PM to join [Black Diamond Cosmetics] Just a Touch Up (Shayna)

[Kryos Coal]

Just a Touch Up
5th of Winter, 513 A.V. Midday

It had been a long walk from Whiplash into the streets of Kenash, and the Isur's legs were burning with exertion from his trip. He had spotted a fair few carriages upon his journey, wondering idly what it must be like to sit on plush cushions resting one's head upon a rest and simply watching the plantations roll by, arriving in the city in half the time it took him at a brisk pace. It didn't do much good to think of what ifs, but the thoughts punctured his mind the more pained his legs grew upon the journey.

That and the list of things he had to pick up in town. Deodorant, perfume, make-up, shampoo. He did not carry any money for these products, apparently his performance working during Fall had fallen short of the plantations expectations of a muscled Isur, and thusly, just as Winter had begun he been consistently given long and drawn out chores that seemed to be penalties for his behavior last season. Coal did not know precisely what he had done, but it wasn't his place to question this sort of thing, only to obey, and so he did.

Even as his bare calloused feet brushed the first paved stone did Coal's mind suddenly fall into a panic. Since he couldn't read he didn't have a list of things to get. He knew everything had been paid for either with tobacco or lavender dye, or with Mizas, but...he had to request the right items. If he returned with the wrong things his punishment would surely be great, and already hte items which he had been cycling in his head the whole way here seemed to slip away in the presence of shining carriages and glittering garments as plantation members and even free born's bustled around the city on their business.

As befitting his status Coal kept his head down and tried not to make eye contact with anyone, but this kept it hard form finding his way through complicated streets. He knew the place he was going was across from a pond with swans or something, so trying to stare at the road he also tried to spot this body of water, staying as far to the side as he could without treading upon the porches of fine looking businesses that surely wouldn't want a sweat and grime covered slave wandering into their establishment.

It took another bell to find the shop, of whose title he couldn't read, yet the smell and it's placing across from a pond had to be the right place. Looking himself over the Isur figured he couldn't just walk in, so he tentatively approached the edge of the pond, glancing this way and that to make sure no one was looking before snatching some water to rub the dust off of his arms and face, trying to remember the details of his list as he did so.

"Cinnamon foundation, rosewood body powder, Lemon...something shampoo, lemons and...cream? Lemons and...lavenders?" He muttered and scrubbed not realizing someone was coming up behind him...

[Shayna]

The day had gone as well as could be expected thus far, the winter season bearing down upon the swamps bringing with it a chill to the air but not a bone jarring coldness that might be expected elsewhere. Still her duties as a garden slave was becoming less, since the gardens were going into a state of hibernation such as the land does when the cold comes in. So instead of being out back in the gardens, Shayna finds herself walking the lot of her Mistress' business, tidying stray pieces of litter.

Her mistress worried so much about outward appearances, and was there really any wonder considering the business she ran? If people were not so concerned with what someone looks like then they surely wouldn't be buying much from her. It is the reason her Mistress had cut her hair, a little lopsided but not too badly and it did look better then how she normally wore it to work in the gardens. Her plain unbleached skirt that stopped at the knee, and her blouse that was sleeveless and would probably need to be replaced before it got too cold.

As such she considered Shayna far too plain to work within her shop proper, and often too dirty from her job in the gardens as well. So Shayna is not quite certain what her duties are likely to entail during the months where there was not much that would be growing. After the last time she had ventured out off her Mistress' property on an errand she was not particularly eager to be sent on more errands. Her ribs had healed fairly well by now, and the whip marks along her back, and back of her arms were now angry red scars no longer painful, but a constant reminder of what could happen.

Turning the corner, placing the small broom that she had used to sweep off the front of the pavements against the house she spied a man ...washing himself in the pond? Pushing her hair over her shoulder, and once again wishing for the plain hair tie that used to keep it out of her way, Shayna hurries over stepping up behind him. Her green eyes wide, "You can't do that!" She says almost indignantly. Biting her lip just a little at the tone she had used, it hadn't come out exactly the way it should have particularly with his back turned she couldn't tell if he was slave, freeborn...surely someone from the Dynasty wouldn't be bathing in a pond.. "Mistress Katherine will be very displeased to find you ...here.." She stops, not quite 'shooing' him though her hands did twitch. Better to be certain of his status before she 'shooed' or anything of the kin.

[Kryos Coal]

The Isur was dressed in a loose cotton shirt with fraying worn breeches that ended around the knees (length differed on each leg). His dark hair, a tinge of blue catching Syna's rays was wet and dripping as he whirled to face his accuser, a girl seemingly as dusty as himself with large wide looking eyes, though those details didn't matter now. What mattered was her tone, one of indignation and superiority, which the Isur slave responded to with lowered gaze which was just about on par with Shayna's.

