Xanadu Weyr - Caverns
A massive cavern in it's own right, this one has been skillfully adapted for human habitation. The high ceilings have been painted a light, soft ivory, as are the walls where numerous tapestries hang to provide brilliant color and insulation from the stone. The floor has been left in its natural state, pale pink granite speckled through with glittering mica and dark flecks of basalt, leveled carefully but kept sufficiently rough to avoid slips.
The cavern itself is loosely divided into areas, each one set up to be suitable for some segment of the Weyr's population. The most frequently occupied area, however, is the one near the Kitchens where tables of varying sizes provide a place to sit down and eat or chat and a buffet of consumables is almost always kept stocked. Its plain that on most days, this area wouldn't accommodate anywhere near the full population of the Weyr and equally plain that on such occasions when a formal meal is laid out, tables are appropriated from all the other areas.
A big fireplace is set into the wall near the Kitchens as well, several comfortable chairs nearby providing haunts for elderly residents or riders who like a good view of all that happens. Rugs cover the floor in strategic spots, all of them abstract or geometric in design and most in the softly neutral colors of undyed wool.
Exits lead off in all directions, a big archway the largest and that leading outside. Shallow stairs to the west lead to the offices and administration area while tunnels to the east lead to the infirmary, kitchen and resident's quarters. Southwards, a sloping tunnel leads down to the hot springs and southwest is a wide tunnel, carefully roped off to avoid accidents.
Escaping the damp cold weather of the day, Loeashia can be found in the caverns over near the fireplace catching the warmth. She has a table set up in front of her with a small table loom on it. She's humming softly to herself, some mismatch of songs really as she works on a pattern in the narrow cloth.
Jessamin is likewise near the fire, her flits curled up either on or around her as she works on some project or other. She looks outside from time to time, appearing mildly anxious, and then turns back to her work. Today, a row of simple, elongated hexagons claims her attention, with no two patches being of the same fabric. She hums a little bit, doing her best to keep her nerves at bay and her fingers intact.
Loeashia takes a break from the weaving and looks up, blinking a little as she does. She looks and then her gaze settles upon Jess. "How goes the quilting?" she asks quietly as she bends her neck one way and then the other, popping it both times and then she stretches her arms back and elicates a few more cracks and pops. Her own green gives a bit of a stretch and uncurls herself from around Loey's neck and slinks her way down her arm and then settles on the table next to the loom and then goes back to sleep.
Jessamin looks up, smiling as she espies her new friend and mentor. "It's going well enough. Keeps my mind off of that letter I sent off to the Hall." She holds out her work for examination, embedding the needle safely in one seam. "Some of those fabric scraps I found with the Candidates are real beauties. I wonder if the knowledge of the techniques used to dye some of them is still current."
Loeashia hmms a little "Well, they might be." she states with a smile "There's a lot of information accessable to those of the craft after all. Though, you may even be able to find some things in the records kept here." she notes as she looks over the work "It's looking good. Keeping those seams nice and even?" she asks.
Jessamin nods. "I'm trying. It's easier as long as I mark the start and stop points on each piece." Intrigued by the table loom, she cranes her neck a little bit to peer closer. "What will that become?" She smiles, reaching out to trace the edges of the piece, marvelling at how even they are. "I tried to weave a doll blanket once as a child on a frame set with some pegs, but never could keep the edges like this. The pieces always wound up looking like an hourglass."
Loeashia gives a little nod "Anything that'll help train you to keep it straight is definantly a good idea." She glances down at the loom "Well, it may eventually be used to make a dress or robe." she notes "I haven't decided yet, but I do like working with the narrower widths." she notes and then she smiles "It takes practice to get an even tension." she notes "When I started, mine certainly wasn't even either. Though I will admit, if you can work around the edges, some of the lumps in the fabric can make for interesting accent bits in the cloth."
Jessamin can't help laughing, shaking her head; her expression is considerably lightened from minutes before, her eyes a-twinkle with mirth. "There was no shortage of those in those early pieces, either. Guess who would wind up with all the lumpy bits of yarn that apprentices at Ista wouldn't want to keep?" She looks back at the piece on the loom, tilting her head to one side thoughtfully. "That's definitely an interesting shade… what would you call it?"
Loeashia smiles "Well that lumpy yarn can be quite useful if it holds. Sometimes the spin doesn't keep enough tension on it. But you'ld be surprised at the number of requests for something made with lumps in it. A good weaver can use most anything to her advantage." she notes and then wrinkles her nose "One of the things I always hated hearing from mother when I first started. And look at me now." she glances down at the fabric and hmms a little. "Seafoam blue maybe." she ponders and then shrugs "I don't often bother coming up with names. I just keep track of what goes into it."
Jessamin snickers a little at that. "We never want to listen to our parents when we're small, but nine times out of ten, we wind up just like them anyways." She smiles, too, at the description of the oceanic hue of the cloth, nodding in approval. "That does remind me a little bit of the waters around Ista. Such a perfect shade of blue." She shakes her head lightly. "I guess I can't help wonder why the two Weyrs are fighting. It's been going on so long that I'm not sure when or how it actually started. Just became more… keenly aware of it coming here, I guess."
