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Erebus had been wandering alone throughout 'Souls for close to two weeks. He'd avoided encounters with as many other individuals as possible, spending most of his useless time familiarizing himself with the lands he had come to inhabit. He had been on the verge of leaving when a new scent had picked up and upon further inspection of the borders, Erebus had realized it was a new pack of sorts. The chosen location was alluring and though he was not yet sure whether he would like to join ranks with the pack if possible, Erebus did wish to speak to someone who knew about it. It would be his first real encounter with another resident of 'Souls, should someone arrive and the artist was slightly uneasy about the prospect. His large deerskin pouch hanging at his side, filled to the top with various art supplies bounced at his naked body as he stopped abruptly at the fresh border.
Backpedaling a few yards to be sure that he was not assumed a trespasser, Erebus waited patiently, certain that he would soon be met by another individual. And if he was not, he'd simply be on his merry way. That was the way he worked, never dwelling on missed opportunities.
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[html] Well, this was boring. The only day so far that Laurent had picked to sleep in left him waking up to what few members of the group were scattered to the four winds. He reckoned that Laurent and Jasper had probably gone back to the city to gather supplies, and Nikita's cello was gone so she had probably gone to find somewhere half decent and to play for a while. Zephyr was the most natural of them, a non-shifter, so Laurel was at a miss to figure out just what he was doing. So while he wasn't really one to hang around the place, he had been all set to go somewhere. So much in fact that he had only picked up his instrument of choice and hadn't even bothered to sling the strap over his shoulder. But it was a good thing that someone had been around because as it were, there was already someone nosing around the outskirts. Laurel raised a hand to half-wave and half get the fellow's attention, eyeing the silvery artisan over carefully. “Howdy,” he said, minus the Texan accent and in his usual good natured tone. “You lookin’ for something?” [/html]
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Erebus was by no means a social person. More often than not his company consisted of himself and his art and he was content that way. He had never been in a pack before and had even had trouble getting along with his family. And therefore, he continued to question his intentions at the border. He had always felt he would stay a loner, but perhaps in the back of his mind he had known that he would eventually need the interaction, the friendship, the protection and unity. And maybe now was the time to realize that. Now, as the interesting looking man came up to him with a wave and a friendly greeting.
As the stranger spoke, Erebus eyed him carefully, wondering how he could answer the question best without seeming too rude, something he was extremely good at. "Mm, actually I could be looking for you, depending on what you can offer. I was wondering if someone could explain this...pack to me? If that is indeed what it is. I happened upon the scented borders and my curiosity won me over," he explained, surprised by how easily the words fell from his lips. Usually, people could hardly pry a simple word from his lips, let alone multiple sentences. What was happening to him?
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[html] “Explain? Well, there isn't really much to it. I guess this place is something of a pack even if we're really more of a band of gypsies setting up camp for a while. Or a troupe, however anyone likes to see it works for me.” He smiled wanly for a moment. “We really don't have some crazy strict chain of command around these parts though, not that the other packs around here do. I just kind of crash landed here myself so I don't know a whole lot about them yet. But we pride ourselves on keeping things kind of close-knit here and open all the same; anyone and everyone's welcome to come and go as they please.” And maybe now he was just being too informative on too many levels. Regardless of that little factoid, knowing that someone was expressing interest in what Esper Hollow had stirred up filled him with the same sense of wonder that he had gotten initially on the day it had been founded. “I'm Laurel,” he offered, hoping to hook the curious man's name. [/html]
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Erebus did not hold eye contact with the man as he spoke, though he listened very closely, absorbing every word that was spoken. Though he might try to deny it, Erebus thought that the place sounded like somewhere he could fit in. He was rebellious in many ways and had low tolerance level for many rules and anything at all that tried to confine him. The place seemed free but close-knit, and maybe it would be good for his social skills. Still, he was hesitant on whether or not to announce his interest. How did that work, anyway? His eyes darted up and down, left and right, taking pictures in his mind of the lands, it was a place he might like. As Laurel introduced himself, Erebus nodded, speaking up for the first time, "Erebus," he announced, making eye contact with Laurel only as his name was spoken. "So..." he began, rather informally, "How many people have you got living with you?" he asked, trying to make conversation that might lead to an invitation, or at least an opening for him to ask permission to join.
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[html] When his eyes weren't wandering around as he gestured and described things, Laurel studied how Erebus reacted to things. He reckoned that he was curious about every little thing that Esper Hollow was all about and since he had been the same way once, or twice, or more times than he had fingers and toes that he could take a gander at what he had really been standing at the border for. So no more piddling around—he cut to the chase without another second of hesitation. “Counting myself, there's five of us right now. You interested in being the sixth by any chance?” [/html]
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