Starling Hills People are creepy kinda?
#1

outfit plus glasses



He was here. Not in Reno. So that was good.

Probably. It wasn't like... He didn't expect a scene, or that he'd be made to feel... Dakila had been really nice before, it was just all so far outside David's comfort zone. Granted, his comfort zone was pretty narrow, but this was something way the fuck beyond it. Even remembering the night, even the cautious, respectful meal shared between Wofl and the white wolf, it was much too much to wake up in an unfamiliar place and creep around in a blanket and poorly fitting gym clothes.

But that wasn't the case now, here. He could try and make a second first impression, show that he was composed. Together. Educated, more or less. That... maybe didn't matter, but this felt like a job interview, which... god, put some level of pressure on him above just meeting someone for lunch. It was okay. It was fine. He'd dressed himself and everything, so that would help.
He had a tie! And his glasses!

And the only table in the place. Which was kind of why he liked it. One table. The deli didn't see a lo of business, but David would always patonize them if it meant he could sit alone at their table. He wouldn't be alone for long this time.
#2
Dakila knew the rogue wolf was here. In fact, he was always aware of him to some degree. He didn't have a specific idea that it was David, exactly? But he knew the man lived in the territory. So there was an awareness, a familiarity, and the assumption that that ever present interloper was him.

This king didn't mind that. In fact, he welcomed it. Better he be able to keep tabs on the man, even if he wasn't part of the pack, you know? He'd like to be helpful, no obligation needed in return.

Nonetheless, as he approached the indicated deli,knowing full well that there was a rogue wolf inside and that it was unlikely to be anyone else, he did have some hope that today would see some closure on the matter. He wanted David to be comfortable, but he also knew he could provide a lot more if the man could tolerate the company.

Just an interesting man. He seemed flighty, nervous. Their short interactions had been enough to make it evident he was not a man terribly comfortable with others. Or maybe just not comfortable with other weres. Harder to say when the situation they'd met in had been so controlled. The months between then and now had seen a lot of change, not the least of which was the move to Starling. That length of time was enough to make it obvious the man had needed a great deal of time to think.

Or maybe something had happened, and had made up his mind for him.

They'd find out. Time for a chat. Dakila walked into the establishment and didn't find it hard to find his man at all.

He approached, smile soft. He was technically on duty, and just taking lunch, but had tucked away all marks of his job. That wasn't the capacity he was here in. "David, how have you been?"

He'd take a seat, if there wasn't immediate reason not to.
#3
Small talk. David hated small talk. No, that wasn't fair or accurate. He was a little stressed out about it, but honestly the ability to provide canned answers was easier than, ugh, broaching real topics and having to say things that might carry him away with unintended consequences. So no. No, small talk was fine. It was fine.

"Fine. Good. Doing alright." One of those would've been enough, David. Now the effort to not come off as rude. "How about you?"

So far so good. You can do this. Does his hair look better than yours? Probably. It's fine.
#4
It was answer enough. If there was nothing immediately so pressing as to be thrown on the table with a wail or a frown from the start, Dakila assumed there was at least nothing dire.

But all in all, he found David was hard to get a read on. He presented himself very put together here, but there was a sensation that defied that, if only barely.

"Been busy, but good. Made a move to Starling Hills recently." He wondered if David had noticed that change, living here and all. "Things have been mostly business as usual."

You know, business as usual when you were both in charge of a whole pack of wolves and also trying to dissuade the entire city from being coming a supernatural wildfire as your full time job.
#5
He had noticed, but...

David had never been part of a pack. Not ever even considered it. Before Dakila he'd never knowingly met with a... alpha? An alpha? A wolf leader. Opening crash course notwithstanding, he'd gradually figured out everything he knew by himself. He knew he'd felt some indefinable internal pressure while sprinting through Rice Bluff before. He knew a little while back he'd suddenly felt more... watched, less comfortably alone with Wofl than he had in the past. He'd kind of just thought he was having a nervous breakdown. Still did, maybe, not immediately drawing the connection.

