ooc: 519 words. LET'S ROCK!

Soon the light dusting of snow came in sheets, covering the once lush green valleys and decorating the tops of trees like icing on a cake. Traveling was not impossible just yet, but the male knew he couldn't leave.. not yet. His feet made deep prints in the white snow in the mid-afternoon sun, snowflakes slowly drifting down and melting when they touched his body. Bangle couldn't stand to be cooped up, or anymore so than he knew was going to come in the harsher time of winter, and the multicolored coywolf found himself at Cercatori D'Arte's borders.

He had traveled the edges of the pack often, but as he rounded a bend of snow-kissed trees, he saw a rather large tree tower above them all. How had he missed this before? Its trunk was painted and carved, the limbs decorated, and Bangle knew, as could anyone, that it belonged to the pack he resided in. As he approached it, the traveler noticed the familiar yellow and purple combination that swirled around the tree, and the letters of the pack's name carved in the trunk for eternity. It was massive, and marked for a possible good reason - so that every other wolf knew who lived there.

"Well aren't you'a sight," he said aloud to the tree, looking up into its snowy branches. It was then that Bangle nodded, deciding that this was where he'd pass most of the day. He unhitched his several rucksacks, bags, bottles, and jars from his body, pushing dreadlocks away from his face as he set up. Using his paws to clear the snow away from the space he chose to work, he set his working fur on the frosted grass. Snow piled up in odd piles around him, disturbing the blanket that nature set in this little space. It took the traveling merchant no time at all to set things up, indicating he had done this several times before. When he finished, he stood before the mat and observed his handiwork.

Several jars aligned the front of the mat, filled with who knows what - liquids, objects, or even both. Skulls of different animals were placed side by side, with leg, chest, and rib bones accentuating the sides of each. Feathers came next, lavishly decorated and painted in some way or another, followed by beads made of several different objects - also painted. Alongside that were various leather and fur pieces, made into jewelry, or even clothing objects such as gloves or shoes. It seemed, at least to the casual customer, that this was the only set of 'pretty' crafts Bangle had made, while everything else seemed a bit creepy, or outlandish. Then came weapons or other household objects, crafted either from bone, wood, or stone - these materials turned into several knives, or bowls, spoons, digging sticks, spears, and so on. And yet there was still enough space for Bangle to work on the mat, and as he adjusted his long fur coat on his body, the coywolf settled down and let his hands do the work that had become his lifestyle.

ooc: CLICK CLICK BOOM! 637 words.

The traveling merchant decided to start his crafting in the form of jewelry - at least, what he would call jewelry. Others, as Bangle noticed, often looked at it with disgust, or exclaiming that they'd never wear such disgusting or horrifying decoration pieces. Several beads or ornaments he would often make out of bone, for it was his biggest resource. Middle pieces, if they weren't skulls, would be wooden pendants, or fur-lined objects. Anything was at Bangle's disposal, any object that seemingly seemed useless would be put to use. He was always looked down upon in his pack up in Halifax, thinking that Bangle would never make anything of himself.

Presently, Bangle grinned a smug kind of grin at remembering these wolves.. that didn't mean that others didn't think the same. How he recalled, several wolves adored, and often traded, with Bangle and his oddities. As far as he was concerned, he was charming from every angle he could slither into. It was no wonder, then, he was given the name of Slickmaw, and as long as it got him through, and kept him alive as it had the past few years, it was all Bangle was going to keep doing.

The snow fell softly, and luckily for the craftsman he had chosen a spot beneath a large tree which provided cover that suited him. It didn't completely escape the fallen snow, however, as the flakes flitted through the tree's decorative branches. This didn't bother Bangle so much, for the movements he made shook the small flakes off his pelt and long coat. His fingers constantly brushed away the white flakes that lay atop his work, however, for he felt his crafts were much more important than how he himself looked. The bangles on his arms jingled as they worked, and constantly moved, always able to give himself away with his own, simple jewelry.

The craftsman brought out a length of leather from a pouch on his chest, yet to be cured, when the sounds of someone approaching made him lift his muzzle up. In the frosted distance, a female was walking towards him, the snow falling gently around her form. He couldn't quite get a good look at the female, but judging from her silhouette she was hugging herself to keep herself warm, the ends of a scarf trailing in the soft wind. She came closer, then, and Bangle's assumptions were correct - she looked to be rather cold despite the sun out. Bangle smiled at the beauty who made a beeline to him, and stood before him and his work mat. He almost spoke, the Slickmaw in him tingling at the tip of his tongue, wondering if he could interest her in his wares. However, she suddenly asked if she could take a seat next to him. In the merchant's mind, this meant a chance for conversation, and a potential customer. And of course, there was no need to be rude to a lady.

