faderift | A bottle of white, a bottle of red

Entry tags:

A bottle of white, a bottle of red

WHO: Open to anyone that wants wine and warmth and a little company.
WHAT: Wine and no whining.
WHEN: After the mage meeting wraps up.
WHERE: Close to the healing tents, specifically the Orlesian section.
NOTES: There will be wine, drinking, unwinding, and nibbles.

The meeting had been stressful for just about everyone involved. Tempers had flared, opinions made known, a few rounds of confetti and arguing before some manner of accord. Whether it would last or however long it might? No one could truly say. In the interest of being quite done with the stress and headaches such debate brought on the Orlesian healing tents clearing out the potions, bandages, and poultices in favor of what cushions and braziers they had on hand for light and for heat. The space was open, warm, and inviting with an odd assortment of tin mugs or clay glasses set around flat side tables propped up with stones to keep them from wobbling and tipping the whole mass onto the ground. There are some dried fruits and hard cheeses, dried meat and hard crusted bread- whatever scraps they could scavenge or spare and a few bottles of wine or brandy. Across the entrance to the tents there was a sign:

Bring a bottle or food to share for entry.

Tacked below was a list of rules:

Everyone is welcome, don't make a fuss
Don't hog the wine
Don't hog the food
Don't fight or argue
If you finish a bottle open a new one, don't recork it for someone else to find
Clean up after yourselves

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"Krem had the better timi--" She started when Sam popped up, even if he'd been quiet, nearly sloshing her drink out of the mug. For a few minutes, she didn't reply, too busy coughing as she tried valiantly to get wine out of her lungs. After a few moments, she was ready to reply, turning to Korrin first. "I was the paper when Pel told that shem bitch off--No offense, Sam--" Shit. Right, human. Switch to human-friendly words.

"A mysterious man that I have never seen in my life ran into the library, threw it, and left as quickly as he'd come." She told them, a little smile playing across her face. "All I know about him is that he had the better timing. A pity Daylen didn't go try to chase the person down, I had this entire speech in Elvhen prepared..." She shrugged. Ah, well. Another time, maybe.

"...I was talking about jumping, because some of the people were getting mouthy with my First." She gave Sam a measured glance, and another shrug. "If they had tried to escalate, it'd be my duty to step in. With arrows. Poisoned arrows."

Sam's entrance startles Korrin as well, who thankfully hadn't been mid-sip at the time. She spills some brandy, but that's all, and makes ready to pat Beleth on the back if she needs it. As that doesn't seem to be needed, she settles back and flashes a smile at Sam, not minding his joining them at all.

"We're whispering so we don't get kicked out...or trying. Venting is nice, but I don't want to give up booze for it." She glances back to Beleth after taking another, belated sip. "It was good timing, either way. I'm glad your First was there, Beleth. She was amazing, and I loved having someone there who more or less said exactly what was on my mind." In Dalish terms, but still. Non-Circle mages must stick together.

Edited 2015-11-07 02:24 (UTC)

Sometimes it was a little bit too easy to sneak up on people. It was certainly amusing to see Korrin startled, though thankful that didn't land him a punch. Beleth concerned him with the coughing, but it seemed she was not at all bothered by his sudden appearance. Hearing 'shem' does make his raise a brow however, but he merely shrugs one shoulder. "Think the fact you're saying bitch is more curious then me being called a 'shem' again."

He also doesn't buy the whole 'mysterious man' thing. Yeah, ah huh. That had obviously been Krem. Speaking of whom, he did not see, which he honestly found a bit unusual. There was beer and wine for the taking.

"So you two are talking about Pel?" Taking another drink he then tilts his head. "She certainly was holding her own out that. You as well Korrin." At that point Sam gives Beleth a look. "Don't be shooting arrows, poisoned or other."

