so." A shrug.

As the older galliard reaches the doorway, he pauses and leans against the threshold. "Hey," he calls out with a glance to the cub and a longer look, a small smile, for the kin.

Rina looks over to the incoming Galliard, and something in her expression softens. "Lasagna okay?"

"Hi," Flint responds, gaze falling to the floor for a moment when Kavi comes in. The subdued manner returns, though it had faded for a moment.

Kavi's brow furrows at the cub's response to his arrival, but his smile returns as he looks again to Rina. "Always," he says, and starts crossing toward her. "Are you eating?" The question isn't directed to either, specifically, perhaps intended for both.

Rina nods to Kavi, swiftly. "Yeah."

Flint nods, finding whatever it takes to look up again. "Yep," the boy responds, pushing aside whatever had been nagging him. "Smelled food from the bunkroom and well." A very faint grin crosses his face.

Kavi watches Rina for a moment after her answer. As he nears, he reaches out to touch her hand, though he's careful not to interfere with her serving. "Good," he says, and the smile can be heard in his voice. It's still there as he turns back to Flint, offering the cub a nod. "I have something I want you to do. Later."

"You want some extra Parmigian' on top, Flint?" Rina's voice is quiet, as she moves things about from microwave to counter and vice versa.

"Sure," Flint says with another faint grin to Rina. "Sounds good." The cub nods, looking up at Kavi for a moment. "Okay," he says. "Right."

"You know how to use computers? You can make spreadsheets, and work with databases?" Kavi's questions to the cub sound genuine, as though he isn't sure what the answer will be, but is truly interested. Though he still seems to be paying attention to Flint, his voice drops, and it's clear the next question is for Rina. "Can I help?"

Rina shreds some cheese onto the plater that's already hot, and sets a fork on it. "Here," she says, handing the first serving over to him. "This one's for him."

Flint frowns at Kavi's question. "Can type, sorta, can use the web or type stuff up," he answers, pulling out the chair to sit down at the table now that food has been partially served. "But that's about it. Never had computers except at school, and didn't get to use those much."

Kavi frowns, more thoughtful than disapproving, as he hands Flint his plate. "I'll teach you," he says, and then looks over toward the kin. "Or Rina can. You'll need to be able to, for what I need you to do."

Rina nods, putting the next plate in the microwave an punching in the numbers. She looks over her shoulder and says, simply, "Love to."

Flint nods, "Alright," he says, nodding and picking up his fork, though he only takes a bite before looking back up at Kavi. "No problem, I think. I'll learn. What's it you need me to do, anyway?"

Kavi moves to stand by Rina, again, bringing a surreptitious touch to her elbow as he nears. "Because of what's happening on the bawn? And. What they saw? With Jebediah Regan, and the old city? We're trying to learn as much as we can about the history as we can. I've been through a lot, so far. But I need help. We need to organize what we learn, and figure out what's important and what's not."

Rina turns to lean her backside briefly against the counter. While the dish heats, she watches them.

Flint nods again, taking another bite. "That makes sense. And easier, to keep track with computers, than just remembering it all and such," the boy says, half a question but more of a statement.

"Yes," Kavi agrees. "But we have to be careful, too. We don't put things just on any computer." He gestures to the machines at the back of the room. "These are secure. They're safe." With a nod from the galliard to one of the monitors, it flickers to life, and files start opening. "We keep them protected."

Rina smiles faintly, and turns to get the plate down from the microwave. "Parmigian', caro?"

Flint blinks at the computer a few times, watching it open files by itself before he takes another bite from his plate. A nod follows.

Kavi turns from the monitor, and the shifting of files pauses. "Please," he says to Rina, smiling to her. His gaze stays on her for a few seconds longer than truly necessary, and then turns again to Flint and the computer. The file he pulls up is a schematic of the network, which, for the most part, resembles an image of several iconic computers connected by various colored lines. "Almost all of the machines in this building are connected. And we can access the outside, but people on the outside can't get in."

Rina turns to shred some cheese onto Kavi's plate. "Pretty good security," she murmurs.

Flint nods, peering at the screen for a moment, before he nods. "That makes sense," the cub says, looking at it a little longer.

Kavi leaves the page open and turns to take his plate from Rina. He doesn't start eating, however, but simply places his plate on the table and returns to the kitchen. "Water?"

"Sure," Rina says, popping her own plate into the microwave.

"Please," Flint adds, to the question about water. Fork is stuck into his plate again, but the boy's waiting for a bit, gaze now focused on the table and shoulders slumped, distant.

Kavi pours three glasses, and brings them all to the table. Standing by his chair, he looks down to Flint. "What are you thinking?"

The boy's brows furrow, and he looks up at Kavi. "Just about stuff Devon said earlier," Flint says. "'s all." Another bite of food follows.

Kavi looks across to Rina and then takes a sip from his glass. "Is it something you want to talk about?" he asks the cub.

