The Fiery Glazier

Serrana had noticed the humidity, but more in her subconscious thinking than anything. It took Taran actually saying something about it before she really started to process it.

"I... don't think so?" the glazier said, her head tilted, a thoughtful look on her face as she made her way through familiar streets to Oran's. "I mean, we may have simply not noticed it on the way in, that whole focusing-on-almost-being-done thing... but this is really odd. I've been here three years, I don't ever remember it being this humid." Serrana bit the inside of her cheek thoughtfully, trying to run her mind through anything she'd managed to pick up with the quick glances of those notes she saw. There might be some clue there, but none of it sounded familiar, and this certainly wasn't the time to go rummaging.

It could also simply be a coincidence - this whole thing had her on edge, and if it was just a red herring, there was no reason to sweat any more than she already was. She had enough to worry about, and making sure Oran was alright was top of her list as the glassworks came into view.
 
"Weird." He shook his head and tried to ignore it as he followed her to the glass shop.

Word proved to travel quickly, and the door flew open. "Serrana!" Oran stared at her, then charged toward her, limping as he tossed his pipe back into the shop. He clapped her shoulder and looked her over, expression torn between relief, worry, and more. The man wanted nothing more than to hug the woman now that she was back, but he held off. "How are you?"

Taran looked between the pair, then coughed. "Should I give you two some privacy?" He joked.

Oran raised an eyebrow and offered the soldier the harshest stink eye Serrana had witnessed in her time working for the man.
 
Serrana let out a sigh, smiling and shaking her head as she didn't worry about appearances quite as much, giving her old glassworking master a hug. "I've... been better Oran. Much better. I was... abducted. Through sheer luck, a couple of mercenaries stumbled onto where I was being held and they got me loose. I only just got back. I've been worried about you - they took me out of here so fast... Has everything been alright here?" The sorceress seemed quite well for someone who'd been kidnapped - especially when one considered she seemed more concerned about Oran than relieved she was freed.

She giggled loudly and shook her head, a wide smile on her face as the old glazier scowled at her sibling. "Oran, this is my brother Taran... his unit happened to be nearby when I was rescued - they escorted us back to Driazhek. Taran, this is Oran - the one I apprenticed for when I came here!"

Serrana smiled as she made the introductions, but as she gave the brief recap, the sheer number of coincidental meetings sparked something else in her mind. A chance encounter, stumbling on her captors, but minimal bloodshed? That just happened to be less than a day from a marching patrol? Never mind the weather and everything else those rituals entailed... this was getting weirder and weirder...
 
Oran listened as she explained everything, then introduced her brother. He offered Taran a nod, then looked again to Serrana. "You're not hurt? Who took you? Why?" He looked her over again, then growled.

Suddenly, his arms wrapped tightly around the girl. Oran hugged his journeyman tightly, his grip suffocating before he released her after a few long moments to look at her from arm's length. "I'm glad you're back safe."

Taran stood to the side, uncertain what to do with himself as he rubbed the back of his neck, the moment seeming suddenly too private to intrude on.
 
"To be quite honest, I'm not entirely sure..." Serrana said, believing that more every second. "There were hired thugs and goblins involved, but I'm convinced there's a lot more to this than simple abduction, and I'm likely to go looking into it; if nothing else, I'd like to not be kidnapped ever again.

The glazier didn't mind the emphatic embrace... truth be told, it made her feel incredibly valued and loved - another reason she was fond of the old man who'd let her apprentice here. "Enough about me, you old coot!" she said with a smile on her face, trying to get some of what had happened out of her mind for a little bit. "How is your granddaughter? And how are things here? They didn't burn the shop down at least, it seems!"
 
The man laughed. "They tried. The granddaughter is doing fine, though. The hard times passed, and now she sleeps through the night for her parents. I still visit, but they don't need my help so much anymore." He ran a hand through his hair. "Lessie, what else? Morella came by. She weaseled her way out of the marriage for now. The Duke started having a second look at the laws about certain drugs." He paused as he rubbed his chin. "That family at the inn, where you work nights, the wife is pregnant. I've been helping them out when I can. She's doing well, but..." He trailed off, then shrugged. He was no midwife, so who was he to say what he thought the pregnancy would end in. "Well, she's gonna need a lot of help. She has her older children there, and her husband, so I'm not too worried."

