[Red Diamond Tavern] Drunken Tales (Larina)

[Berus]

12th of Spring, AV 511

Berus dropped his lyre suddenly as someone nearby roared drunkenly at him, desperation evident in their voice as they angrily pleaded for him to cease the screeching of his vile instrument. It thudded to the floor as he apologetically raised his hands and waved them toward the drunken man, trying to show that he was no longer playing his instrument. His face flushed deep red with embarrassment as many onlookers sent looks of appreciation to the drunk man who'd finally had enough.

The drunkard, now a town hero, found that when he stalked to the bar he was greeted by several patrons who were simply too polite to tell the young man to stop and were more than eager to gift him with enough free drinks to last him the entire night. Berus nearly laughed aloud when he saw this as his humor managed to assuage his embarrassment. Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to practice barely-learned songs in public, he reflected.

Berus reached down and retrieved his lyre, gingerly placing it on the table in front of him and searching to see if it had been scratched any on its horrible fall to the floor. He breathed a sigh of relief when he discovered that the fall had not even affected the stalwart, if sometimes malicious, instrument. Though he was very messy and often forgetful, he treated his precious lyre with the respect that an instrument with the ability to produce beautiful sounds deserved.

Berus glanced up suddenly as he heard heavy, uncoordinated footsteps wandering closer to him. His face was distorted by confusion as he saw that it was the drunk who had spoken up earlier that was stalking nearer to him with an expression of drunken amusement on his face. Berus opened his mouth to inquire as to why the drunk was walking toward his table; he had stopped playing his musical after all!

The drunk winked at him, belched loudly, and tossed a few small mizas on the table. "Thanns for the night of free drinns," the man explained, grinning broadly. The man whirled about and waddled back to the bar, wholly satisfied now that he had added insult to insult.

Berus laughed loudly and pushed the coins forward, calling for the bartender. He would drink well tonight. If only he had some company!

[Larina]

OOCDang Berus, you write so fast! The Red Diamond Tavern. Normally, Larina would not be found in any place where drunkenness lapsed so quickly into acts of sheer stupidity. It reminded her too much of the taunting crowds in the arena. In her mind, alcohol was so closely linked with violence that the two were almost synonymous. And, in all fairness, weren’t bars infamous for being scenes of hostility? Naturally, the Kelvic was on edge as she slunk into the bar, her bright golden eyes almost orb-like in how large they were. Her tense little frame stood in the doorway for a minute, completely unsure of whether or not this was a good idea. All of her instincts to her to bolt back outside into the night snow, because she knew that if stuck around, some drunk was sure to punch her in the eye. But then, Larina threw caution into the wind! She took two more steps directly into the heart of darkness - the Red Diamond Tavern! Why this unusual boldness? Well, today was a special day…It was her birthday. It’s not every day that you turn four, and by gum she was going to celebrate the occasion! Shaking aside all of her insecurities, Larina strode up to the bar and slammed both of her hands down on the wood slab. Her eyes with alight with passion as she pointed up at the barkeep and bellowed, “YOU!” The entire bar froze with her astounding declaration. Never before had they witnessed sure raw assertion! Such overwhelming fervor! The barkeep quailed in his boots as the sheer force of Larina’s piercing golden eyes hit him with full force. He opened his mouth to speak, but not a sound could be uttered as he was completely entranced at her sheer presence. “Get me a drink. It is my birthday.” The bar patrons erupted into a joyous outpouring of praise! Her birthday! Truly this was a day of festivities and parades! Wine was poured, laughs were had, friendships were made. Larina drank deeply into the night, surrounded by a bar full of people who loved her. And being the sultry seductress that she naturally was, Larina even wooed the most singularly handsome Icewatch Kelvic in the entire town. He vowed to make her him bondmate, letting nothing ever come between them and ended the evening by scooping Larina up in his arms and carrying her off to his hold. And it was the best birthday ever, concluded Larina. She gave an inward sigh and thought, …Right. She was still standing two steps into the doorway and even swaying a little as the true view of the room came back to her. So much for throwing caution into the wind. Maybe was a good time to bow out gracefully. But as she turned to leave, the door to the tavern suddenly opened, and two large men pushed through the warm den, shoving Larina further into the room. Gruffly, one of the patrons muttered something about her being in the way, and Larina moved to the side of the room, unable to back out now. A few tables down, Larina watched as a huge, obviously intoxicated, man stood up and blundered over to the place where a little Vantha boy sat. Her eyes flashed nervously; that man could easily pummel in the face of the boy without doing too much damage to his knuckles. She wouldn’t let that happen. Seconds before morphing into her wolf form, Larina saw the man throw a couple of coins on the boy’s table and bumble back to his seat. She tilted her head to one side. What exactly was that about? The young Vantha’s eyes turned, what Larina thought, was a rather happy shade of orange. She stared at him, rather impolitely, as he laughed away the drunkenness of the oafish man. What was that, back in the wind? Caution? The boy’s amiable nature had beaten back her anxieties; he was surely no real threat to her…Unless maybe he tried to gouge out her eyes. She briefly considered all the ways to debilitate him before he could do so. But, no no. Larina wouldn’t let that happen. She genuinely wanted to speak with this boy, yet doing so would require some kind of witty introduction or...icebreaker. Oh! That was a good one! Larina crept over to the boy’s table, trying to hold back her excitement at having a good opening line. She leaned forward a little and said, “Because it is always so cold outside, conversations need an icebreaker to begin!” …Crap.

