#tldr: chapter dragged its feet when writin; but! it turned out p good!!!

[artnerd1123]

A Familiar World

Evangel ——————————————

All nobles need an introduction, and Evangel Sanyi is no exception. However, her introduction to everyone else might not go as planned.  Especially considering a certain new arrival... 

The masterpost for AFW can be found here. The chapter post for AFW can be found here.

——————————————

After literally 2 years of sitting around as a draft, I’ve managed to finish Evangel’s intro chapter!!! Doubling as Seraph’s as well, it gives you a pretty good look at exactly the kind of gal we’ll be dealin with... hope y’all enjoy :D

                                                     ————

It turns out starting a tailor’s shop is harder than you think. You need money, a place in mind, enough space, customers, enough fabric, quick sewing abilities… The list goes on and on. It was almost too much to keep track of. Almost. Evangel Sanyi was lucky enough to have most of those things checked off, though it was more luck of birth than anything else. Coming from a family of nobles gives one a nice stash of gold to start off their dreams. In any case, the eighteen year old had found and bought a two story building in a small seaside town a couple weeks ago. That took care of a shop building. She had her old fabrics, too, which handled materials. Plus, she knew how to mend almost anything. Her skill in creating a new piece; be it a dress, fashionable skirt, accessory hat, or anything in between, was unrivaled by many. That took care of skill and competence. As for getting there, she had her choice of carriage drivers willing to help out. Seems she was all ready to set up somewhere new, with everything she needed to boot. … truthfully? Evangel was just glad the place was far away from her home city. She didn’t want her parents to see her here. She knew she would struggle and mess up. She just knew it. She didn’t need their horribly critical eye over her shoulder now. Not when she was finally doing what she wanted. The town itself seemed… alright. She hadn’t communicated with too many residents, but those she’d written to had been welcoming. She really hoped she could call this new place home. … So far, though… it wasn’t looking too promising.

