Mirashi’kaa rarely got visitors; she really got customers. It was pretty rare that any strong, smelly Vikings actually wanted her perfumes. It seemed they all preferred to roll in dead things, or just bathe in the ocean, then wear anything delicate and well balanced. She had all but given up hope.Until early one morning, when the thralls were starting to stir to gather food for their masters, a rather chunky looking lioness appeared at her den.
“Hello,” Mirashi said with a great deal of reluctance, as socialising was not her strong suit. She really hated people. Why did they join a pride again? Oh yeah, because Liran and Vittorio have over inflated egos and wanted to beat people up. She rolled her eyes. Why did she stay with them? She refused to dwell on that thought for too long, ignoring the fact that ‘her’ den was actually ‘their’ den and that he was simply out on a viking at that moment.
Ahem, moving on.
“I would like to purchase a perfume from you,” the lioness before her said, her eyes blazing with a determination that made Mirashi uncomfortable.
“What type of perfume?” She asked, stepping side to invite the lioness into the den. Along the walls were little gourds, hollowed out and perfectly arranged. All had caps, made from the gourds, that stopped the scent from being too potent but could be opened at a moment’s notice to sample the scents.
“The strongest one you have,” the lioness insisted. “The most feminine smelling.”
Mirashi gave her a sideways look, but didn’t question. It wasn’t her place to question her customers; however few they were. It wasn’t like her craft was in a high demand, so she was rather cheerful at having a sale. Ha, take that Vittorio. She could provide for herself!
“I believe this is the strongest smelling feminine design I have,” Mirashi mused as she took the lid off one of the gourds, nudging it over to her new customer for her to inhale. “I have stronger scents but they range in the more masculine.” She waited to see how the female reacted to it.
The lioness leant down and inhaled deeply the scent, though it appeared to make her eyes water from the strength of the aroma. She coughed a little, because really that was just pure smell attacking her face. The correct way to inhale a perfume was at a distance, getting only the barest hints of the aromas that would tease your noise. Mirashi huffed. These people were savages.
“That smells fine,” the lioness said simply.
Fine? Her perfumes were not ‘fine’, they were elegant masterpieces. They were pure poetry in scent! Mirashi seethed inwardly but despite her usually attitude, she hid it from her customer. She wanted to prove to Vittorio her perfumes were not a waste of time, and she needed a sale. She needed to show him.
“Are you sure you don’t want to look at any others?” She insisted through gritted teeth. Maybe that perfume simply wasn’t to her taste. That’s why she was so vulgar as to call it ‘fine’.
“No, that one will be adequate,” the lioness responded with a flippant wave of her paw. Mirashi’s eyes narrowed further but she bit her tongue.
“How much is it?” Her customer asked, eying the gourd, “and for how much?”
“How much of the perfume do you want?”
“All of it.”
Mirashi choked. All of it? What was this female intending to do, bathe in it? Ugh. Savages. Every last one of them. “That is quite a lot of perfume,” she explained with a haughty look, her attitude slipping through. “That will be quite expensive.” Also because of her savage attitude, Mirashi was not above boosting the price up for this fool.
“How much is it?” The lioness repeated, her own attitude slipping through and her eyes began to narrow. The lioness did not look strong, so she was not a reaver, but she was plump enough to be a spoilt Freeborn, so that was what Mirashi simply assumed she was.
“At least three antelopes,” Mirashi announced with an air of finality. It was way more expensive than normal but this female could afford it, she was sure. She was probably eating more than that in a day, thanks to whatever thralls she had employed to hunt for her.
The lioness looked surprised and she scowled. “That is too expensive. Two antelopes at max, that’s all that perfume is worth.”
Mirashi bristled. “Well then you can find someone else who will supply you with such fine perfumes, because I refuse to drop the price any lower than three antelopes. Good luck finding someone else who produces perfumes in this savage pride!” She snapped, placing the lid back on the gourd with a loud thud.
The lioness huffed. “Fine! Three antelopes! They may not all come at once, but I can assure you they will come.”
“Just send your thralls to hunt them,” Mirashi said snidely.
The lioness snorted. “I am a thrall,” she snapped back. “I am the only thrall my master has, so I will have to hunt for him first and you second. I will get them to you within a week.”
“You’re a thrall?” Mirashi asked, raising a brow and looking sceptical. “You’re too fat to be a thrall.”
The lioness before her looked furious and her eyes were narrowed until they were barely visible. “If I didn’t need this perfume, I wouldn’t stand for that,” she hissed. “I will bring you your antelopes.” The lioness turned to leave but Mirashi, reluctant as she was, called her back.
“What is your name, so I can ask for you if you don’t deliver?” She demanded.
The thrall glanced back and huffed. “I will deliver. I keep my word. I may be a thrall but I still have my honour.” She looked irritated. “But my name is Kisukari. I am the thrall of Captain Bousvor. On my honour, I will return with your antelopes.” Kisukari looked determined, the fire that blazed in her eyes earlier burning stronger and once again making Mirashi uncomfortable.
They nodded to each other before Kisukari stalked off.
Mirashi, though annoyed at the various insults to her craft during the encounter, beamed. Ha! She made a sale! Now all she needed was the fat thrall to come back with her antelopes and then she could rub her success in Vittorio’s face.
Things were finally coming out right.
WC: 1080
