fix: tweaking forty and forty-one

chapters/chapter-40.md

@@ -5,15 +5,15 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
-Linsan sat at one of the tables in the public house. An array of tools---borrowed from almost half the village---spread out around her as she worked a thin knife back and forth to create a channel for the spline. It was tedious and precise work but also something she had been doing since she was a little girl.
+Linsan sat at one of the tables in the public house. An array of tools and scraps of wood from around the village spread out around her on a tablecloth as she worked a thin knife back and forth to create a channel for the spline. It was tedious and precise work but also something she had been doing since she was a little girl.
 
 "Why not just wrap it together?" Brook asked.
 
-"Because..." Linsan said in a distracted voice, "my dad would kill me if I didn't repair this right. And that type of fix would never last with the amount of playing I'm going to do."
+"Because..." Linsan said in a distracted voice, "my dad would kill me if I didn't repair this right. And that type of fix would never last with the amount of playing I'm going to do. I need a strong core but nothing too heavy to disrupt my movements."
 
 "And this will?"
 
-Linsan let out her breath and carefully tapped the opening to dislodge the wooden slivers. "Better than wrapping. I couldn't find a good spline to use, much of the wood around here is too brittle to use and that big tree that we found was too oily and crumbled."
+Linsan let out her breath and carefully tapped the opening to dislodge the wooden slivers. "Better than wrapping. I couldn't find a good spline to use, much of the wood around here is too brittle to use and that big tree that we found was too oily and crumbled. But what I did find will work for a while, maybe a month or three. After that, I'll need to fix it properly if I didn't already ruin everything."
 
 "Then couldn't you just replace it? You can carve a new one, right?"
 
@@ -21,29 +21,29 @@ When she was a child, Linsan had asked the same question. She grinned at her fat
 
 "Half a century!?"
 
-Linsan looked up. "That's why the Sterlig family was devastated when we lost our forest. We had the right wood and we were curing generations of musical instruments when it went up in flames. People would pay us a century ahead to make the perfect instrument for their grandchildren and then..." She choked on the sad memories. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and set down the knife. "... when everything burned up, we had to pay back those commissions to avoid debt collectors. Our income and reputation were ruined forever in that night."
+Linsan looked up. "That's why the Sterlig family was devastated when we lost our forest. We had spent generations breeding the right trees for the ideal wood and we were curing generations of musical instruments when it went up in flames. People would pay us a century ahead to make the perfect instrument for their grandchildren and then..." She choked on the sad memories. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and set down the knife. "... when everything burned up, we had to pay back those commissions to avoid debt collectors. Our income and reputation were ruined forever in that night."
 
-Brook said nothing as she looked down at her tea.
+Brook said nothing as she looked down at her tea. It was in a large beer mug and Linsan could see the heavy cream and sugar swirling at the bottom.
 
-Linsan shook her head. "It will probably take us two or three centuries until our lands can grow good instrument wood again. And then another fifty before we can even start to make an instrument. After that... no one knows how long it would take before Sterlig meant something in the music world again."
+Linsan shook her head. "It will probably take us two or three centuries until our lands can grow good instrument wood again. Assuming there is enough that has the right combination of resin and strength. Then another fifty before we can even start to make an instrument. After that... no one knows how long it would take before Sterlig meant something in the music world again."
 
-"Four hundred years... what do you?"
+"Four hundred years... what do you? How do you recover from that?"
 
 "Learn as much as I can from my father and then teach my children in hopes they will pass it down before we forget everything. Have faith, I guess."
 
-She worked the slice open until it was ready for the spline.
+She worked the slice open until it was ready for the spline. Gently, she blew it clear.
 
 "I guess you'll have to find a husband then." Brook's voice was low.
 
-Even though her parents never brought it up, Linsan knew she was the last of her line. But, as she told Brook earlier, she had no interest in man or woman. She shrugged. "I don't have to birth a child to call it my own nor do I have to share blood to call someone family. I don't even need them to have my name to walk in our traditions."
+Even though her parents never brought it up, Linsan knew she was the last of her line. But as she told Brook earlier, she had no interest in man or woman. She shrugged. "I don't have to birth a child to call it my own nor do I have to share blood to call someone family. I don't even need them to have my name to walk in our traditions."
 
 She looked up and smiled. "With those rules, I have plenty of time before I need to make a choice. I will not abandon you, Brook."
 
 Brook looked up and there was a brief flash of vulnerability, and then she smiled sadly.
 