Evangel stood silently at the doors to her building. A trembling hand clutched one of her bags tightly. The other held a set of keys. She’d been frozen there for a good couple minutes. Glancing from metal to wood, she tried again to muster up some courage. It’s just a building, she reassured herself. Empty and ready for me to move in. It is mine, after all. I’ve just… got to get over myself. And go inside. “Hey, Miss?” The sorceress yelped at the sudden voice, dropping her keys. “O-oh-!” she squeaked, “I’m- I’m terribly sorry, um, j-just a moment-” She harped on herself as she scrambled to pick them back up. Clumsy- jumpy- stupid- there-! She grabbed them and straightened up hastily. What a mess she’s making of things. A noise from the carriage behind her drew her gaze. The driver had hopped down from the top, and was helping his companion hold a couple boxes. “It’s quite alright, Miss!” he called again, looking quietly sympathetic. Or was he amused by her scrambling? He probably thought it was funny. Of course he thought it was funny. She was a mess. … wait, was he still talking? “- an’ I jes wanted ya to know we’re ready to unload yer stuff once ya get the door open,” he said, continuing on despite her little spiral. “So whenever yer ready, we can head in.” “O-oh, I’m sorry,” Evangel winced, fidgeting. “I’m taking too long, aren’t I?” “Nono, it’s quite alright,” the driver’s friend insisted. “Yer new to the place.” The driver nodded in agreement. “‘S nothin wrong with takin some time to-” “Yes, but I’m taking ages,” Evangel broke in, whining. “I bet this would’ve gone so much faster if I hadn’t been dithering at the door…” The two in front of her exchanged a look. “... well… we… wouldn’t have a job without you, miss,” one of them pointed out. But she wasn’t paying attention. She was sulking. Can’t even open the door for the movers, can I? She moped. What a great start I’m off to here... “... didja want some help figuring out which key it-” “No! I have to do it myself,” Evangel interrupted, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “I’ve got to, or else this building might as well be yours, or belong to anyone else in this town…” “O… kay…” The two exchanged another look, shrugging at each other. Mystified, probably. Of course they were. They already hated her, she could tell. Turning back to the doors, she looked to her keys. The silver one would open the main doors. Clutching it tightly, she moved in. She needed to get it over with so these two could leave. She knew they wanted to. The doors opened with a click, and swung out with a creak. It made her pull a face. Eugh. Such sounds wouldn’t fly at all with her shop. I’ve got to get this door replaced, she sighed. Stepping out of the way, she gestured to the two men. “There. Go ahead. Sorry I took so long…” she mumbled. “‘S alright Miss,” the driver’s friend said as they passed. “We’ll have yer stuff moved in in no time!” the driver replied, smiling at her. Was he jeering or reassuring? Ugh. What did it matter. She just watched as they carried her boxes of things inside. At least they were setting them down carefully. Her things would likely be fine if they kept that up. Might as well take a look at this building of hers… Slipping in after they set down the first load, she was determined to have a look around. If this was gonna be home, she had to know what she was dealing with. Never mind that her name was on the deed to the building. Anyone could own one, right? The first floor was almost completely open. Aside from some support beams, there were only a couple counters near one side of the room, and a long one near the back. The front of the room had a big window, and the back had a couple in the wall. The front window already made Evangel happy. It was one of the main reasons she’d bought the place, after all. Glancing around, she decided that the back counter would be the checkout counter. Plenty of space to lay out your purchases, cut fabric, and take a closer look at things in need of mending. Not to mention you could see the whole rest of the floor back there. The others, perhaps, could have hats… gloves… all manner of fashionable accessories. The only thing she didn’t like in the space were the few bits of sheet-covered furniture still lying around. And the dust. One poke at a covered armchair caused a mini avalanche. She wrinkled her nose in disgust. Revaew, did nobody have maids anymore? It was a tragedy. Turning to the door, Evangel caught sight of the driver and his friend carrying in a rather large box. Ah, perfect. She could have them take care of this… situation. “Could you move these upstairs?” She asked, gesturing vaguely to the furniture. “And try not to bring up dust, would you…?” The two paused in the doorway, both straining with their load. “Er- of course, miss- we’re just a- hah- a bit busy- at the moment-” the driver’s friend panted. “Yeah, it might be a hot minute!” the driver chimed in, “we’ve got a lotta things of yours to still bring in!” “O-oh! Of course! Sorry, don’t mind me, I-I don’t notice anything,” she fretted. Stupid. She should know better than to interrupt people! She shouldn’t have said anything! Eager to get away from the two men, she headed for the stairs. The second floor was supposed to be her living space. She hoped it was all the salesperson had talked it up to be. When the sorceress reached the door at the top of the stairs, she gently nudged it open. The following ‘creak’ made her pull a face. Again with the creaky doors… Another fix to add to the list. Stepping out of the stairwell, it appeared she’d walked into the living room. She let her gaze travel around the large space. Panelled wood floors and walls, a few closed doors, and an open wall leading into another room. The main space was certainly communal. But it was empty apart from a moth eaten rug, rolled up and leaning on the far wall. Yes… okay. Her mind was already putting together a spatial makeover. There was definitely enough space to play around with the furniture downstairs. With the right accents, the dreary space might turn homely. She could work with this. … Though... she was replacing that rug. She couldn’t stand things touched by bugs. “Colors don’t even match with the place,” she murmured, huffing. A quick survey of the other remaining rooms revealed two bedrooms, a bathroom, and the kitchen. While neither of the bedrooms were connected to the bathroom- quite disappointing, really- one of them was connected to the kitchen. That had to count for something. Even if it was nowhere near as grand as her old one, at least she’d have easy access to midnight snacks. Sacrifices have been made, she sighed, running a hand down the open cabinet door. Guess I’ll just have to deal with it… Before she could get any farther into her head, a peal of uproarious laughter floated up from downstairs. She startled so badly, she nearly slammed the cabinet door off its hinges. A second later, another round of loud cackling sounded off. What in Revaew’s golden web was going on down there?! Had the driver started a party? Oh, she hoped not. She didn’t know what she’d do if they ended up making a mess instead of moving things in. I better go down there to sort it out, the sorceress thought fretfully. She headed down the stairs, footsteps heavy on the wood. What a day this was shaping up to be. The whole trip over, she was anxious as could be. Then she couldn’t even open the door. Held up the movers and everything. Then she discovered all the furniture was dusty. And of course, to top it all off, the upstairs was so dull and drab. Her bedroom wasn’t even connected to the bathroom! Yes, what a day it was. A mess of a day for a mess of a sorceress. Oh, how she wished it was over. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case. When Evangel opened the door at the bottom of the stairwell, there were at least six other people standing by the building’s double doors. Not counting the driver and his friend, of course. They all stood around, chatting amiably, a few holding containers of… something. They laughed again as she watched them. She flinched- they were even louder down here. Revaew’s web. Maybe she shouldn’t have come down. But if she went back up, would they leave? What to do, what to do… “Ah! There she is!” a voice piped up. “The gal of the hour!” Evangel squeaked, drawing back a bit. Oh no, they’d spotted her. She fidgeted nervously as the strangers all turned to look. Don’t be rude, say something! “U-um… hello…” she murmured, waving nervously. The strangers all gave her smiles, waving in return. It was, quite frankly, terrifying. “Hope ya don’t mind us comin over,” one of them said. “We wanted to see if you needed any help moving in!” “And to bring some bits of welcome! Hope you like lasagna” another chirped, holding up their container. Upon a quick glance, Evangel realized it held food. What? Who in the world gave out food for no reason? They didn’t even know her! “Th-that’s very nice,” she mumbled, fidgeting, “but you don’t need to trouble yourselves, really…” “Ohh, it’s no trouble,” hummed yet another stranger. “We love new people in this town! We want to make sure you feel comfortable here!” “Yep,” the driver chuckled, shaking his head. “This here town’ll do that for ya. Small towns’re real friendlylike.” “Has moving in been ok?” the first stranger spoke again. “I… i guess…” Evangel shrugged, heaving a sigh. “I don’t care much for all the dust in here… and upstairs- oh, it’s so drab! The bedroom and bathroom aren’t even connected, either! It’s a bit of a travesty…” The neighbors traded some looks- uncertain and befuddled- but kept smiling nonetheless. “Well, I’m sure you’ll make it better as you get comfortable here,” the first reassured her. “I should hope so,” Evangel lamented. “I just don’t know what I’ll do with myself if I don’t like it here… Where else am I supposed to go?” “I’m… not sure, miss…” “But we’ll be here to help, should you need us!” the second neighbor chimed in. “Yeah!” the third said. “No need to worry!” “Oh, but I do worry… and I don’t know what help I need… it’s horrid to think about… just absolutely dreadful...” The driver and his friend swapped a look. What was that about? What were they thinking? Before the unhappy sorceress or the mildly confused neighbors could say anything more, the pair jumped in. “I think we’ve got things for now, y’all,” the friend said. “But thanks fer stoppin by!” “We’ll take the food and leave it in the cool cabinet upstairs,” the driver added, taking the containers with small words of thanks. Evangel watched with visible bewilderment. She’d wanted them out of here, but hadn’t they wanted to talk? “Go along now! We’ll handle the rest!” the driver’s friend continued. He jokingly waved the neighbors off. Whatever confusion they had faded, and a chorus of laughing “goodbyes” and “it’s no troubles” sounded off as they walked away. The driver glanced back at Evangel. She looked at him nervously. Was that apprehension on his face? Some worry or fear that she couldn’t identify? Why was he looking at her, anyway? What was he doing? Why had she even come downstairs if it would lead to this sort of horrible situatio- “Er, miss?” Once again, Evangel jumped at his voice. “I-I- yes-?” she squeaked. He’d come across the room to her in the time her thoughts had started spinning. He was holding out the containers of food to her. She looked them up and down uncertainly. “W… wh…?” “Would you mind taking these upstairs?” he asked gently. “We’ll be done down here soon, but they may spoil without the cold cabinet…” “Oh- of- of course,” she stuttered, nervously transferring the boxes to her own hands. “S-sorry about that-” “Nono, it’s alright! Thanks! We’ll have all your things in here in a jiff!” And with that, he walked off to help his partner. Evangel was left standing there in silence. Just her and a few boxes of food. She blinked. Turned. And slowly started back up the stairs. She blew it, didn’t she? That’s exactly what all this was about. That’s why they were all exchanging looks and making her carry food upstairs, like some peasant. Revaew’s web, why did it always have to go this way? Like she’d said before, this town didn’t look too promising… Especially not after all that… 

