Liam smiled at Moira and then looked over sideways at Robyn. “Here we go, what?” He asked in confusion.

Moira strode forward and hugged Liam tightly. Even in her human form, she was strong. "Oh, it's so wonderful here, Liam." she said. "I haven't felt this close to the earth since the Caern was destroyed." She looked over at Pockets, then at Robyn. "And you must be Robyn. Nice to meet you."

Robyn fidgeted. "We've... Met. '09? The Liebowicz protests?"

Moira still looked confused. Robyn sighed.

"I was the one who you caught painting 'Lying Coward' on your garage in blood? You hit me with a broom? I called you a fucking cuntrag?"

"Oh," Moira said. "Oh."

"Yeah," Robyn said sheepishly. "I, uh, know now that you weren't covering up my partner's murder so much as you were covering up the fact that vampires are real. So, uh... Sorry."

"Think nothing of it," Moira said. "I should be apologizing to you for the pain I caused in my complicity with the lie. It was a horrible thing we did to her loved ones, and I'm deeply sorry."

"Water under the fridge," Robyn said. "I'm still mad about it. Just not with you."

"You don't know how glad I am to hear that," Moira said. "Because I am in awe of what you've done here. I didn't think a place with such natural spiritual energy still existed in Verdant Falls. I will defend this place with my life. And if you'll have me, I'd like to devote the rest of my life to making it grow."

Robyn snorted dismissively. "Pass," she said, moving past Moira and towards the grove.

"I... I don't understand," Moira said.

"Most of what this place has become is the work of Maeve Bennett," Robyn snapped, spinning back around. Moira's expression changed to one of confusion. Robyn crossed her arms. "What, doesn't ring a bell? The woman you enslaved. The woman you conscripted and forced to act as your bloody field medic. Under conditions so poor that they killed her colleague. So you'll forgive me if I don't take up your offer to colonize my home. You can protect me and my wards while the war is on, fine. But there will come a day when I ask you to leave, and never return. So don't grow attached. I know the Garou habit of taking what you covet."

"I take great exception to that," Moira said. "I wasn't a part of that. If I'd have been there, I'd have opposed it. Don't judge us all by the actions of a few. If you can't wrap your head around that, you don't deserve to wear that snide little hoodie."

Robyn looked a little deflated. She turned her back again."My terms stand. Take them or leave them."

Liam let go of the embrace and tried to follow the ensuing exchange. "Moira - Spark-Weaver is being forthright," Liam remarked after a moment. "She bore no part in what happened to Maeve. That was Mountain-Gale. He subsumed the Caern into his warband. He dictated the conditions under which Maeve laboured. Even Three-Claw was powerless to put an end to it, and he was at least there. Moira was in the city."

He looked from one woman to another.

"Its your land, Robyn. All of us are guests here and stay only at your discretion. Clearly there's a lot of history here. Far more than I realised. But whatever came before, right now we're all on the same side. Lets take things one night at a time."

Liam looked to see if there was an objection on the part of either woman. If not he turned to Moira.

"How are the kids? How's Alice?"
This message was last edited by the player at 01:16, Fri 18 Sept 2020.

Robyn seemed satisfied. Moira was a little rattled by the experience, but answered all the same. "Good, considering. It's actually a time of jubilation when a Garou has their first change. It's often accompanied by tragedy, so we're in familiar ground. Jack is ready when you are. The chances of more than one of my kids being Garou are slim, but not unheard of. Given the number of bystanders nearby, I'd still rather be safe than sorry."

Liam nodded. He'd had much the same thought. "Do you want me to be ready to pin him down, or lead him on a chase? I'm going to need blood tonight if I'm going to be doing much shifting." He glanced at Pockets. "How deep is your stash at the moment?"

"Oh, I'm good," Pockets said. "I barely eat. Fill your boots."

"As long as we're ready to go, there should be no problems," she said. "The change takes long enough that we'll be able to pin him before he can throw us."

"Perfect," Liam replied. "Robyn's going to make some drugs for Jim to keep him free willed. I'll get them smuggled to him in the hospital later tonight. Let me finish up with her and I'll circle back to the cottage to top up. Then I'm all yours. I'll have Caleb about too, just in case."

