faderift | [Open] [I can move mountains, move mountains.. ]

WHO: Bethany Hawke and You
WHAT: Exploring the Inquisition
WHEN: The next few days of Wintermarch
WHERE: The garden, the tavern, the courtyard, the library.
NOTES: Content warnings, OOC notes, links to other relevant posts, etc.

The first thing Bethany did after arriving at Skyhold?

A bath. A beautiful, long hot bath where she soaked with nice soap and some sort of fancy oil and just ... cleansed herself from about a week's worth of sand and dirt. After that though, well.

Bethany used to be the sort of person who would keep to the edges to not be noticed. Kept herself hidden, to keep herself from being taken to a Circle. Her family went through such risks to keep her free - keeping her head down seemed to be a small sacrifice to make.

Now, nine years - almost ten! - years a Warden and she still observed quietly from the background. Yet now, she would step forward. Move more boldly, with more confidence and a great deal more poise. She also, as she had been apt to do even in her days in Kirkwall, stopped to help people.

So there you will find her, all around Skyhold, quietly soaking up everything, or chatting happily with someone as she helps them carry firewood or food out to the hungry troops training in the yard. The first thing you will know is that smile - dimples and bright, and completely unfeigned. Who knows, maybe it's just pointing at you.

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It's not surprising that Bethany would think so, as Ellana shares her sentiment. Alistair is one of the people here that she considers a close friend. He's funny, easy to get along with, and he helped save Felix, even if he claims it was all Sabriel's doing. Obviously he was needed for whatever the ritual Kaidan spoke of entailed.

"I believe that. A funny story that's just a little embarrassing would be fine by me."

She catches that bit of doubt in Bethany's expression and nods, moving to pick up a piece of wood.

"Oh, yes. Look at this. This is hawthorn. It's one of the best woods to use because it burns a long time. And it's dry too. Green wood doesn't burn nearly as well as dried out wood. This wood in this amount will last them."

"Oh, well, then let me tell you about the time that Alistair stated that he was still young enough to stay up all night and be fit to go through the entire day? And then he fell asleep in the middle of lunch - face went right into a bowl of gazpacho. He woke up two hours later with a piece of gazpacho soaked bread stuck to the side of his face." Bethany stated, with a little grin.

She blinked at the wood itself, before she grinned widely, "That's amazing! I never would have known that. For that, you are owed some tea."

Ellana giggles brightly at the story, but then her face takes on a mildly puzzled look.

"Wait; what's gazpacho?" It's definitely not a food they had in the clan. But whatever it is, she's pleased to be offered tea, and she grins. "I would love some tea."

Bethany pauses, then explains quietly. "It's sort of a cold tomato soup. Very popular in Neverra, actually. Sometimes when you're traveling you have to taste all kinds of odd local cuisine."

She grinned afterwards, leading the way to the kitchen. Now that she knows where it is, and all.

"Oh, I've never been to Nevarra," she replies, moving to walk beside Bethany. "I'm not sure I'd like soup that's cold, but I would try it once just to say I had! You must have traveled all over as a Warden. Do you have a favorite place?"

"Truly? Oh, it's a beautiful place. I wasn't there long - just long enough to take care of a darkspawn problem -- but it really was beautiful." Bethany's smile was a little wistful. "Hmm, I prefer my mother's soup honestly -- never could get it the way she made it. And my favorite place? ... well, you'll find it hard to believe, but a whole in the wall bar called The Hanged Man, in Kirkwall."

"I can actually believe it," Ellana replies, giving her a smile of understanding. "Varric misses Kirkwall too." She's asked him about it, and he said something to the effect that it was a shithole, but his shithole.

"You must have had some good times there. Bars are gathering places for friends to sit back and relax."

"I'll bet he does. Kirkwall is in Varric's blood, and he knows it backwards and forwards." She smiled, a little wistful, "It wasn't always the nicest place to live -- but we were together there. That made it more like home than anythng else."

She dimpled again at that, her brown eyes lost in memory as she started to walk back towards Skyhold, "Maker, yes. Wicked Grace games until the early morning - Carver and I trying to get Isabela to tell us all her dirty secrets and Marian stopping her. Aveline trying to explain to Fenris and Merrill why they couldn't just go traipsing around Hightown gardens because no one bothered to lock their gates. Anders and Varric telling horrible templar jokes... "

She paused, and sighed, "It all seems so long ago."

The descriptions can never match what it was actually like to be a part of it all, but Ellana still has a picture in her head, even though she doesn't know what many of those people look like. Sitting around sharing drinks and stories, playing games, telling jokes; it all sounds wonderful. It sounds like something they could have here at the Herald's Rest. There is still some tension between people here, but the longer they work together, the more that's starting to fade.

Ellana looks over and worries her bottom lip at Bethany's sigh. "I'm sorry if I made you speak of something that causes you pain now."

In Bethany's mind's eye, she can see it all. Coming back from the Bone Pit, Varric telling the wild story of Marian climbing atop the dragon and Marian rolling her eyes and grinning into her cup of mead. Anders poking at Varric for making it up, Fenris and Aveline trying not to laugh and failing, while Merrill giggled and Isabella added all kinds of sexual embellishments. Carver grinning at Isabela while she flushed bright red but couldn't stop listening, watching all if it.

That finally connected to this place, a gentle snowflake of a hint. Skyhold wasn't home, but it welcomed it. It made you feel safe, as if you belonged.

She blinked at Ellana's statement, before she smiled softly, "It doesn't cause me pain. Does it make me wistful? Always. But you hold onto the good memories, especially through the bad times. I don't regret a single thing about the life I live now, or lived then. I'd change nothing, outside of my mother dying."

"That's a good way to look at things. Regrets would make life hard, I'd imagine." Not that she doesn't have any regrets herself, but her experiences have made her a stronger person.

"At least you can reunite with some of them here."

"Regrets tend to drag at the soul -- I learned that from my mother." She could still see Leandra, staring into that fireplace and mourning what could have been with her husband.

"See, a silver lining to everything." She smiled quietly, looking up at Skyhold.

That sounds like a story that Ellana shouldn't pry into, so she doesn't. Instead she smiles and nods her head towards the kitchens.

"Ready for tea?"

"Absolutely."

Bethany grinned, as she follows after the other woman. Glad to avoid the subject of her mother, and all her thwarted hopes.

[ ooc: seems like a good stopping point. wanna handwave the tea chatting? ]

(OOC: I like it! :))

[Open] [I can move mountains, move mountains.. ]

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