most of my sweet memories were buried in the sand

[asunders]

Who| cole + OPEN
What| making friends with stray cats + figuring out how food tastes
Where| a random alleyway in the capitol, the tribute center restaurant
When| after the latest arena
Warnings/Notes| none yet



CAPITOL ALLEYWAY.

Everyone can see him. It doesn't matter what he does, because he can feel the weight of their eyes on him. Everyone can see him, and he can't slip away like he used to. Once, the weight of their eyes would have made him panic. But he's a little more used to being seen by now. Varric has been helping him. Instead, he tugs his hat back down over his eyes to obscure his face and makes his way around a city that seems too clean after being in Thedas for so long.

The people here are untouchable. Their thoughts are shrouded from him. He's left with the noise his own mind makes inside of his head, which is different and a little strange. He probably makes a strange sight, crouched at the end of a small alleyway with a loaf of bread in his hands. Murmuring quietly to the stray cats congregated there.

I'm not going to hurt you. You must be hungry.

It's harder to help, without those thoughts at his fingertips. But this is one small way that he can. The cats of Skyhold used to bat their paws at him even when they couldn't see him. These ones approach tentatively, spurred on by his gentle coaxing an the bread in his hands.

He can help the hungry cats. He can help.

TRIBUTE CENTER

He's never had to eat before. Back in the Spire, before he knew what he was, Cole vaguely remembers the feeling of hunger that had appeared only because he'd thought it's what he might feel. He thought he was human, back then. Or -- something else. Something more real, and more substantial than he felt, slipping through the cracks and into the darkness. But he had never actually eaten anything, even back then. He wasn't even really sure that he could.

Now the feeling is back, that odd gnawing sensation. But he doesn't really know what to eat, so he goes to the restaurant at the bottom of the tribute center and orders something at random off the menu. Or, it's more like he closes his eyes and picks at random.

The avoxes make his heart ache. They can't speak, and he can't hear them the way he would have been able to, once. They scurry away from him like scared mice as soon as he tries to speak to them. Leaving him with assorted oddities. Pickles, peanut butter. An apple and fish. Cole bites into a pickle and immediately shudders at the taste.

No, no pickles. No, they're not for him.

Unless he dipped them in peanut butter?

Someone please stop him.

Comments

amassing a kitty cat army for the new year

[cowcatcher]

In the days since the arena, Jane has been dealing the only way she knows how: by giving everyone a wide berth. Knowing that there are people she needs to check in with, Clementine above all, doesn't stop this latest freezeout. There's too much to process, too much she knows that some of them don't, too much obligation she never asked for.

It's easier to wander. She's died twice now, it's gonna take some time for Jane to have it in her not to take the easy way out.

At least the Capitol doesn't leave her wanting for distractions. Even the people who live here are distractions-- she's lost count of the number of times she's straight up gawked at someone's hair or clothes. Just watching them go about their day is weird, and there's just so many of them. She can't remember the last time she saw so many living people.

That's when she spots him, well away from the sea of sore thumbs. The alley draws her attention as well, a small break in the immaculate storefronts. She comes to a stop on the sidewalk, trying to get a better look at what he's doing.

It's the cats that ultimately draw her over. She can't help her curiosity, not when it's been years since she's seen one too. She hesitates a bit when it comes to taking the few steps keeping her out of Cole's line of vision, sticking to the alley's nearest wall once she does.

Jane would have been happy to spectate a bit before moving on, but the words just spill out of her mouth when she spots what he's holding.

"... You're feeding them bread?"

so cute......so powerful...........

[asunders]

The cats are afraid, at first. Cole understands. People aren't kind to them, after all. They view them as vermin, cluttering up their beautiful city streets. These cats have survived so much, to be in a place like this. A place where they do not belong, but are trapped anyway. He knows that feeling so acutely.

The cats are afraid, but after a couple moments of gentle coaxing, a few come forward. They rub against him, eating the food from his hands with soft mewls.

He's so caught up in the rush of joy he felt that he doesn't notice her walking up behind him. That's jarring - back in Thedas, he would have heard her coming. He would have heard her thoughts, her intentions. Here, in the Capitol, he feels almost blind.

"But they were hungry..." and it's probably the best approximation of how Cole screws up when he tries to help. Always well-meaning, but good intentions don't mean much.

i for one welcome our new feline overlords

[cowcatcher]

Jane's reaction is one of total perplexity. She really isn't sure what she was expecting Cole to say, but it wasn't that. Her face scrunches up slightly, lips screwed to one side as she thinks, then loses herself in a silence she's convinced is awkward.

"Bread might do them more harm than good." She eventually offers quietly, not unkindly. Unkindness has its place, back in the arena.

It's hard to say what she would have done if she had come across him in her world. Ignore him, she thinks. Put up a very convincing act of wondering why he was wasting so much food, act like she couldn't understand his reasons. One of the bolder cats slinks her way, arches against her as it rubs its cheek on her shin. She stiffens at its touch, brow furrowing with a frown as she fixes her gaze on the stray. From this angle, it's hard to miss how slender it is, how its coat patches in places from various scuffles. It's a rough life fending for yourself, no one has to tell her that.

Carefully, she tries to nudge it back towards Cole. It occurs to her that she can do more than disapprove, and the strange thing is she wants to. It's been so long since that was even an option for her that there's really no resisting the choice.

"... I'll be right back." There's a shop back the way she'd come that she has in mind, some crazy pet store, and that's where she heads.

It doesn't take her very long, because she's gone with something in mind. If he keeps an eye out, he'll spot her hefting a pretty big bag of cat food back his way.

hell yeah

[asunders]

He sees the rough patches on the cat's fur, and it makes him want to reach out and soothe those spots, if he thought the cats would let him. They're so small and soft and defenseless and it makes him want to reach out and protect all of them. Small things shouldn't have to fend for themselves. Small things should be looked after and cherished.

Cole watches as she wanders away, and stands as soon as he sees her coming back with a large bag in her hand. He hurries over to help her with it, like the good spirit he is. It's heavy, but he's stronger than his scrawny frame would probably belie.

"You've brought them something. Is it a gift?"

The bag is shiny, like a gift. It has a picture of a cat on it.

[cowcatcher]

"It's cat food. So I guess?" Empty of their burden, Jane's arms hang lamely in the air for a moment before crossing together. Her mouth twists downwards sourly, but not because of Cole's question. This is perfectly harmless, she knows, but that doesn't change the face that it's putting her completely out of her element. She's unsure of what to do next, what else to say.

Luckily, the cats realize in a second that it's dinner time. The skinny little things crowd around, meowing and purring in an insatiable chorus. Her expression softens a little then, stiff shoulders thawing, and she edges into the alley beside Cole, unable to stop a quiet huff of laughter.

"See? This is the stuff they like." She turns to glance up at Cole, then at the bag, fingers rummaging down her side for a knife she doesn't have anymore. Oh, right.

"I think you can pull it open from the top. Want me to get it?"