[open] we all live and breathe

[eolasemah]

WHO: Sina and yyyooooouuuu
WHAT: Miscellaneous early spring interactions!
WHEN: Drakonis-ish
WHERE: Skyhold
NOTES: get er while she's still kickin

The Healing Tents

Now that the weather is warming ever so slightly, and Sina is feeling ever so slightly better, she's throwing herself back into assisting the Inquisition's healers. Though she uses magic sometimes, for the most part she's helping out by providing poultices, herbal remedies, and a soothing bedside manner to the ailing patients, keeping herself busy and no longer focused on the anchor in her chest.

This is how she spends the majority of her afternoons, with the occasional break to rest. She's not in perfect health herself, and it's showing more than ever.
Though in most cases she just seats herself off to one side until her strength rebuilds, there have been one or two incidents in which she has very nearly collapsed and required assistance.
If this upsets her, she shows no sign of it, at least not in the moment.

The Garden

Sina's early mornings to lunchtime are spent planting, trimming, and checking the progress of her various charges. They're starting to bud, which concerns her somewhat since frost is still very much a problem, but some coaxing (and perhaps the tiniest use of Keeper magic) keeps things moving along in a healthy and otherwise undisturbed manner.

She can be found here in the evenings as well, sitting outside her tent, sometimes with Nahariel, wrapped in a blanket and enjoying a cup of tea. She's come to think of the garden as home, it being the greenest place in Skyhold.

Elsewhere

There are times Sina can be encountered with her basket of herbs, making deliveries to the various offices and people requesting medicinal teas, or just in transit from one place to another. It's actually quite rare to find her inside the Keep itself, as the stone enclosures make her nervous, but she does have to pass through every so often.
Hippie.

Comments

[eolasemah]

As a fellow somewhat irregular presence, Sina sees no harm in this. The other healers are glad to have her when she's around, and don't begrudge her her absences. It's more or less common knowledge now.
She's leaning against a post, breathing measuredly through her nose and trying to focus on anything but the pain, when Alan speaks to her. She turns to look at him wearily, and gives a small, grateful nod as she accepts the water. Sometimes it hurts to speak; having a magical artifact hanging out right over your lungs can have that effect.

[alankazam]

Well, it's an answer. Alan nods, and slips up again, moves to fiddle with the elfroot in a corner. It's another few silent moments before he has it on to boil, turns back.

"Do you know the story of the fox and the badger?"

His head tips to the side slightly in question, an indication she needn't speak herself. It's what his aunt used to do when he was really ill: Tell stories, give him something else to think of. He doesn't know Sina's particular trouble, but the shard's position is unusual — as good a guess as any for the way she's in.

[eolasemah]

Having finished drinking from the cup, Sina offers it back to him and gives a simple "no", more mouthed than spoken. It's clear she's interested.

[alankazam]

Alan takes the cup, sets it beside the brewing tea. A minute as he considers, intones his voice to begin:

A fox from the high southern hills was traveling through a valley that belonged to the north wind. Upon spying a trespasser, the wind grew angry, and blew winter down upon him.

As the fox lamented his fate, an old badger called out to him saying: Friend, it is too rough about like this. Come with me, and you may shelter a night. I shall lead you back in the morning.

The fox agreed, and they set about the long journey to the badger’s den. Though he tried to remember the path, the fox soon lost track of its twists and turns. Ah well, he thought, ’tis better to be in company, than alone on a night such as this.

As they walked, he raised his paws to his mouth to blow on them.

"What do you do that for?" Asked the badger, who could not make heads, nor tails — nor paws — of the fox’s strange gesture, which was not the way of lowland animals.

"My toes grow number with the cold," The fox explained. "And my breath warms them."

"Foreigners," Sighed the badger. The fox found this peculiar too, but carried on. This man has done me a good deed, He thought. It is not my place to judge his manners.

When they arrived, the badger set about preparing a stew of roots and field mice. Soon he served a steaming cup before the fox. But when the fox raised it to his lips, again he began to blow:

"Friend, is it not warm enough?" The badger was aghast, remembering the fox's explanation.

"It is too hot," The fox replied. "And my breath cools it."

"That’s it, out you go!" Roared the badger, who had a small mind of these matters. "I won’t have aught to do with anyone who blows hot and cold in the same breath."

A smile, a refilled cup: This time, strong and hot.

[eolasemah]

It takes Sina a moment to catch the meaning, but when she does, she covers her mouth to shake lightly with silent and somewhat restrained laughter. Accepting the tea with a grateful smile, she hoarsely replies, "we have a whole family named for foxes in my clan. Halaani. I think they'd like this story."

[alankazam]

Mission accomplished. Alan leans back against the table.

"Is that common in Dalish?"

Or. Whatever the language is called. He doesn't really remember any of the Denerim elves speaking it.

"Naming people after animals."

[eolasemah]

"...Elvhen," Sina corrects, but gently. Dalish only defines where and how the elves live. Her smile broadens, and she replies, "not entirely. But the whole family has fluffy red hair like foxes, so they were named accordingly." Grinning fondly, she rests her head back against the wall. "Isen'halaan is one of my closest friends, the second-youngest. His hair is the brightest, like fire. Isen."