A Meeting of the Minds

Feb 19th, 2015 08:48 PM

It's late. The gym is supposed to be closed, but Allison talked her new boss into letting her stay late, do some lifting of her own, have a friend join her. He probably thought she was going to have sex in the sparring ring. Whatever. She wondered if he might have hidden cameras in the place, but it doesn't really matter. This is about clearing the air between her and Aryana. Nothing more.

While she waits, though, she does what she said she was going to do, and works out. Legs, tonight. She pushes again and again on the leg press, her leg muscles starting to burn with each press. Good time to move on. Locking the weights in place, Allison moves over to the squat bar, loading it up before taking her place and starting the process. As she lifts, she thinks. Thinks about what she's going to say to Aryana, how to best approach the issue at hand. Hopefully they can get through this without resorting to violence again. That fight was SUPPOSED to end the hatred. But Aryana's eyes as she limped away...there was still some resentment there. Hell, Allison wouldn't be surprised if she didn't even show up...

**Cabochard** · Feb 19th, 2015 11:59 PM

Aryana did, in fact, show up, though it was at least partially because her Beta had asked it of her. As much as Aryana might not like it, Allison was the Beta, which meant she was in charge. The Low Honor The High, even if the Low didn't particularly like the High, or even really wanted them there. It wasn't her decision, it was Chuck's.

She entered the gym, wandering down into the main area and spying Allison working out. Part of her mind wondered if it was meant to intimidate her. The rest decided that, no, she wasn't, that was just why she'd won. Constant training. Too bad Ary couldn't just go hunting anytime she wanted. At least, not without animal control being called about a crazy wolf roaming the streets of Sacramento.

She walked over to Allison, holding up a hand in greeting. "Hey."

Feb 20th, 2015 12:30 AM

Hearing Ary's voice, Allison's eyes snap up. A smile forms across her face, even as she mentally chastises herself. Too caught up in her breathing and lifting that she hadn't heard the door, hadn't heard Aryana approach until she was close. Close enough to strike. Not good to get complacent, even in a place she feels safe. "Hey."

She lifts the bar into place, setting it on its stand before grabbing a towel to wipe off her face and a bottle of water to rehydrate herself. Once her breathing calms down, she nods to Aryana, "You want some water? Gatorade? I think we've got some protein shakes, too, if that's your thing." As she speaks, she looks Aryana over carefully. Not limping, not showing any obvious signs of the injuries she'd sustained in their duel. Probably not a good idea to bring them up, could be misconstrued as gloating. Instead, Allison indicates a couple of benches nearby that they can sit down at, and moves to do just that. Once there, she allows her smile to return once more, "Thanks for coming. I wanted to get the chance to talk to you, now that everything's been...settled." Bad choice of words. Idiot. "I wanna clear the air. We're on the same side, after all. There's no need for us to be at each other's throats anymore."

**Cabochard** · Feb 20th, 2015 08:49 AM

Aryana shook her head at Allison's first question. "No, thanks. I don't really drink that stuff." She'd never seen the reason. It wasn't all that nutritious, and her body burned through it just as fast as anything else. She could put just about anything in and not suffer for it, anyway. Energy drinks and the like were just a waste of time.

As Allison indicated the benches, Aryana walked over and plopped down unceremoniously. She immediately decided it was a bad idea when her side hit the back of the bench. She let out a pained hiss, an arm wrapping around to grab at the wounds ineffectively. She was feeling a lot better than she had before, but it was still pretty bad.

Her eyes turned on Allison, sitting next to her. Clear the air? "Fine. What do you have to say?"

Feb 20th, 2015 05:25 PM

Allison's jaw tightens reflexively at the hiss, and her eye twitches, but she suppresses any other signs of concern. Aryana's defensive tone bothers her. Chipping away at that pride and getting her to let Alli in will not be an easy task. She has to try, though. For the good of the pack. She sighs and shakes her head, "What's the animosity for? What purpose does it fill? I said before, Aryana, we're not enemies. So why do you keep treating me like one?"

**Cabochard** · Feb 20th, 2015 06:07 PM

Why was she treating Allison like an enemy?

Ary couldn't quite figure it out. She didn't blame Allison for winning. There was just, a lot of anger. And Allison was an easy target. Ary knew where she should turn it, but Allison was a far easier target. She provided a focus for the anger, and it let her push forward, train harder. With one goal.

So she just growled out an "I'm not." She was treating her like a rival. Maybe once she didn't have to put on bandages every morning anymore there would be less anger.

Feb 20th, 2015 08:09 PM

"Yeah. You are." Allison's voice hardens as she reaffirms her statement, "Unless this is how you treat your allies. I haven't seen you treat any of the rest of the pack with such anger, though." She searches Aryana's face for answers. Anything that she can use to break down the other woman's mental walls. "What is this about? Really. Be honest with me. I deserve that much."

Even as she speaks, she thinks that she knows the answer. The fight. The fight was supposed to end all of this crap. As soon as Aryana had fallen, it had been settled, at least as far as Allison cares. They'd agreed to let Mother Luna decide on that matter, and the results were nothing if not definitive. There's no reason for that to be what this is all about. Still. She needs to hear it from Aryana if it's true.

**Cabochard** · Feb 20th, 2015 08:12 PM

Ary met Allison's eyes, unblinking. "I'm not. You won. It's settled. I just want to put it behind me and let it fade away." Wait, had she even mentioned the fight yet? Ary's mind had a moment of hopping around, confused. Even if she hadn't meant to, she'd given the answer. Dammit.

Feb 20th, 2015 08:31 PM

Allison drops her head and smiles just barely. Right. The fight. Even though that was supposed to settle everything, somehow it's still an issue. Aryana's pride is going to make this so very, very difficult. That last statement, though. No need to push any further. Aryana has just given her the prefect way around it.

"So let's move past it, then." She stands suddenly, moving to stand before Aryana, facing her. Her face wears a calm, friendly smile, and she extends her hand to the other woman, "Good to meet you. Name's Allison Hunt. My friends call me Alli."

**Cabochard** · Feb 20th, 2015 08:35 PM

A fresh start, then? She could...try, at least. She takes Allison's hand, maybe with a little more force than was necessary. "Hi. I'm Aryana." She couldn't quite keep the cold out of her voice, but she tried. It was a little better. "My friends call me Ary." She met Allison's eyes coolly, much like the other first time they'd met. Although that time she hadn't been injured, sitting, or alone. "...Nice...to meet you."

A Meeting of the Minds

Members who have read this thread : 0

Similar Threads

Haven (Private) A Meeting of the Minds

Meeting of the Minds

The Murder and the Meeting of the Minds

Meeting of the Minds

Meeting of the Minds