[The Scholars' Nook] 01: Getting Hired

[Perdita Westcott]

16th Cylus, 721
The Scholars' Nook

ooks.

They were things which Perdita truly loved. They had so much potential, so much future and - often - so much history. The young woman felt strongly about the worth of books - the value of them in a sense which went far beyond monetary. So, she had learned the art of book repair, book creation and now she was embarking on what she saw as the beginning of her journey. After her classes, and having discussed it with Eli, Perdita had decided to seek a job. Her skills, however, were quite specific and so she had thought about it a while. Of course, being who she was, she'd done more than thought about it - she'd researched it and made notes and come to a logical conclusion.

And so, she was here, at the Scholar's Nook. A four-floor tower which housed books. Books, lots of them, knowledge and potential. Even better than that, there was a "Help Wanted" sign there. Still, Perdita felt nervous, unsure. Could she do this? She knew that she had to; in Rharne she'd worked hard but things were so much different on Scalvoris. So much busier, so much more fast-paced. Perdita breathed in and walked in to the tall building.

It was amazing in here. Looking around, she felt her eyes drawn in all directions - every nook and cranny held books, information, knowledge. Perdita breathed in and she felt a wave of delight as she looked around. In a very real sense, this place combined so many of the things she loved. Glancing around, she moved to a table, sitting to wait until someone came to serve her. It was quick enough since they weren't overly busy to-trial. The weather really didn't help, she knew. So, Perdita waited only a few moments, looking around with interest, then a woman with dark hair and a friendly smile on her face came over.

"Hi there!" The woman spoke. Perdita felt the familiar blush on her cheeks, but she returned the smile. "Good trial," she said.

"I'm Caz, the owner. First drink on the house, what would you like?" Perdita considered it. "A mint tea, please?" Caz nodded and smiled. "Anything else?"

With a deep sense of dread, Perdita said "I'd like to .. to apply for a job?" Caz raised an eyebrow and sat at the table Perdita was currently at. "Oh? What sort of thing are you looking for?" She gestured around. "We're quiet right now, I don't really need any more servers or such." Perdita shook her head. "I make - and repair - books." The young woman rummaged in the satchel she'd brought with her and put down some examples of her work. "You made these?" Caz asked, and Perdita nodded.

"Flea! Flea, get over here!" Caz called and Perdita raised her eyes to see a young man come over. "Hey, Flea. This is..." Caz paused and looked - Perdita said "Perdita Westcott. Hello." and offered her hand to both Caz and, then, Flea. Her blush would keep them warm, at least, she thought. Flea seemed largely distracted as Caz continued. "Perdita wants a job here. She makes books, look."

At that, Flea began paying attention. "You made these?" Perdita nodded in reply and Flea grinned. "Can you restore old books and repair damaged ones?" She nodded. "This good?" He asked, holding one of the books in his hand and, again, Perdita nodded. Flea glanced at Caz and then, nodded his own head. "You're hired," he said. "Welcome to the team."

[Perdita Westcott]

16th Cylus, 721
The Scholars' Nook

ll in all, it was exactly the outcome she had wanted.
Yet, Perdita breathed in and fought against the blush on her cheeks, but it was a losing battle and she knew it. Caz gave a happy grin and nodded to them both. "I'll go get you that drink. You and Flea can work out the details." Perdita nodded, not yet able to talk in case she got too overwhelmed with the delight and excitement and terror she was feeling.

"So," said Flea to her. "I haven't seen you here before. You new, or just not coming in here?" Perdita shook her head and replied in a quiet voice. "I'm new here," she said. Then, she gestured towards the building in question. "I'm studying here." Flea's attention - and his curiosity - was piqued and he asked "Oh? What you studying?" That he was genuinely interested didn't help, Perdita thought. Why would he be interested in her and her studies? It was too much. Still, she was polite and so she replied. "Art and History," she said. Flea sat back and looked at her. "You don't talk much, do you?" Perdita shook her head. No, she considered. No, she didn't.

"Well, we've got a whole shelf of books that need repairing from damage," Flea said. "And another two shelves which are books which require restoration." Perdita's brown eyes lifted to look at him and, just then, Caz returned and put down a cup of mint tea. "Here you go," said Caz and Perdita smiled her thanks. "Where are we at?" Caz asked and Flea replied to his sister with a smile. "We've ascertained that Perdita doesn't talk much, but she's studying Art and History at the University." Caz beamed.

"What I'd like," Caz said, "is to work our way through some of the repairs and restorations that are waiting, but if we can also be making books, too, that would be great." She looked around, glancing at a calendar hanging on the wall. "Cassion's trial is in Ymiden, I'd really like to get some of the stories we have in note form written down into compendiums. Can you do that?"

