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[peoplepleaser]

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i have returned from the game jam mines

[peoplepleaser]

It doesn't take long for Kabru to pick up on her discomfort with the horses. He's fairly neutral on them himself, but he takes the lead in dealing with the tasks she seems to be avoiding. She seems happy for the distraction of conversation, as well, which he is all too happy to give.

"I agree, they've been very welcoming." For the most part. Hilda was a little awkward about him obviously being from Almyra, but Kabru was able to smooth it over... and Lorenz isn't so hard for him to handle-- in no small part because he's not a woman or Claude von Riegan, of course. That always helps when interacting with Lorenz. "That's my plan. Lady Rhea wanted me to go through the academy as a student first, though." If this frustrates him any (and it does), he doesn't let it show in his face or voice. Kabru is not particularly pious-- he goes to enough church services to not rankle feathers through non-attendance, and keeps his private beliefs just that. It's not quite as odd a move as a diva songstress at the Mittelfrank signing on to the Officer's Academy at the peak of her career, but definitely strange.

"I'm sure you've been asked this a million times, so I apologize for that... but why did you come to the Academy?" He poses the question with simple curiosity. "You must have a goal of your own in mind to make such a drastic change like that."

[backstreetbard]

The fact that he's willing to take over for her where the horses are concerned is a huge relief. It's hard to explain why they frighten her so much without sounding a little pathetic, like she's fishing for pity somehow. Instead, he asks her why she's here at Garreg Mach and she cringes a little, internally. Well, it's not like she hasn't explained this before. He'll probably judge her for it, but she's come to expect that by now.

"I don't mind the question," she says, casually waving a hand as she works to clean and organize around the stables. "It's understandable that people would be curious, especially when they don't really know the inner workings of the opera. The truth is that I'm here to secure my future. There's always going to be talented and ambitious girls vying for the spotlight on stage, and I've been performing for eight years already. At this point, I'm ready to meet someone and settle down, and I thought Garreg Mach would be a good place, since my classmates are all around the same age as me."

Dorothea is painfully aware of the politics of it all, that she would be a trophy wife at best, but that's better than the alternative. Even being the subject of the uncharitable rumors circulating about her will be worth it in the end if she gets the outcome she wants.

"I hope that answers your question. I'm sure you've probably heard all kinds of chatter about it by now."

[peoplepleaser]

Kabru listens closely while he tends to the horse's hooves, watching her from the corner of his eye. It seems she's being truthful-- still anxious around the horses, and taking the excuse of cleaning up the environment to step away from them.

He smiles amiably. "That's very practical. Most of the other students here don't need to think of their futures in that way-- their lives are already planned out for them. I imagine a famous songstress would get quite a lot of potential suitors, but if you're here looking for people your own age... they must have all been quite a bit older. I certainly can't blame you for not being satisfied with that. You're worried you don't have the time or opportunity to find a love match, so you're trying to secure the best chance you have at a long, prosperous life... and a significantly older husband dying long before you could leave you in a difficult spot."