Magical Threads

[Faith Augustin]

Faith kept one eye on Padraig and she looked equal parts amused and despairing. In his mind, this whole mix up was nothing to do with him, she was quite sure. It was a strange moment for her, because Faith looked at him and she could strangle him, but by every Immortal there was, she considered, how she loved this man. Difficult, contrary and almost entirely unable to annoy her, Faith almost swayed where she stood for the intensity of emotions and she smiled at him. "This is your fault, you know", she said and it took all her self control to not just tell him she loved him. But they had a job to do.

And then, of all things, someone knocked the door. Faith looked up and frowned and as the situation played out in front of her, the frown on her face deepened. As Alex got ready to go, Faith watched her and then, once she had gone, the young woman turned to Padraig and shook her head "I don't like it." Her voice was calm but she was more than a little spooked, in truth. "How did they know she was here? Padraig, I didn't invite her here, she told me you did. But she must have told more than me and you." Her frown deepened further and Faith watched the door like she thought someone might burst through it.

"I didn't tell her where we lived. She came to the shop and told me that we were working at your home, so I came here. But... so were we followed? No, I don't like this and I'm not doing it. She can buy her clothes somewhere else and you can make things which make her more difficult to find with some other seamstress, because I'm not." She didn't recognise it, of course, but Faith was never this assertive. The problem, as she saw it, was that this woman was putting Padraig and their home in danger and she simply wasn't having that. "Consider this formal notice. I shan't be taking any job from someone who comes to your home and looks at you like that, all blushing and coy, then someone knocks the door for her. She might have good taste in men but I don't care. No."

Except, of course, she gave a sigh and admitted "Unless you want to? In which case, fine, but we can at least pretend I put up an argument, please? Because she's got her eyes all over you and I don't like it. She thinks you invited her here, and I don't like that, and you did, but at least you don't know you did so that's at least acceptable. But strangers to our door? No. Too far. I'd like to tell her no, but it's up to you." She sighed and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. There was only one acceptable answer right now, but she wondered if he had any idea of that in this moment. "I managed forceful for a few trills. Work with me?"

[Padraig]

The trial had become a strange and confounding one, middle to end. The shifting moods of the two women, which remained a mystery in spite of the question of who'd invited who being answered, carried on in spite of it.

But just as Padraig thought he'd gotten it all sorted out and had assigned the shifts to simply being the ways of women in general, the evening had taken yet another turn with the knock on the door. Alex had seemed surprised that the message waiting outside the door was for her. But he couldn't be quite sure. The question remained after all. How had the messenger known she was here? Had she told anyone of their plans for the evening? Or had she and Faith been followed? The possibility of the latter was worrisome.

Then, just as she'd arrived like a whirlwind, Alex was leaving again. Padraig frowned at the change in her demeanor and tone, and it made him wonder just what was in that message. It had rattled her, it appeared. "Not at the shop, and not here. I can't promise it will be ready tomorrow at any rate. You can leave an address if you like," he said. What she wanted wasn't a quick or simple process, and though he'd prepared much of what he'd need, they hadn't begun work on the garment yet. And besides, this was all beginning to feel a little bit sketchy. But then she was gone, he'd bolted the door shut again, and he and Faith were left alone.

A few minutes earlier she'd teased him, laying the fault at his door for inadvertently arranging all this. Naturally it was her that had done it. He'd grinned a little then, but wasn't now as he turned back to her still frowning. She didn't like it. "No. There's something that doesn't seem quite right." Actually, once stringing it all together beginning to end, it seemed more...not right, than it had before. "I didn't either." Invite her, he meant. "I told her in order to do what she wanted, I'd need to work with you. And I'd need to do it at home, not at the shop."

"Either she told someone or she was followed." But blushing and coy? He hadn't noticed that. Not at all. But it didn't seem worthy of debate. "We don't really know her, do we?" he said when Faith maintained that she wouldn't make the clothing. "And the way she dashed out of here, she was rattled about something. I'm not comfortable doing this with what little we know about her, all things considered."

