Painted Beads and Threaded Feathers [OPEN!]

[allthekingsmen]

Vai smiled at the children, a few of them giving waves and chirping hellos that ruffled their feathers with happiness. One boy chattered at Vai in the Yoreiqi tongue, casting a glance to the strange figure next to him whilst his friends were distracted by a few tricks done by another, before following them to the market.

At Hadrian's words, though, he frowned a little, shifting the items in his hands as he stepped onto the elevated platform of the patio, brushing a strip of green leaf away with one bare foot, "That is sad. Your ship? Are you captain?"

[quaggan]

 "Not mine ship. I was traveler. Passenger" Hadrian quickly added, recalling the word used to describe his position. He followed Vai onto the patio, immediately scanning the new locale. It looked rather open and not very defensible.

His grasp on the basket hasn't shifted since he first picked it up. Hadrian had no muscles that needed rest and no skin that could be chafed by prolonged contact. He noticed that he was drawing far less attention there - people were busy with their own activities and stared less.

[allthekingsmen]

Vai nodded his head in understanding, leaning down to set the things in his hand on the ground. He turned and reached his arms out to take the basket in Hadrian's hands. "Still, is very sad. You had friends on ship? Things you like?"

Even if his appearance was peculiar, Vai was sure that Hadrian had someone. A friend, a family member, an employer or someone in the same line of business as he was, even a pet or a precious keepsake that he had lost in the wreck—no one was truly alone in the world. There must be a tether to life, right?

[quaggan]

 Hadrian handed over the basket, still puzzled at the question. "The ship was built good" he remarked. He'd never seen one that large during the time of conquest; his unit never participated in marine warfare and once they've arrived at a port, it would have already been stripped of any vessels.

As the weaver was settling down, Hadrian glanced towards the position of the sun. His armour produced a sizeable shadow, and he was not certain if it was desired or not. "Do you need light?" he asked, moving away.

[allthekingsmen]

Vai's lips shifted to a slightly-deeper frown, taking the basket into both hands. "Ship was... beautiful?" he questioned, pulling out his largest piece of cloth from there before setting the basket down with the others. He shook out the cloth, brows still drawn together in thought. 'Built good' could mean many things, but to Vai, if something was built well, it must've been exceptionally gorgeous.

He shook his head slightly. He'd worked in the dark before—certainly darker than this—so light wasn't necessarily needed, but it was definitely welcome. "If you like dark, I can work in dark," he said, then lifted his cloth a little higher, shifting his thoughts to the cloak. "Can I touch armor?"

[quaggan]

 This weaver had a way of asking difficult questions. What did 'beautiful' mean? What was beauty? Hadrian was a soldier, not a philosopher, and had no idea what to make of it.

The input on his position was vague, but he could work with it. He was about to stand by, when the other question reached him. "Yes" he responded, moving closer. "Tell me when to move" he stood ready to rotate or make other parts of his armour accessible.

[allthekingsmen]

The lack of an answer made something in Vai's stomach a little antsy (did he upset him? Was his question disrespectful, strange, or did Hadrian consider his own unreleased answer to be unwanted?), in all honesty, but told himself it was nothing. Silence wasn't a bad thing.

He spread out the cloth, its length far longer than Hadrian was wide—from a vague eyeing, there was more than enough material to cover his entire body, even if the rest of him was as wide as his armored shoulders, so he considered it acceptable as he folded it back up. Reaching out a tentative hand and giving a little nod at Hadrian's answer, he laid it flat on the front part of the armor, centered near the top as he moved it across the each shoulder, muttering measurements under his breath. He did so for each arm, then kneeling down for a bit to measure to Hadrian's knees. Standing back up, measurements briefly memorized, he cleared his throat. "I have enough for body—you want hood, yes? Can I touch head?"

[quaggan]

 Hadrian stood by as the weaver took measurements. With neither breath to move his chest nor life to spark at his nerves, he remained still as a statue.

"Tell me if need to move" he added. Staying still, he tried to pick up on the whispered numbers - the local metric system was valuable information. The weaver didn't seem to be using any instruments, just making an observation and judging by his own measure. It spoke of experience and skill in his craft.

[allthekingsmen]

Vai appreciated Hadrian's rigid stance—he hadn't noticed up until now, but having breathing subjects with beating hearts and throats that needed to swallow and cough could make a bit of a hassle when measuring—of course, it was part of the fun, and feeling the life thrumming beneath someone's skin was special. But this was special in its own way, he supposed, and was thankful for his patience. "Still is good. No worrying."

He very hesitantly held his hand over Hadrian's head, not touching the bone of his skull but carefully hovering over it. The hood should be bigger than his head, anyway, enough to cast shadow over his face. After finishing, he pulled his hand away and stepped back, committing it all to memory. He flexed his stiff hand, moving it back to flexibility. "Moving is good now," he said, relaxing his posture. His wings fluttered with the movement of his spine. He added, "Lots of Yoreiqi measures with body—easy to learn."

[quaggan]

 Hadrian took the weaver's words as the indication that the measuring process was over. He did not need to move, and remained on stand by as time passed. He did, however, pay attention - it was important to learn about measures of the world. He might have to make use of them later. This system, founded upon the body, felt familiar for some reason.

[allthekingsmen]

Vai knelt down to shuffle through his woven fabrics, looking through the finer and coarser cloths. "You want color?" he asked, lifting up a small sample with purple zig-zags running through it. "I can make black, purple, brown... some colors is expensive, though."

He straightened up, turning his face to Hadrian. "I have never made cloak before, so if you stay and tell how parts should look and work, it would be good, but Yoreiq is beautiful place—if you want to go somewhere, that is good, too."

