[SE] Playing with Fire

”Agreed,” Jigano grinned at his friend. ”And I would like to hear more about the gods of your world! We can add them both to the Guild archives,” he added, always looking for ways to improve their store of information for the future. Plus, he’d already discovered that Caiside was a vain creature, one that liked to talk about himself which was convenient since the bard liked to listen.

Some topics were harder to broach than others, though, as the conversation tipped towards the demigod’s lost father. Jigano glanced up and caught the tension in his friend’s face and carriage. His own smile was a little sad as he nodded acquiescence to the other man’s desire to change the subject. He could add nothing at that moment that would come across well; his own parents were dead due to his own hubris, and he would indeed have given much to have them alive and well again, especially his mother. But memory of his father, too, was filled with regret that he did not cherish the time he had with the man more while he was alive, and that the elder Silversmith had died without ever fully reconciling with his son.

Work did much to soothe the rougher-edged emotions, even as the heat of the forge burned the impurities from the metal they shaped as they spoke. Jigano grinned and winked at Caiside as the other man realized how literal his inherited name was. He could only shrug a little ruefully at the envious note that entered the other smith’s voice. ”We never appreciate what is ‘common’ to us,” he pointed out. ”Especially when we’re young!” Craving adventure, new experiences, new places, and not realizing how dear a home and family could be until they were gone… but a stolen glance at his companion’s work showed a man far more deft with his skills than a mere nail-maker. He not-quite-shamelessly asked for help, recognizing when his ambition overstepped his own rusty skill and studied Caiside’s work with the base closely. The other man’s hands sparked hazy memories back into bright fire, and though the bard’s fingers might have lost their forge-callus, still he couldn’t hide the eagerness and relief as his mind caught up with what was needed. ”Ah! Yes, that’s what I’d been missing – thank you, my friend!”

With the base done, Jigano was able to more easily assemble the lantern’s top and corners, creating the frame for his copper/silver panels. While Caiside worked on the mirror’s finishing touches, Jigano turned a steadier hand to tracing the stylized suns and flowers lightly over the copper before working in cutting them out with the small saw useful for such fine-grained work. ”Did you hear about the Fae tradition of ‘catching the sun?’” he asked idly as they worked companionably side-by-side.

The prospect of having his gods, his story, in a library available for anyone brought a giddy smile to Caisides  face. It chased away the homesick feeling that swirled around him like a dark cloud. Even if he never found a way home, and was lost here forever, a book would be proof that he had not forgotten. Caiside flashed his friend a grateful smile as they moved past the topic of loss, unaware of any turmoil he might have stirred up in Jigano. Though even if he had been aware, it would not be a feeling he could empathize with. There would be sympathy, of course, but Caiside had few good memories with one father figure, and none at all with the other. There was hardly anything to miss. ”We don’t, do we?” Caiside agree, mind going back to a time he has thought he knew everything there was to know. ”Yet it always stings so bitterly when you lose it.” The words were maybe a little grim, but offset by the laugh Caiside let out when he caught Jigano’s sidelong glance, knowing his words were being judged against his work. ”I might have been a terrible student making shoddy nails when I was young, but I started forging again when I had the freedom to do it on my terms. Even when I lost everything, I created.” All Caiside could do was wave his hand in response to Jigano’s thanks. ”I would be a terrible host if I didn’t help you.” Caiside assured the other, stepping back to his own space and returning to the rays surrounding the surface of the mirror. ”Though it seemed more like you only needed a reminder, and not help.” He nodded towards the pieces of the lantern, and the deftness with which Jigano had pieced it together. Caiside had to admit, he was impressed. His mirror, and Jigano’s lantern, were finally taking shape, hands now working on smoothing the little details. Caiside stole a sidelong glance at the other mans work, the sound of the saw holding his interest for a moment, long enough for him to nearly miss the bards question. ”I have heard some about it, from a girl I met in the oasis recently.” Caiside explained, going back to the designs he was working into the back of the mirror, delicate swirls moving up each copper ray. ”I can’t say it makes much sense to me though. There must be better ways to catch the sun than a basket.” Caiside I have never been allowed to be Holy, I have never been forgiven for Wanting;

A nod and a wry smile of agreement met Caiside's observation, one they were both all too familiar with even before their arrivals on Caido. The ex-demigod had an excellent way of looking at things however, one that Jigano could admire for his friend's resilience and tenacity in the face of life's trials - trials which were greater for some than others. What was that old saying about the reward for completing a difficult task was to be given an even greater task? "You are a better man than I," he murmured, a lopsided smile on the bard's face. "I've been too much of a traveler for the past seven years to even consider taking up the forge again. Perhaps now... when you get your own forge set up, I might take lessons from you?" The ability to make little gifts and ornaments once more, especially learning from someone like Caiside, who was skilled at such small, intricate work, appealed to him far more than he would have expected, especially when combined with their talk over lost connections and fathers.

Jigano chuckled at the praise, pleased but rueful as he looked at Caiside's beautiful mirror and the stylish, stylized sun design of it. His lantern would be pretty but utilitarian in comparison, but there was no point in comparing apples to oranges, or his own out-of-practice first attempts with a master's craft. "I'll take both if I can get them," he quipped cheerfully, going back to work with renewed will and inspiration, sneaking peeks at his friend's project as it continued to gain refinement and elegance.

