faderift | OPEN: this will be a better year

OPEN: this will be a better year

WHO: Everyone
WHAT: First Day
WHEN: Wintermarch 1 (forward-dated)
WHERE: Skyhold
NOTES: Scouts from both the Western Approach and Emprise du Lion are welcome (but not required) to have returned to Skyhold in time for this event.

There have been better First Day feasts, and less crowded ones, and cheerier ones. It isn't a good year for many to look back on, and this one isn't starting any better. Reports from both Eastern and Western Orlais are grim. Many in the Inquisition can't afford to take more than a few hours away from their work, if that.

But for those who can, the ambassador does her best. At lunchtime some tables, hot food, and finery are reserved for visiting nobility and wealthy pilgrims--cause for grumbling in some quarters, perhaps, but they're the people filling the Inquisition's coffers, and allowances must be made--but there's plenty of stew, bread, and ale for everyone, even with the soldiers and refugees who stay outside the fortress invited inside for the holiday. The recently repaired garden and its carefully tended plants aren't off limits, but anyone noisy and holding a drink will be stopped at the door; the battlements, with their potential for deadly falls, are blocked by Inquisition guards. But the courtyards brim with people, most of them happy despite the possibility that the world might end before another First Day arrives.

If the courtyards are too full of tipsy visitors for comfort, there's also the valley beyond the fortress, expansive, barren, and covered in snow. By the river the soldiers help the refugees make a bonfire larger than would ever be allowed inside Skyhold's walls, and some lend their shields to use as sleds down the embankments. A group of scouts start the most intense game of hide and seek Thedas has ever seen, with snowballs to the face for whoever is found first. In the camp, a refugee girl with her hand wrapped in a green scarf chases other children around the tents, shouting raaar, I'm from the rifts!

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It's been a while since Beleth has seen Korrin, so when the qunari approaches her, Beleth gives her a warm smile, moving around other people to come greet her, reaching out to clasp her arm.

"Korrin! Andaran atish’an, it's good to see you well. How was your mission?" She tried to remember where it was that Korrin had been placed--Emprise du Lion, she was pretty sure. All that she'd heard from there had not been particularly pleasant (not that the other option was much better).

Searching around for familiar faces, Korrin perks up as that familiar face is a very welcome one, of course. Korrin flashes a broad smile, clasping her hand firmly in turn. (Though gentle, to her; she has no desire to crush the more delicate races.)

"Shanedan, Beleth. It's good to see you, too, after all this time." It's been...weeks? Something like that. Much of the past month has blurred together, giving her a skewed perspective of time. "The mission was awful, but we made a good case for the Inquisition heading out there en masse. I wouldn't be surprised if that announcement comes any day not. The area's a damned mess, and we can't begin to fix it soon enough."

"You found an awful place that is a damned mess, and your first thought was to make the rest of us go there, too? Korrin, did you learn nothing from the Fallow Mire? Next time, you should consider scouting out a meadow of flowers, maybe a farm with puppies and kittens, and send the Inquisition there." Her words, however, had a teasing tone to them, and she was smiling. Emprise du Lion, huh? Well, she'd make sure to bring an extra scarf with her.

But Korrin's arrival prompted a memory from Beleth, and she reached her hand out. It would be better to speak to her privately. Or as privately as they could get, in the middle of a party. "Well, we're all here for now, and we should celebrate! Would you like to dance with me?"

"Hey, if I have to suffer, so does everyone else. Misery loves company." Korrin grins, though it doesn't quite reach her eyes. She can't quite bring herself to joke about Emprise du Lion, not while knowing what's there. Beleth's presence will be genuinely needed, and appreciated.

The offer of a dance is a pleasant surprise and Korrin takes the hand with a smile, that tension leaving her for now. "I would love to dance with you, of course. And I hope you don't mind my asking for news on what I've missed." Not necessarily the abomination; she knows about that, but other things."

