Howling Harpy's Hall
Open mic night is on Thursdays!

The OOC thread can be found HERE!

Day of the Week: Thursday
Time of Day: Sunset

The game is set in a modern AU England, in the countryside, where the creatures of folklore, myth and fantasy exist and coexist with mankind without the general populous knowing. This means that the average Joe Schmoe doesn't believe in vampires, and witches are high school girls who make time for games of make believe. The game itself takes place in a tavern that has been designed based on Western medieval technology and D&D campaign books. The owner is a woman named Jennifer Crowe who lives and works in her touristy tavern catering to both creatures of fantastical origin and ordinary humans who like to dress up as orcs and roll dice checks. For the most part everyone looks normal but if someone happens to have a convincing set of horns then surely they must be committed to their LARP. The only time the unordinary guests may roam the tavern and its grounds with their tails hanging out is after the sun goes down.

Layout of the Inn

The inn was a two story building designed to look like the "medieval" taverns found in D&D campaign books with just enough of real medieval architecture to pull in the normal crowds. Normal was a relative term for the type of customer attracted to this particular establishment. Set back away from the highway by half a mile and tucked into the surrounding woods to give it the proper atmosphere, the inn was a common gathering point for LARPers and the would be knights of the local historical re-enactment groups. Mundanes would travel from other parts of the state, or even country, to spend a night in the novelty of a medieval inn. However, at night the inn played host to an entirely different kind of clientele.

The first floor consisted of two rooms. The common room was the larger room and the first to be seen by customers. As you walked in there would be the fire place with a large pot hanging over the fire. For the most part there wouldn't be anything cooking there but it helped give atmosphere and for special gatherings the owner would make stew over the fire. The backside of the fire place was used to heat a small, one roomed apartment connected to the main building where the owner kept her personal residence. In the corner farthest from the door there was a round table with wooden booths against the wall and hand sewn cushions in dark green. Four long tables made up the rest of the seating in the common room with no seating at the bar. Each long table could comfortably seat 5 to 7 people.

Behind the bar there was the door to the kitchen with a break in the bar counter for servers to come and go as they dished out drinks and food. The bar itself was simple and they served primarily mead and wine, beer for the mundanes and slightly more exotic drinks by special request for regular customers. Of course, in the kitchen there was a special supply of juices for the mundanes little ones but they didn't often get the family types here. Inside the kitchen there was a trapdoor in the floor tucked out of the way that led down to the cellar where the stock of alcoholic beverages were kept as well as two side rooms that served as sleeping quarters for guests who detested sunlight. Back up in the common room behind the bar hung a rack of keys for the two downstairs rooms and the second story set of rooms.

Entry to the rooms upstairs was by way of an outside staircase but the key had to be obtained from inside at the bar. There were seven rooms in total; four of the rooms had basic full size beds with a private shower and toilet, two featured queen size beds with a bath and toilet and the last room featured a king size bed with a jacuzzi and balcony. Of course, each room had a wooden chest for valuables to be stored and locked in and a wardrobe for clothing. The decorating continued with the medieval theme but so far not even the diehard historical re-enactors had complained about having running water in their personal quarters.

Finally out back of the main building was the stables where customers would park. The stables were a single row of traditional stalls that lacked the usual trough and feeder that were roofed and had no doors. It would be easy for most vehicles to simply pull into the stalls and have plenty of space to back out later. There was also a walled off courtyard where the owner kept her private gardens but guests rarely saw that.

Rooms that have been claimed by guests:

Regular ($45 per night):

• 1 - Derek
• 2 - unclaimed
• 3 - unclaimed
• 4 - unclaimed

Queen size ($75 per night):

• 5 - Bella
• 6 - unclaimed

King size ($125 per night):

• 7 - unclaimed

The plot so far..

Rua, played by Kry, has found his way into the inn for the first time.
William, played by Corporate Zombie, is a regular customer and has stopped by for the open mic night.
Darius, played by Scribbled Lore, stopped by the inn to deliver an ultimatum - sell the inn to him or face the investigation by the Ministry.
Derek and Bella, played by AmaniIshtar, have stopped by the inn for the night. There's a chance that Bella will be performing.

