Tenebrae was practically trembling, but he swallowed hard and decided he should at least apologise, for fear of incurring the wrath of Krael further. Whatever happened, that would not be a good idea.

''S-s-s-sorry.'' He stuttered, clasping his hands together and looking down at them, simply for a reason not to look at the terrifying person sat next to him.

''Jeeze, dude, chill out.'' Skellig muttered, shaking his head. He shrugged his shoulders and looked back at Damien. ''Okay, I think I get the jist of what happened now.'' He chuckled, sighing. Apparantally, Krael was just really, really easy to tick off.

~~~~

Shaunie sat in silence, trying to think up ways of convincing her pack members that the other pack weren't savage animals.

[[LOL. I fail harder. xD Shaunie and Serena may sit in awkward silence from here on out. xD]]

~~~~

''Of course you can ask.'' Lucia replied, giving a small laugh at the same time. ''I come from the Southern Star Tribe, so it's perfectly reasonable you wouldn't recognise me.''

[[It's fine. :D But what's hw? o 3o]]

Tenebrae remained looking at his hands, stealing occasional glances to see if Krael was still just as ticked as he was before. He always was.

~~~~

Skellig nodded as if he understood, but Skellig rarely understood anything these days. ''Make peace? I didn't know we were even at war. How can you make peace with someone if you're not at war? And why the hell was that guy wearing a tuxedo? Was he a nut-job or something?'' He sighed and shook his head, deciding things were just so much easier when he wasn't expected to understand everything. He was fine with living in confusion.

~~~~

''You realise, don't you, that we're going to have to pretend to be friends?'' Shaunie said quietly to the girl next to her. ''Of course you do... How could you not? It's just... It's going to be so hard, trying to get everyone to forget what they've been raised to believe... Especially trying to make myself forget.'' She sighed deeply, before looking at all the people around her, trying to imagine what could possibly be going through their heads right now.

~~~~

Lucia was glad to see that Lore actually seemed to open up, just a little, and tell her what he thought. Such things were unheard of from an Omega, especially to an enemy pack member, but so was what was happening. She'd never heard any stories of teenagers being kidnapped from opposing packs and forced to make peace before, so she guessed this was a first.

She was, however, a little taken aback by his question. ''What? I... No. I don't 'hate' your pack. I don't know any of you, so how can I hate something I don't know? I don't believe in feeling hatred for someone unless you've met them and gotten to know them well. As for the person who brought us here, I agree with what he says, but I think his methods may be a bit extreme... Then again, what other way is there? How else do you get people to befriend each other?'' She stopped there, and glanced down.

[[a.e I wrote up a reply to this. I KNOW I did 'cos I was wondering where you were yesterday. -kicks stupid hungry forums- >:I]]

Tenebrae was almost afraid to answer for a moment. If he told Krael he was from a pack which the other guy seemed to hate, would he beat him up? Most likely yes. Ah well. He got beat up already, so it didn't really make much difference.

''Uh... S-S-Southern S-Star Tr-Tribe.'' He stuttered quietly, knowing the other boy might not be able to hear, but pretty much hoping for that exact thing.

~~~~

''Well, good thing I missed him, then. I know it's kinda hard to believe, but I get confused real easily.'' Skellig replied, his voice completely serious, no sign at all that he was joking, probably because he really did think it was hard to believe.

~~~~

''Well, they say mutual understanding is the beginnings of friendship, so I suppose we have a founding point now.'' Shaunie said, although she sounded doubtful and unbelieving of the old saying. It had never really amounted to much in the past.

~~~~

Lucia sat in silence for a while, wondering if Lore would venture forth any other comments. So far, it appeared his earlier burst of life and conversation was just a once-off fluke, for there was no sign of any more of it. ''Lore, may I ask you a question?'' She asked, tilting her head to the side. A sudden thought had just popped into her head, and she wanted to know something. So, without waiting for an answer, she continued.

 ''Why is it that you are an Omega? You don't seem very weak to me, and from what I gather, you actually seem quite intelligent...'' She trailed off, not sure where she was going with things anymore. ''What I mean is, why is it that you haven't even begun to move up in the ranks yet? It just doesn't make any sense to me... No offence or anything,'' she added hastily, not wishing to annoy the strange guy.

