It's a relief when the guard doesn't narrow his eyes, and even more when Gavin catches on to how they should probably not talk about how the cat came to Gavin. Anders smiles a little more as he nods and steps close.

"I've been in a... similar situation before. In the dark... on the topic of cats." It's probably a very good thing he's a mage and he'd never tried to be a spy or bard. "Being introduced may have saved me. And I couldn't do anything for your other circumstances, but I could do that. I'm..."

He takes a breath as he trails off. The guard really does make talking difficult. "If you need to talk more about cats, I know a great many things. And if you need to talk about other matters, I've been a few places."