[the Courtyard]Checking out the Merchandise (Merinil)

[Juni]

Summer 73, 512 AV Juni knelt beside the wooden crate, carefully reaching in and feeling about in the deep packed straw. His fingers brushed across the silky smooth lip of a bowl, and gently he extricated it from the dried grasses. Pulling it out into the bright sunlight of this late summer day, the iridescent reds shimmered and pulsed almost as if the piece was alive. Rising slowly, he turned to the table which was spread with a soft black cloth. He set the bowl down, then reached for a polishing cloth, rubbing it inside and out, to remove any bits of dust. With a deep sense of respect and affection, he moved the bowl to a spot where its colors would be showcased, against a deep rust and gold swirled vase. “What? You’re not done yet? Damn, by the time you get them all unpacked it will be time to pack them all away again.” Dain’s teasing voice sounded right behind him, and Juni turned with a smile. “Well if someone would care to help, I might get finished a bit faster.” Dain simply snorted, shaking his head. “No way. I’d drop a piece for sure and then I’d owe you like… 500 mizas.” Juni smirked. “I’d let you work it off in trade.” Dain grinned. “That might not be so bad." He paused a moment, watching Juni continue with his polishing, then asked, "You hungry yet? Been quite a while since breakfast.” Shaking his head, Juni replied, “No, I don’t have one of those hollow legs like you do. I’m good.” “What can I say? I’m a growing boy.” Dain quipped, patting his lean stomach. “And seeing as you never cook for me any more…” “Um, right,” Juni retorted. “You said my cooking sucked.” “Hm, did I? I don’t remember saying exactly that.” Dain frowned as if trying to recall such an appalling lack of foresight, for he who criticizes the cook becomes the cook. Juni had knelt down again and was fishing forth another piece of Senet’s glassware. In another crate were some of his own pieces, but these were far superior. Looking at the opalescent blues and greens of this one, he sighed, thinking of his master. Well, ex-master, really, as Juni was no longer officially his apprentice. He said a quick, silent prayer that somehow, miraculously, Senet might have improved since the day he had left Wind Reach. He might even be back in the Reverie, Juni thought, trying to be optimistic, though the memory of Senet’s crushed leg was a hard one to be hopeful about. Rising again, he repeated the same careful movements with the azure dish, setting it near the bowl, though the final lay out was subject to change based on his feel for the best presentation possible. “Well, I’m going for a mug of ale. Come on, leave that for now and come keep me company.” Dain’s hand slipped comfortably around the Inarta’s back as he rose again, coming to rest on Juni's shoulder. “Bill will watch all this for you.” Dain said, pulling him a bit closer. Juni smiled and shook his head again. “Yeah, and I come back to glass shards. Do you really want to see me cry? And then commit murder?” Dain laughed. “OK, have it your way. Stay here then, and be good. I’ll bring you back a mug.” He bent from his greater height to brush his lips against Juni’s forehead. “And something to eat, OK?” Juni leaned against Dain for a moment, then nodded. “Sounds good. I’ll be right here. Of course.” Releasing him, Dain sauntered away across the wide open space of the Courtyard, while Juni turned back to his task. He knew each and every one of the valuable pieces of blown glassware by heart, and there were still three buried in this particular crate. Plunging his hand into the straw again, he felt about, hoping that all of them had survived the long, long trip from Wind Reach intact.

[Merinil]

Merchants from Wind Reach always interested her. With their fiery hair and colourful glass objects, it always made her wonder exactly how they did anything without shards of glass making an appearance. And how they lived on the mountain and partially in it, but not actually under it. They seemed so weak and silly! She walked up to a fiery-haired boy. He was taking out some colourful glass objects that the red-headed people always seemed to sell. They were so dainty and fragile compared to the strong, Isurian steel wares that were made by her fellow Isur. "How can you use those things without breaking them?"

