[sandbox]

[bringspeopletogether]

No Orlesian nobles pounded down their door to demand their hound back, so when Alistair and Cullen left Halamshiral, the newly-dubbed Gruyere happily trotted alongside their horses.

A few weeks after -- which included some quiet conversation, a few orders placed with a few merchants, and almost an entire extra pack of gifts slung over one of their mounts -- Gru just as happily trotted along as they turned for South Reach.

Years of correspondence led Alistair to build an elaborate image of Cullen's family in his mind; Mia, perhaps, more fully realized than the others, but everyone with a name and a voice to match their letters. They're...not wholly inaccurate? But Mia's definitely shorter than he expected, and one or two of the children a little louder.

(Mia's voice, however, adopts exactly the pitch he imagined it would when Alistair brings up the whole I'm-your-brother-in-law-now thing.)

It's a nice place. Just the right kind of rambunctious, with all the kids running around; just the right kind of homey.

If only Cullen weren't -- well, reacting more or less precisely how Alistair worried he'd react to the reunion.

Comments

[howtoactfereldan]

"Do you also intend to stay at a distance?" Cullen inquires sweetly. "On similar grounds?"

[bringspeopletogether]

"I suppose that depends on how much of this -- "

He drags his other hand through his hair and shakes off the ensuing water drops in demonstration.

" -- you want on your clothes as well." Beat. "At least we're both clean?"

[howtoactfereldan]

"For the time being." Cullen loosely folds his arms. "Give it another hour. Then I'll be impressed."

[bringspeopletogether]

A crooked grin. "Honestly, I'd be impressed with five minutes. He must be making up for lost time after all those years in Orlais."

After another quiet command for Gru to heel, Alistair lets go of his collar and ambles to Cullen's side.

[howtoactfereldan]

"So now the two of you are bathing together," Cullen says very, very mildly. And seriously. "You've bonded."

[bringspeopletogether]

"We bathed together," says Alistair just as solemnly, stopping a yard away from Cullen, "because someone rolled in something that definitely wasn't just a mud puddle, and then that same someone tried to jump on me while I was washing it off."

[howtoactfereldan]

Cullen shakes his head sadly.

"Well. I was going to thank you for breakfast, but I think I'll wait until you dry."

[bringspeopletogether]

A doleful sigh. "It's for the best, I suppose."

Gru heaves a very similar sigh before giving himself a vigorous shake.

A little softer, Alistair asks, "How's your head?"

[howtoactfereldan]

"I haven't had any complaints," says Cullen.

[bringspeopletogether]

It takes Alistair a second -- and then he groans, loudly, and swats Cullen on the arm.

"Terrible." He's grinning. " -- The joke, not the other thing."

Zero complaints on the other thing. (The tips of Alistair's ears might be going a bit red.)

[howtoactfereldan]

"I was about to say," mildly, "you could have mentioned something well before this -- "

[bringspeopletogether]

"No, no." Laughing. "I, ah."

(Definitely red now.)

"I'm more than satisfied."

[howtoactfereldan]

"Because if you do have comments, or complaints, or suggestions..."

Smirking.

"You could tell me all about them. In detail."

[bringspeopletogether]

"You must be feeling better if you're so intent on making me blush."

He steps closer, lowering his voice to whisper in Cullen's ear.

"I'll offer suggestions tonight, if you wish. So long as you promise to follow through on them immediately."

[howtoactfereldan]

"If you like," Cullen says, airy. "But note I didn't make you do anything. You asked a question. I answered it."

[bringspeopletogether]

"Mm-hm." Amused.

He catches one of Cullen's hands. "Well. If you're not otherwise occupied, I was going to check on the horses. Would you like to come?"

A pause.

" -- Along. Come along. Damn it."

[howtoactfereldan]

"And suddenly the offer gets much less enticing," Cullen announces to the air. "What a pity."

[bringspeopletogether]

Alistair wrinkles his nose. "You're terrible," he says again, fondly. "I love you very much."

Gru circles their feet, wags his tail, then heads off for the stables with the canine equivalent of a shrug. If nobody's going to visit the horses, he'll just have to do it himself!

[howtoactfereldan]

Cullen glances down at Gru, and looks up at Alistair.

"We've been abandoned."

[bringspeopletogether]

"The horses wait for no dog, I suppose," sighs Alistair. He raises his voice. "Just no more puddles, please!"

Gru's booming woof echoes back. It sounds...more smug than Alistair would prefer.

[howtoactfereldan]

"We can make the children wash him," Cullen murmurs into Alistair's ear. "He might even come closer to behaving with them. Or standing still."

[bringspeopletogether]

"We can dream." He turns enough to kiss Cullen's temple. "A dream where I don't spend the rest of my day dripping rainwater everywhere I walk. I like it."

[howtoactfereldan]

Cullen leans his head against Alistair's, eyes closing for a moment. "I've got one where you and I stay in bed all day."

[bringspeopletogether]

"Mm." He slips a (still somewhat damp) arm around Cullen. Softly, "I like that one too. Mia might get a little worried, but we'll slide notes out from beneath the door every so often."

[howtoactfereldan]

Cullen lets out a quiet breath. He leans into Alistair, damp be damned.

More hesitantly:

"What would you think if -- if we tried to find a place to let for a month? Or even a few days? We'd still be close, it just wouldn't be -- all the time."