Damnit...

That single word looped through Wes' mind over and over and over again as he stared at his very close to empty wallet. The little money he received from the Elders had all but evaporated due to the stupid-high rental fee for his minuscule apartment. All that was left other than his ID was a 10 dollar bill, some lint, and strange golden disk candy thing(a butterscotch) that had caught his eye while walking downtown yesterday. Yup, he was fucked.

It wasn't rocket science to know that he'd need a job if he were to keep his shitty little apartment any longer. With the thoughts of employment on his mind, Wes couldn't help but ponder as to how the hiring process worked. He had never applied for a job before and the concept was as foreign as he was. With a quizzical look through the paper, the Fenrir's eyes skimmed uninterestedly through the many help wanted ads. Several times he came across the words "high paying" with excitement only to be let down after reading further. The words "experience needed" or "must have college degree" came up more often than not and it only served to discourage the shifter even more. He had never attended school of any kind, his education came from his tribe's Elders, all of whom only found it prudent to teach how to read and write but not much else, atleast not of human variety.

After giving up hope, the burly Garou slammed the paper down onto the table and let gravity do its work, his head slamming on top of the morning news. With a frustrated groan, the Modi opened his eyes marginally before taking in a large "Help Wanted" ad. Apparantly there was an actual forge in this city, a real one! How the hell did he miss that? Wes then jolted upright and copied the information down and immedietly bolted out the door in nothing but athletic shorts, worn down tennis shoes, and a white A-shirt.

Wes practically sprinted the entire way before stopping by the beach to cool off. The panting Fenrir didn't even bother to take his clothes off before jumping in the water and splashing around, it was early February but he didn't care. The water was warmer than he thought possible given the month that it was. 10 minutes of cooling off went by fast before Wes climbed out and shook the excess water off of him. The boardwalk wasn't far at all and so without a second thought, took his shirt off and walked to his destination.

It took awhile but Wes finally found the building he was searching for, it was a decently sized two story building with a sign saying "Leyna's Forge"...the name seemed familiar to Wes but he couldn't place a face and simply shrugged. There was no way in hell he could have the wrong place so with that thought, Wes went in. Red eyes went wide upon entering, a small impressed whistle escaped his lips as he looked around like a kid in a candy store. So many weapons! It was like Wes had died and gone to heaven it was that amazing.

His crimson eyes scanned anxiously around the spacious facility before noticing that nobody was at the counter. With a raised eyebrow, Wes cleared his throat "Hellooo?" He shouted politely, his voice carrying quite well in this tall building. "Iz anybody here?" He paused a moment, no answer. The modi gave a great sniff to the air, the smell of molten metal was dominating the atmosphere, as well as the faint sound of German rocker music. Ears perked as the shirtless Get wandered further back, a large glass door in sight before looking through it. It was behind this door that Wes noticed the lithe form of Leyna Stidolph, hammering away at a new piece of white hot metal.

Wes new her!!! A very large smile formed on his scarred face as he threw open the glass door leading to the back and shouted "FRAU! LONG TIME NO SEE!!!" Wes waved like an excited child as he tried to win the kin woman's attention.

The morning had been well a little awkward, she woke up late had to rush around to get her coffee, eat breakfast which was well.. leftover take out in the fridge and manage to get the deposit on the place for her and Sashie. God lord, she never felt so run down, but this was the city everyone was on the move and working at her own pace? Just not happening.

At least the stuff that filled her shelves were rather simple forgings, she didn't put much effort into them like she did with her custom ware. The mass populace wasn't interested in the quality of a sword generally, or the work that went into the steel. They were more concerned with whether or not it looked cool. So she made them pretty but the quality was lacking from what she considered was excellent quality. Though she was far to much of a perfectionist to give out poorly made equipment. Even her worst was still a fine piece.

She was lost in the sounds of her hammering and the music, working on shoulder piece for one of her SCA friends. Holding the hot metal with a pair of tongs as she dropped the hammer with assertive control. She wore her typical blue tank top and patchwork jeans, her black steel toe tipped boots, leather gloves, her thick leather apron and goggles to shield her eyes from the chips and flakes that would fly up. Her brown mess of curls pulled back into a pony tail, with shards of glittering metal fragments that weaseled their way into the locks.

She wasn't the most... appealing thing to look at currently. Covered in sweat and dark soot from coals that smudged her cheeks and arms. Leyna's and their natural habitats. Empty bottles of water and Styrofoam coffee mugs strewed about the counter tops, keeping herself well hydrated as the heat was almost unbearable, yet the cooling fans on the ceiling made a huge difference, if not for them she probably would be sprawled on the floor from heat exhaustion. Yet despite the heat, this is where Leyna liked to be, she liked working and she loved the feel of the hammer hit the metal, molding it into the shape she wanted it.

Though when Wes came bursting through her forge and exclaimed loudly his presence, she nearly jumped out of her skin, dropping her tongs as the shoulder piece crashed to the floor. "FUCK!" She shouted out, taking a deep breath as she tried to regain her composure. Her goggled eyes looked over at Franz and grunted before leaning over and picking up her tongs and the shoulder piece, stuffing the shaped metal into the coals, before meandering over to her stereo and turning it down so she could hear.

"Franz Wesson-Rhya. You startled me." She said as she took a deep breath and removed her goggles, tossing them on the counter and doing the same with her leather gloves. "What can I do you for?" She tried to put on a smile, though really she wanted to slap him for startling her. She wiped the sweat from her brow as she waited for him to respond, she was pretty sure she knew what he wanted. Weapons. The Modi wouldn't be here for anything else.

Wes couldn't help but laugh as the busy kinfolk jumped out of her skin (not literally) at his booming voice. "You remember me?" He wasn't sure she would remember him due to their relatively brief meeting awhile back. An even greater smile grew on his mouth as he rushed forward and scooped the tiny woman into a bone crushing bear hug, suspending her a good two feet in the air before spinning her around. "Vhat a nice surpise!" Wes exclaimed, adding one last squeeze in before letting her back down.

