Solo [Job Thread] Whisper Down The Lane

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The Diamond of Kalea is located on Kalea's extreme west coast and called as such because its completely made of a crystalline substance called Skyglass. Home of the Alvina of the Stars, cultural mecca of knowledge seekers, and rife with Ethaefal, this remote city shimmers with its own unique light.

[Job Thread] Whisper Down The Lane

Postby Mauriel on August 30th, 2018, 5:38 pm

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79th, Summer, 518 AV

To raise the spirits of their fellow Lhavitan denizens during the ever-worsening weather that this Summer has brought with it, Roric and Aleah have decided to host a small party this evening, summoning all of their bards into Mauriel’s shift as well. They’d surely be getting paid more for these additional shifts, and Mauriel couldn’t help feel a spark of jealousy as her funds have been stretching thin recently.

One of the two was playing the fiddle, while the other one was a fellow lutist. A fact that made Mauriel very self-conscious, knowing that they’ll inevitably be compared tonight. The bosses were waiting for the crowds, so the group of entertainers was small talking by the bar. The Ethaefal was trying to drink her worries away, her cheeks slightly flushed red indicating a partial success. It wasn’t that bad for her vocal chords, but her precise fingers were not as positively affected. Soon enough, Aleah refused to serve her another drink, promising one for when the performance was over.

They were to perform a few things together, and while their instruments made for a poor band, they’ve decided on a few things that could work and tried them together a couple of times before coming to the bar. Mauriel was the only singer, though not an amazing one herself.

The place was packed, the air heavy, and a reek of alcohol unusually unpleasant. Scholar’s Demise wasn’t often a place for ugly episodes caused by lack of moderation, but tonight was apparently designed to attract a bit of a lower clientele. While far from their level, Mauriel felt a certain comradery with the cheering crowd as the trio began performing for them. The alcohol uninhibited her just enough to allow her to sing her lungs out without throwing glances at how the other lutist was performing. She sung sad songs with happy melodies, and the crowd moved in unison to them, singing along, a weird mixture of nostalgic melancholy and excited jubilation permeating the air.

In most songs, the fiddle was dictating the main melody, while the two lutes followed it in a homophony, her voice struggling to dominate the performance, though the guests helped immeasurably by all singing along with varying degrees of accuracy both in lyrics and melody. It was no doubt noisy, and perhaps annoying to the neighbors, though a known price of life at Zintia’s peak occasionally. Lhavit was a city of very hard-working, disciplined people, but such people needed occasional rest the most, and its many holidays were probably designed to provide it. Mauriel wondered if that was indeed the reason that so many holidays were rather evenly spaced throughout the season, and whether it was perhaps by design.

As things escalated, conflict inevitably ensued. Two young men were fiercely arguing over something, and by the sounds of it that something was flirtatious and curvy, leading at least one of the men on, likely both. And that something wasn’t among the guests tonight as far as she could tell after observing them for a bit. Mauriel signaled her co-workers that they should take a break. The other lutist stayed playing alone, and the fiddlist gratefully grabbed the opportunity for a break.


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Last edited by Mauriel on September 21st, 2018, 10:42 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Mauriel
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[Job Thread] Whisper Down The Lane

Postby Mauriel on September 20th, 2018, 12:44 pm

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She packed her lute and asked one of her colleagues to hold on to it, approaching the table where the two men were arguing. “May I?” she asked, as she was sitting down, not really giving them an opportunity to reject.

The man who was currently yelling at his friend turned to her instead. “Hey, go away, we don’t need damage control, this is personal!” He looked almost as if he was going to cry. She thought that meant he was the more invested side, which often meant a loss in negotiations, but then again when a threat of violence was involved, perhaps the opposite would apply.

“Easy now, I just want to help you resolve this. Could I buy the two of you some ale and have you tell me what happened?”

The one that yelled at her grabbed his own head, visibly frustrated, but the other guy seemed more eager to involve her. “I don’t say no to free ale,” he said. “And a fresh perspective might help Finn understand how he’s full of it.”

Finn looked up, angry, but his voice calm and sharp. “You petching arrogant asshole, that’s what you are! That’s the damn reason she wouldn’t take you seriously!” His fist was clenched on the table.

The Ethaefal caught his fist, holding both of the men’s hands. “Please, I promise you that you can work this out, just be quiet while I go grab your drinks.” Her voice was sweet, and her touch gentle. The men who seemed to see her as a nuisance or an asset in this fight, suddenly looked at her a bit perplexed. Her black hair gently framing her god-gifted facial features were more than enough to make them notice her, despite their momentary anger clouding other desires. She left before the effect wore off, Aleah who seems to have been eavesdropping handing her two mugs, and whispering thanks, because while she would’ve normally dealt with this, bartending was taking a toll tonight.

