Private tour for asorceress

[allbedestroyed]

There's no better sign that a date went well than organising another before it's even finished. Generally that's the theory, anyway. Given that this could just be Yennefer's way of getting onto the island to see dinosaurs with a private tour, maybe she's just able to put up with the head warden. He doubts it though. He's seen what Yennefer can do. If she wanted to wander around the island she wouldn't need him to do it. Besides, he really had enjoyed their time together, and it seemed like Yennefer had as well.

This seems like a natural progression. Not only did she get to see him in his natural environment (work), but there's the thrill of infiltration along with this, too. Luckily the park isn't fully set up yet, and Muldoon knows the island like the back of his hand. He's spent plenty of time looking at their security blind spots, because he has to cover them manually, so she has no better guide around the island than him. Between his knowledge and her spells, they should manage to have a thoroughly successful trip.

Just like last time, Muldoon is waiting by a jeep. He'd given her instructions on where to meet him. It was a nice, secluded spot not too far from the docks. It helps with his backup story in case Yennefer's presence is noticed. This time he's wearing his uniform, full khaki and not dissimilar from what he wore on their last date. The most notable differences are the pistol on his hip and the ID badge on his pocket. At least nobody could mistake him for someone else.

Comments

[allbedestroyed]

If Yennefer were to insist on anything, nobody would deny her, Muldoon is pretty sure. Yet again he wishes he could have her as a colleague, even for just a day. She would convince Hammond of so many things... Assuming he didn't dismiss her out of hand for being a woman.

The answer doesn't surprise him, but he enjoys the enthusiasm with which she replies. Picking up the radio, he asks, "Do we have eyes on Regina?"

After a minute a voice answers, "On the north side, heading east. Doing her patrols."

"Right, thank you." With that he hooks up the radio and gets them on their way again. As he drives, he talks away to Yennefer. "The tyrannosaur is our biggest carnivore here, but she does what she wants when she wants. We should be able to catch a look at her on the south side of this paddock."

[asorceress]

Yennefer was stubborn and quite outspoken, and in her experience people had a variety of reactions to that, all of which she was well accustomed to; particularly when it came to men taking issue with it. It didn't phase her, nor did it stop her from making her opinions known, needless to say.

She listens as he describes the tyrannosaur, her gaze scanning the surroundings as they drive; eager to get a glimpse of her. Having only seen drawn depictions in text books as well as the skeleton earlier; she wasn't quite sure what to even expect, but felt the anticipation building. Patrols, he'd said; making her think the animal was likely as territorial as the others.

A series of questions come to mind, however, she can't help but take a moment to chuckle, glancing over at him with an amused smile as she asks, "Who's idea was it to name her Regina?"

[allbedestroyed]

The awkward shuffle in his seat betrays his guilt before he even mutters, "Mine."

"I tend to stay out of it, but most of the animals get named by the wardens or vets. Except that all the names they were suggesting for her were ridiculous," he explains hastily in his defence. He wrinkles his nose as he recalls it. "'Rexy' and 'Tina' and 'Rexanna' were some of the better ones I remembered. After vetoing several dozen names I gave her one myself. I'm pretty sure a lot of them still call her Rexy, but officially -as officially as these names get- she's Regina."

Knowing the animal's habits like the back of his hand, Muldoon picks a particular spot and slows down to a stop. Here they can see through a patch of trees to a small pool of water. Even when she doesn't stop for a drink, she likes to do a sniff around this area.

Not long after the engine cuts out there's the sound of trees being disturbed. The ground begins to shake, in distant vibrations at first, and then stronger, louder. They pause now and then before continuing. Muldoon keeps his eyes fixed on the foliage beyond the fence, waiting for a glimpse of her. Then she steps out of the trees, into view. A massive creature, all powerful muscle and strong jaws, yet she moves with surprising ease and grace. She takes her time in looking around, sniffing the air, and then turning to investigate the area around the pool.

[asorceress]

"Regina is certainly more dignified than Rexy," she remarks, still amused by the answer and his choice.