"Soot never looked so good on a person." Wes chuckled as he gently rubbed away the black on her cheek. "So, down to business ja?" Wes started as he began cleaning off her other cheek "I need a job...vould you be willing to help me?" Wes frowned slightly as he thought of the minuscule amount of cash he had left. "I haff no other options...lack of schooling and vhatnot..." A look of discouragement crossed his rugged features as he thought of the rent he needed to pay in a few days.

"So, vhat do you say? I am a good verker." Wes was gonna try his damnedest to sell himself right now, it was certainly easier talking to Leyna about this kind of thing, anyone else and he'd be tongue-tied. With one last rub of his thumb on her forehead, Wes stopped and took a step back, admiring his work "Zhere! All clean!" In hindsight he probably made the soot worse by smearing it over more flesh but he was happy nonetheless. She really was a pretty thing, only now did the Fenrir notice how striking her dark brown eyes were or how nicely her tank top hugged her form.

An amusing thought struck his mind as he thought of the whole life partner ordeal...dear Gaia he'd have to start thinking about that soon....ick. The Fenrir simply shook the feeble thought from his head before turning back towards the wiry kinfolk, a now slightly awkward smile on his face. It was becoming increasingly hard to keep his eyes away from exploring her form "...So! Um...you um...made all zhese zhen eh?"

She smiled slightly at him when he started to laugh at her, she was used to it by now. He got her this time, next time she would be more prepared. When he seemed surprised she remembered him, she chuckled slightly. "Of course I do, you're the only other Fen--" Her words we cut off as the large topless Modi scooped her up in a spine crushing hug, twirling her around. Oh god! She was going to be sick! "Franz-Rhya! I think... I think I can taste spinal fluid!!" She kicked her legs slightly. "Please put me down!" Feeling him squeeze her once more which caused her to grunt from discomfort. When finally on her feet she wheezed for air, oh lord.. He might have cracked her back.

When the world stopped spinning and her back stopped aching, she gave a crooked smile to his comment. Though her brow lifted as he started to wipe the soot from her face, unsure how to handle such affections. She decided to speak in German as it would be easier on him. "Yeah I am sure you are a good worker." She rubbed the back of her neck, having a Modi around the store would be a bad idea, but she could use someone around when the shop was closed. Plus she really couldn't turn down a... what the hell? He's still touching her! After he was finished, proudly admiring the fact that he had continued to smudge the soot into her skin she blinked and ran her hands over her face.

"Yes I made all these." She said to him and blinked again... wow this couldn't get any weirder. "Look.. if you want a job, it's not a problem." She said to him, trying to be more professional. She looked him over and shook her head with a chuckle. "Though honestly if you were anyone else I would throw you out of my forge. Shouldn't come in looking for work in just your shorts and smelling like wet dog." She ribbed him, placing her hands on her hips.

"I wouldn't have you working in the day though, as your Rage would probably scare off potential customers and not to mention making the rest of my staff uneasy." She wiggled her nose at him. "However, I could use someone here at night to help me with some of my more... personal projects." She gave a shrug of her shoulders. "And it would be nice to have the extra muscle around when the trucks come in with supplies. Also someone to watch the shop at night when I have to leave on errands. You think you can handle that? And what kind of pay are you looking for? Obviously if you need a job, you need money." She said to him with a firm nod, before thinking that over. "In second thought, how would a salary work? A stipend? Give me a list of your bills and expenses and I'll make sure you have enough money to pay for the things you need." She smiled to him, always willing to help out a fellow Fenrir when they are in trouble.

(*See you tomorrow)


"Wunderbar!" Wes exclaimed, resisting the urge to pick Leyna up and crush her again. This girl was a gift from Gaia for sure! The kindhearted Get couldn't help but pull the smaller kin into a much more gentle embrace "Danke frau, really, you saved me!" he let go quickly as his heart began to pump faster for no apparent reason...huh, was he getting ill? The modi raised a brow quizzically as he pounded his fist against his chest a few times. "Huh...anyvays, vhatever is fine vith me, work is work, ja?

"So frau, vhat kind of personal projects are you thinking?" Curiosity painted his face as he circled around the workshop. "I don't haff many bills...I use minimal electricity and no heat....and I don't haff a television." The modi listed off all his possible bills he would and have had in the past. "I very much look forvard to working here..." Wes gave one last look around before heading towards the door.

"Wir sehen uns morgen!*" The large Get waved happily as he opened the door and started going through, but not before giving her a subtle look over, his heart starting to race again, stupid heart! Why must you be stupid?! It's just a girl!

She was pulled into another hug, which made her chuckle slightly as she patted him to give him reassurance. "Can't very well turn down a brother, now can I?" She said to him with a small smile. She eyed his expression carefully unsure why he seemed so puzzled, whatever the case she shrugged it off. It was no mystery by this point that the Modi was a bit strange.

"Well.. there are weapons to be made for the Garou here. Besides my brother... I really don't know anyone here. So having you around would be excellent as a source of information of who is who and what will be needed." She explained with a smile.

Her hands slid into her back pockets as she lightly rocked on her heels, "Just give me an estimate. Tomorrow I'll give you some cash to get yourself a start. After that we'll work on getting you acquainted with the shop." She nodded firmly, it was the least she could do. It's not like she didn't have her own agenda, Franz could be useful and if he owes her, then that's another Garou in her pocket.

"See you tomorrow." She said as she waved to the overly cheerful Modi as he left. Shaking her head slightly with a chuckle once he was gone and went back to work...


----------------------

The next evening:

Leyna had cleared everyone out of the building, now it was time for her to sit back and relax until Franz got there and she was forced to get up and work. The new bundle of supplies had come in, the black rolls of aciniform silk and a large crate filled with silver bars. With a beer in her hand, she sat on a stool and stared at the materials. Looking over at the design she had laid out, she would need to keep Franz and Ansgar from the crate of silver.

