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 Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 7:29 pm
A small camel, perhaps about four feet high at the shoulder, draped with an intricately-embroidered blanket and several small bells, browses around some of the stands in Tam's general vicinity; by the reactions of the proprietors of these stalls, the creature is an expected visitor, and not wholly unwelcome. As it draws closer to Tam, it spares him a vaguely bored-looking glance from under long eyelashes, and then turns back, presumably to return to where ever it came from.
Chourou rests her hands on her husband's forearm, glancing around at the bustle of the marketplace and ... well, not enjoying it quite as much as Reiga, but not really disliking it either. Though she has been here a few times already, usually helping Akram move things, she is still not really sure how the whole place is arranged.
And then she spots Dagan, Akram's "miniature" camel, nosing around in the crowd and points him out to Reiga. Maybe they could follow him back to their human friend and start from there? Or does Reiga see anything promising yet?
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 7:41 pm
Reiga spots the camel as Chourou points him out. He concedes that perhaps it would be wise to find Akram, as a starting place. As he starts to move towards Dagan though, the Porcelain merchant becomes aware of the different gadgets people seem to be working on at their booths in the area.
They may not have to find Akram after all. Swiftly, Reiga moves closer to the repair booths, hoping to find what he's looking for...
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 7:58 pm
Tam eyed the creature walking past him, then shrugged. All sorts of things turned up in the Barton Market.
He turned back towards the stall owner he was arguing with, but the man had already moved on to some actual customers. He probably should have resisted the urge to smart off, but he was frustrated and getting kind of hungry.
"Find a different stall, this one'll overcharge you, and probably just break whatever you've got more. Half the stuff here is rubbish." he told the couple at the stall.
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 8:10 pm
Reiga has just started explaining his need to the stall owner when he hears the angry warning. He is honestly a little taken aback by the man's outburst. Curious to know if this stems from professional jealousy or legitimate concern, or both, he turns his attention away from the stall owner and directs his questions to the new human.
"Could you recommend someone better, then?" he asks, brushing a stray strand of hair out of his face. He very carefully projects a sense of curiosity and skeptical scrutiny, not wanting to overwhelm the man, but purely curious to see how he would react to Porcelain projections.
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 8:10 pm
Chourou glances between her husband and the human who had spoken to them, and then at the proprietor to whom the human had apparently been referring. Then, nodding in agreement and projecting her own support to her husband's inquiry, she adds, "We are looking for someone who can fix a television," speaking slowly to be sure she pronounces the name of the Gaian device correctly.
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 8:22 pm
Tam turned to the couple. They seemed curious, though he couldn't have said quite why he thought that. He scratched his head, blushing slightly at his outburst. Tam waved a hand, pointing out some of the shoddy workmanship on display.
"Well look at this stuff. Sure some of this will probably work for awhile, but it won't last. Besides, he'd probably charge you just to look at your television, even if he couldn't fix it. " Tam ignored the angry muttering of the stall owner.
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 8:32 pm
Reiga does look at the assorted gadgetry. He can't tell if it would work well or not, but the point about being charged just to look at their broken television provokes a raised eyebrow.
Mildly amused at the man's embarrassment, he repeats his question. "Can you recommend someone better?" Grinning a little, treading the line between friendly and condescending, he adds, "You, perhaps? If you can, then you are more than welcome to accompany my wife and I back to our apartment. Provided you won't charge us just to look."
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 8:45 pm
Tam couldn't help smiling a little. He was on to Tam, no doubt.
"I do fix things, as it happens. I wouldn't mind taking a look, and I promise you, if I can't fix it I won't charge you a thing. And if I can fix it, it won't be expensive at all. "
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2009 10:10 pm
The offer sounds as good as any they are likely to find. Though... Chourou notes privately to Reiga that she is not at all sure how much a working Gaian television is worth. She can read a few of the price labels from where she stands at the current stall, but then those are apparently extravagant prices, according to this other human?
Does Reiga have any insight into what a fair price for repair of the television would be? It would hardly look good if she runs off now to seek out Master Akram and ask him about it....
"Ah, I suppose that will be alright," the Knight replies aloud, somewhat distractedly.
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Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 8:07 pm
Yes, Reiga had thought of that. He privately confesses to Chourou that he is not sure how much one is worth, either. However, he is sure he knows how to read people, and he would like to see if this human can at least fix it in the first place. If he can, then Reiga can haggle and get a better sense of what would be appropriate. If need be, Chourou can get a second opinion from Master Akram, or they can simply tell the human they would like to look at other options after he gives them an estimate.
"It certainly wouldn't hurt for you to look, at least," Reiga smiles at the man, "Just come with us and we'll show you the way."
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Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 8:39 pm
Well, a tv isn't much, but he should get enough for lunch, if he can fix it. Tam shouldered his pack completely, and gestured down the street.
"Just show me the way."
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Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 9:56 pm
"Follow me, please."
Reiga swiftly leads the man back to their apartment. They probably needed to get back soon anyway, if they were to make it home before Ako woke up.
"I must apologize in advance for the state of the building," Reiga mentions as they walk, "the students are moving out. There has been an unending flow of... stuff... in and out of the halls recently."
As they go inside the building and into the elevator, Reiga seeks a little more information about the human. "I don't think we have been properly introduced. I am Reiga, this is my wife, Chourou. How long have you been, ah, fixing things?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 10:08 pm
Tam followed the couple, shrugging off the mess. Compared to spring cleaning back home, it looked positively neat.
"Pleasure to meet you both. I'm Tam. Properly, Black Tam son of Potter Lien. And as for fixing things, I've been doing it more or less regularly for about seven years now, I guess. But I've had my hands busy since I was born. My clan is all craftsman, and we're put to work pretty much as soon as we can walk. All the kids are started with learning and maintaining the tools before they're allowed to work with them. When I left home, I started to branch out into pretty much anything that needed fixing, mostly just to eat. Every now and then I try my hand at a respectable trade, but repairs is pretty much the only thing I'm good at."
Tam blushed a little and scratched his head. He hadn't meant to run his mouth off.
"Sorry. I don't mean to talk your ears off, it's just I haven't had a chance to talk about home for awhile. Uh, so, what do you two do?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 10:21 pm
The elevator stopped on their floor.
"No need to apologize," Reiga reassures Tam as he daintily maneuvers around the objects in the hall, "we are, uh, far from home ourselves. I was a merchant in our old home, a successful one, and I hope to once again be that here in Gaia. It will take me a little while, though. Chourou is working right now at the Barton Yard and Garden Center. Ah, here we are."
The Porcelain unlocks the apartment door and gestures that his wife and Tam should go first.
"The television is there on the floor. It won't turn on."
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Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 10:36 pm
Tam waited for the lady to enter, then followed her in, going over to kneel in front of the tv. He pulled off the various covers. Fiddling around with the inside bits, he found that several minor connections had been dislodged, and -he sniffed a sticky patch - someone had spilled beer of some sort on it.
He turned toward the couple.
"Well, the good news is the problem isn't anything but a few loose connections and some stains, which should be easy enough to fix. The bad news is that it's probably had some rough handling, and I can't say how well the picture will turn out once I fix it."
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