"I've played nice for worst things than alcohol." She agreed, turning to Korrin, and taking a drink of said alcohol. It was a little odd still, but the more she drank, the better it tasted. "You're both right--Pel is pretty much amazing. Everything you'd want out of a First." Out of a First, out of a daughter, out of a mage. Beleth glanced over at her, and felt that familiar strange mix of great pride and bitter jealousy. "She's the pride of our Keeper, really. And you saw why."

Then she turned to Korrin, and nodded as Sam spoke. "You did a good job, too. I'm glad that there were other non-Circle mages there to argue against templars. And not just make it an elf thing. We'll never allow the templars, of course. It's just as Pel said--Never again shall we submit."

At Sam's remark, she glanced to him, and tilted her head, expression calm. "I don't just use arrows willy nilly, I only do it..." Still looking at him, she took a long sip of her drink, before finishing her words. "...If I deem it necessary." A beat more of looking at Sam, and she turns to Korrin again.

"Anyway. I've spent my life worrying the templars were going to take my twin away. I'll be damned if we have to listen to them now."

Korrin smiles warmly and actually blushes at the compliments. She does whatever she feels is necessary, but it's still nice to be appreciated for it. "Thank you both for that. I know I must have caused some headaches, but to be fair, I was getting one as well. It's the gift that keeps on giving, hm?"

She stretches out a little and glances to Beleth, raising her mug to that last part. "Oh, I understand. I've never heard of a Vashoth in a Circle, but I'll be damned if I start a trend. Between that and the Qun, it's a fucking mindfield of people who want to take my freedom away. No, thanks. So I'll gladly stand with the Dalish and anyone else who wants to make sure their voice isn't drowned out."

Her gaze slides over to Sam and she realizes how that last part might sound, though. "No offense. It's not Circle mages in general I dislike, as long as I can live my life without bending to those rules. I bet that Senior Enchanter thinks otherwise, but fuck her."

Sam frowns slightly behind his mug, simply listening to the two of them, much like he had done during the meeting. A lot of strong opinions with a lot of merit, but at the same time very exclusive. He understood not needing or wanting Templars involved, but at the same time, if they kept up this whole idea that they all had to be separate... the Inquisition wasn't going to be very unified. At least hey had taken a step forward in including Mages from different backgrounds.

Keeping his eyes to his drink, Sam gives another shrug, having been apologized to once again. First it was being called a 'shem' and then the whole thing about Circle mages. In this group it seemed he was the odd one out in a way. "None taken?" Another shrug and he takes another drink. "Not like I chose to be a Circle mage. You're both right that taking away someone's freedom is a terrible thing. But despite the bad things I did learn to use my magic. That was the only good thing about being put in one. Outside of it I didn't have anyone to learn from."

Taking another drink Sam glances at both ladies, judging their reactions. He honestly didn't want to talk about this subject more tonight, but it looks like it was going to happen anyways. "I don't want Circles reinstated, but having a place to learn is important. Course there isn't one way to learn something, but learning with others is better than on your own I would think."

Beleth ducked her head, beginning to suspect that Sam probably wasn't enjoying the way they were picking at various people, who all belonged to his demographic--Well, he was a lot nicer than most of the people in that demographic, but still. Maybe she should just...change the subject. Talk with Korrin about these humans and their Circles another time, when they didn't have...a human Circle mage right there.

"I don't think anyone would argue against it being imperative that a mage gets trained," She gave a small shrug. "The last thing we need is even more abominations running around Thedas." And then she pauses, as she tries to decide just how to change the subject without it being totally weird.

"I wonder if the templars will have a similar meeting any time soon? I might have to eavesdrop on that meeting, too. It'd be pretty important to see how they arrange their order. I met one of the leaders--That Alayre fellow over there, he's decent enough." She jerked her head in the man in question's direction. "If they keep people like him in charge, they'll do alright." She sips on her drink for a few moments, watching him.

"Did he bring a bard to get people to dance? Maybe I'll take him up on it." She flicks her eyes over to Sam for a moment, as if expecting some kind of reaction out of him at that, then turns to Korrin, as if that were totally normal. "For the templar meeting, I might have to hold on the confetti."