At least, not as worried as he would be otherwise.

The man forced a grin. "Anyway, you should act surprised when they start bragging. For now, come inside." The grin shifted slightly as it met his eyes and became genuine, and he turned toward the door to lead the way in. "Got a new apprentice, and one of the boys left for his journeyman studies. I think you'll like the new girl." The last word, he spoke louder, his face turned toward the glassworks.

"Stop calling me a girl!" A child's voice shouted from within. "Don't introduce me as a girl, you creepy old man!"

Oran snickered. "Shut up, girl. Serrana's back, so the boy's won't pull your hair anymore."
 
Serrana blinked. One of the apprentices left, and a new one came? Morella was getting married - and got out of it? Ada was pregnant? By the sands, how long had she been gone? The girl shook her head, a palm to her temple as she tried to take it all in. And then, she realized that the question she just asked herself was actually a lot more pertinent than she realized.

"Oran," she said, her brow slightly furrowed, "exactly how long have I been gone? I don't... actually know..."

Serrana followed Oran into the glassworks, putting questions in her mind on hold for now. Now was not the time for them, now was the time to show she had returned. Rather than a brave face, though, she put on that trademark knowing smirk of hers as she walked through the door and looked around at the apprentices.

"Yeah, he couldn't keep me away forever, and now you all will have to actually start working again. Now, Oran, which one's the new girl, is this her?" she said, pointing at one of the younger male apprentices who she knew from before her abduction (and who she knew liked her and could take a joke, hoping it might ease any potential tension).
 
"Four months or so." Oran answered, one brow raised as he watched her switch from worry to that punch-worthy smirk that the boys liked so much. He scratched at his head in wonder at her ability to swap her face so easily, he assumed to keep the apprentices from fretting.

The boy, roughly twelve when she left, grinned and shoved at Serrana lightly. "Ha! I wish I was pretty enough for that! Guess again, Ser!"

"You weirdo!" Another boy called from the back, where he managed the ovens.

Almost all of the boys abandoned their workspaces to surge forward and greet the journeyman glazier.

Not far from the door, a girl looked away from her sorting of colorful pieces of broken glass, back towards Serrana. Though she tried to look angry, it was almost impossible while she was trying not to laugh as one of the boys got picked on for once.

Taran stepped in behind his sister, but didn't follow all the way inside. These were her loved ones, and he didn't know any of them, not really. He thought he'd met her master before, but Oran seemed unfamiliar. Still, it was good seeing that she was well-loved.
 
Serrana chewed on that in the back of her mind. Four months? It didn't feel like four months. She couldn't have been gone that long, could she? The sorceress thought about it for a bit... it would have been easy to lose track of time in that place. With many days spent fully inside, knowing exactly how many had passed would have been difficult. She assumed she'd only been unconscious less than a day, and had no reason to think otherwise. The other ramifications of that were also staggering, and suddenly she was very glad that she generally kept her rent paid in advance. The sudden disappearance meant she was probably only a little over a month behind, and her apartment might still be "hers" if she paid up quickly - and she was pretty sure she had enough for that, since they kidnappers didn't rob her.

Of all the ironies there...

All those thoughts took about two seconds before she shelved them. "Time to make it look like everything's alright", she told herself, as she grinned to the apprentices.

It didn't take long at all for her to sell it. Serrana tilted her head and looked in the direction of the ovens. "Porri? Is that you? They let you work the ovens now... and you haven't fallen in yet?" She turned to the old master and smirked. "Oran, I warned you about him, he's clumsier than a drunken ostrich! The whole place will burn down!" The journeyman glazier made sure to say it loud enough for the boy in back to hear, then shook her head, picking two more of the boys to be the "new girl" before actually focusing on the true one. "Oh, there's a face I don't recognize... you must be her! Hello! I'm Serrana!"

