faderift | [Open] A cat a day brings the healer to play

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[Open] A cat a day brings the healer to play

WHO: Anders and peoples
WHAT: Hanging out and doing things around Kirkwall now that they're back
WHEN: Through the month
WHERE: Various locations around Kirkwall
NOTES: Nothing comes to mind atm.

1. The Cat Prompt (open)

He has a new cat. It's rather obvious by the way there's an orange bundle of fluff hanging on to his shoulder for dear life now, from time to time, supported often by his hand. Most of the time he has one (or both) cats with him he's in the herb garden, carefully picking and trimming and weeding as Purrelden sprawls in the sun and Lord Pawdric alternates between napping in Anders' belt pouch, sitting on his shoulder, or stumbling around on tiny kitten legs after caterpillars.

A great deal of Anders' attention is on his cats. He likes letting them roam, but he doesn't want them to be hurt and he's pretty aware of his own... popularity, which means anyone coming into the garden is looked at and nodded to whether he likes them or not. If he likes them, it's friendly with an added small smile. If he doesn't, or if he doesn't know them, it's a warning. He sees them.

2. There's Always An Infirmary Prompt (open)

The doors open behind him but he can't turn just yet - he's at the tricky stage of making this potion.

"Hang on, I'll be right with you. Unless you're dying. Are you dying?" Because he can risk burning a hole in the desk if someone's dying.

3. Of Course He's At The Hanged Man Prompt. (open)

Bluffing is not something Anders is good at. It's not that he hasn't spent time trying - he tried all the time back in the Circle and the Templars just weren't having it - but somehow he keeps failing. All the same, he's sitting at a table, trying to work on his card game abilities.

He doesn't bother looking up when someone approaches, which isn't the best technique when it comes to self-preservation, but he's not great at that either.

"Right. I'm not betting because I'm shit at card games, but I'd like to get better. Sit down if you're in."

4. Ye Olde Schoole Ande Clinice Prompte (Opene)

He's in the middle of a small flock of kids and teenagers, leading them back inside the Clinic as they excitedly describe how awesome the little orb they just made out of spirit was, and how they'd be juggling in a day, just wait and see, how theirs was the biggest, theirs was the coolest, they were the fastest, and so on. Anders looks happy.

It continues even as the babbling horde descends on one of his workers to get their lunch and he turns to see if anyone's here for him specifically.

5. The Obligatory Sappy Prompt (closed to Nate)

There's a lot of mail from the office, and surprisingly, not all of the paperwork is for Nate. While he's certain he'll get tired of it in time, there's still a nice novelty to having some to do. Responsibility feels... nice, really. Even when he's always had a lot of it on his shoulders.

Anders leaves behind a few cookies for Alistair and Loghain when they go into the Warden office before bringing all the stuff Nate and he need to see to home. The pillows get stacked to support Nate, the pens and ink and parchment and cats and dog get gathered, and then the parchment gets re-gathered because Lady gets excited and Pawdric gets startled.

"Do you need me to grab anything else? Before I get settled next to you?"

6. Cats' Day Out Prompt (Closed to Kirk)

He has two leashes, and two cats... and a cat on each shoulder rather than them on the ground. Pawdric, at least, has an excuse. He's tiny with short little legs. Purrelden? She's spoiled and lazy. And he's not fighting her about it, because he loves her and the spoiling is his own fault.

Though he's a little less than impressed by the claws in his shoulder from her when he reaches up to knock at Kirk's door.

"You're the one that had to be there," he reminds her.

7. I See You Creepin' Prompt (closed to Thane)

While Anders has never been good, exactly, about staying on the run, he's gotten pretty good at noticing when he's being watched. Much of the time it's just staring or glaring, but this guy has been following him and it's starting to make him nervous. It's entirely because of his shadow that he doesn't head for the docks to go to Darktown at his usual time - instead he detours to be out in the open in the courtyard before he whirls around and heads straight for the guy.

"What, exactly, do you want from me?"

8. Bad Patient Prompt (closed to Vandelin)

It's another day in the infirmary, though he's not really had a lot of time to make potions today. The patients have been fairly non-stop, so he's taking the break that has finally arrived to carefully feed little Pawdric. Purrelden sits like a queen on top of a shelf, watching the squeaking kitten stuff himself. Pawdric's just finished up and is getting carefully wiped down when Anders hears someone at the door and looks up.

