House Repairs [Minerva]

[Nira'lia]

Visions about an old memory about Minerva and her grandfather flashed before Nira'lia's eyes. It was a good memory -- simple and childlike, but one that held much meaning in its own. The konti shook her head to regain her composure, and that's when she realized that she was being spoken to. "I'm fine! I apologize... I space out a lot," lied Nira'lia. She flashed Minerva a huge smile. There was a twinkle in her eyes, as if she had just remembered something very dear to her. Every time she took a glimpse at a person's past, she somehow felt like she was actually there. A flood of emotions would sweep right through her, and this time, it was a warm feeling about one reminiscing about that first time she discovered a passion... and showing off this discovery to one very dear to her. The memory brought an idea to the konti’s head. "You know, I'm leaving Zeltiva soon. And I... well, I'm very nervous about it," said Nira'lia. "It would really be comforting if I could bring a piece of it with me. Perhaps I can commission you to make a little something for me? Even just a wood carved brooch would be fantastic!" Nira'lia's smile grew wider. Yes, that was a great idea! She had been in Zeltiva for fifteen years now, and she was only now realizing how big a part if played in her life. Without waiting for Minerva to respond, she grabbed the girl's wrist and pulled her inside the house. Now that she had seen Minerva's memory, she no longer felt wary about touching her. The konti didn't seem to let Minerva actually react to her request. She rushed over to a table and grabbed a piece of paper and a feather pen. She didn't have much skill in drawing, but hopefully she could get her idea across. Nira'lia dunked the pen in some ink and started to sketch. She drew an imperfect circle and then just paused, deep in thought. What would be a good way to remember Zeltiva? The circle was about half the size of her fist, and she made an effort to draw up to scale. Nira'lia started to scribble what appeared to be a trident inside the circle. She started with its handle and then focused on its three prongs. Her hands moved slowly but delicately as she tried her best to make the lines straight and balanced. However, with a frown, she realized that her sketch of the trident was terrible. It was messy and the proportions were appalling. She tossed the paper aside and grabbed a new one. "Perhaps a trident isn't the best way to remember the city...?" she mused. A trident was a weapon, a symbol of strength and discipline. She believed that the city was such, but her best memories were of something else. Besides, her skills would not actually allow her to sketch even a decent image of the weapon. Grinning, she drew another circle, again half the size of her fist, and started to sketch what seemed to be a pattern of waves. Again, her hands worked delicately, putting effort into each stroke of the pen. She was drawing the unpredictable sea, but she wanted to grasp its serenity as well. Just to make it evident that she had drawn the sea, she also placed a small and simple boat floating on the water. The konti stared at the paper before her. It was a very simplistic sketch, but in the end, she had no idea how wood carving was done. She didn't know what was easy and what was not. She turning around very suddenly and showed her sketch to Minerva. "What do you think? I'm not a good artist, but it's just a simple sketch of the sea. Do you think you could make be a brooch with this design?" her eyes were shining with excitement as she stared at the red-haired girl hopefully. OOCI hope it’s okay that I assumed that Minerva was dragged along. Will change if needed!

[Minerva Agatha Zipporah]

oocTotally fine! Short of bodily dismemberment, I tend to be up for anything someone drags me into! Minerva didn't think twice about the woman's response. She generally wasn't very in-tune with people's emotions, with few exceptions. Though as soon as she heard the words 'commission you to make a little something for me,' her eyes lit up. She was always eager for the chance to build something! She offered no protest at being dragged inside. Heck, she did the same thing to others often enough, when she wanted something out of them. It was simply so much more direct and straightforward to pull someone along, rather than wasting breath explaining to them what you wanted. So she took it in stride, and watched with interest as the girl started to draw. It was clear that she didn't have experience sketching blueprints or designs, so after she was finished, Tock grabbed another sheet of paper and started her own set of sketches. A design for a work project needed to be a little more precise. Using her (somewhat) more experienced hand, she sketched out a circle, measuring several points out with a ruler to make sure the diameter was the same from several angles. That made it easier to make it more precise. She then made some small measurements to line up where to sketch the waves for a little more symmetry, though she left a touch of chaos to keep the same 'feeling' of the piece. She jotted numbers along the side of the page as she worked; copying the sketch onto the carving accurately meant she would need to line up the same measurements. Otherwise the carved design would be vastly different in proportion from the original. Her finalized drawing matched Nira's design, but included lines of measurement to note the dimensions, and thin dotted lines across the face of the design to mark key points. The dotted lines marked the peak of a wave or two, the front and rear tips of the ship, and so on. Each set of dotted lines had numbers jotted alongside them to tell her what the measurements were. That would make transferring the design to the wood easier. Next to the drawing she drew a second circle, showing the back. This simply included a small, shallow carving to show where a clasp would be attached. "I ain't got no clasps, is all," she said. "'Afta buy one o' those an put 'er on. Shouldn't me more'n..." she thought about it for a second, "maybe five coppers, tops." A completed piece of jewelry like this, made from wood, would have a price on the market of around twenty coppers. The clasp itself was only one small piece of that. She showed Nira the finalized design and asked, "Ya want 'er painted, too? I's only so-so wit' the paintin' parts. But I can style 'er up real nice like what wit' the carvin' alone. Jus' a little polishin' by 'and would make 'er real pretty like." She never once considered asking the woman for a price. She had a project in front of her now, and was already working out the steps in her head. Making it would be its own reward.

