Closed Looking For Work

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava had been studying for this for a long while, and she felt like she was finally ready to approach the man to try and convince him to give her an internship. Ava arrived at the tattoo parlor, taking a deep breath before walking inside. "Hello? Mr. Blume?" She called out, not seeing anyone right away as she walked inside. She took the opportunity to walk around, inspecting the shop and its décor.

 

[Gabriel Blume]

If you had asked Gabriel ten years earlier, he would have said quite confidently that he never saw himself actually settling in one shop. He had been quite content in his younger years to drift from studio to studio every few years, learning from different artists around Europe and meeting new clients he never would have otherwise. Establishing his own studio had certainly never been the plan, not when there was a life to be lived unmoored by responsibility, and Gabriel liked his life like that.

Coming back to New Zealand had changed everything though. After decades of not having a home, he hadn't expected how much more at ease he would feel returning. Everything was where he wanted it, the people were familiar, it was... almost scarily comforting. So the decision to establish Keystone Ink had been an easy one, as Gabriel resettled himself in his old home. He was putting down roots for the first time in his life, and he didn't hate it. Not everything in his life was fixed - the situation with Samuel was... a complicated one, but Gabriel had never shied away from complicated when there was fun to be had. And somehow even that felt safer while settled in his home country. It was nice having established regular clients as well, and Gabriel was just spraying down the bed after one such customer when he heard his name from the front room, looking up at the sound. "Just a minute!" He called out, setting the spray and wipes down and pulling off his rubber gloves as he entered the front of the shop, giving the young woman a cheerful smile as he approached the counter. "It's Gabriel, how can I help you?"

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava straightened as the man appeared, trying to look as grown up and mature as possible. She approached him, smiling brightly and clutching at her bag. "Hi! Gabriel, my name is Avaria Lockwood," she held out her hand. "Everyone calls me Ava." She took a deep breath. "I'm here because I want to be an intern in your parlor," She tried to keep her smile as bright as she could and not appear at all nervous. "I brought a portfolio of my art, I've freehanded a few of my pieces, I could show you my own tattoos," She chattered a bit, feeling nervous. She really wanted this job, and she was afraid now that he might say no. Ava had a very bright, flowery aesthetic. She was full of color and life, and Gabriel seemed so dark and brooding and sexy- not to her, he wasn't really her type, but he had that sexy bad boy aesthetic. She worried she might be rejected for her style, her pieces were mostly vibrant and full of color.

 

[Gabriel Blume]

Gabriel started reaching for his appointment book as the woman introduced herself, though he stiffened when she revealed the reason for her visit. "Right." He said, smile slipping slightly as he took a more businesslike tone. Moving around so much meant he hadn't had many apprentices, and he had been quite picky about who he took on for a long time. "I don't take apprentices often, and I'll be upfront that it's not a fun job. You won't be paid for at least a year while you're training, and you won't be seeing skin for a long time. I'm saying this up front, because if I decide to take you on you need to know what you're getting into." Gabriel had seen enough people flake early on in apprenticeships that he wanted to be sure not to sugarcoat the reality. His brow deepened into a frown as she mentioned her own tattoos, giving her an intense look. "Are you saying you designed the tattoos, or did them? I don't take scratchers. If you're tattooing unlicensed, you're out." He said firmly, folding his arms. He had done more than enough rehab work on infected, ugly and scarred tattoos done by unlicensed "artists" over the years that he knew better than to take anyone like that into his shop.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava swallowed nervously as the man suddenly seemed less friendly, straightening automatically at the tone he took and clutching her bag a little tighter. She nodded enthusiastically, she had known an internship wouldn't be paid or glamourous, but she'd seen his work and he was a brilliant artist. She blinked at his sudden change of tone and quickly shook her head. "Oh, oh no, everything I have was done in a shop by licensed artists, I just designed everything myself, and painted them on before and during consultations to showcase what I wanted and to experiment with coloring," She explained quickly. "I asked a lot of questions and probably drove them mad, but I haven't touched any needles myself, I know tattooing before you're trained properly can be dangerous," She was quick to explain.

"I know an internship can be harsh, I know I wouldn't be paid, and I know it could be a very long while before I get near doing anything myself, but I've seen your work, you are a brilliant artist and I want to learn from you," Ava twisted the strap of her bag nervously. "I know I'm very bubbly and energetic and I know I can be a bit much, but I'm dedicated, I work hard and I'm loyal," She chattered nervously, giving him her best smile.

