RP:Building Something New
This is a Necromancer's Guild RP.
Summary: Celaeno happens upon Khitti as she's making plans to build anew over the remains of Mrs. Mallard's bakery. Khitti acquires yet another new student AND an employee for her future bakery, making it known that Celaeno will be well protected in the Necromancer's Guild.
Merchant Street, Cenril
Just outside of where Mrs. Mallard’s Bakery and Tearoom once sat stood a redhead and a person that seemed to be from the nearby realtor’s office. The realtor, a rather tall blonde woman in a shabby business suit, rattled off some things to Khitti: the death of Mrs. Mallard was a freak accident, there’s not actually a curse here, and no, there wasn’t any money left over after the scavengers picked the area clean. Khitti tried to not look disappointed. “How long will it take to rebuild?” was inquired of the realtor, to which she replied, “Magically? A couple of weeks, but it’s going to cost more. Regular manual labor? Probably a month or two. You’d have to import the stone from Larket and--” Khitti cut her off and made a face at the thought of her new business being built from Larketian stone, “No. Magic is fine. Larket can keep their fancy, overpriced rocks.” The realtor smirked, but kept her thoughts to herself. “Send me the info for the architect. I’ll draw up what I want it to look like and they can expand on it.” More words would be exchanged between the two--dates and times of future meetings between Khitti and the other woman--and then the realtor would be off, leaving Khitti to stare at the rubble of the bakery and ponder on a design for the new building.
A tanned half-elf with her dark hair caught up in a braid and the rest of her covered in black robes strolled down the street with her hands tucked inside her sleeves. She winds around people, keeping to the edge of the road, closer to building fronts than other walkers. The conversation happening a short ways in the distance got caught up in the rest of the environment's chatter until she came closer, enough to catch the gist of magically-based building plans. She slinks closer to the rubble and alongside the stranger apparently in charge of it once the realtor made her exit. "Well this seems unfortunate. What did this place used to be?" Cela asks, keeping her tone as casual, conversational even, as she can manage.
Khitti blinked once as she’s spoken to, casting a side glance towards the elf, “Hm? Oh. It used to be a bakery. There was an attack here several weeks ago and the woman that owned it was found dead.” She seemed a little somber about it, but only really because someone had died. “Mrs. Mallard wasn’t exactly the nicest woman--I worked for her just recently--but I don’t really see that as cause to murder her. I think it’s linked to some other attacks I’ve heard of.” Khitti shrugged somewhat, shifting her attention back to the wreckage, “I’m planning on rebuilding a new one here though, as soon as I figure out what I’m going to do design-wise and get in touch with the architect.” Green eyes would find themselves fixed on the elf again, “I’m Khitti… and you are?”
“I am Celaeno, a traveler.” The woman’s ears would be more subtly pointed than a full-blooded elf, despite their tendency to perk up at certain things, suggesting she had another heritage mixed in there. She nodded along with Khitti’s retelling of events, a bit of her curiosity dampening with the sad turn they took. “I have heard of some unrest in other parts of these lands, what short time I’ve been here. Is there a war with another nation going on at the moment or something terrorizing the continent?” Despite her desire to learn more about current events, she glanced back to the rubble, the reason she had approached to begin with. “I couldn’t help but overhear while passing that you wanted to use magical means to rebuild. I am not an architect, but I can offer my services to help prevent other disasters. I’m an enchanter by trade, very new to the lands and trying to find some work for provisions and supplies and the like.”
Khitti considered the offer for a moment, but then shook her head, “No, unfortunately. I’ve an enchanter friend that I mean to get in touch with again very soon. I’ve not seen her in some time or heard from her, so I’m a little worried.” She took another few moments to think things over, “What about working here? For me? You wouldn’t be obligated to stay forever. I’m not that kind of boss; I know people need to move on eventually. It could be something to help you get your funds and supplies at a manageable level and then you could quit if you wish. I have one girl that I’ve taken on as a baker, and if you don’t think you’d be comfortable with that, we need waitstaff and such too for the dining area that I’ll have in there. It might get as busy as it had with Mrs. Mallard, but I promise I’m not a slavedriver like she was.” Khitti offered the woman a grin, “There’d be an employee discount on foodstuffs and time off and vacation and such, if you’re interested in it. Even if you kept the job after your enchanting business kicked off, and worked one day a week here, I’d be fine with that too. All up to you and if you even want to work you.”
