The Drunken Barmaid 2

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

Summer 40, 523AV Eva knew today was going to be rough even before she got to work. When she woke up, she had stubbed her toe hard on the table and had a limp for the rest of the morning. Then, while trying to do her hair, she lost a few of her hand made pins in the cracks of the floor. The attempt to retrieve them resulted in cutting her finger on her dagger and an excessive amount of blood flowing out for no reason. She dropped her undergarments into dirty water and accidentally tore a hole into her shirt, getting it caught on the side of the table. So to say that Eva was already done with today was an understatement. She groaned in protest when it was time for Moritz to leave after taking her to work, but with a quick kiss, she trudged her way inside. But, when she went inside, all that she faced was chaos. From the looks of it, a fight had just finished with tables and chairs all over and some patrons hooting and hollering and running about. She was very confused, and any information she tried gathering from other workers resulted in the same answer, get dressed and get on the floor. And so, that is what Eva did, she got into her makeshift uniform and hurried out to the floor to try to appease the crowd. Right off the bat, she stumbled over someone's foot and fell into another patron, causing the two to start berating her until she basically begged for forgiveness. Within the crowd, her body was tossed around like a ball in a game of plinko. Serving drinks wasn’t any better. Her first round she brought out resulted in her tripping over herself and falling across the floor, sending ale all over herself and thee of a few others. Another instance had her dropping and breaking mugs, slipping, and spilling the cups in peoples laps. She has been yelled at more times than she can count, and on rare instances people have slapped or shoved her for making such mistakes. Just a few bells into work and Eva was dead inside, she couldn’t even hold a smile. Her face was red and swollen from a recent smack while her body hurt from all her falls. She was on the far end of the bar, out of the way, when Aerin gave a long whistle. “You look like shit girly. What god did you piss off?” She chuckled as Eva just gave her a dead stare. “I don’t know, but I am in so much pain that I can feel it in places I shouldn't feel pain. If this keeps happening, I don't think I can make it my entire shift safely.” She sighed heavily and laid her head on her arms. Aerin just chuckled and assured that today could be much worse. Eva groaned a bit in protest at her, but understood what she meant. There could be an all out bar fight where everyone was involved and Eva didnt have a single thing on her that could go against all these patrons. The single dagger tucked away on her leg was like a toothpick to seasoned fighters when it was in her hands. Word Count: 544

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

Returning to the floor, she was tasked with cleaning off a large table from a rowdy party of fifteen. To say that it was trashed was an understatement. Food was across the table and floor, mugs and glasses tipped over allowing their contents to flow all over, and the chairs were scattered about. Eva sighed heavily at the large task that was in front of her, and since no one else volunteered to help, she was on her own. Examining the situation, she decided to get the plats and trash off the table first. So, going around the table, she carefully picked up each plate and scraped the remaining food off onto a different plate before stacking them up. After she had the plates all cleared and stacked, she worked on gathering the glasses. Any glass that had liquid in it went into an empty mug before being set to the side. She grouped them together at the far end of the table with the plates and began the task of carrying them to the back. With her current track of mishaps, she opted to take just a few plates at a time, regardless of how many trips it took. The last thing she wanted was to have the food and drink of this table spill either on herself or another patron. She gathered the top four plates and the one with food and carried them to the back for cleaning. She walked back out and grabbed another five, took them back, then came out for the final set of five. So far, everything seemed to be going well so Eva got a bit more daring and grabbed four mugs, two in each hand, then took them back. She made the trip two more times, one with three mugs and a glass and the other with four wine glasses. The final trip was the mug filled with liquid and two wine glasses, to which Eva put the wine glasses in one hand and the mug in the other. It was heavy, and Eva gave a grunt as she walked, but she stayed focused on the mug so she wouldn’t spill it. Though in her focus to not spill the mug, she wasn't paying attention to who was in front of her and ran straight into the back of one of the workers. A horrid mix of ale, wine, and bits of food spilled all over both of their bodies, soaking mostly Eva once again. The worker gave out a shriek of shock before whipping around to see what happened. “What the fuck, Evalynn!! Why would you do that! Ugh, what even is this?” The worker cringed and tugged on their shirt to try and see the mess before glaring at Eva. “I’m so sorry, I was more focused on not dropping the mug that I forgot to watch where I was walking.” Eva tucked the mug in her other arm and tried using her apron to help wipe off as much liquid from the worker. She was swatted away by the worker and told to just go away before the person left. Eva sighed and scurried her way to the back to drop off the glasses and fill a bucket with water and some soap. She then scuttled back to the table to begin cleaning it. With the dishware removed, Eva began wiping the table off and brushing the trash and crumbs on the floor for easy cleaning. She put some effort into wiping the table down so it wasn't as sticky then moved onto fixing and wiping down the seats. After she was done wiping, she moved onto sweeping and mopping, trying to get the floor halfway decent. Word Count: 619

