entranceway | ➶ three (video)

➶ three (video)

-land's influence on you. [ Good morning from the tired and faintly exasperated countenance of Robyn, who hastily replaces a wayward braid behind her ear before actually attending to the broadcast. She smiles wearily, clearing her throat before addressing the mansion. ]

Hello, Wonderland. In case we've yet to meet, my name is Robyn Cousland of the Gr- [ She cuts off momentarily to glance away, frowning, and speaks to someone or something off-camera. ] Stop. Sit.

[ There's a low whine, but she returns to the device with a satisfied, short sigh. ]

When I arrived, I... found, if it can be called that, a mabari - a Ferelden hound - in the wardrobe of my room. He isn't nearly as well-behaved as my own, unfortunately; he seems much younger, though I've just been thinking it might be because of the way that this place seems to affect us all. Though, luckily, we haven't all been taking little things from other people and hiding them away.

[ TALKING ABOUT YOU, OREN THE DOG. ]

Which... brings me to my point, which is that the dog has apparently been taking things that don't belong to him. Some of them have names written in them, some books, but most of these things have been difficult to return. I know for a fact that he confiscated possessions of an Emily Bennett, Evelyn O'Connell, and Cullen Rutherford. Also... [ At this, the Warden sifts through the pile as she speaks: ] Several boots, gloves, and gauntlets, mostly leather. A... necklace, I think, made of bone, a clay flower pot, some kind of- [ Maker's breath. She looks momentarily pained and spots of pink rise into the apples of her cheeks. ] Something... called Busty Asian Beauties, and several other things I've yet to identify.

[ The picture on the cover of that particular piece of reading material is overwhelmingly embarrassing and she hastens to end the broadcast. ]

Andraste's grace. Please stop by room thirty on the first floor if you've been missing something, or just tell me what you've lost and I will return it once I've made some sense of this mess.

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[ Good, this is... good. Things are going fair, at worst, and she sighs in relief. ]

That's fine. I'll unlock the door and you can come in. [ This, she will regret later when people just walk in, unprompted. ]

[He nods and - after a moment of fumbling - turns the device off. It takes longer than she might have thought for him to actually show up at the door and even when he does, he still knocks before testing if the door is actually unlocked.]

Robyn?

[Honestly, he's more concerned about how the dog might react to unexpected visitors. Especially ones that his master is not too sure about.]

Nathaniel. [ The Warden smiles as she opens the door, standing aside to let him in. Oren, meanwhile, seems perfectly happy to accept him into their room, nudging Nathaniel with his big head to try and get some attention. ]

Stop it, you. [ She tuts, though it doesn't, in fact, cut Oren's quest for love and food short. Rather, the mabari takes up trying to lick the archer's fingers, wagging his tail and rather blocking the way into her room. ]

[He gives a small, polite nod and absently scratches the top of the mabari's head as he enters the room, glancing down at the wet tongue against his fingers and resigning himself to rubbing behind one of Oren's ears.]

It's alright.

[This is fine. It's not as if he was intending to attempt a full examination of Robyn's quarters, anyway.]

Oren. [ She says firmly, and the dog finally moves back into the room, huffing indignantly. The Warden smiles back at Nathaniel, clearing her throat lightly. ]

Will you come in? You ought to see the mess he's made, really. It'll make for a good story.

[He pauses, one eye on the dog, then nods and steps further into the room. He would have been happy enough to wait outside, but this was fine.

As soon as he sets eyes on the pile of stolen belongings, both eyebrows raise and he lets out a huffing laugh.]

I feel as if I should be embarrassed that your dog is a better thief than I am.

Are you a thief, brother Warden? [ She smiles in a sideways sort of way at him, glancing from the stockpile to the man himself. ] Should I expect another report announcing that you've taken all the remaining gloves and boots, just as Oren did?

[ The dog seems pleased with the idea that someone else might follow in his footsteps (paw steps?) and barks shortly. ]

I'm not sure how he managed it. [ Robyn says, planting her hands on her hips as she stares down the hound. ] He's a truly talented bandit.

If the situation calls for it. [He admits gruffly, though he can't help but smile wryly in response. If the situation calls for it, he can crack open a chest or a door or anything else that needs to be opened, and he can lift things from people's pockets without notice. The only difference between him and a thief is that he never tried to make a living out of it.

The bark draws his attention briefly, and since he's already in the room, he makes a small gesture with one hand to beckon the dog over for petting.]

I've always been told that mabari are more intelligent than your average mutt. [Nathaniel considers this for a moment.] Maybe he's bored.

How scandalous. [ Says the rogue, who regularly picked locks on their adventures (which, she realizes, he may know). ]

Of course they are! [ Robyn speaks almost hotly. ] They're bred and trained for war, you realize. They need to be able to follow commands.