She came back to find the two bickering again, and she wasn’t even gone for that long. They seemed calmer than before, though. “Ale is here,” she said, placing it before the two of them. “Now, who wants to go first?” The question produced the obvious response, the guy who was eager to have her mediate was the one eager to tell her the story.

To spare the reader the petty quarrels that ensued, the point was that Finn thought that the other guy, Mark, stole his girlfriend to spite him because he was jealous of his better craftsmanship skills, while Mark claimed that the girlfriend was the one who initiated it all and that he had thought that they must’ve broke off, and given that they weren’t together for long he thought it wasn’t important.

She wasn’t sure how to help the conversation at that point, because both men seemingly being aware of the other one’s side didn’t seem to resolve it. So they were aware, but not empathetic?


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Mauriel
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[Job Thread] Whisper Down The Lane

Postby Mauriel on September 20th, 2018, 12:48 pm

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She thought she’d try and get them to understand how the other one felt, but she didn’t know who to start from. Whoever went first would probably feel more exposed. “So… Mark? Let’s forget that Finn is angry about what you did so far for a moment. What do you plan to do now?”

Mark played with the handle of his mug a bit, looking at the table instead of his two companions. “Nothing? Why should I do anything different? I wasn’t in the wrong, I didn’t know.” He seemed to know very well why he should do something different.

“Just how good looking is she?” Mauriel asked with a smirk.

“It’s not about that!” he retorted.

“Oh, I wouldn’t bet it isn’t. Your friend here is hurt, they used to be lovers, you barely know her, and she’s playing with your heart like a puppeteer! And you don’t seem that naïve, so that leaves your youth as the culprit. She must be stunning!”

He continued playing with his ale silently. “It’s not about that,” he muttered again, now sounding a bit unsure himself.

“And Finn, you must be hurt by what happened, but is your friend really the one who hurt you? You must think very little of that women to not expect her to be able to stay loyal even if seduced. If she’s at the mercy of anyone who happens to want her, do you really want that in your life?”

Finn stood up, towering over Mauriel. “You don’t even know her! Don’t talk about it like you do! You’re just here to earn some props from your boss for calming down two drunk loonies, don’t act like you care. He betrayed me, and I don’t know why I even agreed to talk again! I’m off.” He picked up his coat, stumbled to get in it, shrieked in anger as if the elegance of his dressing was the subject of everyone’s thoughts right now and he hated the examination, and went and left the tavern. Well, it was one kind of success, there’ll be no property or reputation damage here tonight.

Her eyes were still fixed on the door, in thought. “Thanks,” Mark said, snapping her out of it. “You were right.”

“I’m not the one you should be telling.”


She stood to leave.

He seemed disappointed.

Was he being receptive and sensitive only to attract her attention? Finn might have been more right than she had hoped. Or maybe she was just being arrogant, maybe he was shook and would appreciate company. She flashed him a smile before leaving, as she had to get back to work anyway. Something, however, froze her besides the table.

The tigh is stark
The lovers gone
Another shark
From heavens fawn

Splintered is the golden station
Chaos fueling all the pounded
Yearning for a gestation
Praying are the-


The other lutist was playing her song, well it was her melody, but the lyrics were completely off. She stared in disbelief, not sure whether it was a cause for laughter or a deliberate attempt to make fun of her by the other bard. He wasn't even a singer normally, this must have been mockery!


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Mauriel
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[Job Thread] Whisper Down The Lane

Postby Mauriel on September 21st, 2018, 10:40 am

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Mauriel didn’t know how to react. She wanted to stop this, but as the notes echoed down the room she had no idea what exactly to do. Should she even make a scene? This says more about him than it does about her. And what if it really is an accident? If he heard this version of it, maybe he’d go out of his way to sing it because it’s funny. She went for the bar. Leth, give me strength.

“Ice Storm, please.” Aleah complied. Perhaps because Mauriel certainly sobered up a little since the start of the evening, or perhaps because her stress was evident. What should she do? Should she even play Spark now when it’s her turn? No, that’d be stupid. She’ll have to just do local songs or whatever…

Her turn came too soon. She picked at the strings, unsure where to go with it. At the end, she decided to just pour her heart into it. Perhaps she wouldn’t appease the crowd, but at least she’d blow off some steam. She started singing a local ballad about Zintila’s sacrifice that she’s picked up. Ballad might not have been an ideal pick for the mood, but it is how she felt. The sharp high tones of her voice emphasized the harmonic melancholy of the lute. The bard almost felt like crying and she wasn’t sure whether it was the song carrying her, her fears and insecurities coming to a boil, or maybe this whole mortal business being too overwhelming and much needed moonlight being out of reach.

