puppy post (man, i love being able to write that unironically)

[lionheartedman]

WHO: Puppy and all of Skyhold
WHAT: surveying his domain and looking for new friends
WHEN: Cullen's been back at Skyhold since the second week of August, so Puppy has also been back
WHERE: anywhere he can get to, and that's almost everywhere

Puppy is growing, both in size and in personality. Adelaide warned about the size he'd reach, but Cullen is still a little amazed at how quickly he's coming into it. He's never seen a mabari grow up from a puppy before. Pretty soon, his temporary-turned-de-facto-permanent name is going to be rather ridiculous. That is not a concern for today, though. No, the concern for today is that he's wandered away from Cullen. Again. Something about you has caught his attention, and while it's very easy to become the subject of his focus, it's almost impossible to shake him.

[[OOC: If you don't want Cullen to come looking for Puppy, just say so, and you can have your whole thread with the cuter half of the pair.]]

Comments

[hugeinorlais]

Varric considered the dog and its eager little responses and then cast a long, hard glance at the table beside them. After an extended pause, he reached out and plucked up one of his duplicate tools.

This was going to teach this dog a terrible lesson.

He looked back at the puppy, still hunkered down merrily, and resigned himself to his fate.

"Okay you," Varric greeted and reached down to ruffle it's head. There was something deeply satisfying about making its ears flop back and forth when he did that. "This one is yours. Just this one. Okay?"

He held the tool out and shook it in the general direction of the dog.

"You ready to fetch?"

[lionheartedman]

His. Just this one. Puppy snuffles at the stick in Varric's hand, putting his scent on it, becoming intimately familiar with the shape of it by pressing his wet nose against it. His. Right.

At the word fetch, his entire body tightened in anticipation, muscles standing out in stark relief under his silky coat. Fetch. He was good at fetch. He was so ready, his entire back half wobbling with the force of that tiny little tail wagging.

[hugeinorlais]

Okay, that was clearly a word this little creature knew. Varric watched it almost shake itself apart as it waited, alert and excited, and eyes locked on the tool. Varric lifted it up, eyed the dog for a moment, and then quickly swung his arm down.

The tool remained in his hand, of course, but half the fun of playing with a dog was fooling them a little, right?

[lionheartedman]

Puppy tore into action, getting exactly one step before his eyes, scanning the air and attempting to trace the arc of the item that had supposedly been thrown, found nothing. He turned quickly and lunged back to his starting position. He basically turned in a tight circle incredibly quickly. He stared at Varric's hand, shifted to the side trying for a glimpse of the tool that he believed might still be in that hand. He could fetch. He was the best at fetch. Only if the person played it right, though. Did Varric need to be shown how?

[hugeinorlais]

"Oh, you are smart, aren't you?" Varric asked, more than slightly impressed. The last mabari he'd played fetch with had fallen for that a half dozen times before it caught on.

"Okay, okay, I'll play fair," Varric said and hefted the stick again. He gave it a little toss, straight up, caught it, and then threw the thing. Even with all his strength behind it, the tool didn't go quite as far as he'd hoped it would. It clattered to the ground somewhere in the distance and Varric stretched out his arm. It had been a while since he'd played fetch, he was going to have to warm up.

[lionheartedman]

Cullen was probably partly to blame there. Even in the games he played with Puppy, he was teaching him to make careful observations, to not be tricked, never fall for the feint. It was what he'd need from a war hound, what he'd need to be able to take an animal that he loved onto the battlefield and not be terrified that he wouldn't come home.

When Varric threw the stick straight up, Puppy looked for a moment like he might have leapt into the air to snatch it. He contained himself, though. Barely. When Varric threw it for real, he was off like a shot, tracking the flight and snatching it up in his jaws just moments after it clattered to the floor, his too big paws scrabbling on the stone as he turned (with the help of a convenient wall to half run into) and tore back toward his newest friend.