The old bear had not been able to figure out how to broach the subject of Louisa's torment. So he decided he would just be blunt about it. He pulled out his crappy cell phone, and texted the young woman.
~Lou-Lou, come on over. We need to chat. Love ya. Poppa Bear. ~
He went upstairs and poured himself a big glass of sweet iced tea. He waited for her to either call or show up. He knew she would, but he needed to know why she was so depressed. He cared about the little girl he practically adopted. Darn youngun could really pull on his big tough heart strings.
Lou had been trying to follow Ash's directions of making time to meet the others in the pack she didn't know and spend time with them but things had been sort of quiet in the city. Everyone was focusing on their own lives so there hadn't been a lot of chances to just hang out but she was trying though today she was in the shop, finishing up the paint on a couple of bikes. The buzzing of her phone as the text message came in had her lifting her head from her work, glancing over at the workbench where she'd tossed the phone earlier. She finished the last bit of work on the gastank before putting the airbrush away, and moving to the workbench to retrieve the phone, a faint smile touching her lips as she read the message. Her figners moved deftely over the keys as she returned the text.
On my way <3
It didn't take long for her to close up the shop and mount the black triumph that was her usual ride, making her way over to the Pawn Shop, the rumble of the bikes engine announcing her presence as she pulled into the parking lot.
If Lou came into the shop portion of the building, Donny would tell her that Kodi was upstairs. The door was open to his quasi-loft/studio space. He was hanging out on his favorite couch enjoying his sweet tea when she poked her head through. Of course he knew her so well, he didn't even have to rely on his preternatural senses.
"Come on in, babe. Sit your ass over here on the couch. Get yourself somethign to drink first, though." The hint of a teasing smile was apparent in his voice as he spoke to her, never taking his eyes off the television showing highlights from a footy match between Man U and Brazil. Once she was well and truly settled, he muted the set, and turned his dark amber eyes on her.
"What's wrong lately, girl? You been mopin' about and avoidin' ol' Kodi quite irreverently. You better come out with it, or so help me I'll have to get Ben o'er here to talk and play it out o' ya." He was gentle aboutt he way the words came out, but there was steel underneath. If she hadn't known him better, she might think he had a bit of Pitbull blood instead of bear.
He took a long swallow of his tea, and as he waited, he pulled a pistol out, and began cleaning it on the side table. He needed something to keep his hands busy so he could pay attention a little more.
She raked her fingers through her hair to loosen up the curls tangled by the wind as she made her way into the shop, giving Danny a nod in greeting. The changing merchandise of what was available in the shop was a draw to her eyes, fingers twitching with the urge to ramble through the shelves for a bit but, no, that was just delaying the visit with Kodi.
Her steps were silent as she made her way up the stairs, peeking into the loft to see where he sat. A flicker of a smile touched her lips, she had missed the big bear after all. His greeting had her on her way to the kitchen, digging in the fridge for a drink, her smile widening a bit when she found the cans of Dr. Pepper, her favorite.
Can in hand she returned to the living area, kicking off her boots before settling in a corner of the couch, legs curled up under her as she snuggled into a comfortable pose. She froze when he spoke, the soda can having just reached her lips to allo her to sip. Her eyes focused on the can as she lowered it, nibbling lightly at her lower lip.
"Things have just been... tough... is all. Too many memories lately." She turned th can slowly in her hands, "I got myself mixed up." It was hard to untangle it all, the things she'd done to avoid the memories, the pain of loss that was a dull throb inside her all the time. She peeked up at him, her eyes focusing on the deft motion of his hands as he worked on the gun. "I talked to Ash, he took over at Ulfric. He.... he wants me to hang out with the pack, to get to know them all." It was hard, so much time as a lone wolf to suddenly throw herself into a pack.
The big bear just listened as her meek voice came out of her normally confident body. He knew memories could be hard, and he also knew that it'd be best not to ask her to dredge them up. If she reall wanted him to know what it was all about, she would tell him in her own time. The bit about the pack ulfric got him right under the jaw. ~So the dreadlock woman is out. Interesting. Serves her right for that power play with Sessions.~
"Well, little one, I know you been runnin' solo for quite some time, other than our little jaunts under Miss Luna." His eyes flicked from her to his pistol as he cleaned it. Perhaps this little talk would remove some of the carbon deposits off his little girl as well. "Is it so bad you got others like you around? Tell ya what, if you find it so hard to make friends with them yourself, you let ol' Kodi throw a party. They can all be invited."
He looked up at her, and smiled his winningest smile. She knew the knids of parties he threw, and it would definitely prove to the other wolves that his little wolf cub was more than they think. It would let everyone relax and feel able to be themselves, whatever that may be. He may even invite that tall lanky rat to the party...if he could find him.
"Now, if you're feelin' mixed up about yourself, you let me know, and I'll unscramble ya. Ain't nobody in this town knows my little Lou half as good as me. And if ya want to get yourself mixed up, you come here, and do it right and proper." With that, he had reassembled the pistol, and the slide racked into place hard. He put it down, and reached behind him, pulling a mason jar out.
"This stuff here, done in the privacy of my own home, is the only way I ever want to hear you been mixed up about yourself. It'll put hair on your tongue, but it does the best job of brain scrambling." The clear moonshine sloshed as he shook it.
-- Edited by BRANSON RINER on Saturday 24th of September 2011 01:53:50 AM
It had been a lot easier in the past couple of years, keeping to herself except for the time she spent with Kodi and The Rev when he came to town. She focused on the shop, on her work and was able to deal with Ravin and Rayne's loss. Since the flood of the pack into town and everyone else that seemed to decide that NOLA was the place to be.... well... it had her off balance.
Her brows lifted as he mentioned a party for the pack, flicker of a smile dancing over her lips for a moment. "I don't know if one of your parties will be a good way for me to make friends with the pack. Since I usually wind up in a corner watching everyone else." Not that she didn't have fun, because she did, often hiding her laugher behind her hands as she watched some of the antics that occurred. "Maybe it wouldn't be a bad thing though. Get everyone together but not because its a pack thing. If that makes sense." She'd had bad luck with packs in the past and she was having a hard time just relaxing enough to get to know the others. Maybe a good time outside of pack territory, so to speak, would be a good thing.
She tipped her head to rest against the back of the couch, a giggle escaping when he brought out the jar of 'shine. "You just want to drum up some more business for that stuff."
The little wolf always knew how to make him smile. He knew she was a little shy, but that's what pseudo-fathers were there for, right? He grabbed her arm, and pulled her over to lean against his large frame, his left arm reaching around to squeeze her shoulders into his.
"Listen, cher, if I throw a party for you to make friends, you can guaran-damn-tee that I won't let ya just sit in the corner this time. If I have to, I will drag ya kickin' and screamin', and make you dance with every person there. On the other hand, I have a good plan for you to not be on the outskirts. Drag race. bike against bike, wolf against bear." He took himself a gulp of the liquid in the jar, letting it burn all the way down.
"And this stuff...Well, I ain't doin' too bad on business, but it'll get ya nice and cloudy if you feel that's whatchya need. You drink or you don't, no skin off my back, darlin'." He smiled, and held the jar out to her, but not in a demanding way. She could drink if she felt like it, and they would get drunk together if so.