Though how was she going to go about doing that? She let out a small sigh as she tapped her nails on the glass bottle, taking a small sip from it. She couldn't just hide the crate in a closet, one of them would eventually notice. Of course there would be suspicion too. God damn, she put herself in quite the pickle.

Ansgar probably wouldn't be so suspicious, it wouldn't be the first time she has ever worked with silver, but Franz? Franz had no idea what terrible things she would build just to build them. A defense against the Garou should they ever decided to be like the ones back in Italy.

Her nose wiggled and finally she put down the bottle of beer and encroached upon the crate, eying it over before slipping her fingers through the wooden slots and started with a deep breath, hefting it as she slid it towards the closet door. Really needed to invest in a dolly!

Ah the first day of work! Wes had gone to bed that night immediately and woke up extra early just so he knew he could get everything done that he had to. After getting breakfast into his stomach, Wes decided to kill some time at the nearby gym, effectively wasting 2 hours there before showering and going back to his dingy apartment. With nothing else to do, the Modi simply fell back asleep until it was time for him to go to work. The modi couldn't help but be in a good mood now for reasons unknown to him. Extra time was spent getting ready, a comb of the hair here, a tuck in there, and Wes was ready!

The cheerful Fenrir was in such an oddly good mood that he actually decided to take a bus to Leyna's forge and so, dropped a few coins into the small box and proceeded to the back of the bus, eyes following him wearily as he did so. It didn't take long before the bus stopped and the mountain that was Wes stepped off onto the pavement. Red eyes scanned the area before locking onto the forge, the large building only a few feet away.

As he walked through the first set of doors, the Kraut inhaled deeply through his nose, taking in the smell of fire and metal. Wes then continued past the glass door and immediately his heart began racing, another quizzical look towards his chest was given as he pounded his chest a few times. How strange...maybe he should see one of those doctors? With a shake of his head, Wes cleared his mind "Guten Abend, frau."

Once she got the crate towards the closet, she opened the door, walking around the crate and putting her shoulder against the wooden box and started to push the damnable thing in. She let out a grunt and as she forced the crate into the closet, letting out a deep breath when she finally had it in. "Whew." She wiped the sweat from her brow and closed the door, pulling out her keys and locking it up. She didn't want anyone messing with it outside of her.

A hand went to her lower back and she rubbed the tighten muscles for a moment, it didn't help but she could pretend like it did. With another deep breath she looked at the time, Franz should be here by now. She crinkled her brow, she didn't like tardiness. Though he was Garou, she couldn't expect him to be here always on time. He had things he had to do, duties of his own. She would give him ten more minutes and then she would chew him out, because at that point she would expect a call.

She walked back over to her beer and picked it up, taking a sip from it and before she could even swallow the cold fizzy beverage, the Modi walked through the glass door with bells on his toes. She gulped down the beer and set down the bottle as she turned to Franz and looked at him with a nod. ~German~ "Leyna. No need to be so formal." It would be easier for them both if they slipped into their native tongue without having to concentrate on translations.

Now that she was thinking about, she would bring that up. ~"Speaking of formalities." She started placing a hand on her hip as her back straightened and her jaw set like the proud Fenrir she was. ~"Outside of the Forge and in front of others I will always address you as my superior. There is no doubt in my mind that you are not, lets make that clear now. However in -my- Forge, as -my- employee I will not address you in such formalities. You will be simply called Franz or Mr. Wesson. If you have a problem with that." She gestured to the door behind him. ~"There is the door, don't let it hit you where Gaia decided to split you."

She wasn't aggressive with him, her tone was firm but not hostile. She wanted to be perfectly blunt and honest with him. This was her Forge, as long he was working for her in -her- Forge, he was not in charge. ~"This is my home, my sanctuary. What I say goes in this place. You will not give me orders. Not here. Outside.." She jacked a thumb towards the garage door. ~"of those doors, I acknowledge your rank and birthright." She smiled at him finally, easing up that stern brow of hers.

~"I don't mean to sound rude or even imposing, by no means. Forgive me if I have come off that way." She took a deep breath relaxing her shoulders slightly. It was never easy talking to a Modi, always had to be careful what you said else they could go into a frenzy and there wasn't many places she could hide if that was the case. ~"I truly mean no disrespect, I simply refuse to play kiss ass in my own home where it is not called for." She carried the tone of a leader; strict, firm and inspiring yet not lacking the respect to those who were under her command.

She walked up to Wes and offered her hand to him in a handshake. ~"Welcome to the team." She smiled proudly at him, hoping she didn't insult the Modi. She should really learn how to word things better, but like hell if she was going to let the Modi on that she wasn't so confident in her social skills or in anything else for that matter.

No to the Modi she was brazen, controlled and firm in her convictions. Well She was brazen and firm in her convictions, but the controlled part? Was another story all together. She was fiery, passionate and didn't normally give a fuck. Letting her anger consume her until she was ready to burst at the seams and take down anything that stood in her path and no matter how stoic and reserved she kept her expression her eyes could rarely hide the truth. She burned hot. Giving the best Modi a run for their money when it came to temperament.

It was those eyes that looked at Franz, that rage that boiled inside of her ready to bubble over in a volcanic flare. If there was any doubts she was Fenrir, they would have been all washed away. She didn't need Gifts just to show her menacing nature, it was all in the way she presented herself. Hidden yet visibly seen just under the surface. As if the world was hers to conquer and nothing would stand in her way.

Was she angry with him? Not in the slightest. She would just not concede in her Forge and if the Modi had any thoughts that she would, he better leave. That was all there was to it. She made up her mind and not him nor anyone else would get her to change it. Though if he was desperate for money like he suggested, he wouldn't turn away. Not when she was willing to make sure he was well cared for, it would be stupid of him to turn down her offer. It wasn't like she was asking for much, other then for him to submit to her authority while in the Forge. Not many Garou would like the idea and she knew this, but it was her Forge. Call her sentimental but she never took commands before in her work area and she wouldn't start now. As she said, outside of the Forge she would submit to his rank and superiority, that's where it belonged.