He nodded, managing a pleasant smile for the ease of no bad news. Were there other easy, meaningless things to say? He couldn't think of any and would start panicking if he tried too hard, so best move along. "Are you hun- Er, do you want food? I've got it. Lunch, I mean. For both of us." Casual, David. Fewer words, for fuck's sake.

He looked off toward the counter and mumbled, "Really good sandwiches." Trying hard to make a good second first impression, and feeling... not great about it so far.
#6
Always hungry.

He knew David was being polite. After all, he'd asked for this meeting, it was pretty natural to fall into 'host' mode from there, at least in Dakila's mind. But it was also natural to accept that he was the guest in a sense. "I would love that, thank you." With the way that David seemed to operate, in bursts of intention, Dakila found it easiest to react simply. It was the only way to not feed that energy, to act counterpoint.

"Do you work near here?"

To Dakila this didn't count as small talk when he was truly trying to get to know the man. They could get food and work their way towards the ends that David had wanted this encounter for.
#7
It definitely made it easier. David had prepared to insist. Once. God, please don't let the white wolf push past that. But he accepted immediately so everything was fine. Everything was fine.

Work. It was important he seemed qualified. Whatever... qualifications were looked for in a... whatever he was looking to become. God, how was he meant to prepare for this? The internet was useless. He could pick out total bullshit easily enough, things that didn't fit with his years of experience. But none of that experience was with a group. pack. Whatever. So. So!

"Yeah," he answered, standing. "Y-yes." Yeah sounded too informal! He stepped away to recover, moving only a couple feet to the counter.

"Hi- No, see? I told you I'd order. Can- I know, the table's for paying cus- Yeah, okay. Two apex predators. Please. Okay."

And he was back, but just... stood there.

...

...

Oh my god, David, you're still stuck on having said yeah instead of yes, aren't you. Elaborate maybe? Please? You idiot?

"Uh, there's... Three blocks south..." Nobody knew what direction south was, David. "Er, that way," he pointed. "There's a veterinary clinic. I work there." And it only took you three years to say it. Fuck, man, you're blowing this. Get it together!

Wofl grunted a whine. He knew this tone of thought. He disapproved.
#8
The order was quick--and interesting. David seemed to live in a way that he felt he must justify his own existence in any given space. Dakila wondered how much it would take for the man to genuinely relax, or if he ever did at all?

Anyway, none of this was news, just confirmation and solidifying of the first impression he'd gotten back at the gym. Back then he'd had room to assume it was just a matter of waking up in a strange place with a strange man claiming to be some sort of powerful force in a barely understood supernatural world, but... now it seemed more mundane than that. The silence of a few months had begun to paint the picture, and now here were the finishing touches.

It was alright. Dakila could think of far worse things to be than socially nervous.

So David came back. And hovered lightly. Maybe waiting for the order.

The answer was solid. Dakila had assumed close by if David was taking lunch here with regularity. Man didn't seem one to go far out of his way, for one, but also that was just typical nature of people. Find something familiar that becomes a habit. Anyway, stop analyzing and talk to the man!

"That sounds like a good job. What do you do there?" Of course, Dakila's first thought was that this would make David a potential medic candidate if he was ever interested. But that was putting the cart before the horse and at risk of tripping them all up. They had several steps to get through before even thinking about that.
#9
It was probably too late to sit down now. He'd been standing here for too long. Not really with a plan, just... Here he was now.

One hand gripped the opposite wrist in front of him, just to secure them both. So they weren't dangling. Don't be awkward. Well, unavoidable. Don't look awkward. Nailing it.

"I'm just an assistant." He could've lied! No one would believe he was a veterinarian, but he could have gotten away with technician. It's what he was studying for anyway. But that could have come back to bite him. "I'm, uhm, in a program and..." He looked out the window towards the direction he'd pointed. "It's good experience."
#10
Just an assistant. The put down was obvious, but it was clear that David was trying to keep expectations... level.

Nonetheless.

