[Medical Library] Inking The Future

[Kail D'Rea]

8th day of Spring, 510 A.V.

Kail walked toward the North Tower of the Opal Temple. She had walked this way many times before, taking advantage of the Medical Library’s open door policy to study the books and manuscripts that filled the shelves of the library. She loved the rich smell of the musty books as it mingled with the fragrances of the plant collected nearby. In deed, the library was just about her favorite place on the island. It’s quiet atmosphere helped her concentrate as she studied the writing and calligraphy styles in the various texts and the soothing presence of the librarians quietly working in the background grounded her in reality when she otherwise would have been completely lost in the fascinating picture plates in the books.

Today she felt an unusual level of excitement, however, because instead of her usual study, Kail was going to the library to ask about a job. More than anything she wanted to contribute to the world of writing and knowledge and she felt that this is where she wanted to make her mark. Kail was nervous that the librarians would not need her or that they would recommend she get more experience first. She was just out of training, but her skills were higher than average. “Just a scribe job.” She though. “I’ll be happy if only they’ll give me a scribe job.” She didn’t dare to think about her real dream: to engraving all of the plants in the library and create a highly decorative complete tome of information with the pictures and information on the plants. “Maybe. Someday.” Kail thought as she dreamed about the artwork of her book being recognized as a real contribution to the art of her city.

Kail shook her head. “Focus,” she thought. “Just a job, any job. If I can get that I’ll be on my way.” She took a deep breath and entered the familiar door of the library, heading straight to the main information desk. As she walked up to the desk her violet eyes darted up eagerly, shining with the hope that the head librarian was there and had time to speak to her.

[Alice]

Although she didn’t belong to the most prominent families of Mura, Kail was a commonly known figure at the Medical Library. She had been frequenting it since her early childhood, so it was only natural that the staff gave her the occasional nod or shared a few words about a book or particular calligraphy work. However, they had always left her alone if she didn’t approach them herself. The librarians, especially Iva, the researcher, were always there, but never obtrusive. That attitude contributed a lot to the general peaceful and quiet atmosphere Kail enjoyed so much.

The chief librarian, however, was a human woman and a new addition to the team. By human standards she was around her fourties, but to Kail who was used to the typical fresh and youthful Konti appearance she looked terribly old. However, her jet black, silk-like hair and the wide eyes that changed color like a rainbow added some kind of exotic beauty to her features. She was called Javas Alinas and had come from Avanthal, the home of the Vantha, two years ago.

Fortunately – or unfortunately, that depended on Kail’s viewpoint – Javas was attending the information desk at the entrance of the library that day. With the shiny black hair tied up in a long, straight ponytail and dusty grey robes falling over her not-so-lithe form. When Kail approached the desk, she looked up from a report she had been reading and gave a friendly, but somewhat distant smile. “Hello. Is there anything I can help you with? Do you need a particular book or something?” Her voice was deep and warm. In the middle of her speech her orbs turned a bright inviting pink speckled with golden curiosity.

In the background Kail could see the other and more familiar staff members walking and doing her work between the heavy bookshelves. Light was flooding the library through big colorful glass windows, although most books were shifted into the secure shadow of the wooden shelves.

[Kail D'Rea]

Kail swallowed hard. “Be brave,” she thought, “this is it and you can do it.” She smiled unsurely back and tried to make it confident. “Hello,” Kail said. He voice came out higher then she planed and it made her stop before she could say anything else. Her voice seemed stuck in her throat as she desperately tried to say something into the ever extending silence. Final something came out. It was just a little sound, but it was enough to let her clear her throat and move on. “I was just wondering if you are looking for anyone?” came out of her mouth. “Oops,” she thought, “not at all the carefully planned question I was planning. Fix it. Fix it. Fix it!” “Um, I mean to work here. I would really like to and I’m a good scribe and calligrapher and I can do engraving and I’m willing to do anything I can to help if I can start here. I…” she trailed off and thought “disaster!” as she looked anxiously as the face of the human before her.

[Alice]

If Javas was disturbed by the unnaturally high voice and the awkward pauses in the girl’s speech, she didn’t show it. Her eye color hovered between pink and sparkling gold, the colors twisting and mixing like clouds in the sky. She had seen enough young things like Kail and was used to showing them an appropriate amount of warmth and understanding. Those little flowers still needed the time and nurture to bloom.

