Catch-All

[cultivatingdisaster]

⌛ Who: Prompto Argentum, Aerith Gainsborough, Duo Maxwell, Xie Lian, Rude and you, maybe?
⌛ What: Shenanigans. Permanent catch-all.
⌛ When: Anytime.
⌛ Where: All over.
⌛ Warnings: R. Language.



✽ Xie Lian

• Cooking With Xie Lian


• Busking Adventures


• Event: Trial of the Soul


• Event: Waterpark Waves

✽ Prompto Argentum

• Chocochicks!


• Travelling Cameraman


• Event: Trial of the Soul


• Event: Waterpark Waves

✽ Rude

• Event: Trial of the Soul


• Event: Waterpark Waves

✽ Duo Maxwell

• Lovers Tiff [Closed to Wufei]


• Event: Trial of the Soul


• I Can Explain! [Closed To Wufei]

✽ Aerith Gainsborough

• Rock Garden


• Event: Trial of the Soul


• Event: Waterpark Waves


• Gems In The Making [Closed to Maglor]

[WILDCARD] Have another idea? Want to plot something out? Catch me on JustAnotherUsername | Theo#4816 ]

CHARACTER INBOXES:
✦ Xie Lian Inbox
✦ Duo Maxwell Inbox
✦ Aerith Gainsborough Inbox
✦ Rude Inbox
✦ Prompto Argentum Inbox

Comments

Gems In The Making [Closed to Maglor]

[ancientflower]

Aerith was having the time of her life keeping herself busy! And one of her hobbies now was making cute jewellery! Right now she was pretty much stuck with making simple things like necklaces and bracelets but her metalwork was lacking. When Feanor had helped teach her, their resources had been very, very limited so it was strange to have so much! Aerith was falling into habits and using some of the same items she had before. Leather, beads and pressed flowers or feathers.

She'd set up a table on the patio outside her front door with all of her things arranged in front of her. Humming a little tune she busied herself cutting strips of leather. Some she would braid, some she wouldn't. Aerith was just having fun!

[bythewaves]

"Aerith!" Maglor taps on the doorframe, popping his head around.

"Ah! There you are. I was wondering if you might have wanted to continue that conversation about gem-making?"

[ancientflower]

"Maglor! Yes, come on in!" Aerith stretched out a foot and lightly kicked at the leg of a chair, making it skid back as an offering for Maglor to come in and sit with her. She smiled brightly, pleased to see him so soon after that conversation.

"Come sit and tell me more about it! I never knew gems could be made!" Aerith just thought they were formed. Though, she supposed, even back home there had been attempts to make materia... That wasn't quite the same, right?

[bythewaves]

"Hello!" He smiles as he comes in and sits down.

"Aye, they can - some take more effort than others, but we Noldor learnt the art long ago. The problem we have here is getting ahold of the right ingredients and equipment! It takes rather a lot of fiddly parts, you see. It's probably why Father didn't even mention it. Also, it's fairly advanced techniques, so... "

[ancientflower]

"Feanor never mentioned it... because where we were they didn't even have metal we could use. It was a point of contention for him that he was never able to get his forge." She remembered his grumbling with a fond smile as she rolled a glass bead between her fingers.

"Maglor? If they're advanced techniques does that mean it'll be trouble for you do?" And if it was advanced for his people would she even be able to do something like that herself?

[bythewaves]

"That would drive him up the wall." Maglor agrees.

"He was never content but to be able to make something." he shakes his head. "Father wanted all of us to folllow after him in the forge." He explains. "Although only Curufin ever had skill enough to do so, he insisted that we had, at minimum, basic skills. But what Father considers basic is... mm, perhaps not so much so for other people, as I learnt. I don't have a mastery in jewelmaking, but I've found I know quite a bit more than the average novice! I don't know that we can get the things to MAKE our own gems here, but I might be able to teach you how to do some of the simpler things, like catching light in stone, if we can buy or fossick some of our own."

[ancientflower]

"And it did! Moreso that there were actually forges around, it was just that the Natives had decided they didn't actually trust us enough to use them. They wanted Feanor to prove he could use the forges and not mess everything up, so required him to work for them until they decided he was good enough." And that was something that had driven them all up the wall. The feeling like they were all so very limited in what they could and couldn't do.

Aerith had stopped what she was doing then to listen to Maglor, to give him her full attention. She smiled for him.

"Even your most basic knowledge is more than what I have. So I am happy to be your student in this, Maglor! Teach me your ways!" There was playfulness in her tone and her smile, as well as eagerness. Whatever Maglor could show her would be valuable to her new hobby.

[bythewaves]

Maglor laughs at that.

"Oh dear, that would have upset him greatly indeed."

He smiles and offers her a terribly flourishing bow.

"As my lady commands~" He quips back. "What shall we start with?"

[ancientflower]

Aerith laughed brightly. Maglor was just so much fun and indulged her effortlessly. He was a good friend.

"You tell me! Start with something easy, hm?" Something slow she could follow along with at least.

