"I know all about that...it is not easy at all, let me tell you!"

*finding a quiet place in the Skyhold gardens to read the book Solas let her borrow about spirits and the Fade*

"I don't want to interact with any more demons. One was plenty, ma serannas..."

"I've done nothing of the sort! I don't even know how a book can have boots."

“Oh, I love Aveline! She’s such a kind person. It’s very sweet how she and Isabela are always looking out for me.”

“I wouldn’t call it enjoyable, but to each his own!”

“Audacity seemed nice at the time, he said he would help me. And aren’t all demons without clothing? I don’t think they make them big enough such large frames, am I right?”

“That’s not funny, don’t make jokes about that. It’s terrible what happened to him and it’s all my fault.”

"Yes, I suppose it does sometimes. I have to be more mindful of what I eat before I go to sleep!"

“Yes, I suppose that all makes sense. And yes, Hawke was — is — a good leader. He often says he never wanted the job, but he always steps up to help everyone, even if they’re afraid to ask for it. It was plenty fun traveling around to many adventures. We had some good times.”

“Yes, right…that would make the most sense, wouldn’t it? I will remain here without risk to anyone.” *Merrill nodded* “Yes, we’ve been through plenty together. Kirkwall hasn’t exactly been very kind to us over the years, but we made it through alright. Our friendship got all of us through.”

“I…hadn’t thought of it like that. I suppose you are right. I need to get my head on straight, sooner than later.” *looked away then back again* “Does he? After all I put him through? He is a good friend…better than I deserve…”

"Again, none of these make any sense..."

"I don't like this book very much, it talks about me quite a lot and I don't know what I did to make it upset!"

"Yes, of course! Luckily she is also Dalish and a mage, so she understands where I am coming from -- to help find the lost knowledge of our people. I will do what I can to help the Inquisition as well while I am here. I don't plan to harm anyone on purpose... I don't plan to use blood magic again."

“Fen’Harel! That doesn’t even make any sense!”

*wiping her eyes* “However? Oh, thank Mythal! Have you reconsidered, Miss Seeker?” *feeling slightly relieved seeing her sheath her sword*

*nervously staring at her sword* “The demon is dead…my Keeper made sure of that. She…sacrificed herself to save me…She…she was like a mother to me…and now she’s gone. I should have died instead of her! If it weren’t for my stupidity…” *buried her face in her hands*

I did nothing of the sort!

"Yes, since it didn't help get the mirror into working order. I've tried everything. It was all for nothing, I'm afraid. Although the others offered to try to help me activate it by other means, perhaps even bringing it here to Skyhold. I don't know, we've yet to discuss it further."

*looked up with innocent puppy eyes* “Yes, that’s right. I told all of this to Solas and the Inquisitor as well, they understood my intentions and the importance of retaining the knowledge of the Dalish. There’s so much about my people that was lost, that we nominate longer know. It’s very sad.”

“I was desperate, I tried every other way to fix the mirror the proper way and regular magic wouldn’t work. I even asked my Keeper for help as she refused. No one else seemed to understand or care about the lost history of the Dalish, I was trying to restore it because it’s important.”

*shrugged her shoulders* “I don’t know exactly how to measure it.” *rubbed her head nervously, Cassandra was asking lots of questions as she was good at interrogating* “The mirror was corrupted and I needed to cleanse it so I could restore it to full use, but I still haven’t gotten it to work.”

“I…didn’t drink it, I cut myself to use my own blood to cleanse the mirror. There was nothing like that. I spent most of the time in my house and in the Fade away from others so they wouldn’t be harmed. The demon that came to me was Audacity.”

*still looks unsettled because Cassandra didn’t say “no” yet* “I only did it to cleanse a magical eleven mirror I found, but I didn’t hurt anyone with my magic!” *staring at the longsword laying in front of her on the table, her eyes wider than usual*

*more nervous now & fidgety* “I knew this was a bad idea coming here…I had a bad feeling leaving Kirkwall. I thought the Alienage was bad…I was only trying to help my people, I didn’t hurt anyone, I swear!”