However, she couldn’t hide the shadow of a smile playing around her lips upon the mildly confusing question of the girl. Of course, she knew very well what Kail meant which her nervousness indicated quite clearly. When Kail finished her speech, or rather trailed off unceremoniously, she gave a short nod. “Indeed, we’re always looking for new scribes and librarians, especially copyists. That’d be an easy task to start a career with, don’t you agree? Anyway, I suppose you already know all those things I’m about to tell you …”

Trailing off just like Kail had done, the Vantha woman rose and left her desk, gesturing for Kail to follow behind. While walking, she informed the girl: “Before I employ you, you’ll have to show what you can do. That’s the standard procedure. It’s not like I don’t believe your words, but I simply need some official proof of your qualifications.” She was silent for a while, heading towards the back section of the main room, lost in thought about what kind of task to give the girl. “Since I assume you already know a great deal about our library, I think copying something off a book would be best to test your skill. We get so many reports and protocols in hasty and illegible handwriting …” A small chuckle escaped her. “Another copyist would be a nice addition.”

Meanwhile they had passed the last book shelf and a small, unassuming door appeared behind. Javas led the way down a dimly lit corridor, opened another door and entered a room that was much smaller than the main one, yet was flooded with daylight from the simple glass windows covering two walls. Several desks were arranged in rows, although enough space was provided for. At the back left corner a Konti was sitting at a desk and copying a page off a thin book – her nose was almost touching the parchment. The room was empty except for that girl.

Javas briefly nodded into her direction. “Still not finished, Orona? You’d better hurry if you want to get out of here.” The girl called Orona shot a glance into the head librarian’s direction, flinched and returned to her work. Unimpressed, Javas gestured for Kail to sit where she liked and stated: “I’ll send someone here with a book, some sheets and ink for you. No worries, if it’s something you can’t handle at all or only partially, that’s no problem. We only want to evaluate your skill.” With a sharp noise the door was shut, leaving Kail alone with Orona.

[Kail D'Rea]

Kail looked around the room again as the librarian closed the door behind her. She was interested in this part of the library she hadn’t even known existed before, but she wasn’t observing as closely as usual as the thoughts were flying around in her head. First was the relief that the librarian was willing to give her a chance after her initial awkwardness and happiness that she was going to be able to prove her skills. She was confident in what she could do and wasn’t overly concerned with proving her skills as a copyist, but Kail’s strong desire to excel always came out and she wanted to do an impressive job. Her work must be perfect. Then there was another strange thought: she very much wanted to do such a good job to make a good impression on Javas, and not just for the job.

The strange eyed woman had intrigued her. She seemed so strong and confident for an outsider. She was clearly at home here in the library and her presence seemed warm. She was also willing to give Kail a chance so Javas felt like someone Kail could respect as a boss. Kail missed her old mistress already and while no one could ever take her place, she very much wanted to work for someone she would be comfortable with. Kail reflected on how surprised she was to find this possibility in a human woman, and one with such an interesting appearance.

Kail also put pressure on herself to do well because she wanted to move up and become better at her craft and in a higher position to match it and thought of this test as a first step. Only her abilities now could show how high up that step was on the ladder to success. She thought of each reason to succeed and at the end found that her nerves were still high. No surprise there.

After standing for a minute in the steady sunlight reflecting on these things, Kail decided she better focus on her surroundings. Her violet eyes roamed the comfortable looking work room, taking in the businesslike nature of the space and the ample work light and liking it. It was quiet and out of the way, making it a perfect place to focus. She was sure she could work here. She glanced at the other girl in the room, then quickly looked away so the other Konti wouldn’t sense her gaze. Next Kail looked at the adequate desks and picked out one as far as possible from the other girl in the room. She didn’t want to be rude, or unfriendly, but she felt the need to focus on the task at hand: starting the career she wanted to enjoy for the rest of her life. The girl seemed intent on her job anyway. That was something Kail respected. She was glad not to be completely alone in the room, but also hoped that her work would come before, what was her name again? Orona?, finished her task.

Kail moved forward and sat down, taking the time to breath deeply and work on gaining the focus she would need to make this her best, yet fastest copying yet. “Yes.” She muttered to herself “This is going to be good.”