Her smile rather abruptly fades the moment the engine stops and Yennefer feels the ground beneath them beginning to shake; an ominous sensation to experience even for someone who has dealt with dragons before - any animal large enough to cause a disturbance like that just by their movements was one that sent the heart pounding; as hers was definitely doing right now in response.

But her expression betrays no fear, only complete and utter fascination as the animal eventually steps into view. She turns in her seat, angling herself so she can watch every movement of the tyrannosaur as it goes about it's investigating; seeming to not even be bothered by their presence. They must be used to the appearance of the jeeps by now, she thinks.

For several long moments she's speechless, eyes fixed on the animal and feeling a combination of awe, mixed in with the thought that this shouldn't be possible. She's torn between the two emotions, and eventually her curiosity is what gets the better of her. "How does she hunt? What does she hunt?"

[allbedestroyed]

Muldoon has a particular fondness of strong, independent women, animal or human. As Yennefer well knows at this point.

As clichéd and predictable as it is, the predators have a special place in Muldoon's heart. Especially something as majestic as the tyrannosaur. She's magnificent and deadly, and she behaves pretty much as Muldoon expects of a massive predatory animal.

The combination of a beautiful but deadly woman equally as excited as him by the sight of a beautiful but deadly dinosaur is a particular delight to the warden. As per usual he's happy to answer her as he watches fascination play across her face.

"Here? We feed her goats. We've been having discussions about enriching her environment, but for now we're keeping the goats tied or else they tend to end up running into the fence. In her own era, she would have eaten a lot of hadrosaurs, duck-billed dinosaurs, and smaller animals when it could. There's even evidence tyrannosaurs attacked triceratops in the past, but whether that was part of hunting or territory is hard to tell."

"As for how she hunts..." He turns back to the animal. "She's a surprisingly good ambush predator, and preferred that method much more when she was younger." He leans closer and points, highlighting her powerful legs. "You see those long, muscular legs? They allow her to keep a fast pace for long distances. That's how she prefers to hunt when she can. She'll exhaust her prey, chase them down over long distances while she harries them. She tries that on our jeeps, and even though we know she's there, she manages to catch people by surprise if they're not paying attention."

[asorceress]

Yennefer can't take her eyes off the animal as Muldoon describes it's hunting habits, her gaze shifting to the animal's legs when he points out their ability to keep a fast pace. Yennefer nods at that and lets out a slow breath of astonishment at the thought of seeing such an animal running, out in the open, shaking the earth itself with it's strides; in pursuit of it's prey. "It must be an amazing sight, watching her run..." She trails off, picturing it in her mind for a moment as she studies the tyrannosaur.

And when he mentions that she manages to catch people in jeeps by surprise Yennefer chuckles, rather delighted by that display of ferocity - assuming by his word choice that those in the jeeps were safely on the other side of the electrified fence, so not actually in danger of her ambush.

She's silent for a few moments just taking it all in before her expression twists in confusion as she turns back to look at him. "Goats? That's all she's given?" Clearly, she finds this a tragic shame. "They're so small, and even if given the opportunity to actually attempt to evade her, they wouldn't get far. She ought to have a more enriching challenge." She's advocating for Regina already, after having only been in her presence for a handful of moments, but Yennefer always did have a soft spot for animals - even the ones who would absolutely attempt to hunt her if given the opportunity.

[allbedestroyed]

"She's amazing to watch no matter the situation," he assures her. Stoic as he is, he does see how amazing these animals are. Even if he doesn't gasp and plaster his awe across his features. Holding pragmatism and appreciation simultaneously is a fine line to walk effectively, but he's spent a lifetime doing just that.

"Goats or cattle. We vary it as much as we can between those two. She always gets over one hundred and forty kilograms of meat a day. Enough for eight people with hearty appetites." As her keeper, he has to prove he's doing his part. Or as much of it as he can when his hands are tied by budgets and company politics. "But you're right, ideally we'd feed her something closer to her natural diet. Except that would mean extremely expensive meals and we're not able to provide those yet."

After a moment, he finds himself sharing even more. Things he's only mused upon in private, and preoccupied his own time figuring out. "What I'd like to do is find a way for her to earn her meals. Like hiding them in puzzles, or giving her a way to chase the food that would actually give her a run for her money."