-It took another half hour before Linsan dipped the spline in glue and then slid it into place. Carefully, she worked the halves of her bow back together and tapped a pair of brass nails to seal it into place. It was an impromptu fix, but she was confident it would perform its duty to find Dukan's killers.
+It took another half hour before Linsan dipped the spline in a glue mixture Linsan had put together more with intuition than skill. Carefully knocking off a drop, she eased it into snugly into place. Carefully, she worked the halves of her bow back together before using a small hammer to tap a pair of brass nails into the wood and through the spline. It was an impromptu fix, but she was confident it would perform its duty to find Dukan's killers.
 
-She carefully wiped it down and then set it down. Her breath came in a ragged exhalation as doubt and fear bubbled up. She had never had to repair anything in the field before, nor for something so critical in her life. If she made a mistake, then she had no doubt the bow would fail her in the middle of a fight when she needed it most.
+She carefully wiped everything down and then set the bow aside. Her breath came in a ragged exhalation as doubt and fear bubbled up. She had never had to repair anything in the field before, nor for something so critical in her life. If she made a mistake, then she had no doubt the bow would fail her in the middle of a fight when she needed it most.
 
 Pushing everything down, she carefully picked it up and carried to their new room, paid for with a reasonable about of money once the crowds had left. She took a second trip for the rest of her supplies: the borrowed tools, the metal pieces of the bow, and the horse hair they had gathered from around the village.
 
@@ -53,9 +53,13 @@ Brook was standing by the front door when she came back. She had a piece of pape
 
 She held it up. "Y-You said we had to learn new songs. I had a few that I thought might work but... I don't know their names or anything."
 
-Linsan grinned as she picked them up. While Brook's handwriting was beautiful and calligraphic, she had never learned how to write or read music. She had "lots of string instruments and..." with a line showing the notes.
+Linsan grinned as she inspected it.
 
-Brook blushed and looked away. "It's okay if we use your songs."
+While Brook's handwriting was beautiful and calligraphic, she had never learned how to write or read music. She had "lots of string instruments and..." with a line showing the notes rising and falling.
+
+Combing through her mind, Linsan tried to puzzle the names from the notes.
+
+Brook blushed and looked away. "It's okay if we use only your songs. You know how---"
 
 "No, I know these."
 

chapters/chapter-41.md

@@ -7,54 +7,76 @@ summary: *teaser
 
 Linsan's ears rang from Brook's concussion blasts. Her hand dipped for a moment before she brought it up. "Almost. This time, remember it's one... two... three... clap. You want to clap just as I hit the high note."
 
-Sweat trickling down her brow, Brook signed. "It would be a lot easier if I could hear you play."
+Sweat trickling down her brow, Brook signed. "It would be a lot easier if I could hear you play. Your hand gestures are hard to track."
+
+"Want to go back to me squeezing your hand?"
+
+Brook smiled. "No, that was easy. You were doing all the work. I need to learn the songs myself, not trust you to tell me when to clap. Besides, what if we get separated?"
 
 Linsan groaned. She felt useless practicing without being able to play. She was a poor conductor when the songs were inside her head were Brook couldn't hear them. "I know, but what else can we do? Give up for---?"
 
 "No. We don't give up." Brook straightened. She had on a pair of black lace gloves that were pristine when she started. After only an hour, the material had started to break and the delicate strands of lace curled out and gave the backs of her hands a fuzzy appearance.
 
-Linsan wiped the sweat from her face and then straighten. "Okay, so the drum of _Ode to the Champion_ goes ba-da ba-da ba-da-da-dum. So, you want to have your blast---"
+Linsan wiped the sweat from her face and then straighten. "Okay, so the drum of _Ode to the Champion_ goes ba-da ba-da ba-da-da-dum. So, you want to clap---"
+
+Brook didn't move.
+
+Stopping, Linsan looked at her curiously.
 
 "Dance for me."
 
 Linsan stumbled on her words. "W-What?"
 
-Brook worried her bottom lip. "You used to dance when you played, remember?"
+Brook worried her bottom lip. "You used to dance when you played, remember? You were always twirling around on the tops of fences and on the rocks. Remember that time you were on the balcony and the teachers thought you were going to fall?"
 
-It had been a while since Linsan had done that, it felt like a different life.
+It had been a while since Linsan had done that, it felt like a different life. She grinned. "And the professor tried to tackle me and almost fell off himself?"
 
-"You were always jumping and twirling. It was... I thought it was pretty."
+"That. You were always jumping and twirling. It was... I thought you were always so graceful, as if you could dance on the head of a needle."
 