"Vandelin!" The elf gets a smile and a nod to one of the two chairs in the room. "Come on in. What can I do for you?"

9. Just In Case Another Patient Is Bad Prompt (closed to Bethany)

The day has been on the longer side and as much as he'd like to curl up with Nate and doze off right away there's something he needs to do first. Anders comes into the room and smiles at Bethany and his husband both before jerking his head in the direction of the hallway.

"I'll be right back, love. Bethany, do you have a moment?"

[ooc: As usual, if you'd like something that's not here feel free to pop up a header or chat with me on Plurk or Discord!]

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It's probably best not to ask him such an open-ended question, Anders, lest it give him the out he's looking for. He can say he's here to visit kittens, or because he wants to learn more about spirit healing, or because he's looking for a teaching opportunity. Respectable reasons all, demonstrating action and agency, none of them requiring him to come in with hat in hand and beg for help.

He can get away with pretending he's just leaning on his staff as mages do out of leisurely habit, and not because it hurts too much to straighten up, as long as he doesn't take one of the offered chairs.

"Not much," he says, with breezy cheer that still sounds just a little too studied. "I hope you're not too busy at the moment. I'd hate to distract you." He could be coming in with a limb half-detached and still wouldn't blame Anders for wanting to attend to the kitten first, at whom Vandelin is gazing with unconcealed enchantment.

There's something about the way that Vandelin says 'not much' that clues Anders in to it indeed being much.

"I've just finished," he says in answer, following Vandelin's gaze to Pawdric and smiling. Anders gently picks up and cradles the little guy, bringing him closer so the elf can get a good look at him. "He's likely about to doze off, he's still small enough that eating tends to lead straight to that, but there's a chance he'll stay awake a little longer. Pawdric, this is Vandelin. Vandelin, Pawdric. Ask him why he's here, Pawdric."

The kitten doesn't. He blinks. Purrelden, on the other hand, croons from her perch and she gets the next smile.

"Well. Someone can obey. He's young yet. He'll get the hang of it."

"I'm just glad the cats aren't ganging up on me." His smile very nearly does conceal his weariness and the twist of pain in his stomach, and he braves that to reach over for the kitten even before Anders gets close enough that he doesn't have to, stroking the tiny furry head with cautious fingers. "How many do you keep? I'd love one, but I don't know how many my room could reasonably hold. I've never had one before."

All right, now it's plain that he's deliberately ignoring the question, and he gives himself an internal kick for being so unsubtle about it. He sighs. "I'm not here on anything serious, no need to worry about that. Entropy has its ways of healing up wounds just fine, but we left the necropolis before I could finish the job myself, so I thought I might as well speed it along a little."

"They're still getting to know each other, so they're not at the teaming up stage quite yet. And I've only the two, which is enough for here."

One day, when he has a house out in the countryside somewhere warm, he can have a dozen. A dozen purring, affectionate bundles of joy. In Kirkwall, two is enough.

Pawdric squeaks, a little surprised, before starting to purr instead.

"Look at him. He likes you despite the blasphemy of Entropy healing just fine." Anders' voice is mostly teasing, but there's concern underneath it. "Here. Hold him, cup him the way I'm doing and he'll feel warm and secure, and I'll take a look. What happened?"

Bethany looks up from her knitting (seriously she never stops, it's a thing), and offers a dimpled smile to Nate as she rises. "Yes, and then you'll finally be free of me and my nagging and all the food."

A hand pressed to Nate's arm, before she rises and moves to the door. Making sure to close it behind her, because when Anders has That Look, it means he wants to talk alone. She tips her head at him, curiously.

"What's wrong?"

There are few times in which he has been detected, though in retrospect it makes sense. Anders has commonly escaped from many places, and has been a man on the run constantly. It seems that Thane should have been more careful.

He tilts his head as he's confronted, then answers honestly: "Very little, actually. Perhaps to better understand you, but nothing beyond that. You are not in danger with me."

Audra wandered into the herb garden, her eyes on a scrap of parchment in her hand rather than in front of her, chewing on the side of her finger as she runs through the list of things she's on the hunt for. She stops short when she feels eyes on her and looks up, her eyes widening a little when they land on Anders. She knew he was here, of course. She wasn't going to go out of her way to talk to him, for one way or another. Now that he's here, though, she knows it'd be entirely rude not to talk.

"Hello," she starts, lowering her finger from her mouth quickly, her smile only a little sheepish. "D'you know where the Felandaris is?"

