"My history on the subject aside, I do prefer to work with Riftwatch rather than at cross purposes," is dry but not unkind. He's sure there's still a file somewhere in Skyhold with "troublemaker" noted in the margins, possibly underlined, that's been there since the strike years ago.

"At least you're giving me Rutyer, as I think the potential diplomatic upsides are fairly clear. If Riftwatch is seen to broker this, it's going to matter to other Marcher cities, at a minimum." He's thinking out loud, aware he's not telling them anything they don't know. "And I don't think leadership will see it as drawing a line in the sand with the Chantry. The Exalted March failing to come is still qualitatively different that an overt statement that no one else should help either. After all, Riftwatch has already been offering direct help to the limited extent we can."

He reaches for a sheet of paper. "Do you have a particular approach you're planning to take with the others that I should be aware of?"