my thoughts were so loud i couldn't hear my mouth

Stepping onto the watery tracks brought an odd sensation to his body, paws twitching as they got used to the feeling of the waves pushing gently back and forth. He had gone swimming before, knew how to do it, but the water had never been something he found himself residing in. The mud, shallow lakes had been his only chosen home for a long time. When his body burned, threatened all that got close to it. When his teeth growled and words grunted, his mind cluttered and overwhelmed and lost. His body had been its own personal campfire, just a few steps away from becoming a wild one if not careful. The water had been the only thing to put it out, at least for a little while. But it burned, and ached, and he knew it was not his home, not what his body had been made for.

It has been a while since he's been a burning flame, however. The power was still not controlled, still burned inside of him, but he kept it there. Kept it silent. He would rather it not show itself at all, rather than try to figure it out. Once before, in another life, he had mastered it. He had great control over when he used it and how much he wanted to use. But it had not been in his own choice. And that life had been long over now. At times even forgotten. The pieces came and went. And the one thing that had been left, pushed him to be better, what had kept him company, was gone. He had no one, no real ties to anything anymore.

At first the boy had thought he could take care of the home himself, keep its spirit alive. He thought that may be the right thing to do, what his father would want him to do. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. He couldn't look outside, couldn't get out of bed, and most certainly couldn't do what it took to walk around that empty home. And thus, after a few days, after an internal fight, he ultimately decides he can't be there at all. The swamp, the musty air, the muddy waters that he had once relied on. He needed something different. Something unlike he'd ever been to. He'd considered simply wandering about like he once had, making those temporary friends, delivering things for others as they requested. The idea still sat in his head, not a horrible one if this ultimately wouldn't work out. But he thinks, maybe, he could try this. At least for a little while. He had nothing to lose except time, and even that had very little meaning in his mind. The waters were clear, air was fresh, and the archipelago was safe. That tigress there had helped freed him once before.

Maybe he could find some comfort in it.

And with his leather bag at his side, the boy would step up to the gate, hesitating at the sight of the decapitated head, and the snakes sitting in a bucket. But he was no stranger to the brutality to any of this. He'd walked the three miles, and it seemed a waste to turn back now. There was some compassion in the pirates, he knew this much. Otherwise they wouldn't have done the things they had, otherwise his father wouldn't have placed so much faith in them. The coati's paw reaches upwards slowly, a slight tremble in the movement, and pushes the bell gently. It rang as it would, ceasing quite quickly from his brief motion. And he would lower his head slightly, rounded ears pricked forward. His orange glowing eyes watch carefully. "Hello," he calls lightly. "Um, I'm R-Roy. Could I...join?"

my thoughts were so loud i couldn't hear my mouth

The first to arrive a canine, seemingly younger than him. He took a deep breath, tilting his head to the side ever so slightly. He doesn't imagine he'll be met with denial, but the boy's body instinctually prepared for anything, clearly on edge. Though it seems he's not alone with that sentiment, as the other appeared to be just as skittish as he is. It was almost reassuring, to not feel singled out in behaviors. Though he hadn't expected the other to say what he had - he didn't exactly need any help, just a yes or no. But he would remain quiet, offering only a nod at the other's words, waiting patiently. If he wasn't sure, the other certainly wouldn't blame him, and he wasn't about to go pressing him to giving him a direct answer.

The coati didn't exactly need to wait long, however, as the next to arrive - quite a small stranger - would seem to be much more confident. Though still soft-spoken. This was a relief for certain, as it meant he wouldn't be surrounded by a bunch of lively individuals all at once. It felt much less overwhelming. The boy began to slowly feel a little bit better about coming here. Maybe it would be easier. His head lifts ever so slightly now, listening silently to the feline's acceptance and introduction. He was allowed to stay, and the individual in front of him was a dealer, though he didn't really know what that meant. It must have some importance, if she bothered to mention it. "Okay," he starts off with in response, voice still gentle, though it feels less shaky. He is about to say more, but another arrives, and takes his attention, the words catching in his throat for now.

He listens quietly to her introduction, offering a slight friendly smile in return towards her own big one. Keona, and Vayne, and whoever the first to arrive was. Okay, he could remember that. "It's a, uh, a pleasure to meet all of you. Th-Thank you." The boy would finally respond in a polite manner. "Do any of you, er, ha-have any recommendations of where I should stay? F-For housing, I mean." He didn't really know all that much about their territory, seeing as he'd only seen it far in the distance. He'd been told here and there of the tropics by his dad, though mostly he liked to talk about the people there. Both seemed good from everything he knew though, and he did feel a little excited to figure it out himself. It almost made him feel a little less lonely, a little more warm. Almost. "I-I used to stay in Tanglewood, f-for a while. So I'm most used to, uh, that. But I'm willing to t-try anything you have. Th-The island seems nice."

ALL I FOUND THE SPACE BETWEEN THE SPACES
STANDING IN THE NOTHING, AND TIME RECLAIMS YOU

Tanglewood. The scent of the allied group was both a surprise and not a surprise, most of the time. After all, it wasn't all that unusual to have an ally come and visit you every so often. Yet still, Michael found himself caught off guard whenever a Tanglewood member showed up. This time, though, it didn't seem like they were here to tell them about some kind of development in Tanglewood, or an event in some sort. This time, someone was here to join. That was certainly a new development. Usually people from Tanglewood didn't come to join, at least not officially. Usually they were just women from Tanglewood that had become romantically entangled with... well, Goldie.

That certainly didn't seem to be the case this time, though. Instead, it was a kid. Or well, someone younger, at least. At least... Michael thought so. It was hard to judge Roy's age, when the dealer had never really seen a coati before. He couldn't help the way that he looked the other over as he approached, the bobcat's head tilted curiously to one side. Roy sort of looked like a raccoon, just... stretched out. Or well, at least the nose part. The rest of him actually looked pretty normal. Of course, Michael didn't comment on this at all. He didn't want to unintentionally insult the other, and there were more important things to address. Sitting down nearby, the darkly furred feline waved lightly at Roy, saying in a welcoming tone, "Hey there, Roy. My name is Michael Townley-Phillips. I'm a dealer, like Keona over there. It's a pleasure to meet you." The kid seemed a little bit shaky, so Michael was trying to be as polite and gentle as he could, for the other's sake.

After this, the dealer decided to consider the other's question. A place to stay, huh? Keona had a point about the treehouses, but Michael had another idea. With his tail twitching behind him, the bobcat suggested lightly, "You could also try one of the huts on the beach, too. Some of them are basically like the houses Tanglewood has in their town... I think. I haven't looked at any of them too closely." He had pretty much only been there twice in the past, and one time was for an event. He hadn't exactly been poking inside anybody's houses during the beach party, but some of the huts looked like them, at least from the outside. The feline then added, giving a light flick of his paw as he spoke, "I personally live in one of the huts, and it's pretty great. Plus it isn't too hard to modify them, if you get a bit of a helping hand. And I'm sure most of us would be very glad to help you." He would certainly lend a paw, if he was even able to contribute much – he wasn't exactly the strongest type.