[bythewaves]

"Well, what did you want to know?" He smiles. "I don't know how far father got!"

[ancientflower]

"We didn't get too far, honestly." Aerith admitted sheepishly. "As I've said, our resources were very limited. I have an abundance of feathers due to an outbreak of strange birds that descended upon the city. We learned how to treat those in order to create something of interest. We had limited metal, almost nothing in the way of gem stones. Not even glass we could use. It was... not an easy world to be on." And yet it seemed to desperately want itself to be known as a comfortable and happy place. It was not.

[bythewaves]

He hums. "Mm, that does sound difficult. Well, I think we will struggle to MAKE any gems here, but in a place like this, there are plenty of places to fossik! We should be able to find feldspar, or greenstone, or even, if fortunate, bits of quartz or gold. If we can find some crystalline ones, I can show you how to try and catch light in it, if you like?"

[ancientflower]

"I have no idea what you just said! But I know what quartz and gold are at least." She laughed, because even though she might not understand, she loved listening to him. Much like with Feanor before, she had loved to listen to him talk and he seemed to have enjoyed telling her things. "I would love to see how you do that. And maybe... maybe you could help me make a gift for a friend? It's his birthday soon."

[bythewaves]

He laughs apologetically.

"Ai! Forgive me, I should try and keep it simpler, eh? Well, feldspar and greenstone are two fairly common mineral deposits. Fossicking is just...well. Looking for stones and gems in riverbeds and canyons - casually, as it were! But if you're looking to make something for a friend, we might have better luck checking the markets for raw gems, first."

[ancientflower]

"Ahh..." Aerith hummed and nodded as she accepted these new words into her vocabulary. Learning something new was always exciting! "So we could go wandering in the wilderness and happen upon gems and such? Hmm... so we need to leave and go shopping?" She asked then, feeling a little guilty she hadn't thought to do something like that herself.

[bythewaves]

"Well, not just ANYWHERE - there are areas where you are more, or less likely to find stuff, of course! Knowing the environment is very helpful - quartz, for example, is often found in riverbeds - some stones are close to the surface, others may need to be dug for."

He nods. "I think if you want something for a friend, it would be better - we could certainly go out and look, but there's no way of knowing if we would find something, how long it might take, or if it would be suitable."

[ancientflower]

Aerith hummed in understanding. She'd suspected it wouldn't have been that easy. But she knew very little about rock and stone, she spent her days with flowers after all. But she was very eager to learn.

"I see... I do have a week or two before his birthday. Maybe I could take the time to look and find something and you could show me once I have? Or we can go together another day?" She did seem hopeful, she would have loved to have made Cloud something. Though if not with a gem of their making then she would make something more basic with what she had.

[bythewaves]

"With a week or two we might have some luck." He says thoughtfully. "Although I don't know this area well, of course! But we could set aside time to go looking for the first week, if you like? And then if we find nothing suitable, we can try the markets instead."

[ancientflower]

She thought about another thing then, and knew she had to ask. "I think I'd like that, we can find the perfect stone! Or even an imperfect one, so long as it's small enough to fit as a pendant! But... Maglor? I wonder. I know... I know your father was able to imbue items with um... certain characteristics? Can you do that too?" Aerith didn't really like asking for things and if it was something that would be too much for Maglor then she would never ever ask. But she was curious. And the only way to know was to find out.

[bythewaves]

"Of course." He smiles. "It's one of the first skills any of us learns - it's actually a lot easier to set a charm for virtue or hope, or even to call light than it is to make a gem, in some respects. And with your skills, Aerith, I don't think it would be that hard for you to learn."

[ancientflower]

Aerith breathed a sigh of relief and her smile brightened ten-fold. "You think I could do it myself? That would be amazing!" And now she was even more eager to do this. Feanor had never told her she could do the thing herself, but in fairness they'd never talked about this aspect. Gladio had told her about this, about items that Feanor had made for him that held special properties. Aerith had always meant to ask about it but... that would never happen. She'd always thought that time was something she'd have an abundance of. As it turned out, that wasn't even remotely true.

[bythewaves]

"I think I could certainly try and teach you." He smiles at her. "The way you describe your own folk... I think there's similarities enough there to work with. Hopefully, anyway!"

[ancientflower]

This was so exciting! She wanted to run indoors and tell Sephiroth! But she refrained from doing something so silly when she had a guest right in front of her.

"Well we won't know unless we try! And I'm willing to try." Aerith, when she put her mind to something, was the hardest of workers. If this didn't work for her then so be it. But if there was a chance? She wanted to learn some new skills!

[bythewaves]

He smiles at her enthusiasm.

"Well, why don't we start with seeing if it might be possible? I think I have an old crystal bead that might do for a trial? Or did you want to go out hunting for stones first?"

[ancientflower]

"We could try with the bead? See if it actually takes before we go wasting our time for stones." Though she was thinking more about Maglor here. He was helping her out, after all! She didn't want him to go to any great lengths just for her silly whims of fancy.

At least, not until she was certain that those fancies would bear fruit.

"I'd be interested to test it out, if you have the time?"