i DO see the appeal of meredith seeking out bethany specifically because she's obsessed with hawke (there's so much to unpack there) BUT i think bethany on her own has a lot of Draw as well. if only for the impressive feat of being an apostate with GENERATIONAL experience in being an apostate. it's a hawke family thing. she's got magical education and discipline that could make everyone else (including senior enchanters) look like bumbling idiots...
and she had all that experience & power LONG before any harrowing, and with only malcolm's teaching to guide her. (true, malcolm had the benefit of once having attended a circle himself so it wasn't all self-taught but still)
like. isn't that incredibly intimidating to the circle & templars both. an apostate who knows 100% she's fully capable and stable without them. that kind of self-confidence could be enough to spark meredith's interest