"Oh no, that's perfect. Sounds like very good experience." He noticed he was hovering, but it was likely they'd have food soon so... maybe that was why. "Do you know what you want to do long term or...?"
#11
He was in a program. He'd said that, right? Who entered a program to learn a vocation without planning to pursue that career? Maybe people who waited til their mid thirties to latch onto anything at all.

"This," he answered, feeling a little more confidence than his voice managed to convey. "It's... I have another year in the program, then I'll be a technician." Which he didn't expect to mean much to most people. He'd researched it all pretty thoroughly. Maybe pursue further advancement from there, but he was pleased to be enjoying the work and what he was learning enough that...

Yeah, maybe he'd just stay there. It wasn't very prestigious, but...

David finished with a belated nod.
#12
"Sounds like you have it all figured out, then." Dakila's smile was a gentled one. David seemed like he needed stability, and this plan sounded like exactly that. He supported it. Ambition didn't really play into it. Careers being practical was utterly reasonable in his book, for all he'd gone Way Too Big in his own path.

"What do you do outside of work?" Yes, he was probably going to talk him to death, but this was the first real chance Dakila was getting to know the man. It felt, too, like there was a chance this would all end abruptly and he'd be left wondering for another six months and so he had to make the time count.
#13
Yeah, he did! He didn't, but he liked very much the idea that it appeared to others that he did. That was important. You weren't really a fuckup if you could convince other people you weren't a fuckup. Just according to keikaku.

As for his... hobbies...

David was thrown back into the issue of feeling abundantly boring. Modest. Mundane. Which was ridiculous because he was a fucking veteran werewolf. But... Well, Wofl liked the outdoors, Forests, nature, dirt. Wofl did. And David was happy to take him such places often, because he loved his other half. But it was always a pretty clear separation; David didn't love hiking. His preferred style didn't really mesh with the wilderness aesthetic. He liked the quiet, but he could find that locked in his apartment. Playing video games. There were plenty of forests in those, with more interesting contents than he ever found in real forests. And online he could...

But he wasn't talking about that. God no. It'd be too hard to explain in a way that didn't make it sound weird. And what if Dakila wanted to know more? Wanted to see some of it?! Oh god...

He'd taken too long to answer, wandering uncomfortably through his thoughts. "Just, you know... Games and stuff."
#14
A bit of a pause there. If he were honest, Dakila wouldn't know what to say if someone asked him the same question. Which meant he'd let the man off the hook pretty easy, and when the answer came it was more than sufficient. It was a normal kind of answer.

"That's cool. Actually, that reminds me. I don't know what kind of games you do, but my friends and I sold the gym we met at last time. When we moved out this way we actually took up a boardgame pub called Outlaw Moon. Don't know if you'd be interested in that, but would always be happy to see you there."

Pack or not, but they were working on that question.
#15
A boardgame pub. That was...

Fucking terrifying, actually. David could get competitive, and he didn't want to embarrass himself. Also pubs tended to be loud. Crowded. He thought of the whole thing... the fight thing... Where he'd met...

Focus.

He was looking for something like an in. Some way to make it tolerable. And while his preferred games were single player, the sort of... structured interaction of games was nice. Helpful. Easier to know what to do, what to say. Clear goals laid out. And the pub meant he could have a calming drink or two. So...

"Yeah," he began after another ponderous delay. "That sounds... It could be fun. Thanks." Outlaw Moon. Kind of on the nose. He cast about a moment for something more to say, trying to be more personable. Less standoffish.

"So, you... like boardgames?" Mostly he only managed to turn the question back around.
#16
Good. It was a step. Talking with David always felt a bit like fishing--and you never knew what you were going to pull up from the depths. This was a promising moment, though.

As for the turn around question. "Admittedly, don't tend to have as much time for them as I'd like. But when I get the chance, I do. A nice way to occupy time with company. And we've got a lot of younger people in the group right now, so they're fun to play with."

