[Knirin Gardens] Smells Just as Sweet (Rosela/Serrif)

[Rosela]

With a small knot of anxiety in her stomach, Rosela resolved to come and see Serrif sometime at the Sanctuary. If he was so free with his knowledge of philtering, maybe he’d share some medicinal knowledge with her? The thought of him demonstrating bandaging and medicine on some poor, broken up soul made her slightly nauseous. Maybe she could get a little scrape and come asking for help? Would he still charge her then? ”The same could be said for anything in life, needing training to do it, that is. Even the simple task of walking needs to be taught to an infant.” As much as she didn’t like children, the topic was a safe one to transition into, as it lacked thoughts of injuries and mizas. ”Except for eating, I suppose,” she added awkwardly. ”That seems to come naturally for most creatures.” She noted with interest him cutting a piece of plant to smell the sap and kicked herself for not thinking of it. Fumbling with the ornate dagger he’d given her, she finally managed to work it open and sliced a portion of leaf from an unnamed berry plant. An experimental sniff told her it wasn’t that interesting a smell, and she tossed it back into the bush. Rosela smiled over at him at his admission of lack of experience in the area. It was becoming strangely comforting to know her inexperience was matched in at least one area. ”Perfumery is extremely popular in Ahnatep, but my family never got into it.” With a start, she realized she hadn’t yet mentioned her birth city to him, despite her thoughts continually turning to it. ”That’s where I’m from, originally. My family owns a fashion line there.” The mention of her family came automatically, a remnant of childhood introductions where one first introduced themselves, then why they had the right, or the money, to be at that particular event. ”I’m not really sure what else I want. I’ll just have to know it when I smell it.” She smiled and took back the flower, sniffing it again. Plucking a few more from the bush, she held them behind her back in one hand. ”I think I’ll use these to start, and see what else compliments it.” Moving along further, she held the flower next to another and sniffed them together. ”Oh, I like this one too!” She pulled a few more off and looked excitedly over at Serrif. ”So, are you going to make a cologne for yourself, or a perfume?”

[Serrif Von Chatlyn]

Rosela still seemed somewhat uneasy around him, and well he couldn’t really blame her. He wasn’t exactly a common sight around Riverfall. And his craft had a way of making people anxious and a little nauseous. Really he found it was a special call for him. One he had grown into slowly. Blood didn’t phase him, nor did horrible gruesome wounds. Every now and then he would see a wound and have an image from his past flash in his minds eye…but nothing more than that. He would give himself a few seconds to compose himself and then focus on the injury at hand. It was a calling just like any other skilled profession.

He was finding out all kinds of information about this woman. She was from Ahnatep, likely from a wealthy family of some kind. She looked like she had lived a life of leisure before this; that made his mind try and construct a story around her. What would cause a woman like her to leave a life like that? She likely had good reasons for doing so; reasons that were none of his business, especially when he had just met her for the first time. No; disclosure like that would take time and trust.

“A fashion line…that is interesting I’ve never met anyone who understands such things. Do you plan on trying to do a fashion line here in the city?” She was turning into a very interesting individual to have a chat with. He had never met any from her race before so she was setting a very interesting precedent for her kind.

“Yes I would believe the only way to know what you want is to smell it. There is so much here. We could literally spend all day and come up with all kinds of things to make. That would put us in quite the predicament though.” He laughed a little and like her perused through the plants to find something of use to them.

There were plenty of plants around that had flowering buds on them. Others were in bloom now and still some more were withering away. There was a little bit of everything here and the trick was filtering through it all to find something of use. There among the plants he found something he knew. It appeared to be a cinnamon tree, he knew it by the leaves. It was Gianne’s favorite scent, she loved it. And Rhy was always talking about how she always smelled like it. Maybe he would do something for her.

