Redemption & Invention [Kadurro & Karrin]

[Kadurro]

The 36th of Winter, 509 AV

Kadurro took the list and the Mizas, taking care to keep them seperate from his own. "Alright. Let's get to it, then," he said to Karrin. He had anticipated that he would be asked to prove his self-proclaimed talent, and while Karrin had been assembling his kite reel, Kadurro had been thinking about who would be interested in buying such a thing. And for at least 10 gold ones, too. Ultimately, he could only think of one group of people who would even be remotely interested in this particular item: people who fly kites.

Unfortunately, Kadurro didn't know anyone who flew kites. Still, there was a lot riding on this test; he couldn't back down now, not when he was so close to success. Opening the door leading out of Mechanical Marvels, Karrin right behind him, he left the shop, rereading the instructions that deGrey had given to him.

"Shyke. I can't make heads or tails of what he wants us to buy. This handwriting is horrible...what number is that, exactly?" he asked, handing deGrey's chicken-scratch to Karrin. After all, he wasn't the engineer, he was just selling things. "You know, maybe you should just hold on to that. You'll probably make more sense of it than I will."

Kadurro let himself stretch. He had been stuck in the courtyard of Mechanical Marvels for what seemed to be an eternity, and while the splendor of the environment made a lasting impression on him, it wasn't a place that he would prefer to be sitting in for too long. "Anyways, we're looking for catgut, right? Sounds like we should be heading towards...The Tooth and The Claw?" He had no idea what catgut wire was, but he did know about cats, and the only place he knew to get cats was The Tooth and The Claw, the pet shop of Syliras. "I don't know how many cats it'll take to get enough catgut, though," he mumbled.

[Karrin]

Karrin raised an eyebrow. Go out into the field, buy catgut, make the machine, and sell it. For more than 10 Miza's. Karrin nodded to de'Grey, and picked up his unfinished Kite reel. He also picked up a hook for the end of the cat gut. Walking out the door, Karrin blinked slightly. Ow. The sun was bright today.

Smiling slightly at the others grumbling, he took the piece of paper from Kadurro. To be honest, he had no clue what it said either. He just put it in his pocket, making a mental note to ask their customer to sign it, when the found one. If they found one. Personally he had his doubts, but hey. Who was he to say.

Karrin chuckled as he heard Kadurro mention The Tooth and Claw. "Catgut isn't what is sounds like. It has nothing to do with cats." Thinking for a moment, he said "The best place to go is actually to Sina. She's bound to have catgut."

Walking off, he headed in the general direction of the cart where the musician sat. When he got there though, he hung back, letting Kadurro talk instead.

[Kadurro]

"Ah. Well, you're the expert," Kadurro said, following behind Karrin. Sina was sitting in front of her stall, playing a magnificent tune on a mandolin. He didn't have to get too close to see that she was a Vantha, like himself. Kadurro decided to wait until she had finished her song, but Sina saw the two of them waiting and stopped playing to greet them. "Is there something I can do for you?"

"I didn't mean to interrupt your song," he apologized. Other Vantha always seemed to bring out a more sincere, polite side of Kadurro. Sina simply smiled back at them. "But there is something that we need...'catgut'?" he asked cautiously, still not sure that this was the right place to be. "Oh, I have plenty of catgut," she said, still smiling. "How much did you need?" Kadurro snapped his head back at Karrin. "How much do you need to finish your reel?" he whispered. Just as quickly, he snapped back to Sina (still smiling), and matched her with a smile of his own.

[Karrin]

"About 500 feet, give or take." He decided.

Pulling out his unfinished reel, he began fiddling with the clasps, unlocking it so it could be winded in.

(Not much I can do.)

[Kadurro]

"Okay," Sina said, pulling out two circular bundles of wire, each one tied up with twine to keep it from unraveling. "Each of these is about two hundred and fifty feet long, and each bundle is two gold Mizas."

What a beautiful woman. Kadurro began fishing around for the Mizas that deGrey had given him to pay for the catgut, entranced by Sina's smile, her eyes each pools of gold, reflecting his own happiness. But, as he wrapped his fingers around deGrey's three Mizas, the fact began to sink in; they didn't have enough to pay for the catgut. Strange, he quickly thought. Surely he would have known it would have cost four Mizas and not three...unless this is another test. Kadurro would have laughed at deGrey's clever trick, assuming that deGrey had meant to do it, but instead his face took on an expression akin to being slapped in the face.

"Four?! Just for some wire? Come now, my dear," he said, bringing back the smile that he wore so often; it was both sincere and insincere, it put his emotions in plain sight, yet kept his reasons well hidden. "Surely, you are just trying to turn a profit. But this catgut, it's for a very special someone, if you know what I mean? She loves to fly kites, you see, and I'm putting something together in order to win her heart over. So, please!" he cried out, clasping his hands together, as if Sina was the embodiment of a goddess standing before him. Kadurro had thought about dropping on to one knee, but decided that that may have been overkill. "I don't have much, but this catgut is all I need to finish our kite of love! I can give you one gold Miza for each of them, but I cannot go any higher!"

Kadurro could have sworn he caught a sigh from Sina, but if she doubted his story, her face certainly didn't show it. Oh, she's good at this, he thought. Or perhaps she always smiles because she's always--no, nevermind. No one is always happy. "Alright," she said, interrupting his train of thought. "Just this once, I will help you out." Kadurro pulled two of deGrey's Mizas from his pocket and handed them to Sina, then handed both wound-up lengths of catgut wire to Karrin.

"Thank you very much, miss! I'll never forget this gesture of kindness!" Kadurro called out to her, as he and Karrin started heading back to Mechanical Marvels.

"A word of advice!" Sina called out to him, causing Kadurro to turn around. She was still smiling, and she once again held a mandolin. "When you talk with your 'special someone', be honest with them." Damn. Kadurro recognized patronizing when he heard it. Stuck for words, he simply waved back at Sina. She's far too kind for me.

-----

"So," Kadurro said, stopping in front of Karrin. They were just outside of Mechanical Marvels. "I have to ask, and I may not get another chance. What makes you want to work here?" Kadurro crossed his arms. "It's not that I mean to pry into any of your business; but a job is a means to an end. So, what's your 'end'? What do you stand to gain from this place?"

[Karrin]

Karrin bit his lip as Sina named her price. Too much, he thought frantically. Kadurro, apparently, had also had the same thought. Clasped hands, a coy smile, a desperate expression, and he got the price down to 2 miza's.

"When you talk with your 'special someone', be honest with them."

Karrin grinned. Hilarious. Just hilarious.

"A job is a means to an end. So, what's your 'end'? What do you stand to gain from this place?"

He scowled as Kadurro asked this question. "What else am I to do? I'm a carpenters son, with no experience in anything else. I've got no other option." He said bitterly.

With that, he brushed past Kadduro into the shop. "We're back, Mr de'Grey." He said curtly. Walking to the work bench, he unscrewed the last gear, then turned to Kadurro for the Catgut.

[Kadurro]

[continued here.]