It should be a branch of the Speech tree, not a separate tree.
Agreed. I wouldn't like to see the players perks affect other NPCs - that, to me, sort of defeats the purpose of levelling and choosing perks. It's about
personal growth, as opposed to the growth of others.
And don't worry about TESO affecting the main series, OP. TESO is being developed by Zenimax Online Studios, a separate studio under the same company as Bethesda.