He walked to the tree and cleaned off a few of the branches with his dagger. The lower branches were easy for him to get to. The higher ones would take some climbing…which he wasn’t going to do right now. No, instead he would get what he could down low and make due. He broke a few of the leaves and the aroma was released. It was strong…very strong especially when fresh. It was almost overpowering and Serrif nodded.

“This will do fine.” He said to himself as Rosela asked him what he intended to do. His path was pretty clear to him now.

“I believe I am going to make a perfume for someone. She likes cinnamon, now to find something that compliments it. Maybe make it for her as a gift of some kind. I’m unsure what all I will make only that I want cinnamon in it.” He smiled to Rosela and put some of the leaves as well as the branch pieces in his satchel for later. They would make a very good perfume indeed.

“This is indeed an interesting journey through scents to have. I’ve never thought of doing this.” He admitted as he paced through and continued to smell various things. One never knew what they would find here among the plants and bushes.

“It is different than what I usually do. I find myself here sometimes with a book listing what I am to gather. What supplies we need to make medicines and all. But this is much more enjoyable.”

[Rosela]

Flower halfway to her nose, Rosela stopped to ponder his idea of a fashion line. ”I…I hadn’t even considered it,” she confessed slowly. ”I suppose it depends on what the Labor Aid says. I’m going there once I get settled.” It was easy to pass the decision onto someone else, rather than set off on it herself. Perhaps she’d feel different once she’d settled in, but the anxiety of arriving new in town, nearly penniless, hadn’t quite worn off yet. She expected they would assign her to some local tailor, and she’d have to work her way up. Maybe she’d get lucky and the employer would move away, leaving her the business. Realizing she had a flower in front of her but had yet to do anything with it, she shook her head slightly and sniffed it. It was a deep, musky smell that had an almost sensual breath. Bundling it up with the other two flowers, she inhaled them all together. The small bouquet let off a fragrance that was both airy and mature, and quite beautiful. She imagined herself on a balcony with a glass of wine, the handsome Akalak gardener pausing to look up at her… Blinking, she brought herself out of the reverie, and processed what Serrif had said. She gave a girlish gasp and grinned. ”For someone special? How precious! Does she work at the Sanctuary too?” The thought made him seem more, well, adorable, to think he had a secret love somewhere in Riverfall. Rosela ached to know who it was, despite knowing absolutely no one. ”Perfumes are fabulous for gifts. You must let me know how she likes it.” Her voice instantly became more chatty, and realizing it, she reigned her curiosity in with a polite clearing of her throat. ”I have to agree. I really hadn’t expected to make such a fun afternoon out of this. Oh!” Remembering her trio of flowers, he held out the small bouquet to him. ”I think I may be done. What do you think?”

[Rosela]