A daring smirk came over her face as a shiver went down her spine, would he get all in a huff? She almost wanted him too. Would he raise a hand to her and beat her down for talking to him in such a fashion? It wasn't a secret that there was some males in the tribe who loathed and despised strong females. Was Franz one of them? Would he become aggressive because a female suggested he had his place? Oh that gave her a good tingle in pit of her stomach, anticipation at the wonder of his reaction. He would not be the first Modi she has had to fight and she could nearly guarantee he wouldn't be the last.

Then again he could just accept it, which worked too. That meant the Modi had respect for her and that would be even better. Never turn down mutual respect, it left open for better business venues and allies always came in handy.

(This is all in German)


Wes' heart fluttered slightly as the lithe woman in front of him came closer. Gah! stupid body, work damn you! With a slightly irritated growl at himself, the Modi punched himself in the chest before looking Leyna in the eyes as she spoke. An eyebrow raised as she spoke of submission to her, while doing so made sense, it still didn't sit quite well with him. Was he not one of Fenrir's brood after all? His brain was urging him to shut up and nod in agreement but his pride would have none of it. With a slightly puzzled look, Wes finally made his mind up after much internal deliberation.

With stern, narrowed gaze, the Kraut straightened up to his full height and puffed his chest out very slightly, making him look like a mountain in human form. Even if she was one of his own, she would not receive an ounce of respect from him without first proving herself. The Get took a single hulking step forward, his impressive form towering over the smaller kin, oh yes, Wes was using all forms of intimidation at his disposal. In one swift motion, Wes batted away Leyna's extended hand, a look of extreme stoicism with a touch of unpleasantness was given before he spoke next.

"Hit me."

He pointed to his left cheek, a weak punch would only warrant his contempt but if she could muster enough force to rattle his cage, he would agree. Simple, right?

"Do it now." His tone oozed authoritative as his crimson eyes narrowed further and bore holes in Leyna's gorgeous brown ones.

He slapped her hand out of the way, Oooooohoooo.. He wanted to go that route did he? Fine then, she would amuse him. He puffed out his chest and tried to be all intimidating, how cute. She wasn't impressed by the slightest as it seemed. Raising an eyebrow to his little macho step.

It was laughable at best. This only because there was only one Garou, one Modi, one Fenrir she has ever feared and still fears. That's her mother who would wipe the floor with this Modi. She was well trained by her mother and was pretty certain then only person in this world that could take her down was She-Who-Beheads-The-Mountain. Franz had no chance in hell.

He told her to hit him, was this a test of strength? Oh he shouldn't have done that. Especially commanding her to do so now, which made her grit her teeth. ~"You should know better than to demand anything out of a fellow Fenrir."

She clenched her fist, like hell she was going to pass up an opportunity to hit him. ~"As you wish." She said as she swiftly uppercutted Franz in his xiphoid process, making sure she hit his diagram so he would go down like a sack of potatoes, using her legs to deliver the blow so it would be much more forceful. She was definitely strong, there was no doubt about it. She put all her strength into that blow, he was a big boy and could handle it. He wanted to know whether or not she was strong enough to hold her own, well now he knows.

~"Are you satisfied?" She let out a feral low growl, as her fists were still clenched. Oh the adrenaline rush of knocking him down was exhilarating. She shook slightly as the blood pulsed through her rapidly. ~"Or would you like another demonstration?" She was nearly taunting him.

Pain. Lots and lots of pain and the inability to breath met Wes like a freight train as the little kin woman launched a rocket-like punch to his stomach. It was a very impressive hit Wes had to admit as he took a few steps back, gasping for breath. A very low growl emitted from him as she pseudo taunted him, no, he wouldn't let her words affect him, he was above that. This train of thought was held onto for dear life as rage spiked through him like a flash of lightning, the thought of tearing her head from her shoulders registering for but a millisecond before it subsided. Yes, she was quite the woman. It took little while for Wes to regain his composure, the punch was good, better than expected, but his Elders were far stronger than she.

A large smile now on his face, Wes simply held out a hand for a vice-like handshake. Things were indeed looking up.

"Very nice, very nice. That was quite good." Wes said exuberantly, squeezing just a tad harder, no hostile intentions meant, only playful ones. It had been so long since he had met a proper woman that he had almost forgotten what they were like. His smile got bigger still as he eased his grip, finally letting go only to punch himself in the spot where his heart was, the damn thing was spazzing out once more.

She held her ground prepared for anything at this point. She not only taunted a Modi but she nearly made him buckle to his knees. That usually was met with extreme hostility and just by the way she stood, she was ready for him to come after her. Though still no fear, keeping her fists clenched as she watched him with some caution.

When he finally gained his composure and smiled at her, she lifted a brow. Not what she had expected, but it worked. Loosing her stance as she straightened herself up. He took her calloused hand into his hand shook it hard, oh god he was going to break the bones in her hand! Though instead of wincing or whining, she just grit her teeth and bared it with a smile as she firmly shook his hand in return.

~"Thank you for the compliment." Her eye twitching slightly from him squeezing a bit harder. His smile got larger and hers got a little more...wary. Until he eased his grip enough for her to take her hand back and hide it behind her, though pretending that didn't hurt in the slightest.

Her brow lifted as he punched himself... again. What the fuck was wrong with him? She wasn't going to ask, no instead she would continue on with business. ~"Did you bring me a list of your expenses?" She titled her head, the fun was over now it was time for work. Such is life.

Playtime was now officially over it seemed. Now slightly crestfallen, Wes snapped out of his inner musings and dug around in his pocket. After a moment or two of rummaging, the giant modi produced a crumpled piece of notebook paper with some jagged german writing on it. He wasn't that great with a pencil, even in his own language.

"There you go, that should be all of it." Hopefully his bills wouldn't be too much, he didn't want to be a burden to the kinfolk who had graciously offered to pay them off. "I do hope that it isn't too much of a problem, I apologize if they are." A frown now working onto his face as he scratched the back of his head nervously.

