• Solo • Practice makes perfect (or not)

[Devin]

10th of Ymiden, Arc 718

On the 10th Ymiden Devin Thorn, thief, con man extraordinaire and self-proclaimed member of one of the Eastern Settlement’s richest family, sat on a bench in the street in front of his house because the weather was quite nice, the sun was shining, and he absolutely hated being cooped up inside for more than a few breaks at a time. His head was bent over his beloved lute that was in his lap so that a few stray locks of dark hair fell into his face as he played, barely paying attention to the people that passed him by or his pet that sat next to him - a bizarre creature that couldn’t quite decide if it was a bunny or a bird. He loved making music. It made him feel better, it made him forget, and it helped him relax after a trial of lying and stealing. Conning people could be quite exhausting sometimes!

The song that he was playing was a love song, a simple, calm and gentle melody that warmed your heart. He had bought the sheet music a few trials earlier and been practicing almost constantly since then because he wanted to be able to play it perfectly when he was at Cally’s later that trial. When Faith had hired him, he had lied about the extent of his skill with the lute a little because he had really wanted the money and the free food and all the other goodies, but he couldn’t very well go to her now and tell her that he was sorry, he wasn’t a master bard, but he would try his best nevertheless. He didn’t want to either, to be honest! He would be the best lutist on Scalvoris -and beyond – before long anyway!

He was just going through the song for the fourth time this afternoon because he had screwed up the first three times, and some of the notes had been rather off when he heard a sound – a most beautiful sound - the sound of somebody applauding which was one of his favourite sounds in the entire world. As he looked up from his instrument for a moment, he saw the somewhat overweight middle-aged woman that lived down the street standing in front of him, a wicker basket that was filled with all kinds of vegetables on the ground in front of her. Apparently, he realized, she was just on her way home from a shopping trip. “That was quite nice!” she complimented him and smiled at him.

Devin beamed at her – apparently, she hadn’t noticed the two or three mistakes that he had made this time or didn’t care about them at least – stood up and bowed in a somewhat exaggerated fashion. For a moment he expected her to proceed to tip him – because that was what people did when they liked your music, right? – but she only smiled at him once more, picked her basket up again and went on her way. Devin pouted and let out a loud sigh before he continued to practice. He still had two breaks before he had to show up at Cally’s, and until then the song needed to be absolutely flawless!

[Devin]

When Devin arrived at the restaurant, he was dressed in his best clothes that included a crisp white silk shirt, fine dark pants and a hat with an impressive bright red feather on it. He had agreed that he would play background music, but he had never agreed that he would wear boring clothes that made him blend in with his surroundings and that made him look as if he were part of the furniture. There was also a huge smile on his face even though he had only gotten the song completely right a single time, because self-doubts just weren’t his thing.

He slipped through the staff entrance near the kitchen, not because he was a good little employee who knew where he belonged, but because he hoped to catch a glimpse of Trudi, the lovely waitress that worked here. As he noticed her standing there, waiting for the cook to hand over the meal that she had just finished preparing, he gave her his most radiant smile. She smiled back at him and was just about to open her mouth in order to say something when the cook abruptly thrust a plate at her. Trudi made a face and cast one last regretful look at Devin before she walked into the common room, swaying her hips seductively as she did so.

Devin watched her for a few moments with a somewhat dreamy expression before he turned to face Taylor, the handsome kitchen helper who had just entered the room, carrying a basket full of carrots that needed to be chopped up. He smiled at him suggestively, just like he had smiled at Trudi only a moment before – until the cook cast a very disapproving look at him and shook her fist at him.

As he saw that, Devin quickly turned away and hurried towards the door to the restaurant proper, as if the thought of flirting with his colleagues when he was supposed to be working had never occurred to him. A moment later he sat down on Pash’ chair that was his chair now and drank a bit of water from the glass that somebody had put on the small table next to him. He spent the first couple of bits tuning his lute and playing a few chords in order to warm up while he let his gaze occasionally sweep across the room that extended in front of him.