                                                     ————

Today had been yet another of unpacking boxes and setting out clothes. It was dreadful work. Everything got all mixed around, or didn’t have a proper place. Evangel felt absolutely drained by noon. Apparently, setting up a whole shop by yourself was tiring. She was resting at her desk, working on some more designs. That always seemed to calm her. It had been working before. Unfortunately, she was having a lot of trouble with the skirt of this particular dress. “I should’ve seen that coming…” she sulked, erasing part of the skirt for the fifth time in a row, “there’s no way the lace would go with that top…” Setting her pencil down, she glanced around the room. Inspiration had to be somewhere in here. A window covered in curtains… A bare mattress and pillow… A vanity with a sheet draped over it… No, none of that would do. Evangel sighed deeply, on the verge of giving up, when her eyes landed on her box of scraps. She’d made it a habit long ago to save a bit of every material she used. Perhaps something in there could be of use… A quick shuffle through the box yielded only a handful of purple feathers and some soft white wool.  “What am I supposed to do with this?” she groaned. She put her head in her hands, exasperation mixing with tired gloom. Can’t even manage a design now, much less putting together a shop, She thought sadly. She needed help, and not just with her creative process. That’s when something occurred to her. Evangel’s head snapped up from her hands. Looking to the scrap box, the little seed of an idea started to grow. The shop couldn’t get put together with just one person working. And it would be nice to have someone around the shop with her. She’d been working with her magic for long enough. And her parents had been about her age when they made theirs... … Familiars only needed a couple pieces, right? “Looks like you’ll be of some use after all,” she whispered, gently dropping the scraps to the floor.