[Berus]

Berus noticed out of the corner of his eyes that someone was staring at him rather strangely. The thought flashed through his mind that it was rather odd, so he decided to continue what he was doing and observe with his peripheral vision so that the situation wouldn’t get odd. He looked down at the coins, continuing his chuckle, as he awaited the bartender, secretly taking a good look at the staring woman. She appeared to be much taller than he but also a very lightweight person, oddly possessing a strange slump. The woman certainly didn’t look old and wasn’t unappealing to the eye, but a second glance at her golden eyes confirmed that they weren’t the constantly flashing, changing aurora eyes of the Vantha.

A Kelvic, probably, he surmised, though he couldn’t quite put a name to the face nor even determine what sort of animal she was. In fact, the only factor that discouraged the assumption she was an average human traveler were the striking, golden eyes. She continued to stare for a bit longer, looking as if she was thinking deeply, as Berus continued to estimate who she was. Her clothing was loose fitting and average, but she wore a strange leather necklace in the shape of a sailor’s knot. Curious.

Berus inwardly sighed, giving up on trying to determine more of her character. Just at that moment, however, she stepped forward and spoke to him in a voice that reflected happiness, though her words were a bit eccentric. Berus grinned broadly at the joke, however, and smiled even more broadly at the expression that followed it. Luckily enough, the little bard enjoyed humor in all forms, including little jokes, and certainly wasn’t going to put someone down!

“Indeed, but you must be careful! Once you break the ice on a particular conversation, you may find yourself stuck in the frozen waters!” he replied, winking boyishly. He gestured the chair, using his own joke to indicate that she was now trapped into being his company for the moment. His eyes sparkled between green and other various colors, realizing that luck had delivered him a funny and beautiful woman to keep him company.

Now all he had to do was not mess it up!

[Larina]