Serrif finished picking his flowers, and unfortunately had to depart before he could actually show Rosela anything of philtering, or how it related to perfumery. Despite an invitation to the Sanctuary, Rosela stayed in the Knirin Gardens as he left, after returning the beautifully ornate dagger. She felt suddenly defenseless without it, realizing for the first time that she was completely unarmed. It was such a silly thing, to be concerned for her physical well being when there wasn’t even anyone around, but it concerned her nonetheless. After a thought, the knowledge that she had too little money to be a worthy target for any miscreants depressed her even further than the prospect of being robbed. Twisting the flowers into a small bundle, she slid the long stems into her hair above her ear, checking her reflection in a nearby pond. It was a little childish for what she usually preferred, but it would work. She tossed her sandals down and slipped them on, immediately heading out of the garden the same way Serrif left, and started towards the library. If she couldn’t find out from Serrif, that seemed like the next best place to go for what to do with the flowers she’d spent so much time selecting. The library was imposing, but with some navigating, she found the perfumery section. She flipped through several books on identifying and appreciating perfumes until she found a primer on making it herself. It was very short, and by the time she’d even made it to the front to check it out, she’d scanned most of the pages anyway. It seemed making a perfume wasn’t that hard after you’d actually picked your scents. She gave it back to the stern librarian at the front, who gave Rosela a severe look over his spectacles. It was well after lunch time by the time she made it back to the Refuge, and she chewed through her stale bread irritably. She needed to get out of the Refuge and fast, before she went mad on her old bread and the dusty bed. The flowers lay on the old nightstand, each carefully separated from the bundle to lay flat. The smallest flower was already starting to wilt. Moving quickly before it died any more, Rosela pulled out her soap, kitchen knife, and the cloth wrapper of the bread she’d just eaten. She paused suddenly, looking at her meager supplies. Her overwhelming destitution washed over her and her lower lip wobbled. She hadn’t even a proper bowl to crush the flowers in. She had hardly anything at all to her name. Sniffling loudly, she knelt down next to the nightstand and scooped the flowers into the bread cloth. Sniffling again, she picked a breadcrumb off of it. The illustration in the primer had been pretty clear about only using the petals, so she plucked them off and piled them together in the middle of the thin wrapper. The chops of her knife were uneven as she blinked back tears. She had thought that making her own perfume would make her feel empowered, but all she felt was lowly. The perfume didn’t even seem worth it anymore, if she had to make it with her ridiculous, makeshift tools. She put her soap back in her pack, leaving the sealed ceramic soapdish for the perfume. Filling it with water, she wrapped the flower petals in the cloth, making a small, loose packet. Submerging it in the soapdish, she clasped the top of the wrapper in the lid of the dish and placed it gently on the nightstand. She felt empty, without any sense of accomplishment. She didn’t care about the perfume anymore – it’d probably be too weak anyway. Without knowing what else to do with herself, she sank into the worn bed, turned to the wall, and slept. It was dark outside when she awoke, and for a moment wondered why she was so sore. There was a momentary thought that she’d have the maid whipped for leaving the bed in such a condition, before Rosela remembered where she was. The thought made her want to go back to sleep, but she sat up morosely. The perfume was supposed to sit overnight, but she didn’t want to wait. The smell of the perfumed water when she opened the soapdish cheered her slightly, and she lifted out her packet of petals, squeezing out the remaining water. She spent several awkward minutes building a fire in the tiny hearth, something she’d only seen done by servants and other travelers on the road to Riverfall. After it was eating up the old wood left by the Refuge, she placed the soapdish on the rusted cooking rack and waited for it to boil. The smell of the fire was comforting, and she tried hard to imagine she was in her old home in Ahnatep, sitting on a fur rug, watching the flames flicker and pop. Eventually the water boiled down to what looked like a ‘teaspoon’ though she didn’t have enough cooking experience to actually know. It smelled strong enough when she took it off the fire though, and she set it on the edge to cool. Her depression was starting to pass, though she still didn’t know what to do with herself. Pulling the blankets off the bed, she sat on the floor and watched the fire until well into the night. She put the top on the perfume sleepily and watched the embers until she finally slept, imagining they were a dozen tiny rubies twinkling and winking at her.

[Limey]

Rosela: Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Observation 4 Riverfall: Too Big For One Day Perfumery 4 The Sweet Scent Of A Rose Investigation 3 Sherif: A Knightly Manner Philtering 1 A Teacher In Perfumery Socialization 2 Serrif: A Man Of Many Talents Absorbing Much, Quickly Sanctuary: Healers Of Men And Beasts Making Good With Tools Available The Satisfaction Of First Success Serrif: Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Observation 3 Always Be Vigilant Conversation 1 Striking Up A Conversation Teaching 4 Rosela: Charming, Feminine And Multiple-Armed Perfumery 2 The Basics Of A Rose's Scent Herbaism 1 An Unexpected Pupil Patience In Teaching Shared Lore: Lore: The Knirin Gardens The Many Uses Of Rose Hips Additional Notes : Sad that this was cut off so abruptly, it was shaping up to be a thorough and instructive thread. Still, enough was said to get some knowledge out of it, and I liked the interplay between the two characters. A very good portrayal of a teacher-pupil relationship. Any questions or queries, please PM me.