Learn My Skillz

*set before the trade trip*

Lilith was getting her brewing items ready, setting them out front of her home. The blonde dog was setting out enough supplies for two, since her pack mate, Eliza, was going to join her today. The blonde dog had offered to teach the other female how to brew, a offer that Eliza had agreed upon eagerly. Lilith smiled as she finished by placing fresh peaches near the bowls, along with some strawberries that were starting to turn bad, but were still good enough to use for wine. The female had set out bowls, rocks to smash the fruit with, and a few animal bladders that had been cleaned out and could hold the produced liquid.

Normally Lilith used animal skins, sown together to produce a liquid holding pouch-often with a stomach inside to prevent leaking. Right now though, she hadn't got her hands on skins, nor had she found anyone who could create such a item. So the stomachs would have to do for now. The blonde female sat cross legged, taking out a knife she had borrowed, and hoping that she would find her own on the trip to come. The mixed dog had told Eliza to bring her own knife if the other female could find one., since she really didn't have any of her own. Lilith looked around after everything was ready, eager to show her new friend how to brew.

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The day was clear but for once Eliza wouldn't mind spending it inside. Lilith was going to teach her about brewing, and the speckled dog could scarcely wait to begin learning. She had pinned her hair up in a bun rather than her usual ponytail, not wanting the coarse strands to dangle into the brew, and had rooted out a knife which had once belonged to the Cormier's Father.

It was a shortish blade – the handle was where the true beauty lay: though its sheen had dulled somewhat over the years, eggshell and deep blues still swirled together in intricate patterns which Eliza could have stared at for hours. The handle was a little too big for her dainty hand, but she felt good carrying a keepsake of her parents.

The knife was held gently in her free hand as she strolled towards Lilith's house, spying her packmate seated outside and offering a broad grin to the one-armed brewer. “Eyup Lilith. Brought a knife,” she greeted her in a chirpy voice before casting her gaze towards the assembled stomachs and fruit. “Smells good out here!” Liz took a few steps closer to peer at the items Lilith had gathered, making guesses in her head as to what each would be useful for, and then folding her legs neatly beneath herself to sit opposite Lilith. “I've got 'bout a million questions but I'm bettin' some'll get answered as we go along,” she confided brightly.

Lilith heard Eliza's voice first, and her tail wagged excitedly. "Hello, yup most of it is pretty easy to pick up." she pushed the items that Eliza would use closer to the other female. "I hope you don't mind using peaches, they are a new experiment for me, but I've heard good things about the result." she separated the fruit into two piles, taking an extra and splitting it in half with her knife and giving each of them a half. Once this was done she started making her part "First you want to cut the fruit into mash-able sizes." she said, showing the other female while speaking.

After cutting the fruit she placed it into the bowl closest to her. "Then we mash it up in a bowl with a rock that fits in your hand easily. You can clean the rock if you would like, but dirt won't really hurt the end result." the blonde female started mashing the fruit, holding the bowl with her stub, so the bowl was against her side. "Once you have it mashed enough you poor it into a container. I usually use skins or stomachs, but you can use a jug if you find one in decent condition." she said, then looked to the other female "If you get lost, I can show you in better detail, or describe it easier."

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Lilith greeted her with a warmly wagging tail, seeming much more upbeat than the first time the two women had spoken. That was good – sometimes, over time, Eliza seemed to sour on other Luperci, like a flavour turning from sweet to bitter, but that didn't seem to be the case with Lilith. Liz was relieved that Lilith wasted no time in getting started with showing her the implements and fruits they would be using – less time for the air to become stagnant and things to potentially get awkward.

Liz's eyes roved over the assembled fruits, her mouth watering. Although she enjoyed a good, hearty meal, she also savoured the sweeter things in life and appreciated the lightness of all sorts of fruits. Peaches, though she didn't get to taste them often, were a favourite. “Nope, no problem with peaches!” she assured the brewer, “If they're anythin' like how they are whole once they're all mashed up 'n' fermented -” For a moment Liz's grin was brightened – she had learnt the word especially for this lesson - “- the end result will be great.”

“Mashable sizes,” Eliza repeated as she got to work on cutting up the round, fragrant fruit, breathing in the sweet perfume. She was quick, but even with one arm Lilith was quicker. Liz narrowed her eyes, inspecting the chunks she had sliced up to make sure they were of a good size before laying down her knife and reaching for a bowl. “I reckon I'm up to speed,” she chirped, shooting a smile towards the sandy woman as she started to mash the peach chunks into a pulp. “So how long ya been doin' this? Did ya start 'cause you liked the tipple at the end of it or was that just a nice li'l bonus?”

[300+]

Lilith smiled at the comment of fermented peaches and nodded in agreement. "Aye it should taste rather nice." she appreciated that Eliza knew the term for the process of the juice becoming alcohol. As she mashed her part, she kept an eye on the other female's progress, ready to point out if something needed changed for the size of her cuts. So far though, the other female seemed to be doing all right on her own. The blonde female smiled as she set her bowl down, letting it sit while Eliza finished mashing her half of the fruit. The bowl was left as a way to look at what the result should be when the fruit was mashed.

