[ with the brim pulled way down low - joining ]

[ikigai.]

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— well. ezra honestly should’ve seen that coming. part of him had expected it, barely even feeling surprised as a shotgun was pointed in his direction. this wasn’t the first and probably wouldn’t be the last time he stared down the barrel of a gun. “easy there, nelly,” he remarked, slowly raising his hands in a sign of surrender -- also to show that there wasn’t any snowball of mass destruction in his hand, ready to be thrown. oh, come on, give him some credit for that aim, at least.

swirling the sucker around in his mouth, he rolled his eyes at the stranger’s - the victim of his snowball attack - rather casual response, even though the words spoken felt laced with venom. “name’s ezra. but you can call me anything you want, sweets.” sweets. the words were returned just as casually as the other girl’s remark. looking back on it, waging an all-out snowball war on a group of unaware people wasn’t exactly the best way to get on their good side. though, it had been extremely amusing, and ezra would be damned if he ever felt remorse for his previous action.

“please; i could beat your ass in a fight anyday.” the more he looked at the fuming person, though, the more he realized he didn’t think that’d be the truth-- and also, while  he didn’t feel completely terrified to be on the other end of a gun, he quickly decided it wasn’t his most preferred location. still, his gaze remained stoic as he gazed between the two, and then stated, “i’ve heard about flintlock. think it’d be nice to join. could you two take me to your leader, or something, so i could talk to them?”

[tomorrow]

JUST STANDING WAITING FOR THE PUNCHES

Tomorrow had done his fair share of accidentally pelting with snowballs; accidental being the key word. He was almost entirely certain Brendan still hadn't forgiven him for that, but Hayley had taken it in stride. He thought back to that moment a bit fondly, remembering it as the start of the genuine trust he held in her.

Still, he wasn't exactly all for those sorts of... Entrances. He liked to not cause a stir, and nowadays he flew mostly under the radar. Most everybody knew him as the dog guy who kept to himself, and Tomorrow was fine with that.

Snow-dusted scarf pulled up to his nose and the hood of his coat drawn over his head, he looked comfortable and entirely belonging in the snow. Jeremiah trailed behind him, the only one of his dogs who wasn't being cooped up in the lodge for one reason or another.

He hadn't really been doing anything productive, just taking a walk to sooth his nerves. He might've gone a bit far from the lodge, but he was armed well enough to defend himself against raiders or animals. Luckily all the bears were still in hibernation; they'd be a bitch to deal with once the snow started thawing and spring came in full swing.

He heard shouting and noticed a silhouette in the distance; someone he didn't recognize, seemingly looking down the hillside at people who's voices Tomorrow did recognize. Forcing himself to approach, he didn't unsling his rifle and let out a quick whistle to remind Jeremiah to stay close, which also announced his presence. Well, shit.

He felt loose, more casual and less anxious than normal. Seeing Hayley gripping her gun prepared to shoot fried that good mood, and Tomorrow reached for his rifle nervously before deciding it was unnecessary. The man was introducing himself, and flirting a bit with Micah; or maybe that's how this Ezra always addressed people?

"Three, and she's down there with the shotgun." Tomorrow said softly, approaching from behind the apparent joiner. He tilted his head, offering an anxious but sort-of welcoming smile which he didn't realize was hidden behind his scarf.

[ikigai.]

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— why he decided to go to possibly the coldest place imaginable, he wouldn’t know. damn, it was like he was heading straight to antarctica at this rate. crossing his arms over his chest, he drew his worn-out coat tighter around his frame. teeth gritting on the stick of the sucker that was in his mouth. he had heard about a group being over here, though- and, while he hated to admit that he needed someone’s company in this world, he knew that it was the truth. he’d been gone for a few weeks, having left his group after coming to the decision that those fuckers had been completely useless to him-- actually meaning, that they had kicked him to the curb because they didn’t want to execute any of his insane and unobtainable ideas. that, and he got them into more trouble than anything else.

screw them, then.

he was climbing up a slope, only slowing once he got to the top of it. looking down, he caught sight of arguably the last thing that should’ve been out there-- a group of people, walking. they must’ve been on patrol or something. patrolling. for a moment he stood and stared, face stoic. the next, he was in motion, crouching down to gather up snow into his hands, generally unfazed by the burning cold sensation it caused. he did this until it was a perfect weapon; a perfectly sculpted snowball. speaking of insane and unobtainable ideas. swirling the sucker around in his mouth, he closed one eye as he worked on his aim, and then dramatically chucked it at the unaware group.

the snowball went downhill and then collided rather harshly with a girl in the group - dark hair, overall looking like a bad ass - and it took everything in ezra to keep back the laughter. instead he smirked as he wandered down the slope, closer to the group. “what, did i bring a snowball to a gunfight?” ezra had always been one for dramatic entrances and exits, and if he was going to be known for pelting someone with a snowball, then so be it.

//just a heads up. he totally pelted micah with the snowball. just clearing that up.

[HAYLEY]

[align=center][div style="width: 430px; text-align: justify; font-family: calibri; font-size: 8pt; color: black; line-height: 22px;"]☁  hayley, in general, liked to think she was pretty good at not overreacting. she was good at keeping a calm head on herself, holding her shit together in a crisis, resisting the urge to give in to the panic. it was easy, no doubt, but easy wasn't always right, and if she expected the people of flintlock to keep their shit together, she would have to do so just the same, or else be rendered a hypocrite.

so when a snowball came flying at the group by a boy she didn't recognize, hayley, who'd been walking silently with her hands in her pockets, immediately grabbed the shotgun from it's position over her shoulder, swinging it in a practiced motion to hold it, aiming it directly in the direction of the man.

had it been a flintlocker who'd thrown the snowball, hayley might have laughed and watched micah murder them. but she didn't know who the hell this was, and she couldn't ever be too safe, not with her suspicions over the badlands, and the bodies that had been dropping lately. so, rather than react to it as a snowball, she reacted to it as a tresspasser throwing things, and cocked the gun in response.

❝yeah, you did,❞ she said, eyes narrow, clearly lining up a show, ❝so who the hell are you?❞ aggressive? sure. but she had plenty of reason to be these days.

[OLLIE.]

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