Open [Calendar Event] Gifts In The Stream

[Kelski]

30th of Spring, 516 AV

Kelski had been anticipating a miserable day not working the front counter of the shop because of the rainstorms that had been happening lately. Customer's stayed home in bad weather. Rain had been heavy. The soils were saturated. Large quantities of water had been gushing down the streams around Lhavit due to the off and on again bad spring weather. It made for miserable flying, worse hunting with all the prey holed up. And it just made Kelski realize she'd be indoors all day.

That put her in a funk.

She usually planned one outing a day for herself to catch a flight or get a bit of fresh air. But the promise of bad weather had changed her plans that day. And so as she busied herself inside, she missed the change in the weather and most importantly the clearing of the skies. It took her a while to realize the workshop where she sat at a jewelers bench was sunny and not gloomy. She'd been engrossed in making a lost wax carving to cast a ring into and hadn't noticed the passage of time.

The chimes above the showroom door rang and she set aside what she was doing to go help the customer. Her Master was working on a commission piece that was difficult at best, so she didn't expect him to wait on customers with that scattered about his workbench. The customer who brought a handfull of gemstones into the shop, scattering them on the counter for her to look at. The young man looked eager, poor, and in need of coin. He also looked like he was going to be late for the schooling they provided youngsters in Lhavit.

Kelski took her time though.

She lifted them up one at a time, fitting a jewelers lens to her eye, and took a good long look at them. She checked the refraction, tested the hardness, and then did a good scrape test for certainty. Quartz Crystal. They were lovely. And while clear Quartz wasn't super valuable, it was very pretty and when worked into the right jewelry sold well at an inexpensive price. The Shining Diamond was a high end jewelers but they often kept quartz pieces for those who were not so affluent but still loved jewelry.

Kelski weighed the stones and threw out a figure. The customer nodded, and she bought the whole lot of stones for a fair market price. Then she laid another Kina on the counter. "Where did you get these?" She asked the young man who looked as please as could be. She pushed the oin forward, paying for the information.

The young man seemed to hesitate. Then he quickly spoke. "I live on Sharai Peak. I walk the same route to school every day. I saw these first thing this morning. Its been flooded, the stream that goes by a mostly forgotten area of the plateau. And since the water has gone down, the stream is full of these." He added, then quickly gave her directions. Once that was done he was off to school, his pockets a lot heavier than when he had came in.

Kelski glanced at the sunshine outside, stepped into the back to warn Master Li she was leaving, and then dressed for an outing and grabbed her backpack. She raced down the road, following the boys directions looking for the stream in question.

[Amelia]

Though she could no longer afford nearly as many luxuries as she once had, window shopping was still one of Amelia’s most beloved pastimes. Pretty things attracted her like a moth to a flame, and quite frequently the experience left her feeling adequately burned. Most often than not she would find a scarf, a ring, a necklace, a hat, a bag – anything, really – that she would instantly fall in love with. She would smell the leather, run her fingers across the jewels or metals and imagine the accessory as hers. She would imagine the future they would share together, the endless compliments gifted to them both.

And in the end, she would have to pull herself away, smiling sadly to the shop assistant who had previously assumed they’d made a hefty sale. It felt like leaving behind a child, or a lover… At least, that was how Amelia described the horrid experience to herself.

Because now, though most of her clothes - which she usually made herself - were still stylish, there was nothing quite like having a custom made garment or accessory designed and created especially for yourself. The anticipation of counting down the days, the daydreaming of what the final outfit might look like, the fittings wherein you glimpsed the progress so far…

Amelia released a longing, sad sigh. Yes, life had a funny way of snatching away the slices of pleasure and joy from a girl, until there was nothing left but for her to try her best to pretend that she was planning to buy something, even when both she and the shop keeper knew she no longer could afford it. It was humiliating, but the only rush of happiness Amelia felt these days.

Today she would be browsing through the wares of the Shining Diamond. The jewellers were perhaps one of the riskier places for her to play her sad little game. Their wares were far from cheap and it took a certain amount of effort to pretend that she was truly considering buying something. As soon as the tinkling of the door brayed her entry, Amelia began to stirring up a story to explain her presence in the shop:

My sister recently a baby, and I wanted to buy her a little something to celebrate.

