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]

"I daresay there is little that does satisfy the lady short of perfection and the completion of her tasks." He means it well. "The task set before us all is one we must all dedicate time and energy and faith to. It will be no easy journey. If we fail, then we see the destruction of all of our homes." And that's the best case scenario. It's bleak, and he's pretty sure not everyone knows how terrible the challenges are right now.

"But I am reminded at times that we are all men and women that have other needs. Social ones, for instance. Push too hard for too long, and the spirit breaks, morale drops. There's a balance to strike while the Inquisition works out its next moves."

[ungovernable]

He means it well; besides that, he isn't wrong.

"I hope that means I might rely on your company in the future," she says, with a lightness that isn't naive - he has the right of her, after all, even her social pursuits tend to have an agenda, or at least be pursued with a consciousness as to how they appear. Her weekly afternoons with Nerva, chipping away at the public perception of Templars and mages as oil and water and burning fucking pitch. The scrupulous way she guards both herself and Sabriel against the appearance of unease in the Council ranks.

That one time she dropped a blanket on Alistair because his rippling masculinity might prove too much for the unworldly Dalish. (All right, that was the wine.)

"We can't afford to forget for what we fight," after a moment, a bit gentler. "I'm glad you see that." To, perhaps, remind others. In his so serious way, it might gain more traction than from other quarters more easily set aside as frivolous and shortsighted.

[tactical_alert]

He's bad at following his own advice sometimes.

A lot of the time, actually.

"If you have need of my company for reasons beyond my duties," he starts delicately, finding the words, "then you may, of course, ask." They get along, there's no denying that. There is also no denying that Benevenuta has agendas within agendas, whether her own or her mother's, and it's unwise to assume even this is for mere sport and play. Part truth, part paranoia. Part understanding how the world works. There's no grudge held there. Still, they are friendly. He's just not certain how far that feeling extends.

Friendly can make allies. Friendship can be...compromising.

He's had several decades to try and figure out the balance. It will probably take several more to truly work it out.

"I admit that it's odd to finally be stopped. To stay in one place for more than a day or two. I don't want to get too comfortable, so I must remind myself that comfort, here, is allowed."

[ungovernable]

There are a number of people who would, likely, describe Benevenuta as a friend; she encourages it, coaxes it, cultivates it. The number of people she would readily and without reservation or agenda describe as her friend is - just the one, in fact. For all that she is so constantly calculating, the drive behind it is a generous heart, so there's that, at least. She doesn't often have to feign affection when it comes to her so naturally.

"I will be glad to help remind you," she says, gracious where he had been understandably, delicately precise. "If only you'd been her for First Night - a different side of Skyhold and our Inquisition you'd have seen. I danced with a Knight-Commander with a light heart."

Norrington is a good man, she thinks. Pel could do worse than him.