Circling Around

[JC Smith]

The anxiety hit again. He thought it through, decided on it. And now when the question was asked, his mind insisted that he do it all over again because what if this was a mistake?!

Maybe now that he'd let her know, Mable notices the small wave of tension travel along his arm to his fingers, then release. He'd thought about this. It would be okay. At least for tonight. He couldn't see the future and trying would lead back down into depression.

"Yeah, I'm joining," he said like a man who had just climbed a very tall mental hill and finally reached the top.

[Mable Wood]

She watches him quietly. Once he answers she nods, "Good."

"Now did you say you had a place to stay?" she tilted her head.

"The plan is for you to learn more about the different faction. I have a little info on a bunch of them. After you decide which path you would like to follow. You will go through a type of tribulation to reach the enlightenment to aid you on your path. Most of all I am hoping you will find some guidance to gain insight on something to help you find peace." She scrunch her nose at her own words that didn't flow out quite right.

"So do you have any other questions?"

"And is Quinn alright? That must have been difficult for her."

[JC Smith]

“I’ve got a place,” he assured her. If he really needed he had his haven, even if it was compromised. Quinn had already offered her his place to stay as well. He couldn’t impose on the entire domain. “And Quinn… I don’t think she’s alright but I think she’s okay.”

“So,” he gave a slight smile, he hide a sudden bout of nervousness again trying to rear its head. It was funny, spend a year asking everyone about different covenants and now he got to find out about different factions. “You have books on the subject? Or what type of tribulations they have?”

[Mable Wood]

"No books. You and I will meet and talk. I'll tell you about the different factions in more detail. You can decide what sounds like it fits best with you. Then we will discuss the tribulations, each persons journey is different. Some are physically difficult others are emotionally or mentally difficult. All lead to enlightenment and acceptance."

She gave a sweet little smile, "Please tell Quinn I'm here if she wants to talk. I'll reach out to her also. She's strong and I sense goodness in her. She will come through this even stronger."

"Do you have any other questions?"

[Scourge]

More feelings. Guilt that he might be a burden as a student. Suspicion to have her as a lone teacher. He could sort them later, for now he acknowledged them and let them go.

"Sounds like a plan. And I'll let Quinn know she can talk with you if she wants. I guess for a question, are there any Kine sources you'd recommend looking into between chats? Or any you'd recommend staying away from?" He wasn't sure how much mortal paganism and Kindred heathenry overlapped, but she had mentioned mythology before. With some knowledge he could be better able to ask questions. Or even just start looking into what Circle spirituality might look like in a less... bloody and immortal form.

[Mable Wood]

Mable thinks for a moment. “Let me start with some basics. I already told you our two tenants: Creation is Power and Tribulation Brings Enlightenment. The Circle of the Crone is based off of Pagan religion. It consists of the maiden, the mother, and the crone."

“The Maiden represents innocents and purity. To maintain purity there must be a denial of something. For example, a virgin stays pure by denying sex. For kindred, well we are hunters and humans are our prey. By all rights we could and should kill our prey it is the proper thing to do. However, we deny ourselves the kill and just take what we need to sustain in order to maintain our purity and innocence. I think…Diana the huntress from Greek mythology is a good example of a maiden. Though there are many goddesses that fit that architype.”

Hopefully that made sense to JC. “Oh, and there is a male counterpart to the maiden. He is a bringer of chaos, like Loki. I have to admit, I do like and appreciate Loki. I mean seriously everything needs balance.”

She gets her thoughts back on track. “The mother, nurtures and protects. In the Circle, the mother is at the center of the circle maintaining the spiritualism and the rituals. Hera from Greek mythology is a good example of the mother. The male counterpart would be like…umm….Odin. A lawgiver, a punisher.”

“And finally the crone. The crone represents death. She is so powerful, her blood is so powerful that she must feed off of us, the undead. Ammit, the Egyptian Devourer of the Dead is a perfect example of the crone.”

“These are some basics. I know some crone practice wicca, others like me are pagan. Usually, they are not Christian per se. And usually, goddesses are worshiped. However, if you choose to worship male gods there are factions and paths for that. I would suggest looking at various mythologies and get an understanding of them or at least the architypes. Next time we meet we could discuss these and I can give you information about the factions. I think it will make more sense if you look at different mythological examples.”

[JC Smith]

JC gave a small thoughtful but not very mirthful smile when Mable mentioned bringer of chaos being the male counterpart, remembering the nickname his Sire had given him. Not too mention all the times he'd left othe Domains for fear he'd shaken things up. It certainly seemed he fit the archetype.

He gave another nod "I'll start looking into myths. See if anything calls to me." He still didn't feel especially steady but then, at this stage that wasn't a bad thing. Though he wasn't looking forward to battling the Gangrel mind. He'd barely picked up a book since his embrace, not even to relearn everything he'd lost to it.

"I suppose I don't have any other questions right now," he said.

"Thanks for this," he appreciated her, taking a deep breath as he felt some of the worry slip away, now that he had done it. "I've been looking for a covenant for a while. I'm honored to have you accept me into yours."

[Mable Wood]

He smiled but not a happy smile. Not knowing what was wrong she just moved forward. He would tell her when he was ready. "As you go though the myths let me know if anything feels right. We can work with it no matter what it is, even if it seems strange to you or maybe not positive. I mean there are some really weird stories out there that seem like a negative thing but ended up positive. Like Persephone. Her story can seem so negative, but I see the positive in it. She brings the spring every year and she made the best out of a difficult situation."

"Next time we meet I can explain more about the different myths about the vampires of the crone. Some are really interesting."

She gives him a soft smile. "The honor is mine. I am happy to help you in anyway that I can."

[JC Smith]

"Sound like a plan," he said with a smile as more worries continued to fall away. There was still some concern that he was making a mistake but deep down this also felt right. The end of the long path it had taken him to get here.

And the start of another.

I'm good to close.

[Mable Wood]

Mable walked JC out. "Be safe. And have a good night."

Thanks for the scene. I'm good to close.