But what was the name of her non-existent niece or nephew? Was her sister married? If so, who was her husband? For that matter, what was the name of this precious sister who, for the mere task of popping out a baby, deserved a glittering piece of jewellery?

I just fancy a little pick-me-up. Times have been hard, you see.

Amelia snorted derisively. Oh, how true that statement was! But pity was not something she liked to collect, especially from strangers. No: she would not tell that truth. There’d be another story she could spin, one that was adequately realistic but vague enough for her to make the details up as she went along.

For the first time since entering the store, Amelia looked around herself, taking in the quiet surroundings. There was but one other customer, currently engaged in conversation with a woman who appeared to be appraising the gems he had bought in. Edging closer, Amelia turned away from the pair but strained to hear what they were saying. Though she had not caught a glimpse of the gems he had bought in, the seamstress was nevertheless curious. She was a nosy woman by nature, eager to catch whatever piece of gossip or information she could lay her hands on. Frequently she found herself tagging along to a pair of gossiping women whilst walking the streets of Lhavit, desperate to hear the juicy details of whatever story they were sharing. It didn’t matter that Amelia usually had no idea who they were talking about; it was the story that was interesting, not the people.

But in this instance, the Jeweller and her customer were no longer discussing the stones, but instead where the gems had come from. Amelia edged closer, her green eyes trained on a golden bracelet that was displayed before her but, truthfully, she was not really seeing it. After a short pause, the male explained himself in rapid words that spilled out into the store. Catching only the most important piece of information – the location of these gems – Amelia’s façade dropped and she turned sharply to face the pair. She thankfully remained silent, but her expression summed up the surprise and excitement she felt bubbling up inside her.

Gems, in the river? Impossible!

The blonde was still considering what to do when the female jeweller reappeared, stepping into the main body of the store before hurrying outside, following the lad’s directions. After waiting another tick, Amelia also exited the store. Though she did not run – sweat was not stylish, regardless of how shiny and perfect these river gems might be – her feet moved with impressive agility. There seemed to be something liquid about her movements, particularly when Amelia squeezed through and stepped around the thin crowds.

As the river came into view, Amelia was thankful to see that only a few others seemed to be investigating the waters. For a woman who enjoyed gossip as much as she did, Amelia appreciated secrecy where it suited her.

She paused, her narrowed gaze searching the amateur prospectors for the familiar face of the jeweller and her companion. Eventually she stepped cautiously towards the waters, her steps placed carefully to avoid slipping and falling over. And then, finally, Amelia realised that there was a big problem:

The shoes she was wearing were utterly unsuitable for splashing around in water.

Amelia’s abilityIncreased Agility
The player with increased agility is more graceful and more fluid in their motions. This increased dexterity does not come with a temporary skill bonus.

[Kelski]

Kelski was sad the boy whom she bought the stones from had to scurry off to his schooling and couldn't accompany her back to the stream. But she had her directions and a map all sketched out in her head and found the place easily enough.

She would have loved to have some company finding the place and even rock hounding in the waters of the stream. In Kelski's mind, stones came from larger sources and usually only showed up in streams where flooding was happening that uncovered higher up shelves of quartz or exposed a bolder that was decaying. It was exciting stuff and she would have loved to have someone to chatter about it with.

Kelski was always lonely and she didn't understand quite why. Knowing little about her race, she didn't understand she should be bonded to someone and linked up to them for life. Unbonded she was constantly searching for companionship and someone to befriend and simply be with. Maybe she'd find someone at the stream?

She hadn't quite realized she was being followed, not at least by the girl she saw in the store. Kelski was sure she'd seen her before, maybe even helped her try some stuff on, but couldn't be certain. Sometimes people looked the same to her until she got to know them. She did realize the girl had been in the store when the boy was there, but had left when she did. And she did note that she appeared at the stream soon after.

Kelski wanted to talk to her. There were a few other people there, but not many, and Kelski approached the newcomer who was frowning down at her shoes. How should she say hi? Hi... you move like a pretty water bird? Hello I'm Kelski do you want to look for rocks with me? Why are you frowning at your shoes? Kelski tried out and discarded greetings in her mind as she approached until she was standing right in front of the woman.

But she forgot all manners when she stopped at the proper distance to say hello.