[Nira'lia]

Nira'lia looked from her paper and then to Minerva's. The red-haired girl's work had numbers and measurements jotted around it, and Nira'lia couldn't help but grin widely when she realized that Minerva was happy to tackle the project. She even sketched out the back side of the brooch with technical shapes that Nira'lia would not have managed to do on her own. "Yes, no worries, I'll get the clasp myself!" said the konti with enthusiasm. She knew it wouldn't be any trouble finding one. The konti paused to think about when she wanted the brooch painted. Of course, it would probably add color and life, but somehow she wanted something plain. She was a simple-minded girl who liked everything she owned to be as plain as possible. It was quite ironic considering she was a konti, and that meant she had some physical features that grabbed attention on its own. Nira'lia shook her head. "Oh, no, please, I would prefer it to be just some plain old carved wood," she said. The konti tried to imagine the resulting product in her head. After it was carved and polished, it would be amazing, and she knew that. It also excited her to know that she had something to do with the design. She was not an experienced artist in any way, but the idea of having her drawing solidified into something made her beam with pride. "Wait, how much would it cost?" the konti asked as she peered around her house, as if looking for her purse. She had no idea how much a price such a project would fetch, but she judged that this person infront of her was doing it more for the task itself. However, that didn't mean that Nira'lia would use this fact to let payment slide. "Do you want me to pay now or when you're done? Oh, and I'm leaving on the sixtieth, so when should I pick it up from you?"

[Minerva Agatha Zipporah]

"I done told ya, the clasp should be like, five coppers," she said when the girl asked her about cost. It never occurred to her to charge the girl for making the thing. She already had a good paying job, after all. Besides, the project was its own reward. "Won't take but a few 'ours," she told the girl, getting up to head outside for a moment. She returned shortly with a block of wood from the scrap pile; one that had been cut off the end of a larger piece, but was still in good, solid condition. She used her gouges to start etching the design into the wood right there, making careful measurements to make sure it matched up with the drawing. Then she clamped the wood down onto Nira's table, took out her saw, and started cutting right there. It took very little time to trim off the edges of the wood to get the basic shape. Then she sat in Nira's chair, took out her chisels, and started trimming off the excess until the block of wood was nicely rounded. Then came the more careful work of scraping away the outline of the design, adding touches of depth in different layers so show the contours of the waves. The most time consuming part would be adding the detailed touches to get the actual shape of the waves right. That took careful work with her files and gouges, gently tapping on the back of the handle with her mallet to carefully chip off tiny flakes of the wood. A design with this much detail took a lot more care than a door handle or other basic shape. This wasn't just about rounding and smoothing the wood, but about preserving the design through each step. So she worked slowly and with great care.

[Nira'lia]

