Late inner workings (self thread)

[John Vicari]

2 Nighttime, Spring 510 av

John sadly was not in his room late at night as he walked around the room. Dust covered the walls, dirt laid on the ground with imprints of his feet. The smell of worn paper warped around him as he smiled at himself. He was working late for the shop, Undeniable Interests, as a scribe. He was just getting by on the income yet that was the reason why he was here. To work off hours and learn more so one day the job would get better.

He made himself a small clearing on a back desk, the book was already made and waiting to be filled with words and tales but for now it was just a empty vessel waiting for life. The life in question was called Philtering which he had the true text which was not to be sold for more then one reason. Copies would be in better shape and sell and it was his job to tend to the shop and keep writing for the texts to keep Dominac free of idiots.

The two candles were lit along the front end of the desk so he could see but if he had to get more then he would. Candles were something that was easy to get or Dominac told him he would start learning how to make them if he used too many.

The quill touched the ink as he opened the text and a blank page. His calligraphy would help a bit with the letters being neat and his slightly forgery skill would also prove useful for he would try his best to copy each letter the same as the book yet the overall thing he was learning was how to copy a book. It was the same in his view but more of both skills being used as one in a different sense but he had no how to books or scrolls with this. No he was to learn by doing and doing right.

He knew he would not get the book done before he had to sleep but he did not put the idea out of his head that he could just sleep in the shop for a bit before the doors opened. However he knew his family would worry if he did and thankfully he did not live that far from the shop. Yet he had other worries like the book to deal with. His goal was the first part then try to warp it up during shop hours when it was slow.

The quill touched the blank page as he slowly wrote...

[John Vicari]

'Philtering is something one learns not with just a skill for it is not something one just learns. It is a skill of mixing different potions and brewing them. It has always been a supplemental skill as it combines other areas of life such as cooking, Herbalism, Medicine and even Magic however it is not limited to theses areas for it could be limitless.'

The words were close to word to word as he got a few mistakes down in the book due to a few words were just unreadable in his eyes as he put his quill down over looking the two different texts. He was making a small dent even if the book was not that large being only maybe five hundred pages give or take.

Copying was harder then it sounded but he was making it work. He knew it would take many nights before he got the hang of it but he was learning a bit of Philtering. Like how you could take plants and form them into drinks, salves and even tinctures.

However he was not done as he re-dipped the tip of the feather into the small vial of ink and slowly started again on another page after it dried. That was also something he took into fact. He had to let the pages dry and he had to press light for he could not damage the pages nor indent the other pages under them.

He knew this would not be the best of copies but it was the first one he ever made. It could be sold but odds are half the normal price however he would somehow learn to make a copy just like the real book so no one could say it was a copy.

With that thought and the feel of the weight of his eyes he just started again pushing forward trying his best. He wanted a few more pages done before he called it a day then he would go on and try to warp it all up by next day for he knew people were looking for the subject.

[John Vicari]

3, Spring 510 av

The shop door was already unlocked when John came into the shop, he had gone home later then he had planned but he just got too into the craft. He was not planning on cleaning the shop as he knew the shop owner would not want it like that. It was prefect him his taste and therefore John was fine with it. Oddly enough he was the only shopkeeper for the others left soon after for some reason or the other.

He just stayed around the main floor looking though what the shop had, it was a dream come to for it had almost anything he could think of. He was about to go work on the book yet the door opened sending his head turning looking.

It was a young male, about mid 20's or such with jet black hair and dark brown eyes. The clothing was a common cloth type but John greeted him with a smile.

"Hello, Welcome to Undeniable Interests. How may I help you?"

"Oh, hello...I am just looking around..."

"All right, please take your time. I am here if you need any help."

With that John moved and took a seat behind the counter and took out the book he was working on the night before. One more night it would seem then he would be done yet it was a rough copy and he knew he had to take more time next time for better profits.

He was learning that when running a shop of any kind you had to have good products. In this field it took different items from all around but the main thing was books and to make the most you had to make copies for if you spent just 10 gold mizas on items to make copies then you could make 50 more gold on profits after making up for the product yet that was only the case if it was a good copy.

"Umm sir?"

"Yes" John replied as he looked up from his book, the quill on the desk as he flashed him a smile.

"I am umm looking for a book. Auristics, do you have any around?"

John knew they did. He was told the other day of the magic books for they would sell yet he knew they were common copies worth around 10 gold miza's however he had to learn how to deal with a shop on the line.

"Yes, we have one left. It is a copy and the price is set for a firm 30 gold Miza." John said, it was a flat out lie but he knew the person did not know that.

"3-30?"

"Yes. They are not a common thing."

"I think that is a bit high..."

"Well sir...for you I could lower the price to 25 yet I really should not but I will for you."

The man was quiet for a bit but slowly nodded as he took out coins from his pouch as John went in the back room. His eyes saw the pile of books and saw a few books dealing with Aurtitics but he just smiled as he picked up a common type before returning to the man.

"Here you go sir."

"Thank you Mister. Here is the miza."

He said as John counted them before handing him the book. Without another word the male left as John added the gold to a small safe area under the table. He hoped he did a good job getting the gold.

With that thought he went back to working on his text dealing with the tools of the trade...

[John Vicari]

Nighttime....

John had made a few sales and only once or twice did the shop owner Dominac come to watch over him but left him to his own tools. It seemed he was doing well enough for little guiding but he knew Dominac would want to talk with him later on about a few things. What things he was unsure of.

The shop was locked up as he was over reading the copy he had made. He was told not to add any marks that told people it was made by a scribe nor anything out of context like notes that was not from the real book. It was a danger like craft and he could kill people if he made mistakes. Dominac would had been over looking the text to make sure it was right and enough to sell.

It would help to learn the craft but he would do that on his own time and maybe look for a teacher or two. Yet he could had picked up a book and saved the gold to buy a lab yet he knew that would take years and years is something he did not have. Yet he had a feeling it would not be that long.

He slowly nodded to himself as he added the last details with the risks and the final notes such as not to leave the items on the fire without keeping a eye on them. He had learned a bit of the craft in the time he worked on the copy but maybe not enough to find a lab and start crafting but with a soft sigh he turned leaving both books on Dominac's table along with a paper of the sales he made and gold he got from them.

With that he left the shop after making sure it was locked up and went home for a well rested night...

[Dusk]

John Vicari XP Award: Calligraphy: 1 XP, Negotiation: 1 XP Lore Award: Lore of Philtering History, Lore of Haggling Additional Notes Dominac reviews your work and tells you that it's a fair enough copy - and he rewards you with the book itself, and tells you that if you've an inclination to learn philtering he will gladly teach you. Might as well, since he could use the help, he adds gruffly. You may add the book "Basics of Philtering" to your inventory.