((Guh... slight post-response edit to clean up a rather garish copy-paste error))
 
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Porri offered a rude gesture, though his grin didn't sell it at all. "Back from vacation and the first thing you do is pick on us? So mean!" Even with the accusation, his grin didn't falter as he shoveled once more, then headed over with the others to greet her. The whole situation of her greeting for the boys was silly, and a few even flirted with her openly before earning a stinky glare from Oran.

Finally, Seranna's attention fell to the new girl, who looked a little young to be there, but the girl just grinned. "I'm Elga. Nice to finally meet you." She nodded her head slightly: a normal, if slightly dated greeting for meeting one's senior for the first time.

"The boys talk about you all the time." She shook her head as she rolled her eyes, then giggled. "All the time!"

Oran chuckled. "I warned you they're all head over heels over her."

"You said they liked her, not the same!"
 
Serrana grinned at Porri as he came to join the group. "But of course! I'm well behind on your required dosage of abuse, why wouldn't I come back with such a greeting?"

The sorceress finally looked at Elga, a genuine smile on her face as she nodded in response. "Welcome, Elga! Nice to know I won't be the only girl in here for once! I was starting to think Oran had a complex or something!" she said, giving the old master glazier a playful wink before she heard the rest of the commentary - which made her blush just a bit. She knew that she must have been the object of at least a crush or two, given adolescent boys and the fact there was a woman they worked with (and a dancer at that). The fact that she was a frequent topic of conversation, however, and Oran's jab about them all being "head over heels for her" was a little embarrassing (and, she had to admit later, a clean hit on her from her master's wit).

Collecting herself, she looked back at the younger girl, that smirk on her face. "You know what worked for me back home when they pulled my hair? Pull theirs back. Or kick them in the shin. Usually they cry about how unfair it is, something about being beaten by a girl. Alternately, you can just get better at glassworking than they are, then you'll beat them on a daily basis and really make them all mad..."

Serrana looked back over the group. "And you lot better make sure she doesn't do that - she's new. She shouldn't be running circles around you yet - and clearly you haven't learned to keep this place any cleaner since I've been gone!" Her tone remained playful, as did the smile on her face as she had her hands on her hips, her admonishment clearly not one intended to be taken too seriously. "So come on, is no one going to show me what I've missed? What fantastic things you all have been making since I've been out?"

The sorceress knew she had other business to attend to still, but this was important now. Oran was her teacher, and she still felt she owed him... plus, these students looked up to her almost as much as him, and she knew it. At the very least, she had to show them they were missed (never mind the fact that they truly were, and she'd only realized how much when she walked in the door and saw that many friendly smiles).
 
Oran chuckled as he stood back and let the boys show off all their new toys and creations. Sweat stood out on his forehead, and he lifted his canteen for a drink. The boys were happy, Serrana was back safe, and now Elga, the girl whose name at least came from Icesog, had an 'ally' against the rowdy boys. Still, as those very boys lifted up their latest projects that hadn't yet been sold, the old man looked toward Taran and asked a whispered question.

Taran's eyes raised slightly, and he answered in kind, catching Oran up on the basics of what had happened to Serrana, but mentioning none of the strangeness about it. Captured, held in some ruins, freed by a pair of treasure hunters, and returned.

The old glazier kept his eyes on Serrana as he asked one more question, once more whispering. "Who took her? She wrote while she was gone, didn't say what happened, said a bunch of stuff about being safe."

Serrana's brother shifted his weight to one side before he answered. "Goblin slavers, I think they said. I assume since they had her so long, she found a way to keep them from sending her along and earn favor enough she could write back here. She's smart, you know."

"Mm." Oran didn't buy it, but nodded anyway. Taran seemed too shifty, but it was believable, at least. He'd have to ask the girl himself in privacy, preferably before her weird, suspicious brother got to her. "At least she's back, now."

The fact she'd been taken from a walled city didn't bode particularly well, especially since it was a uniformed member of the army who was telling him lies. He'd been in business, legal and not quite so legal, for too long not to know when a young person was lying.
 
Serrana was vaguely aware of the conversation going on around her, but given that she couldn't hear it if she tried, she let it go for now. It wasn't something that was truly worth pursuing at the moment - after all, she could simply ask about it later, and she had catching up to do.

