Happenstance, tag: isa

[Qhori Jyotis]

Qhori smoothed the slip of parchment between her hands; it was crumpled and haggard, but still fairly legible, long scratches of ink drawn across half of the words (hastily written and little better than chicken scratch, but at least they were words, in Escovan, even). Her school shopping trip had been a success, so far. But there were still a few choice items that had to be reserved, possibly for another day altogether.

Still, while she was in the neighborhood, there was at least one last thing she could grab before she couldn't physically carry any more. A bulging satchel laden with all sorts of materials for spells was slung over her body and hung at her hip; she was thankfully stronger than she looked, else the sack would have had her tipping over as she hobbled down the street. The smithy was only a few yards away from the last shop she'd been in.

She pulled the scarf tighter around her face and tugged the sleeves of her tunic down to cover her hands; gloves would have been nice, but she had only the budget for her supplies, and nothing more. At least she'd gotten new boots, and thick wool socks. Winter had never been kind to her, though it was far milder in the regions of the Mainland that she'd lived in than it was here, so far north. It remained to be seen just how gentle this one would be.

The shop radiated heat, to the point where she thought she might start sweating the moment she pushed through the door. Qhori clawed at the scarf over her mouth, suddenly suffocating from the burst of warmth. She was too busy trying to free herself of the fabric to properly respond to the man at the counter.

[Isa Karun]

He was really tired.

Last night, he'd gone to bed at the crack of dawn and had been woken up what felt like five minutes afterwards, so he could tend the shop while Tobalt and Wolf went to see an order. Isa's thoughts swam lethargically through his head and he stood there (because sitting would surely have made him fall asleep), eyes glazing over the empty smithy, arms propped against the surface before him.

They hadn't started doing orders today, so it wasn't as warm as it could have been, but it was still stuffy enough for his mind to drift away. He was thus only wearing a light shirt and his regular trousers, his leather gear having been abandoned on a chair somewhere. He felt comfortable. He almost dozed off, standing there.

Then there was sound (the door) and movement. Instinct brought alertness back to his body and he forced himself awake, pushed himself up straight, so he wasn't slumping anymore, and smiled slightly to welcome the potential customer. Then his smile froze, eyes widening slightly, as the familiar figure of a girl was revealed from behind the scarf.

His voice froze in his throat in surprise and he coughed it back in place. "Hey," Isa greeted her, trying to sound casual, welcoming and distant enough for a person who'd never seen her before.

[Qhori Jyotis]

It was a good thing he was half-asleep when she came in, else she might have been embarrassed by how long it took to untangled herself. But there was just enough time between registering her presence and greeting her to yank the scarf from her neck and ball it in her hands.

"Ah. H-hello," she stammered, slowly approaching the only worker in sight. He was tall, but quite young, only a few years older than herself, from what she could tell, and unlikely to be the owner of the shop. The way he looked at her was odd; had he seen all that, and swiftly judged her an idiot? Already slightly red from the cold outside, it was a good disguise for the humiliation she felt rising to her cheeks.

But she had to soldier on, in spite of how stupid she felt. What did it matter, anyway? They were strangers, and she was conducting business. He didn't have to care about anything else but the exchange of goods and money.

"I am from Mage Academy. I need to buy, for enchanting," Qhori said as calmly as she could manage, speaking carefully. She'd already done the same song and dance with other merchants today, all of whom were reluctant to sell to a Refugee like her.

[Isa Karun]

Relief swelled in his chest as he realised she was there for business and she hadn't somehow astutely tracked him down and found out his secret. It made him far more comfortable. Comfortable enough to be glad to see her again, even.

"Sure," Isa said simply. He'd learned to try to keep his sentences simple. "What exactly do you need?"

[Qhori Jyotis]

In an instant, he had gone from aloof to relaxed. Normally, it was the other way around when the locals heard her speak. There was something oddly familiar about his voice, though she was sure she'd never seen him before, and had certainly never set foot in this shop. She ignored it. Qhori tucked the scarf under her arm and through the strap of the bag, using her free hand to slide into the pocket as she said, "Here, I have..."

Nothing.

Glancing down at her fumbling hand in the bag, she quickly realized that the list was gone. Balls. Everything was so much easier when she could just point at a word she'd copied down, instead of trying to wrap her clumsy tongue around the sounds.

She winced. "I...sorry." Way to make a good first impression. Way to waste someone else's time. At least there were no other customers lined up behind her. Qhori licked her lips. "I...had list... Ah. I try to...remember, yes?"