Nira'lia blinked. She said, slowly and surely in an effort not to offend the girl because of the misunderstanding, "Yes, the clasp costs five coppers, but what should I pay you for your work?" Surprised, she realized that Minerva actually intended to do the work right then and there. The konti gaped -- her mother would be furious at the pieces and shavings of wood. Staring at the girl though, Nira'lia realized that it wouldn't be a good idea to stop her while she was in such a stupor. Besides, she somehow felt she would get yelled at if she made even just a small effort to end it. Since Minerva seemed to be engrossed in her own little world, Nira'lia decided to walk over to the hearth by the corner of the room. There was still a fire going, and she remembered that her mother had tasked her with cooking supper today. It was still early, but she had nothing to do while Minerva chipped away. The konti placed some water in a pot and hung it by the fire. Then, she started to grab some vegetables that were lying around. Sighing, she realized that all they had were onions and tomatoes. She was not a skilled cook, but if her knowledge served her right, these two vegetables did go together at times. Taking a knife and a chopping board, she started to slice the vegetables. Nira'lia focused at the task of hand. Her mother had been nagging her to learn cooking ever since she found out she was soon going to fend for herself. Nira'lia grabbed the fish that she had bought from the docks earlier that day. She wasn't sure what kind of fish it was, but it had been cheap, and that meant it probably had a bland taste. Shrugging, she proceeded to take the scales off with the end of the knife. She spent more time on this task than she meant to, since to her surprise, it was actually more difficult than it looked. Finally, she cut the fish open and carefully got rid of the bones before slicing the meat into smaller pieces. She blinked at the pot and the boiling water. What was she supposed to do now? Giving another shrug, she put all the meat and the chopped vegetables in the water, along with some seasoning. Nira'lia had no idea if she was doing this right, but it was a start. She had seen her mother make fish soup in the past, but it was likely that she had missed some steps. Nira'lia glanced at Minerva and saw that the girl was still engrossed in her task, which gave the konti time to stir the soup until its ingredients looked cooked. The konti took a bowl and put some soup in it. Then, she walked over to Minerva, wondering how far along the girl was in what she was doing. "Here, have some," said Nira'lia, even if she hadn't tasted her cooking yet. She put the bowl on the desk, careful to keep it away from Minerva's tools. "How's it going?"

[Minerva Agatha Zipporah]

Tock looked up at the girl and blinked, not quite sure what she was talking about. "Eh?" she asked. "Pay me?" She had to think about that for a moment, not having considered that this was a commissioned job. She shrugged and waved a hand dismissively, "Oy, don'tcha worry 'bout 'er, Sook. I's awright. Call 'er a gift. Though I wouldn't mind a wee tucker while I's workin', aye?" Her stomach was grumbling, and she would normally be heading home for dinner by now, with the work day being done. She brought out her finest file, and unclamped the wood to hold it up to the light. With the biggest pieces chipped off, the detail work was best done with careful strokes of the file by hand, rather than chipping away with chisels. Minute adjustments needed to be done carefully by hand, with slow strokes of the file across the wood. She hummed softly as she worked, filing out the shapes of the waves as slowly and carefully as she could. When she glanced up at what Nira was doing, she called out, "Oy, Sook, don't throw 'ose out, aye?" she nodded towards the fish bones. She could only hope the girl had learned her lesson about recycling. One fish could have dozens of good bones to use. When the soup was brought over she grinned and said, "Oy, 'anks, Sook. Mighty kind o' ya, 'at is." She set her work down for just a few moments to start eating, shoveling the soup into her mouth in quick swallows. Time spent eating was time she wasn't working, and Minerva didn't like wasting time on useless things. If she could find a magic way to make it so she didn't need to eat or sleep ever again, she so would do it! Imagine the increased productivity. She finished off the meal as quick as she could, wiping her chin on the back of her sleeve, then returned to work. She started absentmindedly humming the tune to "True Lady", a drinking song from back home that would probably have made Nira turn bright red if she heard the actual words. It wasn't exactly the sort of song one sang in gentle company.

[Nira'lia]

Since Minerva told her not to throw the fish bones out, the konti decided to clean them by washing them with water. The fish hadn't been a big one, so there were not much bones. However, if Minerva wanted them, then she could. When she was done cleaning the bones, she wrapped them in a small cloth and put them beside Minerva. Minerva was humming a tune not familiar to Nira'lia, but it had a nice sound to it so she found herself picking it up. Soon after, she was humming along to Minerva as well -- and she didn't even know what she was humming to. Nira'lia took the empty bowl from Minerva's desk and set it aside, and then grabbed a bowl for herself as well. "...Ack," she whispered the first time she tasted what she made. It was very bland, and she wondered why Minerva had not said anything about it. Maybe she was being polite, or maybe she was just too focused on getting back to work that she didn't care. Seeing as that her mother might scold her for making a failed meal, Nira'lia added more spices to the soup. To pass the time, she proceeded to pack her belongings. That soon got boring, and quite lonely, so she decided to take a seat and just watch Minerva. "I... never got your name," realized Nira'lia.

