Solo Light My Fire

[Erida]

21st of Summer, 518AV
19 Bells

The setting sun provided an ideal time for the Ethaefal woman to work on her candles. Fire was fine during the day, but sitting next to an active flame while the blazing heat beat down on Syka was far from the kind of situation that one would consider ideal. Instead, Erida found that fair temperatures of dawn and dusk gave the right amount of light and a cool enough temperature for her to comfortably complete her tasks.

Crouching down on her hands and knees, she gently blew on the small fire and winced. Backing up a little bit and sitting on her ankles, Erida dusted her hands off and pinched her eyes closed, wiping off some of the ash that had accidentally gotten onto her face.

Glancing up at the sky, she smiled, seeing the moon slowly peek above the treetops. A clarity washed over her, and she reached up, touching the spiral horns that had reappeared underneath Leth's reign. Regardless, she had work to do.

Erida stood, her toes sinking into the cooling sand with each step, as she approached her tent and picked up the large pot that held the supplies she needed. It weighed a decent amount, but she was quite accustomed to hauling it over to the fire and back again. Before putting it over the flame, the woman knelt next to it and removed the raw materials she was going to use for the candles, themselves. Quickly picking up the glass jar and her old water skin, the woman briskly walked down to the waterline, stepping in and getting the bottoms of her pants wet, as she filled the both containers with water. When they were full, she walked back towards her fire, grimacing as the bottom of her pants gathered sand the entire way back.

Placing the water-filled containers to the side for the moment, Erida lifted pot and set it over the small fire, then poured the water into the pot. She knew that a lot of water wasn't really needed to boil, so she didn't bother going back to the water for a second run. Instead, the Eth sat near the fire, swiftly removing her wet pants so she was only wearing her bikini. Thankfully, Sykans were far from judgmental when it came to modesty, so Erida didn't worry about anyone looking her way, especially when she was in her own space. Taking hold of the beeswax she was to melt and her razor - which she noted would need to be sharpened soon - she started cutting through the wax in slightly uneven cuts. She had found that smaller pieces of wax seemed to melt faster than larger chunks did. Having laid her pants out in front of her, the pieces that she cut off of the block fell onto the fabric, so she knew it was going to be easy to gather them together.

Glancing upward, the woman's eyes landed once again on the moon, and she smiled, forgetting herself momentarily. Erida was immediately brought back down to the world at the feeling of a quick slice. She winced, clenching her jaw and looking down to see a small cut from the razor. The woman shook her hand, cursing herself for getting distracted.
Word Count547

[Erida]

The little injury she gave herself was not deep at all and had no blood show, so Erida decided not to do anything for it. The last thing she wanted to do was bother Jansen over a scratch she got for being careless.

She put the beeswax down on her pants, deciding that holding it while cutting was not the smartest way to go about the task, and continued to shave small pieces off of the block. When she decided she had enough shavings, Erida cupped some of them in her hands and placed them into the glass jar. She did that twice more until the shavings were all inside of the glass.

The glass was to make sure that the wax shavings had no direct contact with the heat from the fire. Last time she tried doing that, Erida found that the wax actually caught fire, itself! After that happened, the woman made sure she always melted the wax in a second container.

Getting to her feet once again, she dusted the sand off of the backs of her legs and her bottom. Erida picked the jar up and walked over to the fire and pot. The water inside of the pot had not yet reached a boil, though there was a little bit of steam rising from the water. Holding her hand out above the pot, she made an easy assumption that the water was not quite hot enough to burn her, though she certainly was not planning on touching the water. The Eth woman carefully put the jar in the middle of the pot, being careful not to touch the sides of the pot. Even though the water would not burn her, the pot made no such promises if she was to touch it.

As soon as the wax was safely in the pot, Erida set her materials aside, placing the block of beeswax far away from the heat. If the remaining wax was to melt, she might as well kiss it goodbye. Once the wax was set to melt in the water, Erida knew she had, give or take a few, thirty or forty-five chimes until it was completely melted and ready to be molded. During this time, she felt it would be a good idea to find a few twigs for the wicking of the to-be candles. It probably would have been easier to simply purchase small sticks, but looking for small twigs on the beach gave her an opportunity to walk and let Haku stretch his legs, since walking at night - even on her own property - was not exactly safe.

Erida looked at the white dog lying in the tent and gave a quiet whistle. His ears perked up, and he stood up to join his master for the short walk. She kept her eyes on the sand, though sometimes her urge to look at the moon overcame her. Collecting the sticks was a simple task, as the beach had quite a few thin twigs scattered all over. When she had gathered a handful of them, Erida called Haku and started back towards her tent.
Word Count523

[Erida]

Telling whether or not the wax was completely done melting was relatively simple, especially when the wax had a scent as strong and sweet as beeswax did. Those people who made careers out of candle making all had his or her own way of personalizing their creations; some added color patterns, some added scents, some carved designs... Of course those tricks were for people more talented than Erida currently was. Either way, the Eth woman found she did not like when scented oils were added to the beeswax candles. Beeswax, she had found, naturally had a wonderfully sweet aroma that closely resembled honey. Why would anyone want to cover that up?

Plus, the scent helped immensely in telling when the wax was nearly finished.

In the time it would take to melt, however, Erida prepared the molds for pouring. Haku walked back into the tent, settling himself on her bed and earning a small grin from his master, who laid her cloak on the ground to avoid getting more sand in the minimal amount of clothing she was wearing. Laying the sticks on the fabric, she stepped away, collecting her candle molds, the wicks, the wick anchors and the razor for the next step in the process. This part was actually extremely soothing for the woman, as she did not need to pay close attention to it in order to avoid injury! Rather, the preparation of the wicks and molds gave her an excuse to hum and talk to Leth through the moon - though it could be said she was talking to herself.