"....SO! What are we going to be doing tonight?" An awkward vivaciousness was in his voice as he spoke, his heart seemed to be freaking out again and he didn't know why...it really was becoming quite bothersome. He was far too physically fit to be having a heart attack...huh, the body was a mystery indeed.

"I am anxious to get started." Wes couldn't help but give her a quick once over, color rushing to his face slightly as he realized his eyes stopped at her chest. A quick turn and he was now facing the opposite direction. He would just have to play it cool "It's so...erm....spacious in here!" The bumbling modi chuckled to himself before taking to walking around the vicinity, careful to avoid locking eyes with Leyna.

She took the piece of paper from him and looked at it. It was like looking at a four year olds handwriting, which caused her to sigh slightly. Penmanship was obviously not one of his strong suits. Even her serial killer handwriting was neater. Good grief. She squinted her eyes and looked at the numbers, finding the total and then up at Franz.

~"I wouldn't offer if it was a problem." She said to him, stuffing the piece of paper into her back pocket as she walked over to the lock box she had pulled out for the occasion. ~"You obviously have no kinfolk in the area." She said as she pulled out the key and opened the lock box and pulled out a bundle of bills. ~"So it falls to me to make sure you are cared for and your needs are covered." She gave a firm nod as she started counting out what he would need to get through the month.

~"Besides, you are working for the money." As if that would ease his mind a bit. ~"But I want you to take into account that your duties to Gaia first, your pack second and then your Caern. My Forge and I come last, so I don't want you to feel like you need to spend all your time here just to make a buck." She explained to him, ~"I am not going to hold it against you if you can't make it in."

She turned to him with the money in hand, bringing it to him. It was more than enough to pay for his bills, buy him groceries and even whatever else he needed or wanted. "Tonight I need the furnaces cleaned, after that I'll teach you to properly oil a blade." She paused for a moment before adding a thought. ~"I don't care if you already know how because someone else taught you, I am particular in how things are done." She gave him a slight nod, again she wasn't meaning to be disrespectful, but every time someone told her they knew what they were doing, they always proved not to know a damn thing. She had her ways and she was not going to deviant from them now.

Stubborn Gets.

She watched his body language and rose a brow. He was acting like... nah... Not possible. She gave him no reason to feel that way, he was probably just that anxious and wasn't sure how to go about it. She watched him walk around and quirked the other brow. ~"Indeed." She furrowed her brow and motioned him to follow her as she walked to the furnaces. ~"They need to be pulled out... carefully and swept behind, make sure you don't detach the hoses. They are cool, so when you are done sweeping, you'll put on gloves and clean out the old coals and scrub the inside." She gestured to the janitors closet. Not the same closet she is hiding the silver in. ~"You'll find the the scrub brush and shovel in there. Replace the coals with new ones and when you are done with that, come speak to me." She gestured over to her design table. ~"I'll be over there. Working." She smiled to him before turning on her heels and going to her work table. If he wanted to learn how to work in a Forge, he would start off with the grunt work like she did.

Grunt work. Easy.

Some might complain at having to do what they might consider "bitch" work but Wes welcomed it. There was something rewarding about manual labor and the large German welcomed the feeling with a happy grin. The giant wad of cash in his pocket helped things significantly as well, not only could he pay off his bills but he could wile away his off days with hard, dirty, fantastic work.

"Thank you." Wes gave a curt nod to Leyna as she told him to keep his priorities straight. She was a perfect kinfolk if the Modi had ever seen one and gorramit his heart needed to stop fluttering! With a stretch of his arms, Wes pulled off his shirt and threw it on the counter. "I better get started zhen, yeah?" Without another word, the Fostern walked over to the nearest furnace and bent down low before lifting it as gently as he could without ripping it out of the wall. It was decently heavy, no surprises there and the increased heart rate along with the strained muscles made Wes grin.

Wes simply whiled away the time spent moving and sweeping and moving back with a cheerful whistle of a song from the old country. Once moving the last furnace back into place and tossing the pile of dust in the nearest trash can, Wes rummaged around the janitor closet for a shovel, scrubby brush, and gloves. It took Wes a LOT longer than anticipated but regardless of what he thought, the furnaces weren't going to get clean by themselves, Wes was mostly certain that there wasn't such a Weaver tool in existence yet.

It took awhile but the Fenrir finally finished his jobs, hands and face covered in soot, a big satisfied smile on his face. "Done now Leyna!" The modi barked as he stretched his arms out again "So, what now?"

Franz was adorable in that way Leyna felt she might vomit. Not that she minded the general pleasantness of his company but really he was a bit... over the top. Like that cute puppy that got overly excited when you just glanced at it. So eager for attention and praise, she wondered for a moment if she was like that? Dear Gaia she hoped not. Though it was rather nice change of pace from the assholes she was used to dealing with.

She glanced over at him when he started his work, noticing he took off his shirt and nearly jumped out of her seat. "NEIN!" She held up her hand and shook her head frantically. "Stop! Put the shirt back on! You are working with coal! You don't want to expose to much skin!" Completely forgetting about the Garou's regeneration factor for a moment, but it still wasn't a good idea. "I have an apron, put that on, please." She said to him, putting a hand on her chest as she felt like she was about to have a heart attack. "Safety first, Mr. Wesson. I know you are a big strong Modi, but for future reference clothes stay on in the Forge at all times."She gave him a worried knit of her brow, before taking a deep breath and going back to her work.

His cheerful whistling as he worked, brought back that homesick feeling. It reminded her of her father, how he would hum and whistle a small tune as he worked around the Forge. She missed him terribly. His gentle nature, his calm reserved smile and his general fatherly presence. The both of them cramped in such a small forge, working on their skills and trade. She tapped her pencil as she frowned trying to regain her concentration.

The pencil flowed against the graphing paper as she sketched out her design for the new armor. Jack and Mikey would like it, especially Jack. She smiled at the thought, feeling a bit of giddiness before shaking it off. Work. She had work to do and couldn't be distracted by thoughts of the Hunter.

