[Empty. Yeah, he can understand that, even if he can't understand everything else. It's a part of why he likes pain so much - hard to feel empty when you're bleeding, after all. But that seems like the sort of thing Zephia would sigh loudly at, so he probably shouldn't say it.

And speaking of Zephia... Griss tips his head a bit at the question, considering. It isn't like he cares that the question is personal; he's simply not sure why she asked. As a distraction, maybe?

Well, he can be a damn good distraction. It's way easier than trying to find the right words to help.]

We met... must've been over ten years ago, now? I was just a little disciple of Lord Sombron; desperate kid looking for some guidance and meanin' in my life.

Zephia... she just showed up outta the blue one day. Never gave a reason why, and I never asked. But she talked to us - most of us kids, anyway - and by the end of it, I was one of her Hounds.

[What was it like is the harder part to answer, and Griss's gaze drifts away again, focusing on some point in the distance.]

It was like... meeting Lord Sombron himself. Or what I would've imagined it as, back then. She was powerful, beautiful, commanding, and so damn certain. Of herself, her place in the world, everything. 'Course I was gonna follow her.

[It's remarkably open and honest coming from him, when he's always been so quick to deflect whenever his own feelings might be brought up. It's easier to say it now, with only Alear here... though it probably helps that she was willing to spill her heart first.

Ugh, but the thought of saying any more makes him feel antsy, so Griss leans back on his hands and tips his head again.]

Why do you ask?