Edited 2017-12-07 22:27 (UTC)

He shrugs, trying to downplay his worries. It's not like he doesn't trust his husband. And yet...

"Last time he had a serious chest injury, he didn't stay resting and wound up with pneumonia. He nearly died. So I'm asking for an honest answer, even if he tried to convince you to not tell anyone, as to whether or not he stayed resting." Anders meets his eyes, hoping the context helps him out here because he's quite certain that if Nate's scooting around the place when he shouldn't be, he'd have pleaded with Bethany to not say anything.

Anders hears the words, but he also hears the way they're spoken - without anger or malice, as far as he can tell. After a moment he takes a breath and nods. Maybe he shouldn't have been quite so confrontational, but he thinks his reaction was reasonable enough that he doesn't offer an apology.

"Have you considered that a conversation might be more productive?" His voice is mild now. "I'm willing to talk."

He gives her a faint smile as she pulls her finger down. She's unknown to him, but she's not glaring so he's relaxed enough.

To her question, Anders jerks his head to the side to where Purrelden is stretched, flicking her tail around. "Just behind the cat. Her tail keeps hitting it. She's friendly, so you don't have to be nervous picking it. But she'd likely appreciate a chin rub while you're over there. What are you making?"

He likes talking shop. It makes the work go faster, and it might lead to learning something he'd not been exposed to before.

The elf smiles faintly, then shakes his head. "I prefer to watch people naturally from a distance. People tend to be more sincere. That, and I'm not the best conversationalist."

A small bow of his head is given. "I have you at a disadvantage as far as introductions go, my apologies. My name is Thane. I was given to the Inquisition just a short time ago. I'm still becoming acquainted with working in such an organization."

"Not dying!" There's a laugh behind him.

"Although my foster fathers are acting as if I am. So, if you could spare a moment to just take a quick look? Or if you know where the Lady Galadriel might be - I think they'd prefer it if I went to her, but it really is not serious."

There's a fair amount to process there, but one part in particular stands out, especially as the person standing in front of him is an elf.

"...given to the Inquisition? Forgive me, but I'm not sure I follow that. And poor conversationalist or not, you may walk with me now. I'm heading to Darktown." It may be a poor choice, but he doesn't feel currently threatened. Anders tends to have a decent sense of when someone he's talking with wants to kill him, he thinks.

"Foster fathers? Color me intrigued. And one moment and I'll have time to spare, yes."

The voice is new. He's glad of the laugh, though, because it means whomever the stranger is probably doesn't hold a grudge against him. Quickly, but carefully, Anders finishes up with the potion and sets it down.

His first impression is that the man is tall. Really tall, nearly a foot taller than him. There's also something about his features that Anders can't put his finger on... and that's fine, because the man is a patient.

"Have a seat, please." He gestures to the cot to the side before washing his hands quickly.

[ooc: What's ailing him?]

"Or kidnappers, depending on which side of my family is telling the story."

Elros smiles at him and takes the seat directed, tugging down the shoulder of his robe to reveal the bandages.

"I made a mistake." He says ruefully. "Silly one, really. Wasn't paying attention to my footing and fell. Bad idea, when one is fighting a dragon. Still! Maglor is an overprotective mother hen, and it only just scratched me before he turned it's brain to mush. The dragons here aren't like the ones back home but I don't want to prove them wrong and keel over because of dragon venom in the wound!"

((ooc: Elros has been clawed in the right shoulder - the wounds are not deep, and have been expertly bandaged, and are healing surprisingly quickly for a human. I am happy to play with anything else you think would be fun! He's twisted his ankle too, but won't mention that, and his face looks sunburned - dragon flame + full face plate helmet))

"I appreciate the gesture, especially considering the circumstances. I wouldn't blame you for asking me to leave after following you for so long," Thane says, a bit wryly.

The elf welcomes himself to Anders' side, looking perfectly composed. He does attempt to elaborate: "I served a noble family for most of my life. I was given as a gesture of good will and support for the Inquisition. Whatever is needed of me, it will be done."

Now his eyebrows are raised even higher. Kidnappers or foster parents? He's definitely going to ask once he's seen to the immediate issues.

"A very bad idea, when one is fighting a dragon," Anders echoes. "You're going to feel a warmth and an itching as I heal up the wounds, as a fair warning." Mention of 'back home' means the man is most definitely a Rifter even beyond other signs, and there's a fair chance he's not had magical healing the way Thedas offers yet.