Perdita nodded her head. "If I may," she said, softly. "I'll examine the books. Restoration especially. Put them in time order." Caz smiled as Perdita said that. "That makes sense. So, we can do a list of priorities?" That was exactly what Perdita wanted to achieve. So, she nodded and, as was her way, pulled out her notebook and started to make notes. She'd never heard of Cassion's Trial but she would learn about it soon enough. Caz and Flea both watched with some interest as she did. "Did you do that design?" Caz asked. Perdita glanced up and looked at where Caz was pointing. It was a doodle as far as Perdita was concerned and she nodded. "Yes." Caz grinned.

"When can you start?" Flea asked. Perdita blushed and said, softly. "Now?"

[Perdita Westcott]

16th Cylus, 721
The Scholars' Nook

erdita looked around the room where Caz and Flea led her with amazement.
It was like some wonderful cave filled with books and they were her responsibility. The young woman couldn't wait to tell Eli all about this, all about the way that she'd gone and asked, like she said she would, and they'd given her a real actual job. A real, genuinely genuine actual job.

The place was, Perdita considered as she looked around, far too disorganised for her and she needed, first and foremost to get a system here. That would be where she began, Perdita decided. Sorting the books. Then, she could make some baskets to organise them properly. The idea of buying baskets did not pass muster with her as she would be able to make bespoke items, which was far better in her mind. Amidst the chaos of this room there was an open space - a table. Perdita identified a shelf full of books and determined that she would start there. One book at a time, she began to organise things.

Each book that she looked at, Perdita considered it carefully. At first, what she was going to do was to put the books into two piles. The pile which needed restoration, she'd keep here on the table to minimise movement of them. The books which needed repairs, she would put back on the shelf. The issue was, she knew, that she didn't really have a lot of experience. She had more than most, and she'd worked in Rharne at this, but Perdita wanted to do this right. So, she got herself started. The first book she looked at, Perdita realised that she had no real idea how to do this. So, she did what she would always do. She turned to her note-book. In her work journal Perdita started to sketch.

There were two things here, she thought. Two important things. There was how big a job repairing, restoring or creating a book was. There was how valued the book was. That was an important thing, she thought, and she drew two lines, being sure to keep the lines as straight as she could, free hand. Value, from low to high, and effort, from left to right; it was important, she thought, to label these as she might not remember them. Being the visual person she was, she needed a small icon which she quickly drew in. What was value though? She really wasn't good at deciding that, but she was in here and she had to come up with something. There were seventeen books on this shelf and this was what she needed to get going with. Visually, she needed to see things, not in a list but as a visual thing. So, she represented each book by a small yellow square and, each book as she looked at it, considering the level of difficulty and the level of worth as she could see - and frankly, she knew that she wasn't really able to judge worth too much. So, she spent a moment or two just colouring in the boxes, because she needed to gather her thoughts. Should she number them, she wondered? But then, no.

The thing to do, Perdita realised, was to consider how she could categorize these seventeen books. Not, as she'd originally thought, by what they needed, but by how much work each book represented and how useful it would be to the Nook in terms of being restored or repaired. Each book, she put a small paper bookmark into, showing what her assessment of how much work it was, versus how much value it had for the Scholars' Nook. When she had done that, she considered. There must be a way, Perdita thought as she carefully drew a dotted rectangle around those squares closest to the point where "high value" vs "low value" break happened. Having done that, she could leave for today with a diagram which told her where she was, a pile of books which were categorised, and a good point to start off from on her next trial.

For now, though, she tidied everything up and - after bidding Caz and Flea good trial, she made her way home to tell Eli all the excitement of the trial.

[Doran]

Perdita:

Knowledge:
Appraisal: Consider what might bring value
Appraisal: Uniqueness adds value
Appraisal: Value includes consideration of how much work an item needs.
Drawing: Draw diagrams for visual learning
Drawing: Label lines and graphs
Drawing: Represent items by small icons

Loot: +1 job at the Scholar's Nook
Lost: -
Wealth: -
Injuries: -
Renown: 5, for getting a job at the Scholar's Nook.
Magic XP: -
Skill Review: Appropriate to level.
Points: 10

- - -

Comments: Perdita is adorable. Her love of books really shines through, and the Scholar's Nook seems the perfect place to work for her. She was nervous when she talked to Caz, but at the same time, she came well-prepared. It was a good idea to bring a few examples of her work!

I found the interaction with Caz and Flea quite entertaining. I was especially amused when Flea told his sister that they had ascertained that Perdita didn't talk much, but she was studying Art and History at the University.

That was pretty accurate though!

I also appreciate that you actually included her doodle. Did you draw it yourself?

It's pretty!

I was impressed by how thorough she was and how she immediately started to try and organize the books, and I love that you made an actual work journal for her. In my opinion, such things can add a lot to your threads.

I do not doubt that Caz and Flea will be happy with their new employee!

Enjoy your rewards!