[asorceress]

She can sense the respect he has with these animals, as well as the caution; and she's glad he's the one responsible for their care and protection; as well as the protection of the others working at the park. She's forming a picture of the place with each bit of information she takes in, each area they visit, and each animal. That fine line of appreciation and pragmatism is one she's currently struggling with. There's no denying the issues such a place represents, and yet she cannot help but by astounded by the sight before her.

Perhaps once that feeling wears off, reality will set back in and she'll shift back into the 'practicality above all else' mode.

"I assume your boss would take issue with you allowing her to hunt hadrosaurs," she remarks, already knowing the answer to that. It wouldn't really be practical, considering what he'd mentioned before. Technically, if they really wanted this to be as close to nature as possible; all the animals would be able to roam, hunt, and breed freely within the same extended space across the island; but that hardly presented a safe environment for people coming here to witness them. Or for their keepers to care for each species safely. It was a lot of guessing.

"That's not a bad idea. It would give her mind something more stimulating; engage her in a bit of problem solving." She muses on it seriously for a moment before responding again. "Horses are quite fast runners, better than goats or cattle. And much more accustomed to evading predators." She glances over at him with the suggestion. "You would have to put a fence in front of the electrified one, however; to ensure they didn't accidentally make contact with it." It wasn't a perfect solution by far, but it might at least give Regina more of a chase.

[allbedestroyed]

"Maybe when the park is open and successful enough," Muldoon answers. Though his reasoning is explained when he continues with a dry, "He could sell special tickets. Make a spectacle of it."

It's a wretched reason to allow an animal the kind of life it's built for, but the warden could see it happening. There are a lot of potentially dark routes a park like this could be taken. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, after all. Concede on one thing and you concede on them all.

His brow lifts in surprise at the suggestion. "Horses aren't a bad idea. If we could get them at a decent price. The issue there tends to be that people view cattle and goats as food, but horses aren't. We'd have to be careful of pushback."

"I've got a lot of plans on how to improve this place," he says after watching Regina for a bit. "But for now it's enough that the animals are safe, healthy and fed." He arches an eyebrow at her and adds, "Though I could do with things moving a bit faster."

[asorceress]

She lets out a huff of a breath and shakes her head at the idea of making a spectacle of it, as he'd said; clearly disliking the concept. She's well aware of the dangers of 'good intentions', and how quickly that can turn south. At this rate, if she ever meets his boss it's likely to be a highly contentious interaction.

"I understand they aren't traditionally meant as a food source," she agrees. "Perhaps you might receive push back either way, just by using cattle and goats." Some people tended to not like being faced with the reality that certain animals ate other animals in order to survive. It was a harsh one, to be sure; but unavoidable, especially in the case of a carnivore so massive as the one before them right now.

At his comment of wanting to improve the place, she's immediately quite curious. "What changes would you make?" she asks, shifting back toward him. "Perhaps I could be of some assistance." The offer is given freely; he knows some of what she is capable of; and she's not averse to utilizing those methods if it meant ensuring these animals had a better quality of life. They didn't ask to be brought back into existence, after all.

[allbedestroyed]

"We might, but cattle and goats are more acceptable." People draw the line between 'food' and 'pets' in such nonsensical places. So eager to draw it somewhere and forget that their hamburgers come from somewhere. That's not a kind of ignorance a hunter can afford, and so he learned that truth from an exceptionally early age. Seeing adults refuse to learn it baffles him.

The offer gets a look of surprise. There's hesitation as he bites his tongue from making a comment that he's not sure how she could help. She's full of surprises, after all. He certainly couldn't guess her full capabilities if he tried, so he'd better not make a fool of himself attempting to.

"I'd like visitors to have unobtrusive viewing areas. Places they could view the animals without drawing attention or causing the animals distress. I already have my eye on a few potential spots," he tells her, trying not to sound as excited as he is about his side project. "I'd really like to make the paddocks larger and more varied, and to guarantee each species has its own area when they need to spend time away from humans or other animals. We do that in zoos already."

