[closed-ish] we live and dream in an ancient hallowed land

[eolasemah]

WHO: Sina with Nari, and with Korrin and Araceli (let me know if you want a specific starter)
WHAT: the aftermath of this thread
WHEN: the following night and a few days after
WHERE: the Dahlasanor tent, the tavern, wherever others want
NOTES:The third prompt is open to all!

Directly after her argument with Pel, Sina made a beeline for the tent she shared with Nahariel and all but dove inside, immediately flattening herself against her bedroll and burying her face in her modest pillow. Small, angry crying sounds emanated. (Nari)

The following day, Sina went to the tavern of her own volition for the first time. Not to drink, of course; perhaps it was because it was the last place anyone would look for her. She sat by a window with a cup of tea, her knees drawn up to her chest, melancholy emanating from her very being. (Korrin + Araceli)

Over the next few days, she could be found ghosting around Skyhold, avoiding most people, particularly Clan Ashara. When not out and about, she threw herself into her gardening with a tenacity unusual even to her. (errbody else)

Comments

[eolasemah]

Sina sits back and sighs, picking up her teacup to stare into it. She's had the chance to talk it over with a few people already, but still can't seem to come to a resolution, either on what the actual answer is or how she feels about it.

"If... I don't know how the Circles work," she says thoughtfully, "but if there were... one mage, a figure of authority, whose explicit purpose it is to protect the others. And to keep the magic strong in the community, and... to look out for their own, unbiased by outside influence..." She takes a sip, then looks up at Adelaide. "...and if that person were to court a Templar. Or allow one to court her. How would you feel about it?"

[fleurdesel]

Ah.

That.

Adelaide has her own reservations on the courtship based entirely on how it would look, how it does look, what it might mean simply from the standpoint of a mage- she hadn't begun to consider what it might mean from the perspective of a Dalish Mage. What that changed- for it does seem to change quite a bit. "You had a disagreement with her over her relationship with Norrington."

So they are plain.

"In a Circle- such things would not happen. Mages and templars are not encouraged to fraternize with one another in such a fashion. It offers one or the other undue influence. No good would come of it."

[eolasemah]

Sina at first looks a bit anxious on Adelaide nailing the subject completely (and she was so subtle, too), but that melts into relief when it appears they may actually be on the same page.

"Among the Dalish, it's unheard of," she says quietly, "but mating with humans-- in my clan, at least, is... frowned upon." She blushes a little, either because she's talking about 'mating' or because she's talking to a human. Maybe both. "And for him to be a Templar, it's... I don't know what she could possibly be thinking."

[fleurdesel]

"Any child of any other race and a human is, ultimately, human. I can see where that would be cause for concern among the Dalish as you are attempting to regain what..." Indelicate, to say 'what they have lost' for they haven't lost anything. It was stolen. "What was taken from you."

Better. Awkward, but better.

"Perhaps she is thinking as a young woman rather than as a Dalish, or as a mage? I expressed my own concerns to the both of them for how this might look as she is a Councilor and he is a templar but I did not consider what it might be for her as a Dalish elf. These are things I do not know and cannot speak for." It is not her place. She knows that much for certain.

[eolasemah]

"From a Dalish point of view, it's..." Unforgivable. Obscene. Words that fit the scenario, but that Sina would never want to use to describe Pel or any of her choices. "...most mages among us become Keepers. The Keeper is the heart of the clan. The representative of all its ideals and beliefs. The guiding hand, the peacekeeper, the judge. She must always think of the clan first, and do right by them at whatever cost to herself."
Sina looks sadly away, her teacup perched undrunk between her thin fingers. "Pel and I are in line to be Keepers to our clans. Or... were. She has stepped down." Her face is caught in a sudden wince, as though her own words have struck her painfully in the heart. "At first I thought... her reasoning was related to those of us at Skyhold. We have no Keeper here, and she was taking up the mantle, unofficially. But now I..." She purses her lips, biting back a grimace and the tears she knows would follow. "...I can't help wondering if it was all just for this. And I don't understand."

[fleurdesel]

"...her magic manifested when she was very young." It was disconcerting how young Pel's magic came to be. If one is brought up as a keeper from the moment hey present as a mage- she's had this pressure on her, this weight over her as long as she has been alive. As long as she can remember.

How is that fair in the slightest? She had thought, perhaps, Dalish handled their mages differently. Kindly. But if this weight is put on them so early and for so long- it is no small wonder Sina is so distressed. "Did you try asking her- or was the news too distressing to process?"

[eolasemah]

There isno such thing as fairness when it came to being a Keeper, at least none that one gets to hold onto for herself. This is the life that Sina understands, and she knows all too well that in a clan of only two mages such as her own, there's no such thing as selfishness. There's hardly room for a self at all.

"It's been a few days since we argued," she says softly, resigned, "and she's gone off to the Hinterlands to research some ruins. I won't have the chance to bring it up again until she returns, and... I'm not certain I want to, anymore." A dismayed sigh escapes her, and she slumps a little in her chair. "I'll be keeping in contact via sending crystal, and that's hardly a good time. She'll be doing something that will benefit the People, despite everything." The thought comes before she can stop it: and I'll be right here, as always, doing nothing of any use to the others.

[fleurdesel]

"If you wish things to remain as they are between you- then you are within your rights to leave these things unasked and words unsaid. If you wish to understand? There is no harm in the asking...though if you forgive my being bold enough to say- it seems to have done your friendship some harm by leaving things as they are." She's never seen Sina this out of sorts. Not truly. "Take the time you have apart to think on it."

That is the best advice she might offer.

"...and you will be here, with all the reference materials that she could not carry, to translate and explain what it is they are seeing. Bruce did much the same for myself and the other healers when we were in the Fallow Mire. With the weather as it was, taking books that might explain what we were seeing was unwise. He remained here to offer us that which we could not have on hand. His assistance was invaluable." So too is Sina's skill here invaluable as well.

[eolasemah]

Sina nods contemplatively, still looking quite worn down, but at least she has something to think about now. A productive way forward. "I'll talk to her," she decides, "...but after she comes back. And after I've figured out what I want to say." She smiles sadly.

[fleurdesel]

"Good." Adelaide reaches out gently to squeeze Sina's hand. "Disagreements are...difficult, especially when cultural ideals are involved- but there are few that are worth losing ones friends or peers. You needn't agree but respecting one another's choices is important."

She'd learned that the had way, after the Spire. So many people she'd never be able to make up with, to apologize to for the tension in the last few months. If she can help anyone avoid that? She will.