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 Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2007 9:54 pm
Starting to feel a little worn-out just by the press of people all around, Lucretia edged away from the most crowded parts of the shopping street towards the quieter areas. Sitting on a bench would have been ideal, but the Raevan knew that she would really stand out if she did that. She had already nearly dropped her black sheet several times so far, and even with it hiding her glow, she had caught some people giving the space beneath her some funny looks.
Telling herself not to be so self-conscious, Lucretia moved over to the side of the street and looked for a good spot to lean to rest a while. Settling on a dimly-lit shop that she thought looked closed, the ice rose Raevan leaned her shoulder carefully against the glass door and-
-was rather surprised as it swung open into the store, depositing her onto the floor and announcing her arrival with a jingle of the bell rigged in the frame.
Lucretia immediately scrambled to her... normal height, and did her best to look like she had walked in to just take a look at the... what was it they sold here? Masks?
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Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2007 10:36 pm
It was a modest shop, heavy antique glass lamps caught the glittering beads and gems in the masks that lined the walls. Intricate works of beauty and horror, sparkling princesses and twisted monsters. Feathers adorned some of the faces, glass others. Some were carved entirely of wood or molded from plaster and leafed in gold and silver. Below them, wooden marionettes in jesters clothes twitched and rustled as if wanting to dance on their own.
The store itself seemed to be an antique, as if artisans had owned the space for years. Dark wooden counters gleamed with a reddish shine and not a speck of dust could be seen. Everything was exactly in its place, organized and clean.
The dark haired man behind the counter looked up, smiling as he saw a new customer. He stood with a sweep of brown feathers, holding his wings properly behind him and high enough off the floor that the tips didn't drag as he moved. He placed a half finished mask on the counter, the silk ribbons spilling like liquid across the wood to settle in pools of blue and green.
"Welcome to my shop, miss. If there is anything I can do to help you, please let me know."
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Posted: Fri Jan 11, 2008 4:38 am
Not expecting to find anyone in the shop, in spite of the door being open and all, Lucretia half-jumped as she heard a voice. She turned to look at the man behind the counter, and studied him for a moment before offering a shy wave in greeting.
"I'm just looking around," she told him, fixing the black sheet that hid the glowing rune that made up her lower half. "But thank you." In spite of her sheet, the rune cast a blue glow onto the floor below her, though, in the dimmer light within the shop.
The Raevan's gaze trailed off along a shelf of masks, her brow furrowing in curiosity as she drifted closer to them. "Did you make all of these?" Lucretia inquired, and reached up cautiously towards one of them, glancing back at the man behind the counter as she did so to see if he would object to her touching it.
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Posted: Fri Jan 11, 2008 9:46 pm
"Yes, all you see is made by hand." Bauta said, a touch of pride in his voice. Though pride was a sin, it was difficult not to feel something for the faces he had crafted himself. It had taken years of practice, learning with his brothers from his father who had learned the skill from his father. A family tradition that had taken generations to protect. He was still not close to his father's artistry, but someday perhaps.
"Please go ahead and examine anything you wish. If there is anything I can do to help you miss, do not hesitate to ask." the dark skinned man smiled, watching his customer move around the shop.
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Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 4:22 pm
"... Pretty," she murmured without taking her eyes off of the masks. While Halloween shopping had been a great annoyance, these masks really interested her. They were very nicely made, one of a kind, less... tacky.
Lucretia wanted to find one for her father, and one for herself, as well. Then another one caught her eye that reminded her of her brother Donat, and then another of Arlyn. She only had so much money with her, but she had already decided for sure that she would have to come back.
Carefully, she took one down off of the wall, then drifted over to the nearest mirror as she held it up in front of her face. This one was decorated with all sorts of glitter and feathers much more colorful than Lucretia's own; it looked quite silly on her, but she had expected that, and giggled softly at her reflection.
"Do you make ones for mages?" she asked, twirling around to face Bauta again. The ice rose Raevan was not totally sure what sort of mask a mage might wear, but she figured the winged man would know. "And they all fit anyone, right?"
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008 7:21 pm
Bauta smiled as he watched his young customer try on such a flamboyant mask. "Yes, most do fit everyone, though there are some made smaller for children if you prefer. I can also craft specific masks to suit the needs of my customers if they choose. Some perfer to have custom crafts."
The elder man studied his customer. What an odd shade of feathers, not one he had seen before. Quite unique and beautiful. Was she perhaps some distant cousin of a harpy or was she another type of creature all together?
"Mages?" he folded his arms, pondering the question. "Do you mean masks that represent arcane figures or those specifically crafted with a more...magical touch?"
Magic in masks was rare, much harder to achieve than the puppets he dabbled with that danced ever so slightly without the touch of a hand on their strings. It was almost a lost art, one he had yet to master.
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008 9:04 pm
Lucretia looked upwards as she considered the question for a moment. Then she turned to place the mask she had been holding ever-so-carefully back on the shelf where it had come form before drifting slowly over to the counter. She crossed one arm over her chest, and reached up with the other hand to fiddle with her hair idly.
"Well, my father is a mage, and I need to pick out a gift for him. What do you think might be good? I think my father likes magic with souls and dead things," she told Bauta, returning her dark gaze to him for a moment before her eyes wandered again, looking at another shelf of masks.
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