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

Eva had just finished mopping up the floor when another group of people came sitting at the table. They grinned wide at each other, talking about some encounter, before looking at Eva as she gathered the mop and bucket. “Now wait a minute little lass, were wanting to order.” An older man spoke with a tone of amusement and he looked at the others who chimed in with agreement. Eva sighed and set the bucket down, leaning on the mop handle. “What’ll it be, men? We got ale and wine. For food, it's the basics of meat, cheese, and bread. If you're really daring, we have meals available for the ones who don’t drink just alcohol.” She listened to the mean laugh before coming together and telling the old geezer what they wanted. “Alright, we'll take 4 large ale’s and a big platter of meat and cheese!” He grinned and pulled out a coin bag. “This’ll cover it, right?” He dropped some coins on the table and Eva looked at it. There was barely enough for the food and she looked at the man with an amused look. “This will cover a chunk of meat and maybe some bread. But there is no way you are going to be able to get everything you ordered with just this.” She started counting the coins and clicked her tongue. “I need at least two gold and eight copper for everything.” When she looked back up at the group, their faces all turned sour. “Now listen here lass, we ain't payin no more than this. So be a good little worker, and take the money.” They eyed her with disdain for a while, thinking that a few glares would cause her to cave. Eva just stared back with cold eyes, before she spoke up again. “If you’re not going to pay, then you won't be served. Ill get going.” She picked up her bucket before she was stopped in her tracks, being loomed over by the older man. “Ya lil wench!” He started talking in a loud, demanding tone, not loud enough to bother anyone, but too loud for how close he was to Eva. “I said I ain’t payin no more. The coin I put on that table will cover everything!” “Then I am going to have to ask you to leave, let me call the guard.” She raised her hand to call the guard when the man shouted at her to stop her foolishness and just listen. Now a few people at other tables who heard the altercation, told him to shut up and quit being ignorant and just pay. This caused him to shout at other patrons before a guard walks over and shouts at him to sit back down as well or he will be thrown in the streets. The other members at the table grumbled at the man as they mocked and scolded him for his behavior and almost got them kicked out. They proceeded to put more coins on the table and apologized for the behavior. At that point, Eva just grabbed the coins and mop before making her way to the back. She gave the money to Aerin and sighed heavily as she told her what she needed. Word Count: 542

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

Aerin got the ale ready and on the bartop in no time flat. She told Eva that the food will be done when she gets back and she nodded before grabbing the mugs and carefully making her way over. She spoke little to the table as she set down the drinks, informing them that the food will be out shortly. After that, she told Aerin she was going to get some fresh air and went out to the alley with a few other workers. She didn’t even join the conversation this time because she was so drained. Instead, she greeted the workers, plopped on a bucket, and leaned against the wall to stare at the sky. Breathe in. Eva watched as a cloud fluttered overhead, white and fluffy. Breathe out. Her eyes followed a group of birds as they landed on the roof and started cooing. Breathe in. She thought to herself just how nice it would be to buy a gift for Moritz. Breathe out. For this last breath, she hummed softly to a tune she had heard the day before. She also visualized her muscles in her neck and shoulders just melting away into relaxation and she smiled to herself. Today was rough, but it was almost over and soon she could head home. Once she felt relaxed and calm, she picked herself up and headed back inside right as the food had finished. Two large chunks of meat was served next to a hunk of cheese on a large serving platter. She gave a grunt and lifted the tray before quickly scurrying herself over to the table. Having stayed inside for most, if not all, of her pregnancy really took away some of her muscle strength. If a simple platter like this tired her out, she needed to start training with her dagger again. With the fleeting thought passing, she slid the plate onto the table and waved her hand at the food. “Well, men, there you go. I provided you with a knife to cut the meat, just in case you didn’t have one on you.” She sighed and left the men to enjoy themselves, going to attend to another table. They ordered a few refills, and when Eva returned with them they questioned if she had any good stories. “I have a few extravagant rumors, but it's going to cost you two silver.” She gave a wink and the men looked confused. “I'm just pulling your leg men, but I heard stories of a ghostly maiden from Leywellin Manor, has been spotted outside of the isle. A resident claims to have seen the spirit wander its way into The Den. However, with the amount of death that happens in that area, it wouldn’t be uncommon.” The men all scoffed, uninterested in ghostly rumors and wanted something else. Eva thought for a moment to figure out what else she could spin into an interesting web. “How about the talk of a treasure out at sea, I don’t know much about it being true. But if you wish to look past that, I can recount the story I was told.” With a not from most of the group, Eva recounted the story. “So there was a small supply ship that was traveling from Syka to Syliras, carrying common items like cloth and pots. The day was going smoothly, the ship left the dock with ease and sailed into the sea to start its day. After about a bell or two into their trip, they noticed that a storm was rolling in. It didn’t look severe, so the crew continued to sail.” Eva continued on with her story, trying to recount what she had been told before. The table seemed to be amused by the tale and encouraged her to continue on with more stories. When she refused due to work, they all sighed and grumbled, going back to their drink. Eva went around the tavern and checked on other tables to see if they wanted anything else. She also helped clean some tables as well. Nearing the end of her shift, she was tasked to help with dishes in the back since it was her turn to help clean. She accepted without much concern and joined a worker who already had the pile halfway finished. “Are you my help? Good. This is the water with the soap, this is the water you rinse in. Take this rag here and scrub then just drop them in the rinse water. It isn't a difficult task, just don't stop.” The worker spoke in a hoarse and raspy voice, as if they had been smoking tobacco for years. They had a hunched over back and a face that looked like a feral cat mauled it. Eva nodded and went to work on the dishes for the rest of her shift, scrubbing off food in one basin and dropping it in another for the other worker. Word Count: 824