"I've never learned with others, not like this. If most of the attitudes are like yours...I can see why there would be benefits, though. I'm not closed to the idea."

Glancing at Sam and then Beleth, Korrin rather belatedly (maybe thanks to that alcohol, but who knows) realizes their talk isn't exactly the most inclusive and as she rather likes Sam, that has to change. Which isn't to say that she won't be all about picking on humans and Circles later, when the time and situation permit. She's also not needing to relive every moment of that gathering, so it's just as well that the subject changes.

...though she's still not fond of Templars, even that one. Korrin barely spares a glance his way before shrugging. "At least he's not like that other jackass with his announcement, though that's not setting the bar very high." He might be as decent as Beleth says, but her wariness remains.

Still, the music is an...acceptable addition. And her lips twitch at Beleth's last comment. "If you do, I want details. And reactions."

Despite how Sam might appear or act he is rather perceptive of what people are saying. Or rather not saying. He doesn't miss the looks that Beleth or Korrin are giving each other, or the way Beleth seems to kind of shy away and purposely changes the subject. So he was making this weird. He could just... walk away so they could go back to the subject, but he had been looking forward to talking to them. So addressing the issue it was. "You two don't have to stop talking about it you know. Just because I was in the Cirlce doesn't mean I'm going to take offense to what you want to say - you have very valid points from your own experiences. Just figured that after all that we'd get away from that subject for the night."

For a moment Sam hides behind his mug, taking another drink, wondering if that had just made the conversation even weirder. At some point his eyes do move towards Alayre, raising a brow at the bard. "You plan on dancing with Alayre? Why not?" He looks at Beleth, tilting his head. Well that would be interesting. "I've talked with him a few times at length. He's a very good man. Dealing with a lot though with everything going on. Though I don't know if the Templars will have a meeting. They actually have a chain of command even outside the Circles."

No reaction. Ugh. She needs more alcohol for this. She chugs down the last of it, reaching for another bottle to pour herself some more. As she does so, she addresses Sam's worry about the subject change. "No, you're right. There's little point in rehashing the meeting, it was enough of a headache. It's not like I have anything of note to add, anyway, it's not like I'm a mage." That last part had some hint of bitterness in it, though it wasn't directed at her two conversation partners, or even anyone in Skyhold (though her eyes did flick over to Pel for a moment). Ah, parental disappointment. The gift that keeps on giving.

"Why not, indeed. He is a nice man, all things considered. And a lot more easy going than that other one. But people like them are why there might be a meeting. Two knight-commanders, a bunch of people with the same rank. There's one Keeper a clan, if you understand. Still, they're templars. They might just have the meeting with the higher ups, behind closed doors, and pass down word to everyone else. That'd be harder to eavesdrop on--but not impossible." She looks around, and gestures to a bit of rubble on the walls. "With Skyhold in it's current state, I could probably find a hole to wiggle through."

Which could end with Beleth getting some new, juicy info, or her running around Skyhold with a bunch of templars chasing her and yakety sax playing in the background. Either or.

Edited 2015-11-08 11:22 (UTC)

Listening to Sam and then Beleth, Korrin nods in support of what her elven friend says before glancing back to the former. "Eh, she's right. I'd rather cure that headache it gave me, not add to it. Besides, you know that's just the beginning. We'll spend endless amounts of soul-sucking time hashing things out later." Just for that thought, she takes a long sip.

Her response to all the Alayre praise is a simple non-committal grunt, not personally impressed but not willing to start an argument about it. Beleth dancing with him gets a raised eyebrow, but 'that other one' gets her attention for the moment. "I haven't seen Ser Jackass around recently, though good riddance. You know he would have made everything worse."