"I am sorry, mistress." He found it was better to be overly cautious with titles, if this was a beg issue, washing oneself off in ponds, best he make amends as quickly as possible, if only he could remember all the details of that blasted list.

He waited for a continuation of a reprimand, and after a moment, considered the girl's feet, something he had been doing a lot of since his arrival in Kenash, she was wearing shoes, which in comparison to his bare shining feet was something...but they were not Plantation family shoes, nor perhaps even Freeborn, then the Isur remembered the girl referring to a mistress as well.

Slowly, mahogany colored eyes shifted from the ground, staring straight into the girl before him. He paused, then opened his mouth, more ticks following before sound came out. "Do you work...at the make up store?" It seemed the most polite way of inquiring if the girl was in fact a slave. He didn't notice a brand upon her, his on the side of his neck, but he had learned that one could give such a mark in various different places.

[Shayna]

Shayna was taken aback for a moment when the other referred to her as Mistress. That was not something that had ever happened in her relatively short life, and she wasn't quite sure what to do about it. Her small hands balled into fists and planted themselves on her hips, and she turned to face him squarely. Before she had angled toward him, but now she wanted to be taken seriously and she wasn't quite sure if he was. Her short stature often made people think she was someone that was an easy push over, so she made sure she faced him square on. Her brand, now easily seen without the shadows on her face, covered the expanse of the right side of her cheek, ending just beneath the eye. The triple pillars with a diamond over the top marking the only space on her face that was not dusted with freckles.

"Stop calling me that. I'm a slave same as you, nothing more and certainly nothing less." Her common rattled off her tongue easily, her tone once more almost commanding though not quite. It might be obvious to Mistress Katherine, if she were around to hear this exchange, just way the other slaves tended to avoid Shayna. "You can't wash in her pond. You really shouldn't even be anywhere near here as dusty as you are. Mistress Katherine is ...particular about ..cleanliness and appearance." This last was said with something that was as close to an apologetic tone as she ever managed with another slave.

She understood how it felt to be called dirty, filthy and have her appearance disregarded as ugly, and she didn't like having to imply the same to another but it was better her then her Mistress. Of course the idea that he was here to actually buy something never crossed the slave girl's mind. "I belong to the owner of the shop, but I am not allowed inside. I work in her gardens...mostly.." Her fingers raised to scratch her scalp unconsciously, remembering when Katherine had tested her peppermint oil shampoo recipe on her and the burning itch that resulted shortly after. "My name is Shayna, what is your business around here? Perhaps I can help you.." Even though she offered her help, Shayna did look toward the shop door checking to make sure her Mistress or that twit Iora wasn't checking on her. It wouldn't do for either to catch her not sweeping, picking up trash or otherwise making the outside look presentable.

[Kryos Coal]

Coal's gaze rose somewhat, though it still stayed averted from meeting the fellow slave's gaze straight on. The Isur was taken aback by the female's tone, which implied she must hold some power, perhaps above her fellow slaves to be addressing him as such.

"I am sorry." He muttered once more for getting his dust and dirt in the pond. He should have known, and part of him had, yet he did not want to enter the store in his current state. He wasn't one for long explanations or defenses either, so he just remained silent, standing awkwardly in front of the girl.

He did respond to her question, however, not wanting her to be anymore upset with him than she already seemed to be. "I am Coal, I was sent into town today from the Radacke plantation to get a list of things from the make up store. I was told they already sent their payment for the things they want...I have no money." He finished lamely. Of course he didn't have any money, he was a slave after all, she would now this just as well as he.

"Do you think they have the things set aside?" He asked hopefully. Perhaps if everything was already collected since they had been paid for, he wouldn't have to remember that list and it could all go smoothly, simply picking up the goods and leaving, minimal dust involved. He wondered how much help the girl would be if she was also not allowed into the building, and the crest of the Isur's brow furrowed in contemplation as he waited to see if Shayna had the answers he sought.

[Shayna]

Shayna watched him carefully, she was good at watching people and sizing them up. Her own ambitions would do nothing if she didn't learn to really see things unlike most who simply let the mundane go without noticing. His demeanor towards her was not exactly odd, there were slaves who were intimidated by her forceful nature. Though that nature was actually muted a little bit after her time at the Askara plantation against her and her Mistress' will. The scars that lined her back was still tight, inching up over the back of her arm embarrassingly in light of her sleeveless blouse. Never had she misbehaved enough to earn such a whipping before, and had been proud of her unmarked back to prove it.

