Meeting the Ulfric (Open to all pack members)

[Amber]

Amber followed the GPS on her rental car. She did not want to take a taxi in case she had been located and was being followed once more. She drove a very deliberate slow and fast pace just going in circles for a while to be sure she was not being followed. After getting on and off the freeway for the fourth time she was satisfied that she was not being followed and relaxed.

She turned again as the robotic voice gave her directions to the address she had been given. She was very nervous. She was grateful that the Ulfric allowed the meeting. She was trying not to get her hopes since trouble would follow her. Any pack that took her in would be at risk. Her face twisted in pain at the memory of being rejected in San Deigo by the pack she had given up so much to protect.

She turned into a residentional neighborhood and pulled up in front of the address she had been given. The robotic voice informed her that she had reached her destination. She was very nervous. She had spent the last week on her gift to the Ulfric, his Lupa, and his girlfriend. She hoped it pleased them. She smiled as she brushed her hand over the sun warmed wood. It was some of the best work she had ever done. She gently eased the cradle out of the back seat. It came out in three pieces. Her muscles bunched as she carried each piece up to the door and set them down carefully. She then ran back and closed her car door and locked it.

She slung her large leather purse over her shoulder. She could feel that was being watched and knew that the Ulfric probably had guards watching or someone from within the house. She was pretty sure that they knew she was here already and was watching to see what she would do. She walked back to the porch took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. Here goes something she thought.

[David Meeks]

David's guards had alerted him that Amber had arrived. He had called Natasha when Grayson told him about Amber. Once he'd worked out a time and date for the meeting he'd called Natasha back and asked her to join him. He asked Mia to join him as well because she was of the part of the pack and he'd been involved with her for a while. Most of the pack considered her family and went to her just like they did Natasha.

When the doorbell rung David directed the guards to let Amber inside. He'd been waiting a while for anyone new to come into town. He was excited to meet her. He thought Natasha and Mia were excited too.

[Amber]

Amber stepped inside and paused knowing the guards were going to do their duty and decide if she was threat or not before allowing her to move forward. She waited while she was patted down for weapons and her leather purse was searched. The guard raised his eyebrows at some of the contents since it doubled as her medicine bag. She just smiled at him and raised an eyebrow back. Evidently she had passed that test. She retrieved the cradle pieces carefully and rested them against a wall. She waited patiently to be invited further in. She was nervous but not afraid. She could feel their energy all around her and closed her eyes briefly. It felt so good like home and she had missed it terribly.

[David Meeks]

David motioned the guards to send her in. He was in his office, just off the foyer. His two personal guards were with him and Natasha had joined him. Mia hadn't arrived and he wasn't sure if her or Josh was going to make in time to join them in meeting the new wolf. He looked over at Natasha and smiled. He was ready to meet the new wolf.

[Amber]

Amber followed the guards as instructed. She could not help those twinges of nervousness. She was so afraid he was going to be rejected again. The pain of that rejection could still take her breath away at times. She took a deep breath and tried to find her balance. She had been struggling to find her balance again for some time. She stiffened her spine as she followed the guards. She was ushered into an office. She smiled at the man she knew was the ulfric. Amber had decided that to avoid surprises she would not hide what she was from him. She had come into the house with all her senses blazing. She did not want the guards to gut her thinking she was trying to attack him if she released her own metaphysical shields which in turn they could feel as werewolves of course. She smiled as she studied him. He had a beautiful aura and it was so strong and bright. His lupa did too. "Greetings from a traveler from..." Amber's smile died as she realised she was not really a traveler from the Aesir pack anymore. "Well I am more like a refugee these days. I can no longer claim my former pack." Pain flashed accross her face as the memory of why reared its ugly head. "I am Amber Skywulf. I have come to meet with you. I have come to ask for refuge and to give you a warning." She walked forward and knelt in front of David in a formal submission and lifted the hair from her neck exposing it. Amber waited patiently for David's response.

