[ his crystal comes to life, and the deer talin has in his sights spooks, crashing away through the brush. he'd be annoyed, but how could he be? he's just happy to hear her voice. she sounds frayed; his response is unquestionably fond. ]
[ There’s a plaintive animal whine in the background; then her voice muttered low and away from the crystal, a quick No! Don’t eat that! before she turns back. ]
Came across this Fereldan merchant cart, looks like it got robbed by— dunno if it was roadside bandits or Tevinter forces from Starkhaven sacking for supplies, but either way, all the actually valuable shit was taken and the cart was empty and the driver’s dead. There was a mabari left behind.
[ And like, of course she couldn’t leave the dog huddling alone in the mud under the cart. ]
Ah, [ he sighs, clicks his tongue, ] poor fen'len. First thing to do, check if it has teeth. If it does, it's old enough to eat meat. If it doesn't, it still needs milk. How's it look, does it seem like it's been long since the cart was robbed?
Long enough, poor guy was soaking wet and miserable. One sec —
[ Astrid’s wrangling the dog in the background, the sending crystal in one hand and the other trying to jam her fingers in the puppy’s mouth. Mabari are well-trained, well-bred, but this one’s young. Still, she eventually breathes a sigh of relief when she wipes the slobber off her hand and returns to say, ]
— teeth, thank Korth.
[ She never personally raised any dogs back in the hold, but she’d heard enough to know that bottle-feeding age came with all sorts of risks and responsibilities. ]
That's good, hand-raising a pup's hard under ideal conditions, [ which astrid isn't likely to have, out on the road as she is. ] Second thing, check for injuries. You can feed it after that, unless it's got something wrong with its stomach, and I can check the notes Farnon left me, see if there's nothing in there about puppies.
[ this is how much he loves both you and puppies, astrid, he's willing to read. ]
Male? Female? Don't wanna call it "it" the whole time.
[ Great time for their veterinarian to take off, and he can hear it in her frustrated exhale. But it’s not Farnon’s fault. Just bad timing. Better incentive for Talin to pick up these skills in the absence, though. ]
What does he look like? Temperament? His name should say something about who he is. Wouldn't want to name him Fenvir—path of the wolf—if he has a gentle heart.
[ because astrid is keeping him, obviously, this isn't a temporary name. this is something that will stay with the pup his whole life, so they have to give it due consideration. ]
[ Obviously. She’d maybe wondered about it for a fleeting second, whether or not she could afford to take in a dog with her current lifestyle. But there were so many animals around Riftwatch, weren’t there? A mabari in particular could be a working dog, and could eventually be useful in the field rather than a liability.
And besides, if she’d left him alone by the side of the road, he’d die. So. It was no choice at all. ]
I mean, I don’t really know yet, all puppies are sort of puppy-like when they’re that young, the personalities haven’t really settled yet —
[ Astrid sounds like she’s uncustomarily fretting a little. This is a big choice!! ]
Mostly he’s clingy right now, and doesn’t want to be alone. Which, well, makes sense.
[ give him a moment to absorb the soft glowing feeling in his chest at this whole conversation. ]
Well, I'm sure I'll be well-compensated for my efforts, [ he says, loftily dismissive, even with an unmistakably softness to the tone. ] When will you be back to the Gallows? I'll ready the room for him.
[ put chewable belongings up out of the way, pilfer an old cushion for a bed, find something suitable for teething... ]
Might be too young yet for a prey drive of his own, but I'll warn Barrow, at least. Three pairs of eyes should be enough to keep the cats alive til we can train Mitha in what's friend and what's food.
I've got to get back to the Gallows, you caught me hunting. [ not to mention there's a meeting he's overdue for, if he's reading the light right. ] Let me know if you won't be making it tomorrow?
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I do my best. Do you need something, Asta?
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[ There’s a plaintive animal whine in the background; then her voice muttered low and away from the crystal, a quick No! Don’t eat that! before she turns back. ]
—a puppy, t’be exact.
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I have less experience with them than halla and horses, but we had dogs in the clan and Farnon was teaching me before he left. What happened?
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[ And like, of course she couldn’t leave the dog huddling alone in the mud under the cart. ]
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[ Astrid’s wrangling the dog in the background, the sending crystal in one hand and the other trying to jam her fingers in the puppy’s mouth. Mabari are well-trained, well-bred, but this one’s young. Still, she eventually breathes a sigh of relief when she wipes the slobber off her hand and returns to say, ]
— teeth, thank Korth.
[ She never personally raised any dogs back in the hold, but she’d heard enough to know that bottle-feeding age came with all sorts of risks and responsibilities. ]
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[ this is how much he loves both you and puppies, astrid, he's willing to read. ]
Male? Female? Don't wanna call it "it" the whole time.
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Male. You got any suggestions for names?
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What does he look like? Temperament? His name should say something about who he is. Wouldn't want to name him Fenvir—path of the wolf—if he has a gentle heart.
[ because astrid is keeping him, obviously, this isn't a temporary name. this is something that will stay with the pup his whole life, so they have to give it due consideration. ]
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And besides, if she’d left him alone by the side of the road, he’d die. So. It was no choice at all. ]
I mean, I don’t really know yet, all puppies are sort of puppy-like when they’re that young, the personalities haven’t really settled yet —
[ Astrid sounds like she’s uncustomarily fretting a little. This is a big choice!! ]
Mostly he’s clingy right now, and doesn’t want to be alone. Which, well, makes sense.
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[ talin thinks for a second, then barks a laugh, and his smile is audible in his voice when he explains— ]
Mitha. Means "one who is near".
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[ Juggling the sending crystal again, trying to still speak to Talin without the young mabari lunging for the crystal and swallowing it: ]
Probably gonna be a bit of work for you back at the Gallows too, just by association. Sorry not sorry.
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Well, I'm sure I'll be well-compensated for my efforts, [ he says, loftily dismissive, even with an unmistakably softness to the tone. ] When will you be back to the Gallows? I'll ready the room for him.
[ put chewable belongings up out of the way, pilfer an old cushion for a bed, find something suitable for teething... ]
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We’ll also need to have an eye, make sure he doesn’t chow down on Barrow’s herd of cats next door. I like those cats.
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I've got to get back to the Gallows, you caught me hunting. [ not to mention there's a meeting he's overdue for, if he's reading the light right. ] Let me know if you won't be making it tomorrow?
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[ And there’s a click, and she’s shoving the sending crystal safely away before the dog can swallow it. ]