Bonding over Breaking

[Nathaniel Dormur]

"There are ways to bind them, but I think you're more keen to learn how to hurt them for real right? Well I can teach that as well. Emily could too- she'd probably explain it better." Though Nathaniel was certainly attempting to catch up, he knew full well that he had a lot of ground to cover.

"Um, I organize things for her when she needs it done... And I work down in the shop. It's meant to help toughen me up, make me stronger. It's working? I think." A nervous laugh as he shovels a bunch of rubble outside of the area, covering it with earth. "What about your job? Never would've guessed you Code for a living." He didn't think anyone would have guessed that at a glance.

"And any uh.. Tips? For being in Sacramento. I'm still getting my bearings, even after all this time..." It's not like the city scene was new to him, just a new place. The amount of stuff that'd gone on since he'd arrived certainly added in.

[Matt Joule]

"Why not?" Matt asks, smashing apart a block of concrete, obviously perplexed at Nathaniel asking about his job but just saying he wouldn't have guessed it. "I make bank, and I'm good enough I don't have to wage slave. I got a agent, gets jobs. I do the contract, attack, get it done, get paid." He says with a shrug. "Simple." He says.

He looks at Nathaniel, curiously. "What kind of tips do you want? You want to find fights? You want to find girls? Or you want to make more bank?" He asks. "Is it your idea to get more tough anyway or Emily's? She's got an opinion on everything. You should do you. Not everyone has to be tough. You can shape change and do enough damage without having to try to be a tough guy walking around." He says. "If you want to, there's better, faster ways. If you don't want to, don't. Nothing wrong with working at a school or library or bookstore or whatever, helping people find stuff or learn stuff." He says.

"Seriously. I mean, you could probably get a job for the census, get paid to walk all around, finding those leylines you keep talking about." He says thoughtfully. "Or ride a bike, delivering things. Same deal, go all over town. I guess you could Uber, too. Or Uber Eats."

[Nathaniel Dormur]

"Well I mean... Academic werewolves aren't exactly the norm right? We have our lives from before sure but the power and drives, a lot turn to ways to channel it and um... Well, you're HUGE...Er..." The pup cleared his throat, realizing he'd basically stereotyped Matt.

a-anyways. I'm uh.. Thinking of signing up for college courses. Emily's job has kind of let me get some things sorted, and with the extra funds um..." A nervous laugh- yeah sure, bounce the idea of taking a break from their blood-bound duty to learn about biology and calculus. "-well I'm just thinking about it. I've been in contact with a few colleges, trying to see what would be convenient given everything. It's why I hosted that club meeting on campus too." He'd talked to more than a few. "That's what I'm looking for right now, I suppose. I'm uh... Not a fan of driving. And company isn't on mind at the moment. Just thought some courses might feel normal?"

"I never got to, you know? Even before the change. And there's still a lot more human stuff to learn. Some of it might even help me understand... me?" Werewolf biology. Now there was a class idea- granted it's not as if most werewolves needed doctors.

Matt's words about not needing to shape himself to be the tough guy was encouraging... And embarrassingly, not what the crescent had expected to hear. Again. "I want to get a little bit stronger, and learn a bit more about fighting. Even if I shouldn't define myself around it, it's not like the Pure are going to challenge us to a game of Scrabble you know? I should be able to hold my own." More dirt, more to cover up. Slowly but surely, Nature was being reclaimed- only if one looked close enough, would the existence of such fencing or the extent of the concrete be noticeable.

[Matt Joule]

Matt grunts. Then ignoring the blatant stereo typing or else taking the confusion as enough of an apology, "Yeah. Go to school. Sure. It's not like you're going to First Change there; you know enough to stay out of trouble." He says. "And I can show you some things, how to not fight fair. That's basically the only trick. 'Think outside the box' and all that. Basically don't freeze or lock in on doing the same old thing." He says, probably talking about fighting still, but it's not totally clear.

Matt smashes apart a chunk of concrete fence post foundation with obvious relish.

[Nathaniel Dormur]

The endorsement was... Good to hear. Needed to be heard, perhaps. In truth Nathaniel probably already knew that he would go- that, like it or not, he wanted to live a Semi-normal life.

"Ah... Thanks, Matt. Seriously... Again." Again.

The idea of thinking outside the box, not sticking struck a pretty neat chord with the Uratha that was young enough to want to try things differently. "Think so? I've read and heard the stories, about how we used to fight- never really had a teacher for it though. I'd love to be taught more. And when the time comes and the fighting starts, I'll take your advice to heart." Nathaniel stepped back to appreciate the work they'd done.

"And hey, if you ever need anything well... let me know. I'm getting better at this stuff. Anyways, I think that's enough for the spirit. For now at least... Want to grab a bite or something on the way back?" Was it rude for the passenger to ask that?

[Matt Joule]

Matt grins, "I didn't really learn to fight. It's an instinct thing. Basically, you have to learn to not freeze up or think about it too much when you get hit or bit." He says. "It's like Mike Tyson said, 'Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.' You gotta get to where that doesn't even slow you down."

Matt nods in a quick motion, "Thanks. I don't know shit about spirits. I will remember that." He says. "Yeah, sure. I can always eat. I know a steak place. I'll pay."

Good to close? Thanks for the fun scene!

[Nathaniel Dormur]

Nathaniel nodded- though it was contrary to how he normally acts. Spirits, the Shadow, the Rituals he knew... It wasn't something Nathaniel wandered into. No, it took hours, days, weeks of studying before he felt equipped for practical applications.

Still. "I'll keep it in mind. Thanks again- this was nice." And steak? That was novel. And actually sounded pretty good!

All in all? It had been a productive day.

OH MY GOSH I THOUGHT I CLOSED IT EARLIER I'M SORRY! But yeah, fun scene!