[Training] Beautiful flaws

Maea Big dreamers shoot for open skies The sound of distant thunder rumbled overhead as a small figure hurried along the streets of the settlement, wrapped in a heavy waxed cloak that was already soaked through by the shoulders. Rain whipped against the walls and shuttered windows and made the fresh coat of color in many houses weep down the facade, dyeing the overflowing gutters a garish yellow. Though it was still fairly early in the morning it was dark enough to fool anyone into thinking Longnight had returned for seconds, and even the most devoted festival preppers had surrendered to the weather, retreating indoors to warm hearths and steaming mugs of brew. The figure made it's way past a few of the shops, hesitated in apparent confusion before two similar looking ones that sat door by door, but eventually chanced a knock on one of them and huddled anxiously for a moment before cautiously prying it open to peek inside. "Hello, Sam? Are you here?" A strong gust of wind drove into her back then, and with a shudder as something cold and wet began to slowly seep down the spine, Maea entered the space within and closed the door behind her. Pushing back the hood of the cloak with a pale-fingered hand, she adjusted the grip on a wooden box she carried under the other arm and looked around. Hoppfully this was the right place... asking around for directions had not been easy in this weather, and the bad never had cause to visit the bookmaker's shop before. Samuel

Sam had laid out a selection of his tools in preparation for Maea's arrival. Paper, pens, thread, leather. All the things he used daily and held dear, that now he was going to show to someone else. He smiled to himself; he had become the old man who had once shown him these skills, who had gently shown the quivering teenager he had been the way to make art. The way to channel his fears into beauty. It felt good to be giving that gift on. Of course, there would be extra challenges with Maea. She could not read, was half-blind. It would be difficult, but Sam was a patient teacher. "Oh, Maea! Hello!" He rushed forward to greet her, made a face at the sharp cold coming through the door. "I'm so sorry you had to come in this weather!" He did not even think to make a point of his new voice, he was so concerned for his friends temperature. Gently he took her shoulders and led her to the low fire (always kept low for the danger to himself, but it did give off some warmth) so she could warm up. "Please, take a moment to warm yourself. What...is this..?" He asked, motioning to the box under her arm. Samuel How should we like it were stars to burn With a passion for us we could not return? If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.

Maea Big dreamers shoot for open skies The girl let herself be ushered into the room and smiled gratefully as she held out cold hands to the fire. "I had hoped to get here before it started.. But no such luck I'm afraid." It took her a moment to notice, because he made nothing of it and they had not spoken much. But when the change registered, Maea turned quickly towards her friend with a bit grin on her face. "Sam! Your voice, it's all... better!" Probably a bit rude, but she had no better way of describing it. "How? When did that happen?" Holding out the box for him to take, the woman unfastened the cloak and hung it by the fire to dry, oblivious to the damp stains about her shoulders where water had seeped through. "It's the book I told you about. I wrapped it in waxed cloth and put it in here so it wouldn't get wet... thought it was better to bring it over now rather than wait. I hope it made the trip alright..."

"Well, stay here until you recover. I will go and make us some tea." Sam walked to a kettle on a small table in the corner of the room, placed tea leaves in a strainer and water, then came back and hooked it over the fire on a bar. When his voice was complimented he smiled, awkward wording or no. "Yes. The Voice helped me, about a week ago. It has been...wonderful. To finally be able to speak without issue." He took the box (with a sympathetic tut at her shoulders, but no further comment) and cracked it open, peeking inside. "Oh! I see. It should be fine, I think. I will take it out and see about mending it later, when I have gloves and more delicate tools. The things I have out for you today...are..." For amateurs. "..Starting kind of tools." Setting the box down on the table he motioned to the layout, two stations of paper and tools on either side of the table. "Whenever you're ready, we can begin. The tea can be a reward for completing the first step, hm?" Samuel How should we like it were stars to burn With a passion for us we could not return? If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.

Maea Big dreamers shoot for open skies Oh. The Voice, was it? That gave the girl some pause. The dissent between the gods was not unknown to her, and as an Abandoned who still sought favor with the old gods she found that it was her duty to reject the new gods when possible. That Sam had been helped and seemed so happy about this change was great, but... why did it have to be the Voice? Talking about the book saved her from having to comment on it, and rather gratefully Maea released her mothers keepsake into the bookmaker's capable hands. "I look forward to seeing what you will make of it" she said with a laugh, and practically skipped over to the table, eager to get started. She had been looking forward to this lesson ever since they set up the time and place for it, and not even the prospect of warm tea could distract her. "I'm ready when you are!" Looking curiously between the equipment and her teacher, Maea gazed up at her new teacher, expectantly.