"He's a wonder with the kids," Moira said. "I'll wait up for you. Thanks."

Robyn looked eager to press on. She led them away from the tent and towards the grove. "Don't ever try this without me, by the way," she said, approaching the wall of briar. "If I'm ever in here and want to see you, you'll find a pretty clear path."

She pulled at a branch, and revealed a small hollow in the briar. "C'mon in."

"Why would I come here without you?" Liam wondered, following close behind. Admittedly he was curious to know where it was Robyn was taking him, but beyond that he had little reason to expect he'd have to come back.

"Boredom," Pockets suggested. "Curiosity, spite, some kind of elaborate prank setup..."

"You wouldn't," Robyn said. "Not unless you had some nefarious purpose in mind. This isn't just where I do my most difficult spell work. It's also the source of power for the wards protecting this place. I just want to emphasize how much I don't want you fucking with this place. Pockets, I'm lookin' at you, girl."

"Ugh, fine," Pockets said with mock exasperation. "I won't doom us all because I can't resist a 'keep out' sign."

The tunnel opened up into a massive sheltered clearing. Moonlight shone through the canopy in dappled rays. Given the thick, angry trees surrounding the area, Liam expected less light to get through. There was a massive, five-sided slate slab in the centre of the clearing. It was inscribed with faintly glowing runes in a variety of ancient scripts, including the language of the First Tribe. At the centre of the slab sat a massive quartz altar, its five sides cut and polished to match the slab.

At one corner of the clearing stood a small round hut made of stone and straw. It looked old from its design, but the thatching looked fresh. Inside was a cluttered workspace full of bizarre glass apparatuses and a collection of reagents that made her formidable herb cupboard look like the spice rack at an Olive Garden.

"This is where the cure was made," Robyn said, gesturing around her. "I've still got some concentrate... Uh, somewhere."

“It’s very peaceful in here,” Liam observed. “But it isn’t strictly speaking necessary, is it? Once you publish your book, will wizards elsewhere be able to reproduce the concoction without first planting an eldritch grove? Or is this a necessary prerequisite?”

"Don't get me wrong, it'll help their chances of being successful," Robyn said,rummaging through a cupboard. "But no, most of the risk involved is in the experimentation and refinement of the recipe. When you're following a set of instructions, it's a little less involved. But anything I do here is easier, less effortful, and carries a lot less risk of going wrong. Any serious wizard will have a ritual spot. Maybe not as nice as this one, but they won't have access to a prodigal Verbena sphere mage."

She produced a stoppered flask full of a dark tobacco-yellow liquid, and a tiny, empty vial. She continued to talk as she did so. "We'll be doing the ritual to find your friend in here. Well, out there." She gestured to the altar with the hand holding the vial, before pouring a few millilitres of the ichorous fluid into it with nearly superhuman alacrity. She screwed the lid shut, and tossed it to Liam.

"They're gonna want to paint a paper-thin layer on the patch," Robyn said. "And if he starts reacting badly, for the love of God take it off. I know a mook testing cantrip I could teach them, but frankly I don't think they've got the sensibility. So they're going to have to come by and spritz him periodically til he's outta there. Same goes for you:. Assume he's mooked every time you meet him. He'll be able to remember mookin' out and spilling his guts, and he won't put a stake in your back."

Liam nodded and tucked the vial away. “I’ll pass along the instructions. It may be that Hasan and I end up taking turns until Jim is out of hospital but I’ll let him have the first go. It’s safer that way.”

He glanced at the altar. “As keen as I am to find Tim again, I don’t want to take you away from your work. You tell me when it’s a good night. I’ll leave you to your writing until then.”

"I'm gonna need breaks," Robyn said. "So don't be afraid to take me away from it for a while. I'm also giving some priority to Pockets. The sooner I get the book to Miss the better. Even a skilled Tremere will take weeks to learn it. Maybe months. Plus, it's a lot simpler to write because it's not encrypted. Finding your boy's not a big task. Just... Not when I'm running on empty, y'know?"

