[network] @ADMIN; Arrival [open]

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Welcome to Norfinbury. The time is E̛̬̞͖͖̫R҉͖̯̬R̼̻͉̰͎̳̙O̩͓͔̫͇͈̯R and the date is E̛̬̞͖͖̫R҉͖̯̬R̼̻͉̰͎̳̙O̩͓͔̫͇͈̯R. This network has been provided for your use. Please interact politely with everyone else on this network.
E҉̘̩̙͢͝͡R̛̫̘̝̮̞̬͓̝̫̻̻̜̦̀ͅŖ̮̳͕̲͚͜O̷̙̖͓͙̗̰͘͟R̯̝͓̪̻̩̟̟͕̥͍̭̪͍͘:̵̛̛̝͖͓̺̥̙̝̀͜ ̧̛͙͚̱̫͇̹̙̥͎̜̖̺̻̕͠͝I͇͓̫̺͖̻͈̝͇̰͕̩̯͝͡N̶̛̪̯̤̭̻͎͚̻̟͙V̧̼͙̹͔͝A̷̸̵̧̰̱̺̗̤̤̹̙̺͕͎͇̦̫͕̣̰̪͟L͏̡͍̣̫̘̖̰̟̤̟̕I̛̜̻̖̦̥͓̟̫͡ͅD҉͏̶̴̷͔̬̗̘͖͓͚͔̗̱̝̹̻͔ ̷̢̗͉͚͓̱̫͙̱̪̥̤͢R̵̢̭͕͖̙̤̣̬̪̜͎͇̙̥̘͕̙͟͜ͅE̴̷̶͇̖̙̪̜̜̫̪̬̣̣̫̺͜F̢͏̸̳̬̟͖͉͎͉̤͉͉͎̣̲̙͉͢E͏̨̧̫̩̭̯͓̬̼̳̳̱͉̤͞R̶͉͈̪͔͈͘Ȩ̧̩͙̦̝͉͇͚̼̫̭̕͘͡N̷̡̖͇͕̻̰̯͈͕͉̯C̳̝͍̤̫̥̰͝Ȩ̴̨͡͏̥̥̯̰̭̻̳̫E҉̘̩̙͢͝͡R̛̫̘̝̮̞̬͓̝̫̻̻̜̦̀ͅŖ̮̳͕̲͚͜O̷̙̖͓͙̗̰͘͟R̯̝͓̪̻̩̟̟͕̥͍̭̪͍͘:̵̛̛̝͖͓̺̥̙̝̀͜ ̧̛͙͚̱̫͇̹̙̥͎̜̖̺̻̕͠͝I͇͓̫̺͖̻͈̝͇̰͕̩̯͝͡N̶̛̪̯̤̭̻͎͚̻̟͙V̧̼͙̹͔͝A̷̸̵̧̰̱̺̗̤̤̹̙̺͕͎͇̦̫͕̣̰̪͟L͏̡͍̣̫̘̖̰̟̤̟̕I̛̜̻̖̦̥͓̟̫͡ͅD҉͏̶̴̷͔̬̗̘͖͓͚͔̗̱̝̹̻͔ ̷̢̗͉͚͓̱̫͙̱̪̥̤͢R̵̢̭͕͖̙̤̣̬̪̜͎͇̙̥̘͕̙͟͜ͅE̴̷̶͇̖̙̪̜̜̫̪̬̣̣̫̺͜F̢͏̸̳̬̟͖͉͎͉̤͉͉͎̣̲̙͉͢E͏̨̧̫̩̭̯͓̬̼̳̳̱͉̤͞R̶͉͈̪͔͈͘Ȩ̧̩͙̦̝͉͇͚̼̫̭̕͘͡N̷̡̖͇͕̻̰̯͈͕͉̯C̳̝͍̤̫̥̰͝Ȩ̴̨͡͏̥̥̯̰̭̻̳̫E҉̘̩̙͢͝͡R̛̫̘̝̮̞̬͓̝̫̻̻̜̦̀ͅŖ̮̳͕̲͚͜O̷̙̖͓͙̗̰͘͟R̯̝͓̪̻̩̟̟͕̥͍̭̪͍͘:̵̛̛̝͖͓̺̥̙̝̀͜ ̧̛͙͚̱̫͇̹̙̥͎̜̖̺̻̕͠͝I͇͓̫̺͖̻͈̝͇̰͕̩̯͝͡N̶̛̪̯̤̭̻͎͚̻̟͙V̧̼͙̹͔͝A̷̸̵̧̰̱̺̗̤̤̹̙̺͕͎͇̦̫͕̣̰̪͟L͏̡͍̣̫̘̖̰̟̤̟̕I̛̜̻̖̦̥͓̟̫͡ͅD҉͏̶̴̷͔̬̗̘͖͓͚͔̗̱̝̹̻͔ ̷̢̗͉͚͓̱̫͙̱̪̥̤͢R̵̢̭͕͖̙̤̣̬̪̜͎͇̙̥̘͕̙͟͜ͅE̴̷̶͇̖̙̪̜̜̫̪̬̣̣̫̺͜F̢͏̸̳̬̟͖͉͎͉̤͉͉͎̣̲̙͉͢E͏̨̧̫̩̭̯͓̬̼̳̳̱͉̤͞R̶͉͈̪͔͈͘Ȩ̧̩͙̦̝͉͇͚̼̫̭̕͘͡N̷̡̖͇͕̻̰̯͈͕͉̯C̳̝͍̤̫̥̰͝Ȩ̴̨͡͏̥̥̯̰̭̻̳̫
E҉̘̩̙͢͝͡R̛̫̘̝̮̞̬͓̝̫̻̻̜̦̀ͅŖ̮̳͕̲͚͜O̷̙̖͓͙̗̰͘͟R̯̝͓̪̻̩̟̟͕̥͍̭̪͍͘:̵̛̛̝͖͓̺̥̙̝̀͜ ̧̛͙͚̱̫͇̹̙̥͎̜̖̺̻̕͠͝I͇͓̫̺͖̻͈̝͇̰͕̩̯͝͡N̶̛̪̯̤̭̻͎͚̻̟͙V̧̼͙̹͔͝A̷̸̵̧̰̱̺̗̤̤̹̙̺͕͎͇̦̫͕̣̰̪͟L͏̡͍̣̫̘̖̰̟̤̟̕I̛̜̻̖̦̥͓̟̫͡ͅD҉͏̶̴̷͔̬̗̘͖͓͚͔̗̱̝̹̻͔ ̷̢̗͉͚͓̱̫͙̱̪̥̤͢R̵̢̭͕͖̙̤̣̬̪̜͎͇̙̥̘͕̙͟͜ͅE̴̷̶͇̖̙̪̜̜̫̪̬̣̣̫̺͜F̢͏̸̳̬̟͖͉͎͉̤͉͉͎̣̲̙͉͢E͏̨̧̫̩̭̯͓̬̼̳̳̱͉̤͞R̶͉͈̪͔͈͘Ȩ̧̩͙̦̝͉͇͚̼̫̭̕͘͡N̷̡̖͇͕̻̰̯͈͕͉̯C̳̝͍̤̫̥̰͝Ȩ̴̨͡͏̥̥̯̰̭̻̳̫ E҉̘̩̙͢͝͡R̛̫̘̝̮̞̬͓̝̫̻̻̜̦̀ͅŖ̮̳͕̲͚͜O̷̙̖͓͙̗̰͘͟R̯̝͓̪̻̩̟̟͕̥͍̭̪͍͘:̵̛̛̝͖͓̺̥̙̝̀͜ ̧̛͙͚̱̫͇̹̙̥͎̜̖̺̻̕͠͝I͇͓̫̺͖̻͈̝͇̰͕̩̯͝͡N̶̛̪̯̤̭̻͎͚̻̟͙V̧̼͙̹͔͝A̷̸̵̧̰̱̺̗̤̤̹̙̺͕͎͇̦̫͕̣̰̪͟L͏̡͍̣̫̘̖̰̟̤̟̕I̛̜̻̖̦̥͓̟̫͡ͅD҉͏̶̴̷͔̬̗̘͖͓͚͔̗̱̝̹̻͔ ̷̢̗͉͚͓̱̫͙̱̪̥̤͢R̵̢̭͕͖̙̤̣̬̪̜͎͇̙̥̘͕̙͟͜ͅE̴̷̶͇̖̙̪̜̜̫̪̬̣̣̫̺͜F̢͏̸̳̬̟͖͉͎͉̤͉͉͎̣̲̙͉͢E͏̨̧̫̩̭̯͓̬̼̳̳̱͉̤͞R̶͉͈̪͔͈͘Ȩ̧̩͙̦̝͉͇͚̼̫̭̕͘͡N̷̡̖͇͕̻̰̯͈͕͉̯C̳̝͍̤̫̥̰͝Ȩ̴̨͡͏̥̥̯̰̭̻̳̫
E҉̨̢͎͎̗̦͈͎̘R̨̘̦̙̖̳͈͟R̢̞̺͖̩̟̻͙͕̩͜O̢̢̼͉͔̟̯̝͇̙͜͠R̴̛̗̝͕̣̘͙̪͖̀͟:̢̢͉̙̥̝͖͉̯̟͇̖̱̖͓̲̳ ͏̴͉͈͈̦̝̦͉͖̖͉̪̝̠̭I͡҉̣̼̜̩̻̜͓̻̳̼̥̭̯̭̫͉̭ͅL̶͖͖̯̝̥̬̖̤̥̹͎̟̬̻̦̜̝̻̗͟͞Ļ̸̸̸̥̺̝̜̭̘̞͈͎͚͉E̶͍͍͈̬̕͜͟G̳̬͉̙̥̩̼̭̦͔͘͜͡À̴͟҉̤͔͇̩̳͝ͅL̟͉̯̥̝̀͢͝ ͏҉͈͎͇̞̪̬͓͎̖̥̜̦̖̜O̺̹̺̜͉̠͉̠͇̭̣͔͡͞P̢͘͜҉̺̝̥͎̜Ḙ̢͔͇̰͇̯̺͇͓̜Ŗ̦̝̫̯̻̰͍͙̼̮͎̕ͅA̸̬̯͉͓̥̕͢͞ͅT̷̡͎̻̳̥Ḭ̵̡̥̭̥̀͞O̴͈̤͚͇̜͘͘͞N̢̬͕̙̫̦̳̫̭͖͙̤.̧͢͜҉̩̼̬̞̟̻͇̭͖ ̳̝̺̯̣̠̣̲͎̝̞̣̭̫͘͠S̡̧̼͈̱̳̰̰̳̻̺̫̝͈͖͎ͅH̦̖̣̦̱͓͙͓̣́͜͠͠Ù̸͎̹̼̱͈͇̼̼̕ͅͅṰ̤̝̦̞͍̮̦̞̼̪͕̹̬͈͝T͞͏̟͖͔̯̼̫̞̥̣̘͉̫̟ͅI̢͖̪̮̺̰̟͎͈͇̻͈͔͉̱̯͓̻͞N̢̨̮̱͕̣͟Ģ̸̝̟͚̩͙͖ͅ ҉̴̝̭̩̯̫̤̼̬͇͡ͅD̨͏̺͎̝̟͔͉͕̲̮͎̦͓̥͕̹͓̮̖̘̀͠Ǫ̵͍͇̝̱̖̳̦͖͡W̸̧̩͕̹̹̬̰̻̣̣͓̞̼̮̦̺͟͞͡N̡̛̫͙̠͚̠̲̙̟̤͔̦͙ͅ.҉̢̻̝̦͓̀̕͠