For a few anxious moments, Larina inwardly berated herself for making what was possibly the worst pun she ever had the displeasure of hearing. It sounded so much cooler in her head. …Cooler! Ha, she would have to save that one for later! It was a gem. However, when she plucked up the nerve to look back at the boy, she realized that his face was neither twisted in displeasure nor shaking in shame. As a matter of fact, he was openly smiling at her. And, if her acute senses of observation were correct, it wasn’t a fake smile either. It’s quite possible that the little fellow had been drinking the night away and this grin on his face was in large part due to brandy. Or, even more likely, that she had mistranslated a word or two in her Vani and the meaning of the sentence was botched entirely, but Larina was going to take a win where she could find it. What was more, the Vantha had answered her. And although her Vani could use a good tune up, Larina picked out enough of his sentence to understand that he was joking back. Right now, in this very tavern, Larina was officially engaged in witty banter. Lady Ilahi would be so proud! Surely, the birthday gods must be smiling down at her, rewarding her for having her courage to step outside her comfort zone. Or, maybe it was the tavern gods. Just exactly how many deities were there again? She could never keep track, but these thoughts could be saved for later. The Kelvic happily slid into a chair which the Vantha had thoughtfully pointed out for her. What a kindness! Otherwise she might have sat in the wrong one! She also noticed that the eyes of her company were changing yet again. Larina didn’t know what each color indicated, though they were all cheerfully bright, and she vowed that in her time Avanthal she would figure their secret meanings so that she could read any Vantha like a mood ring. But she staring would surely put him off, so she instead turned her gaze to the table. A curious looking tool sat next to the boy, the likes of which she had never encountered. She guessed that it was an instrument of sorts, but hadn’t the fainted idea of what it would sound like. Did people just carry these sorts of things around like he did? Larina gazed back up her company and asked in her best Vani, “Do you play? I have never seen this from before.” She grinned and suddenly thought that he might actually be the maker of the instrument, and so added as an afterthought, “It’s very pretty. The curves are soft like…” Larina desperately tried to think of a flattering word that she might actually know but could only think of “like a woman.” And there was no way she would make a second faux pas so close to her first. So instead she finished with, “…like curves should be.” She totally nailed it.

[Berus]

Berus grinned as she admired his little lyre, though his critical eyes quickly spotted a mall dent in the otherwise smooth surface that he hadn’t noticed earlier! The fall had indeed damaged his great and marvelous instrument just when an admirer came to view his beautiful weapon of music! He hurriedly brought a hand up to cover the impurity that marred the otherwise perfectly smooth and polished surface though he managed to resist the urge to yank it off of the table and cradle it softly in his lap. That would probably strike the beautiful young woman sitting across from him as very, very odd.

Instead, Berus flashed a smile edged it nearly imperceptibly toward him, barely covering his worry with a calm, friendly visage. However, he quickly found himself distracted as the gold-eyed woman struggled to find the right words and failed rather spectacularly at being smooth. The little bard, however, found it to be a very endearing trait and knew that he’d be hopeless trapped by this woman’s charm and the affects of alcohol if he remained where he was.

That thought only encouraged a bright, warm smile and a twinkle in sparking green eyes. Score! “Yes! This is my magnificent lyre that I use to assault the ears of the poor patrons here in the Tavern,” Berus replied with a boyish grin. “I’m afraid I can’t play it any more tonight, however, as the patrons don’t seem to appreciate real music-“ He stopped midsentence, noting the look of slight confusion on her face as he spoke the words. His eyebrows raised for a moment, wondering if she couldn’t understand his speech.

After a moment he realized that he was speaking in rather rapid Vani and wondered if perhaps this Kelvic was new to the area and wasn’t well versed in the regional language. That would probably explain her slow-ish speech and maybe even her lack of eloquence with in her wording. Berus frowned for a moment as he thought deeply, trying to decide which language to try when speaking to the foreign Kelvic.

“Ah… Do you have hard time speaking Vani? I am err.. learned somewhat in Common,” he said, stumbling over just a few words. Very few people around here spoke common but he managed to pick up quite a bit of the language from travelers and from books, though he was admittedly much better at reading and writing it than he was at speaking. Berus grinned, eager to get some practice in the language that was, reportedly, spoken all around the world.

There came a call from the side and a thump as a man depositing a drink on the table, a richer, sweeter and much more expensive version of the normal brew. Though it was more expensive, it was by far Berus’s favorite and he always scrounged up the money for it if he possibly could. Cradling the glass in his hands and barely holding himself back from plunging into the sweet foamy liquid, he looked across to his companion. “You want a drink? I have err… much money and buy a few rounds for you,” he said.