They needed to have another party night, but Dakila's life needed to pump the breaks a little first. As if that was ever going to happen.
#17
Not a lot of time. He wondered what Dakila did. Another boring question reversal. He didn't have a chance to ask, though, because something else the man said caught his interest and anxiety much harder.

Younger people. What did that mean? Like, teenagers? Ugh. Did David count as younger? How old was Dakila?

... How old was Natalie?

He squirmed a little, the rabbit hole of his thoughts making him more uncomfortable than the default. But their order was up so he sprang away to get those and avoid everything else.

A mumbled thanks had him returning to the table and dropping to a seat, setting one sizable paper-wrapped sandwich in front of the white wolf. And saying nothing as he fastidiously tried to unwrap his own without gratuitous crinkling noises.
#18
David seemed... to become more David for a moment, and was away to get food the moment it was called up. Dakila took the chance to glance at his phone--nothing pressing there, thankfully--and looked up with a smile and a "Thank you," as the sandwich was offered to him. It smelled very, very good, and he could understand why David was here fairly often. He opened it up with almost no thought about it, deciding he'd eat a bit before he went about pressing more information or intent out of his fidgety companion.
#19
"You're welcome." The correct answer. But his mouth was already full because fastidiousness did not preclude efficiency. He was well versed in the wrapping these sandwiches received. The idea of open mouthed speech with a mashed up blend of bread and four kinds of meat already halfway chewed gave him palpitations.

"Mhmm," he managed instead.

The joy of sharing a meal with someone was there was this long stretch where everyone's mouth was occupied so no one would talk. It was a haven, a place of relief and... not relaxation, but an opportunity for anxieties to become... more passive. Background noise. He didn't have to be on, he didn't have to entertain or figure out how to present himself how he wanted to be seen. He could just eat. And they could just eat. Everybody could be content, and technically nearby, so the fulfilling side of social interaction, without all the terrible parts of having to make decisions and endure consequences and empathize and hope you didn't empathize wrong, and...

Just eat, David.
#20
They'd shared a meal once, as wolves, hadn't they? This wasn't so different. And the white wolf found pleasure in company--and well defined shares of food.

Meant he could eat at a pace until he felt satisfied enough to slow. "Very good," he said of the sandwich, tempting conversation, but pretty sure that David was not about to take the bait. "I'll have to keep this place in mind."
#21
"Right?! I love it! I discovered it on a fluke, just trying to find a quiet place to withdraw. This sandwich is a favorite. The name's a bit on the nose, but it keeps Wofl happy. Wofl's my wolf."

In his head he was confident and articulate, sentences structured and thoughts conveyed in a clear and friendly manner. He wanted Dakila to like him. He liked Dakila reasonably well. From what he knew, had experienced, and was coming to expect from their interactions. It was still too easy to be annoyed at how much he felt catered to, sort of cradled, but David could recognize that as dumb ego stuff. The man asked very little of him and provided more than that in return. It was hard not to like him.

"Yeah. Yes. This is..." But when he started speaking... "I like it." For fuck's sake, David.

He looked down to his sandwich and quietly took another bite.
#22
An honest assessment. Dakila smiled.

"Glad you picked it. And glad you wanted to meet again." Maybe he was leading a little, but he didn't want to come across in any way like 'are you joining us or not?' because that was far from his goal. David was welcome. More than welcome. Wanted, even. But there was no purpose in a pack of people who didn't want to be part of it. So it always had to be come to under free will and no pressure. Obligation was at zero.

Whatever David needed.. if Dakila could provide it, he would. Even if that was just a little space.
#23
Yeah...

Yeah. He had contacted Dakila, and it was ridiculous that he needed to be reminded of it. But he had been. Here he was, remembering it really clearly.

And it wasn't because he'd met a pretty girl (very) briefly. Not only that, anyway. He and Wofl had been... collating, or something. Each considering the prospect of attaching themselves to a collection of other wolves. Separately, but their evolving feelings on the matter inevitably interwove, bled across. They'd been alone forever. Comfortable with it. Less uncomfortable anyway. The wolf had adapted, adopted the explicit role of defending his softer self.