Franz announced he was finished and she turned her head to him and smiled. "Now we start oiling blades." She said to him and with her pencil she pointed over to the ceramic racks. "Pull down all the sharp weapons and pile them neatly over by me. The oil and towel you'll be needing are in the drawer over here, also bring one of the chairs." She also pointed to the fridge in her forge. "If you want a beer, go ahead." She slipped the pencil in her hair as she looked over her design.

Wes raised a brow when Leyna addressed him as "Mr." It was a title people usually didn't use with him. The modi simply did as he was instructed and carefully bundled up every sharp object he could hold and dumped them neatly by Leyna. "No thanks, maybe after." Wes shook his head as he politely turned down the offer of alcohol, he wanted to keep his wits about him. After grabbing a nearby chair, the Fenrir plopped down next to Leyna, his shirt now back on his body and another smile on his face.

The kraut had never been great in the forge, opting to spend much more of his time learning how to use weapons, not create them. "So...I have a question for you..." A thought just smacked him like a mac truck, something that had been weighing on him for some time now. "I need help hunting Leeches, interested?" It was true, he would need help. Wes had much more experience fighting his corrupted peers and their minions than with the blood suckers, the fact that they could blend so easily with the rest of humanity made them very difficult to locate, isolate, and destroy. The very few the Modi had killed were found completely by chance.

"It is very important that I find them...I need a lure." He wasn't the best at putting things all eloquently or anything but for Gaia's sake he tried. "The hov nearby demands that I bring them vampire fangs for chiminage." Hopefully she would say yes because otherwise it would mean many nights of meticulous analyzing of every person he came across.

As soon as he sat beside her she began to instruct him, taking one of the klaives as a demonstration piece. "Watch carefully." She rested the klaive on her lap and grabbed a towel pouring a small dime sized amount of the clove oil on it, it was strong and extremely fresh, burning the nostrils slightly with it's spiced aroma. She ran the towel carefully over the blade, using circular motions until the metal shined. "There, think you can manage?" She smirked at him, giving him a little ribbing.

She set the klaive down before looking at Franz when he said he had a question for her. "Hmm?" She rose a curious brow. He needed assistance hunting leeches? For a chiminage? "Ah." She said wagging a finger at him like she was on to what he really wanted. "You need bait." She smiled slightly, "You came to the right person. Vampire hunting is sort of my hobby." She chuckled heartedly, seems hunting vampires was a theme in this city, which she honestly couldn't complain about.

"I am fantastic bait." She said to him so humored and amused. A glimmer of mirth in those hazel eyes of hers as her grin got a little wider. "I take it the killing process needs to be done alone?" She pulled the pencil from her hair and chewed a bit on the eraser as she seemed to lose herself a moment in musing thoughts. "I'd be more than happy to help. Can you give me a couple nights to gather up a location where it would be more suitable to hunt?"

The bell rang in front as Sashie entered the Store calling out in Russian. "Leyna! I brought you some lunch! It's Mexican, I think. I couldn't understand the man on the truck I just pointed to something and he pointed to fifteen other things and disappeared into the truck for 10 minutes." Walking over to the counter setting the bag on it. "Also I need all your receipts and inventory documents. I'm going to get them situated on the computer program. Also get me all your orders so I can get them on the spreadsheet. You know what just give me all your papers to deal with it."

Walking into Leyna's office smelling and muttering, "Dear god it still smells like dirty feet and sweaty butts." Grabbing some air freshener calling out, "Tell your boys to wash their butts better! God it's horrible!" Picking up some of the ledgers heading back to the counter setting them down picking up the greasy bag of truck food walking to the door grunting as she slide it open to the forge. "Leyna! Food!" Takes a second before she walks in, the heat was over whelming at first.

Finally stepping in, "Good lord, I don't know how you can stand this heat for hours on end." Plopping the food down on a work bench, "I promise, there is nothing at came from the ground in here, all of it moo'd, clucked, bahhed, or oinked." Dusting off her hands looking around, the OCD was making her twitchy seeing the state of things. Must. Clean. Forge. Must. Organize. Forge. No! No, Leyna made her promise. Her eyes finally settled on Leyna and she smiled, "Leyna food!" Then she sees someone standing up and it was the guy who brought her into the lake. Her smile melted from her face as she spoke to Leyna solely in Russian. "I thought you were having nothing to do with the Nation, especially now considering...you know who."

Looking over to Franz then to Leyna, "Or did he follow you home like a lost puppy?" Turning her back opening the bag throwing Leyna a foil wrapped burrito that was filled with dead animal. Sashie then took the burrito she got for herself and out of habit of the Garou having before her she threw it to Franz. "I am going to get everything documented on the computer, if you need me just yell." Walking out of the forge since she's banned from doing anything in there but deliver food.

When Fraz opens the lunch Sashie gave up for him, well he finds out she's a vegetarian.

The Kraut couldn't help but let out a large bellowing laugh when Leyna informed him she made good bait. "Ahaha-yeah I need to be the one to do it, sorry." Wes gave a small shrug as he spoke "yeah, don't get me wrong, if it wasn't so important, I'd love to let you have some fun." A calloused hand patted the wiry kin playfully on the back "take as much time as you need, but the sooner we get this done, the better." A beaming smile plastered onto his scarred face, stretching them slightly making his face much more like a grizzly bear trying to smile than anything.

"Thank you, very much."

Wes quickly went back to following Leyna's lead, going through the motions of working the oil into the steel, causing the metal to shine brightly. "Is this okay?" He asked somewhat sheepishly, presenting the polished weapon to her for inspection. With a sniff to the air, Wes straightened out best he could while still sitting, continuing to sniff the air like a dog. There was the smell of food, mexican? Had to be. Shortly after he picked up the scent of edible substances, he heard a voice, a vaguely familiar one that shouted something in Russian.