Celaeno 's eyebrows went up at the notion of working there as a baker or server of some kind. In all her life, the young enchanter had never imagined doing those sorts of menial tasks for income, though she watched her sister take plenty of those odd jobs with plenty of success. She purses her lips in consideration as she rubs over the little scratches in the silver of her hands from the mines. It would certainly be gentler work and she was in no position to be picky. "What...sorts of duties would working in the kitchens entail? I have not any experience in either area, I must admit, but I tend to work better with items than people..."
Khitti tilted her head and tapped her chin, “Wouldn’t be too difficult. Following recipes are easy enough and if there was anything you didn’t understand, you could ask one of the other folks that’ll be working there, in the off chance that I’m not there.” She hmm’d a bit, “You could try your hand at cake decorating. You could always enchant the icing bags to make things a little easier for you, because it does take some time to get used to. Maybe use your magic to liven up some of the desserts? I could make an entire section of cases dedicated to magically altered sweets. There’s all the other manual labor stuff in the back like cleaning and washing dishes and such, but I might honestly hire a water mage for that. They’d be able to get things done in no time and leave more time for the rest of the kitchen workers to deal with the baked goods.” She looked over at slightly pointy-eared female, hoping for some input of some sort.
Celaeno strokes her chin as Khitti's brainstorming got her gears turning. This would mean the peculiar nature of her hands would come to light, her black robe sleeve falling away to reveal an odd silver gauntlet underneath with a varied collection of glowing runes engraved on it. "Perhaps desserts with different runic combinations on them to alter or enhance their tastes? There's also the possibility of getting the tools to do the cleaning themselves with the right system and monitoring, but...That's largely beside the point, isn't it?" Her tawny cheeks gain a red tint and she folds her hands behind her back. "I am good at following directions and I'm sure there are books on the subject, so with some background reading and tutelage, I'm sure I could pick it up. And I've dabbled a bit in pyromancy and fire centered enchantments, so I imagine that would fit well with baking and ovens and such. I think it would work out well, especially if the other staff is open to me using magic in my work. I've come to rely on it quite a bit over the years and I've had bad run ins with others who didn't have an open mind to supernatural forces...not that you seem like that sort, or the kind to hire such folk who thought that way."
Khitti studied Celaeno as she spoke, eyeing the gauntlet carefully before she fixed her attention on the woman’s face once more. A slight frown formed at the mention of those that don’t particular care for magical folk. “I won’t stand for that sort of frakking nonsense. Even if I didn’t have my own magic, I wouldn’t put up with that. It’s not right and it’s not fair.” Her tone shifted to something a little more stern, “You let me know if someone treats you like that. I don’t care if they’re an employee or a customer.” Her demeanor softened soon after, a smile reappearing, “We can sort out all the details when the shop’s built. I’m thinking that maybe Rachelle, that enchanter friend of mine, could maybe even collaborate with you, if I can manage to convince her to work with us. She might not, though. She’s rather partial to Kelay.” Khitti shrugged it off. It was nothing to worry about now. “Anyway. If you’re certain you’d like to come aboard, I can notify you as soon as the building’s finished. I’ve got to let my student, Raevyn, know as well. It shouldn’t take too long, though.”
Celaeno nodded her agreement to come aboard, then smiled some as Khitti made mention of her friend. "Oh, will Raevyn be working there as well?" Then a delayed moment of recognition hit where her eyes widened and she bit her lip, unsure of how to proceed with her next question. "Raevyn is a friend of mine, she mentioned recently that she had made it into the necromancer's guild by getting in touch with someone in it named Khitti...if she is your student, are you and her contact one in the same?"
Khitti blinked a few times at Celaeno and her question, “I am definitely that same Khitti. I’m an instructor and one of the higher-ups in the guild. Raevyn -is- my student now and I’ve given her directions on how to get to the guild headquarters in Vailkrin.” She squinted at the other woman, considering how she’d acted about her own magic, “Are you… a necromancer too? Or, use the dark arts in some way? There’s no need to be ashamed of it if you are. It’s a perfectly viable art of magic, just like any other. If you are… you could join the guild too. You and Raevyn could work together even, if you’re comfortable with her.”
Celaeno seemed to relax some, her tight shoulders drooping an inch or so. “My mentor was a dedicated practitioner, though he was...one of the nastier examples.” She held her hands out for Khitti’s inspection, both of them wearing those silver gauntlets, though they clicked louder than they should, as if hollow inside. Reaching under one and unstrapping the leather holding it to her forearm, Cela removed the left piece of shiny armor to reveal the black stocking underneath. No fleshly appendage seemed to be attached to the rounded off wrist. “After he did this, I cut my ties. He didn’t willingly teach me more than what he needed me to understand so I could assist him. Despite everything, the field has always fascinated me. I would appreciate the opportunity to understand it better.”