Rules

• Follow the Menewshan TOS
• Do not godmode, powerplay, etc.
• Show respect to yourself, the Storyteller (Scribbled Lore) and your fellow players

The sun was beginning to set in the west and looking out through the window from behind the bar Jennifer stopped her work to admire the array of colors; soft pinks and bright oranges faded into a daring blue and settled into a hazy purple. She sighed with a smile; tonight was going to be lovely and she was looking forward to when the guests would filter out one-by-one and she'd be able to take a walk beneath the moonlight.

:You're spacing again.: There came a voice that only she could hear within her mind and she wrinkled up her nose, almost in protest. :Not anymore, thanks.: Her response was layered with annoyance and genuine affection - there'd be no reason for the snake coiled around her neck to think that she didn't adore him.

:I think the guests like this outfit better than the last.: Jennifer glanced down at the costume she had picked out for open mic night - the night when all the local performers would come by with their hammer dulcimers and guitars and drums and perform folk and filk songs with the occasional authentic medieval song tossed in - and wondered if perhaps she had gone overboard. She had decided on a chemise with two skirts layered one over the other and a sleeveless over-dress that laced up the front. It wasn't exactly authentic but it gave her the look of tavern wench - she shuddered as she thought that - and Edgar was right - the guests did like the outfit.

She tucked a lock of copper red hair behind her ear and went back to wiping the counter down. Jennifer had to own that she was a fair sight; with waist length hair the color of copper that curled and grey-blue eyes that often unnerved her guests, she was the picture of medieval beauty. She even had curves in all the right places. It was too bad that modern tastes were a different matter.

The door squeaked quietly as William entered the common room. He paused and took off his hat as his eyes adjusted to reveal a large but mostly vacant room. From his peripheral, he noticed the proprietor cleaning up. "Evening, Jennifer," he said, the deep, dulcet melody of his voice gently breaking the silence. "It's a nice night out tonight." He turned his eyes her direction, glancing momentarily at Edgar, and took her in. She wasn't unattractive, by any means, but he was always a little put off by her snake. Nonetheless, he liked being around her. Something about her energy...

Jennifer looked up from her work as the door creaked open and smiled - it was William, one of her favorite locals. She beckoned him over to the bar then tossed the cleaning cloth into a bucket beneath the bar that was marked with the word 'dirty.' "Hello, William!" She greeted him in a friendly tone that she used just for customers. "It is a nice evening, isn't it? How are you doing?" She busied herself with grabbing a bottle of water from the mini fridge below the counter for William and set it out on the counter.

http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...g?t=1314863859

Rua ran a hand through his blonde hair, his other shoved in the pocket of his jeans. His lips were parted just slightly. Hazel eyes were narrowed and fixated on the ground just before his feet. Dark purple bruises lined his upper arms, some of the bruises blended with the tattoos on his left arm. Finger mark bruises decorated his throat as well, and a nice bruise was forming on his left cheek bone. Those bruises, they were nothing new to Rua, he was used to that kind of treatment. Nothing he did was good enough. That was alright, because today...Today...he was leaving and not looking back.

He had left the town behind without a second glance. On his way out he decided he would stop at this place, the one tourists and locals alike talked bout. Nerds and the sort liked to play their games in this place. That was alright. Rua liked nerds and fantasy games, though he'd never been able to play a table top or LARP. Secretly he wouldn't mind participating in such a thing, he watched horror movies and secretly wished vampires were real. Rua shook his head, clearing his mind just as he approached the door. It was away from the highway, that man wouldn't find him here, besides, he probably wouldn't stay here. Something warm to drink for his throat. Over used today with too much singing and abuse. That was alright though, no more singing that wasn't good enough for that man. Rua had had enough.

The young man pushed the door open and stepped into the establishment. Those hazel eyes swept over the interior for a few moments before he made his way towards the bar. That seemed the best place to try and get a drink at, when he reached the bar, he slipped his bruised, lithe frame onto a stool and looked towards the woman who seemed to be the bartender. She was busy with another man, and Rua didn't want to interrupt, so he was silent. He could wait patiently until she got to him.