[ But she sighs, because Nathaniel is right, and it isn't the first time she'd thought that her hound had had enough of the mansion and its confining hallways. ]

Bored... [ Robyn repeats, mouth drawing to a thin line. ] Mm, I think so, too. He was very good for a while, but I think he's gotten restless. I try to run him out on the grounds as often as I can.

[ Which, admittedly, is fairly often. When it's peaceful, Wonderland isn't a very busy place. Still, maybe the dog senses that he's trapped just as the rest of them are. ]

I realise. We had several of our own, before...

[Before his father had turned into a raging psychopath and dragged their family name through the muck. It's better left unsaid but rarely goes unthought, and the fact that he was having to deal with 'your father is who? reactions only brings it to the fore more often.

Ehem.

Nathaniel bends to one knee to give the dog a proper fussing, scratching roughly over his head and behind his ears.]

There must be a better way to entertain him. What do you think, boy?

[ She realizes too late what he's going to say before he says it and she reddens a little, clearing her throat. Her first instinct is to apologize, but they've been through the routine before, and she knows he isn't about to hold it against her. What his father did was no fault of his and the Arl's death was no fault of hers (yet, anyway). Best to just... try and move past it. ]

And what way is that? [ She asks instead, relaxing visibly, admitting an entertained smile. ] If you've the secret to a happy and trouble-free mabari, I will fight you to get it.

[ Really, she just needs to be able to control her rambunctious dog-child. Please, Nathaniel. Take pity on a small Grey Warden. ]

Hmm...

[He continues rubbing behind the dog's ears, shifting his weight to make his position more comfortable. It's a tricky situation - to have a dog that needs so much entertainment and to be unable to provide it. If it leads to things like rampant stealing, then it needs to be tackled as soon as possible.]

Before the Blight, when war wasn't keeping them occupied and game was scarce, we'd set up mock hunts. [Nathaniel tells her, wondering if the Cousland family would have done the same. Many nobles with multiple mabari hounds would have done well do to it.]

It kept them from getting so bored they got out and worried the farm animals.

Oh! Of course, we did the same. [ It's how she came to spend so much time in the woods from an early age. In the woods and in the mud. ] Calen did that, before I left with the Wardens, but Oren-- well, Wonderland is a little different. There isn't nearly as much land and, frankly, I worry what the local animals might do if they were chased. We've no idea what they are, after all, though they look normal.

[ She laughs lightly, imagining... three-headed deer, or brightly-colored rabbits. ]

We'll find something to suit him. [ Robyn murmurs, watching Nathaniel attend to the dog's many needs. ] If I have to gather some others for a mock hunt, then so be it. We'll risk the magical animals' wrath.

It doesn't need to involve an animal. Well, save for Oren.

[He pats the dog's head once again then stands, idly straightening the cuffs of his shirt. His mind is already working through ways that they might facilitate something like this, if only for the mabari's sanity and nothing else.

It may be an activity worth some interest to those who would like to be involved. Oren can't be the only one feeling the cabin fever.]

Just something that smells like one. We drag out a trail, let him follow it, make sure there's a reward at the end for a job well done.

You're already spoiling him. [ She giggles. ] He won't forget that, you know.

[ Once someone gives him a treat or a toy, he seems to stick to the person like glue. ]

Well, I think it's a great idea. [ Robyn concludes. ] One he'll love and which can also burn away some of that extra energy.

[ The Warden glances up to the other, smiling enthusiastically. ]

Thank you for your help, Nathaniel.

I'm counting on it.

[He smiles right back at her, though the expression comes across in the awkward way of one slightly unused to smiling.] And it's my pleasure. I prefer to keep my lockpicking tools to myself.

[And out of the mouths of curious mabari.]

If you don't need anything else, I won't keep taking up your time. It.. looks like you still have a lot to go through.

Well, you can try, but he may have a taste for them now.

[ Fortunately for Nathaniel, the dog seems to be thoroughly occupied with his other treasures and doesn't seem to mind that one of them is escaping. ]

I-- Well, yes. [ She can hardly deny it when the evidence is right there behind her. ] I should get back to it.

[ There's a pause, an then she adds: ] Don't stay away entirely, all right? I promise not to hold a knife to your throat again.

[Just as well, as Nathaniel surreptitiously tucks the tool pouch into his pocket before the dog notices than anything untoward is happening.]

I'll hold you to that. [He comments, both eyebrows lifting briefly.] It isn't an experience I'm eager to repeat.

[Having anyone put a knife to your throat is highly unpleasant, but not least when that person is someone you value and trust.] I won't be a stranger.

Nor I. [ She chimes in, laughing lightly. ] And I hope you won't.

[ She inclines her head with a smile, laying a hand on her hound as he wags his tail, pleased with the interaction, though he'd lost another toy. ]

Goodbye, for now.

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➶ three (video)

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