Khitti stared sadly at Cel’s hands as she showed off her ex-mentor’s handiwork, a deep frown creasing her lips. “I’ve had my own run-in with bad necromancers as well, so I know exactly what you mean,” Khitti said at length, though she didn’t divulge further into her past. She allowed Celaeno to reattached her gauntlet before she took both of them gingerly--not in fear of touching the metal appendages, but because Celaeno was obviously a little flighty--and gave them a squeeze as if they were completely normal hands. Well, they were, really. No matter what sort material they were made out of. “If you want to join, and continue your studies, I promise nothing like that will happen here. The same goes for the guild as it does with the shop: I don’t care who says or does anything--if it’s the guild leader herself or someone the same rank as you--if something happens, you come to me and I’ll deal with it personally. That is no way to live and I don’t want that kind of atmosphere for my students.” She released the woman and fumbled around in the satchel at her side for a bit of paper and summoned up a strange looking pen. The redhead scribbled down a few things on the paper then handed it over to Celaeno, “These are the directions to the HQ in Vailkrin. Be careful while you’re there. There’s a civil war going on. It’s all between the vampire houses, but it could still be dangerous. Take this slip of paper to the HQ and someone there will give you your beginner’s book. There’s a library in there that you can use to your heart’s content. I’ve been debating on whether or not to set-up a portal in the shop to more easily get to the HQ itself, and since the both of you are working here and are a part of the guild, it might make sense to, to keep you both safe.”
Celaeno finds it's her turn to blink with some surprise at Khitti as she took her hands as if it were the most normal gesture in the world. She offered the instructor and her soon to be boss a crooked smile. "I would like that. I admit I was surprised when I first found out there even was a guild for these arts. Growing up, they were always talked about as so forbidden and ominous." She quirks her head to one side as Khitti feels around in her bag and writes the information on a paper. She takes it and studies it as she listens to Khitti's warnings about the city of the dead, but her attention bolts up as she mentions the library. It was as if her entire face lit up and she were suddenly a child told she could venture into a land made of nothing but sweets. "I will go there straightaway! I assume it's not the Black Library, Raevyn told me that was off limits until someone was higher up in the ranks, but it's another library none the less!"
Khitti grinned widely at Cel’s enthusiasm regarding the library. Khitti was a bookworm herself and suddenly realized how well she was going to get along with both of her students. “No, it’s not the same library. That’s elsewhere and up to House Mahara who gets in. I wouldn’t worry about that place just yet, though. While they do have spellbooks for beginners in there too, copies can be found in the headquarters. The Black Library has first editions and such--but more importantly, there’s a lot of restricted material. I honestly don’t even touch a lot of that stuff. Some of it’s a bit darker than I’d like delve on the subject. If the time comes that we feel you might be ready for the things in there, we’ll approach Bradyn about it, but it won’t be for some time. Raevyn has… other things she’s looking for, that doesn’t pertain to spells, which is the only reason why I forwarded her to Bradyn. Otherwise, it’d be off-limits for now. I will send word to the HQ that you’ll be on your way when you’re ready and I’ll write a list of expectations and such that’ll be there waiting for you. It’s nothing major, I promise. Just the usual red tape sort of things with organizations: make sure you’re treating your fellow students properly, keep up on your studies and communicate with your instructors, etc.” Suddenly a thought hit her and she peered up to quickly take in the position of the sun, “Ah, hell. I’m going to be late. If you need me for anything, I’m usually here in Cenril. I live on the ship called the Tranquility that’s usually docked in the wharf. Soon, I’ll try to have a bit of a meet and greet for all of you members to meet each other properly, but for now I’ve got to get back to the ship before the captain’s dinner is late.” Meaning, she’s the one that makes it.
Celaeno figured as much, but unlike before when she believed that there was no other library to be had, there wasn't stinging disappointment, but the same light in her eyes undampened. "I will do all of that and more! Thank you for this opportunity." When Khitti glances up at the sky, her nose wrinkles with a bit of confusion before the explanation comes. She bows her head in farewell, folding her hands under her sleeves again, out of comfort more than unease this time. "Of course. I look forward to the gathering. It was an enormous pleasure meeting you!"
Khitti nodded and smiled at Celaeno, “Likewise, dear. We’ll see each other soon, I’m sure.” With that said, Khitti was headed off down the street towards the harbor, doing her best to dodge and weave in and out the crowds that liked to remain stationary in the middle of the road.