Sew Close - Depthstriders 3

Cheering and laughter came from the darkened cave. The group of young Haedians who started the commotion diving in and out of the water. Wassail sat at the edge of the pool, allowing the water to lap at his feet.

“Hey Wassail! Come on! They’ve got more things set up outside in the main hall!” One of the younger members called to him, bounding over to him.

“Oh? Like what?” The scarlet and dark teal runner looked up at the haedian who called out for him.

The largely white with some red accents was trotting up towards him. He was panting a bit, a smile on his lips.

“There’s places for you to learn how we make the waterproof clothing you may have seen in other clans, and some tables where you make the cool coral necklaces that are around.” He chirped happily, his fur covered tail swishing side to side.

Wassail hummed a bit, in thought about what he wished to do. He didn’t take long though, nodding to the haedian with a smile.

“Sure, why not.” He laughed when the haedian let out a cheer and jumped in to the air.

Running behind the runner, the white and red haedian started to push him from behind, getting him to move along quicker. Soon though, Wassail was met with the scents of food and the sounds of excited chatter. As the light of the crystals changed to allow for more to come through, he noticed that there were tables upon tables of which haedians were sorting through different corals and fabrics. He was greeted by many different colored haedians as he walked past, most sorting the corals in to different shapes and colors.

“So, we make the other clans water proof clothing, as we do not have a need for it ourselves. And we would love to teach you how to make some yourself.” The white and red headian smiled bigger as they approached the table where they were sorting out textiles.

“That is kind of interesting. It would be fun to learn about the ways you make things.” The scarlet and dark teal runner nodded as he stepped up to the table.

One of the yellow and black haedians stepped to the side, smiling kindly at the runner who approached. He motioned to the table as though telling the other to pick what he wanted. The runner looked over the table to look at the options, trying to pick out any color.

“How about you go with something that is a deep orange, and a deep green, to go along with your coat color, and with the paints used.” The white and red haedian chattered out again, picking up some of the dark blues and purples that were on the table.

The runner nodded, pulling out different colored fabrics now and holding them with in his grasp. When he finished grabbing the fabrics he wanted, the haedian plucked the material from his paws and trotted over to the station where there were older haedians teaching the younger ones how to sew the fabrics by hand. He smiled at them as the white and red haedian sat down with his own pile of fabrics.

“So, the first thing we do is pick a pattern you want to use…” The older Haedian started off, motioning towards the pile of scrolls and lists of different types of ways to make the clothing items.

Sitting at the table, Wassail sorted through the scrolls looking at all the different ideas. He was chatting to the haedians who sat around the table, gaining tips about what to put where and what colors to completely take out of the running. He shifted through not only the fabrics, but also different corals and other add on materials. The runner picked through them with interest, the white and red haedian chiming in with his own opinions every once in a while.

“Having these to add on to your outfit is always a nice touch.” The older haedian chuckled again, taking the ones the duo picked out.

As they sorted, another haedian came over with some of their hand made needles and thread made from the waters below. They were a light teal over most of their body, which reminded Wassail of said waters too.

“For this part, we’ll help you with, but you can watch along and hopefully you will be able to use some of these techniques back on the surface.” They spoke near monotonously, though you could still hear the joy in their voice.

“Of course.” The scarlet and dark teal runner grinned, watching the light teal haedian gather his chosen supplies together.

Working with quick movements and slight of hand, the haedian worked diligently. He narrated the entire process, including where the corals and embellishments went. The whole time Wassail watched in a joyful wonder.