[Alice]

The other Konti girl called Orona didn’t look up, but, unseen to Kail, her eyes followed the newcomer with interest. She originally hadn’t wanted to sit there and copy one of the old, dusty pages showing the parts and uses of some strange herbal plant. Of course she wanted to finish her work soon, but now that distraction had been provided for, she couldn’t concentrate on her work anymore.

After a short while one of the assistant librarians entered the room, a tall Konti with shoulder-long, silk-like hair. Her arms were full with the materials she had been told to deliver: A book with a leather cover and yellow pages, several sheets of parchment, a clean and relatively new quill and an inkpot. She dumped all that on Kail’s chosen desk and gave an encouraging smile. Kail would discover that the features of that Konti looked slightly familiar as if they had briefly met between the bookshelves before. “Here’s your … uhm, I guess I can call it test without frightening you? Anyway”, she explained and thumbed through the book until she had found a particular page, “this is what you must try to copy. Personally I think it’s not that difficult … something very classical. I’m sure you’ve come across it during your studies.” The Konti winked. “Good luck. If you’re finished or need something, just come back to the front room and talk to Javas.” With another smile and a cheerful wave she was gone. Kail would have to ask for her name next time if she really was to be employed at the library …

The page she had been instructed to copy was a stunning work of art. The book itself was quite old, at least older than even a Konti could hope to become, although of course not pre-Valterrian. Kail would most likely realize that it retold several popular stories in Konti mythology, scenes about the divine lovers Avalis and Laviku, about the All-Seeing Mother’s ascension to godhood and about Rak’keli’s beneficial work on the island. Tiny drawings wrapped around the text in the middle of the page to illustrate each page’s content. Although Konti were careful to teach their daughters reading and writing at an early age, the drawings made the book a true work of art. They were mostly colored in pastel hues, even lights and shadows had been partially added. It was obvious that those drawings were the most difficult part, because the writing was the typical elegant and soft, albeit narrow handwriting of most Konti.

While Kail was left to concentrate on her page, sounds of nervous rustling came from the opposite side of the room. Apparently the other girl was slowly losing her energy and patience.

OOCFeel free to describe the scene you're copying if you want.

[Kail D'Rea]

Kail carefully examined the page and the fantastic work of the artist, taking a moment to admire the overall beauty and function of the piece before calling on her training and practice to find the technique and style. Kail not only had beautiful handwriting of her own, but had practiced copying others often enough under her mistresses tutelage that the plain handwriting would be no problem for her. Kail could see that the work was done by someone that was skilled in calligraphy, so while it was written in standard handwriting, this master had complete control of each required stroke, following the order required to make the writing a form of art; calligraphy. The rhythm and regularity of the letters was flawless: Truly perfect writing. This was what Kail had trained for and she knew that she could, with little practice copy the lettering exactly. With this knowledge, she focused instead on the pictures.

These mini masterpieces would require all of her concentration and skills, drawing on her etching practice as well as her working with the art of writing and calligraphy. Every line blended perfectly and each color highlighted the work. Given only one pot of ink, Kail assumed that this piece would be monochromatic, a slight pity with such fine coloring, but highly appropriate for a test. She could do it in a day, impossible with colors, and they would also get to see her shading and dot work as she added the shadow and textures with only one color. Suddenly she wished she had remembered her own, very fine calligraphy set. Her array of nubs and brushes would have served her far better than the single pen, but that was probably part of the test as well. It added a challenge.

Kail was prepared to dive in and get the hang of the handwriting, which obviously must be completed before the drawings, but there was one thing that prevented it. There was shuffling in the corner coming from Orona. Kail did not want this other girl to make her slip up and ruin a sheet and her work, but she didn’t know how to ask her to be quiet. In her old workshop there was no unnecessary sound and everyone was diligent in her work. Kail had been the youngest and there were rarely many people there, but she still saw it as common courtesy. She frowned as attention was drawn from her important task. She decided there was no choice; she would have to speak and see if that helped. She told herself to be friendly, looked up at the girl and smiled, and when she received a smile back, began to speak.

