There were various murmurs throughout the room. He thought he’d answered that well enough. The Guild Master cleared his throat. “Antonius Whitesnake.”
Vitus braced himself for this one. Whitesnake had a reputation for nastiness. Now he looked for him in the room. “Master Whitesnake.” The man was sitting next to his current apprentice, Daniel Rollings, and Rollings was clearly dancing attendance, making his attention floridly visible.
“You did a piece for the most recent Council Challenge. Can you share your approach to that?”
“Sir.” Vitus pulled his hands behind his back. “I follow - as I have been trained to, by Magistra Hall - the customs of this Guild, allowing privacy to clients. I am glad to discuss the process I followed, but not to describe the details of the piece. Is that acceptable?”
Oh, yes, that had been meant as a trick question. He got a nod from Whitesnake. Vitus went into the overview of the process, the questions he had asked, how he had presented multiple stones. Once Carrington had selected the peridot, Vitus laid out how he’d thought through how to do the talismanic work. None of the details of what it was for. He didn’t mention the specific stone, nothing that would indicate the focus.
He thought Whitesnake seemed a bit displeased, and that was all right then. The Guild Master looked around. “Any other questions? Yes, Florent Montague.”
Vitus had not expected that. Florent Montague was the father of Laudine, Dagobert Fortier’s wife. He didn’t know the man well. But of course he’d been at the funeral, and he suspected also at whatever Thessaly had been at yesterday, a gathering of the family of some kind. “Magister Montague.”
“I suspect you might enjoy this one a bit more. That piece you did with the carnelian and the lion’s head. Could you go into the details of the carving? I had a chance to see the piece in person last week. You have not, I think, spoken as much to the artistic impression it makes as might be useful here.”
It was, in fact, something of a gift. It meant Vitus had a chance to talk about that aspect, and how he’d designed it to fit with the carnelian, but also with the goals for the talisman. He added that he had some larger pieces of amber he was intending to do similar work with. That was an easier material to carve in some ways. But he’d also laid in several other varieties of chalcedony and of clear quartz. He finished up, “I am still learning my skills as an artist in this form. But I do like the idea of creating pieces that speak to the beauty of the stone beyond a pendant, ring, brooch, or some other jewellery item on a smaller scale. Much as I also enjoy those.”
There was a silence, then there were apparently no further questions. Vitus was permitted to sit, as the tallies for hismembership went around. These were small stones, charmed in the hand to black or white, one of the simplest methods of voting, then placed in a deep opaque jar.
Vitus waited while that was circulated, then the Guild Master and two others withdrew to count them, coming back almost immediately. The Guild Master came up on the dais, and Vitus stood.
The words, when they came, almost felt anti-climactic. He’d been working for this for so long, and yet this actual step felt tiny. But he was pleased - and absolutely relieved - when the Guild Master began. “Vitus Deschamps, we are delighted to welcome you to our company, as a full member of the guild with all the rights, privileges, and obligations that apply. We know you have been taught well, as you will teach in due course when you take your own apprentices. We recognise and thank Niobe Hall for her time and effort, and we look forward to seeing what you will make in the months and years to come.” Then he smiled, offering the proper medallion, slipping it over Vitus’s head. “You are expected to have a fitting for the robes promptly, they will be needed by solstice. And no getting out of the mummer’s play in the spring, of course.” Those were two of the more socially obvious obligations.
“Thank you, Guild Master. And of course, I will make arrangements for both.” He bowed his head, and the applause started up. After a minute, he was released to join Niobe and the others at their table, bringing his notes and papers with him.
The conversation was most agreeable. People did not linger too much on Vitus’s presentation, other than a comment about one thing or another. Instead, they settled into a rather fascinating conversation about variations based on the source of a stone, and the idea of doing another round of deliberate testing about that. Apparently there had been some done thirty or forty years ago, but of course there were newer mines forsome minerals now, or the quality had shifted. Vitus got in a comment about working a little with some of the small Burma rubies, and his experiences.
It wasn’t until the end of the meeting - there were, of course, more discussions after the meal - that people drifted off. Some were obviously going to smaller gatherings elsewhere. Vitus had expected to walk Niobe home for a celebratory drink and to figure out where to go with his family on Sunday, when she’d be joining them. As they were finishing talking to a few people, Vitus turned to find Florent Montague standing next to him. “A word in slightly more private, perhaps?” Florent nodded at a corner, currently clear of people.
“Of course, sir.” Once they had moved there, Vitus waited, not sure what the man wanted.
“I had an opportunity to talk a little with my daughter yesterday. Sigbert, her nephew by marriage, was named Heir to his father.” That part was not entirely unexpected, but it made Vitus wonder if that was what Thessaly had attended, or what she knew of it. Florent went on. “She mentioned that she and Dagobert were considering asking you to do some work for them. I didn’t want you to feel awkward about it.”
That was a kindness, because Vitus certainly did not to draw the attention of anyone in that family in a dangerous way. “Given your own expertise, sir, I am surprised to be considered.” Florent Montague was certainly competent. “I’ve enjoyed the conversations with Laudine about her own knowledge, actually, though she has mentioned her sister more than you directly.”
“Ha.” That seemed to amuse Florent. “In this case, I got the impression that it is not a problem she wished to bring to her father, that someone a little more distant from the situation might have a more useful perspective. Should it make sense, I am certainly glad to consult, but you bring a fresh line of thought to it. More creative than I usually run to, especiallyaround materia choices. I think that’s a fine thing. If we want the art of making talismans to improve, it is certainly necessary. Perhaps sometime, in a fortnight or two, say, we might have a drink or supper and talk more?”
That was a generous gesture, and the sort that could lead to referrals from Florent, for pieces he didn’t want to take on. Naturally, Vitus was going to say yes. “I’d be delighted, sir. And for your daughter and her husband to join us, if you think they’d enjoy it.”
“We will see.” Florent looked pleased. “I’ll send a note around. Where’s the best place to send it?”
“Oh, yes.” Vitus pulled out his calling card case and offered a card. “Those are my consulting rooms and workshop.”
“Excellent. I’ll look forward to it, absolutely. And now I see Niobe’s waiting for you, I won’t keep you. Congratulations, young man.”
Vitus let Florent go first, and then rejoined Niobe. Once they’d made their own farewells and were out on the street, he offered her his arm. “Are you pleased?”
“Absolutely, and especially in how you handled yourself. I had several other inquiries about whether you’d be interested in private meetings. There will be notes in the coming days. Do come and discuss. I have a few ideas on several of the ones I expect you’ll get.”
Vitus smiled. “You’re going to keep looking out for me, then.”
“Oh, absolutely.” Niobe snorted. “I intend to make sure we keep having tea regularly. Well, tea and gem cutting. Now, when we get back, tell me how that piece you were working on is going.” Of course, they wouldn’t discuss details on the street for all sorts of reasons. Vitus chuckled and instead asked her a few questions as they walked about what other gossip she’d heard recently.
4
OCTOBER 15TH AT BRYN GLAS
The next afternoon, Vitus came through the portal at Bryn Glas to find Thessaly waiting for him. She was still wearing the brightest clothes she could find, aggressively refusing to be in mourning for Childeric Fortier when at home. These suited her better than the last set. They were a vibrant medium blue with a robe over, open down the front with draping sleeves, of a blue-green silk embroidered with twists of waves.
