Exton

Ob cradles the bag in his palm and offers it to Stoney. His brother looks up at him and shakes his head.

"Dude... I am sorry. Any idea how long you are going to be trapped?"

Ob shrugs, the plates on his shoulder's grating loud enough to make the others flinch. Ob looks at Pandora and sighs. Regret colors his reply.

"Hopefully before the ceremony. Not sure how long I can handle being like this."

His eyes begin to darken. One ebony talon strokes lightly along Pandora's back. A soft growl rumbles in his chest as a slit appears in her blouse. He breathes deep, controlling his hungers, and offers his large hand to Pandora instead.

Stoney places the bag in front of Alise. He undoes the ties and strokes a finger through the stones.

"This is a dowry of sorts. Mine to you. Only a Gargoyle of pure blood cries gemstones. You will find amber, amethyst, sapphires, diamonds, emeralds... I don't know what all is in it. I didn't really look at them. But they ARE real gems. All I ask is that you have Rowan pick out an amethyst and a sapphire. I want these given to Traeger." His lips brush the top of Alise' hair as she looks in the bag. "This is not all I have to give to you Alise. We will not be penniless. Tori sold another of my sculptures."

Alise dips a few stones from the bag and Stoney suddenly grins. He picks two small amethysts from her palm and hands them to Pandora.

"Do you think your Pa'pan could turn these into earrings for Alli?"

Stoney's mind rolls a mile a minute, thinking over so many things, too fast for Alise to catch more than a brief image now and then. Suddenly his mind settles on a moonlit glade, surrounded by trees, people gathered. It is a ceremony he witnessed in the Highlands, not long after the sisters joined them.

"Does anyone know where we can find open land to do the ceremony? We want something simple, a clearing or meadow..."

There is a shuffle of feet and Ron, the werefox, is there. His friends stand just a little bit away. "I know a place. Let us talk to the Packs and Prides. You did something for us that we... couldn't. And... you didn't shut us out." His hand convulses around the necklace he still clutches. "I think they would offer the Sacred Grove."