He, perhaps more than David, wanted this. Other wolves. A pack. But he wasn't willing to put his softer self at risk to get it. But David was... He didn't not want friends. It's not like he hated people. It was just... It was so hard...

Maybe this shared connection, the blended personalities of it all, the relatable struggles and... Maybe it could be good.

He meant to follow up after nodding to Dakila's kind words, but as it happened it took several more minutes of silent eating before he'd worked up the ability to force sound out. "How...?" Frowning to himself, he took a deep breath. "How does it work? This... Your... " He crumpled up the waxed paper, done with his sandwich. Normal people were often surprised at how much and how quickly he could eat, but... Dakila probably got it.

"Everyone."
#24
Dakila definitely understood the food situation, being not very behind David on the progress. But he hadn't the anxiety to spur him on on top of it, so his... a bit more measured. If only just.

He gave himself a moment to ponder how to best answer this for David. "The group can provide protection, support. I don't expect anything from anyone, there are no demands... but we have our monthly trips together. And occasionally we get together and have food or play games. If you want more responsibility or something to do to help out, we can figure something out, but ultimately I'm just looking to make sure no one feels like they have nowhere to turn."

What else could he say in a public space? Hard to really lay it all out that in a small deli where there voices had plenty of quiet air to carry over.

"It'll mean I, specifically, can do more for you than I am able to do right now."
#25
Support. Protection. David didn't need these things. An argument somewhat deflated by the way the two had first met. But he would have been fine! It would have been a... rougher experience, getting home after waking naked and bloody in the northern woods. But he'd have managed. He always had before.

He didn't hate the idea of having that sort of safety net when unfortunate events happened. He did kind of hate the idea that Dakila must have thought he needed it. Though at first he just nodded, gradually David sort of... inflated. He'd been slouched in the seat as he ate but he sat straighter, shoulders squaring as he tried to puff out his chest a bit.

"It's... I'm not... That wasn't typical." He was quiet, not at all wanting to draw attention. And while he sounded unfortunately whiny to himself, he tried to force the words firmly. "I'm not new at this."
#26
Hmmm... there was something here. David seemed to draw on himself, making some determination. Dakila wasn't sure if it was preparation for a leap into the pack or something else until he spoke, of course, and when he did the king gave the rogue a pensive look.

"I know you're not," he confirmed. "And you're clearly getting by. That's part of why there's no pressure... But we all need each other sometimes, David. Even I need people who I just... know will be there from time to time."

There was a fine line between trying to convince someone of something they already wanted and convincing them to want it in the first place. Truly Dakila couldn't figure out which side of that this man was on at all. He provided very little clarity in word, so much else written through emotive responses. Guesses made this more foggy.
#27
It wasn't the sort of thing he could long maintain. David withdrew as he must, nodding softly for the offered clarification.

Fuck, was that petulant? He just wanted to be regarded... The way he was viewed and how ultimately he couldn't really control that was a constant source of stress, but he'd try anyway. Didn't want to be viewed as weak. But he also didn't want to come across as being unreasonably concerned with not being viewed as weak! Ugh. Ugh.

"Okay, yeah. That's..." Fair. Fine. Acceptable. So long as they knew where they stood. All of it sounded stupid to say. Just move along, dummy. "How many are there?"
#28
They were coming around, slowly. David was thorough. Dakila would not begrudge him that.

"Other than myself, six at the moment."

It was nothing outrageous, and nothing compared to the old pack. Yet somehow these days everything felt more real, less... numbers for the sake of numbers. Dakila knew everyone so much better, and he didn't think that was just due to his position as king.
#29
So seven. Seven other people. That was a lot of people to be around. Not... Obviously he worked with more, walked along with more through crowds and everything. But having seven people he was meant to interact with without a professional excuse for doing so...

It wasn't bad, David. He repeated this to himself. It was fewer than he'd dreaded. If they were like Dakila, maybe it'd be... He was just beginning to get to the threshold of the point where maybe hanging out with the white wolf almost wouldn't be the worst idea he'd ever heard of. Six more on top...