[David Meeks]

David mirrored Amber, only touching her throat with his teeth but leaving no marks. She was an alpha and very close to his power level. He stood up and helped her then motioned to a chair.
"Have a seat." He said smiling. Something about her made him want to smile. Maybe because she was the first wolf in a long time to come to them that wasn't weak.
"Welcome to Dallas and the Dallas Star Pack. We would be happy to take you in." Mia was a necromancer and Nadine's human servant. You got powers with that but it wasn't the same powers as Amber would have.
"By the way, I'm David Meeks the Ulfric of this pack." He looked over to Natasha with a smile. "This is my lupa, Natasha Donovan."

[Natasha Donovan]

Natasha had just recently returned to the pack. She'd been in the area just not with the pack. When things between her and David went south, she'd left David and that also forced her to leave the pack. Mia has stepped in and had handled things well. Most of the pack liked Mia, herself included and she started to miss the pack so she came back to David. They weren't getting back together but she did want to spend time with the pack again.
She smiled at Amber.
"I'm very glad you chose our city and our pack." She squeezed David's hand. Amber would be someone unlike the rest of their pack. Most of their pack were fighters, Amber was a healer. Something they could use.

[Amber]

Amber stayed where she was until he had completed the ritual. She rose to stand before them. She smiled as she sensed they had misjudged what she was. "Before you take me in I have to warn you, I come with danger." She grimaced a little "And I am not quite what you think I am. I am not a werewolf. I am a Shaman. A powerful one with a wolf guide. I can take wolf form as it is my totem animal but I do not have the strength and abilities of a lycanthrope. I am not bound by the moon. I am however a powerful healer and guide." She looked down and swallowed a little as pain closed her throat. "I was the Vargamor of the Aesir Labryinth Clan in San Diego. The pack and Ulfric there was targeted by a rogue radical human rights' group called Humans Only. They are a splinter group of Humans First. I saved my ulfric from them and testified against them in court. I have spent the last three years running from them. I have been in witness protection for the last three years. I have changed my identity and appearance more times than I can count. Always they find me. I believe their is a leak in the marshall's office someplace. Their organization's structure is more like a terrorist group with sleeper cells that grow in ignorance from each other until called upon to act by the leaders. My testimony decimated their upper ranks but their organization has taken on a life of its own. The authorities will never be able to find all the cells. They want revenge on me for taking down so many of their leaders and exposing them to the world. They are patient and they have had very powerful and wealthy backing. You may remember hearing about the case in the news. It was a media storm 3 years ago." She stopped and looked down and let all the sadness and pain and loss that she had suffered to show. She looked up at David and then Natasha "I am tired of running. I am tired of denying and hiding who I am. They continue to come after me. So I have decided to stop hiding. Before you accept me in.....I want you to know that eventually they will come and try again. They will come here to Dallas following me. Are you sure you still want me?" She could not hide the hope that had bloomed in her heart at their welcome so far, but they had to know all of it before she could feel that she could honorably accept their help.

[David Meeks]

David listened to what she had to say. He reached over for Natasha's hand. They'd had dealt with bounty hunters and killers before. People who wanted to see the pack gone. Some of his wolves had be stalked by bounty hunters. They could handle whatever came for her.
"Darling, we've had our share of people out to hurt the pack and us." He looked over at Natasha then back at Amber. "You'll be safe here and I'd like for you to stay."

[Amber]

Amber's smile blossomed like a flower searching for the sun. Her smile was radiant as a few tears slid down her cheek. She dropped her head to hide the depth of her emotions. She had not really thought that they would take her in. She closed her eyes and took a shaky breath. She took a deep breath to steady herself. Her head came up proudly and her shoulders straightened. "I can promise you will never regret your trust in me." She reached into her leather purse and pulled out two small leather beaded bags. "This is for you." She handed one to him and then turned to Natasha and handed her the other one. "I made these for you. Wear them and they will help protect you." The leather bags were beaded with a picture on them. David's had a wolf's head with a lightning bolt collar. Natasha's bag had a flower on it. Inside David's bag was a necklace cast in sterling silver. It was a wolf howling and on a leather cord with amber eyes. There was a feeling of power emananting from the piece. Inside Natasha's bag was a rose with a delicate chain worked to look like a stem with thorns and leaves. It was cast in silver as well but set in the center of the rose was an amesthyst crystal and it too emanated power. She smiled at them both. "I hope you like them. I have a very special gift for the baby." She turned and looked at the guards "Would you please fetch those pieces for me but be careful with them." She turned to watch what they thought so far of her gifts.