There was a little bit of him, more than a little, that liked how forceful she was being. Even if she seemed to step back before stepping forward again. If only a half step. That was progress. He smiled in spite of it all. "Quite forceful, yes. You're right. I agree," he said and gave her a quick kiss. And since their plans for the evening had changed just as quickly as they'd been made for just a few breaks ago, there was nothing to do but shut down the burners and put the materials away.

[Doran]

Vluharqih

Knowledge:
Acting: Acting like nothing has happened is hard
Alchemy: The reagents needs to be added at the creation stage
Alchemy: Requires multiple steps
Alchemy: Two enchantments per item
Appraisal: Making sure that somebody is good enough
Detection: Little gestures exchanged between lovers
Faith and Padraig: Living together
Faith: Seamstress
Faith: Confident for a slave that has just been freed
Location: Padraig’s House
Psychology: If you help, you get what you want sooner
Strength: Grinding stone fragments
Swear: Aelig’s balls
The Cauldron: Contacted you while you were visiting Faith and Padraig

Story: 5/5
Collaboration: 5/5
Structure: 5/5

Magic: These points cannot be used for magic.

Padraig

Knowledge:
Alchemy: The reagents needs to be added at the creation stage
Alchemy: Requires multiple steps
Alchemy: Two enchantments per item
Alex (Vluharqih): Experienced in medicine and surgery
Alex (Vluharqih): Has some experience with reagents, but not much with chemistry
Alex (Vluharqih): Faith thinks she has good taste in men
Alex (Vluharqih): Received a mysterious message while visiting you
Alex (Vluharqih): Acts suspiciously
Detection: that weird energy that tends to develop when two or more women are gathered together
Faith: Suspicious of Alex
Faith: Doesn’t want to take Alex‘ job
Interrogation: Asking if something confuses you
Logistics: Working out the details of a collaboration
Logistics: The necessity of a timeframe
Psychology: The shifting moods of women are hard to understand
Self: Oblivious to what’s going on between Alex and Faith
Swear: Aelig’s balls

Story: 5/5
Collaboration: 5/5
Structure: 5/5

Magic: These points cannot be used for magic.

Faith

Knowledge:
Alchemy: The reagents needs to be added at the creation stage
Alchemy: Requires multiple steps
Alchemy: Two enchantments per item
Alex (Vluharqih): Experienced in medicine and surgery
Alex (Vluharqih): Seems to need to rush everywhere
Alex (Vluharqih): Has some experience with reagents, but not much with chemistry
Alex (Vluharqih): Snorts a lot
Alex (Vluharqih): Besotted with Padraig?
Alex (Vluharqih): Has good taste in men
Alex (Vluharqih): Received a mysterious message while visiting you
Alex (Vluharqih): Acts suspiciously
Etiquette: Knowing when what you are feeling is unbecoming
Etiquette: Remaining professional and calm in a difficult situation
Location: Padraig’s (and your) house
Logistics: Working out the details of a collaboration
Logistics: The necessity of a timeframe
Padraig: Sometimes you despair of him
Padraig: You love him
Psychology: What jealousy feels like
Psychology: The impossibility of understanding men
Psychology: Communicating without words
Swear: Aelig’s balls

Story: 5/5
Collaboration: 5/5
Structure: 5/5

Magic: These points cannot be used for magic.


Comments: I really enjoyed the thread, especially all the misccommunication happening between you three and how Faith actually managed to be forceful for a few trills!

The ending was a little too abrupt for my taste though. I had expected them to actually make that magical clothing and was disappointed when they didn’t. I can’t help but wonder who the Cauldron wants Alex to kill now though!

I didn’t notice anything majorly negative when it comes to Structure, and thus all three of you get full points in everything.

I thought I’d also give Faith a knowledge about Padraig’s house since she didn’t have "Location: Padraig’s house" yet, and she really should considering that she also lives there!

If you feel I've missed anything (or gave you too much!) or if you have questions, please don't hesitate to send me a PM.

Picture: "After the Storm" by maf04, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0./cropped and resized