Gosh, seeing an age of sails notification is always such a dopamine rush. AND IT'S ABOUT FITZSTEPHANIE!!!! I am absolutely ecstatic that we get to learn more about Fitz's sisters and their lives! Now excuse my delayed word vomit into your comments section.
And already you set the scene so pleasantly, more so considering the fact that we're now in the pov of a warmth loving blood elf. And if the title is anything to go buy, warmth and gold are two things elves cannot resist. Also, would like to mention again how much I love how expressive elves are through their ears. Like, I don't know what a questioningly tilted ear looks like, but I can feel it in my soul.
Really liking their first impressions of each other! Steph slightly hesitant to the unfamiliar blood elf (potentially assuming they would be snobby?), and Lhoris being a little ball of sunshine. Of course Steph being pleasantly surprised by Lhoris's practicality towards wire was great! And let's not forget Lhoris' observation of "powerful muscles." I'm sure that'll be a reoccurring phrase throughout the story.
Oh god, when will I ever stop being tired of the strong silent and bubbly cheerful dynamic. Never. Gonna be taking this trope to my deathbed and I'm not letting go. On a related note, absolutely loving how Lhoris' talkative bubbliness is able to play off so well with Steph's subtle physical cues. And it says a lot as to how well Lhoris is able to read Steph, despite having just met her.
"Lhoris was entranced. Heavy muscles rippled ... Whatever else, the work would be beautiful." Yup, she's a goner. Already ensnared by that Fitzwilliams charm. But it's also great to see that, even through her thirst, she can appreciate the work and talent at play. Oh gosh, Steph working on that piece of gold to impress Lhoris. They're both goners.
And with the time skip of 3 years, we get even more apprentices! Though I do wonder how often they were able to meet during that 3 year period. At least a solid bit if their increased familiarity is anything to go by.
"They turned and walked over to the correct door, sweeping off their coat. They threw this casually over one shoulder, before sauntering inside." Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised Lhoris is as hilariously flamboyant as a blood elf should be. Wondering where she ranks on a scale of Ithedis to Kael'thas.
Lhoris is such a little shit. I absolutely love it. But judging from Lhoris' initial reaction to the clasps, I wouldn't be surprised if those clasps legitimately would sell for more than 100 gold.
Find yourself someone who looks at you like Lhoris looks at Steph smithing beautiful pieces of gold as if she were shaping pieces of the sun itself. How the hell am I going to get through this story. I'm not even halfway through and I'm already dying from how damn adorable they are!
A highborn elf, not fluent in humanic, "these humans," seems like we got ourselves the makings of a snob here. Oh goodie, he's a name and favour chaser. lovely.
It's very telling how quickly Steph caught onto the fact that the merchant was chasing her name. I guess steph's first moment of cautiousness when first meeting Lhoris was in relation to this.
And the immediate suspicion from Steph towards Lhoris as soon as the snobby merchant is something else. Of course, Lhoris' confusion and immediate suggestion to remove the snob from the premises (non violently of course) was absolutely hilarious. The immediate relief in Steph really goes to show how often people try to curry favour through her family, and how much she values Lhoris. Of course, I am not at all surprised to see that Lhoris still has absolutely no idea of Steph's relation to the Lord Admiral. Classic Lhoris, too focused thirsting for the strong muscled lady that makes beautiful pieces of gold. I mean, I can't blame her though.
“Besides, without mastery she cannot set up on her own. Imagine - a real Fitzwilliams, working in my shop.” Oh, you messed up now. Classic snob doesn't expect the human to understand Thelassian. Gotta love how much pleasure Lhoris is getting from the schadenfreude of the situation.
God, I can't. The relief Steph has from realizing Lhoris wasn't trying to get at her family connections. The relief Lhoris has from Steph still wanting her around. Just, the whole situation in Lhoris reassuring Steph about her family through comfort and levity... It's so damn soft, and I'm melting from the warmth of it.
In before Lhoris' apprentice will have seen a Kul Tiran bar brawl before Sylvanas.
Gosh, Steph's immediacy in taking Lhoris' hands and warming them up is adorable. Followed by the immediate transition into a hug and a descriptive statement of her muscles and gold. Never change Lhoris.
The domesticity of this whole scene is just... You're making this very difficult. Extremely difficult. They're too adorable. And even Steph can't help but stare at her ears. Though I'd imagine at this point, Steph's learned to read Lhoris through her ears.
Oh god. The nose boop. Too many hard hitting tropes in this one. I'm at critical health.
Oh. My. God. Are those the same handkerchief and cylinder of gold from when they first met. I need to take a break. Oh wow, in hindsight, that moment from Steph when Lhoris asked about where she learned about engravings, is because of Lhoris. I need another break.
Oh Lhoris, too smitten to pay attention to anyone but Steph. And I'd imagine Lhoris is quite appreciate of the striking figure Steph makes in her guild uniform.
Am I reading too much into this, or did Steph deliberately switch out the ceremonial rum for whiskey because she knows elves prefer it? My rose tinted glasses are on, and I can't take them off right now, so every subtle action is being read as romantic at the moment. My apologies for any outlandish theories.
“Quel’Thalan courtship,” Lhoris stuttered, ears flickering, leading them into a turn. “I… it kind of looks like… and every elf here thinks…” Oh no Lhoris, Steph knows exactly what she's doing. From the looks of it, she's had this in mind for quite a few years now. Damn Lhoris, way too entranced by Steph to realize that Steph is just as enamored with you as much as you are with her.