"The water will probably ruin those lovely shoes, thats why I didn't wear any. But I have tough feet and as long as you walk on the larger stones, they won't hurt your feet. The gravels are even fairly smooth if you don't mind an ouchie here and there. I have a bag. I'm Kelski. Do you want to look for rocks with me? We can go higher upstream. I think they will be bigger up there?! What do you call yourself? You move like a bird, one of those really beautiful graceful ones. I admire that. I think I've seen you before." Kelski said, all these words tumbling out at once, end over end, not able to stop.

Kelski swore at herself. She was messing this up. The woman was going to think she was a dimwit or one of those people with problems of the mind. The Kelvic took a breath, had the decency to blush, and then started out again.

"Hello. I'm sorry. The stones just have me excited and I don't talk to people much. I'm very bad at it." The jeweler said, running a hand through her hair sheepishly and looking wholly like she wanted to crawl under one of the rocks she was standing on.

[Boo Beckett]

Poor Boo had been minding his own business, lost in a train of thought that ultimately held little importance in the grand scheme of things, while mooching around outside of his cottage. It was the garden that was the focus of his attention in fact, as he set about examining the exterior of the wall that encompassed it. He'd yet to fix that wretched gate, it still leaning casually against the wall and mocking him. But it was not as though his plot was inundated with an abundance of herbs or vegetables, that needed protection from predators. He was working on that of course. For now he was merely looking at the prospect of further expansion, for when the time came. In other words, minding his own business.

In hindsight he supposed the fellow that had careened shoulder first into him had perhaps simply not been looking where he was going. Or maybe the villain had mistaken Boo for some other scamp with whom he had issue with. No, not that, since the man had been most apologetic as he picked himself up from the ground, offering a hand to Boo so that he might do the same. This point would have been an ideal moment to probe the man with some questions, such as are you blind? But no sooner had Boo dusted himself down and gathered his wits, that the man was off again at a near sprint.

That incident alone might have been disregarded as a freak occurrence, but no sooner had Boo returned to the task of examining his garden wall, that he noted another pair of Lhavitians attempting to move speedily in the same direction as the first fellow. Speedily was a generous description though. The pair comprised of a young lad in his early teens, accompanied by an older gentleman who clearly was not used to traveling at such high velocities. He clutched a walking cane with all his might, stabbing at the ground with it while his legs limped with urgency, trying to maintain the pace. He had an obvious look of discomfort on his face, but aside from that was undeterred in his endeavors to make good time to his destination.

Like the man before, the pair were heading south of the Okomo Estates, where a seldom trod path meandered down to partner a stream that sometimes the okomo liked to visit for a refreshing drink. This part of the plateau was relatively quiet, since it was rather secluded and did not bear any through traffic. That it should become the focus now of careless, young and crippled runners proved too enticing a puzzle for Boo to pass up. Setting aside the task of his garden for now, instead he began to wander in the same direction as the others towards the stream.

As the waterway came into view, he noted that there were a handful of people dotted along it in varying depths. Some were content to hug the edge of dry land, peering down into the water as though it was an abyss leading into another dimension. Others had bridged that gap, wading in the stream which swallowed them up to the ankles, or the knees in one case of a small girl of about five or six. Rather than keep a keen eye on the girl, the mother meanwhile seemed more intent on fishing around with her hands, as though she had dropped something of importance judging from the urgency with which she moved.

Boo could not know for sure without getting more information, but observing the situation as he approached, he could not help but feel there was a general feeling of excitement in the air. Whatever was going on, it had them whipped up in a fever. Scanning the stream as he drew near, he started to take in the various faces, stopping when he recognized not one but two women whom he had met before. First was that kelvic lady Kelski, who he had last met of course down at the Rainbow Falls. He grinned for a second, wondering if Kelski was always to be found by water's edge. The second woman was Amelia who, well, for reasons he still could not fathom, he had undertook the task of making...a flowery crown. Though that was another story.

Since familiarity was a more welcome feeling to him than remaining anonymous, he decided to head for the women. Though his primary goal was of course to ascertain just exactly what was going on here down by the stream.

