A free man about town

[defaming]

Who: Kristoph Gavin and YOU
What: A man walking his dog, and almost flying
Where: Orlea, Lochwell, and Crystalden (specify which district)
When: April 10th-11th
Warnings: Kristoph is (secretly) a very bad person, but other than that, there shouldn't be anything. Will update if needed.


On these days, like every day, Kristoph is taking his dog out for a walk, but for once, he doesn't remain within his district, heading into Lochwell on the 10th and Crystalden on the 11th. He's usually content to stay within Orlea, but he is interested in seeing more of the new world he finds himself in. This is freedom, after all, and after spending far too much time in a jail cell, he's going to take advantage of being able to go wherever he likes. He stays well away from Astralden, Highcrest, and Whitewood, but Lochwell and Crystalden appear orderly enough and don't offend his sensibilities.

Kristoph's Golden Retriever, Vongole, trots obediently at his side, never pulling on her leash or running ahead. She's very well trained. Kristoph doesn't like messes, and he doesn't like mistakes, so of course, he would have a perfectly trained dog.

These are ordinary walks, but Kristoph is experiencing some slight difficulties. Every so often, his foot comes down but doesn't touch the ground, and he finds himself rising up, then floating in midair. Kristoph has no real use for flying. It's entirely too ridiculous, so he does his best to get back on solid ground as gracefully as possible, sure to keep his usual fake smile on his face. His efforts at times lead to a few flight-like leaps as he attempts to regain his equilibrium and footing. Vongole is pulled along behind him, the dog not sure what to make of her master in near-flight.

Now and then, too, his dog rises up into the air and starts to fly at the end of her leash, a little startled by her own elevation. "Vongole, come down," Kristoph says with a smile, giving the leash a little pull. He's not interested in being the owner of an amazing flying dog. It's not seemly.

Comments

crystalden

[smallskull]

By chance, Assassin happens to be exploring Crystalden on the same day Kristoph decides to vary his regular routine. Though she found her last conversation with him interesting enough, she probably wouldn't have so much as stopped to say hello if it had not been for Vongole. Kristoph might be interesting, but a dog is just the right thing to engage a child with.

Flying dogs even more so.

"...Oh!"

It's not a proper greeting in any sense, but she can't think of much else to say in response to that.

[defaming]

"Ah, hello, Rasha." Good, he remembers her name. It seems like he cares.

"Vongole." He also realizes that it doesn't do any good to scold his dog when she doesn't even know what's happening, so he says her name gently. She looks more confused than anything else. He keeps a tight grip on her leash, not wanting her to fly too far or too high. "It's all right," he tells his dog, and he manages to help her down for the time being before turning to the child again, smiling.

"We've been having some trouble for the past few days, I'm afraid. Vongole's not quite sure what to make of this new development."

[smallskull]

She doesn't return his more polite greeting. By the time Kristoph has turned to face her again, she has crept closer, her usual curious expression on her face as she takes in the situation. She glances from man to pet once or twice before saying, "I didn't know it could happen to dogs, too." The whole situation is strange, but knowing that even animals could be affected is interesting, so she makes note of this information even if she isn't sure that it has any real use.

[defaming]

"Apparently so. She is a very intelligent dog, and she is in the same situation we are." Kristoph esteems his dog above most people. She knows how to behave herself.

Vongole pants, still looking worried, even though her paws are safely on the ground again now. "Fortunately, we haven't had any mishaps."

He smiles at the child. "And how have you been?"

[smallskull]

"Oh. That's good." But even as she gives that lukewarm reply, she has begun to sidle up beside Vongole. Even if he allowed her to pet his dog the last time she saw him, she's still well-mannered enough to look to him for permission before doing so again. The expression on her face is expectant as she waits for him to answer her implicit question. "I've been fine."

[defaming]

"Please, feel free to pet her. She's fond of you." And Vongole is, indeed, starting to slowly wag her tail. It's good to have a dog. It allows one to seem warmer than one is. After all, pets interest people and usually put them at ease.

"I'm glad to hear it. Is this your home district?" The aggressive technology of Crystalden is a little much for him, but bearable. "I hope the priest is still looking after you."

Because Kristoph is not about to do it. He doesn't really like children, although he pretends to.

[smallskull]

That response seems to please her, in her usual non-emotive way, and Assassin immediately sets to petting Vongole. She continues to focus her attentions on the dog even when Kristoph speaks to her again, not looking back to him this time.

"No." She shakes her head. "He is." Then, abruptly, she blurts out, "How old is she?"

Lochwell o/

[irritating]

Vongole and her master were not the only dog and owner pair out and about in Lochwell that day, a fact that had become very apparent when a huge black dog jogged over to them quite suddenly during their outing. He stopped in front of the golden retriever and let out a great, deep bark in order to say hello to the other dog. Despite the fact that the dog was unnaturally huge - more than twice the size of Vongole for sure - and monstrously muscled with sharp, gleaming teeth in his wide, open mouth, he seemed to be... rather friendly. His tail was wagging as he sniffed at Vongole intently, drooling messily the entire time.

And then a woman's voice started yelling from the same direction the dog had come.

"Oi! Oi, dipshit!"

The dog's head perked up and he looked towards his own master, a redheaded woman who was armed both with firearms and dog toys. "What'd you find, huh, a new girlfriend?" Apollo laughed as she approached the two dogs and the man, not yet bothering to call her own dog off.

Already there seemed to be... quite a few differences between the two owners and their dogs.

[defaming]

Kristoph paused at the sight of the huge, black dog, naturally wary and even alarmed at the sight of such a large, unescorted animal with so many teeth. It wasn't like anything he'd seen before, neither at home nor here. The fauna in Orlea wasn't particularly unusual. Vongole stopped too, unsure at first of what to make of this huge stranger.

Kristoph remained still, not wanting to provoke the creature in any way, but it was recognizably a canine, and its tail was wagging, so he relaxed slightly. Vongole, moreover, didn't seem to be overly concerned as she sniffed back, her own tail slowly beginning to wag as she seemed to decide this was a fellow dog and not one that meant to attack her.

Kristoph hoped the dog wouldn't drool on Vongole. So he was thinking as he heard the voice cry out and turned toward the sound. Here, then, was the animal's master. She appeared as unruly as her dog. And were those weapons she was carrying? Regardless, Kristoph kept a smile on his face and gave a small laugh of his own. He wasn't interested in giving offense. He only wanted to be perceived as friendly and polite.

"Yes, these two are already well-acquainted."

[irritating]

While the dog didn't mean to intentionally drool on the golden retriever, he was probably dripping some saliva onto her fur accidentally anyway, what with the way he towered over her as he shoved his snout into her personal space to get a good reading of her scent. Apollo didn't seem to notice what a damn mess her dog was, though.

"Only dogs he ever wants to say hi to are the ladies." The woman explained, watching as the dog interacted with his supposed new friend. "Aw Metalhead, you're just a little ladies man, aren'tcha?"

She patted his back then, and the (questionably named) dog barked once more, seeming to respond to the redhead. "I should get him some uh," Apollo gestured vaguely to Kristoph's neck area. "Dog sized bowtie shit." Nevermind that it wasn't exactly a bowtie, but what the hell did she know about style anyway. "That'd be a fuckin' hoot. I'd have myself a dapper motherfucker of a dog."