Comments

[acerbic]

[ When his own screen changes and Fenris comes into view, warmth springs to life within him and there's little he can do to curb the absolute ridiculously goofy sort of smile that instantly overtakes him. Circumstances could be so much better, but Fenris is here. Alive, whole, hale. Hawke is counting his blessings however and wherever he can. ]

No, but I can see you now.

[ The tablet shakes again—slightly—as Hawke settles it to lean against something so he can have both hands free. It literally takes all of his willpower to not reach out and touch the screen. ]

Handsome as ever.

[ He grins, making it appear as easy banter, but it isn't. He's concerned more than he'll let on. ]

You're well? Everything all in the right place? Not hiding some creepy nug legs beyond what I can see, are you?

[scowls]

[ Disappointed as he is that something so simple as pushing a shape doesn’t make Hawke magically appear in the room with him, Fenris can’t help the faint smile just barely twitching at the corner of his mouth at the sight of that goofy grin. It’s Hawke through and through. He makes an effort to play at being unaffected. A snort and a short remark in a dry tone playing at distaste; ]

Flattery.

[ But it’s all an act and he knows Hawke knows it too. ]

No creepy nug legs. [ Without missing a beat, he adds, in reference to the dragonhawke that he sees attached to Hawke’s image; ] Can’t say the same about the dragon tail, however.

[ He barely gives it time to settle before he’s asking his own question. ]

Are you injured? Is there anything beyond disconcerting puzzles where you are?

[acerbic]

[ If it's even possible, the smile grows at that tone. Fenris could yell at him right now and Hawke wouldn't much care. Well, he would, but he'd mostly just be happy to be yelled at right now because that meant Fenris was here. Though, it dims soon enough to something manageable as he stands and turns, showing there's no tail, and he tugs at the draped piece of his armor. ]

No, nothing yet. Part of me keeps hoping... [ He sits back down. ] Fire would be pretty handy right about now.

And no, surprised as I'm sure you'll be to hear it: no injuries. [ Today. ] But, I've yet to fall asleep, one of these puzzle pieces may decide to jump into my mouth and attempt to choke me when I do.

[ Because it's funny, making jokes over the fact people always want him dead. Ha... haha. ]

[scowls]

[ Hawke’s antics pry a quiet, disgusted noise out of him and an obvious eye roll. But that too is an act. Hawke may be acting foolish, but he’s alive to do it. Fenris can’t be overly judgmental. Not at the moment.

The slight sharpening of his voice, however, is not feigned. Nor is the way he narrows his eyes. ]

Don’t joke about it. [ Not after statues came alive and tried to kill them. ] You will tempt fate too far.

[ And he will not be there to protect him. A muscle in Fenris’ jaw twitches, like he’s grinding his teeth too hard, as he looks at the glass. Then his nostrils flare on a deep breath. ]

You should know that—[ Mid sentence, he changes his mind about the way he’s going to end that sentence. He doesn’t want to worry him. ]—my sword is gone. So is my knife. Though I searched this building, I can find no trace of them.

[acerbic]

[ Hawke just holds one hand up in an innocent gesture. Fine, yes, he'll stop. Maker knows he doesn't want Fenris mad at him right now. Or ever. Even though it happens from time to time. It's just par for the course—Hawke does stupid things sometimes and Fenris, rightfully, gets angry with him. This time this dumb thing isn't his fault. He's just trying to make the best of it.

When Fenris starts with "you should know" it makes something twist inside his gut. Though he's not quite sure what that feeling is. Fear, dread, general upset. Thankfully, the followup isn't as terrible as he'd originally expected; Hawke lets out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. ]

My blades are gone as well. [ All of them. Even the small one he keeps hidden in his boot. ] Whomever brought us here seems to either want us feeling helpless and unprotected or they're just trying to promote a violence free lifestyle.

[scowls]

[ He is angry, but it isn't directed at Hawke. Not this time. Not even for the joke that isn't funny. It's whatever mage—whatever Hawke might say, he knows there's at least one mage behind this—has brought them here.

Though it is what he says that makes Fenris frown. Being weaponless is one thing. Hawke being weaponless is quite another. ]

You are alone and defenseless? [ There's a forbidding note of fury in his voice, but more than that, it's the frustration that's the most obvious. Directed inward at his inability to find him. ] I need to find you.

[acerbic]

[ He should've known better than to tell Fenris he was without a weapon. That was his fault and he knows it. There's nothing he can do to take it back now, he'll just have to live with it and make all attempts to calm Fenris down from a distance.