"I suppose it depends on how you go about it... catching a figurative sun, or a symbol of it, perhaps? Or did you have something else in mind?"

Caiside wanted to shake his head in response to Jigano’s quiet words, but instead smiled tightly, cocking his head just the slightest. It seemed rude to disagree outright, and the last thing Caiside wanted to do was appear rude. The continuation of the words made his smile immediately more genuine, a delighted surprise sparkling in his eyes. ”I would love to do that!” He exclaimed immediately. ”It’s been so long since I’ve had a student.” Perhaos not actually that long, but time seemed to have rushed by since his comic here. Finishing the last of the detail on the back of the mirror, Caisixe grinned, and tipped it towards Jigano so the other man could get a good look. In the same moment, he looked at Jigano’s progress, his smile only growing wider. ”You hardly need help! Your lantern is beautiful!” Caiside stepped away, grabbing a bucket full of various polishing and buffing tools and setting it beside his mirror. ”You’re overthinking this. There’s a way to catch the sun without any work at all.” He spread his arms out wide and threw his head back, the very picture of a man about to fall into rest. ”A day spent outside will catch you all the sun you need.” Caiside I have never been allowed to be Holy, I have never been forgiven for Wanting;

"Then by all means! Let me know when you're ready to strike out on your own and I'll help you set up," he grinned. "And in return, you can teach me the secrets of the forge again!" And this time would be better, not only because he'd be doing it with a friend, but because he would be choosing to do it!

He hummed as he worked, contentment finding an outlet in the stylized designs he followed with his saw through the thin metal. He might not have been a good artist for capturing still-life creatures and items, but there was something about stylized designs that he had an easier time with. Perhaps it had to do with abstract thinking? Either way, he was pleased with how the two suns and two fiery flowers bloomed from the negative spaces in the metal. He grinned at Caiside's compliment, pleased that his friend was impressed with his work. "Your mirror as well! Whoever gets that is going to be lucky indeed!" He wouldn't mind having it himself, in fact, but since he had no idea how the gifts would be given or disbursed, well...

Perhaps he would get something just as fine, if he missed out on this. Or maybe Caiside could teach him to make another almost as good!

Jigano fished out some buffing cloths and polish for himself, setting to work cleaning the forge-soot from the lantern and rubbing at the silver and copper until they gleamed. "Ha! Catching it with your body instead of a basket?" he teased. "That... actually, that sounds... wonderful." He spoke with a slight wrinkle of his brow, as if testing out the foreign idea of 'resting' for a day, doing nothing more strenuous than letting the sun soak into his lean bones. "If you're looking for company on such an 'adventure' I might be able to help," he said at last, grin quirking wryly. "In the name of being respectful of the local customs, of course!" he added with a wink.

He promise of a helping hand when he began his own forge was generous, what Caiside would expect from Jigano but more than he had ever expected from anyone else. ”It will be soon.” He promised, eager now to start work on that. ”I simply have to find a location that speaks to me.” Caiside leaned over the table, pausing his work again so he could watch the other mans project truly come into his own, the designs on the panels of the lantern beautiful, and quite unlike anything he had seen or made himself. The bards words gave him pause though, made him look down at his mirror in quiet confusion, before looking back up with a smile and laugh. ”I had almost forgotten these were meant to be gifts!” It had been so nice working alongside someone again, having conversation, that he had forgotten the point of their work. ”If I get to choose, it can go to you.” He promised. At first, Caiside simply snickered in as Jigano teased him, a light shrug on his shoulders, but then, as the other man seemed to actually consider the idea, his face split into a wide grin. ”When was the last time you took a break from things?” Caiside asked, half genuine curiosity and half gentle teasing. ”I think I’ll have to insist you come with me.” Caiside I have never been allowed to be Holy, I have never been forgiven for Wanting;

Jigano nodded at the promise, knowing how crazy life had been and how little time there had been for little else but surviving since they had arrived. He had made his offer, and Caiside would know where to find him when the time came, and that was all that needed to be said on it for now. Besides, he was distracted by the effort of polishing up the metal of his lantern until the silver inside shone with glossy brilliance, sure to reflect and amplify the light of any candle or wick that was set inside it. As he finished assembling the piece, sliding the panels into place and affixing the top so he could lift it by the twisted rod of its handle, he laughed at Caiside's forgetfulness. "Hopefully there will be gifts aplenty at this party!" he declared, but his gaze warmed at the generous offer. "And... thank you for that. I would be honored, indeed, for such a gift." He gave a little bow from where he stood, before he began sweeping the metal shavings from his efforts - particularly the silver ones - into a small container.

The talk of 'catching rays' left him bemused and then a little yearning for such a day. "I... surely I must have," he protested faintly. "Back in... well. Flowerbirth, maybe?" But even his walks in the woods had usually had a purpose - studying his Caido herbals, hunting, helping out friends. There was always something that needed doing, however small. "But if you insist I don't think I can turn you down!" he added, rueful and grateful both, that his friend would watch out for him like this.