Liam nodded again. “Thank you.”

He glanced around the grove once more. “And thank you for taking us here. I presume we have everything we came for now?” He said, giving the vial a little twirl.

If so, Liam was planning to get the sample to Jim as quickly as possible and he’d committed himself to a few tasks first already.

"Yep, that's all I can do," Robyn said. "Watch your ass tonight. Maybe go for a bit of a hike before you take off? No telling how closely they're watching the woods."

“I will,” Liam replied. He’d had a similar thought as well - put some distance between himself and the camp before taking to the skies.

“I should go help Moira with Jack. Pockets, if you’re not busy tonight might be a good night to start those interviews with Herb - find out where the money is hidden and give the Redwatch a brand new digital front to worry about.”

"That might cut into my sitting-on-my-ass time but for you, baby, I'll make the sacrifice," Pockets said.

"Guess I better get back to writing," Robyn said, replacing the large flask and closing the cabinet. A short walk later, and they were out of the grove. Moira seemed to be having a conversation with her daughters a ways away from the tent. The campfire was unoccupied.

Liam accompanied Robyn and Pockets back to the cottage. He took a single bag from Pockets stash before doubling back. There would likely be more nights like tonight over the coming weeks and he was intent upon making it last. Afterwards Liam doubled back and waved at Moira and the girls.

“Hello, Maggie. Alice,” he said with a friendly smile. “Sorry to keep you waiting.”

"Mr. O'Farrell," Maggie said. Alice was quiet.

"Thanks, Liam," Moira said. "Let's get this over and done with. Girls, you wait out here."

Jack was seated in the tent. Placid, and staring. He went blank as Liam appeared.

Moira knelt beside her son. "Spritz away, Liam."

“Liam is fine,” he said. “You girls of all folks have the right to call me that.”

In a way they were practically family.

Liam followed Moira into the tent and reached for his bottle.

“Hello, Jack,” he said, crouching low. He levelled the bottle and sprayed.

“How are you feeling?”
This message was last edited by the player at 12:11, Sat 19 Sept 2020.

[20:24, Thu 17 Sept: Secret Roll: Narrator, for the NPC Jack Gordon, rolled 10 using 1d100 with rolls of 10.  Fate.]

Jack's eyes rolled back as soon as the cure hit him. His neck arched, his hands clawed, and his body convulsed. His mouth was open, but all that issued forth was a few choked gasps, his lungs having completely emptied of air.

"No no no no, Jack," Moira pleaded. "What's happening? What's happening?" She screamed loud enough that it evoked a response from the campsite. Faint shouts soon followed, growing closer.

As quickly as it started, it stopped, and Jack fell limp. His body empty and breathless.

Alice and Maggie had crowded around the mouth of the tent. Robyn pushed past them. "What's going on?"

Liam reached for Jack’s wrist and put his head against the young man’s chest, searching for a heartbeat.

“I don’t know,” he said tersely. “As soon as I sprayed him he seized and then went limp.”

If Jack lacked a pulse Liam moved to start chest compressions at once. If he had a pulse but could not breath, Liam lowered his mouth to Jacks and helped to fill his lungs.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:55, Sat 19 Sept 2020.

She looked up at Robyn, bristling at her presence. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM," she snarled. Her voice had dropped an octave.

Robyn was obviously afraid of the now-enraged mama werewolf bearing down on her, but she managed to keep from running. "Liam, you're faster than me. In my fridge, in the door there's a little black zipper pouch marked 'overdose'. Inside, there's a shot of adrenaline. Run over and give it to me. Now."

Liam questioned whether leaving the two of them alone was a good idea. But for him, the adrenaline was practically a hop, skip and a jump away.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:59, Sun 20 Sept 2020.

Liam nodded and rose at once. He took off bounding and was lupine before he hit his second stride, only transforming back again when it was necessary to manipulate a door handle.

“Black zipper pouch, black zipper pouch,” he muttered as he rifled through the door. “Here we go.”

For the return trip Liam carried the bag gently in his mouth and didn’t stop until he’d delivered it into Robyn’s waiting grasp.