With a nod towards Regina he continues, "And I'd like to give some of the animals more engaging ways of getting their food. If they aren't engaged they get frustrated and difficult. The smaller carnivores would be the easiest. Maybe something like wood logs with food hidden in little holes for them to play with. Dinosaur toys, essentially."

[asorceress]

She listens as he details the ideas he has, nodding in agreement at the fact that the animals ought to have, at the very least, places to retreat to; away from the guests. And certainly so if the guests were distracting or noisy. Considering they had the entire island, larger and more varied paddocks seemed like an excellent idea, and she half wonders why that hadn't been the priority from the beginning - but she can guess at the reason why. It's clear to see that this place was built as an attraction for the benefit of humans, rather than a sanctuary for the animals.

Her lips curve into an amused smile at the mention of 'dinosaur toys', but it's a good suggestion. She nods her head toward the tyrannosaur, "It's difficult to imagine what she'd find to be an engaging enough challenge, but it's worth the effort trying to sort that out."

Yennefer thinks for a moment of what ways she might possibly help to ease things along in the direction he's spoken of. There's a variety of things she could do, but about half of them she's pretty sure would attract unwanted attention in the display of power utilized, and in general she strays away from making too many waves with her presence in a world not of her origin.

"Whenever you decide to bring up these particular changes, it is a subtle enough thing for me to make the minds of those listening more... receptive to suggestion," she explains. "It's not complete manipulation of their freedom of choice, but rather a form of light persuasiveness. It's a similar thing to me ensuring that nobody feels the need to ask too many questions about where I'm from, or why I'm here."

[allbedestroyed]

Subtlety is always the kicker. Muldoon has no issue sneaking up on an animal, or manipulating scents or sounds to his advantage, but the art of persuading other humans has always been his weakness. He very much doubts Yennefer needs to use the spell she's talking about often. It would be easy for her to persuade with her looks and charm alone. The warden does not have the same advantages.

Nevertheless, the offer gets a smile. "Thank you. I'll keep that in mind."

It's likely that will be a long time down the road, but it's not like Yennefer doesn't have time on her side. Muldoon only hopes he'll still have her attention whenever he does get the chance to try and convince Hammond. So far things are looking up in that regard, but he'd better not get complacent.

He waits until Regina is drinking before starting up the jeep again. Both warden and animal pause as she lifts her head at the sound, looks around, then continues drinking. With her distracted, he started driving back down the slight ridge to keep them out of sight as he heads back to the main road. It's the safest route for the places he has in mind next.

"Which next? The poisonous dilophosaurs, or the most dangerous animals in the park?"

He's pretty sure he knows that answer to this one.

[asorceress]

"Good," she responds with a smile of her own, pleased to hear the suggestion hadn't been something he'd found to be too morally questionable.

Charm and good looks could certainly get you far when it came to dealing with others, and that had been part of her training at Aretuza; but it also had it's limits. Certain people could be more stubbornly adamant than others, locked into their viewpoints and unwilling to budge; particularly the idealistic types. In those cases, magic was definitely useful.

She watches as Regina lifts her head, thinking how massive the jaws are; and wondering what it would look like to see her tearing into the prey of her choosing; back in her own era so long ago. Even here, behind the tall electrified sense; the tyrannosaur elicits a sense of instinctive wariness as much as fascination in Yennefer. So, needless to say, when he asks where to next; her answer is quite predictable.

"I'm surprised you even need to ask," she remarks with a teasing smirk. "I'd love to see the most dangerous animals in the park."

[allbedestroyed]

If Yennefer is to be predictable in one way, he's glad that it's in her desire for a thrill. His lips twist in a smile despite the place they're headed for. Even though they pass through a gate again and return to the main route, nobody will pay much attention to the warden's jeep heading to the raptors. Practically every spare moment he has is spent checking up on them, making sure their paddock is secure.

At the speed he drives it doesn't take long for them to reach their destination, though he does slow as soon as the fence becomes raptor territory. They'll be moving them to a smaller pen soon. It just needs to finish being built, but that can't happen soon enough in his opinion.