[Amelia]

For a chime, Amelia found herself in a terribly difficult situation that made her scowl – this despite her rule against frowning to save herself of wrinkles and lines. Her shoes were by no means expensive. In fact, they were rather plain looking, but they were comfortable and in their simplicity they made an accessory that was easy to wear with other dresses and garments. Certainly she was not going to wade through the water in them, but did she dare them leave by the stream? What if someone stole them, or they somehow tumbled into the water regardless? Perhaps she could hold them whilst looking for gems, but then she would have no free hand to pick any of the stones up.

The blonde gave a deep, tethered sigh and ran a hand over her hair. “Well, this is just marvellous.” She irritably snapped to herself, or in fact anyone nearby her. “Gems or shoes. An impossible choice!”

She was tempted to turn away from the stream and forget all about this horrible adventure, embarrassed that she, Amelia Trisswell, had somehow gotten swept along with the excitement of a rumour.

But then she realised that the woman from the jewellery store was coming closer, and not in a round about way, but directly coming towards her. Amelia’s cheeks flushed pinkly as she considered that perhaps the woman was coming to scold her for acting the stalker and following her all the way to the stream.

The seamstress braced herself for a sharp and strained interaction, but no.

No, in fact… the jeweller was speaking so many words and so fast that Amelia was slow to realise that she was being friendly, and had even complimented her shoes. The way to a man’s heart may well be through his stomach, but the way to Amelia’s was through complimenting her fashion and instantly she warmed to the woman, smiling as she half-listened to what she was saying. Her green gaze drifted across her companion’s appearance, in same the casually critical way she inspected everyone’s clothes, hair and make up. It was a habit, and a bad one if Amelia was truthful, but her love of all things pretty and fashionable made her easily distractible to how one looked. And this woman was… different, and no only in how she spoke or what she said. Her was remarkable; dark, almost but streaked with white. How had she dyed such dark hair so brilliantly white, Amelia wondered. Her lips, too, had a peculiar ombre colouring that the seamstress and fashionista instantly wanted to recreate. She felt partly challenged by this woman, with her intriguing make up and hair, but nevertheless Amelia allowed an easy smile to wear on her lips.

When the woman finally stopped speaking – and had even apologised for her earlier deluge of words – Amelia gave a well-rehersed little dismissive flick of her wrist. “Oh, don’t apologise. The gems have me a little excited, too.” She paused, glancing back to the stream before pulling her attention back to Kelski. “And thank you. I’m in the midst of deciding what to do with my shoes, whether to hide them and hope they don’t get stolen or the carry them and hope I don’t drop them.” The weight of this important decision flickered across her expression briefly, erasing her smile and minutely knotting together her neat brows. “But yes, I would love to look for stones with you, Kelsi. I’m Amelia. Amelia Trisswell. Would you like to lead the way? I have no idea what I’m doing here.” She gave a hopeless little shrug of her shoulders before bending down and beginning to untie her shoes. Once her feet, which were as petite and neat-looking as the blonde herself, were bare, she stood upright and began to search for a suitably dry and hidden location to conceal her shoes. A hiding place, however, was not the only thing she found.

“Boo!” She cried in surprise as she saw the familiar face of the Spiritist making his way towards she and Kelski. Only a few days ago they had worked together to make a floral crown – though Amelia suspected the male had not enjoyed the effort as much as she had. “Have you heard about the gems too?”

[Kelski]

Kelski liked Amelia immediately. There was something so... collected... about the woman. Sure she looked a little out of her element, but a change was always good for a person from time to time. The Kelvic understood that inherently from forcing herself to live in the city or at least close to it.

When Amelia admitted her dilema regarding the shoes, Kelski offered a solution. The Kelvic unshouldered her backpack and held it open for the woman. "You can put them in here just for now. I promise to keep them dry and when we're done searching for stones, you can have them back for the walk home?" The Kelvic was settling down now, speaking more reasonably, now that she was sure the other woman was not going to brush her off or ignore her.

Kelski wouldn't be offended if Amelia didn't take up her offer to carry the woman's shoes. But it was a gesture regardless.

Amelia had pretty eyes too. She noticed the woman looked different. Her face was subtly shaded with a lack of blemishes and her hair was carefully kept. Kelski's sharp vision noted the ends of her locks were trimmed, not split like most people's and it made the Kelvic sharply admire her because she'd recently learned that personal grooming was fairly important.

