Where the fuck was he? It was a simple question, but also one that Dave found he really, really couldn't answer. For one thing, it certainly wasn't his original world. Or, well, at least the one that he had grown used to. That much was obvious from the fact that he was a goddamn tiger, rather than a human. Although, that really wasn't such a big deal, at least in his own opinion. Tigers were pretty cool, and of he had to be an animal... at least he wasn't something stupid as shit, like a raccoon or something. Either way, he was still getting used to this whole four-legged thing, occasionally stumbling over his own paws or getting startled by his own size. At least he still had his shades, which he had to admit – still looked pretty good on him, even as a tiger. Plus they would hopefully hide any confused as hell looks he shot at people – well, animals – when they tried to explain anything about this world to him. He had been in it for a few months, give or take, and he was still having a bit of trouble adjusting to the whole "talking animals living in their own society" thing. Was far from the first time crazy shit had happened to him, though.

That was why he hadn't seemed all that concerned as he wandered the Beyond, trying to find... well, something. His friends, mainly. He had been together with Karkat, at one point, but they had gotten separated, and now he had no idea where the little bastard actually was. He missed him. He hoped he was safe. He hoped he was alive, at the very least. Alongside Karkat, he was trying to seek out... well, any familiar face, really. John, Rose, Jade... hell, even another one of the annoying-ass trolls would be a welcome sight at this point. Unfortunately, he wasn't having much luck in finding any of them. Instead, the tiger just found himself wandering aimlessly from place to place, asking around small groups and then ditching when he was met with nothing. Bit of a dick move on his part, but what was he supposed to do? Just stick around and act like he was actually invested in any of this? Sure, he didn't know how long he would be stuck in this world. But if he was going to be stuck, he at least wanted to be stuck around people he knew, at the very least. The whole situation was pretty much a shitshow of epic proportions, at least in his opinion.

The Frostblown was pretty much just the latest in the long line of groups that he had stumbled upon. Unfortunately, he wasn't sure he wanted to stumble upon this one. For one thing, the place was cold as balls. As Dave made his way along the paths between the surrounding mountains, he suddenly found himself wishing he had the body of a different animal. Something with much thicker fur, like a buffalo or something. Then he wouldn't feel like he was frozen right down to his core. Not only that, but by the time he reached the actual territory The Frostblown had come to occupy, it looked like a shithole. There was stuff scattered everywhere, and seemingly the faint scent of bodies on the air. Not only that, but every step against the ground beneath him felt vaguely wet, and slippery. Of course, unbeknownst to Dave, this was all caused by the recent flashflood that had struck the territory. To the Strider, however, it simply looked like the entire place was a mess. Like someone had thrown an absolutely horrific frat party, and it had gotten to the point where the college just wanted to set the frat house on fire, rather than deal with it.

Still, he didn't want to just turn back now, especially considering how far he had come. There was the scent of a group on the air, and that meant that he needed to stick around for at least a little while – he needed to see if anybody be knew was here. So, he called out into the open air, tone slightly lazy and nonchalant, "hello? is anybody actually out here? i can smell people, but this place kinda looks like hell! you guys need like... a maid or something." As if to emphasize, the golden tiger flicked at some of the nearby wet ground, watching as the mud smacked against one of the nearby trees. He sighed before continuing, "i've been through this a few times before, so uh... i come in peace, or whatever the fuck. my name's dave strider." He was sure he'd get asked a few more questions before long, though. These places sure did seem obsessed with their little "name and business" shtick.

"Well damn, you could've been a bit nicer in trying to compliment us." Horizon grumbled as he came to where Dave was, glaring up at the much larger male - revealing himself from his 'hiding' place from where he had been trying to figure out who the hell was near their lands. He clearly wasn't pleased at the comment about how this place needed cleaning up - though of course Dave wouldn't know that Horizon had almost drowned in the flash flood. Not to mention the trauma the devil had with water in the first place. "I can't exactly deny you or whatever, so," Horizon continued on with a shrug. "Name's Horizon Cipher."

A flashflood, huh? Well that... certainly did suck, actually. In the back of his mind, Dave found himself glad that he had arrived after it, rather than before. While he didn't mind helping with the cleanup, the thought of getting drenched and dragged away by the waves wasn't exactly an appealing one. Just the thought made the tiger's nose scrunch up slightly, head shaking before he spoke, "ah... sorry, never exactly done this whole joining thing before. my manners are probably pretty rusty. like, bicycle left out in the rain for twelve years kinda rusty." Not that they had ever been all that good, mind you. Not that they needed to know that. With that, he nodded his head in Horizon's direction, gaze scanning over the Tasmanian devil from behind his shades, "nice to meet you, horizon. can't say i've ever seen anything like you before." He could recall seeing pictures of Tasmanian devils before, but he hadn't encountered one before within the Beyond.

He addressed Auberon next, tail flicking behind him and shoulders raising in a vague shrug, "eh, i don't care all that much about the mess, especially if it was caused by a flashflood. not like you guys could've controlled that. i'll be willing to help out, don't worry." Despite enjoying his relaxation time vastly more than anything else, Dave had pretty much grown used to helping others out. Besides, best not to get thrown out on his first day by saying he wasn't actually gonna do shit. At the question of whether or not he wanted a tour, Dave's red gaze drifted up towards the trees behind Auberon, briefly squinting at the houses that resided there. He shook his head from side to side, muttering, "i think i'll just find myself some place to stay. i like exploring around on my own, most of the time." Besides, exploring the territory on his own would give him more chances to look for his friends, without any interruptions. Although, it was probably best for him to at least try to make some connections in this place. At some point.

Dave's compliment seemed to make Horizon feel better, a smile forming on the devil's face now and him puffing out his chest a bit. That, and the guy apologized for being rude made him less displeased at their newcomer. "Well hey, no worries. We're all forgivers here, right?" He mused, casting a grin at Auberon as he spoke before looking back at Dave. "Have fun explorin', yo. You can always find one of us if you need help, I'm sure someone will be out-and-about."