Somehow he manages to look even more serious than before as he scans the foliage on the other side of the fence. He doesn't realise how sharp his eyes get or how pronounced his heavy brow becomes. Nor does he really register the way he touches the gun at his hip for reassurance as he steps out of the jeep once he's parked it.

He opens the door for her and retrieves the binoculars as he does. After setting its focus and giving the area a scan, he leans back against the hood of the car.

"They won't be long," he assures her before adding with a thin drawl, "They never are."

[asorceress]

She can both see and feel the shift in his demeanor overall once they near the new territory; and she follows the path of his gaze where it's scanning the foliage. She doesn't miss the moment where his hand touches the gun at his hip either; stirring a similar caution within her as she steps out of the car.

Standing beside him near the hood of the car, she glances over at him; thinking that's a fairly ominous statement, but she doesn't feel unsafe. Her senses, however, are sharpened as much as they can be; and considering she has slightly better hearing and vision than a normal human, thanks to her elven blood; she picks up the moment there's a faint rustling in the foliage.

Her gaze snaps to where the sound originates, off to the right. It's so subtle, and so quiet that if she weren't focusing intently; she'd miss it entirely. But the rustling continues, closer and closer until her gaze finally picks up on what's different in the swatch of green before her. She sees the subtle outline of the animal's head, then narrows in on it's eye watching the both of them. There's a slight intake of breath from Yennefer, unaccustomed to just how stealthy the approach had been. Who knows how long this creature had been there, watching them. Maybe it only started to make noise on purpose, to draw their attention.

That theory is confirmed, rather abruptly; when a second animal suddenly emerges from the foliage and charges the fence from the far left; snarling menacingly. Yennefer outright gasps in shock as her head whips around to the second animal, her hand raising instinctively to create an invisible barrier spell in front of the both of them.

It's not needed of course, considering the fence. But, her reflexes were quicker than her logical mind. The fence makes a sound as the animal hits it, then disappears once more into the foliage. The sound of other raptors can be heard then, moving around in the leaves unseen, then all falls eerily silent once more.

She breathes a quiet sigh, the barrier spells dissipating when she lowers her hand. When she looks over at Muldoon her features are sharpened and serious the way they would be if they were both out hunting in dangerous territory.

"Is it... harmed?" She asks, a small furrow in brow indicated that for all that that display had certainly startled and unsettled her, to say the least; she's somewhat concerned that the animal had charged such a high powered fence like that.

[allbedestroyed]

Muldoon's finger taps against the good of the jeep as they wait. It's only with the slight movement that he stops. Right on cue they try their old tricks, hoping that this time, at this part of the fence, they'll be successful.

What he didn't account for was Yennefer being startled enough to cast a spell. He stands straight, putting a hand on her shoulder to stop her... but as far as he can tell she doesn't cast anything before the raptor hits the fence and retreats. Their song and dance done, he relaxes.

Just as he's about to ask if she's ok, she beats him to it with a question of her own. His lips drawn into a thin line.

"Yes, but not badly. Not enough to get them to stop."

Only then does he take his turn, frowning as he asks, "Are you alright?"

[asorceress]

"I'm alright," she responds, another slow breath exhaled as she steadies herself internally; she doesn't take her eyes off the fence for another long moment before she turns to him. "I hadn't been expecting that, it startled me enough to cast a barrier spell," she explains with a gesture toward the area directly in front of them. "Apparently my instincts were quicker than my rational mind. There aren't electrified fences in between the things that want to harm you in my world; after all." Said with a soft huff of a chuckle.

Even knowing there was a fence there, she'd still responded as if the threat was an imminent one; requiring immediate action. Years of fighting in a variety of wars between mages left it's mark, clearly. But she relaxes after a moment, her caution remains but curiosity comes to the fore front of her thoughts as she watches the now still foliage, the raptor that had been watching them initially having disappeared.

"I would think that display alone would be enough to cause quite a shock to the system with most guests," she remarks, wondering how they even planned to add this into the tour.