She used that experience to try and temper her words more carefully, for the ambitious slave who had twisted what she said to his Mistress to curry favor had cost her that pride. She softened her words, as much as she was able to anyway, "Don't be sorry. It is what it is. I just don't ..I just don't want you to see Mistress Katherine's annoyance." She didn't also say that if she hadn't stopped him the self same annoyance would fall upon her as well.

"Come let us dust you off as much as possible so you don't track it up onto her porch." Shayna didn't touch him or attempt to, she understood the need for space when one did not technically own even their own body. However she raised her hand to show him toward a grassy patch where the dusting wouldn't cover her swept area with dirt. "Then you can, if you want, knock on the door. A little red headed dummy will answer. She is just stupid not unable to speak. Tell her your Master's name and she will certainly have the order."

Green eyes stared at the man critically for a moment, wondering the best way to try and rid his clothing of the fine layer of dust. Then falling to his arm that looked ..odd. She hadn't seen anything like that, granted she had been raised on a breeding farm and was not what one considered well traveled. Curiosity piqued she gestured to his arm, "What happened?" Assuming that perhaps he had been somehow disfigured maybe, or perhaps it was another marking of some sort though vast for it to cover his arm the way it did.

[Kryos Coal]

The Isur watched Shayna as she tempered her words slightly, clearly not wanting to create any hostilities between them. Coal could appreciate this, as it seemed wrong to also try to control and manipulate a fellow slave. He simply nodded to her kind words and assessed his form as she spoke of getting the dust off of him. He didn't mind touching, his skin was too hard to injure through normal means and the Isur had thicker skin in more way than one, but the girl did not make to clean him off herself, so Coal continued brushing off his trousers, taking the inside of his shirt and rubbing it over his arms and fingers, which seemed the dirtiest bits now that he had cleaned his face. His legs were muddy as well...but he wasn't sure how that could be helped without use of the pond, nevertheless he scraped away the dry flakes off his barely gleaming flesh, hoping he would make himself more presentable.

As the Isur often did when contemplating, his right hand drifted to his dominant left arm marked by Izentor, which was black like a piece of coal with shining silver veins. When Shayna asked about it, if something was wrong, Coal cocked his head to the side, curious.

"It is supposed to be that way. All Isur are born with one arm stronger than the other, marked by the great forger." He smiled softly, thinking of Izurdin, one whom he considered his constant companion through this life. It was he who had given Coal the ability to survive this far, gifted him with the power of shaping materials with just a hand, a skill that he hoped to one day take him out of the fields and bring him to the place in which he belonged: a forge.

He rubbed his feet in the grass, stomping them and dislodging more dirt, an idea occurring to him. "You work in the garden?" He inquired. "Is there water I could use there?" The Isur would prefer to keep the disdain of his betters to a bare minimum while he was in the city proper, and surely Shayna had access to water while she was gardening.

[Shayna]

Shayna stands back a little while he took care of tidying himself up, her short stature made it necessary for her to tilt her head upward to look him in the eye. He seemed to be a fine specimen, as far as slaves are concerned, not undernourished or sickly. From the amount of dirt and dust he had on him she would guess that he walked here, and probably was a field slave if his clothing was any indication.

"I-s-urrrr." She repeated slowly, rolling the unfamiliar word off her tongue. She had never heard of that before, and for a slave with ambition knowledge was power. Unfortunately slaves were not afforded much knowledge, so they had to take what they could glean when the opportunity presented itself. "What is an Isur? I have never heard of them...you." She stopped before she asked him who the great forger was. The title sounded like one that someone gave to a god, and if so then she didn't want to seem too ignorant.

When he pressed on about the water, she bit her lip and looked once more back at the house. She had not been specifically told that no one was allowed in the garden area, but no one ever came into the garden area without Mistress Katherine. Even the twit Iora didn't come out since Shayna had been purchased to take care of the place. Yet he had a point, the rain barrel that caught the rain would be faster way to not trail the dirt up her Mistresses steps.

"Follow me..but we can't be lingering or anything.." She waved him forward, still eager to learn more about these Isur he was apparently one of. Her short legs moving quickly around the side of the shop, behind where there was a gate. Opening the gate the inside of the garden showed the amount of work that Shayna had put into it in the last season. Rows upon rows of overturned dirt expanded a full acre. Most did not have anything green poking up from the protective layer of soil, but there was not a weed finally to be seen. Things were planted but they lay dormant waiting for the warmer spring weather. "Over here." She motioned to the rain barrel, even as she moved and grabbed the bucket she used to carry water over to the garden.

Dipping the bucket into the barrel, letting the water fill the wooden container before she hefted it out. She was not a large person, often being mistaken for a child if one did not look past the size. Hefting the bucket looked awkward simply because of the scaling, but she did not waver or show any other signs of struggling with the weight of it. "Do you want to try and wash it off by hand, or do you want me to pour?" She was willing to do either way he chose, one being faster then the other but that way also included probably soaking his clothing.

