A bottle of white, a bottle of red

[fleurdesel]

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

Comments

[aceso]

"I am very thankful that Skyhold is not a refuge for bears." Christine shakes her head, well knowing how bears wandered the Hinterlands constantly.

"I do hope that the space can be allocated for everyone to be able to sleep indoors. It would be a comfort, especially as we go into winter."

[el_tybs]

Perhaps taking a drink at that moment had been a bad idea, because Sam finds himself coughing a bit over some tea going the wrong way - some reason that bear comment had gotten him. Smiling as he clears his throat he shakes his head. "Yeah. That w- would.... not be fun if it were..."

After some more coughing and clearing his throat, Sam gives a sigh, looking around the space. "Well quite a number of us are going to the Mire I would suspect. That should give them more room here. Hopefully they'll get work done on rooms while we're gone, too."

[aceso]

Her lips twitch with a smile. She doesn't really consider herself to be funny, so the fact she's gotten a laugh out of him is a triumph. But as a healer, she has to ask, "You are well?"

Once he's regained the ability to speak without coughing, she nods in agreement with what he says.

"That would be wonderful. We could return to beds, or at least cots with a roof over our heads. It would be better than what we will have in the mire."

[el_tybs]

Now that she brings it up, Sam realizes he hadn't thought much about how things would be in the Mire. He makes a face at that, both sides of his nose wrinkling. "Tents and bedrolls. And probably several pairs of clothes, or at least socks to change into."

[aceso]

"Yes, more clothes is a good idea. I can only suggest we keep a memory of what it is like to be warm and dry with us at all times." Christine has had a taste of the outdoors life since the Circles fell, and she can't say she's impressed. Give her a warm fire, toasty feet, and a place free of insects, please.

"I am curious about the schedule. If we will be rotated out, or if the situation is such that we won't be there long."

[el_tybs]

"Rotating people would be too much time and resources, and certain jobs might take too long to keep reteaching. If we're going I'm sure we'll be investing in staying there for a while." Christine better get herself ready for the long haul.

"I've never been to a bog myself, but from what I've heard... better not bring anything too nice."

[aceso]

Christine gestures down to herself, where she wears standard Circle mage robes and slippers.

"Things like this are all I have. If the Inquisition will issue mage robes and sturdy boots, I will be sure to wear them. But I have nothing nice to begin with." No fancy combs or ribbons. No silk dresses or purses. She's as he sees her: a rebel mage who is now a refugee. The only luxury she has are a couple of books she has stashed away in her tent, and those are study materials for healing, not light reading.

[el_tybs]

Yeah those clothes were not going to do well in a bog. The shoes especially. "I'm sure they'll have supplies and clothing for us to gear up for this. Though you might have to go... ask for them." Honestly, Sam had seen the robes as that being Christine's choice and not a fact that she had nothing else.

Though it is all too familiar to hear that she didn't have anything nice after leaving the Circle. "If you need help getting anything let me know."

[aceso]

"I can ask." Her expression turns curious at his offer, however. It sounds like he knows more about all this than she does. "Do you work for the quartermaster?"

[el_tybs]

That has Sam rubbing the back of his head. "Ah... not exactly?" He's sounds a bit unsure of it himself before giving a shrug. "I work under Master Harritt, who does orders for the quartermaster...? I don't do any of the major orders, but I help with repairs and the sort when I can."

[aceso]

"Truly? You are a healer and a blacksmith's apprentice? How unique." It seems an odd profession to gravitate towards, even just helping with getting the Inquisition in better gear.

"What made you want to do such a thing?" Her voice is still curious, not judging.

[el_tybs]

With how surprised everyone was every time they found out he was both he supposed 'unique' was a good way to describe him. "My father and his father were blacksmiths. So when I came of age I started learning the trade."

There's a small smile on Sam's face, his eyes going a little distant at a particular memory. "I was... maybe 13 or 14 when I started working at the forge. Started noticing my magical abilities around that time too. If the Blight hadn't happened I'd probably be a full fledged blacksmith who knew magic."

[aceso]

Christine nods in understanding, though not from personally experiencing it. Just from things she's heard and the rest being assumed.

"The Blight changed many things." She feels lucky it didn't spread into Orlais. "It is good that you have this opportunity now to pick back up with your training."