His ears perked slightly as the voice began rambling, it sounded like complaining quite frankly. It wasn't until Sashenka opened the door did Wes finally place a face with the voice. It was the girl whom he had thrown into the lake as a joke. The ahroun simply raised an eyebrow as the new arrival gave Wes a less than satisfactory look, starting a Russian tirade at Leyna, presumably about him being here.

Wes couldn't help but let out a small growl of annoyance, the tone in which she spoke sounded much like smug condescension, something that made the Fenrir bristle slightly. Wes caught the tin foiled food item without a word, barely giving a nod in thanks, setting it down on the table in front of him. He waited until she left before he looked at his fellow Fenrir.

"Whiny thing...isn't she?" Wes rumbled in German as he went about polishing the next blade. The shifter didn't need to peel back the foil on the food, his nose, while not as good as it was in other forms, was still sharp enough to tell that there wasn't a speck of protein in it. "You can tell her she can have it back, I'm a garou, not a rabbit."

She held up a hand and smiled at him, “No need to apologize, I understand and hardly offended.” She told him, giving him a slight nudge with her shoulder. “Somethings you have to do alone. But at least I can be there to watch and participate in the baiting!” There was always a bright side. His hand came up and patted her on the back and she nearly felt her spine snap. She could take a good punch just like any Fenrir, she just wasn't used to being man handled outside of that. So she just grunted through the discomfort and smiled. “Absolutely, couple nights at the most. Promise.” She chuckled. “You are most welcome.” She wiggled her nose at him.

She looked over his work with a heavy scrutinizing gaze, “That looks pretty good.” She said to him pointing towards the base of the hilt. “Make sure you get down in there too. A lot of rust likes to get into the small crevices.”

Then came the shrill of Sashenka's voice which seemed to make her head jolt upwards. Oooo Sashie brought food! ~Russian~ “In the back!” She shouted out back to the Fang kin, ~“Everything is waiting for you in the office!” She looked at Franz and chuckled rolling her eyes slightly. Sometimes Sashie got a little carried away.

“What do you expect? They're teenagers! All teenagers smell bad!” She roared out with laughter, because it was absolutely true, except in the case of Leyna and Sashie who smelt generally like nothing at all. “It's the hormones!” She added before shouting back at Sashenka. “You are going to have to come in the back, I am training Herr Wesson!” She shook her head and sighed, looking back over at her design table before giving Franz a light pat on his knee to get him to stop growling. She knew Sashie would not be pleased about having to see a Garou in the shop and she knew not all Fenrir cared for Silverfangs so really this was just an awkward spot for Leyna to be in. So she was doing her best to neutralize the situation.

“The heat builds character.” She turned and looked at Sashenka with a smile and chuckled. “Thank you.” She said for the fact the food was meat and not the normal stuff Sashie was always trying to feed her. Though her face immediately frowned with Sashenka's next comment in Russian and Leyna shook her head. ~Russian~ “I can't turn down a brother in need. I am not pissed at the Nation Sashie, I am pissed at one small group of the whole.”

She shook her head and her face softened slightly. ~Russian~ “No he needed work. I gave him a job.” She said to her friend who wouldn't understand and just look down at her for it. She grabbed the burrito when it was tossed to her. “Thank you and will do.” She said and then turned back to her station as she put the foiled wrapped food down on the counter.

Franz's comment didn't help much either, which made her shoulders drop with a defeatist look. She couldn't fucking please everyone and she really wished she didn't have to play the fucking peace-keeper all the god damn time. People just needed to learn to shut the fuck up! She grabbed Franz's burrito and exchanged it for her own. She would go without. Keeping her mouth shut as she aggressively put down the other burrito and picked up her pencil, looking over her design before ripping it off the tablet and crinkled it up and threw it.

She slid off her stool and wandered over to her newly cleaned furnace, starting it up and setting up the smelting pots. Grabbing her apron and putting it on, she just needed to work to blow off steam before she did something stupid like hit someone with a hammer. Snatching up her goggles and gloves and putting them on before chucking in a few metal bricks into the pots.

Waving her hand in the air to Leyna before she exited the forge, she was going to die from heat if she didn't. Oh Franz presence just made her lose any form of good mood she had. But whatever he was Leyna's issue and Leyna's paper work was Sashenka's problem. Sitting down at the front counter pulling out her laptop booting it up, it was probably a useless thing to anyone else but her. Just because Leyna could speak Russian it didn't mean she knew how to read it and that's what her laptop was in. Complete Russian.

Leyna was far more versed in reading English that she was, in fact she could barely read English. Speak it fine, reading it was troublesome for her. And now German she couldn't read at all and Leyna's documents were in that. "Dammit." Looking over all the documents and books dropping her head. She didn't want to go back in there, she really didn't. She was so completely banned in there and if she came in about the German Leyna was going to smelt her with the other things. So she was desperately looking for an appendix, glossary, something and found nothing.

Dropping her head on the table hitting it a few times before grabbing the books sliding from her stool. Walking to the forge door opening it and stepping in looking over at Leyna with that sad lost puppy look. Once Leyna saw her she did have that pathetic lost look as she held up the books, "I can't read German." She sounded apologetic about this, even English was difficult for her. "I need help. I'm sorry I didn't know it was all in German." She should of known since it is Leyna's native tongue. She looked like she was going to start crying. "I'll be in the front sorry."

Turning leaving as she was frustrated not at anyone in particular she was just frustrated as a whole. Climbing back up on the stool putting the books down and just held her temples wanting it to be quiet in there for a change. Shaking her head and the noise out she started to at least get the program set up and tried to decipher German which was going to either be an epic fail, take forever, or both.

Wes frowned as Leyna gave him a small disappointed glance. It wasn't his fault that her friend was a prissy little girl was it? No matter, it wasn't until Leyna switched her burrito for his did a small pang of guilt jab him in his side, his amazingly scarred muscly side. "Here, I can go without." Wes murmured quietly, setting the meat filled burrito closer to Leyna.