“Hi. I’m Kail. I heard you are Orona? It is nice to meet someone who already works here. I love this type of work and I’m very excited to tackle this project and do really well. I’m sure you must love this work too, to be here, right?"

[Alice]

It wasn’t difficult to get the attention of the girl since she was only waiting on a distraction from her task. When Kail focused on her, it was a matter of moments until the girl turned around and faced her. She grinned sheepishly, showing her lack of will to complete her work, and Kail spoke.

“Yes, nice to meet you, Kail. Uhm … I do not exactly work here, I’m taking herbalism classes and try to become a member of the Opal Order, but I mistook marguerite for feverfew during the creation of a healing potion. Mistress Sommers made me copy this page as a punishment.” She held up the opened book, showing a page covered in tiny, neat handwriting and with a colorful and detailed painting of said plant taking up a fourth of the entire page. Again she gave a crooked grin, apparently a bit self-conscious, but still cheerful enough to enjoy the talk with Kail.

When realizing that Kail took her work a lot more seriously, however, Orona’s grin faded and a bit of admiration crossed her features. “But I admire people who are able to enjoy such work. I’m not good at drawing and copying and learning things by heart, but I like putting leaves and petals together and creating something that will cure illnesses. The drawings in these books are always so elaborate and colorful … You must be very good to apply for the job of a scribe here, right?” Her eyes sparkled with curiosity. Apparently the thought of stopping to make noise didn’t appeal to her in the slightest.

[Kail D'Rea]

Kail was surprised at who the other girl was, having almost forgotten today that this was a school library. But her irritation at the distraction faded slightly when she realized that Orona just didn’t understand a passion for the written word. Most people were that way, which was on reason Kail didn’t have many friends.

She looked politely at the book. It would be an easy task for Kail, like something from her early days of training, but she didn’t want to hurt Orona’s feeling so she tried to be noncommittal and truthful at the same time “The writing is small. There are a lot of words there. It certainly takes time to scribe.”

She tried to smile encouragingly, but the other girl didn’t return to her page, so Kail went on “I hope I’m good enough to work here. I’ve been training for a long time and very much want to start a career here. Then I can keep practicing and studying scribing and calligraphy while I work, not to mention how much I will learn from the things I write. I do love to learn, but mostly to practice what I enjoy. It sounds like you feel the same way about your studies. Once you find what you love, it is hard to focus on other things.”

She looked at Orona again and thought that she really wasn’t unpleasant and it wouldn’t be too hard to go on chatting, but Kail did want to end the discussion so she could get on with her work. “I hope your task goes smoothly today and you don’t find the copying too hard.” She smiled again, then looked down and let her mind start to travel back to the task before her, her hand picking up the pen and starting to practice the exact handwriting patterns needed to replicate the book before her precisely.

[Alice]

Upon Kail’s impartial comment the girl grinned as if she knew all too well what her opponent was thinking. Of course, she knew that Kail was on a different level than herself, but the fact that she still found understanding words for a younger and less skilled one in her craft was ironic as well as fascinating to Orona. She had also noticed that the other one yearned to get back to the work she had to do, but Orona’s interests collided with just letting her sit and write. So she placed the book at the table, wiping dust and smudging a couple of tiny ink stains.

When Kail had finished, she nodded eagerly. “Exactly. But from what you say, I’m pretty confident that you’ll be competent enough to master this. Javas sure knows that everyone who’s getting employed now is going to improve their skill a great deal later.” She tilted her head, seemingly lost in memories or musings of her own. Certainly she had found and now embraced her profession. That was, obviously, the exact reason why she didn’t have the patience to meticulously copy that page.

Anyway, for the time being she realized that Kail was done with chatting and clearly wanted to return to her work. Instead of wishing her good luck and retreating to her own desk, Orona raised and came over to Kail. Getting a chair for herself, she made herself comfortable at the opposite side of the desk, folding her hands in front of the opened book. “I hope you don’t mind if I watch you working? No worries, you won’t get in trouble for that”, she assured the older Konti with another grin. Obviously she didn’t really expect to get ‘no’ as an answer. How should she? With sea green eyes she looked up to Kail and waited for her to demonstrate her skill.

Perhaps she wanted to find out what others liked about copying books so much so she could do her own work better and more enthusiastically? Anyway, this one seemed to be a persistent one in terms of annoyance.