Morning at the hotel had been surprisingly calm — if you didn’t count Gabriel nearly starting a flash mob by accidentally live-streaming his stretch-and-yawn from the balcony. The rest of the pack managed to eat breakfast, pack their gear, and make it to the lobby without any new international incidents. Mostly.
The red tour coach pulled up to the side entrance of the hotel just after 9 a.m., its glossy frame already attracting stares from every tourist and local passing by. The driver, a no-nonsense older Brit named Gordon with a shock of white hair and nerves of iron, had seen his share of band chaos — but even he wasn’t quite prepared for what the morning was about to bring.
Because just as the pack rolled their gear carts out of the hotel…
They were spotted.
The first scream came from a teenage girl halfway down the block — recognizing Thane and Gabriel immediately despite their sunglasses, hoodies, and general attempts to stay low-key. Then a second voice, then five more, then someone live-streaming from a hotel balcony shouted, “THEY’RE HERE! FERAL ECLIPSE IS HERE!”
The sound exploded like a starter pistol.
Dozens — then hundreds — of fans swarmed the block. Traffic came to a halt. People abandoned coffee lines, dove across sidewalks, trampled decorative hedges, and nearly bodychecked a poor valet just to get closer. It was London fan chaos in its purest, most uncivilized form.
Emily shrieked with laughter as she clung to the side of the bus, while Cassie was practically pulled into three simultaneous TikTok interviews. Mark grumbled as a group of screaming teenagers tried to yank the lighting console case out of his hands to sign it. Rico leaned out the bus door yelling, “NOT THE FACE. THIS IS MY MONEYMAKER.”
And in the center of it all stood Gabriel — arms wide, coffee in one hand, greeting the crowd like a deranged royal.
“MY PEOPLE,” he shouted. “YOU HAVE FOUND ME. THE WOLF IS AMONG YOU.”
Thane, ever the fixer, had already flagged two hotel security guards and a cluster of wide-eyed British police officers who quickly moved in to corral the excitement. It took fifteen minutes to untangle the mob enough to finish loading the gear and get everyone safely onto the bus.
Thane boarded last, breathless, fur slightly rumpled. “Okay. Everyone good?”
Mark raised an eyebrow, straightening his shirt. “I lost two cables, a water bottle, and possibly part of my soul.”
Gabriel beamed. “I made twelve new best friends. And a lady tried to name her baby after me.”
“First or last name?” Cassie asked.
“Both. She’s calling him ‘Gabriel Gabriel.’”
Gordon gave them a long-suffering look in the rearview mirror. “Right. Glastonbury it is, then.”
The doors hissed shut. The engine rumbled to life.
And with fans still screaming in the rearview mirror, the wolves and their crew rolled out toward the most legendary stage of their lives.