She takes a sip before her temper can flare at the memory of that sending crystal announcement. And Beleth eavesdropping has her grinning again. The Vashoth mage probably shouldn't egg her on...but she's totally going to anyway. "Sounds like a worthy challenge. You'd definitely deserve drinks for that after, or whatever else you'd think sufficient reward."

Oh thank the Maker that they're going to drop the subject about the meeting. He hasn't quite got a headache from it yet, and he would rather keep it that way. He nods in agreement with both Beleth and Korrin; there would be plenty of time to talk about it later.

The bit Beleth tosses in about not being a Mage does worry him though. That... sounded a bit bitter about... not being a Mage? That sounds a bit more complicated then any of them probably want to get into so he lets it go and simply sighs at the two of them talking about eavesdropping on possible Templar meetings.

"Well if you think they're going to do that you should probably figure out possible meeting places and plan ahead of places to stow away. Loose bricks. Under floor boards. I'm sure there are plenty of those." What? It's wasn't like he thought of this stuff. Not at all.

"That one that threatened to take off bits of fingers? He was a jerk to Pel, but it was amusing to see him threatening the Templars. I was still tempted to bounce a cup off his head, too, though." Pause. "Not...that I know who did that...I hear it was a ghost." She quickly sipped her cup. Nice job. Not that she was really worried that either Korrin or Sam would rat her out.

"I haven't seen him, either. I'll see what I can find out, if you want to make sure he's gone." It'd be easy to ask around a bit, he was a fairly well known person. One of the servants who dealt with the Templars would probably be the best--Templars gossiped enough. And Beleth was pretty decent at getting details out of people.

"...That's not a bad idea." Stowing away before would make sure that she could get into a place that would let her hear, while hopefully not being discovered. Of course, it might be hard to get out of if she got caught, but...well. She'd just have to not get caught. "I'll remember it, if they do ever bother with all of that stuff. Now I'm kind of hoping they do, just so I can try to sneak into it. You guys weren't hard to eavesdrop on at all." She waved her hand around to the crowd. "Gotta kick up the challenge."

That makes Korrin chuckle as she stretches out, her cup poised for another sip though she doesn't take one just yet. "Oh, I know. Holding it there, where the sound carries? Awful idea, when the point was to keep it exclusive to mages. We might have well have shouted from the rooftops."

She darts a grin at Sam, for that bit of advice. "You're awfully knowledgeable about such things. Ever been tempted to do it yourself, then? Or were you more than tempted and went through with it? Do tell."

But before he does, she glances at Beleth with a nod. "It can't hurt to know for certain if he's staying away. That'd put some minds at ease, and Pel might appreciate the good news if there's some to be had. And good on that 'ghost'."

"The meeting was publicly announced on the board. It was hardly secret or to be fully exclusive. It was in good faith that in doing so that we would be allowed to talk without interruptions." There's a pause. "Course yelling from the rooftops would have been more fun, but I'm sure none of us would have voices now."

At the fact that they both take his idea to heart and that they believe it is a good idea, Sam smiles. Course when Korrin looks at him with a grin, points out he knows a bit too much, and then questions him, Sam gives her a smirk before looking indifferent with a small shrug. "I don't know what you're talking about." He tries his best, but the facade drops and he goes back to smirking. "I give a lot of thought into a lot of things. And no, I haven't done it here. You learn things in the Circle."

"Well, considering the amount of shouting that got done, you might as well have located it to the roof. Less of a chance of mysterious fabric bombs, to boot." Beleth pointed out, a smile tugging at her lips. It might even be harder to eavesdrop, if they'd done it high enough. But that was hardly the point that Korrin was trying to make.

"The mages aren't as secretive as the Templars would be, I think. After all, many of us here are mages, or related to mages, within and without the Circles. The reason that most people don't know a lot about mages isn't because they keep their secrets, it's because the ones that are open about their magic are locked up, away from everyone else. And the people who aren't open have to be careful that they aren't discovered. But the Templars? Everyone knows of them, they're around enough, but...At least, I don't know a lot about them." She finished the last part lamely, dragging it out as she realized that maybe people like Sam could know about them. Maybe even Korrin. But she's the isolated Dalish, who knows little about the order, outside of the fact that they had spelled trouble for her clan.

