Building Blocks

Writers: Sia, Yvonne
Date Posted: 14th September 2024

Characters: Wyndall, Aleriand
Description: Wyndall arrives at the Printer Hall.
Location: Printer Hall
Date: month 13, day 9 of Turn 11
Notes: Mentioned: Aikley, Shassene

Aleriand

Wyndall waved as the blue dragon took off and stood by the Printer Hall's front steps until the dragon's hide blurred with the blue of the sky and he winked /between/. Travel was easy when you had dragonriders as friends.

With a sigh, he turned to pick up his bags but found a pair of curious apprentices loitering by the front doors to do it for him. One he sent to fetch the Headwoman, the other he had carry his two bags for him into the cool of the foyer. The building was stone, but even so he could hear the comforting hum of the presses through the thick walls.

The Headwoman wasn't long in coming and she led him across the campus to his new living quarters. Second floor with a view, although a bit small for Wyndall's tastes after all the space he'd enjoyed at Vista Point Weyr. **Just think of the workroom space,** he reminded himself as the apprentice carefully set his bags down on the bed. He slipped the girl an eighth mark for her trouble.

That done, he took a moment to tame his hair after his dragon ride, and then found another apprentice to lead him to the Hallmaster's office.

The knock on the door was _almost_ on time, shard it. Aikley had his schedule down to a science, and it was both awe-inspiring and irritating. Still, he was doing exactly what they didn't want him doing, which was looking over what was supposed to be the final layout of the special Emerald Journal publication for Turn's End. "Supposed to", as most of the thing was scrawled on with bright red correctional ink. He could use a distraction, and the latest Printer transfer home was a great one. "Wyndall! How was the trip from Vista Point? Are you settled in all right?"

"Easy as going /between/." Wyndall took Aleriand's greeting as an invitation to come in and sit, so he did, sprawling in the chair opposite the Hallmaster's desk with an unconscious ease. He hid a smile at the marked-up broadsheet. "My things are in my quarters and my quarters are quite satisfactory. And my other things should arrive sometime in the next two sevendays."

"Oh, good. They're new." Aleriand said mildly. "It's still a pretty modest place compared to the northern halls, but we have plenty of extra rooms for now. A lot of printer journeymen have decided to stay at their postings, either outside of Emerald Falls or back at the Weyr. I don't blame them, but ugh. I can't recruit more apprentices if I don't have folks here to teach them."

"Is apprenticeship down?" It wouldn't surprise him. The Hall's instability over the last few Turns wouldn't inspire confidence in parents wanting to ship their children off to learn a Craft.

"Being dissolved into the Harper Hall would do that." Aleriand said. "There's a certain prestige to being apprenticed at the Harper Hall. Sometimes we could get kids to specialize, but the Printer Hall itself doesn't have the same splendor to it. I've been waiving tuition as an incentive. That's helped, but that means we don't get as much as a stipend and I'm charging an arm and a leg for specialty orders. No one's complained about it yet, though. I need people working the presses and kids walking the tables. It'll pay off in the end." Or so he hoped.

Wyndall smiled. "Then my special project is coming at _exactly_ the right time. And _you_ can help me."

"Oh? Tell me more. What do you have in mind?" Aleriand asked. "You've been working with fabric, haven't you?"

"I have, but I've also been working on a new idea. Or rather, making an old idea fashionable again." The Journeyman spread his hands wide, gesturing at the office walls. "Wallpaper. It's been out of fashion since the Plague and the old stuff remaining looks... old. Faded and dated. And then Thread came back and nobody wanted to buy anything, but that was ages ago and people are looking for something _new_ and less 'eat your entire planet' dreary. I want to update the block print inventory with bright colours to reflect the optimism of the times, and I have some ideas for more saturated inks that I've heard of from the dyers at the Weaver's Hall. Different salts and minerals and things, I can't remember the details just now. The orders will come _pouring_ in. The Printer Hall will be rolling in the marks in no time."

"Wallpaper, huh?" Aleriand looked doubtful for a moment, but the enthusiasm was contagious. "I am in favor of whatever gets us more marks. You'll be building the block print inventory more than you'll be updating it, between the hurricanes and the fires. Are you up to that kind of challenge? You're on the right track with the inks, for sure...especially if the Weavers will let you in on some of their secrets. Shassene would be interested in brighter colours for her prints, though regular black and white are scandalous enough."

"I have a few friends at the Weaver Hall that I want to collaborate with from the Weyr. And I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to update the block print inventory. What I need, though, are some apprentices... preferably eight or ten Senior Apprentices with steady hands for carving work, and preferably ones who also have an eye for design. And a lens to project images. And paper. The right quality of paper. And marks for wood and ink, and how's the supply of chisels? And I'll need some press time with smaller blocks to create sample books to drum up sales. And more marks for materials to experiment with new inks. I've been thinking a lot about this and have reams of sketchbooks with patterns already, and we should meet to discuss selecting a few prints to begin with. And maybe bringing in someone from the Harper Hall, and maybe the Weaver Hall as well to discuss trends in different locations. But we can discuss that at a later time," Wyndall said, waving his hand to emphasise just how inconsequential he thought all his asks were. Aleriand hadn't said no outright. "It's good to be home."

"Oh sure, is that all?" Aleriand joked. "You're welcome to inspect the lenses and chisels. You can take any apprentices that are interested, but I wouldn't recommend poaching from the newsroom. The Journeymen there are possessive. We'll have a recruitment booth at Emerald Falls' Turn's End gather, so if we can get a few samples done by then you might be able to round up a few more. The rest we'll have to take step by step, due to aforementioned hurricanes and fires. The printers that stayed at the Weyr may have some equipment we can borrow. Or request. I am the Hallmaster now." He paused, leaning back in his chair. He'd almost forgotten how much he enjoyed the enthusiasm of a new idea. "It's good to have you back, Wyndall."

The Journeyman grinned. "I should go finish unpacking but I do intend to host a little 'back at the Hall' party within the next day or two. I'll be sure to save you a seat."

"I'll make an appearance. It's not as fun when the boss hangs around." Aleriand said with a grin. "Take a bit of time to get situated again. The presses will be here when you're ready."

Last updated on the September 23rd 2024

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Building Blocks