Hers was almost fully liquid with a few small chunks here and there. The blonde female always left some of the fruit not fully mashed, liking it when parts of the fruit came to her mouth. It made it seem fresher to her. Her ears perked forward some at Eliza's question. "At first it was out of boredom, something to do while my crew traveled on the seas...and the time in between trades on shore." she smiled softly, a almost sad look coming to her eyes "Soon it became something I enjoyed doing, and it added a new item to our trade goods. The crew also appreciated being able to drink a brew they didn't have to pay for." she closed her eyes a moment, remembering the small but jubilant crew that had once been like family to her.

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Eliza, competitive by nature, had to channel her focus into being more accurate than speedy in the task of cutting up the fruit. It would do no good to be done in twenty seconds and have only a few large lumps of flesh to show for it – she would only have to go back and reduce the size of the pieces, and she suspected that in a process which included fruit fermenting for days, there could stand to be a small delay while she chopped. She could feel Lilith watching her but it wasn't a cloying or overbearing gaze; she was learning from the other woman, after all, and she wouldn't have minded being corrected; better that than spoil the end product, though Liz doubted Lilith would let her go so wrong that that would happen.

The freckled dog glanced over to Lilith's bowl for a better idea of what she was aiming for, and resisting going back to her own to make the chunks of peach flesh more uniform, or to mash them fully to the point where they no longer existed. Part of the appeal of alcohol was in the difference of each drink, and making things too perfect would surely diminish those differences. Her efforts had ended up a little more lumpy than Lilith's and she quirked a brow questioningly as she tilted the bowl towards herself to get a better look at what was liquid and what wasn't.

Eliza gave a slow nod of comprehension, but she hadn't missed the flash of nostalgia in the hybrid's eyes. “Sounds like ya was quite the asset. Maybe when this is done we should raise a glass to 'em,” she suggested gently with a swish of her tail. She had a vague feeling that Lilith's ties with her old crewmates had not been severed by choice. “'m sure Krokar will appreciate yer brews as well. Yer already an asset t'us with yer travellin' 'n' tradin' with the other packs.” It was a rare moment of gentle encouragement for the Cormier dog, and she cleared her throat.

Eliza held the bowl out towards Lilith for inspection. “This look right t'you?"

[300+]

Lilith could tell that Eliza was trying to copy the way she herself had done the fruit. Still she didn't scold or correct, or even give advice on the other females actions until Eliza asked if it was right. "It should look right to you, not to me. Everyone makes brew's different, that's what gives them the different tastes. So...make it how you feel is right, not by what I did." she gave the other female a smile "You have the concept down though, yes." then she nodded, they would indeed raise a toast to her fallen comrades....and her old lover, the captain of that ill fated ship.

While Eliza fixed her juice, Lilith got one of the stomachs ready and started to carefully pour the liquid inside. The blonde female had to use her teeth to keep the opening wide enough for her to pour in without making a mess of herself. By the seven seas, she missed her other arm, it made doing this so much easier! Once the liquid was inside she tied the opening closed, once again using her teeth to help with the process. With a tired sigh she set aside the filled stomach, then got up and went into her house. The female was in there for a few moments, then came back out with a jug. Inside was some of her oldest and strongest brew, and it would do nicely as a drink to toast with.

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“Ohh, gotcha!” Eliza hadn't realised until Lilith informed her of it that she was supposed to be making the brew to her own tastes – but she didn't dislike the idea of putting her own stamp on something the pack would come to drink. With her smile still in place, she looked into the bowl again and decided that she had done enough mashing. The fruit was no longer whole or chunky but in a thick pulp which Liz hoped would influence the taste favourably.

Liz's wood brown eyes flitted towards Lilith, who was making good use of her teeth in pouring her juice into a stomach. The dog's mouth opened, about to offer assistance, but she didn't want Lilith to feel patronised. She half regretted not offering to help when she heard the other woman let out a sigh, but she believed that if Lilith wanted her help she would ask for it. She didn't seem too shy to do so.

Lilith disappeared briefly and Eliza spent that time carefully pouring her own pulp into one of the empty stomachs. Though the Cormier female had been careful, the pulp dribbled down the side a little and she wiped it away with a fingertip which was soon licked clean to sample the taste. Eliza was a canine, built for digesting meat and bone, but she had a sweet tooth and was partial to the flavour of fruit.

When her new friend reappeared, Liz offered a grin. She had enjoyed learning the beginnings of the process from Lilith; the sandy dog had an unobtrusive way about her, and Liz was able to relax in her company. “Ooh,” she murmured as the fragrance of the alcohol drifted to her. “Smells good. I'll let you do the honours – after all, you know who we're toastin' better than me.”

[300+]

Lilith set the jug down, then went back in and got two wooden mugs. The blonde female set these down as well, then carefully poured the drink of the jug in. The smell alone spoke of how strong it had become, so she only filled the mugs a little over half way. Closing the jug she sat and handed Eliza one of the mugs. "Now that our wine is poured, all that is left is the fermenting process. This can take about two months." the female gave a shrug "That's all there really is to it, making beer is about the same, except for a few minor details." that and at the moment it was harder for her to do. The pouring process for beer required two hands, since it was mixed in a pot.

Lilith took up her own mug and held it up "To the crew of the Fairbreeze, may their souls find rest in whatever afterlife we go to." she chugged the drink, shivering slightly and gasping with her tongue stuck out after it was gone. This action was not because it tasted bad, but because it was stronger than she had remembered. That and she hadn't really partaken of any strong drink in a while. The blonde dog looked to the brown one across from her, wondering if it would be to strong for the other female.

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