[Minerva Agatha Zipporah]

"Tock," she replied, not looking up from her work. Touching up the curves on the waves took a great deal of attention. As she finished up with the filing, she started sanding, using her fingers to work the sander into the gentle curves, and blowing away the sawdust to keep a clear view of what she was doing. Sanding didn't require as much direct attention. It was more done by feel, running your fingers across the grooves to check for rough spots. So she looked up at Nira and asked, "Oy, where ya goin' ta, anywho? I done just got done travellin' a whole bunch 'fore I done came 'ere. Been in Syliras fer awhile. Nyka. Ravok... don't go there, mate, s'a buncha stuffed-shirt prisses what like ta tell a girl what's what. Mura's where ya wanna go. Most beautiful place I ever seen, 'at. Almost wanna go back. Spent a year 'ere, I did." She turned the brooch over, and started sanding down the edges, working the sander over the rim of the brooch to smooth it out. "Done sailed 'round 'alf the world I 'ave," she said, holding the brooch up to check the edges, then scraping the sander over it a bit more. "Zeltiva done got what the rest ain't, though, aye? Got's a right fine school 'ere. Gotta stay 'til I done learned what's what, aye? Lot'sa learnin', lot'sa magic ta do. Ain't letcha learn no magic back 'ome, oy. Ain't letcha do nothin' what's worth doin'. Don't go 'ere..." She trailed off, not mentioning where 'there' was. She switched to a polishing cloth, working it over the wood to bring out the shine. Wood could be quite pretty all by itself, as long as you worked to bring out its natural beauty. She preferred working with wood over just about everything else. It had a life to it. Cold stone or metal didn't have that. They didn't have a soul the way wood did. Well, unless she put one in there. But she could put a soul in just about anything, if she wanted.

[Nira'lia]

Tock. Her name was Tock. Nira'lia thought, 'My, what an odd name.' "I'm heading to Alvadas, for... uhm..." she didn't know how to explain it. A konti's call was not something that most people understood. In all honesty, a number of people found it foolish to be drawn by something unexplainable. "Well, I'm not really sure why I'm going there. I just need to look for someone, and then I'll find out. I don't know if you've heard of a konti's call, but it's basically a strong urge to be in a place at a certain time... to complete a task." Nira'lia smiled. A hint of envy flashed through her eyes as Minerva mentioned Mura. That was her motherland, a motherland she'd never actually been to. It had been her dream ever since to travel there, but she had been too loyal to leave her family in Zeltiva. Truth be told, the only reason she had been allowed to Zeltiva was for her call. All kontis knew the importance of a call. "I've never been to Mura, but I do hear it's beautiful..." mused Nira'lia. It was evident that she seemed sad about the thought. "Not to worry though, I'm going to go there one day. I'm sure of it." The konti's grin spread even further as she started talking about Zeltiva. "I've been in Zeltiva for more than fifteen years now! It's an amazing city. The thought of leaving this place is actually difficult, but I'm sure I'll get into terms with it. I'm curious though... what do you mean there's nothing to do where you're from? Where are you from?" Peering at Minerva's work, Nira'lia was fascinated by what she was doing. It was evident that she was enjoying her work. The konti mused that combing work with passion really was something advisable.

[Minerva Agatha Zipporah]

Minerva just nodded when Nira explained the Konti's call. "Aye," she said, "I know whatcha mean. I done 'ad one o' 'ose when I left 'ome, I did. Call ta complete a task, aye. 'At's why I's 'ere..." She didn't know much about the Konti, despite her time spent among them. She had mostly studied their art, craft, and architecture, not their culture. But as far as she knew, her 'calling' to build the city in her dreams was the same thing as the calling Nira spoke of. "'Is city's mighty fine, she is," she said. "Gonna what be even finer once I's done wit' 'er. Got mighty big plans, I does. Jus' gotta, ya know, work on bein' able ta do 'er up right, aye? Ain't but nothin' what ain't need proper planning' an' the right tools. So's as once I builds 'em tools, I can get ta the real work." She held the brooch up to the light streaming in through the window, watching the shine across its face. A few more spots needed to be shined up good, to bring out the natural luster in the wood. She sucked on her teeth for a moment when Nira asked her about home. She'd been gone almost four years now, but she still didn't much like talking about home. "I's from Sunberth," she said reluctantly, her voice losing all the pride and energy it had had a moment before. "Ain't nobody 'llowed ta learn magic, 'ere. Don't much like wizards 'round 'ere, folks don't. Don't much like lotsa things. Magic. Change. Gov'ners. Ain't much room 'ere fer a girl what wants ta build a magic city, aye? So's I left," she shrugged, as if it was no big deal. But her eyes grew dark and distant and her teeth clenched as she thought of the other reason she left, her Da. The other reason she wanted to build big strong creations that could protect her. She ground her teeth, trying to shake off the memories. It had been four years. Her bruises were long healed.