[allbedestroyed]

Hearing she cast a spell gets a look of surprise. He hadn't seen, heard or felt it, which is impressive even with the distraction of the raptors. He really must give magic the credit it's due. It's not that he keeps underestimating it, but he isn't used to such things being possible. Reimagining the possibilities around Yennefer will take some time and effort. All worth it, of course.

"Better you cast it than don't," he points out. As she's well aware at this point, he prefers an abundance of caution to a lack of it. Plus, it's not like she'd tried to hurt the animals, just protect them.

He follows her gaze to the paddock, brow creasing again. "I was told they were intelligent, but not this intelligent. The geneticists are delighted." Turning to Yennefer he continues his rambling. "They're extraordinarily fast, incredible jumpers, and as you saw, they work extremely well as a team." His frown deepens as he looks back at the dense foliage. "They're testing the fences for weaknesses. Systematically, thoughtfully. We're having to rethink how we house them. They're too dangerous to keep like this. They're too dangerous to keep at all, in my opinion."

[asorceress]

She'd given him her word prior that she wouldn't harm the animals here; so she intended to hold to that. In general, Yennefer didn't harm animals unless they were actively trying to you know, tear her apart. Even then, her spells were defensive and meant to stun rather than cause permanently harm. After her interaction with the dragon all those centuries ago, her outlook had changed quite dramatically. With humans however, she was not always so considerate when they attempted to do her harm.

She listens as he describes the intelligence of the raptors, their speed, their capacity to problem solve. All of it is fascinating, but there is something undeniably unsettling about them as well. "Predators with that level of intelligence should not be kept anywhere near the public," she agrees with a raise of her brow.

"Especially in this type of paddock. It's only a matter of time before they figure out where there might be a slight weakness in the fence." Her eyes scan the fence before them and the foliage beyond it; trying to catch another glimpse of them but all is eerily quite and still. "I get the sense they are still watching us, even though I can see no movement." She shifts toward him then as she asks - "What did you think when you first saw them? How do they compare with the other predators you've worked with, in Kenya?"

[allbedestroyed]

"That's because one of them still is. In the bushes, by the large tree." It's not meant to frighten her, but confirm her suspicions. Yennefer needs no encouragement to trust her instincts, but he'll give credit where credit's due. Her senses are on point.

His attention is turned towards her when she moves closer, but he looks briefly to one side as he mulls over her question. "I was impressed. Some animals you can tell just by looking at them, that they're built to be successful hunters. With the raptors you wouldn't be able to deny it. The way they look, the way they move... You know to your core that they're deadly, vicious killers."

"I've been around predators my whole life and none of them compare. Cheetah speed, better pack hunters than hyenas, and I don't know anything that can jump like them. Or problem solve like them. I've had to deal with every kind of animal making a zoo keeper's life hell by figuring out weaknesses in their pens, but none are as deadly and difficult as these. Feeding them has become extremely dangerous." He gestures down the road. "That's why we're building a new enclosure for them. To be able to feed and house them more safely."

[asorceress]

She narrows her focus toward place he indicates, and, after a moment she can see the faint outline of the raptor still watching them. It's vaguely unnerving, but not entirely unsurprising behavior. With the way Muldoon describes them as being so lethal, vicious, intelligent, and adept with stealth as well; Yennefer can't help but be impressed. Though it's in a detached sort of way because she's not currently being attacked by one, of course.

"Hopefully it's one that doesn't have fences," she remarks as she glances down the road toward where he mentions the new enclosure. Clearly, being jolted by electricity wasn't enough to get them to avoid charging. She's not even certain what sort of enclosure would be best suited for such intelligent and deadly animals.

"Of all the animals I've seen from your world, I must say; these," she gestures briefly toward the spot where the raptor is watching them, "are most like some of the creatures I've dealt with in my world." She rests a hand back against the hood of the car, relaxing slightly but remaining aware of the fence ahead. "Part of me is quite curious to see them hunt, learn everything about them; to know if there exists an animal they wouldn't attempt to coordinate an attack on. The other part of me thinks they are simply too dangerous to be here, among humans."