[Kryos Coal]

Coal followed Shayna cautiously, aware of the hesitance in her voice when she mentioned they couldn't linger long. Did that mean he was simply once again doing something he shouldn't be? These events seemed to be stacking upon themselves as of late. As they walked Coal struggled with a response to her earlier question. To be honest he didn't know much about the Isur either, he had met few in his lifetime, didn't remember the city of Sultros though he was sure from his dreams and fleeting memories he had been born there.

"Isur are people of the mountains far from here, our skin is like the stones of the earth, hard, and our arms the colored one is the strongest part of us." He wanted to give the girl an example, perhaps crush the metal of her bucket or a stone in the garden, but boasting was not a trait that he had learned, so he just shrugged. "I am not sure...what else there is to know." Or more accurately, he simply didn't know much more about the Isur as a whole, except..."Oh, we are good forgers, crafters, at least...it seems to be the case." With me. He thought.

Coal watched as the girl handled the bucket, half tempted to offer to hold it for her, but she didn't seem to have much trouble with it, so that might be more of an insult than anything. At her question the Isur decided to favor on the side of time, and removed first his shirt than trousers, modesty lost on the slave whose body was rarely his own to control. Standing their starkly naked with faint bluish tinge to his shining flesh the Isur shook out his dusty garments, then folded them neatly, placing them upon a flat stone before turning to Shayna and holding out his hands for the bucket, taking it and dumping it over his head in one fluid motion. The water poured over his body washing away the remaining bits of dirt and sweat from his trip, flowing down his skin and pooling around his feet.

Coal ran his ebony hand through damp hair, discarding the excess water with the motion, and shook himself off somewhat like a dog. "Thank you muchly for the water." He said with a bow, and replaced the shirt and pants just as rapidly as they had come off, damp spots appearing in the cloth when they touched his skin. She had said not to linger and he certainly wouldn't. The idea of getting the nice girl in trouble for helping him was something that wouldn't sit right with Coal, so he turned and paced out of the garden, brushing off his feet in the dry flaking winter grasses around the edge of the store front before walking up the steps and slowly, head bowed entering the shop. 'The red headed dummy' looked up from her position behind the counter, eyes narrowing when she saw Coal's shabby garments. Before any accusations could be thrown his way he spoke.

"I am here to pick up an order placed by the Radacke's." He spoke softly yet firmly.

"Identification?"

Coal stepped forward and tilted his head to reveal the brand mark a raised hammer with the dash across it. The red head nodded and disappeared for a moment. "I have a package should be right....here." She emerged with a paper wrapped box tied with an elegant looking ribbon that Coal was unsure of how he was going to get back to the plantation without it being utterly soiled by the trip. As if in answer a thin paper bag was placed around the box before being handed to Coal, who nodded his thanks and left quietly through the front door.

Stepping back onto the street he glanced around for Shayna wishing to thank her and say a proper good bye before he departed, wondering if she had already returned to her winter gardening.

[Shayna]

Growing up on a breeding farm, not much quarters given to slaves and none of them were segregated by gender had bled Shayna from all modesty herself. However she was curious about this Isur that he claimed to be, so when he began to strip she openly inspected him, tilting her head trying to note any bit of difference between his body and hers -aside from gender of course. She noted the faint tint of blue, but other then the stone-seeming arm and that faint coloring she did not see much of a difference.

It was amazing how closely a race could resemble other races but be so different. "I think it would be nice to have something special like that. I bet you must be well regarded amongst your Masters. It seems a slave with that sort of arm would be very useful." Shayna said conversationally, moving after him only after she replaced the bucket and check to make sure there was nothing out of place. Other then the wet spot where he had dumped the water over himself there wasn't any wear on the garden proper.

Rarely did Shayna find the company of another slave pleasant, most she viewed as rivals but being purchased by a person rather then a family had given her a different view point. Other then the twit Iora she really had no true competition for her Mistress' affections and rewards, and for the first time in Shayna's young life she found herself with the ability to truly look at another slave as not being someone to step over or on in order to get ahead in her little world.

When moved up the steps toward her Mistress' shop Shayna turned though, knowing it probably wouldn't be too likely that their paths would cross too many more times. She grabbed the broom that she had laid on the side of the house and began to methodically sweep the walkways. Side to side the broom is swept, she didn't bother trying to sweep the dirt or dust, or other debris into a pile. Instead she focused on simply sweeping it off into the streets or into the grassy yard. Thus she was still about when he exited the shop a short time later, with a package in his hand. "I see you got what you came for." She said with a smile, "The twit Iora isn't good for much but she is good at keeping things running smoothly in there."