[el_tybs]

"Yeah. Kind of reminds me of home and my family. That and doing something physical is a good break from magic. An entirely different focus and such." Don't get him wrong, he enjoys practicing his magic, but sometimes it was easier to work with something you could actually see.

"What about you? Besides healing. Is there anything else you do?"

[aceso]

"Do?" she questions, as if anything beyond healing is a concept she can't wrap her head around. And really, it's because there never was much beyond healing that caught her interest. Too many eggs in one basket, there. But she gives it some thought, her gaze lowering for a moment before it comes back up.

"I do enjoy music. And dancing. I am not so skilled at it as those mages who participated in the Game, but it is fun."

[el_tybs]

There's a bit of a stress on that one word that has Sam raising a brow. "The Game?" He has never heard of that before, though it sounds like it has something to do with music and dancing since that's how Christine has brought it up.

"I take it that learning to dance was something you did in the Orlesian Circles? I was never taught that."

[aceso]

"You have not heard of the Game? Count yourself lucky. It is the Orlesian way of life at court. Mages should be outside of it, but some play along as the nobility's source of entertainment and try to rise high enough to pull the puppet strings. I have never liked the idea of it. It is all false nicety and backstabbing." Christine shakes her head. No, she prefers to speak plainly as she is a simple village girl, not a political and social mastermind.

"A bit, yes. It passed the time. They had to keep us entertained so we didn't bounce off the walls."

[el_tybs]

"That... doesn't sound fun at all." Sam wrinkles his nose a bit. There were many things he would never get about Orleis; those masks and now this Game. He takes a mindful sip of his tea, trying to envision living your life like that.

"That sounds like a good past time. Most we had was playing chess, reading a book, or seeing if you could "help" with the cooking."

[aceso]

"I am sure it is great fun if you've a mind for it, and enjoy stepping on others on your way to the top." But that will never be Christine's ideal. "I stayed out of it."

It made life in the Circle boring, to be sure, since only a few mages got out by playing the Game well. At least Montsimmard hadn't been as terrible as some other Circles.

"I remember our First Enchanter had the misguided idea to put some of the Tranquil on cooking duty. That was a mistake. Things tasted terrible and they didn't understand how to prevent that. As long as it was filling, they served it."

[el_tybs]

"Probably not misguided since they did that in our Circle too. Though it never tasted terrible since they followed the recipes to a T. Though the food was still kind of... bland and we often had the same thing a lot."

There had been a lot of chicken. Which was a great meat, just not something he enjoyed having nearly everyday. He had certainly missed seafood.

[aceso]

"It must have been our fancy Orlesian recipe books. We couldn't always get all the ingredients, so instead of substituting something similar, they just omitted it." Christine shrugs. "I quite like the food here. It is heavier than I am used to, but good." Hearty, stick-to-your-ribs food. The main cook had to be a Ferelden.

"Perhaps I should learn to cook for myself. It would be something to do now that people are recovering and there are fewer injured."

[el_tybs]

That earns Christine another chuckle. "A bit more fish would be great, but I can understand why that would be hard to pull off." The cook probably was indeed Ferelden, the kind of cooking Sam rather enjoyed. Both for actually filling him up and because it reminded him of home.

"That might be an idea. I'm sure it wouldn't be too hard to pick up. Food's like magic right? Steady hand, patience, and wanting to care for people." Well he doesn't know if that's true, but it made sense right?

[aceso]

It's the ideal, really. Plenty of people with magic don't care about others, and they end up giving the whole group a bad name. But Christine absolutely cares, and she nods along. Making a hearty meal for someone could be a new goal; something to strive for.

"And if I said I would need a volunteer to test my cooking?" she asks slyly, giving him a smile.

[el_tybs]

Oh? Was she asking for a taste tester? "Hmmm," he hums, rubbing his chin in pretend thought. "Well the bulletin board is always good to find volunteers."

The facade is quickly dropped though, followed by another chuckle. "I'm sure I'm easy to find if you needed one."

[aceso]

"I was hoping for you, yes. That way if my cooking is so horrible that you end up with food poisoning, you can easily heal yourself." And also because as a fellow mage that had to put up with bland cooking, she wants to give him first dibs on something that will (Maker willing) be tasty.