[Juni]

Juni looked up at the sound of her voice and regarded the lady Isur thoughtfully, wondering if she was likely to be a serious customer or just one who was browsing out of curiosity or boredom. Even to the Inarta, she was quite short of stature, and looked over muscled and hard as a rock, which no doubt she was. They all were. But Juni found the Isur an intriguing race, not just for their outward appearance, but for their mindset. They seemed so very different from his own people, though he was sure his view of them was somewhat stereotypical and that it took all kinds to make an Isur world, just as it did the natives of Wind Reach. The one who had addressed him was especially different, though, in that her arm was yellow. Juni couldn’t recall having seen such an Isur before, during his weeks long tenure in the Sultros Citadel in late Winter and the very early Spring. He wondered what the yellow might signify, sure it was representative of a clan, but, which one? He gave her a friendly smile. Since being in the company of Berek, Juni had lost a good bit of his natural shyness. The merchant had told him over and over that a reticent merchant was destined to be a broke merchant. Juni still had far to go, though, in developing the gift of gab that the older Zeltivan had. Still, customer or no, he was, of course, going to be polite and make an attempt at being sociable. If nothing else, he could use the practice. “I believe our touch might be a fair bit lighter than that of the Isur,” he replied. “But it must be possible for your people to handle such craftware. I’ve certainly seen it done. And it seems popular enough. I had quite a few come by and handle my wares, the last time I was here.” He came forward from behind the table. “My name is Juniper, from Wind Reach, obviously.” His tone was amiable but he didn’t extend his hand. That was a mistake he had learned from the first time that he was here, to the tune of several smashed fingers and a smirk on the face of the Isur who had shook it.

[Merinil]

She picked up a bowl and looked into it, held it against the light, even tried to find a pattern inside the swirling colours. How could anyone use something so delicate? Her knowledge of outsiders was very slim, limited to the people that came to Sultros for trade. She knew of no one that was delicate enough to handle and use glass tools. "Do you use metal?" She set down the bowl, and a few ticks later, her cat came up and started pawing and mewing at her leg. She picked him up and stroked his head. "Hello little Iskarsir," she cooed. She glanced up at Juniper again."This is Iskarsir." The cat mewed at the Inarta. The cat jumped out of her arms and onto the table, almost knocking over a dish.

[Juni]

Juni watched the cat thoughtfully. His experience of them was that generally they were careful creatures, but accidents could always happen, especially if one was startled. So he made no sudden moves or loud noises, instead holding his hand out towards the sleek animal. The cat seemed as if it would ignore his offer of friendship, but then it poked its nose towards him. He let it sniff his fingers and then rubbed one finger gently along its cheek. “I don’t do metal work, if that’s what you mean. Of course many of the tools we use to work these pieces are made of metal. And we use substances that have some metals in them, or some product of a metal, in some of the coloring of the glass.” His voice had been steady and calm, but he was keeping a close eye on the cat, to see what it might do. Perhaps if it did knock against a piece he would have the time and ability to save it from destruction. Catching glassware that seemed imminently about to smash against the floor was one of the skills of the trade, it seemed. “Iskarsir,” he said, as if he was addressing the cat. “Do you think I could somehow convince you to find a more comfortable perch, and one less hazardous to my inventory?” He looked then at the Isur, who hadn’t yet given a name, which was more than common oftentimes, he had found, when people came to simply browse. “Do you mind if I pick him up? Or is it a her?”

[Merinil]

"He." So he didn't do metalwork...but he used metal tools. Did they have metal cups? Combs? Jewelry? Or was it all glass? The only glass jewelry she'd ever seen was the kinds that were sold by traders. She picked up Iskarsir before Juni did, stroking the kitten on his head and still looking at the wares. She picked up a swirling, red glass bowl. She could break it and make something with its pieces. She didn't really need a bowl, but it could be fun to break glass. "How much?" She held the bowl to Juni. She was going to haggle the price lower no matter how low it was.

[Juni]

The Isur’s response to his gentle request posing as a question was to pick the small feline up herself, petting its sleek head as she looked over the glassware. Reaching for the red bowl that he had extracted a few minutes ago from its shelter of straw, she asked the price. It was actually a piece that Balsam had blown, with Senet’s supervision. The oldest apprentice had much skill, and the bowl was exquisite, in Juni’s practiced eye. “Fifty gold mizas,” he replied evenly, knowing it was worth every copper. He wasn't aiming to gouge. Senet had told him only to get a fair price for it, given that there were few in all of Mizahar that could create a piece like it. A lot of work, not to mention time and years of learning the craft, went into each and every item he had for sale.

[Merinil]

"Isky, should I pay 50 gold mizas for this bowl?" He mewed at her in response. "I don't think so, either." 50 gold-rimmed mizas was a ridiculous price, to say the least. She had bought a living creature for much less than that! Living! And this was just glass that she was going to break, anyways. "Twenty-five." OOCIt's a short post, but it's dialogue and dialogue is usually short.