Sam didn't notice Maea's pause about The Voice, far too wrapped up in matters of bookmaking. If he had known of it though, he would not have been offended. He was cautious of The Voice himself, only associated with her through necessity. "So. To begin." Sam waved a hand over the table, then pointed to the paper. "This is your parchment. This is...not the highest quality, so do not worry about making a mistake. There is plenty to use. Then this--" He pointed to the ink and several pens. "Is your tool for writing, once you have the book. I was thinking we could make you some exercise books for your reading lessons today?" He picked up two knives from the centre of the table and passed one to her carefully. "These are very sharp, so take your time. First, we need to cut the paper into even pages. This size is about twice the size of the book we'll make, so we need to cut it in half. Like this." A quiet confidence about him (finally, he could speak on a subject he knew a lot about) he leaned down and swiftly sliced down the middle of his paper, expertly cutting a straight line. "It doesn't matter if it's a little wonky. You try." Samuel How should we like it were stars to burn With a passion for us we could not return? If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.

Maea Big dreamers shoot for open skies Listening and watching with keen interest, Maea was pleased that the process she was about to learn would lead to something useful. Conservative tendencies did not encourage pointless creativity, but as she would indeed need to practice her writing later, this was perfect. "A great idea" she agreed, and touched the tools and papers with gentle fingers, a physical aid to assist her poor eyesight. This would be fiddly work, and no doubt turn out less than beautiful as she only half saw what she was doing... But if Sam was willing she would try to learn and make the best she could. Picking up the knife, she followed the instruction and made a cut down the paper. Hesitant at first, unfamiliar with the tools and the paper, she soon found that it was not altogether different from the first cut along a rabbit pelt. It turned out better if done a bit faster, giving the hand no time to hesitate or tremble. It was nowhere close to the perfectly straight and smooth cut Sam's practiced hands vad made of course, but Maea made a point of not comparing herself to the bookmaker. He was, after all, a proffessional at this. "Alright, what's next?"

Sam watched carefully as Maea made her cut, more nervous than he'd admit that she might hurt herself. He didn't want to be responsible for missing fingers, not when he'd only been a teacher for all of five minutes. But thankfully she made a perfectly fine mark down the pages and he smiled, nodded. "Great. So, get them into a stack." He picked up the two piles of paper and put them on top of each other. "Make sure they're even. Then get this--" Sam reached for a tool made of bone, a rectangular piece with a pointed end. "You run this along one side, to make a dent so the pages will bend into shape easier." He pressed the bone tool into the page then ran it down, creating another neat line down the pages. Once this was done he placed it down and reached for a needle and thread. "Do you know how to thread a needle? If you do, could you do both of ours while I make the tea?" He passed his needle and thread to Maea, next to her own set, and went to get the kettle. Samuel How should we like it were stars to burn With a passion for us we could not return? If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.

Maea Big dreamers shoot for open skies Possibly the only upside to poor eyesight was that your other senses got a bit of an upswing. Maea had deft fingers, sensitive and long, the kind that might look at home picking at a harp or holding a paint brush. Less useful with shears and plows or heavy butchers knives, and yet that was what she had been accustomed to from an early age. These tools of precision felt light and flimsy in her hands, and she was careful as much not to break them as not to cut herself. Following along with the instructions she folded the papers in half and flattened the edge, one by one. It was a simple task, pleasant as the scent of paper and ink that permeated the air inside the shop, and Maea found herself humming quietly on a nameless tune as she worked. Once done, she addressed the issue of the needles. Knowing how to do something and actually being able to was a different matter. This was definite downside to poor vision; holding the needle close to one eye she squinted and strained to make the eye come i to focus, tilting the head into absurd angles as if that would somehow help. Fitting the thread through the first one was more luck than skill, and in the other, Sam had time to return with the tea before she gave up with a little growl of frustration. "I'm sorry, it won't obey!" she half laughed as she handed back the tools, hoping the humor might hide her genuine despair at not being able to do such a simple task. Old fear of going blind came crawling, and not even Ludo's promise could do much to assuage it. Fiat Lux could not arrive too soon....