[quaggan]

 Hadrian was capable of recognizing colour - the necromancer who raised him found it important that their soldiers were just as capable as navigating the battlefield as the living would. The use of colours to denote specific units seemed to have survived, too convenient not to be repeated. He'd overheard some people discussing codes of arms or such, that seemed to operate on a similar principle.

"Brown. Please." It sounded like an inexpensive colour to make, and one that wouldn't draw attention. He caught the suggestion, and that gave him more food for thought. Reconnaissance would be useful, but he could just as well familiarize himself with the island terrain after he had the cloak made. "I can stay."

[allthekingsmen]

Vai nodded at Hadrian's request, though his lips twitched downward in disappointment for a slight moment before resetting to a mildly polite line. He was excited to work on something new, and had a mind full of ideas for fun patterns and colors, but he wouldn't go against his customers' requests if his life were on the line. "Dark? Light is better for sun, if you will be in Yoreiq for long times."

He placed his sample back into his basket, taking one more moment to examine Hadrian's build before shuffling back and settling to sit on the ground, legs folded and feet tucked close to him. He pulled his basket closer, using his free hand to lightly pat the floor. "You can sit now. Be comfortable. First I will cut cloth into a good shape—but does you have questions? About Yoreiq? Or how to make the cloth?" Sitting in silence, working while another person watched would be awkward for himself, at least—whenever he worked, whether out at the market or sitting with other weavers, there was always noise.

[quaggan]

 "Dark" Hadrian confirmed. "Sun does not... hit me." It was one of the advantages of being undead. Extreme temperatures posed little threat to him - even fire would only singe his enchanted bones. It was a great advantage of undead - many woes of mortals, such as hunger or the environment, held no sway.

He was content with silence and waiting, but the weaver's offer was quite tempting. He would go on a reconnaissance of the island himself later, but having a local answer his questions was not something he could just pass by. "Yes. How to make cloth?" Hadrian was unlikely to pick up the particularities of local industries on his own, it was best to ask an expert.

[allthekingsmen]

But sun will hit your cloak, no? Vai thought to himself, though he nodded to Hadrian's decision. The way the sunlight would slowly bleach the cloak, itself, would be a bother to his own self—if he wanted something a certain color, especially a dark one, he'd take care in not letting it be sitting outside too much, but it seemed his customer wasn't extremely preoccupied with fashion. "Does you feel cool all the times, then?" he asked, cautiously curious. "Cold?"

His expression perked up, however, at Hadrian's latest question, clapping his hands together. "Oh! I would love to shows you—but takes long times," he started out rather excited, but quickly trailed into sheepishness. He reached next to him to pull out a long roll of tied, dried leaves, then a vaguely rectangular mallet, showing the items to Hadrian. "We weave with this leaf, but for our big cloths, we take barks from the tree, soak in the sea, and hit them with the ike. Want to touch?"

[quaggan]

 Hadrian shook his head - a gesture that he learned in this time signified a denial. He performed it by slightly rotating his skull atop his spine, several times before settling in its previous forward-facing position. There were some rudimentary enchantments on him that allowed him to estimate temperature - a late-campaign addition by some necromancer officers who wanted their troops to be able to take stock of the battlefield more completely.

He listened intently to the explanation, memorizing what he could. If fabrics were of plant origin, they were most likely unique to the island. The distance between it and the mainland seemed vast and took a long time to cross by ship, so it was unlikely that any seeds could make it across the sea.

"Touch the fabric? The... ike?"

[allthekingsmen]

Vai watched the way his skull moved, eyes following the movements. He'd seen bones laid out in the sun before—almost all of them animal bones, bleached white from exposure to the elements or still with tiny bits of flesh stuck to certain parts, but he'd seen more humanoid skulls before, too. Of course, though, none of them moved. This was sort of an educational experience for him, he supposed, being able to see the way bones moved without skin... then remembered he was staring.

He cast his gaze away with an apologetic half-smile, moving to take another item from the basket he had, "At least you will not shiver."

"Ike is what we hit cloth with," he explained slowly, hefting it in his hand, turning the ridged side so that Hadrian could see. "Make texture, too. Cloth is nicer to touch, and less heavy," he said, using his other hand to nudge a sample closer to him.

[quaggan]

 Shiver. Hadrian had seen people shiver, and came to a conclusion it was a good thing he and other skeletons didn't. The noise it would make! Forget any attempt at a covert approach.

He cautiously poked a cloth sample. He was aware that his ability to touch things was far inferior to the sense the living were equipped with - that was where the efforts of the necromancers who raised him ended. Still, it would be impolite not to react.

"Is all cloth made from that?" he asked. "All cloth in the island?"

[allthekingsmen]

"All best cloth," Vai nodded affirmatively, a slight tinge of pride in his tone. Despite how many people lived on Yoreiq and how many clothes would have to be made to sustain them all, he couldn't help but sing in the joy that the trees still stood tall, the work was still passionate, and the clothes were always beautiful. "Make for decoration, too. Gift. Very importance."

He pulled the cloth back and put the work-irrelevant items to the side—far away enough so that they wouldn't block him, but close enough for Hadrian to pick them up and examine them if he so pleased. "This is piece that will help make your cloak," he said, scooching back a little more to make room. He'd be sure to run it through the dying process again to make sure it was dark enough for Hadrian's satisfaction, but otherwise, it was the perfect size to make into the hood. "Use the wet root to stick... connect? Make two become one."

[quaggan]

 "Is it the same tree like the homes?" Hadrian gestured to a few buildings around the open space the weaver selected for his work. Construction was relevant to his purpose - understanding it was important for urban warfare and siege tactics.