"I am sorry." The fenrir said, his voice still in a low rumble as he resumed polishing the next sword. He didn't want to be a burden on his kinfolk, she had already done so much for him, giving him a job and something to do in his off time was like a gift from Gaia. With a sense of renewed vigor, Wes began burning through the pile of metal, it's number growing smaller and smaller.

It seemed like seconds later that Sashenka came back in, an air of sheepishness prevalent in her tone of voice and body language. Wes listened with half an ear while he set a finished piece down and picked up another unpolished one. She couldn't read German it seemed, unfortunate. One would think that working with a fenrir in any long term capacity, learning how to read and speak German would be a top priority. The shifter merely suppressed a small bark of amusement as she left. Wow silver fang women were moody things....

"Shall I go help her?" He asked mildly, his eyes still focused on his work. He wasn't above helping the girl with deciphering the language, even IF she got on his nerves. Being overly rude never got anyone anywhere after all right?

She grabbed a sand mold and laid it down on the anvil, muttering under her breath as Franz gave her an apology, ignoring her burrito she had given up to him. “Just eat the damn thing!” She barked, someone was getting hit with the hammer by the end of the night. She had little patience dealing with bullshit. The smug and the indignation needed to go. Uppity little bitches, who obviously assumed their shit doesn't stink. Sashie walking in here and acting like Leyna fucking owed her an explanation, then there is Franz acting as if he didn't have a burning case of the annoying.

She didn't care if they didn't like each other, this was her god damn Forge and she would have whoever the hell she wanted in here. Whenever she wanted them. No one had the fucking right to make her feel like shit because of it. Not Sashie, not Franz, not even her own damn brother. This was her space, her work area and by Gaia she wouldn't tolerate anyone's bullshit but her own. It's bad enough during the day she has the kids running amok and trying to pull the rebellious crap on her, she nips that shit in the ass. She wouldn't treat Sashie and Franz any different when they are here.

Or at least she tells herself but she is showing far to much restraint, holding her tongue instead of flipping out like she normally would. She has become docile in her age. Instead of telling them to both fuck off, she was adding crinkled newspapers to the smelting pots. The newspaper was getting the blunt end of her frustration as she was nearly punching it into a ball.

Sashie came back into the forge, bitching about the documents in German and she tensed up about ready to boil over. “Wrong documents.” She tried not to seethe out as she turned to look at Sashie who decided now she was going to be all weepy. “There are English ones on the desk, if they aren't there then they are in the filing cabinet, and if they aren't there then the boys probably dumped it on the counter top.” How hard was it to open your fucking eyes and take a look around? They were in fucking America, which means all important tax returnable documents had to be in English else she would never be reimbursed. That's like messing with her money.

Sashie turned and left, leaving Franz to try and butter her up with wanting to help Sashenka. Which for some reason just infuriated her even more. It was like the cosmos was trying to make her look like some horrible monster for not wanting to deal with dramatic bullshit. Doesn't she kick herself enough? She doesn't need their help with feeling like shit. She can do well enough on her own.

“If you really feel the fucking need.” Her words were foul, poisonous. She grabbed the smelting pot and poured the red molted steal into the mold. Her hands shook a little from raw nerves, spilling slightly over the sides.

Bad vibes all around. Wes had tried to correct his behavior only to have it met with an irritated comment from Leyna. With a very audible growl, the Fenrir gripped the latest sword so tight his knuckles turned white before setting it down next to him and picking up a new one. It was always good to remind one's self that it was not okay to shank your kinfolk with a metal anything.

"Calm yourself." Wes grumbled before taking the burrito silently and cramming half of it into his mouth. In a matter of seconds, Wes stuffed the other half of the food item into his mouth and got back to work.

Hours went by but finally, all work seemed to be taken care of. With a tired sigh, the Modi gave a great stretch and looked at the clock, very early morning, awesome. "I can go home now yes?" Tired eyes glanced at the lithe kinfolk.

"I'll be back tomorrow." Without waiting for a response, Wes began getting up, a small groan escaping him as he stood at his fullest height.

Her eyes snapped at him when he growled at her, almost daring him to come after her with that sword. She was in no mood to deal with anyones crap, everything would have just been fine if certain people would have kept their comments to themselves. The intensity was in the air and she really hoped he would get up off that chair and come after her, at least a good fight would have resolved the frustration.

Though he went back to his work and she did the same. As time went on and the metal solid enough to come out of the mold, she started her process of hammering the hot metal into the perfect shape. Her arm came down with a steady controlled rhythm.

She hadn't even noticed how much time had went by until Franz mentioned something about going home. Her eyes looked up at the clock and then back at him. She sighed, his first night on the job wasn't so very pleasant and she felt bad about it. Now that she had calmed down from the vexation just hours before.

She put down the steel she was working on and took off her gloves and goggles. "Forgive me for my foul mood earlier, I should be more in control of my anger." She tried to explain to him. "It was not you I was upset with."

She wiped the sweat from her brow and walked over to him, making a glance of all the work he done and smiled softly, giving him a nod as she looked up at him. "Thank you, I will look forward to tomorrow evening." She extended her hand to him, hoping that she could make right by him.

Wes gave the smaller kinfolk a once over before returning her smile with one of his own, albeit a tired one. "All is well Leyna, no harm done." The modi grabbed the woman's hand and shook it vigorously, crushing it with every up and down motion, a perfect Fenrir handshake for sure.

"See you tomorrow then." With a yawn, Wes gave one moer look around the forge. Yeah, his first day hadn't been the greatest but hey, no one got anywhere by whining did they?. Plus he had a beautiful woman to erm.....observe every day!....Wait.....

The fenrir shivered slightly as his thoughts slowly turned into those of a would-be stalker, that wasn't very becoming of one such as he but still, she WAS very nice to look at.....

With a shake of his head, Wes snapped out of his musings and pulled Leyna into a great big bear hug. Not a tight one either, it was....nice. Wes quickly set the girl down and started walking away quickly. "I should be going."

With a final wave, the Modi shut the door behind him gently before making his way back to his apartment, a sense of satisfaction radiating from his being.