Do not mock the humble survey

[poll_the_stars]

Avet... has found herself annoyed. She has only one form. This isn't the problem, but this is what led to her noticing the problem. There is no way to preview what a dragon will look like. There are species books of birds and bugs and animals - but some of them are sub-par on noting where the dragon's colors go, and miscellaneous gods that she doesn't worship help you if you want to see what your color will look like on the form.

She is going to solve this problem. By taking some surveys. As in, grab photo paper, gather up a list of lines to go visit, and then knock on some doors and ask some questions and create a book series that organizes all possible forms, all known forms, what known lines look like in the forms - that sort of thing.

She starts with blue groups, because blue groups have the most available forms - she's gotten all of the big lines (well, all of the big lines that gave her the time of day) and is on the smaller ones. The ones with only one or two people. Or, in some cases, none.

This particular one's easier than some others; she doesn't need to fly to another country. It's Esmaar. She flies to the address of one 'Avar,' no line name. Apparently he had one and had some kind of explosive spat about it and gave it up. Not that it's her business. He's just another person for her survey.

She knocks on his door.

Comments

[thisvorlunatic]

He takes her hand and nods.

[poll_the_stars]

Once the door is closed, teleport!

And then they are at Avet's apartment. She didn't bother dropping them outside and then opening the door, and instead they are in her living room. It's - slightly a mess, there are papers everywhere, but the apartment itself is nice.

As promised, there are three completed books of various forms. They are laid out in a very sane and rational manner, organized by form type, then color group. It's very orderly.

[thisvorlunatic]

"Very tidy. I would've gone nuts over this when I was seventy or so and doing intensive research to pick out my next bunch of forms."

[poll_the_stars]

"Thank you! Pity I can't go back in time and hand it to you then. But someone else can use it now. I'll likely have to make more editions later, keep it updated, but that won't be as hard as..." She waves a hand at the books. "This."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Yeah. Trivial by comparison, I'm sure. Well, I'm impressed."

[poll_the_stars]

"Thank you. I'm very proud of myself, and sort of tempted to sleep for a week."

[thisvorlunatic]

"I know the feeling."

[poll_the_stars]

"The best sleep is when you are insufferably smug about a job well done."

[thisvorlunatic]

Giggle.

[poll_the_stars]

"So!" says Avet, lightly. "You are impressed, but don't shy away from critiquing them just because they're well organized, I am not entirely happy with them but couldn't think of a better solution to some of the problems I encountered."

[thisvorlunatic]

"All right, let's hear it," he says. "What's giving you trouble? Or do you want me to read them all first and form my own unprompted opinions?"

[poll_the_stars]

"Second thing! See if you can find the things that bothered me. Unless of course you don't want to."

[thisvorlunatic]

"No, no, I'll do it the long way around."

He sits down with the books and begins reading.

[poll_the_stars]

While he is reading, the doorbell rings.

Avet makes a confused face, then goes to answer it.

[alicornucopia]

It is Avet's parunia great-grand-half-niece, Litet, with a bag containing the Nightchef slow cooker she borrowed in one hand and a jar of applesauce in the other. "Hi, Avet!"

[poll_the_stars]

Avet smiles at Litet. "Hi, Litet. Is that bribery I see? Do you want your oven fixed?"

She is teasing.

[alicornucopia]

"My oven's fine, Avet," laughs Litet. "This is not bribery. It's applesauce! There's so much room in this thing I made more than I needed. Here." Avet is offered applesauce.

[poll_the_stars]

"Ooo, thank you." Avet takes the offered applesauce. "Though, I don't know if I have enough room in my cold cabinet for this," she muses. "Maybe if I rearrange things in a creative fashion..."

[alicornucopia]

"Oh, I'll help, I'm sure you were in the middle of something," says Litet, sidling past her.

[poll_the_stars]

"I," attempts Avet, but Litet is already past her and Avet has no idea how to gently extract her and keep her away from Mial.

She could possibly ungently extract her, but - what in the world would she say? 'No go away there is a shren here right now'? 'I worry that you will upset my friend if you are at all exposed to him'? Then she'll ask, and then - it might explode. Litet's always been a nice relative, surely it wouldn't explode?

"Not, um, really, I have a friend over, I can take care of it," she tries, for lack of a better idea.

[alicornucopia]

"I dropped by unannounced, don't mind me, pay attention to your friend," says Litet, waving and continuing into the house.

[poll_the_stars]

Oh, she really hopes this doesn't explode.

"He's checking over my uh, book, it's finished and he's reading it so I really don't have anything better to do until he's done, definitely time to rearrange my cold closet, don't worry about it."

.... Wait, that might have been the wrong thing to say, what if Litet wants to see it, that would put her in the same room as Mial.

[alicornucopia]

"Tell me all about your book!" invites Litet. "I didn't know you'd finished it."

[poll_the_stars]

"I sort of finished them. Earlier today, actually. They're together and organized and readable instead of a giant mess all over my living room, but they're not finalized or ready for copies to be distributed."

Yes Litet keep talking to her please stay away from Mial.

[alicornucopia]

"...Them?"