"I'm doing alright," he said, flashing her a warm smile as he accepted the bottle of water from her. His smile faded somewhat as he saw the newcomer enter the room. He twisted off the cap and took a quick sip. "Don't let me keep you from your real customers. You know I'm not going anywhere," he grinned and winked at her, spinning around in the bar stool to take the in the whole room.

Jennifer nodded to William and her copper curls bounced with enthusiasm; without a moments hesitation she turned to the newcomer with a warm and welcoming smile and said to him, "Welcome to the Howling Harpy's Hall. My name is Jennifer." She eyed him and didn't fail the notice the bruises but she said nothing. Until he made it her business - and she was sure that eventually he would as most of her customers did - there was nothing she could say to him. But there was something that she could do for him if he gave her the opportunity. The small snake wrapped around her neck lifted his head up and licked the air in the general direction of the blonde man but remained silent.

"Is there anything I can get you, sir?"

When the woman came over to him, Rua eyed the snake around her neck curiously for a moment before he offered a smile to her and the snake. She had introduced herself, and he couldn't help but do the same. "I'm Rua." Maybe she'd heard of him? Maybe not. Not many people knew of him, mostly just the ones in this small town. He was a singer, but mostly he sung in clubs and bars. He'd never hit it big. That was alright though. He just needed a change of scenery. His voice had sounded a bit hoarse, it was very low. As if he were on the verging of losing it completely for a little while. He was. Too much singing..and being choked.

When she asked if she could get him something, he nodded slightly. Fingers reaching up to rub lightly up and down the center of his throat. "Something warm...soothing to an overused voice...if you have it?" Mostly he was thinking warm tea would help, it was the only remedy he knew, he let that hand drop to his lap.

"Of course," she replied, "if you don't mind that we use tea bags instead of the loose leaves." Jennifer excused herself to the kitchen to begin the preparations for the tea. After the water was set to boil, she came to rest in the doorway, leaning against the frame. "While we wait.. aren't you one of the local performers?" She wasn't sure but she thought that his name sounded vaguely familiar to her. "I think I might have seen your name on some of the posters outside of a bar once or twice when I went to town for groceries."

He nodded slightly, tea bags or loose leaves didn't really matter. As long as it was warm and soothed his throat, he was sure it would taste good. Most tea did. He watched her walk off and when she came back to stand in the door way he glanced up at her. Actually more surprised that she recognized him, or sortof recognized him. Rua nodded slightly. "I don't do that anymore..." Well, at least from now on, starting from the time he had left. Just turned his back and walked out on his screaming manager before the man could put his hands around that throat again. "...It only brought me trouble.." His brow furrowed slightly, his voice still low and hoarse. He wasn't even sure she could hear him from the doorway, Rua grimaced lightly, shaking his head. Shaking away thoughts of that man. His manager would never think to look for him in a place like this. Not that there was anything wrong with this place, it's just not something Rua had ever seemed interested in.

She was glad that he found the tea bags to be an acceptable alternative to the fresher, and more expensive, loose leaves. Conveniently after Rua had finished speaking, there came from within the kitchen the sound of a teakettle whistling. "Will you excuse me?" Without waiting for a reply Jennifer turned to make her way back into the kitchen; while she took the teakettle off the stove Edgar spoke up. :He's obviously distressed.: She gave a snort of contempt - as if she couldn't see that there was something wrong! :You're right but it's not our business to pry.:

Aloud she called out from within the kitchen to Rua, "Would you like sugar with your tea?"

Rua nodded when she excused herself to finish making the tea. Patiently he would wait for her to bring it out to him. He closed his eyes for a few moments, clearing his head some before he reopened them. As she called out from the kitchen, he tilted his head to the side slightly. Would his over used voice even allow him to call back loud enough for her to hear his answer? Well, there was only one way to find out. He cleared his throat softly and called back lightly. His voice cracking a bit. "Yes, if it's no trouble." He winced slightly at the sound of his voice. Usually so smooth and sweet. That was alright, he had just sung too much today..it would be fine in a few hours, he was sure.