She began translating those feelings into music clumsily, starting over a couple of times. She was gently humming, as this sort of thing could be explained with no words. The melody spoke for itself, and soon enough she realized she’d gone too far. While a precious moment of sharing her heart with the crowd was probably a valuable experience for everyone involved, showing a bit of the Ethaefal soul, their yearning and sorrow, it was time to lift their spirits back up. She was struggling with the transition tho.

The fiddlist played a few tones from the bar. Mauriel picked him up and followed. What a save! They played together for a while, a local celebratory song, and the crowd seemed amused with their improvised duet. She nodded to her colleague for the save and continued playing things of the same caliber until her voice gave out. Then she started playing only on her lute for a while, giving the fiddlist some time to prepare for the exchange of the floor.

As he finally came to lift the responsibility off her shoulders, she mumbled some thanks for earlier, happy that at least he was kind to her.

“No problem, it would be anyone’s pleasure to save you from yourself after the treat you’ve given us.”

She could not think of a higher compliment.


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Mauriel
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[Job Thread] Whisper Down The Lane

Postby Mauriel on September 21st, 2018, 11:14 am

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She spent her other break meticulously trying to ignore her fellow lutist. She wouldn’t try and clear up the possible misunderstanding or give him the time of day at this point. She decided that she’ll approach the tables and entertain the people and, with Aleah’s blessing, she went to do some storytelling.

She made up a story based on what one of her customers once told her about. He was a Drykas, from Endrykas, a travelling city of horse-clans. She told them in a lot of detail of this unusual city, details she did not and could not know, and about a guy named Jason who was one of the young people to be chosen by a Strider. He was an adventurous youth, according to Mauriel, and couldn’t bear to stay with his clan on their everquest to go in circles, which was how he saw it. Instead, he headed for the now lost city of mages, also entirely made up, where he’ll eventually meet his beloved…

When the first group of friends got tired of her shenanigans, they told her they would want more of the story another evening, which disheartened her a bit. People captured by a story could not simply dismiss it for later like that. But alas, she did her best.

It was the time for another closing performance of the entire band, and the horned woman felt vengeful. Before stepping up she retuned her lute, making sure it’d give its top performance. If this night was gonna end in any way, it’ll be with her putting the bastard lutist to shame.

They started playing, much like before, fiddle carrying the song, with the two lutes harmonically in the background. Mauriel wasn’t sure how to shine in this setup, but she tried her best to play each note perfectly, to time her movements to the best of her ability, to touch the strings at the proper angle… It all, however, made little difference in this setup.

In a brief pause between two songs, she turned to the fiddlist. “Could we do Spark?”

He frowned. “It’s that song of yours, isn’t it? Sure, I picked it up by now I think.”
And so they did. And it was Spark like it was never heard before by this crowd, with three decent musicians combining all they’ve got into a moving melody for a song that moved the heart of the people growing up hearing of the events it described. Her voice was stern and steady, brimming with adequate emotions just at the right moments. The song was about hard times, indeed, but it was celebrating the efforts and sacrificed of the people who made what all of them enjoyed today, so the mixture of emotions was interesting to try and portray vocally.

The sky is light again
The lovers bathing in dawn
And through great pain
Lhavit stands from then on


It was a great note to leave the night on, as dawn came upon the city, progressively bathing the little tavern in more sunlight.


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Mauriel
Shining On
 
Posts: 209
Words: 167162
Joined roleplay: July 12th, 2014, 12:45 pm
Location: Lhavit
Race: Ethaefal
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Medals: 4
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[Job Thread] Whisper Down The Lane

Postby Madeira Dusk on October 4th, 2018, 6:02 pm

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Grades Awarded!

Don't forget to edit/delete your grade request!


Mauriel

Skills
  • Planning: 1xp
  • Singing: 3xp
  • Observation: 4xp
  • Persuasion: 1xp
  • Negotiation: 2xp
  • Socialization: 2xp
  • Rhetoric: 1xp
  • Logic: 2xp
  • Instrument- Lute: 3xp
  • Storytelling: 1xp

Lores
  • Drinking: how much is too much?
  • Drinking: the effect of alcohol on motor functions
  • Lore of gauging the mood of a crowd
  • Persuasion: not giving them the chance to say no
  • Negotiation: diffusing an argument
  • Singing: conveying emotion without words
  • Lore of humiliation
  • Storytelling: adding to a retelling

Awards & Retribution


Notes
This is exactly how I imagine a tavern job to work, with little scuffles between patrons and some bitterness with co-workers. I appreciate how Mauriel's problem solving is something really unique to her, where she's composed and thoughtful about her words and actions. Great read!

As always, if you have any concerns about your grade please PM me!
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