With all of her supplies in order, Erida sat on her cloak and set everything in piles in the order in which she was going to use them all. Crossing her legs, she picked up one of the tiny, metal anchors and a wick, gently smoothing the end of the wick, as she placing it into the hole. It was an extremely easy task, though messing up the wick meant having to start over again. With the wick anchor on the fabric, she held the wick itself up next to one of the candle molds for a rough measurement of the needed length. Erida picked up her razor and sliced the wick about an inch or so higher above the mold's rim. She took one of the sticks she had collected, and then wrapped the freshly cut end of the wick around the thin twig three times to make sure it was less likely to fall off.

Afterwards, the Eth woman repeated the short and simple process four more times for each of the candle molds.

Erida picked up the five molds, one by one, and set them in the sand, twisting them each to get the bottom securely into the sand, making sure they were unlikely to tip over from the liquid wax being poured into them. Once they were all settled in the sand, she picked up the the wicks, all with anchors and all wrapped around twigs, and placed them into the molds, with the sticks sitting over the tops of the molds.
Word Count519

[Erida]

The Eth woman stood up, scuffing the sand lightly as she gained her balance upon standing. She looked upwards, the newly risen moon reflecting in her indigo eyes while the sweet scent, honey-like scent of melted beeswax surrounded her. The connection to Leth strengthened every time she looked at the moon, as though holding his gaze put her in some kind of wistful hypnosis. It took more power than she wanted to put forth to tear herself away from it, as she felt she was losing a piece of herself whenever she chose a mortal activity over trying to reach out to her god.

Erida picked up the tongs and approached the large pot, releasing a slow breath and feeling the heat against her bare legs as she neared the flames that licked at the bottom of the pot. Looking into the pot, she snapped the tongs together twice, as she carefully reached them over the steam and into the water. It was hot as all hells, but she had grown accustomed to the feeling since it was almost a daily occurrence to her.

She fit the tongs around the glass jar and clamped them shut, holding tightly as she lifted the jar from the water and speed walked over to the molds in the sand. Erida sat back down on her cloak, keeping the tongs tightly secured around the glass, as she tipped the jar slowly, pouring the melted wax into the molds, one by one. Pouring the wax into the mold too quickly could either cause the wick to get off center or completely get knocked out of the small container, or cause the wax to spill over from overfilling or the mold tipping over. Any way, she had had that happen one too many times in the past, so it was one thing that she made sure not to repeat.

The cooling process only took a few hours, but it was better she had learned to let them cool at least overnight. The heat of the day in Syka wouldn't do much good, but the nighttime gave her plenty of time to sleep while the candles cooled. Then, she would take them out of the mold and continue in the early morning light.

So, Erida picked up two of the molds and brought them into her tent, opening the large chest in the corner of the tent next to her bed. The Eth loved letting the candles cool overnight near her because the sweet smell was a comforting one to fall asleep to. She placed the wax-filled molds into the chest, careful not to let them tip over or sit on an angle. When all five of the molds were neatly in the chest, the woman picked up the glass jar with the tongs, as it was still incredibly warm, and walked down to the water's edge. She submerged the jar in the water, waiting for a few seconds for the glass to cool down enough for her to touch it. Then, Erida lifted the jar, which was then filled with water, and walked back to the fire.

She threw the water on the fire, then kicked sand on the last burning coals to make sure it was put out properly. Deciding not to worry about the water in the pot until the morning, Erida walked to her tent, giving one last look to the moon She stepped inside, letting down the insect netting and laying down on her bedroll with her eyes closed gently.
Word Count588

[Erida]

22nd of Summer, 518AV
6 Bells

Before the sun rose to relieve Leth of his reign over the sky, Erida woke to Haku's wet nose nuzzled against her neck. She smiled, turning over to be met by the pup who had decided to climb up next to her at some point in the night. Stretching to loosen her muscles, the woman glanced around, not remembering having actually fallen asleep. She stood up, reaching into the chest and taking out the first of the five candles. Closing her eyes, she brought the hardened wax up to her nose and smiled at the scent.

She sat on her bedroll with her legs folded and took her razor in her hand, cutting the wick at about half an inch. Then, Erida turned the candle mold upside down and tapped on the bottom of it, shaking it gently to try to dislodge it from the mold. Thankfully, the candle wasn't stubborn and loosened on the first try.

The woman held the candle in her hand, rubbing her thumb along the outer edge to smooth out any rough patches. She had something that she always did to all of her candles as something of a signature for anyone who buys them... And as a reminder for herself...

Erida tucked her legs underneath her, holding her razor carefully in her free hand. She finished smoothing the outer edge of the candle and ran the razor carefully along the side in delicate, precise movements. She looked at the piece she had created with a soft smile and set it aside. It was a small signature of hers, but she enjoyed carving the the word 'HOPE' into the candles she made.

The next candle was a little more difficult to get out of the mold, so after the tapping and slight shaking, she flipped it right side up and took hold of the small wick, pulling gently on it to try and free the candle from its prison without yanking the entire wick out of its place. If that happened, she would have probably just called it quits then and there. Thankfully, the candle, with just a little more coaxing, agreed to emerge from the mold. Following the same process that she did with the first, Erida just changed the word carved into it from hope to 'LOVE.' It was rare that she used that word, but the woman would always switch it up for the difficult candles, since they required a little extra love to make. The last three were finished without any issue, each ending with hope as the anonymous signature.
Word Count429
Final Count: 2,606 words

[Orakan]

GRADE WITHHELD DUE TO INACTIVITY

Hey Erida! Do let myself or Gossamer know if you return and would like this graded. Thanks!