Class Affiliation
Rogue - Artisan(Bartender)
Rogue - Artisan(Bartender)
It has been a few months, perhaps even a year since Owaen found himself in trouble at the local tavern. One that his father used to frequent, the Averin's Roost Tavern. He had done more damage than first thought, many bottles of alcohol had been smashed as well as mugs and the mirror behind the shelves of the bar. He had been young and vengeful, wanting his father to stop his drinking and hurting his mother. After he was caught that fateful night, Owaen has been working hard to make up for his wrong doing. Today wasn’t much different than any other day before. Dressed in an off tan shirt and pant suit, long sleeves covering his arms. His floral patterned vest had been ironed to look the finest. His mother had mended and created new clothes for her son as he grew older. Now at the age of 17, Owaen’s birthday is not that far away.
‘Now don’t you look handsome.’ Owaen’s mother commented as she straightened the back of his vest.
“Mom, please, Mick just wants to talk to me about something. Is there really a need to be this fussy?” Owaen asked as he playfully swatted his mother’s hands away.
‘I don’t know, maybe he is going to hire you on as a full timer?’ she mused, pursing her lips as she stood before her son, studying his appearance.
“Mom, seriously, I doubt he wants me around any longer than he has to.” Owaen said, folding his arms over his chest. “I think this is just him telling me that my time is done and I am free to do other things with my time.”
His mother only shook her head as she sighed. She knew what the tavern owner wanted, though she played it off. She knew that Mick wanted to take Owaen on as his heir and when he was older give him the Tavern as his own. Mick never found someone for himself, really he was too stiff to have many lady friends. Thus shaking her head, the woman merely shooed her son out the door.
‘Well, you can ask him yourself. Now go before you are late.’ she said pushing the boy out the door and closing it behind him.
Owaen was going to retort, but the closing of the door ended all that. Stuffing his hands into his pockets, Owaen started down the steps and onto the streets. The Tavern was a good couple blocks away from where he lived. Not in the more rich looking part of Belrea, but it was decent. Streets were clean and people were polite, for the most part. It just depended on the time of day, how their morning might have gone. Even the weather was a factor on how those of Belrea seemed to behave.
“What could be so important?” Owaen asked aloud as he walked, a bit gumpily down the sidewalk. He avoided looking at those that he passed, not that many looked in his direction anyways.
When he reached the tavern just as the noon rush was coming in. Dock workers took up most of the larger tables as the more local folks gathered at the smaller tables and edges of the bar. There were even men from ships loitering around the end of the bar chatting and laughing with each other. The mood was joyful, but hungry as the barmaids ran around with trays of mugs. Some had plates of food to be delivered, others cleaning up after those that had left.
“Hey Meg, know where Mick is?” He called out to one of the barmaids as she bustled about.
‘Don’ know Owaen. Check the back, while you are there, if you see Dalia tell her to get back in here. We need the help.’ she said, picking up a full tray of ale mugs. ‘Alright boys, who’s thirty?’
There was a loud bout of cheers coming from the tables she had gone to. There was the talk of having her sit on their laps and hanging out. While this was common chatter by the men, it was highly looked down upon. Mick cared for his workers and lewd men were often shown the door. Lynom was at the bar churning out mugs as fast as he could as he sent orders back to their cook.
“Busy time, huh Lynom?” Owaen quipped as he headed behind the bar.
‘Bout time you got here, Mick has been asking for you. Best get to the office, not good to make the boss wait.’ Lynom said before he looked out over the floor. ‘HEY! Knock that off.’ he shouted at the men holding Meg hostage as they drank.
Owaen shook his head as he disappeared through a door to the back. He waved to the cook that was slinging hash like a master after turning his famous meat skewers. He didn’t wait long before taking the stairs to the office that was housed upstairs. He passed a couple of closed doors, the third was open to show their small mascot sleeping lazily on a window sill. Sometimes he wished he could be like the bird, just eat, sleep and look cute for the public.
“You have it so easy.” Owaen said a little jealous. “But, life is often never easy, for any of us.”
If the bird heard him, Owaen would never know as he passed the door and to the main office. Stopping before the closed door, he took a breath before raising his hand to knock a voice roared from within. A voice that made him jump, he wasn’t sure if Mick was really that angry with him or was it something else that had incurred his wrath.
‘If that is anyone but Owaen you had better return to the floor, NOW!’ roared the voice, making Owaen kind of regret coming in.
Opening the door, forgoing the whole knocking thing he looked towards the tall and spritely looking Lightning man that sat behind the central desk. He seemed to be pouring over paperwork. Stepping inside and closing the door just about as quietly as it had opened, Owaen moved closer to the desk.
“You wanted to see me sir?” Owaen said almost quietly as he stood before the Tavern owner.
Mick looked up, there were blots of ink on his shirt and sleeves. Striking purple eyes, those that nearly matched Owaen’s own, glanced in his direction. Mick’s hair was messy as if he had just woken up. Blinking a couple of times the older man finally realized that it was Owaen that had walked into his office.
‘Yes, yes. I have a matter I want to talk to you about.’ He said as he shoved the paperwork aside, some of it rattling to the floor. ‘Please have a seat. This concerns your future and the future of this business.’
Owaen was quick to find himself a seat on a chair that wasn’t stacked high with books and other papers. Heck there were even dirty plates littering the floor and stacked against the wall beside the door. Owaen wondered just what was going on. He never knew Mick to be this messy, had something happened and he was about to lose the tavern?
“What is going on?” Owaen asked as he looked back at Mick, worried.
‘I am getting up there in age and I never had any kids of my own.’ Mick started as he stood from his own chair and turned towards the window that looked out over the street. ‘I called you in here today to say, when you come of age. I will be handing the Averin's Roost Tavern to you. You have been my apprentice since you became a teenager.’
He paused for a moment to let this information sink in. Owaen was sitting there, shocked not knowing what to say to this. Him? Taking over the tavern? But he was barely becoming an adult. Was he really ready to take over? “Are you sure about this sir? I feel like I am not the right choice for this. What about Lynom? He has worked for you for far longer.”
‘Lynom has agreed, he doesn’t want to take ownership. Also you are right, you still have a ways to grow. But in a few years you will be ready. There will be some things that you will have to do before becoming the owner.’ Mick agreed, turning around to look back towards Owaen. ‘Take some time and think about it. That is all, so get out of here, Lunch rush has hit and there are customers to serve. Git!’
That was his que to leave, Owaen was going to dispute the whole taking over thing, but he was cut off. Giving a bit of a bow, he dashed from the room and back down the stairs. After clocking himself in, he grabbed an apron and headed out onto the floor. Already the barmaids were swamped and needed a lot of help. Lynom waved Owaen over and shoved a tray into his hands.
‘Tables need cleaning,’ the older Geian grinned, ‘Welcome to the tavern family.’
Owaen gave a grin back before heading out onto the floor to pick up dirty plates and ale mugs. Family? This struck him as odd, but he was liking the sound of it. Sure he had a lot to learn to become a tavern owner, but he would start with learning to be a bartender. And the learn to be the best bartender there ever was, or at least try.
