Isle of Aspergillum - Act 1 - The Prince of Broken Hearts

[Don the Bastard]

Starting a thread for the second area.

Henry meets Lumpy

[darkzucchini]

The owner is pulls you a beer and brings it over, "Dromm, would you be able to look over the consumption rates for me too, I need to know much to order in from Dwurforge and Never Haven on the next wagons." As he returns to the bar the door swings open and in walks a man you are familiar with but have never talked to, Henry Halbrook, the barons son. He has both the air of a noble and that of a vagabond at the same time, he is not dressed in the usual finery you would expect, and carries a leather knapsack.

Arthur Turnbull, the barman, pours a glass of the house red as he steps through the door "Here you are Henry, I shall put it on your father's tab as usual".

"Thank you, my good man! A toast to fathers' tabs!" he cries, seizing the glass, raising it, and miming the motion of clinking it against another. He nearly down the glass in one.

He then turns to you in the corner.

"What are you reading on this fine day, friend dwarf? What musty tomes are so scintillating they can draw your attention from the more obvious sources of entertainment in bar?"

He sips from his glass again before asking, "You wouldn't be reading poetry, by any chance, would you? I fancy myself a bit of a poet... Let's see here... I can come up with something..."

Looking up at the ceiling he says in singsong cadence,
"Outside the sun shines down its rays
And folks favor each other with merry looks
But those who inside spend their days
Must console themselves with silent books..."

He glances back down at you with a grin. "How was it? Be honest with me. I can take it."

"Well done, g.. good sir," Dromm says with a bow of head, a wide smile, and a slight stutter. "You certainly have a gift for rhyme and wi.. wit."

"But I find that there is something comforting in old books and dusty tomes. They may not talk back but they have lots to say. I find that they help to settle my restless mind. Besides," the malformed dwarf jumps down from his stool at the bar pats his stumping legs, "I find that reading books is some.. something that I am good at, unlike many of the activities that take place outside."

"The names Dromm by the.. by the way," the dwarf says extending a nobby and twisted hand to the taller man, "But most people call me Lumpy.. for obvious reasons."

As a side, I am going to be gone for most of this weekend. Should be able to post again Sunday night. Hope I don't slow the game down too much.

[Ascension]

Up close it became evident that the dwarf was an even more pitiful creature than he had seemed from a distance. Henry's grin hardly faltered, though... as long as the women in his life stayed beautiful, he could overlook the ugliness of men. Besides, "Lumpy" seemed an amiable enough chap, despite his difficulties.

"Henry Halbrook," Henry said, taking the dwarf's misshapen hand, "It's good to meet you, Dromm. I hope I didn't interrupt anything too terribly important."

[Don the Bastard]

"Not at all Henry, me and Dromm here were just discussing the downturn in business coming up to the summers-end festival" Arthur chimes in, "I figure people are squirelling away there helms (OOC: a slang term for coppers) so they can have a fine meal and a night on the town, it doesn't much matter to me anyway, as I'll be supplying the bar on the night... need a refill there?" he says holding out the bottle.

[Ascension]

"Don't mind if I do!" Henry says with a mirthful chuckle, holding out his glass.

"Why don't you bring friend Dromm here a glass too? Just put it on the tab. No reason not to mix business with pleasure. Oh, I wish everyone could be as happy as I am today!"

[darkzucchini]

Dromm

"Not at all, ju.. just finished balancing the books is all, though there is always more work around the ca.. corner," Dromm says as he pumps Henry's hand. "I will need to figure out how much st.. stock we need to order from Dwurforge and N.. Never Haven. But what has you so hap.. happy on this fine day?"

[Don the Bastard]

OOC: Never Haven.

"You prefer ale don't you Dromm" Arthur says pulling a frothy mug "Say Dromm you wouldn't be looking for more work now would you? With the Summers-end festival coming up I'll be needing someone to keep the stores in order and keep the grog up to our demand, oh and tell Nim I'll need an extra hand behind the bar at the pavillion too. You interested?" he raises an eyebrow quizzically.

[Ascension]

"Why am I happy? I have caught the eye of one of the loveliest girls I have ever seen, that's why!"

Though such a feat seems almost impossible, Henry's grin grows even wider.

"I have been personally invited to picnic tomorrow with the fair Emilia Alerdan! (and family) Yes, one of those Alerdans!"