In all likehood this array of doubt and discomfort and willful self comfort played out across his features as he slowly nodded. "Okay..." he gradually managed. Wofl approved; a small pack. Ideal for easing in. Easy to stand out, stand apart if necessary.

"Okay," David repeated. Dakila and six more, six unknowns.

Dakila, Natalie, and five unknowns. Oh shit. You met her once for three seconds and then ran away. Don't be an idiot.

Take three. "Okay. I think... I'd like... in." Spoken as if he'd had to force each word. Then, all in a rush, "At least to see how it goes."
#30
It was a staggered process, but one that seemed to be working. Dakila had a sense of the man to a degree that he felt pretty sure if David was going to run away, he would have done it by now. Finished his sandwich and excused himself.

So patience won out.

"We can do that," Dakila assured, and put his hand out for a shake that he'd used to bind the animal together. "No obligation to stay if you change your mind, you just have to let me know."

But with any luck, David would live without regret about this. Inevitably, Dakila would hope for that.
#31
"Okay." Find a new catchphrase, god.

A beat passed as he ruminated on it all. Mostly dreaded that he'd made a huge mistake and would regret it within a week. And then he'd look flightly and irresponsible and wouldn't be allowed back in if he left that quickly. Which would be better, but... But!

Fuck.

"What now?"
#32
Dakila was getting a bit better at this. Maybe. It all felt less daunting, anyway. Less like someone else should be doing this.

"It's easy."

The white wolf made his claim on the former stranger with what was really just a thought now that agreement was had, pulling him into the fold of the pack and feeling him blossom into the kingly awareness as something less hard and dense an impenetrable as a rogue was, and something with a little more color to it. David danced on the private tether line with unease, but... Dakila smiled at him, trying to reassure without really indicating that he felt it.

He could only hope to be a comfort.
#33
David was unprepared. He'd been asking more... socially. Logistically. Was there a meet and greet? Would Natalie be there? Did he need to make a profile or something? Was it important the others know how old he was, when he'd been turned, if he'd ever turned anyone else? What now?

It turned out what now was a sudden shift in the way everything felt. It wasn't seismic but it wasn't subtle. There'd been a sort of miasmic buzzing in his head for a while now that he'd just kind of gotten used to, and it was gone. Like his ears had been plugged for months and now pop!

Wofl had a crisper view of the white wolf, which wasn't itself unpleasant, but even the stoic wolf didn't immediately respond well. For him it was like easing into a river when suddenly the bank gave way. Splash. Water in his nose. >:[

The wadded up waxed paper went flying as David's hands flew out and open. Each slammed into an opposing edge of the table and gripped hard, the skin around his knuckles lightening along with his irises. "Shit," he breathed as Wofl bucked and growled within. There was no readily recognizable threat, but there was surprise and the need for sudden adjustment, and this was not a strength of either half of the split being.

And it'd been going so well.
#34
This was a first, truthfully. Even the newest of new wolves (Dove came to mind) had never seemed so taken off guard by the sensation of joining a larger whole.

David though. If anyone could turn that sense of sudden belonging and awareness into something else, apparently it was this guy.

Thankfully. Thankfully, there was no path at this table that ended with anyone turning into a wolf. Not when there was a very attentive king at hand. Dakila reached out a literal hand this time to place it at the wrist of the stricken man, to anchor him as best he could in the real world and emotionally. "Hey, hey, sorry. Didn't realize you weren't ready," was the somewhat pointless apology, most of the actual work going into wolf interaction, snuffles and tail wags and licks meant to reassure.

Friendly friendly, nothing but friends here.
#35
He couldn't do much at first. God, he was going to shift right in front of this guy, fucking lose this deli as a safe space, and probably demonstrate that he, what, wasn't pack material. Why was the worst case always so fucking clear in his head? Like he forever lived in two parallel worlds. Not even one where he was a man, one where he was a wolf. Yes, that, but whatever. It was one where everything was fine and adequate and okay and another where everything was constantly terrible.