That early in the evening, only a few of the tables were occupied. He could see a young couple that were obviously in love, a mother with her two children – and a man that was wearing a fine dark suit and that was obviously quite well off. Devin looked at him a moment longer than he looked at the other people. He likely had something that was worth stealing, but then again, the thief realized, stealing at the place where you worked was a really bad idea.

For as long as he was at Cally’s, he decided, he would pretend to be an upstanding, law-abiding member of society. He would behave, at least most of the time, he would play well, and he would always be on time!

[Devin]

He played the little love song that he had practiced all afternoon long, slowly at first to lessen the likelihood of making mistakes. His chords were warm and gentle, like a sunny afternoon in Ymiden and just loud enough to be noticed, but not loud enough to get in the way of the conversations that were happening in the restaurant. As he played, he occasionally cast a glance at the young couple, as if he were playing for them and just for them. He made a mistake once, but he immediately continued to play and offered his audience a radiant smile in order to make it seem as if he had intended to play that particular, slightly out of place note all along.

After a while new people entered the restaurant, and Devin started to play a new song, a slightly faster, cheerful tune that he knew from his childhood, a song that his old teacher had taught him to play, so many seasons ago in Rynmere. It was already dark when Paul, one of the waiters, approached him, carrying a plate that was filled with a delicious looking stew. Devin’s mouth immediately began to water, and he put his lute down for a moment in order to eat. This, he thought, was one of the best parts of working at Cally’s!

He had just finished eating his meal and was waiting for somebody to take the empty plate away again when he felt it, a strange, wet and unpleasant sensation just below his nose. When he wiped at it with his hand, thinking there was a bit of food stuck on his upper lip, he noticed that it was covered with a whole lot of blood. He furrowed his brow, wondering why his nose had suddenly started to bleed and reached into a pocket of his pants in order to remove a handkerchief … except that there wasn’t anything in there!

He looked around, panicking slightly even though he wasn’t normally one to panic and covered his nose that was bleeding quite violently now with both of his hands. He checked if any of the patrons were currently paying attention to him, and then he quickly dashed into the kitchen. Taylor who was just doing the dishes looked at him for a moment, and then he immediately rushed towards him. “Sit down here”, he ordered him and pointed at an empty chair that stood next to the door. “Lean slightly forward, tilt your head forward and pinch your nose. I used to have nosebleeds quite frequently when I was a child.”

“Has this happened before?” he wanted to know. Devin nodded. “Once, immediately after that stupid adventure with the magical tree”, he replied. His voice sounded kind of nasal because he was still pinching his nose. By the Fates, he wished he had never entered that island! He wished he … he noticed that his nose wasn’t bleeding quite as badly anymore, and he looked up and smiled at Taylor who smiled back at him, took his hand and squeezed it encouragingly. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Trudi as well, concern written all over his face, and he suddenly felt a whole lot better.

In fact, he felt quite excellent!

[Caius Gawyne]

Here's your sarding thread review already.

Darling Devin

Points

XP:
10 | These points cannot be used for magic.

Renown:
+5 Expanding Cally's musical scene

Goodies

N/A

Consequences

N/A

Knowledges

Skill Knowledge:
Deception: Exaggerating your skill with the lute
Deception: It wasn't a mistake, it was intentional!
Medicine: How to stop a noseblood
Musical Instrument (Lute): Playing a few chords in order to warm up
Musical Instrument (Lute): Playing slowly leads to fewer mistakes
Musical Instrument (Lute): Practicing is important!

Other Knowledge:
None requested.

Comments

Takin' Pash's seat in Cally's is no small task, even for an adorable conman such as Devin. I appreciate his aspirations and approve. I love how you always highlight these little details with this self-deprecating humor such as the sound of someone applauding.

Look out for Trudi. Or any of the staff! Or ... don't. Your choice! Keep your mind on the job at least for a few bits, Devin.

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Be not afraid of greatness:
Some are born great, some achieve greatness,
And some have greatness thrust upon 'em.

- Malvolio | Shakespeare's Twelf Night (II, v, 156-159)