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[abrightboy]

This is Bright. Leave a message.

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[ukan]

"She is." That much is clear, at least. "She's worried you don't feel welcome with her, though. Have you had trouble working with her?"

[abrightboy]

“…No. She’s very kind to me. I just… I know I don’t know what the rules are, but… I’m not sure she follows them? And… a thing happened when she turned Will that didn’t happen when you turned me. A glowing. …Are we the same kind of wolf, me and Will?” The question comes out before he can consider that he might not like the answer.

[ukan]

"Yes. He smells the same to me. My blood is the only thing that lets Iris turn; my blood is the only thing that could turn Will. She can't make him a Time Lord with a wolf ritual. It was probably a thing to do with her more than him."

[abrightboy]

“Did she do it because only the leader can do it?” Malcolm asks. He was hoping they just had to wait a bit. He wanted to do it. He still wishes he was the one that did it.

[ukan]

"Yeah. Only the leader and the girl get to decide who is brought into the pack. We're obligated to kill anyone who's not approved." Which would get tricky here on the Barge where murder means a demotion.

[abrightboy]

“…But he had permission. I just mean the logistics.”

Though, if he’s being real, any attempt to kill Will would be a Real Problem between them.

[ukan]

"It's still my pack, Malcolm. The decisions about when it expands and who it includes are still down to me. I'm sharing my DNA, my people's history and traditions and culture, with you, with Will. It's a permanent, life-altering decision. I have a right to lead on that."

[abrightboy]

“I…I know that. That’s not what I’m…” His expression creases. “Nevermind. It’s… everything’s fine. We’re happy, anyway. Um. What else… there was a cursed sword that made everyone crazy and there was a flood that made people have uncomfortable facts about them flash on big signs above their heads…”

[ukan]

"Oh yeah?" He's sorry he missed the signs, even though he himself would have been locked away in his cabin the entire week. "What facts did you learn that week?"

[abrightboy]

“It… didn’t really seem right to pry,” Malcolm admits. “But Will killed someone and Shaw sat on him and it was a bit… difficult for a few days. Then she went into a coma.”

[ukan]

"Who's been filling in for her?" Something he always hated about the Barge is the answer is probably 'no one'.

[abrightboy]

"He's mostly been with me," Malcolm tells him.

He's a Warden!

[ukan]

Lark gives him an amused look. "You don't count. Trust me you don't want to blur those lines. It's hell. Alec and I did that when he was a warden." He shrugs. "But I can step in."

[abrightboy]

"I wasn't being his Warden, but he was with someone who cared about his wellbeing and his graduation."

[ukan]

"I assume she didn't leave any instructions about what she wanted done if she was out?"

[abrightboy]

"If she did, she wouldn't give them to me," Malcolm tells him. "But nobody came looking for him."

[ukan]

Will's a low risk inmate, compared to some of the others. He's not surprised that if there was an interim warden assigned they didn't come looking.

"Why wouldn't she tell you?"

[abrightboy]

"Because we haven't really been getting along," Malcolm confesses. "For a while. And it blew up badly right after Will killed Avalon."

[ukan]

"Have you tried bringing her cookies?" That's the currency on the Barge. "I never got along with anyone Alec was paired with, either. And vice versa."

[abrightboy]

Malcolm looks at him.

"...Did any of them ever try to keep you apart?"

[ukan]

A grimace. "Yeah, when I acted out, as punishment. And then one of Alec's inmates tried to get between us, trying to get sexual leverage over him. Is she trying to keep you away from him?"

[abrightboy]

"Not yet. But I was concerned she might. There was a possibility of it. And... now she's in a coma, so she's not doing anything at all. And even without her constant supervision, he hasn't killed anyone else, so maybe she'll stop it," Malcolm suggests.

[ukan]

"Will's a new wolf. It's going to be a lot harder for him to avoid violence now. We were created for violence. But that's why we're here--to help him learn to be a healthy wolf." To help Malcolm learn it, too. "But I don't think any warden here would try to permanently separate two people. If they tried, people would intervene. We're here to learn how to handle our relationships in better ways, and avoiding them entirely is...counter productive."

[abrightboy]

"I don't want to do violence," Malcolm tells him, and it's also a confession.

[ukan]

"I know." He's thought about this a lot, had before he ever brought up the change to Malcolm. "That's why I want you to be my pack's counselor."