Why was it so hard to remember sometimes that that second one was only in his head?

Shaking his head back and forth, David tried to focus. He couldn't shift. And... it was kind of really easy not to? He didn't consciously register the contact, awareness drawn almost wholly into the wolf. Wofl initially put up with the attention from his pale counterpart with a huff and a stony posture. Gradually though, he settled and sniffed pointedly back, allowing a single lick followed by a restrained nuzzle.

It was an adjustment that he embraced once he recognized it. This was an old desire long forgotten. Atrophied. Wofl had been alone with his softer self for so long because there was no other option, and eventually nothing else felt safe. But this... He liked this.

David of course remained torn and awkward, still shaking his head. This was all so embarrassing and he wanted to hide behind something. Crawl under the table maybe. But you're a goddamn grownup, so take that embarrassment and swallow it. That's what grownups do, right?

"I'm..." he started, predictably faltering. Eyes remained amber as he looked up at the king. The wolf's eyes. Wofl remained close to the surface, though not in a discontented way.

"I'm not new to... mine." He tried to keep vague, aware of the public space. Oh, so fucking aware of the public space. "But I'm new to anyone else's."
#36
One of those long term drifters. Dakila wasn't sure how any of them made it. Found others unlike themselves, maybe. Or else just got lucky. He felt like, oddly enough, David had probably just gotten lucky. Or maybe he was made of tougher stuff than he portrayed. Either way...

Here now. A lone wolf turned pack wolf, and rather shaken for it. Dakila didn't regret pulling the man into this, knowing it would do him so much good, but he was sorry that it was powerful enough to feel unsettling.

"Takes a bit of getting used to," he agreed, though his own memories of... packlessness... wolflessness... these were experiences so far away, now. Imagine a world where passing through town didn't come with a half dozen supernatural vibes. It seemed a reality walled away from him and his comprehension, now.

"Didn't mean to deep end you. You going to be alright?"
#37
The head shake persisted, but in response to the apology rather than the question. "Yeah. Yes." He'd adjust. Not quickly. Probably not gracefully. But he would adjust.

"I'll, um..." With a steadying breath and eyes darkening by degrees, he moved to withdraw his hands, hoping not to be forcibly held. "I think I should... get used to it... by myself." In the interests of not moving to Nevada. "I mean before I meet"Natalie"anyone else."
#38
He would not be forcibly held, and Dakila sat back slowly as well, letting that moment fade in favor of the next. David would get there. Dakila supposed it wasn't really surprising that the man was not all that keen on change.

"Absolutely," he agreed. "Whatever time you need. I'll let the others know you exist and get you into any group messages going forward, but no obligation to come hang out until you're ready."

Simple, really. As eager as everyone be to see new faces, there was no reason to do it at a new wolf's expense.
#39
As annoying and condescending as he sometimes found Dakila's accommodating nature to be, something he halfway recognized as probably more his own neurosis than fact, David was awfully appreciative of it right then.

And hoped it would endure through his next move. Because... he was about running on empty now. This had been a lot, and even though it was basically all positive, a lot was a lot. So it was time to execute the fool-proof escape plan. Even if it was a weirdly eclectic piece of David's cope-with-society arsenal.

Leaning back a little in his chair, he gave his thigh a little slap. "Welp." Then he'd nod meaningfully and stand. As graceful an exit as he could ever make. "I'll... I will let you know when..." Very graceful.

"I'll be in touch." Eventually. Maybe in a month or two.
#40
Credit where credit was due, it was a very reasonable exit. Food and conversation done... had anything been missed in this conversation? Probably, but there was the obstacle of public spaces. Only so much could be said. David seemed better to give things to bit by bit anyway.

"Absolutely. Take care, David."

He'd see himself out in a moment, letting David get clearance before he'd stand himself up to go.

It did feel better, though, being able to keep at least a distant eye on the guy.
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