Henry takes another sip of wine before continuing, "You see, what's really amazing about all this is that she's not only a beautiful girl, she's not only a beautiful girl interested in me, she's a beautiful girl of means interested in me. I may have finally found a woman wonderful enough even my father would approve of her! Truly it is a lovely day!"

This is pretty much par for the course with Henry. He always gets giddy whenever he thinks things are going to work out between him and whoever the girl-of-the-hour happens to be. He may be a bit more hyper than usual this time around, but only a bit.

[Don the Bastard]

Knowledge(local) for the purposes of Dromm {and Heanry may wish to take note also}: The Alerdans (Al-er-dans) own and run the lumber mill, it pretty much has a monopoly on the contracts of harvesting, processing and supplying all of the lumber needed to keep the forges of Dwurforge hot and the walls of Never Haven whole. Not that anyone in town complains about this, as Maelin, the CEO and founder, pays his workers extremely well, around 2-3 times the Flawed Coin guild minimum wage for a laborer (depending on seniority & skills), and so the entire town is wealthier due to trickle down economics. You see, although the island is a jungle, there is little wood that is good for both building or burning, the area around Cordell however is a plantation, being Elven White Ironwood instead of the locally found softer tropical trees. The plantation is a large area, several miles from end to end, and the company uses conservative logging techniques to ensure the supply is constantly regenerating.

[darkzucchini]

Dromm

"An ale would be m.. mos.. most appreciated," Dromm struggles to get the words out, closing his eyes and shaking his head in an effort to form the words, "and I don't see why I coul.. couldn't continue working for you, s.. sir. Its does not appear as though Mor.. Mordrik will be ready to move on any time soon. I will make sure to tell Nim as well." Having recieved his pint of ale from Arthur, Dromm raises it in a toast to Henry, "To fair d.. days and fine lasses. May we forever see more of them than we deserve."

[Ascension]

"Hahah! Now that's my kind of toast!" Henry responds, "Fair days and fine lasses indeed!"

He sets his sights firmly on a random fly on the far wall and rhymes, "Lovely ladies and lovely days / Oh how I wish their favor weren't fleeting, / But at least I got mem'ries o' th' sun's rays / When woman scorns and the skies are sleeting..."

[Don the Bastard]

"I'll toast to that, and full taverns too!" Arthur pours himself a wine while listening to your verse.

"It's no wonder you've caught her heart with silvered words like that Henry"

A few hours pass (I love plot time) and you enjoy a quiet few drinks, no-one else comes into the bar that night, and eventually the time comes for Arthur to close. "Well gents, it has been lovely sharing this eve with you, but I really should shut up shop."

OOC: I'll give you a chance to reply then back to PMs, don't worry we will return to the tavern.

[Ascension]

"We all have to sleep eventually, I suppose!" Henry says with a chuckle. He rises from his seat somewhat unsteadily, but he's still sober enough to get home under his own power.

Just before he heads out the door he shouts, "May you both sleep well, my friends, this night and always!"

((OOC: Great! I was afraid we'd get plot-hooked into some quest before the day was over and Henry'd never end up picnicking with fair Emilia! He'd never forgive himself for missing out on that opportunity!))

[Don the Bastard]

OOC: Hatchet & Hearth meant a run-in with Alix, Prince of Broken Hearts was Lumpy.

[darkzucchini]

Dromm

Dromm carefully slides off of his stool, catching the edge of the counter top to steady his feet. Having regained a semblance of stability, Dromm picks up the large, dog-eared book from the table and tucks it under his arm, "I think I will hol-hic!.. hold-off on any book work til the morn.. hic! A p.. pleasure meeting you Henr-hic!-y and a good evening to both of you." The dwarf bows awkwardly before stumbling down the hallway, leaning against the walls to support himself in his ale addled state. He pushes the door open to his room non-too-quietly and drags himself to his bedroll on the floor in front of the room's bed. Another, dwarf similarly disfigured, with wide forehead and stunted limbs, lies in the bed, breathing heavily and with beads of sweat dripping from his brow. Seeing that the dwarf's blanket had been kicked to the side in a feverish fit, Dromm picks it up from the floor and gently lays it over his friend, careful not to wake him.

[Don the Bastard]

Okay guys, next day, PM me what your movements are... after you wake up and the hangover passes.