One careful spell later, Evangel was kneeling attentively next to the enchanted scraps. Well… one careful-ish spell. She only noticed a gold ring among the remnants once she’d begun casting. The thought of a familiar with a touch of gold tickled her fancy in just the right way, so she’d opted to keep it. From the way the materials were meshing together, she’d say she made a good choice. Feathers shifted and swirled with the wool, gold saturating the whole blob. What started shapeless slowly began morphing into something recognizable. It almost looked like a doll after a minute or two. Two short dark ears, a small snout, a featheryl, dark clawed feet on little legs… It wasn’t quite an anthropomorphic sheep, but it was reminiscent of one. Wool along its neck, shoulders and arms formed lovely pearly swatches. A little mask of it across its eyes darkened to match its ears. Little glovelike cuffs of orchid feathers formed next, small three-fingered hooves capping off its arms. The feathers along its legs smoothed and darkened into webbed, striped limbs. Its main body seemed determined to hang onto the wool’s original shade of pearly white, as did the little fluffy mop of hair on its head. Its tail was a cute little bouquet of feathers. A second later, some tiny wings fluttered their way out of its back. With purple flight feathers and white tops, they matched the forming familiar’s palette perfectly.  There was a beat where Evangel couldn’t see any gold. Her brows furrowed, confusion and concern flitting across her face. Had it just been absorbed into the little familiar? Where had it gone? A second later, she got her answer. A tiny ball of gold floated up from the top of its head, spinning itself into a little halo. A layer of it dripped down over its middle feathers, giving its wings a bit of shine. Oh, how cute! She thought fondly. She figured the rest of it must be inside. Her familiar already had a heart of gold. How poetic! All the little thing would need now was to grow a bit. Then it would be perfect! … But, to her surprise, it did no such thing. Her familiar was still small enough to fit in her arms. Comfortably, at that. With the emergence of a heart shaped nose, wide bright eyes, and a double-u shaped mouth, it really did look like a doll. After the magic faded, the sorceress found herself face to face with a tiny little hybrid. It looked up at her curiously. Wondrously. Exactly like a child. … Oh dear. When Evangel made a familiar, she wasn’t expecting it to be… well. A baby. Yet, here she was. Kneeling next to a freshly formed familiar. Her freshly formed familiar. And she was at a total loss for what to do. The familiar didn’t seem to have the same tentativeness, though. It smiled up at her, little wings flapping and tiny hooves patting at the floorboards. “Hi!!! It’s nice to meet you!!!” it chirped.  It sounds just like a bird, Evangel thought dully. A little baby bird… “What’s your name?” it chirped again, head tilted to the side. Oh- shoot, right, can’t even remember my own manners- Evangel berated herself, scrambling to form a sentence. “I-I’m- um- I’m Evangel,” she managed to squeak out. “S-sorry, I, um, I’ve never done this b-before-” The familiar giggled, patting the floor again. Such a bubbly little sound. “It’s okay!!! I’m new at this too!!!” it beamed. “... right… of… of course you are…” Evangel replied hesitantly. Honestly, she was still reeling from it being so tiny and forward and new rather than anything else. What in the world was she supposed to do with a baby? Granted, it was a very bubbly baby familiar, but still… Unbeknownst to her originator, the hybrid had busied herself with looking around the space. Her eyes practically sparkled as they took the shop in. There were so many pretty things lying among the boxes! How delightful would it be if she could explore this wondrous place! One thing in particular caught her gaze. There were some sort of papers scattered over a desk. When she squinted at them, she could just make out some pictures of… A quiet gasp drifted from the hybrid, pulling Evangel back to reality. Before the bewildered sorceress could ask what was up, her familiar’s bouncy voice sounded off again. “What’s that???” it asked eagerly, pointing at her desk. Or, rather, at the things spread over it. Evangel followed its gesture with mild confusion. “You… you mean my dress designs…?” the sorceress inquired haltingly. From the delighted squeal that followed, she guessed she was right. “You make dresses?!” the familiar squeaked. “That’s so cool!!! I bet you’re so talented!!!” “I- o-oh, why thank you!” Evangel sputtered in surprised pleasure. Her familiar liked her work? Really? “Can I see em up close???” the little one begged. “Please? I promise I’ll be gentle!!!” It was looking up at her with such excitement, she thought it might burst. And, to be honest? Evangel found herself feeling about the same. Her familiar hadn’t even been around for more than a minute, and it already wanted to see her work. It- it liked her work. And it was being so, so sweet. What a precious little thing. “You know what,” Evangel started, mentally tossing aside plans of unpacking, “of course! I’ll show you my whole line of debut outfits, if you’d like!” “Oh!!! Yes please!!!” her familiar sang, bouncing in place. Evangel smiled at the sight. Carefully, she scooped the tiny hybrid off the floor. It held onto her happily, already starting to chatter about how pretty the things in the room looked while she walked over. Maybe having a bubbly little friend around wouldn’t be so bad.

Maybe it would even make living here bearable.