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 Posted: Fri Apr 28, 2006 9:14 pm
[ Message temporarily off-line ]
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Posted: Fri May 12, 2006 1:57 am
. . . // ____________________________________Second Letter
. . . the start of something . . . Bright light poured into the house as Preet finished her tea. Leaving the mug in the sink, she padded to the door and slipped into her boots. Slinging a well-worn bag over her shoulder, she left the house early; she could still see dew on the cliff ferns.
Quietly, she walked over the boardwalks to the stone stairway snaking up over the cliffs. Climbing up the stairs she could feel the vestige of sleep leave her muscles even as it held sway over her thoughts. 'I wonder what colour the lotus blossom will be?' she mused to herself.
Coming to the top of the cliffside she looked back out over the view; blue ocean till the horizon. White clouds scattered by the light wind, like lost sheep in the sky. Following the lines of the town, the terraced rice paddies and lotus pools created steps for water to course through and eye to delight in. Hanano sat like a brooch on the edge of green silk; the sand and sea spilling out from the green land. Her heart still fluttered at the sight, sending a trill of tingles down her spine.
Turning away she began the path inland to the wood cutters. The dense foliage enclosed around her as she followed the path. Now and then there were orchards of peach and cherry blossomed trees partnered with the gentle hum of honey bees. The sweet smell made Preet smile.
'The lotus better not be from Soriyu...it's bad enough I have to live there for the school. Studying the history of bureaucracy would just be mind numbing...' she thought as the breeze played with her stray locks. 'If the lotus is green like mine I wonder if it will be a creative one like me as well...that could be weird. Especially if it turned out to be anything like Dani' Preet frowned. Thinking on her brother always made her somewhat grumpy.
'I wonder if it will turn out to be a boy or a girl...' as she came through the dappled light she could hear the sounds of wood being chopped.
The sawmill ran on water power from sunrise till sunset. At night the finishing work and sorting of wood took presidence at the mill. Though Arnin's mill was on the small size, it still serviced the town, boats and caravans in the area. The shipping industry would sometimes take barges of lumber up river to be processed at larger mills. In the end it really was the woodcutters pushing the industry forward. Traditionalists kept to the simpler tools while some adventurous few were trying steam powered machines. Until that became profitable they were losing money on the technology at a steady rate.
Entering the property Preet hailed Arnin at the gate bell. Apprentices and journey men were scurrying about the grounds already; counting lots and taking down inventory on note pads. A young girl ran up to her and told Arnin was busy, but the journyman, Girney, was avaliable.
"Do you have a large order today, ma'am?" asked the straw-haired lotus. Her blossom had a hint of Milva red.
"Oh no not today, Frear bless. Just some gardening to do," she replied.
Escorted into a long buidling the sounds of the mill were climbing in volume. "Girney, this lotus would like to do business," the girl said and scampered off to do something else.
The tall, wide-shouldered young man that looked her over had rough looking hands and face. His grey eyes looked honest enough however so Preet wasn't worried about bartering. "What are you interested in today?" he said with a slight wink.
Preet smiled back winningly, "Nothing you're offering Girney unless you've taken up growing bamboo out your ears."
"Ah, bamboo then? Yes well we've got many lengths and sizes to choose from," he said as he lead her back out of the building to the yard filled with lumber and shelving of stumps, poles and planks of all sorts. "I'm sure you're wanting a nice young one now aren't you?" he said with a smirk to his tone.
"Only to break over your head, Girney. I'll need about three hundered handspans long in hand width, and the same in half-hand width." Preet strode towards the cured bamboo with a look of distain. "Is this all you have? It's still green. I wouldn't shell out more then my socks for this."
"Oh come now that's fine golden bamboo you're criticizing there. It's dry as dust and wax polished too," Girney gestured like a chef waving a whisk.
"Maybe I should go talk to Arnin about this..." Preet began.
"Now, now don't be too hasty there," he rushed. "I'll throw in the transportation as well. Wouldn't want you spraining your back, girlie."
