A sketch of my dragonborn, Dagny, and Talvas Fathryon!
Dagny, a young mage in her mid-20s, received her letter of rejection from the College of Winterhold around the same time she met Talvas, who was in Windhelm (her hometown) on an important errand for Master Neloth.
Her rejection came as a total shock, for she'd been certain of her acceptance. To soothe her dismay, embarrassment, and rapidly escalating feelings of inferiority, she accompanies her new friend Talvas to Solstheim for a change of scenery. There she meets Master Neloth and becomes his secondary apprentice - but only because he is interested in studying her, as she is half mer (Altmer) and half man (Nord) and such unions are rare.
Because of Neloth's disregard for teaching, her true master becomes Talvas, who is her senior by a few decades (such is the elven lifespan & slow rate of aging). As a master conjurer, his skill is on par with the College of Winterhold’s best, but his prowess is constantly belittled by Neloth, who abuses him. Furthermore, Talvas is shaped by the deeply hierarchical and meritocratic Telvanni society of which he and Neloth are members.
That said, he's a pretty stressed-out guy who often doubts himself. However, Dagny thinks he's excellent and always looks up to him. So, while he provides her with a world-class education in the art of magic, she provides him with an emotional haven, which he desperately needs. (It must also be mentioned that Talvas vigilantly protects her from the worst of Neloth's attempted experiments, of which she has only a vague, peripheral awareness...)