Once the warning is given, he gets to work. The wounds aren't too serious, thankfully, though they'll take a little time. Surprisingly, there isn't as much damage as he'd expect considering everything.

"And while the good news is that our dragons don't exactly have venom, there's bad news in that they often have stuff rotting in their teeth and claws. That often seems to lead to infection and the like."

"I find I judge people by a slightly different standard than most do. Those who have attacked me, and those who have not and may not." His voice is equally wry as they start walking, and it helps to cover the discomfort the elf's words stir up.

"Are you..." Does he have the right to question it? He wants to see equality and choices for everyone, but he's no elf. This might be something that he shouldn't poke into. All the same, how can he ignore it? "Are you all right with that? That you've been... given?"

That does earn a soft, gentle chuckle from Thane. "I think in your position, that would be fair. Then I hope being in Kirkwall does not bring you too much discomfort, Anders."

The question does make him pause, although briefly. Eventually, he shrugs, his arms folding behind his back. "It is for a good cause. The Inquisition could use as many weapons at its disposal -- and I am exceptional at what I do."

Vandelin's sincere hope has been that he won't have to undress for this, and if having a kitten occupying his hands acts as a further shield against the prospect, he'll take Pawdric without a second thought and cuddle him just as bidden.

"Don't knock the entropy healing. If being able to shake off anything short of a rusty corpse-blade to the gut counts as blasphemy, then call me Maferath. But that's what tripped me up. I've bandaged it myself and it's doing all right--" (Lies.) "--but I might as well have the problem gone for good if I can."

The bandages in question are inexpertly applied, despite Vandelin's best efforts, and the wound beneath--long, angry, and just shallow enough to count as superficial--has begun to redden around the edges with infection.

"My thanks!" Elros watches him work curiously.

"That is a useful skill you have there! Not even Lady Galadriel could do so well, so quickly! Tis too bad my brother is not here - this is exactly the sort of thing he would be interested in.

He makes a face.

"Ours too, although usually only the older ones had venom as well as flame, although the wingless ones tendon to venom instead of flame"

On one occasion when Anders might look up, he'll find himself with an extra cat suddenly. A tuxedo cat has made his way into the garden, sniffing cautiously. Likely he heard the other cats and came over to investigate.

"Noct!!" Or he decided he wants to give his owner a heart attack. That, too. He ignores Prompto's shouts and simply meows before trotting over towards Anders.

"Mmhmm." There's teasing in his voice. It's a natural divide that he's teased and known teasing about before - creation versus entropy - and he likes to keep his patients relaxed when it's actually possible.

The amusement fades from his expression as he starts casting, though. It's infected, which means there's no easy treatment here. And it means it's lingered for a while.

"Vandelin." Anders' voice is mild as he gently takes his kitten away to put him safely in a blanket nest. "Robes off. It's infected. I'm going to have to get the infection out before I can heal it. You should have come in sooner."

Scolding doesn't exactly help, not a vast majority of the time, but Vandelin should know better.

He waves off the discomfort bit. It brings him a lot of discomfort, there are a lot of wounds from here that have been stirred up in one way or another, but he's not going to pile that on someone else. Especially a stranger.

Especially a stranger he feels he's on very delicate terrain with. That feels like a partial answer. It feels like the answer of someone taught they're an object to be used... like a Circle mage, or a slave. With a mage he'd challenge it outright, which hasn't always gone exactly well for him. But an elf?

"I... see." His voice probably makes the lie obvious, if the way he's looking at the ground doesn't. After a moment he settles on what should be an easier topic. "What is it you do?"

Someone who isn't just a healer, but interested in healing from another world? That implication has Anders glancing up and wishing the man's brother was here after all. Galadriel's said she can heal, this man has confirmed it, but there have been no people who identified as healers. He'd love to compare notes. ...But that's not to be right now, at least.

"Wingless," he murmurs, finishing the closing up. "I'm going to see to your face, now. No point in letting the underlying damage remain, though it means you'll be peeling very shortly here rather than later." He pauses as he redirects the magic, and then resumes talking. "I don't know if that would be less terrifying, wingless but breathing venom. Fire... There's nothing trivial about fire. I suppose it would depend on how dangerous the venom was? If one breath could kill, or simply make someone ill?"

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[Open] A cat a day brings the healer to play

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