The young sorceress tried not to go into her absence too much while she heeded the needs of the apprentices - that was a story that had too many details, and would also likely take away from the joyful reunion. No, now was the time to simply let them be happy, which they clearly were. She felt almost like the big sister to this entire lot, and it showed, both in how she teased and in how she praised and helped the younger glaziers.

Eventually, Serrana pulled herself away - though that was only a few feet - as she pointed out things in the shop that still needed handled before the day could wrap up for the apprentices. While they set back to their chores (with no small amount of objection), the sorceress went over to where Oran and Taran were talking.

"I really am sorry, Oran... I... I never intended to leave you with all of this alone, especially without warning..." the usually energetic and playfully smug grin that she wore wasn't there anymore, at least for the moment... instead, it was replaced with genuine guilt as she looked down at the dusty floor...
 
Oran looked toward her, then patted her shoulder. "I know," was all he had to say on that subject. He assumed based on what he knew of her that she'd not intended to go missing so long, especially not at such a bad time. "If you need, take a day or two off, make sure your rent is in order before you come back, make sure the people at the Sands know you're alright."

The man reached for the pocket he hid his pipe in, then paused as he realized both that it was empty and that there was a uniformed soldier in his glassworks. With an absent cough, he directed his attention inward toward his students to watch them a few moments and distract himself. "I need to get back to watching these brats. You two stay out of trouble."

Even as he walked past Serrana, he cast her a worried glance paired with what he hoped was a reassuring smile. He was far from angry with her: he was just glad she was back and unharmed, even if her brother was a liar.

Taran cleared his throat absently. "Is he always like that?"
 
Serrana didn't hesitate to give her master another hug before she departed. "Don't worry, Oran... I'm pretty sure I can at least stay out of the trouble I've been in as of late." The sorceress looked about the rest of the room with a cheery smile. "Alright you, don't run Master Oran too hard, or you'll have me to answer to! I'll see you soon!"

As Serrana and her brother walked out, she waited until she was out of earshot before she responded, the playful smirk returning to her face. "Somewhat? He's always been a little gruff, but he was just worried..." she said, walking about half a step ahead of her brother, subtly directing their path toward home first before she went to the White Sands. "Remember, Taran, he all but took me in when I came to Aridefort. I can understand him being a little protective and a lot worried. I didn't hear what you were talking about, but if you hid anything, I'm betting he picked up on it. He is almost frighteningly good at that sort of thing. You have to be, I suppose, when you manage a dozen adolescents at any given time, in addition to your family."

Serrana slowed her pace just a shade, and quieted her voice. "Still, while I'd trust Oran with my life, if you did hide something to protect me... I appreciate it Taran. Thank you." The sorceress kissed her brother on the cheek, a genuine smile on her face as they made another turn and neared where her apartment was. Serrana knew she'd paid up in advance, but she hoped that nothing else had happened in her absence to cost her the little place she called home...
 
Oran nodded and hugged her back, and the students waved and said their goodbyes before they returned to work. Oran watched the brother and sister pair as they left, wary eyes on Taran—not only because he could read the young man's lies, but also because Oran had a certain illegal addiction to a substance that made the pains of age fade.

Only once Taran was out of earshot did he look around. "Who snagged the pipe?"

One boy produced it from his smock, and Oran sighed. "Thanks." He took it and checked the supply within, then lit the worn pipe with an ember from the oven. With an inhale, the pain began to fade.

~*~​

It made sense, and it explained the grumpiness, though there was the pipe he definitely saw the old man throw into his shop. He opted not to mention it—now or later, to either Ser or to his superior. If his sister trusted the guy, he assumed there was more to the man than a drug habit.

At her thanks, he simply nodded and grinned at her, and his nose twitched upward briefly at her kiss, as it always did when he went from serious to smiles. "Anything for you," he murmured, once more glad she was safe.

The courtyard around which the apartments surrounded seemed the same as always. Slowly, the landlord emerged from her home at the far end, then squinted at the pair entering her territory. Like a harpy, her eyes locked on them as she approached.

