Incognito

Writers: Anika, Heather
Date Posted: 13th January 2015

Characters: Eirock, Irune
Description: Eirock comes to the aid of a tavern waitress.
Location: Sunstone Seahold
Date: month 10, day 24 of Turn 7
Notes: Mentioned: Bryvin, Xeladrie

Eirock

Eirock slipped stealthily from the Hold, dressed in the simple garb of
a seaman with no identifying knots. He was yet unknown by most in the
Hold and thought to take advantage of that while he still could. His
hope was to get a feel for how the general population was taking the
change in leadership. Making his way down to a tavern, he entered and
quietly ordered a drink taking a seat next to a chatty old uncle who
was undoubtedly there every evening. He listened to the old man for a
time and then talked with a young journeyman harper who'd had one
glass too many. Before a candlemark had passed he noted a disturbance
off toward the rear of the establishment and casually drew closer.

"You cannot _buy_ my time, sir! I don't know what kind of place you
think this is but I am just a server!" Irune's cheeks were flushed
as she struggled against the vice grip that the offending customer had
on her upper arm, wisps of her sable brown hair had come loose from
her braid in her struggle against the much larger man.

"Then I'll have what yer serving." The man grunted, grabbing Irune's
other arm and hauling her into his lap.

"I think the lady would like for you to release her," Eirock stated in
a dangerously low tone. Though he wore no indication of his rank, he
spoke with authority and he moved with the ease of a practiced
fighter, which he was. Having been caught out once in his youth, he
had vowed to never let it happen again, and sought training with the
Hold guards.

The rowdy customer looked up at the voice with a squint, although his
hold on the struggling Irune never broke, "Who are you? Get lost,
pal." One of his large hands made a bold run down the curved line of
Irune's bodice.

It a flash, Eirock had grabbed the offending appendage, twisting it
back painfully while his other hand rested dangerously on his belt
knife. "Just a concerned citizen. Now you need to let her go and get
on with her work or the two of us and anyone else who happens to join
in are going to be thrown out for brawling. That's if we're lucky and
not picked up by the Hold guards. I don't know about you, but I'd
rather planned on enjoying another drink or two this evening."

The man howled as Eirock twisted back his hand, causing him to
involuntarily lose his grip on Irune. The waitress darted away, her
clothes mussed and the strands of her hair falling around her face
from where she had struggled with the drunk. "Get off! I let her go!"

"And you'll continue to leave her be," Eirock stated softly, exerting
more pressure before releasing the man and stepping away without a
backward glance. "Are you alright?" he asked the disheveled woman as
they gained some distance from the forward customer.

"I... I think so." Irune was clearly flustered as her shaking hands
tried to adjust her mussed clothing. "Thank you for stepping in. No
one else would have." There was a tone of resignation in her voice as
she tried to smooth the fly away tendrils of her hair back into some
semblance of order.

He offered his arm, in case she needed the stability for she was
obviously rattled. "Why don't you come sit down for a moment and have
a glass of water?" He indicated an unoccupied corner table. Though the
laws at Sunstone clearly disallowed the mistreatment of women, Eirock
knew her words were probably true in this setting.

"Y-Yes, I think that would be a g-good idea." The blonde accepted the
stranger's arm. A part of her worried what her boss would say when he
saw her sitting, but after the ordeal she had just been through she
would tell the man to put a sock in it if he dared say something to
her. It was not completely unusual for customers to get a little
handsy sometimes, but Irune was tired of having to fight men off
just so she could make a few marks serving drinks.

After seating the woman, Eirock went to excused himself briefly then
returned with a glass of water for her and a small glass of whiskey
for himself. "Have you worked here long?" he asked.

"No, a little less than a month." Irune gratefully sipped from the
water, finding that the simple, normal action helped soothe her
frazzled nerves. "I guess it shows?"

Eirock smiled, "If you decide to stay with it, you'll discover various
ways to avoid such situations." Having known many a barmaid, Eirock
knew that each one had her own methods of discouraging such unwanted
attention. Some were able to handle it rather jovially with a well
placed taunt, others had a tongue sharp a blade with the ability to
cut a man to the quick, while another faction could be quite vicious
with the heel of a boot.

Irune was rather sure that she would have no other choice but to
stick with it. How else would she earn money? Without being able to
craft, there was no other way for her to earn money unless she
scrubbed floors at the Hold, or served people as a drudge. And if she
was going to be a drudge at the Hold why not be a waitress at the
tavern? "I hope so, I can't always count on having a gentlemen to come
to my rescue." She smiled.

Returning her smile, he commented, "I'm new to Sunstone. Yourself?"

"Aye, I am. Arrived off the boat not long ago. My name is Irune." She offered.

Disinclined to lie outright in this situation he replied, "And I am
Eirock. It's a pleasure to meet you, Irune." He watched for any sign
of recognition in her eyes. She might not yet have been familiarized
with the name of the new Steward. "Where did you arrive from? If you
don't mind my asking."

"Jade Harbor, not too far away." It certainly wasn't far down the
coastline to get to the other Hold. Truth be told, Irune could only
afford to get as far as Sunstone, which was how she had ended up
there.

"And what do you think of your new home?" he asked casually, taking a
drink of his whiskey.

Irune raised her shoulders, "It is okay, I suppose. I haven't really
gotten to see much beyond this tavern." Being poor didn't afford you
much.

Eirock had to wonder what had brought Irune here and why she worked in
the tavern rather than taking a husband. "Do you have family here?"

"No, sir. I don't have any family to speak of." And Irune didn't feel
that she knew this stranger well enough to tell him about her reasons
for being at Sunstone. "And you?"

"My sister is a greenrider at River Bluff Weyr, my brother is a
Journeyman Smith, and I hope to bring my mother here to the Hold once
I've settled in," he answered honestly. "There's a lot of growth here
and lots of opportunities I understand. Of course the leadership is
new, which can be good or bad."

Irune thought the man lucky to be able to have his mother close by,
she would love to have the opportunity to speak to her mother again,
"Yes, there have been a lot of people talking about the new Lord
Holder and his new wife. You know how it is, no one is ever satisfied.
They wanted this man or that." She waved her hands at the politics
since she was new and had not been there long enough to have an
opinion on Lord Bryvin and Lady Xeladrie.

Having heard much the same from the old uncle and the harper earlier,
Eirock nodded, "Indeed time will tell." He looked over to the Tavern
Master who seemed to be eying them. "Do you need me to talk to your
boss? Explain the situation?" he asked.

The woman sighed as she looked over at her boss, who narrowed his eyes
and jerked his head at her, an indication to get back to work. "Well,
that is my cue, I am afraid. Don't worry about him, I'll handle it.
But thank you, again." Irune said as she stood.

"Don't mention it."

Last updated on the January 20th 2015

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Incognito