Congratulating himself silently for only stumbling once, he awaited the ‘witty’ girl’s reply with a smile on his face.

[Larina]

Larina watched the youth as he beamed with pride over her compliment and gazed down at his precious instrument. Curiously, his expression darkened somewhat, and he pulled his prized possession towards his body. Oh, goodness! She was just admiring the craftsmanship! The bard didn’t think that she was going to steal it from him, did he? Maybe the town had rogue thief on the loose, and worse, it might be a foreigner like she was. Or perhaps the Vantha was just a little possessive over his instrument. That would make sense if it were the way he earned his livelihood. But still, it was just an object. With a grin, the Vantha chattered on about the instrument in his native tongue. Larina gripped the edge of her chair, straining to catch his every word. She gathered that the instrument was called a “lyre,” and that he sometimes…attacks people with it? Larina pictured the small bard standing in an open field, wielding his lyre against an onslaught of dire beasts. This thought was amusing, but in a ludicrous fashion that not even she could believe. Giving an inward sigh, Larina knew that she had already mixed up a word or two. But this was not lost on the bard. He seemed to catch on that her understanding of Vani was far from perfect, and to her surprise he switched his language to Common. Larina managed to suppress a smile, but her shining eyes gave away the fact that she thought his blundering speech to be rather funny. But he was certainly willing to accommodate her inexperience with Vani, and this she could appreciate. “Yes, I was taught Vani by my former mistress, though it is not my first language,” she replied in Common. But with a sheepish grin, Larina continued on in Vani, “But, I think I should learn more. So, just be…Um, be like you were! You can help to teach, and I will try to keep up.” That was fairly articulate, and probably a bit more so than the way the bard was speaking Common. She would have to get over the language barrier eventually, since her stay in Avanthal was indefinite. And only speaking the most basic of sentences and words would be tedious after a while. A barkeeper strolled over to their table and slammed down one of the frothiest drinks Larina had ever seen. Captivated by its foam, she almost had to sit on her hands to keep from touching it. The bard rescued her from temptation by offering to buy her one of her own. Her face lit up, and she grinned over at her companion. What chivalry! And he didn’t even know it was her birthday. “Is that okay?” she asked, sticking to the native Vani. Her large eyes looked into his, hoping to pinpoint a color on his mood. “I can pay too. I am not…” Larina racked her mind for the word for “broke,” but came up rather lacking. Instead, she dove into a small backpack she had brought with her in order to physically get some money out in order to prove her point. However, while she was rummaging through her belongings, she came across her drawing pad and a couple of pencils. A small spark of inspiration flittered into her mind and she pulled them out. Flipping to a blank page, Larina furiously drew a little stick figure whose pockets were turned out and completely empty. Grinning at her little idea, she set the paper on the table facing the boy and repeated, “I am not…broke.” The last word of this sentence she spoke in Common, but she emphasized her point by tapping the little picture with her finger. Though this may be a rather crude means to communicate, Larina was decent at sketching, and hopefully she would be able to learn a few new words from her Vantha companion.

[Berus]

Berus looked at the sketch with interest, which clearly depicted some stick figure that appeared to be rubbing two large bruises on his legs. Ouch. Berus’s eyes flicked back up the gold-eyed young woman as she struggled to find the words. Berus himself was at a loss for what she was about to say, yet he plowed forward with a few suggestions just in case the right word came up. “Uhm.. A hobo? A beggar? Dead? Stupid? Thirsty?” he attempted in Vani, feeling that he was getting farther and farther from the mark as he went on. He glanced back down at the picture, silently berating himself for his inability to interpret the drawing into words.

Finally, she unveiled the word that was locked in her mind, but in common. Broke. Berus grinned as it was revealed, realizing that it was his solemn duty to translate it into Vani for her to use. It still struck him as odd that she would use a picture of a stickman rubbing sore hips to represent this, but he chalked that up to being a foreigner. Sometimes people outside of the frosty city were a little coo coo. Excitedly, he pointed to the picture for emphases and let the one syllable roll off of his tongue, “Broke!”