"A'course, miss!" He said quickly, standing up just as fast as he spoke, then. He put one hand lightly on her arm and with the other opened it wide, inviting her to take a seat on the side of the large working mat. As the coywolf himself sat back down, where he was at moments ago, the male turned to the female questioningly. "What's a lovely thing like yerself doin' out 'ere in the cold?" He asked, already working up that charisma that sleazy merchants were well known for. Without even waiting for a response from the chocolate and cream-colored beauty next to him, he shrugged off his long coat from his body and offered it to her to put on. "Mighty cold out 'ere, ya know," he told her, stating the obvious. "Why ain't ya inside by a cracklin' fire?"

ooc: 810 words. <333

The sly male watched her expressions, her actions, everything that might have read interest in his things. Even a slight, fluttering glance at an item and he'd jump on it to sell to the female who felt as cold as ice. His own orange-yellow eyes glinted as he read what he thought was amusement at his things - and that, to him, was a start. It wasn't disgust, and already the coywolf thought that he had won her over. He leaned in some towards the female as she took a seat, and he had already prodded her with questions, keeping a grin on his face as Bangle, like always, invaded personal space.

"I'm sort of out to... clear my head." The words that could have come from a melodic bird itself reached his ears, yet ringing with flightiness. The large, red and gray furred ears atop his head swiveled, trying to detect exactly what was troubling her. It was none of his business, of course, but it didn't stop Bangle from trying, prodding gently through coaxing words. "I've never been one for the cold, but... I really needed some time away." Bangle nodded gently, almost understanding exactly what she meant. "Never ya fear, miss. Least yeh can go back someplace ya call home. I'm a traveler mehself, so I'm always gettin' away." But when he spoke, he thought of that white female, and for a moment he questioned why he was avoiding her this whole time, and yet he still stayed within the confines of Cercatori d'Arte. Bangle almost wished he hadn't mentioned getting away, hinting that he would soon be leaving behind everything that was slowly becoming familiar to him. 'It's too soon..' he told himself, turning away from the female beside him and looking out into the harsh blanket of winter.

He missed the sun being out, that was true. He hadn't been out for quite some time, and Bangle loved the outdoors. It was if it called to him - the birds singing their freedom, the rays of sunlight finding him even in the darkest of places, begging to meet the traveler; Bangle couldn't resist, not on a clear day in the middle of winter, and on impulse he rushed to meet the white sheet of the world.

The female's words of thankfulness nearly escaped him, too lost in his thoughts as he stared out into the open winter. His tail wrapped around him just then, sitting criss-crossed before his things. The light snow that began to fall didn't hinder him in the slightest, what he was more concerned about was if the branches of the tree above them would drop their heavy load. His eyes merely glanced at his items, and then he looked sideways at the female who asked him a question in the frosty air. "As fer me, I can't stay cooped up all winter. No matter how cold it is, the outdoors always call me." It was true, for the most part. He needed the fresh air, and a traveler like himself couldn't stay in one place for too long. It was like sitting still in snow, letting one get the chills from ears to tail. Besides, frosty toes were not at all fun.

Just then, the female chimed in with introductions of her own, her voice sounding like the tune a mother would use to put her children to sleep. It was soothing, comforting, even in the most shocking of tones. "There's no need t'be so formal, miss Ciel!" Bangle said, smiling slightly, humor flashing in the orange hues of his gaze. "Bangle Guffawri." He moved his hand from where they rested on his lap, and offered it to her to shake. As he registered her name, he also took into account the strange lilting accent that was present in the chocolate female's voice.

"Yer accent.. it's a little funny, eh?" Bangle questioned, the hint he gave to her to tell him where she was from. "All meh years of runnin' into folks, never heard that accent before." After all, getting to know a potential customer seemed to be a friendly angle to go in order to lure someone into buying something. It almost seemed impossible for the traveling coywolf to have a simple conversation without trying to convince someone of trading something with him, but having done it for years... it got him by. Therefore it was all Bangle even thought about. The hand that wasn't extended in greeting to the female ran through his dreadlocks just then, attempting to think of anything that meant decent conversation. But that wasn't what the coyote mix was out there for, he hadn't even planned for someone to come by his way today. He didn't mind, of course, it gave him someone to talk to while he worked, two pluses in his ever-working head.