Whatever you're sellin, I'm not buyin

It was a strange comfort to hear that the sickness was as unusual to the natives here as it had sounded from afar. Initially Jasper thought she would investigate the rumors and be on her way again soon after, assuming the whole land was cursed or something. It had seemed plausible. She'd half expected to find wolves wandering around like it was just another Tuesday, so the implication that the ooze was exception rather than rule settled her nerves. There was good land here, and plenty of open space and wilderness to be had. Jasper wasn't ready to put down roots any one place, but it would suck to do so only for the Annual Fuckening to rear its ugly head all over again.

She couldn't blame Caelia for being wary either, though curiosity began to boil in her guts, bubbling a litany of questions up to the surface. At least, until the pale woman went on. "Not that I was touched by it - the sickness, I mean - but I lost packmates to it." Jasper's ears flicked back on reflex, as the statement's weight pressed against all she might have asked. What were its symptoms, how precisely had it ravaged those exposed and to what extent, how had it been avoided... Yeahhh, this probably wasn't the time or place, so she mustered what social graces she could. "Ah. I'm sorry for your losses."

Caelia's question was simple, but Jasper stumbled over the reply all the same, still caught up in the morning's ever-growing whiplash. "Er, no. I mean, yes, I'm not. From around here." She took a breath and tried again. "Just... looking for greener pastures. I heard tales from those who had fled what was going on. Steered clear at first. Once it started to abate, I got curious." As the words settled between them a new worry crashed through and Jasper's nose wrinkled, rushing to clarify, "Sorry, I don't mean to come off callous. It's just... so unheard of, I had to see for myself. It sounded like a nursery tale to scare pups."

Whether that made it better Jasper wasn't sure, but it was true. It did sound like a tall tale. Like something slightly-older Rashan or Moru would taunt her with in younger years, when Jasper was afraid of the dark and abhorred her lonely secluded den. Maybe coming to poke her nose into trouble had been a way to flick her tail at them, whether they knew it or not. She was brave, or at least... Maybe she could be, one day.

"Talk" "Listen" Think