Tillia answers the door at their apartment. She's wearing a mage's robe, in purple and green, in the Absalom style.  "Good afternoon, sir."

Right, he saw this girl halfling from a distance. "Oh, hello. I was looking for Professor Coeliaris. Would you be her apprentice? I'm Theopho Lebanel, I'm a delegate at the convention."

"Welcome, Delegate Theopho. I am Tillia, Professor Coeliaris's apprentice and calculator, yes. Let me see if she's at home." Tillia casts [Message], and in a few moments, Professor Coeliaris comes this way down a curving corridor. 

"Welcome, Delegate Theopho! Come in, come in, would you like something to drink?"

"Thank you, Tillia. And thank you, Professor; yes, I would. Whatever you'd recommend. How have you been in this awkward intermission we're having?"

"Of course."

She guides Theopho into a pleasant open space filled with rugs and comfortable armchairs, with extremely abstract paintings on the walls.

An [Unseen Servant] delivers drinks. 

"Oh, it's been- quite interesting. We were in a tiny kerfuffle ourselves, alas. I will say that it's much easier to handle at fourth circle than at second."

"I sort of taunted a mob to chase me and then dimension doored out of an alleyway just out of sight. I'm not sure it was the wisest thing but it successfully distracted them from burning my home down, and the scroll was cheaper than that. Mind, I was expecting them, given the floor on the first day."

"Oh, I used Merciful acid myself. We use Merciful spells a lot at the college, so he students can safely experience the spell from both ends."

"Never used that one at the Occularium, but then I'm not much of an evoker. Or a combat mage, I got my circles in experiments and intrigue."

"Interesting." She sips her wine. "In the committee, we've decided on proposing some significant changes to how Cheliax runs its schools- as someone who has attended a...foreign school of magic... I would love to hear your thoughts on them."

"I'd be interested to attend; I did start in the domestic schools, as well. I wanted to check with you before joining, though; I may be something of a political liability, and I wouldn't want to interfere with your work."

"Well- I'm certainly not assuming that we get all the members back after the this little lacuna, so we'll need to see if there is a committee at all!"

she laughs, in the graceful tinkling elven way

"I'll see what I can do, Delegate Theopho. Have you seen the proposals passed so far?"

"I did, and they seem reasonable as far as they go. I think the committee may, so far, be somewhat underweighting how nasty the wizard track was to its students, in terms of how viable preserving parts of it are. Though awarding titles to new teachers will probably help with the inevitable purging and rebuilding."

"What would you propose, sir?"

"No need to call me sir, Tillia, you certainly don't work for me. ...I'm not entirely sure. If we try to strip them of all the old teachers, that's basically just abolishment, and I'm sure many people will want that but not me. Giving the amount of scrutiny to professors and junior teachers that the Queen and companions gave to the higher nobility before confirming them seems in line with their significance. Harder to do, since those affected are widely spread, but they're much fewer in number. It might make sense to judge them with military tribunals rather than civilian, in a similar vein."

"It seems to me that it is better to divert men through their desires than through the blunt hammer of Justice, Theopho. If wizards are allowed to teach outside the schools, then the good schools will prosper, and the wicked not. For the major colleges, of course our noble Queen has already brought in new teachers-"

"No one but wizards will believe you, that good schools will prosper. And not all of them. I'm not saying you're wrong, in the long run you'd be right, but they won't. Perception matters as much as reality; more, probably, when we're writing laws to bind the whole country."

"It's clear to me that we need you on the committee, Theopho. What is there that can we do to mitigate your... political liability?"

"I don't really know. I haven't renounced Erecura, though I did talk to some real Iomedans and shut down the temple until such time as I buy a commune. I'm not averse to that becoming public knowledge as long as it isn't in a way that makes Chelam look good for accusing me, and it might help. Three more commotions like Select Wain's speech and no one will bother with remembering me, but that's not exactly to be desired."

"And what's preventing you from buying a commune? Is that something that can be done before we resume?"

"There's not a particularly liquid market in them, especially outside Absalom. And I still need to weigh who to ask, since it goes by the scriber's god, principally whether Pharasma would lie to me if asked. I don't currently expect to have time while I am also engaged in the convention."

"Which god would you trust? Abadar? I know the solution to such. Iomedae? I hear she's restricting access, nowadays. Serenrae perhaps? Erastil?" 

"For most of them, I'm not sure they'd know. I'm trying to verify that the story of Erecura as a mortal as I understand it is basically true. I'm pretty sure she ascended before the Starstone, and I'm not sure how much attention the ancient gods would have given the topic. Abadar's one of the better choices, probably. It's also quite possible that the result will be me sticking with Her, if that story was accurate in the major details, in which case it will help very little politically."

"At least you'll be happy, man! A teleport to Osirion, the time of the Pharaoh- I think you'd be looking at three or four thousand gold, all told? Oh- I forgot Nethys! Nethys would know if anyone."

"The only thing you learn from communing with Nethys is how to think like Nethys, which I wouldn't wish on anyone. If I went to Sothis I could see if Clepati would tell me anything, though, I've heard that's a fascinating experience if rarely all that helpful."