Ah, I think this scene is a bit too much for me to even attempt to expand upon. This story's been one haymaker after another. Damn, a Fitzwilliams really knows how to charm an elf huh.
And now we get Steph's pov, with of course, a description of the unbearable heat and climate. Finishing off with a happy end for a charming Kul Tiran and a charmed elf, couldn't ask for more.
Though I do wonder, did Steph manage to become Guild master without stringing together more than two words?
No, YOU'RE the superb sexy human being. Thank you so much for this amazing addition to AoS. Fitz's family and her sisters have always been an aspect I would've loved to see more of, and low and behold we're getting to see more. One day, you're going to have written enough romance to change that tag to "Really sure how to write romance." Until then, gonna have to keep hurling compliments at you.
Amazing work! I am extremely glad to have had the chance to read this, and I'm looking forward to starting on your new series!
Goodness gracious; what an unexpected pleasure to read your comment. Thank you for taking the time for writing what is -by my document editor - over three pages of delicious comment. Wow, that’s a beast!
To be honest, Process of Annealing was basically where I admitted to myself that I loved this world, there were tonnes of stories and genres that could be applied to it, and self-restraint got chucked out the window. Fitz got her ending – she’s now voyaging around the world, being salty. But part of what she was doing was giving the other Fitz sisters the chance to do their own thing. After a while, what those things were started rattling around, demanding to be written down.
Sometimes you reckon something isn’t a good idea, but you do it anyway, because you really want to do it!
Stephie’s story was a prompt from someone, and it was a learning curve. Fitz spent a good part of her early story alone, battling against her environment and then embracing conflict once it came. Stephie’s story is about two people wending together – it’s about thirst, and friendship, and mutual joy. Romance, in other words!
Setting the PoV in Lhoris’ eyes was actually a gamble; I figured we would learn more about Stephie that way, but it asked the reader to emotionally commit to yet another OC in Age of Sail. (Readers who give Age of Sail a go are simply baller – simply, I cannot thank you enough.) And making the romantic lead an elf let me go back to my favourite past-time; miming out quirky ear expressions with my fingers.
Lhoris wasn’t supposed to be such a cheerful presence, by the way. They were supposed to be cool and brooding – but, er, they turned out quiet differently. It worked out great though; Stephie was talking all the way through the story, and having someone so clearly speaking back left the space for the reader to see that conversation from both sides. If both sides were kind of quiet, that would be a little weird! ((You mention this in your comment, and it chuffed me down to my socks. Sometimes you try something, and if someone else sees it you just want to fist-bump the air.)) Elves are also dramatic – sometimes we just all need a little style in our lives.
((As an aside, Lhoris’ thirst over Stephie’s muscles is, to be frank, us all.))
The structure was an interesting challenge as well. The five + one lets you play with time – skipping to certain events lets you advance themes while suggesting advancing intimacy. It could have been cool to write more, but the ins and outs of merchants in the 18th and 19th century is kind of niche. Better to show Lhoris’ kindness, Stephie’s skill and care, and their steadily deepening love across a variety of situations. Yes? ((Although now I am saying it…))
And that intimacy is very much done through metaphors of heat, and gold. Roman and I talked about it pretty often – we couldn’t work out if Stephie had been blessed by the Sun – but in the end we decided a) we didn’t know and b) it probably didn’t matter. To Lhoris, Stephie is a small piece of the Sun, and that’s kind of adorable. This story wound up almost sickeningly cute. ((At one point I wanted to burn the workshop down because… wow, that sounded exciting! But you can’t spell Romance without Roman, and she told me that might not be the best way forward there.))
Lhoris not knowing what a Fitzwilliams is was so much fun to write. Why would they? They’re a fine young elf, but not noble, or even a yeoman; they’re not particularly magic, so they wouldn’t have met Jaina, and they mostly trade in Boralus, where Our Fitz very much is not. This came up in another comment; it is likely that Lhoris wouldn’t even be that impressed the Lord Admiral is their sister-in-law. Wouldn’t catching the Guildmaster of Boralus be far more socially impressive, for a merchant?
Lhoris’s apprentice definitely participated in a bar brawl before Sylvanus. As Lhoris peacefully sleeps in that very hammock, Apprentice Elf is meeting new people and influencing them by hitting them with a chair. That apprentice has a talent for participating in the local culture, in my headcanon.
Not like Lhoris in that forge scene – how they hadn’t noticed a single damn time Stephie had flirted with them in Kul Tiran, I’ve no clue. She gave you a half an apple, Lhoris! She’s making you dinner, alone, at night, in her house! She’s been trying to make you a courting gift back for like, six damn years by this point!
You asked; hey, did Steph learn a new engraving technique for Lhoris? Yes indeed, she did, You also asked; hey, did Steph deliberately switch out the ceremonial rum for whiskey because she knows elves prefer it? Yes indeed, yes she did. You ask; how did Stephie become Guildmaster without stringing two words together in the same sentence? I… I don’t know. She must be that good.
But anyway, this comment was just – it was just the cat’s pyjamas, no author could hope to be so lucky, what a wonderful, kind thing to leave here on this story. Especially because it’s way, way different to T&S, a hard turn from anything else in this series – different in tone, characters, and the structure.
Thank you so much for reading. I can't entirely express how grateful I am that anyone else lets me borrow their time; it's deeply appreciated.
Comment on A Process for Annealing Gold
Kyranol Sun 14 Feb 2021 11:14PM UTC
Comment Actions
BarbariousBarbarian Thu 18 Feb 2021 08:29AM UTC
Comment Actions