Soon after Shamus met her it was clear that Tian was someone who employed the use of many, many, cosmetic philters. So Shamus thought he would make her something that she would relate to practical use. Lotion would be best for the instant results it would provide.
Shamus peeked around the lab, eyeing the herbs he did and did not know, eventually finding what he was looking for, lavender. He got a small handful of it, the stems still green and flowers still a vivid purple hue. Moving to the central table, where a large amount of empty vials were located, he picked up one of the larger ones, which was tinted violet. He stuffed the lavender inside, glancing over at Tian who watched, expressionless, before going back to his craft. A large barrel full of water was located next to the table, and he used a small cup to pour some of said water into his vial, holding it at eye level to see when the plant matter was coated and the water rose just above the aromatic material.
He placed this over a burner, finding a arched glass tube that fit into the top and sliding it in through the top. He picked up a much small vial and slid the other side of the tube into it, so when the essential oils evaporated and condensed they would drip into it. Knowing this would take around a half a bell Shamus searched around the lab some more, finally opening a cabinet containing many pots and pans. Taking one of the gallon iron pots, he closed the wood cabinet behind him.
After around five minutes of searching he gave up on finding the oils, asking Tian with a bit of shame. She directed him to a crate in a bland storage room containing large bottles labeled with different kinds of oils. Recalling what his mother used to use remained difficult, as always, but he did recall frequent trips to buy almond oil. With that in mind he picked up the long necked bottle and brought it back into the lab, where he poured a conservative amount into the top part of a double boiler pot. He found a handful of dried mint and tossed that in as well. He put it over another burner with a small flame barely flickering up and allowed it to sit. A lot of philtering seemed to be a waiting game.
After adding some water to the bottom part of the double boiler and placing the lid on he began another search, a search for the strange substance of beeswax. This went much faster, with him finding a huge container full of the stuff. He used the edge of a cup as a tool to scrape it out and placed it into a large tin jar he found. After adding a bit of water to the bottom of the gallon pot and setting it on the burner, he put the jar inside the pot to simmer in the water. Shamus had no idea wether this was the best way to melt the ingredients or not, but after thinking it through it seemed it would work.
He still had five chimes or so before his herbal infusion would be complete, so he headed to Tian to specify the job specifics. "How many kina per day would this pay?" He asked without hesitation, seeing as it was a normal question.
"Four per day," she answered, "but that amount will rise to seven or eight after you work here for a season and become more efficient and valuable to us as an employee." He nodded. It was a reasonable amount that he could live off of easily, and in the end the experience he would earn would be just as valuable as the extra kina that might come later.
He headed back to his workplace, smelling a tad bit of smoke in the air, even with the ventilation in the room. It was coming from his essential oil extraction, the water had all been evaporated and now the lavender was burning inside. He quickly extinguished the burner and poured a bit more water into the phial, but the dried herbs he could have used were already destroyed. It was a stupid mistake. He removed his smaller vial from the glass tube and looked at the inside. There was just enough liquid inside to cover the bottom of the tiny vial. He put his nose over the top and inhaled, his sinuses were immediately cleared, allowing him to breathe clearly after the strong smell left his nose. He would keep that in mind for future philters.
He set the vial down, moving to the double boiler and roving the lid. Steam curled out from underneath of the bubbling oil, there must have been some water stuck inside. Shamus extinguished the burner and stirred the infusion gently, the smell of mint climbing into his nose. He took a cheesecloth from off the counter and placed it over his jar, still simmering in the water. He used it to filter out the dried mint and allow only the oil to go through as he poured. It was the first time he had realized he could easily filter out the plant material and would keep the idea in his mind for future use. On his first day of the job he was already learning tons of little shortcuts.
He took the smaller vial of aromatic lavender oil and poured a few drops into the jar, finding it difficult to grip it in while wearing the silky gloves. Shamus took the jar out of the water and covered the top with its lid, shaking it thoroughly. He took the lid off and stirred it, further mixing the contents inside. He periodically smelled it as he added lavender essence drop by drop carefully, giving the jar a final shake when he felt it had enough. It was then that the small glass vial he had been holding slipped from his grip and fell to the floor, shattering into hundreds of pieces. The room immediately became full of the scent of lavender, overpowering all previous odors. Shamus slowly turned to face Tian, an apologetic smile on his face. While her mouth was expressionless, her eyes were laughing. |
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by Shamus on January 30th, 2015, 12:21 am 