 

[Gabriel Blume]

The knot of tension and anger untied in Gabriel's chest as Ava explained what she had meant, nodding slowly. "Good. That's lesson one." He said firmly, allowing the young woman to continue speaking. He had to resist the urge to roll his eyes as she finished, raising an eyebrow instead. "I don't give a sh*t how bubbly or whatever you are, that has nothing to do with this job. All that matters is how hard you work. You're interviewing for a job, not a best friend." He held a hand out, face still stern. "Let's see this portfolio then." He said, still not quite sure whether he was going to bother considering taking an apprentice. He hated being the kind of strict tattoo apprenticeships required, but if he already had an apprentice maybe any other hopefuls would leave him alone.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava was hardly phased by the mans stern nature, smiling brightly. She nodded at what he was saying, and was quick to offer out her portfolio. It was widely varied. She had a few watercolor pieces she was proud of, but she'd also done black and white pieces, simplistic pieces, Disney pieces, she'd tried to make a bit of everything. She tended to prefer the watercolor tattoos and nature pieces, having included a detailed tree of life and several animal tattoos, from cutesy birds, pandas, koalas, to more realistic drawings of wolves and foxes.

 

[Gabriel Blume]

Gabriel took the offered portfolio and began to flip through, frown impassive as he studied the work. There was promise here, but not necessarily more than he would see from any other hopeful. In his career, Gabriel had learned quickly that skilled artists were a dime a dozen, and the thing that separated them from the professionals was dedication, not talent. "Alright." He said, snapping the book and handing it back to the girl. "Here's what I can offer you right now. We'll do a trial month. You won't be touching human skin, you won't even be touching the machine yet, but we'll start with the very basics. If you're still interested after the first month, we'll talk about more. Yeah?" It was a risk, he knew, but Gabriel still didn't know how he felt about this whole thing. A short test would be good for both of them, to figure out whether this was the right fit. If it wasn't he could easily cut Ava loose to find another studio or another career direction. And if she worked out, an apprentice wouldn't be the worst thing to have around.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava watched Gabriel, biting her lip. She knew that she would need more than talent to land this internship, but if she didn't have passable art then her chances of getting on dropped drastically. She took the portfolio back as he held it out, listening eagerly as he spoke. Her eyes lit up at his offer and she nodded. "Oh, absolutely!" She agreed, smiling brightly. "A month sounds fair! When should I start?" She asked, already eager to tell Vader how well this had gone.

 

[Gabriel Blume]

Gabriel felt himself relax slightly when Ava agreed to the plan, nodding slightly. "Right." He said with a loud sigh, trying to remember how he had done things with previous apprentices. "Homework first." He crossed the room to a shelf of tattoo art books he kept in the waiting room for customers to peruse. Picking out a book of traditional style designs, he turned and passed it to Ava. "Get yourself a sketchbook and start copying. I'll see you on Monday, and I want to see at least half a dozen full pages of designs out of this book. No colour, this is all about linework. A steady lining hand is the most important part of tattooing, and you need to get confident drawing a lot bolder than you usually do. Ink bleeds and fades over time, so you'll need to get used to making lines thicker than you're used to. Traditional work looks the way it does for a reason. Simple shapes, bold lines. Start there, and on Monday we'll start on health and safety stuff. Sterilising spells, stuff like that."

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava smiled brightly as Gabriel brought over a book, immediately holding it to her chest. She listened intently to everything the man said, nodding and trying to remember it. "Right! I can do that," She smiled and took a small step back. "So come back Monday then?" She asked, hugging the book tighter to her chest. She'd pick up a new sketch pad on the way home.

 

[Gabriel Blume]

Gabriel nodded in response to the girl's question, quietly hoping this was a good decision. It was just a month, he could see how things went in that time. "Yep, we open at 9 AM Monday." He said, leaning one hip on the counter. "Focus on your linework, and we'll see how things go."

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava nodded, smiling brightly. "Yes, of course, see you Monday!" She gave him a happy wave. "And thank you, again!" She turned for the door, a skip in her step as she headed out. She could do this, she knew she could. Even if she meant to fill her new sketchbook with the tattoos in the book he'd given her.