[OPEN TO MAGES]

[deflocked]

WHO: Mages, mages, more mages. I guess non-mages can sneak in or be dragged along by friends, but they will be glowered fiercely at by Daylen if he knows.
WHAT: Mage meeting
WHEN: 3 Firstfall
WHERE: What would be Solas' room if Solas were there.
NOTES: Feel free to mingle/threadjack/and anything else you might think of! A top level comment will be made for the meeting itself with no particular order for commenting. There will probably be discussions of mage rights and such. I will edit if any warnings come up.

It's not exactly the biggest room, but on the plus side it's not in a terrible state of disrepair either. In case anyone isn't sure this is the right room there is a sign on the door indicating it is for the mage meeting. If that isn't enough, it is full of chairs. Arguably too many chairs for a room of this size. Especially since they are arranged in a circle for convenience of being able to talk rather than making the most of the space.

Hello, mages. Hope you're all ready to argue.

Comments

[liberalum]

Remember that the Templars the Inquisition is hosting are renegade, who chose to dissolve their allegiance to the Chantry, and with it, any external accountability, [ Dorian says, whilst studying his nails. ] Beyond the reach of the Inquisition, of course. We cannot presume -- least of all in this one meeting -- what their intentions are. Every Templar is a Templar.

Not every mage is of a Southern Circle, and many of those that are fought for their freedom departed from the Order. We ought to set thoughts of fellowship aside, at least today.

[ He glances to Mae, tips a wink in greeting. ]

[kremdelacreme]

<sub>[Whoops, someone else wanting to listen in and maybe pick up some lovely gossip to head back to Bull with later. With a small supply of fabric scraps in the pouch at his side.

He can hear the discussion easily from the upper walkway, and count heads. Oh look, Korrin...Adelaide...Pel...Sam, Dorian, and that pretty Orlesian mage he'd spoken with briefly at the funeral. They all look somewhat peeved about the mage in the middle of the whole thing, so why not provide some amusement?

So, now there are little fabric bombs happening. A little plaidweave pouch with scraps of confetti-fine other cloths that he's trimmed off of his projects is dropped with impeccable aim, and before it can be noticed before it bursts, Krem has ducked back away from the rail.

Here, ladies and Sam, have a free chuckle.]</sub>

[arlathvhen]

[ Now she has to try to not give herself away by laughing at Krem. Dang it, Krem!!! She turns to look very seriously at Helisma, though there's a hand over her mouth to stifle the fit of giggles she's having.

After a moment, her eyes dart to Krem, and she flashes him a thumbs up, eyes dancing with laughter. This is a very important discussion she's trying to eavesdrop on! But Sylaise have mercy on her, she's going to give Krem a fist bump after all is said and done. ]

[el_tybs]

[Krem you are NOT making this easy. This is a very serious discussion. And he knows it's the Charger. Who else has this many scraps of cloth confetti and that particular pattern of plaidweave?

He had finally calmed down from the bear comment, but now with a bunch of cloth patches falling on everyone's face, Sam is having a harder time keeping his face straight.

Of course the culprit isn't to be seen when he looks up. But he does see Beleth. Oh, she better be careful.]

[mythalenaste]

[FABRIC.

Pel holds up a finger to signal "one moment" and quickly starts gathering up the scraps. It's like someone throwing out free money. Amazing. Shems do this?]

[eolasemah]

[A packet of fabric explodes in front of Sina, and rather than be amused by it, she's startled. She throws her hands over her eyes and looks around, taking a moment to realize they aren't being attacked.]

[gatheringstorm]

[Glancing sharply up, startled, Korrin then chuckles. She's fairly certain as to who's behind this as well, though she's not going to out him to those who might not know. The distraction is welcome. She greatly approves, Krem.]

[fleurdesel]

[ In the tone she's used countless times over the years with misbehaving apprentices, Adelaide snaps. ]

Children.

[ Her eyes flick up to the parapet, narrowing. Could you not? Vexing enough when they've much to discuss- but upsetting an admittedly high strung mage as well? ]

[aceso]

[ Christine doesn't catch sight of the culprit, but anything to stop Daylen going on about Templars is fine by her. Her lips only twitch with a smile, not wanting to lose her composure, but well done, anonymous contributor. ]

Ah, yes, well. Let us return to the matter at hand.