-Linsan grinned. "That's why you beat me up?"
+"That's why you beat me up?"
 
 Brook flushed. "Look, I was---"
 
-Holding up a finger to Brook's lip, Linsan grinned. "Under the bridge. You want me to dance for you."
+Holding up a finger to Brook's lip, Linsan grinned. "A storm long since past. You want me to dance for you?"
 
 Brook's cheeks colored. "Yes."
 
-Stepping back, Linsan pictured the movement. "Okay, so about about this... ba-da ba-da?" As she said the beats, she swayed her body and stepped high, striking her feet in time with the beat. A familiar rush came. "And then we ba-da-da-dum!"
+Stepping back, Linsan pictured the movement. "Okay, so about about this... ba-da ba-da?" As she said the beats, she swayed her body and stepped high, striking her feet in time with the beat. A familiar rush came. "And then we ba-da-da-dum!" She kicked up her feet, arched back, and then hopped forward.
 
 Her foot thudded on the ground. Peeking up, she saw Brook watching intently. Linsan smiled and felt a thrill of desire rushing through her. Despite being in the middle of the field, it felt as if they were once again in the bed exploring each other's bodies. "Again?"
 
 Brook nodded.
 
-Linsan closed her eyes and moved to the music, first saying the beats, but then using her voice to mimic her violin's notes."
+Linsan closed her eyes and moved to the music, first saying the beats, but then using her voice to mimic her violin's notes.
 
-At the beat came the thud but instead of slamming against Linsan, it buoyed her movement. Her footsteps were lighter, but the impact of Brook's clap made it feel like she had punched a hole in the ground. With a giggle, Linsan threw herself into a leap and continued the song, belting out the sounds that were close to what she would have played.
+At the right moment, she felt Brook's concussion beat. Instead of it throwing her forward, it buoyed Linsan's step and she lightly skipped to the next dance step.
 
-The beat came with her, thudding the ground even as it pushed her into keep moving. She could easily imagine how much easier it would be to play with Brook's steady encouragement beating a rhythm for her.
+When the next beat came, the ground shook but Linsan barely felt it as she spun and continued on, dancing and singing as her friend clapped out the rhythm to the song. With the blasts shaking the air and shaking her chest, it felt naturally to leap and bound in time with the music.
 
-When the song began to end, Linsan worked her way up to Brook so the final note brought them only inches apart. The heat of their bodies mingled together as they looked at each other.
+As the song came to an end, Linsan circled back around until her final step brought her face-to-face with Brook. She stopped, inches away, panting lightly as she looked into her friend's brown eyes.
 
-Brook kissed her, a light peck on the lips. It was hesitant
+Brook froze, one hand on each side of Linsan. Surprise and shock painted across her face but it quickly coalesced into a smile. She leaned forward and kissed Linsan on the lips. It was a light and fleeting touch, a promise of something intimate later.
 
-Linsan returned the gesture, but firmly pressing their heated bodies together before breaking apart. "Again?"
+Without thinking beyond the moment, Linsan stepped forward until their bodies pressed together. She kissed her friend back with more passion, parting her lips as she lost herself briefly in the embrace.
 
-With her cheeks colored, Brook nodded. "One more time."
+Brook's hands rested against Linsan's hips, holding her close.
 
-"The song or the kiss?"
+Linsan reached down as she broke the kiss. Resting her hands on Brook's, she tightened her grip and tugged. "Come on, dance with me."
 
-The color darkened. "I want to say kiss... but the song first."
+"W-What?" Brook's eyes fluttered. "N-No, I can't dance."
 
-Linsan kissed her anyways before breaking apart. "Then on one... two... three... go!" She danced away with the first boom of Brook's clap.
+Tugging Brook forward, Linsan shook her head. With every step, she swayed her hips. "Ba-da."
+
+"Stop," Brook laughed.
+
+"Come on, feel the beat. Besides just clapping along. Ba-da," Linsan smirked as she rocked her hips the other way.
+
+Brook started to move with her, a hesitant smile on her lips. Then she seemed to relax and began to match Linsan's movements.
+
+"Come on, back and forth, just like last night." Linsan sounded out the beats. "Ba-da-da---"
+
+Just as she reached the last beat, Linsan released Brook to separate themselves so both of them could clap their hands.
+
+In close quarters, Brook's gentle clap beat against them with a dull thud. It shook Linsan in her chest and along her bones.
+
+"Ba-da ba-da..." Linsan pulled Brook into her dance until they were in step, pounding together along the grass. Their bodies split apart to the music, weaving along the song as the two danced alone in the field.