Sam poured the sweet-smelling tea (a hint of spice, a herb he had thrown in. It was so amazing to be able to taste now that he always tried new combinations, wanted to sample new kinds of sensations) into two mugs, brought one over for himself and one for Maea; just as he reached the table he realised what it was he had asked her to do. Oh, with her poor eyesight! "I am so sorry, Maea. I did not think." Placing the mugs down he took the needle and thread from her, easily placed it through with the practice of many years. "When I prepare you a bundle of your own tools, I will include a needle threader. It is a little hook you can use to pick up the thread and push it through easier, without needing to be so precise." With both their needles threaded and Maea's passed back to her, he took a sip of his tea (which was really too hot to drink, but the burning was still something of a novelty to him) then picked up his own needle and his pages. "So. You want to mark the pages with the point of the needle, all the way down. In gaps the length of the needle." Sam held the needle up to the top edge of the page then made a mark with the sharp end, a little dent. He then continued to do this down the whole set of pages. "Once that is done, we need to begin to sew the pages together at each of those points." Samuel How should we like it were stars to burn With a passion for us we could not return? If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.

Maea Big dreamers shoot for open skies She waved off his apologies, with a smile that was rather mysterious. "Thank you, Sam. We'll see, maybe it wont be necessary soon. I..." But she broke off, not sure whether she was supposed to talk about her deal with Ludo. Probably better to be quiet about it for now; it would be all the more a surprise this way too. "I'm really grateful for this, you know" she said instead, as she picked up the needle and began to mark the pages. The stitches that followed missed the mark more often than not,  because she couldn't see the small indentations and dkdnt think to feel them out with the tip of the needle. But while uneven, the pages were still tied together and that would be all that really mattered for now. "Not just the lessons, but... everything. For getting to be one of you..." One of the Loreseekers. She was not a great asset, Maea knew that. A poor writer, a worse reader and lacking in education generally... yet still she had been welcomed into their midst and treated like an equal. It meant more than she had words to describe.

His interest was piqued from Maea casually mentioning that the help might not be necessary soon, but she didn't seem to want to talk of it anymore, so he did not ask further. Sam often said things he didn't mean to and immediately regretted it, knew of the annoyed pain that occurred when you were asked to elaborate. Sam did notice as well that her stitches were a far cry from the neat, careful ones he made; didn't mention that either. It didn't matter too much, not when this was her first book and it was for her own use. It would make it a little weaker, but...perhaps that would be a good way to teach. To let her make her mistakes and learn from them, as he once had. "You're very welcome, Maea. I know what it feels like to be excluded, believe me. I...am glad we make you feel welcome. Jigano is a good man, a good person to follow. You will be happy in the guild, I hope." With a smile he reached for his tea, a small break for his hands while he drank. "The next part involves the leather, so we can put the pages to one side for a moment." Sam pushed his pages away, pulled over a sheet of leather and two pieces of thin wood, Maea would find the same things on her side of the table too. "We need to measure the width of the pages in the middle, for the spine. Then place the wood in each side and curl the leather around it." He did so, looking up every so often to make sure she was correctly following his instruction. Samuel How should we like it were stars to burn With a passion for us we could not return? If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.

Maea Big dreamers shoot for open skies "Jigano is not the only good man in the guild" she smiled, and gave him a pointed look thst suggested he should not exclude himself from the position. "But, well... I hope so too. As long as I don't have to spend too much time around Amalia..." She grimaced, but it was too late to take the words back; they were out in the open now, and all Maea could hope was that Sam was not another of the pious woman's ardent followers. She did follow Sam's instructions carefully, and found it easier to work with the less fiddly parts of the process. She managed to get the leather glued on quite nicely, without bubbles or wrinkles to mar the simple elegance of the surface. Checking frequently to make sure she did not skip a step in the process, Maea was still able to carry on a conversation while working. "I was surprised to see you at Evie's shop the other day... Do you know each other well?"

Sam smiled at her comment, never having thought of himself as good but appreciating the sentiment. But he was immediately distracted by her comment on Amalia, which made him raise his brows. Sam had little opinion of Amalia, really. She seemed nervous around him (he could only assume because he was Ascended) but other than that they did not really have any kind of connection. "Has...Amalia done something to offend you? I must confess I hardly know her, but I did not think she had enemies." If he was being honest, he was asking this mostly because he was nosy, but he kept a neutral expression as if asking for the good of the guild only. Maea seemed to be almost a natural at the bookmaking so he found he didn't need to say anything as she prepared the book's jacket. His own was finished sooner simply because he was more practised at it so he spent some time pressing little stars into the leather with a metal stamp, just for something to do. The question took him by surprise, his hand slowing mid-stamp and his eyebrows raising. Did Maea not...know? Could she not make the connection? He supposed she might not know they had the same last name, but everyone had always told him how much he looked like Evie. "Well, I know her. She is my twin sister. We...aren't very close, though. Are you a friend of hers? I am...trying to rekindle some kind of relationship with her, but it's...difficult." Samuel How should we like it were stars to burn With a passion for us we could not return? If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.