Extremely happy that he managed to teach the cute young woman a word-him? A teacher!-he leaned back in his chair and quickly brought the class up to his lips, taking gulp of the wonderful sweet liquid. A man came by and deposited another large drink of the same substance for the little bard’s marvelous company. He looked over to her, the meaning of her words finally dawning on him after he pieced them together.

He leaned forward, pushing the drink to her. Then he spoke slowly in Vani, trying to accentuate each word so that she would understand. “The drinks are free for us; kind man gave me the money for free!” He tapped the glass excitedly for emphasis inviting her to drink her fill and enjoy herself.

Berus leaned back in his chair comfortably, head already buzzing a bit. “Ah, and what words would you like to learn?” he asked, oblivious to the fact that she probably wouldn’t even know how to ask what words to learn anyway. He just smiled at her and winked, the thought seeming perfectly good to him.

[Larina]

Was it such a bad picture? Larina had a hard time believing that the bard could not understand the meaning of empty pockets. Slowly, she pulled the drawing pad back into her arms and gave her doodle a good look over. Well, she had drawn it in rather a hurry. Self-consciously, Larina edited and embellished her picture, giving the man some proper pants and making his expression a bit sadder at the loss of his money. Well, at least now you have your good looks to rely on, she thought, giving the man a more chiseled jaw line and sweeping hair. See? Now you can use your body to win affection in place of coin! Her attention snapped back to the Vantha as the meaning of her picture finally became apparent to him. In general, he seemed rather excited to be talking to her and even more pleased that he had put together the puzzle of her picture. Larina wondered why he would submit himself to swapping bumbling sentences with a foreigner instead of with more fluent company. She could be difficult to talk to under normal circumstances, and her broken speech could not have been a plus in his books. Maybe the present denizens in the bar were not to his liking. Or she might just be a pleasant change of pace for him. Or he might have a neurological condition that rendered him completely unable to turn away company regardless of their level of pleasantness and must therefore endure the endless conversations of anyone who happens to approach him no matter now inane…Larina would have look out for this later. Coming back down to reality, Larina listened as the Vantha enunciated the word for “broke” in his native tongue. Giving a swift nod, she repeated the word once in perfect form. Learning to speak languages was a fairly simple task for her; reading and writing them however…Not so much. As she prided herself in mastering a new Vani word, an attendant plunked a second amber drink down on their table and slid it towards her. She listened to the encouraging words from the friendly bard and replied, “For free? The man just gives money to you?” Her golden eyes as danced and she snickered, “You should have him as a good friend. And have me meet him too!” So, this was completely for free? Ah, freedom! A happy word in any language! A stream of frothy goodness trickled down the glass, threatening to mar the clean, dry table. With a little shake of joy at this gift, Larina quickly drew the mug towards her and licked the tasty brew from the glass before it made a small mess of things. Personally, Larina wasn’t much of a drinker. Not that she had anything against it, but she was just never presented with many opportunities to do so. Well, here was the perfect opportunity. Grinning from behind her cup, she listened carefully to the bard’s words and thought for a moment about words she could use the most. But what really she wanted to know was “All of them!” Larina exclaimed. “Like…telling stories. May be helpful! I listen to Vani better than I can speak. But…First, I want to know your name.” She gave him a little smirk. Even after he had treated him to a drink, they still had not exchanged pleasantries. She lowered her head in a slgiht bow and said, “My name is Larina.”

[Berus]

Berus nodded as she introduced herself, smiling despite the fact that he did not recognize her name as one belonging to any in Avanthal. Her bubbly enthusiasm, which rivaled their frothy drinks, was able to actually cause him to set aside his magnificent drink. That was no small feat in itself, as he had once chosen to sip the sweet brew over dashing for cover to avoid his father’s wrath one day when Berus had run away from his duties.