"Serrana," she squinted. "Going missing is not part of any of my contracts. Don't do it again. I didn't auction off your things this time, but another surprise trip may see it happen yet." She squinted, known for threatening people like this, but never actually doing so. She still had one man's things in storage from when he skipped town five years ago, and didn't sell it even when news came back of his death five years later. Those who pestered were given lines about children he might have, or maybe someone special in his life.
 
Serrana noticed the landlady only a few seconds after she'd stepped outside and took a somewhat abbreviated form of a deep breath. "Ugh... sandmites... well, I guess this conversation had to happen sooner or later..." she muttered as the landlady approached.

"I'm sorry Garra, really, I am!" Serrana explained, briefly lowering her head slightly like a teenager being scolded before she looked back up. "Honestly, if I'd known that I was going to be abducted in the streets and would require rescue from mercenaries, then escort back from the desert wilderness by the army, I would have let you know in advance!"

The glazier waited for the look that came from the landlady, which would undoubtedly be a cranky one that was flavored with disbelief, before she continued in a mild, almost playfully defensive tone. "Seriously! I mean it! That's what happened! I didn't have a choice in this! If you don't believe me, ask him; he's one of the soldiers that helped me get back! I am sorry, honestly, but I really didn't do this on purpose... If I'd known I was going to be gone so long, I would have certainly said as much!" Serrana looked at Garra with an almost puppy-dog like stare - one she'd used many times to get out of trouble with many different people, and that had only gotten more effective with time and practice.
 
The old woman glared up at Serrana with a squint that could melt mountains. The hateful-looking old man finally nodded. "Well, you are excused for the time being, but don't let it happen again! I'm not so rich I can just store your junk away indefinitely!"

Never mind she was doing it already for someone she liked a lot less.

Still, she continued to stare at the girl. "I suppose you need me to unlock your door, hm?" Without giving the younger woman a chance to answer, she walked to the girl's apartment and unlocked it. "Hmph. You'll need a new key as well, I assume? Maybe reduced rent? Huh!?" She squinted at Serrana and wagged a finger. "Fine. You convinced me. Stop begging!" With that, the crone stormed back to her own home.
 
(Holy crap - three years!)

Serrana blinked, but she wasn't so foolish as to ignore the opportunity. "Yeah, probably a key... but reduced rent? Oh Garra! That's so nice of you to offer! Thank you!" Serrana grinned wide as she weathered the impending glare from her landlord - not entirely sure exactly how much of the glare (or the "offer") she actually meant, but not terribly inclined to push that particular issue much further.

"We should wait until she comes back with one before we head out - I don't like the idea of leaving it unlocked at the moment, given recent events..." the glazier said as she looked around the room, which seemed, well, rather dusty, given it'd had four months without anyone in it very much recently. It wasn't like her apartment was exactly opulent to begin with, but she'd have to take a rag and a broom to this place sooner than later, she surmised. For now, Serrana set her things down, then took the blanket from the bed and shook it out. "Make yourself at home, such as it is!" she told her brother. "We likely won't be here long. Garra won't waste time with the key, or the accompanying lecture, I'm sure, and I really need to get to the Sands so they know I'm safe. You can sleep here, if you want, though it's probably not going to be the most comfortable..."

(Operating on the presumption that the room is, indeed, as it was left. Will backtrack/fix if not)
 
(( Woo! Feels good, man. ))

As expected, Garra returned before very long. Some of the polishing grease still clung to the brass, but as the old woman tested it, it worked with only moderate fighting: slightly better than the old opener. Finally, old and glaring eyes turned towards Serrana.

"Now, this does not happen again, yes? I can't have my tenants running off, leaving apartments empty and unused!"

Her scolding continued for ten more minutes until she decided Serrana had pleaded for mercy—though Garra hadn't let her sneak in a word edgewise—and "I'm not cruel enough to ignore you begging me to be nice, so we can continue this discussion later!" With that, she huffed and departed, as though they'd had a yelling match, though she'd been the only one to speak, and she herself didn't raise her voice beyond an acceptable level for indoors.

Once the door shut behind the old woman, Taran, with the most nervously straight face, turned his face to his sister.

"I... She certainly has a," he paused to think, "Strong personality."

He cleared his throat. "Let's get to the Sands?"
 
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