Tenebrae decided he'd ticked Krael off enough for one go, and returned to looking at his hands clasped in his lap. Why on earth did he have to get put in with the most aggresive, easily provoked person he had ever met? And someone not of his pack at that. Oh, and just in case he might forget, he still hadn't had anything to eat yet. Yep, things were really just peachy.

~~~~

Skellig listened with interest. He wasn't sure, but he thought Damien had just called him his friend. Rather than be subtle about it, he was blunt and to the point as always. ''Hey, did you just call me your friend, or was it purple-eyes you were talking about?'' He asked, tilting his head slightly to the side as he did so.

~~~~

''Oh no, not all we can do. We can watch how others behave, and learn whether they'll be trouble-causers or not. We can discipline our own pack members when they cause fights, and we can try to get to the bottom of why there are so many women that all look exactly the same here.'' Shaunie replied, a tone of authority subconciously slipping into her voice. Realising she might appear to be trying to dominate the other Alpha- something which should be avoided at all costs- she quickly apologised.

''Sorry if I appear domineering or anything...''

~~~~

Lucia was amazed by such an answer. From what she gathered, in some kind of round-about way, the reason Lore didn't try and rise through the ranks was because... he didn't want to let anyone down. That may have been wrong, he may have just been a lazy, stupid kid, but she didn't think he was. She thought he was just some poor guy who was afraid of failing in front of others.

''I... think I understand. Thanks for telling me, Lore...'' She paused, unsure of what she should say next.

[[Lawls, ok. x3

Sorry anyway, though. >.<]]

[[Thinking I posted when I didn't really xD]]

Tenebrae had been listening, trying to understand the way the people around him thought, but he had quickly lost interest and started day-dreaming. Or, rather, simply thinking of things that would never change.

~~~~

Skellig noticed the way Damien trailed off and looked at his hands, and even he wasn't thick enough not to realise the guy was beginning to feel awkward. ''Heh, thanks. You seem pretty cool too. Oh, and what is Purple-eyes's name?'' He asked, tilting his head slightly to the side. ''I mean, I doubt he likes me calling him Purple-eyes all the time.'' He gave a small laugh, grinning still even when he stopped.

~~~~

''I know... It's just, we have to act like both of us are equally dominating and strong, even if we ourselves don't believe it. If I act bigger than you or vice verca, it only gives both packs another reason to be at each other's throats.''

Shaunie paused for a moment, before listening to what Serena had to say. ''Yes, you're right. Fights are to be expected. If anything, fights will be a good thing. So long as we are there to supervise them. They allow someone to let out steam, without simply plotting away and hurting several. In fact, it might be a good idea to organise for anyone who starts a fight to fight in some sort of match, just to get them to calm down with each other.'' She mused, wondering if it might actually work.

''Of course, it might end up being an absoloute failure, but there's no harm in trying.'' She became quiet again, deciding that not being over-bearing would be harder than she thought it would.

[[Nuuu, I just keep making Shaunie way too dominant. >.<]]

~~~~

[[Lawls, yeah, Lucia's good at reading people. -lawls was such a fluke-]]

Lucia tried to think of something to say to the strange boy, but her mind was blank. She could think of nothing that would be worthwhile talking about, and Lore appeared content to simply sit and stare into space, so she decided to do likewise. She was, however, broken out of her trance when she heard the main doors opening, and a clone came out pushing some kind of trolley loaded with plates stacked on wire trays.

Tenebrae was already freaked out enough, having been awoken from his thoughts by Krael and he was eyeing him nervously, when someone shouted his name very loudly. ''W-what?'' He asked, an incredibly confused look on his face. He wasn't aware of having done anything.

Before he could think much on this, though, a plate was placed on the table- as was being done for everyone seated at the table- right in front of him, with surprisingly appetising contents. On the plate was freshly cooked bacon and eggs, as well as a small metal fork, better than Tenebrae had expected. It was identical for everyone else there.

~~~~

Skellig grinned, and tried to think about what the boy's name could mean. Skellig had never been much good at languages, though; he'd actually been kicked out of French class at school, for various reasons that were probably good but he couldn't remember.

''That's some weird name. Why didn't you just ask him what it meant?'' He asked, tilting his head to one side, but quickly loosing focus as a plate was set down in front of him, followed by another in front of Damien.

''Hey, you're right. Actually looks pretty edible, to be honest.'' Skellig said, picking up the metal fork and poking the food with it.