[liberalum]

[ Dorian wanders a hand outwards to collect some of the fluttery confetti out of the air, turning a piece over between his fingers. It's at least a nicer ice breaker than he's witnessed in a Magisterium caucus, where the conversation is derailed by someone suddenly dying of poison, or some such thing.

He flicks the fabric away, watching the Dalish go scrabbling after the pieces with a slightly blank look, before he comments in Christine's direction; ] I for one am taking this as divine agreement.

[magistermaevaris]

[Dorian’s unspoken greeting earns a slight nod of the head in acknowledgement. The plaidweave bomb is not so easily dealt with while remaining any sense of subtlety. Maevaris settles for covering her mouth with a hand, glancing off to the side while the brief wave of commotion rides itself out. Is she hiding laughter or displeasure? Who can say? (The crinkles framing her eyes hint towards a smile.)]

Has anyone thought to write everything discussed thus far down? That would be a good place to start.

[mythalenaste]

[Pel ventures toward Sina, making sure she can see her, tilting her head while rolling scraps around her hand and palm.]

You had something you wanted to say? [she whispers, turning an ear.]

[eolasemah]

[With a hand clasped nervously over her glowing chest-shard, Sina watches the ensuing meeting with increasing wariness. She is almost caught off-guard when the other elf addresses her.]

I-- I don't know.

[She smiles weakly, and whispers back,]

I don't trust humans to know what's best for us, but I have never seen this many mages in one place. I have no... context for this.

[ungovernable]

If I may,

( from beside dorian, suppressing her faint amusement at the ice-breaker of choice and his reaction to it-- )

the purpose of this meeting is to unite us. Yes? Then we should be careful not to alienate those who are vulnerable - we should have a care not to create factionism where we would fight it. The former Templars ( a deliberately chosen term, ) are still, by many measures, at war with the mages that broke with the Chantry. We will achieve very little by ignoring that or expecting that they will.

If we mean to unite mages, then that is what we must do.

Let the Templars make their own choices. If they wish to speak with us in the future about those choices, let us have a clear voice of our own with which to answer.

( recreating circles, submitting to the templars - where benevenuta stands personally on those issues is irrelevant. trying to do it is only going to split the mages before they've even managed to come together, and it's barely even in-fighting when they have so little cohesion yet in the first place.

they need a clear-cut sense of community and leadership before they can start fighting amongst themselves about what it should mean and be.

a beat later, )

I am happy to make notes. I brought paper.

[deflocked]

[Daylen had been half-risen to go and track down the person responsible for that interruption when Adelaide manages to bring things back under control.

Does no one beside him appreciate the importance of what they're discussing? What will happen to them if they don't organise themselves? He does sit back down again once it looks like they might return to more important matters though.]

They do want to speak to us.

[The response is sullen and half to himself. He's outnumbered here. Talk of a proper alliance with the templars they have in Skyhold is probably not what's going to happen here.

More clearly:]

Notes would be certainly be useful if you are happy to make them.

[fleurdesel]

And we will speak with them on our own terms when the time is right. The Knight Commanders here are not entirely unreasonable- but as the circles have been disbanded and all of us are rebels? We no more defer to them than they to us, we all defer to the Commanders of the Inquisition. It is something that should be discussed after we have chosen how it is we wish to present a united front. Something that benefits every mage in the Inquisition.

[ If she is here to speak sensibly and attempt to keep order, then fine. She shall attempt to do so. Anything more need not rest on anyone's shoulders until they've come to some manner of agreement. It is not entirely unlike wrangling cats on a good day with mild topics at hand. With this? They may be here for some time.

Adelaide glances around the room once, taking measure of those sitting in or around the circle, and glances up to Martel and whoever else may be hiding in the eaves. Not exactly the most discreet of meeting places but- they must make do. ]

Are we all in agreement that some manner of council ought to be formed?

[el_tybs]

[It seems that bit of interruption was enough to break the last bit of ice between everyone.

There is no way that things are going to be perfect right off the bat, and it might take some time to get everything sorted. But the fact that they were trying to do something? That was the biggest step.]

A council sounds like it would be a good first step to go in. There are a lot of us and too many do not know where or who to go to, to have their issues resolved. Having a place to bring those issues to be discussed... well it might resolve some tension around Skyhold. Not all of it though.

[ungovernable]

It is a beginning.

