Final Fantasy XIV

Summary

After 123 visits to a mender, the adventurer decides it's time she learned to repair her gear herself.

Adventuring puts strain - on your body, your mind, but mostly, on your gear.

After the 123rd visit to the mender - she’d kept count in her journal - she had a thought: what if I learned to repair my gear myself?

As an archer—and, later, a bard–she’d been attired in soft leathers and smooth cloth. So starting with either Leatherworker or Weaver sounded promising.

The Weaver’s Guild was in Ul’dah, which she had an affinity for. But Leatherworker was right in Gridania, not terribly far from the Archer’s Guild to which she still visited from time to time. Leatherworker it was, then.

She marched herself to the Leatherworker’s Guild and made her inquiries about joining. Randall, who staffed the guild’s front desk, told her to seek out the guildmaster, Geva, and ask for permission.

Right, I can do this. It wasn’t that different from any old quest, really—or was it? She’d never before initiated a quest herself, but rather had been asked by others to help with their woes. Would she find satisfaction in this, in doing something for herself?

Well, she had come this far now. Might as well see it through. Right?

There, that woman speaking authoritatively - that must be Geva. She plastered her face with her practiced, easygoing smile, walked up to Geva, and introduced herself.

Geva was not at all like one of her usual quest givers. Where the others had been grateful for her attention, Geva treated her with impatience and brusque words.

She was just beginning to think this was a mistake, when Geva went on to say: “Once you join, there is no turning back. If you dishonor us, I shall flay you myself and make a chocobo saddle from your hide.”

A familiar tendril of anticipation curled in her body. The words were threatening, yes, but also held promise—the promise of the praise she so fiercely sought. She found herself instantly wanting to please this woman. And so she said the vow, and joined the guild.

Her first task was to make animal leather. How hard could it be? She set herself to the task, studying the hide carefully before making the first cuts. After it was tanned and finished, she presented it to Geva, expecting to be praised for her efforts.

What she got, though, was a rollercoaster of emotions.

“Aye, this is indeed leather…”, Geva began, and the anticipation in her belly quickened. But then Geva went on to say: “…after a fashion. Your work is amateurish in the extreme. The leather is unevenly tanned and practically unusable.”

Her heart plummeted. This was a reaction she hadn’t expected at all—quest givers usually heaped her with praise and rewards. Her face began to burn, and she was about to turn on her heel and leave when Geva spoke again.

“But you show promise. Well, about as much promise as the leather you haphazardly crafted. Still, it is apparent that you paid due respect to the life from which it came. Had you performed any worse, I’d have cast you out without a second thought. But you didn’t, so I won’t. Approach each task in earnest as you did today, and I’ll continue to advise you.”

Well. Crumbs they were, but she would take the crumbs. And next time? Next time she’d get more than crumbs. She would prove herself worthy of praise.

Notes

Written for FFXIVwrite2026 extra credit day! I was a little disappointed there was no prompt today--I've really come to enjoy these writing challenges--so I asked my friends to give me a prompt. One of them did--'repair'. This fic was written for that prompt.