Rina comes over to the table with her own plate, and slides into a chair.

Flint furrows his brow further, tilting his head to one side. "I dunno," he says. "Just about, keeping control and not letting things get to me," he says. "I lost it, earlier, over almost nothing." The kid sighs, turning his attention back to his food.

Rina glances over to Kavi.

Kavi sits when Rina does, but as the boy speaks, he turns his attention that way.

Flint looks at Kavi, fork set on the edge of his plate for a moment while the boy tries to word what he wants to say. Or doesn't want to say, maybe. "I…" a long pause follows, and the boy shrugs in lieu of the words he can't seem to figure out correctly. "Lost my temper. Big-time." The cub sounds disappointed in himself more than anything else. "Devon diverted me so I lost it at him, and… not at anyone else."

Rina's brow furrows. "Well." She glances to Kavi again. "Quick thinking on his part."

Kavi nods slowly, and as Rina speaks, he turns to meet her gaze in that brief glance. He nods again, at Rina's comment, and then his brow furrows. "You frenzied?" he asks. His voice is soft, gentle, and the furrow fades. "That's what we call it. The beast took over, and you weren't— It was like you weren't there, anymore?"

Flint nods slowly. "Yeah," he responds, after a moment. Still quiet. Still disappointed in himself. "One moment, Devon'd pushed me outside and was talking to me and the next…" a shrug follows, and the boy frowns, before picking up his fork and seeming to take some solace in the food in front of him.

Rina eats quietly, slowly, watching them.

Kavi glances again to Rina. Fork and food forgotten, he reaches out to touch her free hand, even as he returns his gaze to Flint. "It's… It's who we are. You'll learn to feel it? You'll learn to know when it's coming, when— When you need to move away from what's causing you to feel that way. And how… How to push it back down. But even then? It's who we are, and. It happens."

Flint meets Kavi's gaze when it shifts back to him, and nods. There's a small sigh, after, but the cub is silent, thoughtful. "I kinda knew," he says. "Felt myself get really angry, really fast, after something someone said," and it becomes clear that while he does know who said what, it's being excluded, "but. I tried, it just…" Another shrug.

Rina nods. "It's okay," she says gently. "It happens. And you'll learn… more."

Kavi gives another, smaller nod. "We'll practice. Practice learning how to stop it." He looks down at his dish, and pulls his hand back to reclaim his fork. "Was anyone hurt?"

Flint shakes his head. "Think I might have gotten Devon a few times, but. He pushed me outside and that's pretty much all," the cub pauses, calmer now a little, "I remember before it happened." Flint picks up his glass of water, taking a long sip from it.

Kavi waits until the boy gives his answer, and then begins to eat. After a moment, he looks up, and as the bite is finished he asks, "Did you— Do you have any questions? About what happened?"

"I…" Flint pauses, and nods. "I still, only kinda get it, and why," the boy admits. "And, and what was said was such a little, little insignificant thing. Stupid to get angry over, all things given." Even if the boy still isn't mentioning what was said.

"Doesn't matter how small it is," Rina says quietly. "You get pissed enough, and there's a good chance it'll happen."

"Rage," Kavi says, his voice nearly as quiet as Rina's. "It gives us strength. It's a gift from Luna, but. But it has two sides. You have to be careful. Always. And it— We've been going to the library. Rina and I? And. I have to stay at the desk, or wait in the hall, sometimes, while Rina talks to people. Because the humans can feel it. I scare them, just by being there. Because of that rage inside us."

Flint nods, brow furrowing for a moment, though this is more thought than the earlier signs of discontent. Several bites of food are taken, and he looks up. "Yeah," he acknowledges, also quiet.

The older galliard looks down, and like the younger, takes several bites before he sets down his fork again. The glance he sends toward Rina this time is slight, surreptitious, and then his gaze focuses on the cub. "It isn't only anger. That's… That's the most likely. To push you? To make you lose control? But it's not the only thing. Being embarrassed. Or afraid. Or excited. Or hurt. Anything… Anything you feel can turn to frenzy."

Rina nods swiftly.

Flint looks up at Kavi as the older galliard speaks, nodding. "Right," the boy says, fork turned idly in his hand even though he's paused from eating. "I… yeah." He seems to be reconciling himself with whatever it is that happened, and tired enough that the thought process shows through visibly in his expression, complete with a wince and pushed away pain, before the cub offers both Kavi and Rina a faint smile. "Thanks."

Rina looks across to him, a wry twist on her lips. "Eat," she says, just like an Italian mother.

"You'll learn," Kavi says again, more warmly, and then looks to Rina, as though her words had been for him. He smiles, and turns to finish his meal.

"Yes'm," Flint says, the faint smile staying put on his face just a moment longer. Then, the cub picks up his fork, turning the most of his attention to his meal with far less reserve than he'd had before.