[OPEN] Dance of the Herbal Tea Fairy

[eolasemah]

WHO: Sina and you!
WHAT: Deliveries of herbal concoctions, helpfully plucked and dried from our very own Skyhold gardens. Need a tea blend, a potion, a poultice, a pinch of a rare herb for your nefarious research? Surely you've sent word down to the gardens, and the delivery is on its way.
WHEN: Throughout Haring
WHERE: All over Skyhold
NOTES: Just assume you've made the request and say where you are in your reply! Also please feel free to run into her somewhere even if you're not waiting on herbs.

Sina, dressed warmly in her cloak and scarves, with boots too large and gloves with holes for the fingers, traverses Skyhold with a basket of small herbal packets for wherever in the Keep they're needed.

She's too shy to meet eyes with most passersby, and could likely be mistaken as a servant by some if not for her vallaslin and the green glow emanating from her sternum, even beneath the scarves. But now is the time to be brave and make herself useful, with a hopeful side-effect of meeting more of Skyhold's populace.

Comments

[amygdalae]

Bruce was working in the garden once more, since he's always liked being hands on and doing this, at least, made him feel like he was able to contribute a little more to the Inquisition since he had to restrict himself on several other things.

Presently he was where the elfroot plots were, making sure that everything was well prepared for the cold that was settling in. Firstfall had already brought in some of the chill, but now that Haring had arrived the cold would only get worse, and he wanted to ensure that they'd last through the month.

[eolasemah]

Returning to the elfroots as she often did at least once a day, Sina noticed Bruce there. She'd seen him around before, worked side by side with him periodically, but never actually introduced herself or learned his name.
"How are they?" she asked quietly, folding her hands in front of her as she approached.

[amygdalae]

Bruce glanced up from what he was doing, regarding the elf with a patient smile as she approached him.

"They're doing quite well, despite the cold," he replied, looking rather pleased himself. "I think they should be able to withstand the rest of the month, at least." Still, it wouldn't hurt to be careful - staying in a place this high up, who knows what could happen.

[eolasemah]

"I worry about the ones from warmer places," Sina said with a small, uncertain laugh. "We need them just as much, but they're so much more delicate." Creators forbid they botch something like the royal elfroot-- what were the odds of finding that again?

"I like to think... the springtime will have a good yield," she continued thoughtfully. "Even if we have to help things along." A crooked little smile followed. She would be Keeper someday, and she knew ways to commune with nature that would surprise most gardeners.

[amygdalae]

"Every herb is equally important," Bruce agreed with a nod, turning back to the plants once more. "Perhaps we can ask some of the mages to see if its possible to enchant an area to allow the plants from warmer areas to grow normally here."

It might be hard, perhaps impossible, but if it could be accomplished it'd certainly make things a lot better for all of them - especially the people who depended on these herbs.

He looked at the elf once more than she spoke, a little intrigued at her words. "Would you be able to do something?" He was pretty certain that she was a mage, although he never tried to pry - it was partly to respect her privacy, and also because Bruce didn't want to give anything away about himself being a mage.

[eolasemah]

Despite the atmosphere of the world outside the clan, Sina stood by the notion that mages should never feel ashamed of their powers. She nodded, and looked down at the planter as she placed her hand, palm-down, in the soil. A faint greenish glow emanated from her hand as the soil shifted, and a few of the stalks grew slightly, but noticeably, taller.
"I don't interfere much," she gently explained, "but if I can help the roots grow stronger, or a stalk straighter, it's worth a small expenditure." Sina removed her hand from the dirt and folded it with the other again, smiling. "I expect a ward against chill could be put in place," she mused, looking around the garden, "though I don't personally know how to do it."

[amygdalae]

That was pretty amazing, if Bruce had to say. Even with what he could do himself personally that kind of magic was beyond what he could manage - or perhaps he could once upon a time, but a lot of what he could do now was dictated by his current condition. Not that it actually mattered right this moment.

"It's still an impressive skill." It was an honest compliment, and Bruce smiled at her again, hoping that his words and honesty would carry across. "I think you should see if the other mages would be willing to work with you to make the garden more sustainable overall." And of course, if she needed help, he would be willing to provide.

[eolasemah]

Sina considered, then nodded. "I'll ask my friends on the council," she decided, and gave a small smile, glad to feel she was able to at least try and make a difference in their fortunes.

[amygdalae]

That was a step in the right direction. Bruce gave another nod to acknowledge her words, and then turned his attention back to the plants, fingers gently wiping off some dirt that had gathered on the leaves and hands trying to untangle some of the plants that had grown twisted around each other.

"Let me know how that goes. I'd like to know how the plants are progressing myself, btu I can't be here all the time." Especially when his duties as a surgeon kept him busy more often than not.

[eolasemah]

"I will," Sina brightly replied, and turned to go back to what she had been doing nearby. "And if you find anything new, out on missions," she remembered, "...you'll bring them back, won't you?" She looked over her shoulder at him. She was, at least for the time being, too weak to leave Skyhold.

[amygdalae]

"Of course." Bruce nods as he replies, giving her another reassuring smile. Of course, he would bring back whatever he could find outside that would help the Inquisition - it was far easier than having to constantly travel out there, and more convenient overall. There was probably always going to be issues with place and climate, but with the people around, Bruce figures they can manage something out.

[eolasemah]

Sina grinned in response, then went back to working in companionable silence.