The Horned Heroes Return

[quietblade]

WHO: Kas, Taashath + Open
WHAT: Kas and Taas return from their mission in Orlais after two months.
WHEN: Today and forward
WHERE: Skyhold
NOTES: Kas and Taas will be under different top comments to avoid playercesting.

Seeing the bridge to Skyhold was such a huge relief that neither qunari had expected, and the accompanying group of scouts seemed just as eager to get back. Mounts were spurred a bit more, hurrying over the last stretch before they all stopped in the courtyard.

Taas slid off his horse and brushed back his brown hair from his face. It was a bit messy and not put up in the usual array of braids - and he had a need of a razor, of the beginning of a scruffy beard was anything to go by. He's wearing his usual leather and armor, although his chest is covered by a shirt for once.

He doesn't look worse for wear, aside from his nose being extra crooked. (He might need to get that fixed later.)

Giving the mount a pat on the neck, he leaves it with a stablehand and takes a look at the state of Skyhold. At least it was in once piece... and hopefully the tavern was as well.

---

Kas isn't as graceful in his dismounting, but the teen does seem a little less horrible at riding than he used to be. Rubbing his butt a bit, he sighs and scratches his head slightly before looking around. The scout uniform is a little ripped in places and the bow he got from Metaari is missing, but he's unharmed and even seems to have gained a bit of weight. It makes him appear a little bit less like a scrawny child and rather the young man he really is, so it's a good look for him.

Maker bless Orlaisian tiny cakes and hard work.

There's even a little smile on his lips as he looks around, eager to see Korrin, friends and maybe even meet new people.

Comments

[issala]

"Hey, Sam!" Kas waves a bit before moving over to the man, careful to not get kicked by any of the horses. "Me? Nah, just highwaymen, assassins and assholes. No bears." He chucks his thumb towards Taas. "That's his job."

Another grin, and the teen shakes his head a bit. "Good to see that the place is still in once piece."

[el_tybs]

"Ah," he says, nodding a bit - mentally making a note to ask Taas if he did wrestle a bear on their trip. Sam grins a bit wider, taking in how Kas looks and particularly his good mood. Last he saw the youth, Kas wasn't the highest of spirits, but it seems he's doing pretty good with having gone on this trip.

"Right?" Looking over his shoulder he looks at the building behind them before turning back. "Probably because they've been keeping us busy with missions - too tired to try anything here. Good to see that you're in one piece as well. Or most of you. Seems your leather has taken a beating."

[issala]

Bears, chevaliers, highwaymen... you name it.

The lack of headaches and the feeling of doing a difference had really helped the teen's general mood a lot, despite racist Orlaisians and weird conspiracies. The mission might have gone way over time, but hey. He had a good kill count and nobody died.

"Yeah, it's been harsh during the travels. I'm gonna need to do some patching later." He shrugs a bit. "Its worse that I broke my bow. I hit a guy with it." Kas is going to feel bad about that forever, okay.

"...what kind of missions have there been? If I missed another dragon fight I'm gonna be mad."

[el_tybs]

Not dragons though apparently.

"Beat someone with a bow. That must be quite the story." As he talks, Sam takes a moment to step to the side as soldiers and horses tried to make their way through.

"Rescue missions, we had some new Rifters come in, closing some rifts... I recently went on one and we fought some red templars. Made it out alive, but we were in pretty bad shape right after." Sam pauses a thinks for a moment, scratching the side of his neck. "Hm, don't think there was anything about a dragon while you were away."

[issala]

Not dragons. Very sad.

"Yeah, it was... necessary. It also sucked, because it was a gift." He's gonna have to tell Metaari later. Hopefully the man wouldn't get mad - Kas still didn't quite know gifts worked. It was new, after all.

He moves aside a bit as well when the people pass by, listening to Sam talking about the red templars and rifters. He looks a bit concerned at the mention of having been in bad shape, though. "Shit, you guys got hurt?"

[el_tybs]

"A gift, huh? It's a shame that you didn't get to use it more then, but it sounds like it came in handy. Can always get more gifts, not so much if you aren't around to get them. Glad you're alright." He's not sure who gifted it to Kas, but he's sure they won't be upset since it was necessary.

Sam wrinkles one side of his nose at the question, wondering if he shouldn't downplayed it a bit more. The hand scratching his neck stops and instead moves to the back of his neck, rubbing ever so slightly. "Mmm... yeah. They got some good hits in on several of us before we took them down. So preferably, no hitting me in the side until I get that healed fully."