So, he does. First, by giving a smile that only Fenris gets, then holding up a hand in a placating sort of gesture. Just as he opens his mouth to speak, a familiar furry face pops into view and barks—his entire body wriggling as he wags his tail and presses his nose against the screen, whining softly that it doesn't smell like elf at all. ]

Well, [ Hawke wraps his arm around Barkspawn's neck, strong-arming him into moving out of the way. ] not entirely alone. It's all right, Fenris. You needn't worry.

[scowls]

[ No, he will not be placated. Hawke is out there somewhere, alone, defenseless against who knows what threat, and Fenris, his sword, is too far away to be of any use. If something happens to him, if Hawke dies because he isn't where he needs to be—

So caught up in his self-recriminations, Fenris doesn't immediately realize what he's seeing. A large furry blob that—The dog. Hawke's mabari. The tension that had been ratcheting up inside of him begins to ease. ]

I will always worry about you. [ There's no anger in his voice now, just firm, implacable determination. ] And it will not be all right until I am with you.

[ Though why the mabari is here, why any of them are here, is a question he cannot answer. ]

But I am relieved to see he is with you.

[acerbic]

[ At the base of it all, he wishes no one would worry about him. He knows they do, he's been told as such before. And, really, they're right to do so. He's never been so good at staying out of trouble—even if that's what he really wanted to do. But, over the years he's made a lot of enemies. So much for doing the right thing.

Still, he'd rather have no one worry because it's just easier that way. ]

Well, I can certainly say it's incredibly boring without you. [ He lowers his voice, leaning closer to the device. ] I think tomorrow, once the sun is up, we should see about setting proper course toward a meeting point.

[scowls]

I would like that.

[ Though truly, he would like to enact this plan right now. Waiting until tomorrow just wastes time and Fenris will not settle, will not begin to feel even remotely comfortable, until he's seen with his own eyes that Hawke is alive and well. ]

Will you stay with me? On this? [ He touches the surface of the device again, fingertip sliding over the image of Hawke's cheek. ] It isn't much, but at least it lets me know you are well.

[acerbic]

[ Hawke would, too, but it's bitterly cold and they don't know where they are. This isn't like a stroll through the docks at midnight where they have weapons and know it's likely to come across bandits or slavers. Here night falls and no one knows what's going on out there.

They'll be together soon. Hawke can just feel it.

He smiles brighter at the request, nodding before he even responds with anything. ]

Can't get enough of my beautiful and charming face, is it? [ If Fenris thinks he sees an eyebrow waggle, he wouldn't be wrong. ] As long as you swear you'll get some rest so we can set out tomorrow, I'll happily stay.

[ Not that he wouldn't anyway, and Fenris should know that. ]

[scowls]

[ It doesn't do to encourage him, but by the same token, Hawke is incorrigible. He hardly requires Fenris' encouragement to get a swelled head. ]

You still enjoy asking questions for which you already know the answer? [ As haughty as Fenris makes his voice, the tiny, sly smile gives him away. As does, no doubt, the years Hawke has spent learning he's bullshitting. ] Were I going to tire of the sight of you, I would have done so years ago.

[ He nods once. Decisively. ]

I will try to rest. As well as I can here, anyway, though I make no promises about my success.

[ But if he wakes in the night, watching over Hawke will give him something to do. ]

[acerbic]

[ It takes very little to encourage Hawke. Very. Little. Which, Fenris also knows. And should know that the little smile he gives is enough to give that encouragement. Granted, it's all in good fun and right now they need the levity since this situation seems a little...

Well, it's not entirely dismal, that's for sure. Hawke's been in dismal. This is annoying, at best. So far, anyway.

Hawke hums an amused note, moving some things around to prop up the device and then getting himself comfortable on the couch to lay down. ]

If I didn't know any better, I'd say you loved me.

[ He flashes a smile as he tucks the relatively useless blanket around himself. And just as he's gotten everything in order and as warm as he's going to be, Barkspawn jumps up and flops down on top of his legs, resting his head on Hawke's hip. Well. At least he'll give extra warmth, so Hawke just lets him stay. ]

You need your strength, not to mention your wits about you here. A few hours, at least.