Embroidery

Writers: Mirren, Suzee
Date Posted: 30th January 2016

Characters: Sophque, Torianna
Description: Accidental meeting
Location: Sunstone Seahold
Date: month 4, day 9 of Turn 8
Notes: Mentioned: Xeladrie

Sophque

Sophque worked in the sun near the windows in the back room near the
kitchens. Her needle work was some of the best in the Hold so she was
always very careful to make sure it was perfect and that required good
light.

Green cloth slipped through her fingers as she embroidered leaves and
vines around the wide sleeves, that was until the light started to
fade and her stomach growled.

She set aside the tunic and stood rolling her neck and massaging it
with her other hand. "What's for dinner Selsa," she called as she came
out of the room. But what she saw when she rounded the corner stopped
her in her tracks. "Hello," she said softly.

"Hello." Torianna replied automatically. "I'm sorry, I probably
shouldn't be here, I was just…" Wandering around because she was
curious about the hold. Curiosity wasn't a bad thing, unless it got
you into trouble.

Taking in the quality of clothing, though it wasn't overstated a bit,
Sophque lowered her eyes and her head into a small curtsy. "Miss," she
smiled. "I'm Sophque, can I help you find something?"

"I'm Torianna." She wasn't comfortable being treated as though she was
someone important. She was just - her. "I wasn't really looking for
anything. It's just so much bigger here than at home."

"Oh yes," Sophque smiled. "It is a pretty big place but you get used
to it after a while. Where's home?"

"Citrus Bay. It's small, but it's - nice." Torianna did love it there,
really. "Have you always lived here?"

"Pretty much," she smiled back. "My father is the Lord's Orchardist."

"Oh, that's interesting. And what do you do here?"

That was indeed a good question but she had a ready answer. "I'm a
seamstress since my husband was lost at sea. I'm lucky to be very good
at embroidery." Not luck precisely nor how she actually got the job
but it worked in conversations with strangers.

"Oh, I like to sew and embroider, but I'm sure you're better at it
than I am," Torianna replied. "I'm sorry to hear about your husband."
It was always difficult when a seacrafter was lost, especially when
the vessel he was on was lost as well.

Sophque shrugged. "It's been turns now," she said. "You know it's not
that often I see people with our color of hair." She tilted her head
toward the room where she'd been working, "Would you like to see what
I've been working on?"

"I'd love to." Torianna wondered if maybe they were related, but
asking was another matter. 'Do you maybe have a relative who died?'
might be construed as rude. "Do you - um- have other family here?"

"Yes," she smiled as she led the way into her sewing room. "My
parents, brothers, and my daughter." She loved her sewing room and was
rather happy to show it off. There was a half finished dress for Lady
Xeladrie on a stand in the corner and the tunic she was embroidering.
"Are you here with your parents?" That seemed like a nice safe
question to her mind. Yet she could get a bit of information about who
the girl was related to.

"With my foster mother," Torianna replied. "She came to help Lady
Xeladrie. This is fabulous." She looked around, taking in the size and
neat organization of the space.

"Thanks," she smiled. "I've been working on a new dress for the Lady
Holder." She shrugged. "At least until the light went. I can't work on
this kind of embroidery without full daylight. It would be nice if we
had electricity but we're not that far along here." **Or at least not
where I work**

"Neither is Citrus Bay. I've heard a bit about how wonderful it is."
Torianna was used to going without it, so she couldn't miss it. "It
would be nice to work at any time, without having to worry about
sunlight."

"I hear they're going to electrify the new Hold they're building over on
the other hill," she smiled. "Though they're just in the planning
stages," she was quick to add. Rumors about the new building were
rampant at Sunstone.

"Oh really? That would be amazing. But it's nice to do some things how
they've always been done, isn't it? I mean, you can't use electricity
to embroider."

"Wouldn't that be nice," she smiled. But there was no way to embroider
without nimble fingers and a needle. "But you can't beat good
workmanship. Do you have any hobbies?"

"Just embroidering and waiting for my Da to find me a 'suitable
match'," Torianna replied. Suddenly feeling bold, she asked, "I don't
suppose you know of a woman who died in childbirth about fifteen turns
ago?" Of course it wasn't an uncommon circumstance, but she had to
ask, just in case.

"Hmmm, fifteen turns?" Sophque's brows came together but she shook her
head. "I was only about twelve then," she shrugged. "Sorry. I could
ask my ma though."

"No," Torianna replied hastily. "It's all right, not a big deal. So, I
think it's time to go and eat?"

"Yes," Sophque smiled. Thinking to herself she might just ask her ma
about a woman who might have died in childbirth around that time. It
wasn't as if women were so plentiful back then that a death like that
wouldn't be known even if she herself was too young to remember it at
the time. She smiled at Torianna, "I was just thinking the same thing."

Last updated on the February 1st 2016

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Embroidery