by Vala on March 13th, 2011, 12:01 am
The boiling animosity building within Vala's chest was growing harder and harder to ignore. And to Vala’s dismay she was having more and more trouble keeping her reactions in check, if she didn’t pay more attention she risked Vord seeing her un-composed and acting petty. She was here to work, not to socialize. She smiled harder. The other girl may not care what people thought about her, but Vala knew image was everything.
Since the other girl had yet to learn anything about glassworking, Vala saw her only as a liability. Vala figured Arilla probably hadn’t even read up on proper safety procedures - as did Vord. “Please tell me you’ve at least looked up...” Vord stopped mid-sentence. “You know what, it doesn’t matter. I’ll just assume neither of you know any safety procedures so that no one gets hurt from a foolish mistake.” Vord had seen Vala working with his peers before - it was hard to miss the girl’s flashy pig tails; it was a little surprising they hadn’t been burned off in an accident yet. He knew, from general talk and observation that girl was a dedicated worker who studied harder than most, even with her physical limitations. So he also knew, that she probably knew every safety rule a master glass blower knew, but the other girl was new and he wasn’t in the mood to try and teach them separately, plus repetition never hurt anyone.
“Follow me.” Vord called out as he walked out of the Craft Gallery’s common room towards the bustling Glass Reverie. “Vala, since you say you have some glass working experience, tell me how hot the ovens are.”
For every one of Vord’s steps, Vala took two; she had to near jog to keep up. “Well sir, for the glass to be malleable enough to work with it needs to be kept near molten. All ovens in Wind Reach are powered by the fires of Skyinarta, and are controlled by Reimancy masters. The first oven glassworkers use, the batch oven, is the hottest of the ovens, and that is where the glass to be gathered is kept. The second oven, the glory hole or drum oven, is still very hot, but kept at a cooler temperature since it is meant to just reheat the pieces while they are on the punty or blow pipe. The third oven, which goes by garage, holder, or annealing oven, is the coolest of all the ovens because it is used to keep the finished pieces warm while the other add-ons are being made or blown, or it is used to gradually cool the piece down to room temperature-”
Vord was surprised the girl was so learned for a yasi, especially since she had yet to earn an apprenticeship. He even allowed the fanciful notion of taking her as his own apprentice swim around in his thoughts for a few moments before waving it away. “And why do we gradually cool glass pieces?”
Vala was offended from being interrupted while she was on a roll, especially in such a condescending tone, but she tried to make sure Vord couldn’t hear it in her voice. “Because sir, if we let the glass cool too fast, then it will crack.” She tried to sound a little more humble - it was good to answer questions correctly, but acting too smart had a nasty habit of biting Vala in the ass in the form of an annoyed teacher - a lesson she had learned quite early.
Vala knew what she was talking about from her experience in bendi’s but she was still grateful that she had taken the time to visit the enclave and brush up with some glassblowing books at the Enclave, the afternoon before. She wondered, since Arilla didn’t know squat about glass working, and probably didn’t care as much as her, if Vord would focus on her training more than the other girl. She beamed at the thought and at Vord’s half hearted compliment - “Good job, Vala.”
The three walked in silence, weaving through others milling about in the Glass Reverie. “Ok this is my, er our, workbench.” Vord pointed at the neat and organized tools. “These are put in a very specific order, to my liking actually. Move something to where it shouldn’t be, and I’ll send you away for the day. Now I got to take care of some business real quick, you two stay here. Don’t touch anything. Play nice and... Arilla why don’t you tell Vala what you do know, and ask her what you wa- need to know, like safety procedures and the like. Ok well... I’ll be right back.... don’t touch anything.” Vord looked warily at the girls, staring down at them, before walking off.
When Vord was out of sight, Vala turned to Arilla. Her smile dropping, leaving only a cold, emotionless stare, akin to a porcelain doll’s. Her voice was just as modulated and monotone as her visage. “I do not know what I have done to offend you - frankly it does not matter to me in the least, but we need to work together for ten days. If you do not want to work, then just ask and I will pick up the work load for you, just as long as you can look busy when Vord is around. Now, if you tell me what you know, I can fill you in on the rest of the basics.” Vala’s dark blue eyes, seemed darker in the fiery glow of the Reverie.