[Isa Karun]

"S'alright," Isa encouragingly said. "Take your time."

He took note of the bulk of things she'd acquired and wondered how much money students were meant to pay. His grandfather mentioned something about the Academy supplementing them, but Isa doubted they got a pile of coins to themselves. Especially not the refugee students.

"Was it some kind of metal? Or a forged object, like a knife, or nails?"

He tried to remember what other students had bought before, but he'd be darned if he could.

[Qhori Jyotis]

"Thank you?" she said, meaning to show gratitude for his patience, though her dismay managed to lend it the inflection of a question. But she did feel truly lucky that he was trying to communicate with her, and even seemed to know the right way to go about it.

Slowly, Qhori nodded at his suggestions. "Metal...yes." The object was made of metal, of course. Why else go to a blacksmith? "For-je?" she repeated the one word she didn't know, or at least attempted to. She would have to look it up later, as the example provided was close enough. Her head bobbed vigorously, "Ah. Knife. Yes." A pause, and then, "But...no."

She held up her hands, gesturing a space that was slightly smaller than the length of her forearm. "Like knife. But is...bigger. Not for eat. For...fight. How say...?"

[Isa Karun]

"A dagger?" he suggested. Asking what kind was probably a bad idea, so Isa rummaged through a few drawers and shelves, picking up about six of them. A few of them had actually been made by him, too. "Like one of these?" he asked, laying them out on the surface between them, hilt pointing towards her.

[Qhori Jyotis]

Qhori lit up at the array of weaponry. "Yes! Good. Dagger?" she repeated, to be sure that was how you said it. She tried to picture the word in her mind, comparing the spelling to what she had written, but it didn't come easily. Checking would have to come later, when she went back to her dorm to continue studying.

There were half a dozen laid out in front of her, all shiny, new, and attractive. Qhori picked one up, felt the weight of it, and tried each until settling on one that felt good in her hand. She didn't know the difference in quality, if there was any; a blade was a blade. Use the sharp end on anyone who tries to hurt you, that's all she knew. "Like this. How much?"

[Isa Karun]

"D-a-g-g-e-r. Dagger," he enforced.

He named his price -- granted, perhaps a bit subjective towards her -- and fumbled through another drawer. "But, here, try this one," Isa said, yanking another dagger out. It was smaller and a bit lighter, but its blade was finer quality -- it was not unlike the one he'd made for Ari, a few months prior. Isa could easily call that "a girl's dagger", because it was made for a smaller hand, and made to handle less strength.

Not that he wanted to see her use it. She was better off being safe and not wandering around at night.

[Qhori Jyotis]

Qhori took the offered blade gingerly; she didn't bother testing the point against her skin, as only an idiot would do, trusting that it was as sharp and well honed. And she realized, as she tested the grip and turned it in her hand, that it was strange to believe that he really was showing her something better. He could have sold her garbage and taken what was left of her meager coin, but there was something about him that made her certain he was genuinely making an effort to help her.

It was as if she knew him, somehow. Or was it the other way around? She hadn't looked at the shop keep closely, not until now. Staring was rude, after all. Shyly, she glanced up at him, trying not to seem like she was studying his face. "I like this one. How much? More than other?"

[Isa Karun]

"Nah," Isa said, with a smile, waving off that question. "Same price. A dagger's a dagger. Just thought it might suit you better." He picked the others up and started stashing them back im their rightful places.

[Qhori Jyotis]

She tilted her head. "Suit...me?" It would have been easier to hand the coin over and complete the transaction, but her curiosity on two levels kept her rooted in place. "Why it is better? If dagger is a dagger..."

[Isa Karun]

"Well," Isa began, leaning over the counter as he explained: "It's lighter than the others, which means it's easier to handle. But the blade's also thinner, which makes it easy to wield with speed. And it's better steel, so even though it's thin, it won't bend or break easily." He made sure to gesticulate a bit as he talked, his hands indicating thinness, acceleration and mimicking bending a blade.

[Qhori Jyotis]

He leaned closer. His face wasn't giving her any clues, though. He was perfectly ordinary, on the more handsome side of average, yet still completely average. But the voice, and his hands... She watched his fingers.

"Ah. I see." Qhori didn't. But she'd learned to say so partly as reflex, when she found it wasn't worth asking for clarification. She was more interested in him. Casually, she shifted the subject. "This your shop? You make this?"