The Witch's Relay

Chapter 12: The Tavern

A faint knock from the adjacent room followed by voices causes me to wake up, and for a moment the unfamiliar ceiling confuses me.

"Oh, right." I mutter to myself almost immediately once I remember where I am.

After taking a second to stretch my arms, I get up and my legs off the bed. I plant my feet firmly onto the floor.

One of the voices belongs to my master and the other.. is familiar but I can't quite place it.

"Thanks, we appreciate it. We'll be down in a moment." I hear my master answer.

"Great! Seeyu soon!" The other voice exclaims, I imagine that person bowing before a pair of footsteps walk away in the hallway and the door to "my'' room shuts with a light slam.

"Who was that?" I ask as I walk through the open door dividing me and Master's rooms.

"Miss Laurier." Heather replies casually as if that explains everything, but once she sees the obvious question marks in my eyes she elaborates. "You know, Vannessa, the innkeeper's daughter? She helped us book these rooms."

"Ohh, ok. Yea." I remember our lively hostess.

"She came to mention that tonight is going to be a pretty busy night in the inn and recommends checking it out."

"Will we?" Up until now Master and I have brought our food to our rooms in order to avoid crowds. We are here in this city to keep a low profile afterall.

"Yes. It will be a good chance to see what kind of people we are surrounded by. In case we have to deal with someone in the near future it is a good idea to know what we are working with." Her index finger lightly brushes against her chin like it normally does when Master is contemplating something deep.

"What.. exactly do you mean by "deal with"?" I look at her with suspicion.

"We'll see. As mages we have the world against us, so we have to be prepared for any worst case scenario." Master's chin lifts a bit in pride.

Before I am able to answer I notice a sudden spark of mischievousness in Heather's eyes.

I probably don't want to hear what comes next.

"you know.. Miss Laurier seemed a little disappointed that it was I who answered the door." A smirk emerged.

"Heh, anyone would be." Oh crap. I freeze at realizing the words that had just slipped out of my mouth. Master is not going to just let this slide..

"Excuse me?" A dark aura seems to surround Heather.

"I- I'M SORRY I DIDN'T MEAN THAT!" I immediately go to a perfect ninety-degree bow with my hands clasped above my head in the hopes that Heather will let it slide.

Last time I let something like that slip I was forced to do a plank with her sitting on my back until the tea came to a boil.

"Tsk." She turns her back towards me and walks towards the door. "We're going down for dinner now. I will deal with your insolence later.

A slight but noticeable shiver goes down my spine. I'm going to do all I can to make her forget.

...

It was lively in the main hall just as Vannessa had said it would be. Almost every table had been filled with workers a little bit on the rough side, craftsmen as well as adventurers, but some ordinary folk were also present.

One of the first things you notice when entering the hall is the wall of heat from the combination of the wood fires used to cook the food, and the sheer amount of bodies in the room.

The second thing that comes to mind is the smells. On the one hand there are the pleasant smells from the meal roasting over the fire mixed with something sweet like an apple crumble, but on the other hand there is a strong scent of sweat. All in all however the smell comes across as rather tolerable.

Close to the counter, and in the center of a ring of people, a duo consisting of a man and a woman are singing and playing fiddles.

Heather leads us to an empty table off by the edge of the room, not the corner since that was already taken.

"This isn't too bad." I nervously remark, glancing at Heather while trying to decide whether she had moved on from our previous interaction yet.

"No, not too bad. We mix in pretty well here, so you better not draw any attention." A slight furrow appears on her otherwise fair brow.

"Hey! I'm not a child who needs constant supervision."

"You're not a child, or don't need constant supervision?"

"Either! Both! I'm not a child nor do I need constant supervision!" If she wasnt my master I'd-

"I'm glad to see you both! What can I get for ya?" A bright and smiling Vannessa suddenly appears to be standing next to the table holding a couple bowls and mugs picked up from other tables.

The air is slightly awkward as I try to figure out whether she had heard my last outburst.

"Says the person about to cause a scene." Heather whispers while nudging my shoulder before raising her voice to reply. "What's the house's recommendation?"

"Lamb and potato stew with a side of freshly baked lentil bread. As a dessert we have our famous apple-crumble that just so happens to be at discount for first-timers." She winks. "And for a drink we either have light-strong and/or normal beer, otherwise we have some nearly-fresh-pressed apple juice, spiced with our hostesses's very own spice mix."

"I'll start with a bowl of stew and some of that juice you mentioned." Heather replies after a few seconds.

Vannessa's gaze shifts to me, and slightly startled that Heather didn't order for me as well, I quickly fill in my order. "I would like the same."

I am slightly disappointed about the lack of dessert, but if I were to order some for myself without Master getting some, I'm positive that Heather would find a way to increase my "debt" accordingly- that is to say at least four times the price of what the crumble actually costs.

"Sure you don't want anything more? No dessert? No beer? I'm sure you could handle the strong stuff!" The last she said looking right at me, in a tone that sounded more like a challenge than anything. She lets out a slight giggle.

"We should be good as is, thanks." Heather replies.

"Alright! I'll be right back!" Vannessa quickly moves towards the kitchen and on the way yells something across the room to a group of customers, as well as weaving in and out between tables, collecting a few more dishes.

I exhale. "It's been a while since I've been in such a crowded place. After spending so much time with you, this will take some time getting used to."

"You really don't have to. It's better to stay weary. Besides, come spring we'll be right back to living in solitude." She states as-a-matter-of-factly.

"I suppose."

"Oh hey! Kade! Heather!" We both glance over to see a familiar guild clerk coming our way with her hand up in a wave.