Tapestry of Destiny

Chapter 2: Anna at work

A few hours later, Vienna flits from table to table, serving one, cleaning up after another. her mind wanders from one customer to another, narrating their stories: "A man sitting alone, well dressed and groomed, a young face with clean scruff and old eyes, a bit of gray in the temples, not an old man, but on the cusp of older. Who does he wait for, I wonder? A delicate bone china teacup, rimmed with gold and adorned with images of far away lands, rests on his sturdy wooden table. He must have brought it with him, I've seen many bring their favorite knife wherever they go, perhaps it is the same-though far more delicate. With immense care, he raises the fine porcelain with both hands to his mouth, but does not drink! Breathing deeply through his nose, an indulgent smile crosses his face, the world fades away, only his glass lover remains as finally they embrace. While Dominique's ballad crescendos into a romantic melody about death I guess? Dominique!" she grumped to herself, amused "fit my narrative better!". Vienna loved working at "the Owl's gaze", she loved the freedom and anonymity this little act of rebellion against her family afforded her, what she enjoyed most was inventing small stories about the travelers, and hearing them tell their tales without any expectations about who she was, or how to impress into her family's good graces. Here, among the commons and frequent travelers, she could simply be. She noticed the well groomed man because he didn't seem to fit the ambiance- which was in part the point of the Owl's gaze.

Her attention now on Dominique's story, she noticed that it was a well polished new story. They were good at that, they often performed new stories, but always made them sound as old polished ones- or perhaps they had a massive repertoire, but Vienna doubted that, as they sometimes ask the audience for story elements, where to begin the tale, or where to end it. In one imaginative night, a man deigned to request a wedding dirge about penguins played on sword. If it was a bet, he lost because "Penguins are a completely defenseless animal that hates monogamy and are a favored snack to lions and leopards." Vienna mused to herself recalling the grisly tale, played quite beautifully on that man's own sword, using a bow to make the music. How he could make music using a sword and bow, she had no idea, but he managed it, bending the sword to change pitch, while rubbing the bow across the edge like a violin.

Most days they told stories about one Potesta or another. And today was no different. "After SvenKa heroically slew SiliNa the witch in retribution for their unfair and evil tax practices, he was driven out by his own family In fear of reprisal from SiliNa's mother, grand warlord ShisissiKa, warlord of the seven frozen wastes. There SvenKa toiled longer than any man could- then died. Unsatisfied with his death by cold, ShisissiKa retrieved and revived his still frozen corpse, then forced his family to forge a magical Skeggøx, binding his soul to the cursed thing for eternity. To this day SvenKa endlessly wanders the wastes, an immortal, frozen wraith, waiting for the day of revenge!"

Vienna chuckled to herself, This story one of the more fictional ones. The undead are mindless, and ShisissiKa known for her unyielding will, disregard for life, and mastery over permafrost. the Owl's gaze was a surprisingly prestigious location in Iron Head, as it was commissioned by the eccentric Potesta, Occisi Morte, a man who saw plots, assassins, and conspiracies around every corner. Most of them unbelievably ridiculous, though perhaps warranted considering the number of attempts on his life and fiefdom. The rafters in Owl's gaze were designed to funnel the sounds from each table through tubes to different hotspots at the bar, letting the bartender overhear any single conversation clearly no matter where it happened even on rowdy nights. After the remodel, these hotspots were mostly sealed and the rafters forgotten. Vienna planned to spend her lunch in those rafters, eavesdropping on one conversation or another.

Vienna at lunch in the rafters

Part of her job at Owl's gaze was to keep an eye on the guests, so Vienna uses that as an excuse to hide in the rafters on her break, and eavesdrop on them. She loved doing that a little too much, hearing snippets of gossip she would never need or use, sometimes getting lost in their discussions or simply imagining stories about them. She started by listening to Dominique, their regular bard, as his voice loudly boomed through the whole tavern, he always seemed to know everything going on in the Owl's gaze and the whole of iron head. He used to be some big shot in the government, but now works here. Intelligence gathering turned to song.

"In Celestia's realm, where the sky meets the ground,

A stargazer named Orion, a dreamer profound.

With eyes that see beyond, into realms unknown,

He journeys forth, where celestials roam.

Oh, Orion, Stargazer of the Edge,

Stars are portals to realms widespread.

Your destiny entwined with cosmic lore,

Journey beyond this world, forevermore."

Smiling at the vivid fiction, Vienna searched for another patron to catch her eye- a man and a woman on a date, the date not going well "Bev" Vienna thought in a male voice, inventing her own fiction about their interaction "all you care about is this bard and his stories! 'Well Bev, if you'd let us get a dog I might've been happy! Why can't you just compromise on something Beverage! (that's Bev's proper name of course) 'But I'm allergic to Dogs, Kaelara... Kail. CARL. I knew you were trying to kill me carl!' stop being so dramatic Bev, cries Carl. wails Carl. Carl wails. Big ugly tears. In public, how embarrassing" Vienna chuckled to herself. Looking around the room, she spotted An old man and their grandson mending a kite, very cute but definitely not trouble. Vienna was not distracted, definitely not, this was her job after all, and someone had to do it. she was definitely not distracted, she was definitely looking out for trouble makers. next to catch her eye were five worn, tanned guys, one older- lumberjacks at early dinner. "Locals, no trouble there. Though Odd that they would be this early considering the season." Looking closer, their attire frayed in disrepair. A little skinnier than they were in winter too. Vienna made a note to check on them to find out how bad of a month they had, and to send them a free meal, something to keep them placated and calm, wouldn't wa- cutting herself off, she loudly thought to herself- something to help them as they're loyal locals, and friends. Next were Three nearly identical looking muscular women dressed like footmen off duty, garbed in soft, unadorned tunics, wrinkled with the creases of an outer uniform, perhaps leathers. huddling closely together whispering conspiratorially, Vienna observed them stealing glances around the room, eyes sharp with an abundance of practice, unable to turn off completely. "Except for Serena" she thought, inventing a name for one woman, a scar parting one eyebrow "she only has eyes for Dominique's mistral machinations. I'm thinking about Dominique far too much." she chuckled to herself, "Mayhaps I have fondness?". The uniform sheathed blades and matching insignia on those sheaths mark them as a uniform, their quality as prestigious, but since she didn't recognize the mark, as foreign. Implying that there's a well off merchant, dignitary, or nobel visiting. Smirking, she wondered if she would meet them later as the second daughter, and if they would recognize her from the Owl's gaze. She'd need to be extra cautious while serving them later.

The Owl's gaze was commissioned by Occisi Morte from a couple generation's back. placing it strategically to draw in traveling custom in the hopes of attracting Potesta, in order to give them a kind of private place to talk while maintaining a public appearance and experience, the rafters, the entire roof in fact, was designed to direct sound towards the edges of the freehouse, while confusing the sounds coming back. The effect was such that those in the corners of the room could have a private conversation without being overheard by the next table over, while being able to clearly understand those tables in return, thus be able to privately speak on matters of state or import, while hearing the grumbles of other patrons, listening for rebellion, conspiracy, or other unpleasantness. Occisi Morte was somewhat of a conspiracy nut. While the rafters were not intended to be used as such, it means that there are tunnels of sound in those rafters, and if you sit in just the right spots, you can clearly hear a conversation from anywhere in the bar, unable to hear anything else. Vienna loved this area for both of those reasons, that she could hear anything she wanted in the right places, and that she could find near silence in others. Plus it gave her a good vantage point. Vienna began carefully traversing the familiar rafters, a confused owl bobbing and twisting her head in an attempt to find the elusive sound tunnel to see what she could "accidently overhear" from these female footpads.