But Sam's words make another smile threaten her lips, and she gives him a raised eyebrow. "Eh? So is that what they teach in your Circles? How to eavesdrop? I feel like I've missed out on something, now."

"Hey, the fabric bombs were the best part. Do that as often as you'd like. I'm sure it'd have uses outside those meetings, too." Random confetti around Skyhold, reducing tension where need be? Why not?

Taking a long sip at last, she the shrugs at mention of the Templars. "I can't say I'm an expert on Templars either, to be honest. I know their role in the Circle and outside it, but being here is the first time I've ever been around them for any extended period. Which, let me tell you, I could have done without just fine." Maybe there are decent Templars in the Order, but Korrin truly doesn't care. She doesn't want them near her regardless.

After another sip, she glances to Sam with a smirk at Beleth's comments."I don't, but I suppose if they lock you up in a tower all day every day, you have to find some way to amuse yourself. Maybe you should be part of the scouts after all."

He could say something about Templars, but it's not really a discussion he wants to get into at the moment. Half of it is obviously a culture thing - ugh humans right? - a quarter being Korrin obviously set in her views on them, and the last bit because they were supposed be having fun.

Course talking about fabric confetti bombs and the finery things one could do in the Circle were definite fun topics. The mention of him being part of the scouts gets a laugh out of him and he grins, looking between the two ladies. "Now wouldn't that be a sight, me being a scout. Would I have to learn to use a bow or could I still use magic?"

"You'd have to talk to Scout Harding, but I don't see why not. I mean, Merrick is a part of the scouts, and he doesn't do a lot of archery. He mostly just...stabs things." She gestured off to wherever Merrick had gotten himself to. "I mean, he's the best at stabbing things around, but he's still a scout. And you can always shot magic bolts instead of arrows, if you wanted." She's pretty sure that Sam isn't serious about joining the scouts, but the idea of a mage in their ranks was pretty amusing.

The subject of templars seemed like one that should also be dropped, and Beleth, in the interest of not having more conflicts than strictly necessary, did just so. The templar argument was one best saved for the council, Creators save them.

"Did you go to that class about climbing around on stuff? I know Gavin went. And Merrick went, so Gavin wouldn't die. Or get gored." Here she shot a look to Korrin, grinning wryly. "I hope you avoided the class that day, I can only imagine what would happen."

Korrin chuckles and shakes her head, having a fairly vivid image of how that would end up, one of the reasons why she was hesitant in the first place. "I chatted with Araceli for a while beforehand, but climbing isn't my forte and I wasn't about to subject anyone to it. But I did stick around to enjoy the show, how could I not?"

She looks Sam over, thoughtful. Joke or not, she likewise could see it as a feasible option for a mage. Why the hell not? "I don't see why magic couldn't be used. Not all of it's unsubtle and what is would find use anyway, right? Besides, you could do worse, answering to Harding." The Vashoth mage is already fond of the dwarven woman and wishing she had more excuses to run into her, but her own style is far more suited to direct battle than scouting.

He's still laughing, surprised that they both are actually supportive of him joining up with the scouts. Amusing indeed. "I think I'll have to pass on that. Shouldn't stretch myself too thin. I'm already a Mage and a Blacksmith. I'm taking magic lessons, and hand-to-hand..."

At this point Sam has his fingers up as he counts off the things he's up to. At hearing about the climbing he puts up another finger. "And climbing/falling lessons." Another finger went up for helping at the healing tents, but it wasn't really important.

"Yeah, I did. Both climbing and falling are a lot harder then they look," he smiles at Beleth at that before glancing at Korrin. "I must have just missed you then, Korrin. Araceli did mention you though. About applying barriers to the lessons?"

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A bottle of white, a bottle of red

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