*more nervous, even though Cassandra was demonstrating she wasn’t going to hurt her, but still holding her breath* *speaking fast* “You…aren’t going to hurt me…? I…was worried about staying here because of…everything. I thought Hawke spoke to you vouching for me, I…was so scared…”

"I've heard so many names at the Alienage and around the city that I just had to ignore it. It became white noise after a while. Why do people have to be so cruel?"

“Yes…I did, was just wondering if…I mean…” *nervous, stammering* “I spoke to a few others…the Inquisitor and Solas & they seem not worried about it, so I…” *inhaled sharply* “With the state of everything…I was worried about being a blood mage here. Surely as a Seeker you can already sense that…”

“Oh…you’re on a first-name basis already, you must be ‘really’ good friends!” *noticed her red cloth again* “Your fabric is on your other arm now, it’s still so pretty!” *looking around* So, has Hawke told you much about me before I came? Since I came?”

“Excuse me, Miss Cassandra? Hello, I’m Merrill, we met some weeks back when I came to Skyhold. One of Hawke’s friends from Kirkwall.” *looks nervous* “Speaking of Hawke, you’re one of his new friends, right? We haven’t had a chance to talk. Nice to meet you again.” @allegrafilomena.bsky.social

What? No, that's not true at all! They actually tell us stories about the Dread Wolf and to keep at eye out for his trickery. My Keeper would always say, "May the Dread Wolf never catch your scent."

"I didn't jump, but I did knock over some of his books. Ghilan'nain....how embarrassing..."

"Oh I should do that! They've all been so helpful, it's the least I can do. I just...where is the closest market? There don't seem to be any here...in the snowy mountains."

"I have much better things to do, ma serannas. Oh, like tend to my mirror! Plenty more research needs to be done."

"Mythal, I hope not! Surely Prince Sebastian wouldn't allow for such a thing to happen! That Meredith was...not such a nice person."

"I'm afraid I don't know that one...that was when Hawke's warden cousin went to Honnleath to find the golem, right? I heard there was something to do with a cat. Is he related to Ser-Pounce-A-Lot I've heard so much about?"

Watering the Royal Elfroot and Felandaris plants growing in the pots in the Chantry courtyard. “There you are, drink up so you can grow big and strong enough to be plucked. Then you’ll make room for your friends to grow!”

"The demon came to me when I needed help cleansing the mirror. He seemed nice enough about it."

Walking around Skyhold and wandered into the horse tables. “Oh dear, that’s not where I wanted to be. How did I even get here? Merrill scratches her head. “I don’t suppose someone around here has a map?” Heading back the way she came from to find the courtyard.

“I will still take it, can’t be much worse than what is available in the Alienage. Varric was always so kind, he’d bring me plenty of food and other essentials when I just moved in. He’s very sweet.”

“That sounds quite delightful, Miss Josie! My, they must have some great taste there in the north!”

"Like the demon Audacity that agreed to help me with the eluvian? If only I had known better..."

“What? Oh I bet Hawke would like to see that very much so.”

Merrill walked through the tower and into the courtyard in search of the Dalish Inquisitor. She spotted her collecting some of the freshly grown herbs in the pots in the garden. "Beg your pardon, Miss Inquis- I mean, Fen'ara, ir abelas...is now a good time to meet with you?" @fen-ara.bsky.social

“I do eat meat, yes. But I would love to try that vegetable dip, it sounds lovely!”

“Oh, I would love to try something, Miss Josie! Oh how very kind of you!”

Exploring more of Skyhold wandering around looking for her pirate friend. Walking passed “Herald’s Rest” and sees Isabela coming out. Merrill excitedly waves to her. “Isabela! There you are. I was hoping to find you around here. This place is so big, I’ve gotten lost.” @shantyqueen.bsky.social

“Miss Josie does what now?” *widened eyes*

“Alright, I will do just that!”