She didn't add much in the way of guide lines to the background -- a faint horizontal line to indicate where the other side of the street was, and that was about it.
Now that she was more or less satisfied with the outlines, it was time to add some more details. She started with the head, filling in her outline. The duck was essentially brown, but the relative darkness of the feathers showed subtle variation. Trista elected to deal with this by using a slightly softer pencil for the darker areas, and a harder one for the very light areas. The eyes, which were a deep black, required the softest pencil of all.
"You're one of the better models I've had," Trista said while adding the small curves of the feathers to the outline. "Most people get wiggly, or turn slightly, especially if you're not using a professional model. But I don't think I've seen you do more than blink. Or wink. I can really only see one of your eyes from here."
QUACK.
Trista nodded. She put down the soft pencil and picked up a much harder one. Using this, she traced the outline of the feathers on the duck's neck and front. She didn't want to draw each one individually, but to use some curved lines to suggest them, so the outlines were loose and relatively faint.
"I guess you're right -- it's none of my business," the Akvatari stated. "It's impressive though. Seriously, if no one makes soup out of you, you've got a bright future as an art model. I don't know if you're a migratory duck or if you're here year-round -- I haven't lived in Alvadas long, so I apologize for my ignorance -- but if you're willing to migrate, I can give you the names of some people in Abura who'd love to take advantage of your services."
QUACK.
She had to be losing her mind, Trista thought as she began filling in the duck's leathery feet with a harder pencil. She didn't even like animals, and here she was having a conversation with one. But then again, the reason animals weren't on Trista's list of enjoyable companions was that you couldn't talk rationally to them, and this duck was behaving more rationally than half of the people in Alvadas.
At least half.
"Well, it's up to you, of course. You should really talk to Lemanychol if you decide to go though. She runs a gallery, and she knows every good art teacher in Abura. She could get you some steady work. Now Trista was drawing the shapes of the stones in the wall across the street. "Even if you decide to stay here, I'd hire you for some more regular posing sessions. But if you've got other plans, I totally understand. I'm not sure how long I'll be in town for myself. I guess at least through the season. But I just tend to stay in a place for a while, and then leave when it starts to feel like it's time. I'm not sure how else to explain it -- it's just a feeling. It hasn't failed me so far though."
QUACK.
"I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. Here I am rambling, and I'm being terribly rude." She switched to a blending roll, using it to soften the pencil lines in the duck's feet. "I'm Trista
QUACK.
"That's a good name for a duck," she said. "It's a pleasure to meet you, and I do promise not to eat you. It would be a loss to the art world, for sure, and I imagine also a loss that you'd feel keenly.
QUACK.
Trista used a medium pencil to fill in the small portion of the sky that was visible in the very top of the picture. After that, she ran the blending roll across that portion several times until no distinct lines remained.
"Unless..." Trista stopped. Maybe the duck would understand Kontinese? It was possible that it was a sea duck -- or at least, a duck who was one acquainted with the sea. Maybe it would know a more...oceanic language? On one level, Trista was aware this was a ridiculous thought, but on another, the sheer ludicrousness of the situation had sort of removed her ridiculousness filter.
"I am one who is in the act of giving you greetings, O Quack the Duck." Her Kontinese was grammatically correct, but always somewhat oddly constructed, due to the fact that she'd learned most of it from a textbook and hadn't been to Mura in several years now to practice. "Perhaps you have been understanding my observations about your modeling skills and impeccable stillness? I do thank you for your generosity in acting in the capacity of model for me on this day."
QUACK.
"Yes, I suppose if that's not your language either, it doesn't make much difference." Trista signed her name in the lower right corner of the picture. This had been a fairly quick sketch, and despite her uncharacteristic talkativeness, she was already done. She turned the easel around so that the picture was facing the duck. "What do you think?"
The duck turned again, and looked at the drawing first with one eye than the other. After a pause of several seconds, it blinked. QUACK.
Almost immediately, it snaked its neck to the left, and pulled something from between a joint in the walkway. It held the object in its bill as it waddled over to where Trista was sitting. Then it dropped the object, which, as it clattered to the ground, revealed itself to be a single copper miza.
QUACK.
The Akvatari was more than a little startled, even given the fact that she'd been talking to the duck for some time now. Still, she managed to call out, "Thank you, Quack."
QUACK.
And with that, the duck turned and waddled away again. Trista watched the duck until it had turned a corner and was out of sight. Then she looked back to the sketch. This was all odd enough that, if the duck had seemed interested, she probably would have placed the picture in its bill and let it take it away, but it seemed that the experience had been all the duck wanted. She picked up the copper and turned it over in her hand once before putting it in her satchel. Then she put the picture in the satchel as well, and packed up her remaining supplies.
*****
It didn't turn out to take that long to sell the piece. Once it was firmly established that ducks were the...item of the season, anything Trista drew with ducks was quickly snapped up as a souvenier, and this drawing was no exception. Almost as soon as she'd brought it to her stall in the Bizarre, it was gone. (The picture, not the Bizarre -- in Alvadas, one probably has to specify.)
She decided not to spend the copper, however. Normally, Trista was terrible at keeping any of her cash, but she put the copper in a small inside pocket in her satchel, the place where she also kept the necklace that she had received from Ezebel in Eloab. It seemed somehow...almost like a talisman? Or something important? Even if it wasn't any of those things, and was just a random part of an unusual day, it was still worth keeping. |
by Trista on March 8th, 2015, 4:14 pm 