[David Meeks]

David looked at the bag. It was very fine work. He opened the bag and took the necklace out. He liked the design a lot. He showed it to Natasha. She put it on with the wolf's head resting against his shirt. He smiled at Amber.
"Thank you. I will wear this with pride and as a sign of strength." He smiled at her. "I hope you find your home with us a nice one and a loving one."

[Amber]

Amber smiled at David more relaxed now. "I believe my time here will be." She turned as the guards carried in the three pieces to the cradle. "Thank you very much." She moved forward and put the pieces together to reveal the cradle. It was hand carved from Pine and was treated with linseed and orange oil to bring the wood to a natural shine. At the head of the cradle was a represenatation of the munin. The wood was carved to show what looked like wolves running in a fog bank or a cloud of smoke. At the foot of the cradle was an elaborate tree carving with symbols worked into the trunk and branches. Their was a cream colored cotton covered matress pad in the bottom that had a padded bumber that came up the sides about 6 inches. There was a long curved pole that was a mobile that hung over the head of the crib. Dangling from cords was hand blown glass pieces that represented the moon and stars. Amber laid her hands on the crib after setting it up and closed her eyes. She chanted softly and everyone who was sensitive in the room would feel the leap of power that surrounded the cradle. She turned to David and Natasha with a smile. "I heard their was a new baby involved in your life. This is a very special gift for them. It is hand made by me and has powerful protections on it. Anything or anyone wishing to do the baby harm will be hard pressed to touch them while they lay in it. It will protect them from dark magic and dark intent." She stepped back to let them get a better look at it.

[Natasha Donovan]

Natasha had had very little experience meeting other members from other packs and this was the first gift she'd ever gotten from anyone while she'd been lupa. The bag was very beautiful and showed care work. She took the necklace out and looked at it. She turned it this way and that. It was amazing work and showed Amber's talent. Natasha let David put the necklace on her.
"Amber, thank you so much." She said with a smile. She turned her attention to the crib that Amber had brought them. It was for Mia's little boy. It was also amazing work. Natasha watched in awe and listened as Amber chanted and laid hands on the crib. Baby Nick would be well protected.
"Yes, there is a child in our lives." She glanced at David. "The baby is still but a crib is somthing he will use for a while." Natasha hoped Amber didn't think the baby was hers. It wasn't the Natasha didn't like children. Her becoming a wolf had dashed any hope of that happening.

[Amber]

Amber smiled at Natasha's pleasure in her simple gift. She pointed to the necklace around Natasha's neck as she explained. "The necklace is embued with a protection rune. It will repel dark magic aimed to harm you. The amethyst crystal will help you heal faster as well." She turned to David and smiled "Yours does two things. It too is embued with a protection against dark magic aimed to hurt you. Amber acts like a power booster. So if you have need of extra power hold the wolf's head in your hand and concentrate on it and you will get an extra boost of power when you need it." She looked at the crib and ran a hand lovingly along the length of it. "I think this is probably one of the best things I have ever tried to combine with my art and magic." She laid a hand almost sympathetically on Natasha's arm "I understand what you meant. I had just heard that their was a baby associated with the pack and that most of the pack was excited about this new little one. I felt any protections I could lend would be appreciated."

[Natasha Donovan]

Natasha nodded at Amber. Any and all protections were welcome. David, and that for that matter the whole pack would protect Mia if they needed to protect her but it was always good to have the extra protection.
"Yes, we are all very happy with the new baby...he is a sweetheart." Natasha could say this from experience. She'd helped in his care since he'd been home. She was suprised Mia wasn't here with her and David because she knew David had told her and Josh both about this meeting.