She winced as she heard Rua's voice crack with his reply. It had been so thoughtless of her to expect him to be able to speak under such conditions; if he weren't careful, there was always the chance that he'd ruin his voice for good. She knew that if that happened she'd feel terrible and responsible. :Well then, stop being so careless.: Edgar's comment was scathing.

After she had poured the hot water into a teapot and allowed the tea to seep for a few minutes, she placed the teapot itself, a teacup and saucer and a small bowl of sugar cubes that she was lucky to have on hand on a small tray to take out to Rua.

"Here you go, love." Jennifer set the items on the tray down in front of Rua one at a time with care and a smile that she hoped was reassuring. "Surely this will set you to rights."

If Rua knew she'd feel bad because of his voice, he wouldn't have said anything. Or, he probably would have gotten up and walked in there. Honestly he wouldn't blame her if anything else happened. It was his own fault. Well, maybe his manager was mostly to blame, but Rua and that manager, had laid all the blame on Rua. That was alright. He smiled when she brought the tea out to him and set it before him. "Thank you." He certainly hoped it would set him right, he didn't like his voice being like that. "Everything..will be alright..eventually." He murmured mostly to himself as he put two sugar cubes in the tea before bringing it to his lips. It was hot, of course, just made but Rua gulped down two big sips of the hot liquid as if it were nothing and just lukewarm. He closed his eyes, his body relaxing. The warmth spread through him, it had eased and soothed his throat almost as soon as it touched it. He opened his eyes, giving Jennifer a relaxed, easy smile.

Now, he would nurse that cup of tea. Just take gentle sips from it every now and then.

In spite of the condition that his voice was in, it did indeed sound like Rua had a very pleasant voice to listen to - even while just speaking. Jennifer hoped that the special steps she had added to the process of making the tea would have the affect she desired; while she had been in the kitchen out of sight, Jennifer had taken a moment while the tea seeped to lay a healing spell over it and infused the tea with a very small amount of her power. By the third or fourth sip it ought to be obvious about whether the spell had worked or not.

:It doesn't seem as if we'll be receiving anymore guests for the moment - do you mind if I joined the conversation?: Edgar asked Jennifer, the slightest overtones of a plea tinting the mindspeech.

:You've never even been introduced to William and he's a regular here. You want to blow our cover for Rua, who might not even stick around?:

:Haven't you already blown our cover if any detects that spell?: If Edgar had been able to, it'd be about this point where he cocked an eyebrow at Jennifer and smirked. As it was, she could read his sentiment in his thoughts.

Without responding to the snake Jennifer sighed aloud and held up her hand, palm up, so that the snake would be able to uncoil himself from around her neck and slither down her arm to coil around her wrist with his head resting in her palm. With his thoughts pitched, so to speak, in order to enable both Rua and William to hear him, he introduced himself.

: Pardon me for not speaking sooner but I am Edgar and I would like to know what ails you, Rua.:

Jennifer cursed.

The tea was doing wonders for his throat. Perhaps it was some special blend, maybe he'd need to ask for the recipe later? He had been taking small sips and was just lowering the cup from his fourth sip, glancing up curiously as the snake shifted around on the woman. Well, as long as it didn't bite him, he didn't really mind what it did. It seemed ordinary enough. Thankfully he had set his cup down just before the snake spoke, or the poor blond would have dropped it.

The snake spoke, Jennifer cursed, Rua jumped up and back, knocking over his seat and looking rather startled. Those eyes jumping this way looking for the invisible speaker, he was certain it hadn't been the other male at the bar, and as far as he could tell there was no one else around. Maybe he'd finally lost it? All that abuse had made him insane. "I'm hearing voices..." He spoke the words almost sadly, Rua didn't want to go insane, not yet at least. Then he blinked. His voice, it didn't sound so hoarse anymore. Wow that tea really was amazing, Rua shook his head, leaning down to pick his seat up. He glanced at Jennifer, perhaps she'd heard the voice too? No, of course she wouldn't have heard it, she wasn't crazy.

His chair picked up, the blonde just stood there. Looking very uncertain.