~~~~

[[I planned it with Krael in mind <3]]

''Oh, I planned to do it in secret. I don't trust that man to help us with anything. For all we know, he could be bringing us all together in the hopes that we kill each other off. Now, while that's not likely, it's still a possibility, and means we can't risk telling him any of our plans. I do appreciate you backing me up, though.'' Shaunie smiled a genuine smile in the other Alpha's direction before continuing on with what she had been saying.

''I know it might be a little counterproductive, but we could warn them that if too many injuries take place, they'll be cancelled and no one will get the chance to beat each other up. Trust me, they'll handle each other like they're made of glass after that.'' She gave a small chuckle, before smiling as a plate was set in front of first Serena, then herself.

~~~~

Lucia glanced up and smiled as a plate was put down for both her and Lore. ''Yeah, you're right. It looks better than I expected, anyway.'' She continued to smile warmly at Lore, but her mind was preoccupied with other thoughts.

[[He's Tenebrae. It's like... You can't help shouting at him. xD]]

Tenebrae prodded the food suspiciously, picking at it and not really eating it properly. Asides from the fact he seemed to have lost any form of an appetite, he didn't really trust the food here. Still, it would be better than going around for the day with an empty stomach, so he tried his best to eat it.

He glanced across at Krael, who appeared to have no such trouble devouring his food. Apparantally the situation he was in didn't bother him much.

~~~~

Skellig, who had never understood pack dynamics and didn't even realise that Omegas were treated differently, chose not to comment on that fact. Maybe the other pack had stranger customs, he thought, even though his pack had the same. He just never paid any attention to them.

''My name sucks.'' He responded, sighing. ''I mean, it sounds pretty cool, but it's origins suck.'' He chose to say no more, leaving it at that and hoping Damien wouldn't question him further. He hated his father for ever telling him what his name went; it was so much better when he didn't know and just thought it sounded cool.

~~~~

''I'm not sure. I suppose we wait to see how things go, really, and just use it as a sort of back up plan.'' Shaunie replied, nonchalantally as if Serena had said nothing about the food, but the way she looked at the girl told a different story.

''I'm not sure...'' she whispered finally. ''Wait a few minutes. If everyone else remains unaffected, we'll eat.'' She knew it sounded terrible, test the food on everyone else, but most people had already started eating as it was.

~~~~

Lucia tried not to laugh at Lore's smile. From the looks of things, he didn't smile very often, if at all. She picked up her fork and took a bite of the egg, swallowing before smiling again. ''Heh, it tastes good, too. Try it, Lore.''

[[Lawls. 'Cos he's such a dork. xD]]

Tenebrae gave up on trying to eat the food altogethr and put his fork silently down on the plate, looking back down at his hands in his lap.

~~~~

''Dude, you don't get it. How many other people do you know named after monastaries?'' Skellig asked, burying his head in his hands. For some reason, any time he tried to keep something a secret, he inadvertantly blurted it out during a conversation. Just like that.

~~~~

Shaunie waited, but it didn't appear anyone else was suffering any ill effects. Besides, if they did, there wasn't really much anything only two unaffected people could do, even if they were Alphas.

~~~~

Lucia continued to eat slowly, watching Lore out of the corner of her eye. He didn't appear to be eating very much at all, and even if he had been, his weird grin was starting to worry her slightly. Ah well, she thought. At least the lad was smiling.

[[LMAO. That made me laugh so much. xD]]

Tenebrae glanced across, just as Krael appeared to be trying to drill holes in his plate with his eyes. Had he really finished so quickly..? And he wanted seconds?  Tenebrae looked up at him a moment, nodding at his barely touched plate of food.

''You can have mine, if you'd like.'' He said, giving a meek smile before looking down again. Krael would definitely enjoy it more than him, in the least.

~~~~

''Dude, no they're not. Especially not when you've got an incredibly over-religious family. I mean, how the hell can they even be that religious? They're werewolves for god's sake. Besides, the monastary is some stupid, dilapidated old ruin in Ireland somewhere. My dad keeps trying to get me agree to go on a holiday there, but I won't let him take me.'' He pulled a face, before forking up a mouthful of egg and swallowing without even chewing properly.

''What 'bout you? You're name anything special?''

~~~~

Shaunie shrugged and followed suit, grinning. ''Yeah, it is pretty tasty.'' She said, before forking up more and continuing to eat in silence.

~~~~

Lucia put down her fork and cocked her head to the side, watching Lore. He was looking at his food as if it had bitten him back. ''Uh, Lore? You okay?'' She asked, a slight note of concern on her face. Maybe he was going to throw up or something.