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 Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 7:17 pm
  This is a PRP between Jianyu (Kurobutt) and Phirun (Kyributt). Setting:In which Jianyu meets a humble craftsman and buys a present on the Artisan's Path.
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 7:33 pm
Jianyu had not been to the Artisan's Path for far too long.
There were times, back when he was younger, that he had spent hours simply wandering up and down its streets, stopping at each and every one of the stands just to see what there was to be sold. He had marveled at the glasswork, hesitated at the table with the little porcelain figurines, and run his fingers over the intricate design in the stand with the weaved blankets.
He had spent, of course, the majority of his time at the stand that made the handmade arrows. After his attack, Jianyu had not needed the arrows anymore, since the crossbow required specially made bolts instead, but sometimes he took up his old bow and arrow again, just to see the difference. He could not shoot as well as he once had, not with the longbow, and sometimes he missed the feel of the arrow between his fingers as he pulled the string back, but he had grown much accustomed to the crossbow. The coldness of the metal and the weight of the weapon had become as familiar to Jianyu as his old bow, and it was in that that he put his trust and his dedication.
A sense of nostalgia, perhaps, drew him to that particular stand when he arrived at the Artisan's Path early one afternoon, in search of a gift for Yue Lao. The stand was the same, draped with simple red cloth, and unadorned otherwise, and the old woman who sat behind it was also unchanged. She clasped his hand warmly, and pressed a motherly sort of kiss to his cheek, promising to create something for him that he could use, since he no longer bought the arrows.
Jianyu left the stand feeling quite pleased, and as he traipsed along the path, his tail curled behind him (it was very difficult to keep it from knocking into booths or people, and most of the time he kept it as close to his body as possible), his gaze searched for something that he could get. It was not his wife's birthday, but he did not feel the need for it to be so to get a gift for her anyway - which was why he had come to the Path on his day off.
A small stand to his left caught his eye, and Jianyu quietly stepped over, hands tucked into his sleeves as he peered down, eyes alight with curiosity.
These were unusual - small sculptures made from what seemed like candlewax, and as Jianyu bent closer he could see the great amount of detail etched into the medium. They were, in their own way, quite impressive and quite beautiful.
"These are lovely," said Jianyu to the young man behind the booth, smiling widely. "Did you make these yourself?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 10:05 pm
He'd had a quiet day yesterday. No chores needing immediate attention at home. And no Academy to attend either. It was the perfect day, in his opinion, to divulge himself in one of his favorite pastimes. Reading or sculpting being his top two picks. Phirun frowned slightly. Both were very appealing. He'd finally chosen to sit down and pick up one of his books. But he only got about twenty pages in before setting it down and wandering over to his little studio. Which was basically just a portion of his room set up for sculpting candles. And thus, the young Lunarian lost himself in making small figurines to take down to the Artisan's Path the next day.
Which was where he had ended up now. Awkwardly carrying his bag full of little figurines, a simple and plain cloth to set them up on, and a tiny table. All portable for someone like himself to carry easily. Or mostly easily. Phirun struggled only slightly with the table. He didn't want to run into anyone or knock them with the table on accident! So after many a quietly murmured, "S-Sorry!", he finally found a nice spot that wasn't too crowded. Though the older Lunarian he was setting up next to intimidated him a little. Of course that always happened around girls. Even if she wasn't, exactly, a 'girl'. A mature woman was a better way to say it.
He was careful and silent as he set up his stand, still not used to coming here and selling his work himself. It had been his Uncle's idea. Phirun had typically just sold his candle sculptures to another Lunarian to sell at their stand. But lately, he'd been trying it himself. And oh Goddess was it scary! He was ridiculously shy and a majority of the time just sat quietly behind his stuff hoping no one would notice him. Yet at the same time, he felt upset when no one bought anything. Maybe they weren't good enough? Or...maybe...
It was usually about that time that one of a few things happened. The first and most common was that Naoki decided right then and there to make his 'appearance' by jumping down upon other venders stands until he was able to scamper over to Phirun. The lemur was usually quite proud of himself after this, leaving poor Phirun to apologize to everyone. The second, and not as common but more frequent then he cared for, was when he felt the chills. Chills that weren't exactly...normal. It was the kind that made his heart pound as he shrank in on himself. Souls. He knew what they were supposed to be. But other than that feeling...there was nothing else.