Preet narrowed her gaze at the word 'girlie'. 'He's still 8 years younger then me, damn upstart boys.' "I don't want you anywhere near my house, little miller. Make sure you send some of Arnin's apprentices or I'll give yours a reason to not come into town too soon."
Laughing he nodded at her and they finished business with no more hassling of each other. Preet went back along the trail to the cliffsides and down in the winched basket lifters to the valley floor. The main body of Hanano resided there with aqua and agriculture around the circumference of the city. The stone paved streets didn't start till the busiest areas. Hard packed dirt, wooden boardwalks and wooden bricks served the slower traffic at the foot of the cliffs.
Preet made her way along...
{- to be continued! -}
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Posted: Sun Jun 04, 2006 12:30 am
. . . // ____________________________________Arrival
. . . a new journey in Soriyu . . . Stepping into the cool, stone hallway Preet lugged her heavy bags in arm towards the desk at the far end. A grey-lavender lotus sat atop the woman seated at the desk. Preet sniffed - she could detect the scent of administration from here; it smelled of dust, ink and paper. Pursing her lips she strode forward like she knew what she was doing.
"Take a seat," the lotus said without even looking up.
Preet stopped and looked to either side. None of the seats had sitters. 'It has begun,' she thought to herself. She eyed the woman with an unimpressed glare from the corner of her eye as she waited. Five minutes passed, then ten. Grinding her teeth Preet started crossing and re-crossing her legs in irritation. Finally, she started to open her bags and reorganize them just as the woman said, "I'll see you now".
Leaving her bags at the seat she stepped towards the desk. "Nice to see nothings changed since my last visit," Preet said with a suppressed growl.
Barely smiling the woman said, "Name please."
"Preet Cohen, of Ishura." She started to tap one foot as the lotus went digging through her filing cabinet.
Finding the assumedly correct folder the woman began to flip though it. "Ah yes, your due for intake tomorrow but if you'd just fill out these forms I'll give you a map to your guardian dorm residence," she said with another empty smile.
The woman pushed a small heap of forms towards her so Preet took them and a pen back to her seat. 'Damned paperwork' she internally grumbled as she read through the forms before going to fill them in.
*****
Squinting at the map, Preet looked up and around at the cul-de-sac of small, simple houses. Paired in two's, the guardian training dorms had one kitchen, one washroom, one long entrance hall running horizontally along the front stoop, two bedrooms and two living rooms. The backside of the houses had a patio and garden area that was also shared. All the homes were one story high.
Preet walked along the path counting up the numbers till she found number 23. Opening the gate she followed the stone steps up to the front door and knocked. She wasn't sure if the other guardian was home or if the other half was even in use. The gray-lotused woman hadn't been very informative. Waiting with baited breath Preet procured the key from her bag and unlocked the door.
The entrance hall was tiled with stone and swept clean. A broom stood to one side. Before her was a step up to a tatami covered floor with two sliding doors leading off to the left and the right. Leaving her shoes on the tile, she left her bags on the tatami and went first to the right side. The warm light was coming in through paper-shaded windows. To her left was a curtain covered closet and past that the door to the shared washroom. The room infront of her housed a plush armchair and a half-dozen plump pillows. To her right was a sliding door that led to a bedroom. Towards the back of the living room the tatami ended and became a ceramic tile. A small table and three chairs could be seen, as well as a glass door that would open onto the patio. Peeking around the corner on the left she saw the shared kitchen and the dining room of the other house side. Exploring that side Preet found it to be much the same in furnishing and apparently as equally lacking in signs of inhabitance.
"I guess I get the whole place to myself," Preet smiled and went to grab her bags.
After putting away her clothes and other oddments Preet decided to head back to the inn and collect the rest of her baggage. She had packed up a lot of her work tools and books as well as kitchen ware for her stay in Soriyu. She wasn't exactly clear on how long she'd need to be staying here. If it were up to her she'd chose her lotus immediately and take it back to Hanano just as quickly. 'I hope Lanya remembers to feed my fish...' she thought as she fluffed up the futon and flipped it over with a thud. Sighing, she lay down for a light nap before she returned to the inn for the rest of her things and dinner. 'Tomorrow I meet my flower...'.
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