bluebell, hibiscus (bc now i am curious,)
❖ BOTANICAL MEMES : accepting.
bluebell : does your muse learn from their past , or are they prone to repeating the same mistakes ?
Yes and no ! I think it really depends on the severity of the mistake. A mage's worst enemy is their own hubris, but I do think her experience with her father's business dealings helps buoy her quite a bit. It's not necessarily that she has a foot in both worlds, moreso that she's pretty adept at melding the two worlds together — the world of Mystics and the world of man. So when she makes a mistake, especially an egregious one with some consequences, she determines to never make that same mistake twice.
Having said that, she has her blind spots. She's still young, and although she cuts an imposing figure, she has her vulnerabilities like anyone else — particularly emotionally. She can be smug and overconfident, she can jump to conclusions, she can be spiteful if she's especially embarrassed or emotionally exposed. On the other hand, even if she knows someone's become a soft spot or sensitive subject for her, that's a weakness she can't always properly account for. Knowing her trust and time are valuable is different from cutting a person off entirely from them, for example, even if they've betrayed that trust. A person can themselves become a blind spot, and I think Assassin's decision to "test" her genuinely caught her off-guard despite her contingencies for this reason.
So, generally speaking, she takes her mistakes as learning experiences and adapts accordingly — but the exceptions usually come in the form of people she wants a little too close or goals she wants a little too much.
hibiscus : how does your muse view the gentler , daintier things in life ? as things worth preserving & caring for , or things only bound to wither & disappear ?
I think she values the gentler things quite a lot, actually ! Being a mage means knowing certain things to be true, and death in particular is always close at hand. One small mistake can be your undoing, and if you haven't prepared accordingly, you'll cause problems for several different generations along with your own untimely demise. That sort of outlook tends to take the shine out of the gentler and daintier things; mages smell of blood more than any other fragrance.
Dorothea, however, has experienced a bit more than the average noblewoman in her time. She's crossed oceans, made connections that would put themselves on the line for her or her family, absorbed cultures to the extent that she can at least converse with those around her. Working closely with not only the human world, but the natural world, it's difficult not to have an appreciation for it. Going out of her way to ensure humans aren't involved with Mystics because she'd rather lay down her life for them than eliminate them ( be they collateral damage or witnesses ) speaks greatly to her character, so why wouldn't she be able to appreciate the delicate beauty of it all ?
Lily of the valley flowers are a prominent feature in her design, and I think that's intentional. Not only are they particularly delicate looking, but they're commonly associated with purity, sweetness, a return to happiness. Even if she's the type to conceal blades as decoration in that same hat, she's also the type to have hints of sweetness and purity of affection — and at the very least, she's the type to pause and admire the Lily of the valley.