Beleth recalls Korrin's message to Skyhold regarding Emprise du Lion--It was a less than stellar evaluation. And being there must have been something entirely different. So Beleth stays her jokes, and turns to the next subject, as she leads Korrin to the other dancers. It'd be useless to try a Dalish dance here, but a lot of the country dancing is simple enough to pick up, and Beleth has already given it a try a couple of times before--enough not to embarrass herself, at least.

Though her previous partners had been...shorter.

"Well, the most interesting news--" She glanced around, but the people around them were busy in their own dances. "--You didn't hear this from me, mind, but you remember how we talked about if the templars were going to have a meeting, someone would need to eavesdrop on them? Well, guess who just recently had a very secret meeting, no one but templars allowed?"

Pause. "It wasn't the Dalish, if it helps."

Simple is the way to go when there's a significant size gap to deal with, and Korrin's used to that anyway. Only a handful of certain -horned- people are taller than her, so she adapts. She manages well enough, used to the steps so that Beleth doesn't have to endure any trod feet.

That particular news has Korrin raising her eyebrows; so the Templars finally got off their asses and organized. She'd bet anything it has to do with that new Knight-Commander. A slow grin forms as that idle discussion from earlier has apparently borne fruit. "No, never. And what happened during this very secret meeting? Aside from Nerva complaining about the mages, that's a given."

"Well," Beleth appreciated Korrin being careful with the dancing, doing her best to stay along with her. "A lot of it wasn't too important. Knight-Captain Alayre is the official spokesperson for the Order, voted anonymously. Warden Alistair was there--I'm not sure why. Maybe since there are Wardens among the Mage Council, they wanted someone for the Templars? He was a good voice of reason, though. Said a lot of things I think most anyone could agree with." It was good to know that even if Alistair didn't serve the Order in an official capacity, there was someone there saying something intelligent.

"The new Knight-Commander, Norrington. He's got a pretty good head on his shoulders, too. He seemed downright reasonable. I think the biggest things of note were that..." She frowned a little, glancing off to the side. "They don't like the new version of Harrowings. They're going to ask for Templars to be present, at least. And they want the mage council to be punished if another abomination happens. Some suggested that they be dissolved, but it was pointed out that it would be impossible for the Inquisition to do that. But they feel like another incident would be the fault of the mage council for not taking enough measure to avoid it."

That was, at least, as much as Korrin would probably be worried about. And that wouldn't get revealed before too long.

"I'm only telling a few people what I heard. The bulk of the decisions, they'll probably announce soon enough. But I think that a few people should know what's going on behind the scenes. You can use it as leverage, if you want." Not that Korrin seemed interested in the politics of the Inquisition, but a few extra secrets never hurt.

"Ugh, I hate politics...but thank you for telling me, I'd rather know the truth, whatever it is." Korrin frowns, eyes narrowing though not at Beleth. "So, the Templars can commit atrocity after atrocity and they are allowed to continue existing, yet one more abomination -which we are already trying to prevent- and that's it for us? This is why I can't trust any Templar, no matter how reasonable they seem. They never stop treating us as inferiors, and it shows now more than ever. Norrington and Alayre are no better, if they allow it to happen."

She sighs, trying to continue the dance and not raise her voice while ranting. "Adelaide should be made aware of this. If you haven't told her, I can do it. I'd rather not have her be unprepared when the Templars try to steamroll us with their demands."

"Well...it doesn't sound like they'll actually dissolve the council." But Beleth still sounds hesitant. She isn't a fan of Templars, by any means. Some can be alright, as long as they aren't...being all. Templarish. But she shrugs. It's not her fight, she just passes on information. "Either way, you should be prepared for the questions. It's fine if you want to tell Adelaide, though she'll probably want to know--Nerva's agreed to work with the Tranquil, which seems fine to me, people without personalities can't get mad about her being an abrasive ass." Then another pause. "And they don't like the new version of Harrowings. They want a Templar there."