He leapt to his feet, quickly regretting the decision not to stand up slowly in the company of the lady, and bowed gracefully. “I am Berus Snowsong, a dreamer, would-be bard, and an aspiring hero,” he introduced himself, pitching his voice into his greatest storyteller impression. He looked forlornly down at his hand, wishing that he had a great feathered hat so that his bow could become even more elegant and impressive. How could he ever hope to be a great hero if he did not have a grand presentation! It was absolutely vital that one must not only kick-butt in hero-work but they must also be able to look good doing it. That was what set the novices apart from the true legends.

Nodding to himself, he sat back down to regard Larina further, remembering that she had asked to be taught Vani through storytelling! He smiled broadly; he certainly eager to tell a story to such a lively and enthusiastic young woman. However, a second, more ingenious thought crossed his mind. He leaned forward toward her, hoping to catch her golden eyes in his sparking green ones. “How about we tell a story back and forth? You can start it and I will pick up where you leave off, then you will continue when I quit! You can use whatever Vani you know and perhaps it will get better as we go along?” He spoke slowly and carefully, still enunciating each word so that she would be able to digest it before he moved on to the next.

He leaned back in his chair, folding his hands behind his head and winking at the eager young woman. This night kept getting better and better! He reached over and grabbed his mug, silently encouraging Larina to do the same.

[Larina]

Clearly, the little bard had been drinking in the tavern for some time. Larina cocked her head at his grandiose display, watching him with bemusement. At the end of his pomp and fanfare, she gave a small round of applause for the bard, flattering his ego. So, he wanted to be both a bard and hero? He didn’t quite look like heroic warrior. What exactly did he anticipate fighting against? Maybe he actually does attack people with that lyre. Again the memory of Berus triumphantly brandishing his trusted lyre against endless foes sprang to her mind. This time when he played his trusted instrument, the musical notes hit such a pitch that they pierced the eardrums of his foes, leaving them utterly incapacitated. I wonder if that is actually possible… Larina eyed the lyre suspiciously, suddenly rather wary of its hidden power. But Berus would not unleash its devastation now; he was far too cheerful. Even so, it would be best to remain in his good graces for the sake of her well-being. Turning her focus back towards the lyre’s master, she listened intently at his scheme for teaching her Vani. “You want us to tell a story? Together?” she gaped. Larina had been partial storytelling, but always on the listening end. The times where she had been asked to produce such a creative feat were few and far between. But she knew the basics. Exposition. Rising Action. Climax. Denouement. That sounded easy enough, but it needed to be fleshed out. For a splash of color there would be comedy, drama, and action. Maybe a hint of mystery to keep the intrigue. Oh, she could throw in some suspense with a kidnapping too! Or add a pinch of romance. Forbidden romance. This was getting good! If only she knew all the words necessary to make such a thing… Larina slammed her drawing paper back on the table, now wielding her own deadly instrument. “Alright Sir Berus Snowsong! Let’s do it!” she cried, her eyes aglow. Yet she would need a little help. Not a translator per say, but something to loosen her tongue…The Kelvic grabbed the mug of amber beer in front of her with both hands and yanked it towards her. Plunging her face into the foam, Larina gulped down several mouthfuls of the sweet brew. A tingling warmth spread through her body and quickly made its way to her brain. Giving her head a small shake, Larina set the mug back on the table, leaving it considerably lighter than it was moments ago. A rather handsome frothy moustache had remained on her face, and Larina nuzzled her mouth into her sleeve to get rid of it. “Okay. Ready.” She gave a firm nod and leaned back in her chair, trying to come up with a good opening line. “...Once upon a time,” a solid start, “there lived a tiny mouse.” Very good. She could relate a bit more easily to animal character anyhow. “Yes, the mouse was small, but he had a big…heart.” She had switched to Common again. But, Larina sketched out her compassionate mouse protagonist on the paper who was enclosed by a large heart shape. She tapped the doodle once and nodded, continuing her story, “The mouse wanted to help everyone. But he was so small, that he was not good at it. And his name was…” Glancing over at Berus, Larina gave him a grin to push him fill in the next part of the story.