Loeashia nods "It's true. Funny how it works that way. She absently rubs her head "Though, I don't miss getting smacked on the head by grandmama." she notes. "Always said I'd never do that to my own grandkids, and it looks like it'll be that way." she notes with a shrug "Never quite managed to have kids."
Jess tilts her head again. "Why not?" Her smile turns somewhat bemused, though, and twin roses of a crimson hue bloom upon her cheeks. "Perhaps one day I might be fortunate enough to have a child, if it's with someone very special." At that, the elder of her two brown flits looks up from where he rests curled up in her lap, creeling a soft inquiry. "You're special, Madder, and don't you forget it." Her attention is taken away from her work for just a moment, while she scritches him gently between the eyes; were he a kitten, he would be purring, as he lowers his head once more. "Little attention seeker. You're worse than the first green dragon I met arriving here."
Loeashia shrugs a little "Never seemed to find out in time. Hazards of betweening." she notes quietly and shrugs "And I'm getting older now, so I may just not have any. Will have to talk to P'ton about it perhaps. I'm not betweening as much now as I used too, so perhaps it's worth a try."
"I wouldn't give up hope just yet." Jess smiles comfortingly at the older woman, reaching out to squeeze her hand for a brief moment, before looking back at the table loom. She squints a little, her brows furrowing ever so slightly. "Plain weave, this one? Or something different?"
Loeashia smiles a little "Well, it all depends really. Sometimes things just work against you. I'm not too worried about it. I don't really know how P'ton feels about it. WE've never really talked." she notes and then there's a pause as a messanger comes in. "Just a sec Jess." she notes as she takes the letter and opens up the seal. "Well, it's twilled weave." she notes and then she hands the letter over to Jess "I think you can read it." she notes as she looks quiet pleased at the letter of acceptance.
The elated whoop that erupts from Jessamin as she reads the letter sends her flits into the air, squawking noisily at her. Little green Sekhmet seems particularly put out, as does Madder, the two particularly vociferous in their disapproval. How -dare- you wake us from such a nice nap, oh human of ours, seems to be their cry. Loey is caught up in a great big hug, almost the instance Jess jumps from her chair. "Thank you thank you thank you!"
Loeashia smiles as she watches Jess and then she takes on a startled look as she wrapped up in a hug. She oofs a little "Umm, you're welcome." she says looking slightly embarrased and then she smiles "Told ya it'd come, just takes awhile sometimes." she notes with a soft smile.
Loey's look of embarrassment is not lost on Jessamin, and she draws back; her grin, however, is as goofy as before. Her skirt billows out somewhat as she twirls around, before flopping back down in her chair by the fire. "Takes a while, ha! Felt like I was waiting for Hatching Day all over again." She seems almost like a kidlet on their Turnday as she picks up her sewing again, attacking the piece with renewed interest and verve. "Guess I should be asking, where do we start now?"
Loeashia hmms a little as she eyes the girl "Well, seems you've already a project started, so we will stick to that for now. Now, do you have a design you are working with or are you going by whats in your head?" she asks after a moment "And do you have a pattern saved, or just cut as you went?"
Jessamin sets down her sewing on the arm of her chair, and reaches for her sewing basket. A few old, rolled-up sheets stick out of the top; it is one of these she withdraws, unrolling it carefully. The paper is just a little bit yellowed, attesting to some age. "This was among the patterns I found in the Caverns that day, along with the fabric scraps and such. It looked to be a fairly simple design, just a one-patch quilt with a nice, simple border. Here…" She holds the parchment out to Loey, smiling.
The pattern on Jessamin's scroll (thanks to McCall's Quilting)
Loeashia gives a nod as she looks at the parchment "Now, it's always good to make a copy for yourself when you come across old ones." she murmurs "That and it works in case you mess up, that way you still have the original to work with." she adds "But it's a good one to work with. Not too too challenging but enough of a change from a simple square to make it fun."
Jessamin nods, rolling up the parchment carefully and slipping it in with the rest in her basket. "I'll have to do that. There were some really elaborate patterns in here. Some that make a few of my other pieces look tame by comparison." She purses her lips, looking back down at her work. "Set-in seams always give me trouble, so this one seemed like good practice."
Loeashia nods "Anything you do is always good practice. And no one is ever perfect all the time. I still make my fair number of errors. Practice just helps to lesson them and sometimes even a mistake can be turned to an advantage if it produces a pleasing result if you can remember how it was done."
Oddly enough, the last draws yet another deep blush from Jessamin, and a foolish grin. "Indeed. If you can't remember how it was done, though… just enjoy the result for what it is."
Loeashia tilts her head a little "Well, then you'll just need to learn to take notes as well as use more critical thinking. Think about what you are doing, examine what you are doing. You should be able to tell me how you made a mistake just as easily as telling me how to do something correctly." she notes.
