I'm going to ask about your Adopted NPCs because..... GIMME. But it was kind of funny going through this list, because asking things like "Do they have a family?" and "What are their opinions on consorting with Daedric Princes?" felt like... squeezing lemon juice on a papercut. Brutal.
For Miraak:
Which areas of Skyrim do they find most beautiful and most dangerous? [Bonus: where would he settle down if he could?]
What are their religious affiliations, and how does their worship (or lack thereof) affect their day-to-day life? [Specifically, what is Miraak's relationship to the Divines post-FFO?]
What is their favorite kind of food that can only be found in Skyrim?
For Sophie:
Who is their mentor? Who do they go to most for lessons?
Would they be able to live off the land if they were lost in the wilds of Skyrim? How skilled are they at foraging and hunting?
Thanks for the wonderful questions, friend!
Miraak
Which areas of Skyrim do they find most beautiful and most dangerous? Bonus: where would he settle down if he could?
"In my youth I could hardly have considered beauty without danger; these days, as my hair begins to gray and Skyrim's winters seem ever more bitterly cold, I have rather lost my taste for discomfort. One cannot appreciate the grandeur of a glacier whilst shivering in its shadow. The supposed Nord endurance to frost is mostly bravado and bluster, and for myself I set both of these to the flame some time ago.
"In short, I avoid the north when I'm able. For bitter reasons beyond the weather, I have no love for the region comprising Labyrinthian and its outlying ruins. Too much there has changed, and too much has remained the same.
"I find my greatest happiness anywhere where I have friends, a warm fire, and a bed that's up off the floor. Rough living is the providence of youth. There is more beauty in the lines of my lover's face than I will ever perceive now in any lonely vista.
"As to where I might settle? Well, fate seems to draw me to Whiterun time and time again, and I have my eye on a particular house in the Plains District. The former occupant and I did not part on the best of terms, but that is all in the past now. Breezehome sits as an empty memorial to an absent dragon. I wonder if it might not fare better as a living home to a present one."
What are their religious affliations, and how does their worship (or lack thereof) affect their day-to-day life? Specifically, what is Miraak's relationship to the Divines post-FFO?
"The Divines and I tolerate each other well enough. That may sound cold, but it is benevolent in comparison to my previous relationships with certain darker deities. I have great admiration for the teachings of Kyne, as I have witnessed the power and meaning of her unerring cycles. However, I do not afford time out of my day to fall down and profess my love. I have spent quite enough of my life in structures devoted to faith. Skyrim's wilderness is Kyne's only true temple, and the minutes I sometimes spend on my knees are decidedly not for the glorification of any god."
What is their favorite kind of food that can only be found in Skyrim?
"I have a new answer to this question with every new dish I taste. The environment of my upbringing did not lend itself to culinary appreciation. There is such a difference between people who see eating as a chore to be done with, and those that know every meal is an opportunity for satisfaction and joy. To provide a specific answer: I did not know food could make one warm and happy, until I sampled Jon Battle-Born's rabbit meatballs."
Sofie
Who is their mentor? Who do they go most to for lessons?
"'Mentors are best kept at arm's length. Most just want to twist you into the shape they want you to have. If you don't bend to them, they'll push until something breaks. It's rare to find someone who truly wants what's best for you. My first mentor, a priest of Boethiah, was a man who killed as easily as he breathed. I had all my fingers, before his sharp lessons.
"The Companions taught me there was more to life than taking lives. Farkas showed me what friendship was, and the meaning of honor. Aela, in her wisdom and in her failure, warned me of the consequences of losing yourself. Miraak and Vilkas helped me see that a life lived alone, in paranoid safety, is no life at all.
"It's rare to find someone who truly wants the best for you, but I found her. Lucia shows me the difference between living and being alive, every time we touch. I don't understand why she likes me. It took me a long time to believe her. And it's not always easy, even with Lucia—but she makes the struggle feel worth the pain."
Would they be able to live off the land if they were lost in the wilds of Skyrim? How skilled are they in hunting and foraging?
"There is more to fear in a Windhelm alley than the tundra of Whiterun. Beasts are predictable in ways that people are not. I have faith in the hunger of bears and wolves, in merciless blizzards and stupid hares. Survival outside the walls is a matter of luck and ability. Inside, it's about how much people like you. It's about trust, vulnerability, knowing when to let your guard down.
"I feel more myself in a darkening forest than I ever will in a crowded square. In the city, every soul has their own motives. Greedy shopkeepers, sly pickpockets, all wearing false smiles. A long time ago, my survival depended on the kindness of strangers. Ask any beggar what kind of life that is.
"No, I wouldn't starve out there in the great alone. I have my axes and my bow. But from what Miraak has shared of his years in the wilds, I don't think I would be happy. Lucia tells me people aren't meant to be all by themselves. I think I might believe her on that, too."