In fact it was Naoki looking oddly in one direction that first clued the boy into the fact someone was at his stand. Someone. Was at. His stand. Oh crap! Phirun looked up, startled by the presence of the other Lunarian...and then gaped. W-Were those...horns? A-And...and a tail?
Naoki chittered at their customer, tail curling around Phirun's arm, while Phirun tried to remember how to speak. "I-I...yes! I d-did." He swallowed. "T-Thank you." Phirun finally stopped gawking at the other, lowering his eyes shyly to the figurines.
"They are hand crafted, sir." He spoke in a sweet voice, soft and soothing almost like water. "Freshly made just yesterday." His indigo eyes looked over the objects, a quick scan to make sure none of them had been chipped or nicked. But they looked just as nice as they ever would.
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Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2012 3:36 pm
The young man behind the stand looked somewhat familiar, though Jianyu wasn't entirely certain why. However, after a few seconds of scrutinizing, he decided it was just because of his pale skin and hair that reminded him of one of his brothers and went back to eyeing the many sculptures that were lain out in front of him.
There were many - all of which were crafted quite beautifully. Jianyu lifted his head, offering the young man an encouraging smile as he curled his tail around his legs, trying to keep it out of the way of anyone behind him. He was not dressed in his normal uniform this afternoon, but instead was dressed in a simple black changshan, his hands tucked together into the sleeves.
"You have quite a bit of talent here," said Jianyu, and reached out towards one, brushing his fingers over the candlewax - gently, so as to not mess any of them up, and then moved back, sliding his hand into the sleeves once more.
"I've never seen anything quite like it," he said, his gaze moving towards the creature perched atop the young man's shoulder. It was a creature of sorts, one that he did not recognize - though it looked, in a very roundabout and vague way, something like Hime-sama. Perhaps the two of them would get along well, Jianyu thought, the idea making him smile.
He looked back at the booth owner. "This is quite an unusual thing to sell - how did you come to decide that this was the medium you wanted to use? I'm quite impressed."
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Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 10:59 pm
Maybe in some dream or fantasy he might have stood proudly under the few seconds of that scrutinizing stare, unaffected by it. But this was reality and Phirun practically trembled to be under such a look. His hands were clasped tightly together in an effort to not worry the end of his scarf or Naoki's tail. His gaze was mostly downcast, afraid to see any dislike or annoyance in the other Lunarian's gaze. Or worse, that feeling that his work was terrible and why ever would he be selling it?!
This was not the case, however, as his potential customer spoke. And Phirun felt heat flood his cheeks in a ridiculous and bashful blush. Thankfully he was able to (somewhat) duck his head against Naoki to hide it. Sort of. Okay not really, but he could think that! And he'd just gotten a compliment! There might have been a small skip in his heart beat at hearing the praise.
"T-Thank you!" Phirun murmured shyly, watching which ones he observed the most. Perhaps some were more appealing in general then others? Those could be the ones he focused more on next time.
On his shoulder, Naoki's ears flickered around as he rubbed his nose with a paw. But those bright eyes never once left Jianyu. When the other that was not his boy looked at him, Naoki's nose twitched experimentally. He smelled nice. And had a gentle voice. The lemur chattered curiously at the other, shifting his weight slightly as he tilted his head from side to side. Maybe not-his-boy had treats?!
"How?" He repeated almost stupidly before freezing up just a little. No, he could do this! He could talk to a customer! It was just like chatting with Father or Uncle. Or Naoki. "I-It was sort of an a-accident, sir." Phirun said in a quiet and peasant voice. "One of my candles was too warm from the flames of another, drooping and melting. I-I just happened to pick it up and saw how the heat allowed me to mold it into shapes." Oh Goddess! He'd said too much, hadn't he? The boy blushed again. Naoki rubbed his cheek against his, pulling a small smile from him.
"It's...umm, just something I find interesting to work with." He paused, not sure what else to say and still feeling like he's spoken too much. Social skills. He lacked them, yes. Phirun usually attempted to be the quiet one in the back that no one spoke to. Or the strange boy that stared at things that were not there.
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