( --spoken without glancing up from where she's busying herself with paper and pen to make these promised notes. better to do it while it's quite fresh.

perhaps she'll speak with adelaide afterwards, to ensure she hasn't missed anything important. )

[mythalenaste]

[Damn, Benevenuta and Adelaide are making sense. Pel's shoulders relax as the fight seems to slide off them. She nods to Sina, a nod that says I got your back.]

All right. I am in favor of a council and I rescind my condition about templars, for now, till the matter can be properly and officially discussed. My only condition is that the council must have one Dalish member.

[visus]

Unless by a "council" you intend to reinstate the College of Magi then we are most certainly not "all agreed."

[ Says a woman of middle years who has just now strode into the room. Her tone is dry and her accent could be from anywhere in the Free Marches or Ferelden as long as it's somewhere with money. She wears the robes of a Senior Enchanter and is accompanied by a fair-haired, placid-featured young man. Her posture is perfect to the point of being imperious. ]

This meeting was advertised as a meeting to create a circle, not fiddle about with some brilliant new system you've all just miraculously struck upon in the past twenty minutes. Creating a circle is precisely what we should do. The structure and order have served us well and will continue to do so. If we propose to govern ourselves then we must govern, and that means respecting the rules and standards to which we have always held ourselves.

[gatheringstorm]

[Newly appeased, Korrin straightens once again and glares at the woman who just entered and brought the tension back up, at least for her.]

'We'? No, I never have. I've never been part of your Circles and that isn't going to change. If that happens here, I walk. I won't be part of that crap and no one will force me into it.

[fleurdesel]

It served some well, not all. Mages from the same Circle did not have the same experiences from their circles, let alone those from different ones and different countries, or those that never came from a Circle in the first place.

[ Forcing those that never stepped into one- or those that had sour if not outright abusive experiences in their own- back into a Circle system? That is not what the Mages need. ]

That we feel a need to create a new system speaks to the failings of the old. At one point it may have worked and work well. We are past that.

[liberalum]

I believe the purpose of the notice was to seek organsiation of the mages within the Inquisition, [ Dorian comments, mild as you please, twisting a look back at this newcomer. ] Decorative heraldry notwithstanding.

Seeking the best solution to all southern mage disputes and reinstalling systems of governance and control should, perhaps, come after the world isn't ending.

Or perhaps we could call it a Square instead. Circles are so polarising.

[paperwing]

[Sabriel has spent much of the meeting standing in the shadows of the stairwell up to the floor above. She had to prioritise the Wardens first, but she was also a mage, and being a Warden did not stop how some felt about her magic, how others would be treated without the protection of being a Warden.

They needed unity. She had seen that well enough with her own order, and there, she had been the dissenter.]

Senior Enchanter, [she speaks up, stepping forward into the room. The words are laced with respect, as she nods her head to the woman and the man.] we may wish for things to be as they were, but they are not. Skyhold is no Circle, but a fortress - filled with many who have never seen a Circle's walls. [Apostates or no, she casts a glance to the Dalish that have gathered, to Korrin, to all her Circle breathren.]

Warden Sabriel. [She identifies, for those who do not know her and would not recognise her as part of the grey, given that she wore a tunic and no armour. She looks to Adelaide.] We must unite, but it will not be as a Circle. Not as they were. Whether it is named for the circles or no, [looking at you and your Squares, Dorian,] we must come together and be stronger for it.

[visus]

[ Theodora casts a look towards Dorian at his shape suggestion, like she can't quite decide if she'd rather slap his knuckles or agree with the jest. She does neither, instead turning back to the others. ]

That you feel the need to create a new system, Enchanter LeBlanc, does not mean that all here do, and with all due respect, Warden Sabriel, it is hardly a matter for you to decide. You will find there are quite a number of us here who were perfectly happy with the system we have spent our lives within. It provides structure, stability, security, and a scholarly community.

Of course, not every Circle was perfect, but we can build one here that avoids the problems caused by the few bad apples scattered about. There's no need to throw the baby out with the Chantry bathwater, and if some of you don't care to be involved then you are free to keep to yourselves as you have always done. I can't say your opinion has much to recommend itself to me as you have never experienced a Circle to know what you are rejecting.

And this is precisely the time in which structure and security are most needed, Altus Pavus. We are not on the run nor under immediate threat; there is no reason that we cannot comport ourselves in an orderly fashion.