She waits a few moments, debating whether or not to reveal another piece of information, more personal to her. "And, ah. Don't bring me into it, okay? The Templars are already mad enough at me. One of them caught me, and ended up dragging me out of bed to go work in the stables. Can you believe that?" She frowns, rubbing the back of her neck. "Although, I guess they'll know it was me, no matter what. Maybe I'll start sleeping on the roof."

"No, fuck having a Templar present. Too many mages are scarred from Templars and their crap, that'll just bring us back to square one. Damn them and their overweening desire for control."

For Korrin's part, she's just venting to vent. Her ire stays directed at the Templars, though she realizes that might be ruining the spirit of celebration and -tries- to do down a bit. That last part brings forth a concerned frown.

"Dragged you? They have no right! They don't have sanction to deal with anyone but their own, or so I thought. I promised I wouldn't start anything, but if they target you? I'm not letting you face their crap alone."

What, it's a perfectly valid loophole.

"Listen, Korrin, just--I didn't want to make you mad. And this stuff--I mean, I didn't hear all of it." She's not trying to defend the Templars, particularly--But she doesn't want Korrin to start getting even angrier every time she sees Templars. That's not going to help. Beleth didn't want to start any wars...she just wanted to make sure that the playing field was even.

"I don't--I mean. I just wanted you to know, so you can make plans. So no one can catch you surprised. I wasn't planning on it being a...thing." She takes a moment from the dance to slide a hand through her hair, looking worried. "Just be careful, alright? The mage and Templar war just ended. We don't need another one, and we don't need it to start here."

Hearing all that, Korrin does her best to calm down with a few deep breaths. Beleth has a point about not hearing all of it, so she can only hope cooler heads prevailed afterward. And, well, she doesn't want to lose her temper and thus her chance to hear more information such as this ever again.

"I know, and I'm not planning on starting anything. If they do, though, I want to be prepared. So I appreciate whatever you tell me, Beleth. I'll be careful, but Nerva still had no right to do what she did. Don't expect me to be happy about that. You deserve better."

Despite the dourness of the situation, Beleth can't help but give a little smile when Korrin comforted her about the situation with Nerva. She deserved better. Beleth isn't sure if that's true, but it's a great deal preferable to being scolded for the whole affair. She ducks her head sheepishly, still smiling.

"Thank you, Korrin. I just feel like--" She hesitated, then decided that Korrin was probably okay to talk about with it. Hopefully she didn't mind a feelings dump. "--Everyone thinks it's my fault. Either for spying, or getting caught spying. And I mean. I guess it is." It usually is her fault, when things go wrong. If she'd worked harder, they wouldn't have gone wrong, would they? "It just worries me. Everyone thinks it's just silly now, but Nerva told me that I'm lucky she didn't throw me in the dungeons. What about next time? What about the next time the Templars get mad and think it's okay to put their hands all over a Dalish because they did something they don't like?"

She isn't helping that whole calming down thing, but it's hard when she starts letting herself think about What if.

"The Mage Council can't directly address it, since--well, you're not a mage. But the Inquisition itself most certainly could. Nerva overstepped her bounds, and I'd hate to see other Templars follow her example. You know how they are. They'll take whatever authority they think they're entitled to, whether real or not." Korrin sighs, then shakes her head. "It's not entirely your fault, though. I encouraged you, didn't I? I wanted to know what they were planning for the mages, and that put you in the middle."

"I understand." There's a slight twist in her lips when Korrin tells Beleth that she's not a mage. Well, yes, don't worry Korrin, she's figured that one out. Certain parties are keen to remind her often enough. But Beleth's miscellaneous Family Issues™ are Korrin's fault, so she moves on. "Zevran said that he'd take care of it. He's my mentor, so he has a little more ability to deal with it. I'm sure he'll figure it out."

She shrugged when Korrin reminded her of the qunari's involvement. "You hardly twisted my arm. I wanted to know, too, and it would've been a right mess if a mage had done it and gotten caught, could you imagine? I don't regret the eavesdropping, I just regret getting caught." Hopefully moving where she slept would stop that from happening. Zevran had taken care of that, too.

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OPEN: this will be a better year

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