Shoes were removed revealing neat equally well groomed toes and the Kelvic smiled. The human could teach her a thing or two. Kelski's hair was mostly a tangled rats nest she sometimes swept up, but mostly just let fall in tangles and brushed only when she remembered it.

"If we look for stones together, maybe if you find one or two you really like, or even several, you'll let me make some jewelry from it for you. To remember the day. The stones the boy brought to the store were quartz. It's not incredibly valuable, but if worked right, its incredibly beautiful like you are. You should have pretty jewelry because you are pretty too." Kelski said, her mind speaking her thoughts out loud. She wasn't trying to flatter the other woman. It didn't roll off her tongue like that. Instead it was more like an innocent commentary denoting an almost childlike lack of a filter. Kelski looked fully mature with a grown woman's body, but there was an aura about her that bespoke of a certain type of innocence or nativity.

"I never knew my mother. I grew up owned by men. They never taught me how to... look so... " Kelski broke off, finally her common sense coming into play. Would her forwardness rub this woman wrong? "It's just that your hair is so smooth, so well... it's beautiful and the ends are clean, not split and tangled. And maybe in exchange for some jewelry you could show me how to maybe do such things. I'm a decent jeweler." Kelski said, catching Amelia's hand and holding her own up next to it. The Kelvic's nails were long, ragged, and the cuticles were a mess. Amelia's in contrast were smooth, groomed, and looked like they should have belonged on a woman of wealth. "And how to do this too." The Kelvic said, indicating Amelia's hands, her pretty nails.

Kelski had a true eye for detail.

"I don't have the correct words... but you look so put together, like a finished polished gem, not something rough like me. I've seen wild Okomo and that would be me. But you're like one someone has groomed until they shined. I'd like to learn a little how to do that. Maybe more people would talk to me then instead of think me simple or feral. I'm not feral." Kelski said, knowing it was important to spit out what she wanted to say plainly, hoping the awkwardness of the situation wouldn't be off putting to Amelia.

The Kelvic stooped then, picked up a milky stone, and deposited it in her pocket. They truly were just laying around.

Amelia said a name that was familiar to Kelski and she glanced at where Amelia was looking. Indeed it was Boo and the Kelvic smiled for him. She liked him. He had an interesting sense of humor and didn't seem to take himself too seriously. He'd been an easy fishing companion and someone whom she'd enjoyed getting to know.

"Hello Boo. You should come with us. I told Amelia we should move higher upstream. The gems are coming from somewhere and if we get away from these people we might be able to find out where or at least get bigger stones." Kelski invited him, glancing at Amelia and judging by her greeting that the offer would not be unwelcome.

[Boo Beckett]

First Amelia asked about gems, before Kelski suggested they migrate upstream. Coupled with the earlier encounter with several Lhavitians that had run by his home, the pieces were beginning to fall into place. There was quite the gathering now, people wading in the stream, looking like they had all dropped something precious, judging from the intent of their gazes. Suddenly a plump woman further along started yelling in a shrill, horrible voice, waving a greedy hand above her head that clutched a fat, scarlet red stone. Others looked on with envy, turning back to their own searches with doubled determination.

Glancing down into the stream, Boo noted a scattering of stones as though someone had come along and literally tossed them in. Milky white, emerald green, even one that looked as though it could not decide between a sort of faded amber and jet black, the two vying for supremacy in a wavering pattern. Some more regular stones and pebbles were drawn from the stream, scrutinized, then tossed back in like trash. There they lay, silent in their sadness at having been cast aside so callously. Boo was no expert. Not even an amateur when it came to jewels, stones, and the like. But he had at least the notion, judging from these events, that the more intense the color, the greater the worth. That was a fact for jewelcrafters to ponder over of course. He wondered for a moment, perhaps with a touch of glee, what some of these people's faces would look like if told their precious stones were worth nothing when they took them to be appraised.

Having at least deciphered the cause of all this commotion, there of course remained a greater mystery at the heart of it. Kelski's suggestion to move upstream was a welcome one, since perhaps more forthcoming answers laid in wait beyond the clamor and hustle of the gem hunters down here. Furthermore, Boo was quickly reminded that he did not like a lot of people in large groups. Spiritism was not exactly a social vocation, beyond dealing with more talkative spirits of course. But needless to say, adding to that having spent most of his days traveling around with Uncle Varin, he had never been one for crowds. So then, he was pleased to move on, hoping that upstream would provide a little more peace and quiet.