:I told you so!:

The clatter of the chair being knocked over onto the floor only served to exemplify her point. Edgar sighed, mentally, and clearly audible to the three humans in the room. Even Jennifer had to admit that for a moment she had sounded like a petulant child but, damn, had it felt good to be right. She smiled and hoped it was reassuring to the young man. "Yes, you're hearing voices.." she began.

: .. but not in that manner, Rua.: Edgar finished for her.

Jennifer pointed to the snake, as if it weren't obvious where the voice was coming from, and said to Rua, "This is Edgar. He's my .. familiar." She grimaced with the last part; clearly she expected some kind of trouble to arise from this little interaction. :As long as he doesn't scream "Witch!" and run for a pitchfork, he'll have exceeded all of my expectations.: She thought mostly to herself. Edgar only chuckled.

"By the way, how does your throat feel?"

Rua did not know what to do. Any normal human would probably scream and run away if they chose to believe in such a thing as familiars and witches. Rua, he wasn't so sure he believed, but he didn't disbelieve either. Besides..it could all be an elaborate prank. And what a fun prank it would be to pull over on someone. That caused him to frown slightly, he didn't want to be insane and he also didn't want to be the target of a prank. "..I.." He blinked. He really didn't know what to do, so he just stared at woman and snake, his gaze one of mistrust for a few moments before it cleared.

Rua blinked. "...A witch? A real life witch?" Only witches had familiars, didn't they? He was probably wrong about that, he blinked. His expression was one of confusion and not quite understanding. "...Is this..some kind of prank?" He glanced around as if looking for anyone else that might have spoken other than the snake. Again he found nothing but himself, the other man, Jennifer and the snake.

At some point he had taken another step backwards, only realizing he had done so after Jennifer asked about his throat. "..uhm..better..thank you." He had mumbled the words, almost uncertainly. His throat was better, but now he wasn't quite sure what was going on. "Snakes don't talk...they eat mice and bite people..they don't speak.." He sounded very uncertain though, honestly he should probably run away from this place.

Jennifer bit her lip out of annoyance and concern for Rua; he wasn't taking the revelation as well as she had hoped he would. Well, what could she expect? It'd be news to most people that the local hangout for the nerds, geeks and tourists was ran by a witch and her pet familiar. :I am not a pet!: Edgar's protest was for Jennifer's ears alone and it caused her to smile. She rubbed the top of his head with care and said to him, : Of course you're no pet.:

"It's not a prank, Rua." She looked up from the snake and locked eyes with the blonde man. Jennifer tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "And you look like you're going to fall down if you don't sit." She look worried; worried about about Rua would do next and worried about him.

:You've nothing to fear from us and every reason to stay.: Edgar addressed Rua directly, mind to mind. :First of all, Jennifer has something in the back that could help with those bruises and, secondly, you should finish your tea. Otherwise your throat will only be half healed.:

For a few moments Rua didn't move. He was trying rationalize things out in his brain. Talking snake, pretty witch woman. Witches weren't real and snakes didn't talk. Of those things he was certain, or at least, he had been completely certain of those things. Nevermind the fact that he secretly wished vampires were real, if he met a real life vampire, he'd probably faint. At least, he hadn't fainted from this yet.

When he was told to sit down and to finish his tea, he did. He returned to his seat, a bit stiffly, mostly because he didn't know what else to do. Rua didn't pick up his tea cup. He glanced at it, had they spiked his drink with something, maybe he had passed out and was dreaming? No, he was sure nothing like that had happened. He watched Jennifer and the snake. If she really was a witch she could do magic...but..Magic didn't exist either. Not really. It was all smoke and mirrors. Well, maybe she was a wiccan. That was the closest thing he knew of to being a real witch, but then..wiccan's didn't have talking snakes, did they?

Rua blinked and ran his hands through his hair. "Bruises?" He had been pulled from his thoughts and then he shook his head. "Oh..those..I'm used to it." He shrugged, his eyes on Edgar the snake. "...So...it's really talking. It's not a trick, not someone throwing his voice from the corner of the room. Edgar the Snake is really talking?" If that was true, really true, that was rather kindof cool, still very freaky. "....Well....I guess...I guess that's alright then." Rua still seemed very uncertain and a little shaken.