[issala]

"...yeah." He's not sure what to say to that, but Kas supposed it was true. He was alive thanks to that bow. It had served him well.

The teen quiets a bit as Sam explains how he was hurt, and he frowns. "Can't you heal it?" Kas' knowledge of healing magic wasn't that great, after all. Surely there was an immediate fix?

[el_tybs]

The question has Sam smiling slightly, realizing that Kas didn't know much about healing magic. "I have been, and I'm almost completely healed, save for some lingering bruised areas. Afraid I got more then a cut so I have to be sure everything is healing correctly, and I also had to take turns with the others healing some of the more major injuries. It's tiring work, lot of concentration, so often we'll do sessions for healing."

[issala]

"Oh." He says, sounding a bit confused. It made sense, somehow? It just wasn't his thing. He'd yet to actually hurt himself, after all - headaches aside.

"Anything else happen while I was gone? Any new qunari?"

[el_tybs]

"Hm." The look on Sam's face as he hums thoughtfully at the question is one of being unsure. "Well.... yeeeees-ish?" There's a sheepish smile that accompanies the sort of answer, knowing that really didn't help. It was complicated. "Mac looks like a Qunari, but he's a Rifter."

[issala]

"Really?" Kas looks a bit confused. "I only heard about Rifters that look like elves, not any that look like qunari..." That was both pretty cool and a little scary.

"Does he have horns?" Not that all qunari did, but still.

[el_tybs]

"Elves and humans," he agrees, familiar with Kas' confusion seeing as he had been so himself when he first found out. "And yes, he does - ripped up the top of my tent too. Curled kind of like a rams' horns with gold plating. I suppose whatever he was in his world... translated into that coming here?" Mac had mentioned wearing a helmet with horns after all. "He's only about yay-tall," he says motioning to a height that was only slightly shorter then himself, "and dramatically colored hair."

Speaking of horns, now that they're on the subject and he's actually looking- "Kas, did you get hit or anything around here?" Here being the spot near his horns which he points to on his own head. He doesn't remember seeing those the last time they saw each other.

[issala]

"Gold-plated? That's badass!" The teen grins, imagining his own that way. When Sam mentions the height, though, he's laughing at once. Okay, that's... his height, but still. Gold-plated horns just seemed like a compensation in that case. Then again, rifter stuff.

...and then Sam asks about his horns and Kas brightens up like a newly lit torch. "No! It's the tip of my second pair! I'm gonna have two pairs of horns!"

[el_tybs]

It is good to see Kas in such high spirits, which has Sam smiling wider.

Wait.

Sam blinks. Did Kas just say 'second pair'? "Really?" He is certainly not as loud as Kas, but no less excited by the news, now looking at the bumps a bit more intently. He remembers quite well when Kas had told him about being worried about his horns not getting any bigger, and look at him now. Two sets. "That's amazing, Kas. Congrats. When did they start to show?"

[issala]

"Yeah! Here, feel!" He directs one of Sam's hands to his head to feel the bump just under his main horns. "It's been itchy and sure for a while but I thought it was just the horn base that needed more horn balm. Then it started bulging about a month ago!"

Weird non-human body things - but at least the kid was happy. "They''ll probably break through in a few months."

[el_tybs]

Well as long as Kas was alright with him touching it. Even so Sam is careful as he feels the bump, brows raised in curious surprise at the feel; it wasn't everyday that he got to feel horns growing out.

"That long, huh?" That must be a little annoying. "Are they going to hurt during the meantime or are you past the itchy/sore stage?"

[issala]

"It's gonna be tender and annoying until they break through, but I can deal with it. Probably not as bad as when the first horns are coming in." Kas touches the little points himself with a smile. "Now that we're here I'm sure some horn balm and stuff can help."

It was too bad that he'd been too little to remember what his mom had used for him when his first horns broke through - and man, it felt weird to think 'first' horns. It makes the teen smile again, excited.

Two pairs would definitely make up for how short and nubbly they were.

"I can give you updates if it helps your healer thing?"

[el_tybs]

"I'm sure Korrin has a supply of that." Right now the healing tents weren't quite stocked for that since a lot of their patients did not have horns, but they should get that fixed. Soon if he had anything to say about it.

Getting updates about horn growth? The offer has Sam smiling. "I would really like that. Might help in the future, or at least I'd be better able to communicate about it with you or someone else I might run across. Even if it's minor you should come see me if you need anything for pain."