As for Kelski and Amelia, he could not help a smirk part his lips, if for a moment, at how they appeared complete opposites from one another. Kelski was as adept at picking up details as she was stones, no doubt catching that quick smirk. Amelia meanwhile, well, Boo had to admit that she seemed a little out of place here, in a stream, without any shoes on. He had only just noted that, wondering if the rumor of free gems had pulled her from wherever in such haste that she had forgot to put them on. Still, he chose to fall on the belief that there was likely a very good explanation for it.

"To be honest, I had no idea about the stones. Where do you suppose they came from," he asked, before nodding his acquiescence to Kelski's suggestion. As the trio moved on, he realized just then of his own presentation. Having been working outside earlier, he had clumsily allowed his white shirt to get dirtied with mud and dust. So too were the knees of his pants marked and scuffed, where he had been inspecting his wall, moving up and down like a four legged beast scavenging for insects in the cracks. His hands too were dirty, and he dared not guess if his face was victim to this less than tidy look.

Ordinarily he would think nothing of it. In the past he considered himself a man's man, getting his hands dirty and exchanging crude jokes and colorful stories over a drink. A life traveling between places brought with it a certain degradation in standards. Not so much an absence of personal hygiene or things of that ilk. But rather an extended tolerance to the limits of one's willingness to get, well, a little dirty. In a strange way, he found himself suddenly a counterweight between Amelia and Kelski, as though the son of two mothers who were trying to draw him in opposite directions. On the one hand, the exquisiteness and purposeful sculpting of Amelia's design, in both the physical aspects and the way in which she carried herself. Days earlier when they had been seeking out flowers in the undergrowth and making crowns - Boo would never openly admit enjoying himself - she had still taken to the task with an unquestionable grace and refinement.

On the other hand was Kelski, having first met Boo while perched on her rock, a pile of worms to hand while she peered into that river of fish. She had cut a striking figure as far as he was concerned, in that her ability to communicate a certain confidence without saying as such, was strewn around a more frail hint of someone that just did not quite seem to fit. Yet it was in this snippet of character that he found himself laying foundations for his impression of her. To put it bluntly in his strange way of viewing the world, his money was on Kelski if the two came to blows over a particularly shiny stone.

He reckoned the stone would have to be the size of his fist for things to escalate that far.

But the strange thing in all of this was that he even cared what the women might think of him. Elsa was of course on hand to shed some light on the situation. "Tsk tsk. It's not as if either of them would give you a second glance, is it?" she put to him in a manner designed to crush hope. Had he been hoping that either might have looked upon him in a more affectionate manner in the future? Perhaps. Though if he dug deep enough, he would be able trace this worrying of what women thought back to those last days of Alvadas. Elsa had him pegged of course. It was as though she had the inside track to his thoughts, both conscious and subconscious. "This one? I doubt you earn enough in four seasons to keep her fashionable inclinations sated. Pity. She does have an eye for a fine garment."

Boo cast Amelia a sideways glance for a moment, taking in a few more details before Elsa continued. "And the white skinned witch? More than a little odd if you ask me." He hoped the two women had not noticed the momentary change in his energy, having gone a little quiet as they continued along the stream. Elsa had the unfortunate ability to tug him down a notch or two whenever she gifted him with her pearls of wisdom. But in so doing, each time it only served to fuel his desire to overcome the doubt she weaved in his mind. Thus, trying to put her out of his mind, instead he turned to Kelski with a smile.

"Not quite the same as salmon eh?"

[Kelski]

Kelski

Experience: Jewelcrafting +1, Investigation +1, Interrogation +2, Socialization +1, Observation +2

Lores: Socialization: Meeting Amelia

If you come back, Ill add your grades in.

[Luminescence]

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
YOUR GRADES CAN'T BE GIFTED JUST YET
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Amelia

Notes
Please organize your skills in alphabetical order as is now required. I allow for a season of leeway when it comes to paid expenses and receiving grades to allow for finishing up job threads, but it seems you have more than enough money to do so, so please also pay your winter 518 AV expenses. PM me for your grades once you've made these corrections.

Boo Beckett

Notes
If you return, PM me for your grades!