Although Jess is still grinning, she does nod. "You're right, I should take notes on what I'm doing. But… well, I wasn't exactly talking about sewing. Some things, you just enjoy for what they are. A gift." Madder pops out of *between* just above her then, apparently done with his huff about Jess' outburst of joy earlier. It takes him a few moments as he settles down on her lap, but his song does change from scolding to a melodic croon, his eyes whirling blue-green as he picks up on his human's mood. The others have long since settled down around her, fast asleep once more.
Loeashia hmms a little and nods "That is true, some things you just take as they are." she murmurs and then turns her attention to her weaving. "Just remember, I'm just as apt to quiz you on an error as I am on anything else. Mistakes are never bad things unless someone is hurt. Mistakes are opportunities to learn and to make something unique as well."
Jess nods, turning back to her project in progress. "Best way to learn. I'll have to start keeping a clipboard with me for notes." She leans down to look eye-to-eye with Madder, trilling softly. "Would you get something from my quarters for me?" His attention seems to wander for a moment, but Jess directs his gaze back at her. "Right here. That's it, you know where that is, don't you? Go on, now." With a little -meep-, he spreads his wings, forcing her to lean back as he takes off into the air, disappearing *between* with a little -pop-. Jess smiles to herself, a knowing look, but keeping silent for now.
Loeashia gives a nod "it's also good for using if you want to describe a process you've done. I've no problems to with you going back to look at your notes to tell me how you did something. I'm not looking for perfect memory recall." she notes and then glances at the girl and firelizard and then goes back to weaving.
Some minutes later, Madder comes winging out of *between*, popping out right above Jess' head. She hears his happy trilling and looks up, grinning. "Good job, Madder. You got the right ones." She points over at Loeashia, while keeping her gaze fixed on the little brown's eyes. "Over there. That's who those are going to." It takes him a moment to understand, but when he does, he creels softly. He soars from Jess to Loey, hovering right above the older woman's lap. Jessamin has just a moment to call out, "Heads up!" before the three soft, plush objects come tumbling down, hopefully to land on their intended target.
Three flower-shaped pincushions tumble through the air to land on Loeashia's lap, each one just a little bit smaller than the last. The first one is approximately the size of Jessamin's entire hand with fingers outspread. Large, old-fashioned floral prints in shades of canary and salmon form the bulk of the piece, which is divided into sections with black crochet-weight thread. The top is graced with a yo-yo, stitched lovingly from a tiny print that looks like nothing more than minute flowers in sky blue, goldenrod, and crimson scattered over a field of snow. The next in the trio is fashioned from fabric printed with white ducks on a cyan background for the bottom, a crazy-woven blue plaid shot through with accents of canary, viridian, and crimson for the top, and a lilac-hued yo-yo to cap it off. Like its sibling, it too is divided into sections with the same black thread. The smallest of the three, no wider across than a woman's thumb at its widest point, is of a much more sunny countenance, with a small carrot-toned floral print for the bottom, white flowers on a field of buttercup yellow for the top, and a medium aquamarine and cream floral for the yo-yo for the cap. Diminutive or not, it too has been treated the same as the others, with black thread serving as a visual tie-in for the otherwise chaotic set.
Loeashia blinks as she has something drop in her lap as she sits up to stretch a little. She picks up the pincushion as she looks it over, turning it this way and that way. "Your work?" she asks Jess, though she doesn't say anything more than that as she seems to continue examining it. There is no expression on her face, after the startle, no smile or frown to say how she thinks about it.
Jessamin nods, smiling softly to herself. "I was working on those the day I was Searched. I hope you'll find them useful in your work." Madder wings his way back over to her, settling down on his customary perch upon her shoulder; she reaches up and scritches him beneath the chin. "Good job, you'll have an extra treat coming to you for that."
Loeashia smiles and nods "They are good. Colorful, but good." she notes as she sets the trio down on the table. "They will come in handy, quite likely when I get the cloth finished and start sewing it together." There's a thoughful look "Do you plan on standing for further clutches? You know you can right?"
Jessamin nods firmly, a pleased look upon her face at Loeashia's appreciation of the little pincushions. "Yes, I know. I hesitated on seeking entrance until I could be sure either way if I could stand again. Meeting you pretty much clinched it."
Loeashia looks a little embarrased again "Meeting me?" she shakes her head some "You were already planning on coming in. I just happened to be there." she notes and smiles "Well, I'm glad you've not decided to give up based on one experiance. It shows good character."
"One experience? That was my second try on the Sands." She chuckles softly, shaking her head. "The first is what brought me to Xanadu in the first place. My lifemate's out there. And if it takes a few Turns, sew be it." Her eyes twinkle with glee, even as she groans a little. "Forgive the pun."
Loeashia ohs a little and then nods "My error, still two times isn't all that bad." she notes and then snorts at bit at Jessamin "It comes with the territory." she remarks and shakes her head "There've been worse and there'll be others."