it's been a long road

[tactical_alert]

WHO: Seeker Malcolm (not Captain Malcolm, mind), PEOPLE IN SKYHOLD, Cassandra
WHAT: Yet another arrival, gee, they just keep coming don't they
WHEN: *waggles hand* Late Wintermarch-y
WHERE: Here. There. Look, over there!
NOTES: Nothing yet

Arrival
He rides in with a small caravan of people. His armour bears a symbol that, while probably familiar to everyone here by now, is not seen on many people these days in these parts. His horse's stride is calm and careful, trying to stay out of the way and taking his time looking around. Less like a bemused tourist and more like someone with an eye for finding weaknesses, exits, entrances. He'll have to do a thorough walkaround for integrity, but the area at least is very defensible and secure.

Malcolm gets direction to the stables and sets up his horse there, giving him a nice brushing off of the snow. The next place he heads is to whatever kennel this area might have, if any at all. His dog, a long-legged, apricot-coloured, no-frills poodle, is far from the hyperintelligent mabari he was accustomed to in his youth, but his faithful canine companion needs a place to stay as well. Though if he has to keep her with him, he has few qualms about that.

The Seeker seems very...well, Cassandra-esque. He is stern and steady and goes about his initial business quickly but with care. He might not stop to chat--it is, in fact, not generally in his nature to do so generally--but he might ask for locations.

Battlements
Seeker Malcolm makes an effort within the first few days to stride around all of Skyhold with a keen eye. The location is impeccable, with only one way to really fight through, but it could also make it easy for them to get pinned down. And more than that, he must check for himself the stability of the area, the integrity of the walls, and to be honest, it needs work. It all needs work, even the roads around the mountain pass. He's seen holes in walls and roofs! In the middle of Wintermarch in the mountains!

Up here, despite some foot traffic, it's also quieter than down in the bustle, especially after he's ducked about inside for many of the same reasons. It helps him collect his thoughts, especially now that he's no longer on the road as he has been. But he's taking notes as he goes.

Training Grounds
Also much like Cassandra, he can be found keeping his fighting skills sharp. He doesn't whack a dummy with a greatsword, but instead shows off agility, dodging, quick but precise strikes with a short sword. It is no less intense. His arrows, too, fly true. If it's even possible to sneak up on him, one would be unwise to do so. He's also up for sparring or can be found working out. Shirtless. Sweaty.

Courtyard
There is also a dog. Was the dog mentioned? There's a dog that needs training and attention and training-disguised-as-play as much as any other dog, mabari included. While Malcolm could be doing any number of things in the area, whether gathering a feel of the troops and those that support the Inquisition, mentally rearranging the area for a more efficient layout, or finding a pleasant and out of the way area to care for his weaponry, his dog likes to be nearby. He throws sticks sometimes. It's very important work, you see. At times, he plays scent games, hiding an object and allowing her to find it, although she is much less a scent-based dog. She's also efficient. Patient. Calm.

Really. Honestly. She does not at all turn into an excited lovebug in the presence of someone willing to shower her with positive attention. Absolutely not.

Wildcard
Catch him in the great hall? Found him nabbing something from the kitchen? Listening to gossip in the tavern? In the rookery reading Bad News? Convenient location to pick a bone with him? Specifically want A Thing?

Comments

[tactical_alert]

At the approach, Malcolm gives a single gesture, and the pooch comes fleet-footedly to his side and stands in a way that gives off an impression of 'at attention'. She stares at Fenris for a moment, then up to Malcolm, then to Fenris again, silently assessing and looking for direction, although her tail does slowly wag.

"I'm afraid I'm quite new. It does seem that she's had to play the role by herself, and I hope to ease the burden. Not just for her, of course." This elf has distinctive markings. Familiar in some ways. In relation to the Champion?

[aggregiopavali]

Fenris gave a low chuckle at the dog. Certainly happy to be guard for her master.

So Seekers were heading here as well. So many people, all drawn to the Inquisition. It was a wonder the whole powder keg hadn't exploded yet, though he suspected it was only a matter of time. "Are we going to be inundated then?" He had no problems, but the Templars and Mages might - and it wouldn't take much to set them off.

[tactical_alert]

Not that he doesn't trust her on her own, but in such a new place with so many people, it's better to keep an eye on her before she runs off and decides someone in need of a new pet is someone she'd rather stay with.

"It seems to me that you already are," he says with a short wave of his arm to said so many people. "If we refer to Seekers alone, then I suspect not. I wish it were otherwise." He'll decline to go further into the matter, not that it's exactly a secret what's happened to the Seekers of Truth, much like the Templar Order and the Circle of Magi.

[aggregiopavali]

"Hmmmm." Fenris didn't expect to see many Seekers, if he were being honest - he knew they were a secretive bunch, but any here were welcome. Tensions were bubbling underneath the surface, and he'd been through when they exploded... violently. At least Anders were nowhere to be seen. That was something. "And yet you made it. Well, that doubles the amount."

He inclined his head to the Seeker. "So, welcome to Skyhold, not that my welcome means much."

[tactical_alert]

"I welcome your welcome all the same," he says with a little self-amused twitch of his lips. "Truly I had expected less welcome, at least from your more...Templar-leaning personnel. My time here is still young, I suppose, but perhaps Lady Cassandra has put the fear of the Maker into them."

[aggregiopavali]

"Well. If it stops any bickering between Templar and Mage, I'm all for it," Fenris said with a wolfish grin. "And from what I've gathered, yes she most likely has put the fear of the Maker into him." No mean feat.

[tactical_alert]

"She's quite good at it. I suspect most Seekers have a gift for it, but getting on her bad side is not recommended. I've met few people with the ability to make one feel like they're being run through with a sword with just a look."

[aggregiopavali]

He snorted a little. "Yes, I've heard about Varric's... meetings with her." Meetings sounds better than kidnapping, if he were being honest.

[tactical_alert]

Kidnapping, meeting, Cassandra doesn't normally make distinctions like that when she's on a mission. "The dwarf, hm? I'm almost sad I missed that particular show."

But speaking of the Champion's various companions, maybe now is a good time to bring it up. "You were--are--an acquaintance of Hawke's, are you not?"

[aggregiopavali]

He supposed it was only a matter of time before someone recognized him from Varric's story, especially as the author in question was currently residing in Skyhold. "I am. Was." Was. Who knew where Hawke was now? Fenris certainly didn't, and after everything that had happened, he wasn't bothered about finding her, either.

[tactical_alert]

"I know better than to ask if you've any idea what befell the famed 'Champion of Kirkwall', then." If the elf doesn't know, and the dwarf, and neither Hands could dig out the truth, alive or dead, then...better to drop it, for now. No Hero, either. They're on their own until by some miracle they happen to drop by.

Given the whole exploding chantry thing, though, and qunari invasion, and all else, maybe it's better Hawke stay away, honestly. "I'm sorry you got dragged into all of this, however."

[aggregiopavali]

"I don't know. I haven't seen her since we all left Kirkwall," he admitted. Not that he really wanted to see her. "We parted not long after the Chantry exploded."

He cocked his head, looking at the Seeker. "Why are you sorry?" That was not the response he had expected if he were being honest. "It isn't your fault the world went mad." Because let's face it - that is what happened.