She turns to look at him then. "Your world doesn't have mages, or witchers, or other creatures anything like this. It makes anyone who interacts with them vulnerable, even with the fences and the precautions," she states in a practical tone. One that shifts to concern as she places a hand atop his forearm. "Don't take any unnecessary risks. Please." Her gaze is serious as she looks up him. It's not as if she thinks he's reckless, quite the opposite really; but that this is her way of displaying her genuine care and concern for him.

[allbedestroyed]

Being the animal expert in so many situations, in so many jobs, and for so long, it's not often that people stop to worry about Muldoon. After all, he's the one being relied upon to provide safety for everyone else. Yet that only makes him appreciate the gesture and the words all the more. He knows there's no condescension in them, no doubting of his abilities, only genuine concern.

The harsh lines of his face soften and he puts a hand over hers. "I won't. I promise."

As much as he loves danger, he does love living, too. Sometimes it feels as if he's the only one trying to make this place safe. He knows that's not true. There are allies in that eternal battle, like Harding and Ray, but they have their own areas to cover. He's not sure whether it's a good or bad feeling knowing that now someone else other than those two will be keeping an eye on whether or not they have to scold him for taking risks. Good, he thinks. It's Yennefer after all. Everything that means more time with her is good.

"Come on," he says then, opening the jeep door. "You've a few more sights to see."

The dilophosaurs are next, and they may have to do a little waiting for them. Curious little critters as they are, Muldoon won't be letting Yennefer out of the jeep for them. When it comes to being cautious, the dilos are up there with being deserving of it. Though he parks the vehicle up close enough to the fence, he keeps the windows firmly up.

"Have you done anything like this before?" he asks while they wait, both peering into the foliage. "Gone to another world and seen particularly strange animals? Animals that are more like the ones in your world?"

[asorceress]

"I'll hold you to that promise," she responds with a soft smile. He's still likely to get some scolding from her, should the occasion warrant it; but overall she does trust his instincts and judgement. It won't stop her from being concerned however. That comes hand in hand with caring about someone. And, if she ends up developing a rapport with his other co-workers, the ones he actually likes and respects; then the scolding would be a collaborated effort.

Settling back in the jeep, she glances toward the raptor paddock one last time before they drive off; as if she half expects them to charge the fences again, just to attempt to startle them. Which isn't a bad strategy, predators making their prey afraid enough to run. But, they remained silent and hidden. The impression they'd left on Yennefer is not one that will fade from memory any time soon.

"A few times, yes," she answers as they sit and wait at the dilophosaur paddock, watching the foliage. A thought comes to mind then - "I suppose... technically, it might be possible to portal to your world, but going backward in time. To when these animals still populated the landscape." Magic had it's limits, but if there's anything she's learned over the centuries it's that the type of spells out there were incredibly diverse; and sometimes it was only a matter of finding the right spell book.

Still, she's quick to add - "I've never attempted it, and would be very reluctant to do so. I'm not even sure I could, but I can't help but wonder what it would be like. What your world looked liked so long ago."

[allbedestroyed]

The furrow of his brow is more thoughtful than troubled as he listens to her. Finding, yet again, that he has to expand his understanding of Yennefer, her capabilities, and what is possible in this increasingly strange universe. Magical portals is one thing, time travel is quite another. So he lets himself mull this over a bit before he says anything.

"I'd like to see the dragonfly that used to exist when these animals did," he admits quietly before his enthusiasm raises his voice again. "There was more oxygen in the world then, so even the insects were much larger. Their wingspan was almost a meter long, and dragonflies are the most successful predator in the world. Imagine seeing one that size at work."

Though he only lets himself daydream for a moment before looking at her again. "But I think you're right. Magic is dangerous enough without you going back in time as well. You'd be exhausted, the world would be dangerous, and you wouldn't have any other people to get help from if you needed it."

Which is a rather roundabout way of saying that he'd worry about her.

A dash of movement catches his eye and he sits up in his seat. Taking the binoculars, he scans the undergrowth until he spots what he's looking for. Handing the binoculars over to Yennefer, he points as he directs her. "See there, by the rock and the large fern? You should see an animal with two crests. They're curious animals, and tend to come along to investigate strange sounds."