Stand with the Dales

The Prompt: Fereldans and a tribal community (Avvar, Dalish, or Chasind) dispute the clearing of some forest land.

Who Received the Prompt: Kumiko

Kumiko had not expected that the leisurely trip she had been attempting to take, away from the city, would have her stumble upon some kind of dispute with the Fereldan officials and a small, Dalish clan. It had yet to break into war, though the Keeper and whatever general she was talking to, looked ready to fight. She snickered quietly, and perched on a nearby tree branch to watch. It wasn't her fight, wasn't her forest. Not all forests were sacred, though people seemed to believe they were.

She scowled at the thought, rolling her eyes. Yukiko was silent; which was nice. Gave Kumiko more time to think on whether she wanted to get involved with the locals. She hummed, kicking her feet as she tried to catch the catty conversation.

There were a lot of duties as hearthkeeper, much more than just making sure his clan had enough to eat. Taegen didn't really feel all that ready to have that mantle on him, despite the fact that he had been training for this most of his life, but since his mentor had passed on, there had been no question that he was to take it on. The diplomacy parts of his job often wore on him the most, not that he couldn't be diplomatic but he had little patience for idiots and there were a lot of idiots in the world.

As he made his way through the woods, he heard arguing coming from up ahead. He was supposed to have a meeting with the Dalish clean currently in that area, but what he wasn't expecting was to come along and find that clan arguing with some shemlen. He paused at a tree and watched from a distance, he didn't want to make things worse by showing up at an awkward moment, but he didn't want to move on either in case the elves needed help. He soon realised he wasn't alone and looked up into the tree.

Enjoying the show?

Kumiko tilted her head, an unapologetic stare searching for the owner of the voice. Hm. It'd be better if there was more blood. She mused, dropping down from the tree in one fluid motion, standing tall once she had landed, just next to the stranger. Dalish. Elf, though, so at least he had that going for him.

War is only fun, if there's something to lose. They're arguing about the forest belonging to a king, and they're arguing that it is theirs. But you Dalish, you're nomads. You cannot own what you do not settle. She stated, turning to study the man.

The arguing escalated, and a blow landed. Elf hit shemlen. Before she could say anything more, a true fight had broken out in front of them, though she stayed steadfast. A

Was it his job to be diplomatic, sure. Was it his job to intervene in another clan's disputes with the shemlens, not really. Had the Shemlens struck first or had they been Orlesians, Taegen probably would have stepped in to offer assistance, but as it stood it was the elves that had struck first and there was a part of him that couldn't argue with the women's perspective on the fact that Dalish didn't settle, so what claim did these Dalish really claim to have on the forest. What were they trying to do with the land that had the shemlens all bent out of shape about it. He definitely had questions, but standing there watching the fight break out, well he honestly didn't see the point of getting involved at the moment.

Not all Dalish are smart and not all shemlens are dumb, it's a matter of statistics really. Silly thing to argue about over land, but then that's something that greatly concerns the shemlens, always arguing over borders, always trying to take more. Never happy with what they have.

That is why the shemlens will disappear, eventually. She mused, watching the fighting down below. With a huff, she started in the opposite direction. My job is not to cease fighting between stupid parties. No, in fact, she didn't currently have a job. She'd served her purpose, bringing the veil down alongside Fen'Harel. With no mistress to guide her, Kumiko was... bored. She was... a bit lost, considering uthernera if not for the little pet she most enjoyed.

He turned his head a bit as she talked about the shemlen eventually disappearing, he wasn't sure he agreed with that, they'd proven to be quite resilient, but he also wasn't fussed about it and so no reason to say anything about it. Taegen tipped his head slightly as she talked about intervening not being her job. It got him a bit curious, what exactly was her job, just something in the way she said it.

Is it anyone's job? Honestly there should be a special word for dumb elves that pick stupid fights with shemlen. Not that Taegen had that much of a problem with shemlen, some were nice, as long as they weren't Orlesian of course. Orlesian shemlen were the lowest of the low that Taegen struggled to even consider ever giving the benefit of the doubt. They paraded around in their silly masks, absurd.

While generally too bored to engage, Yukiko could not help but muster up a reply this time: Maen shiral a pleota.

There were all stupid, and no one word would cover it.