{"id":435,"date":"2023-08-01T01:00:51","date_gmt":"2023-08-01T06:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/?p=435"},"modified":"2024-02-10T10:23:02","modified_gmt":"2024-02-10T16:23:02","slug":"the-studio-gambit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/the-studio-gambit\/","title":{"rendered":"The Studio Gambit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The warm glow of a low campfire flickered across the edge of the motel parking lot \u2014 not because they lacked shelter, but because the pack just preferred the open air. Something about the stars overhead and the smell of woodsmoke made even the most mundane nights feel primal and alive. The motel rooms were decent enough, but this was better. More them<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rumble of distant traffic blended with the low strum of an acoustic guitar \u2014 Rico noodling around half-distracted while Maya shuffled a dog-eared deck of cards. Jonah and Cassie were deep in a heated argument over whether marshmallows should be charred or golden-brown perfection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane sat on a folding chair, legs outstretched, claws tapping idly against a metal cooler. Mark leaned beside him against the van, arms crossed, a can of Dr. Pepper slowly warming in his paw. They were quietly going over the tour plan again, lit by Thane\u2019s phone screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got plenty of buffer left,\u201d Thane muttered. \u201cEven after the gear haul. Should take us all the way to California and back if we\u2019re smart.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAssuming Gabriel doesn\u2019t try to buy every weirdo pedal he finds between here and San Diego,\u201d Mark said with a grunt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As if summoned by name and chaotic energy, Gabriel flopped down beside Thane, practically radiating excitement. His tail thumped against the cooler like a living percussion line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo. Idea time,\u201d he grinned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane groaned. \u201cNope.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou haven\u2019t even heard it yet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI can smell the disaster on your breath.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel leaned in, muzzle close. \u201cLet\u2019s hit a studio. A real one. Like… actual mics. Isolation booths. Soundproof dreams,<\/em> baby.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane blinked. \u201cAre you out of your mind?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI mean, kinda, yeah,\u201d Gabriel beamed. \u201cBut imagine<\/em> it! This band? Right now? We\u2019re tight. We\u2019re fire. We\u2019re a storm with claws.<\/em> Lock it in. Make a record that melts faces and sells merch. That gets us heard<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mark crossed his arms tighter. \u201cYou\u2019re talking thousands of dollars for studio time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYep!\u201d Gabriel chirped. \u201cAnd we\u2019ve got it. And Thane \u2014 you<\/em> \u2014 get to do this right. Finally. No duct-taped mics. No screaming over a generator. Real gear. Real you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane narrowed his eyes. \u201cFlattery\u2019s not a budget line item.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel shifted in closer, nose-to-nose. \u201cThen consider this a bribe.\u201d He leaned in and gave Thane a slow, affectionate lick across the cheek. \u201cPlease, my wolf<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane exhaled like a man giving up his last nerve. He looked at Mark. Mark rolled his eyes so hard it was audible. Maya smirked and shrugged. Rico gave a thumbs up without pausing his playing. Cassie had already started brainstorming album names on her phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2026Fine,\u201d Thane growled. \u201cBut I\u2019m picking the studio. And we\u2019re setting a damn limit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel howled with delight and tackled him into the dirt.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The warm glow of a low campfire flickered across the edge of the motel parking lot \u2014 not because they lacked shelter, but because the pack just preferred the open air. Something about the stars overhead and the smell of woodsmoke made even the most mundane nights feel primal and alive. The motel rooms were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tour-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=435"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3221,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435\/revisions\/3221"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}