"Alright then." With her free hand she nudged the teacup and saucer a bit closer to Rua and gestured to it. "Tea will help soothe your frayed nerves."

"While you may be used to them, those bruises aren't okay, Rua." Before he could protest, she set Edgar down on the counter of the bar, who promptly curled up into a small pile of snake to conserve his warmth, and leaned over closer to Rua to eye his bruises. "We'll need to do something about them."

Something about the blonde man made her feel defensive on his behalf and her heart ached that it couldn't do more for him. She suspected that the bruises had come from someone close to him and not from getting into fights from the way that he acted.

:We're not going to ask questions, Rua, there's no need to tell us how you acquired them but Jennifer has a balm that will work wonders if you'd be willing to try it.:

Jennifer nodded. "I make it myself here at the inn with the plants from my garden out back. It has a little.. zing to it." What she wasn't telling him was that it was infused with her magic in a very similar way to what she had done with the tea.

Frayed? That might have been an understatement, but as things stood, Rua thought he was doing pretty good, though he had nothing to compare too. He took the tea cup, at least he wasn't shaking. That was a good sign right? He watched Jennifer put Edgar down as he sipped his tea. When she leaned over to eye his bruises, Rua leaned back just slightly. "..But it's not important. Bruises heal quickly anyway, so you shouldn't waste your special balm on me." He eyed them both sternly for a moment, as if he din't want to hear any argument from them.

Rua sat that cup down and looked Edgar over for a moment. "No need to tell? Well maybe, I mean it's no one's business but my own. If you want to know though you only have to ask." Rua had shrugged, tossing his words out casually as if it really wasn't a big deal. To him, it wasn't and he couldn't quite figure out why they were being so concerned. Usually his bruises weren't given a second glance, people generally didn't like getting involved in things like that. Even if they didn't know what was really going on. Rua honestly didn't care, but this was new, having someone genuinely concerned.

Inside her heart was breaking but on the outside she remained calm and collected with an air of genuine concern. "It isn't as special as you're making it sound - it's just well made and I have a steady supply of it made up for the stickjocks who come by." Without another word she turned around to face the shelving on the wall behind her. There, up on the second shelf, were three little ceramic jars with cork lids that were marked for sale. Jennifer picked one of them up with an "Ahah!" and turned back around to face Rua and William.

"Here we go. From time to time, I sell it as well." She didn't hesitate to pop the cork out and offer the opened jar to Rua; there arose from inside the jar a strong, but pleasant, smell and the balm itself was pale green in color. It was nearly translucent and if one were to apply it it wouldn't be very noticeable except in smell.

"It really isn't any of our business, Edgar." Her voice was firm; the snake sighed in response.

:No, it isn't and I apologize, Rua, for pressing the matter.:

She seemed so insistent. Rua gave a little sigh of defeat, really he ought to know better than to argue with a woman. He'd never win. Shaking his head slightly he shrugged a bit. Looking at the jar Jennifer had pulled from a shelf and opened, it did have a pleasant smell, he couldn't deny that. When the snake apologized, his attention shifted from the jar to the snake. "You don't need to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong." His gaze shifted back to the jar and the female holding it. He still felt it would be wasted just to be put on some small bruises.

Rua licked his lips, he was hesitating. "Why are you so insistent? I don't understand, it's just bruises. It's nothing to be concerned over." He was just trying to understand, and he did reach out to take the jar from Jennifer's hands. Though only so he could peek inside of it and look thoughtfully at it's contents.

"Because I can be." Jennifer shrugged nonchalantly. "This is something I can do for you that's within my power." She pulled up the single bar stool on her side of the counter and, with care for her skirts, sat down on it. Now she was at eye level with Rua right across from him; she leaned forward to rest her elbows on the counter and Edgar slithered over to her to crawl back up her arm and coil himself around her neck.

"You've been polite and considerate and.." Here she let her guard drop a bit and some of her insecurity shown through in the way that her shoulders momentarily drooped. ".. you didn't denounce me for the witch that I am." She had been so sure that sharing her secret with him, and William for that matter, would be a disaster that in her relief that it wasn't she'd probably have promised Rua the moon if he asked for it.