Job and a place to stay at the inn(now open)

[Altier Valstar]

I watched as Serenity and Ray walked away. They said they would be back to check on me later but didn't give a time or day. They aren't abandoning me, it was just safer for me here. I didn't understand but the man had agreed to look after me while I stayed here.

He reminded me of a butler the way he was standing. I took a few steps toward him keeping my head down. "First I should tell I'm doing this as a favor, but I am no babysitter. I expect you to be on your best behavior." "Yes sir," I said in a small voice, for looking like a butler his voice was commanding.

He took me on a tour of the inn and he told me where I could and couldn't go and we ended at the room he said I would be sharing with him. At least thats what I thought he said as I was spacing out by that time.

"Young man! I can't have one of my future employee's sulking and daydreaming." The man claimed. "What!! I didn't agree to that." I shouted at the man. Was that how he ran this place forcing runaways to work for him for nothing. A gleam in the man's eyes didn't seem to hold a sould of someone caught up in greed and cruelty. "Lower your voice young man there are people trying to sleep in rooms close by. " At this time it wasn't even noon yet? "You've yet to hear the job or the see the wages," he said and took a small bag from his side and then set a handfull of different coins into my hand. "That much for a full day's work. Which will include cleaning and if you do well with that delivering meals to the customers here"

I had never held so much money in my hands at once before. "I can't ... " I started and he dropped another of the lesser coins in my hand. "You are driving a hard bargin but I can't go any higher than that. " he said and grinned at me. This time I nodded and grinned back, and then started to shout my reply but lowered it when I remembered what he said about the customers. "I will do my best to earn it."
"I expect no less" and he opened the door to the room.

[Altier Valstar]

He led me into a over sized room with two beds on one side and another bed at the other. "You can put your things under the bed..." He continued but I couldn't belive I would be sleeping on a bed again and without realizing it I was tuning him out again.

I flopped on the bed that was away from the other two and felt lost in the softness. Then a voice pulled me back from my daydream. "Get off my bed you creep." He felt someone grab the collar of shirt lifting him up to see a girl about the same age as him with a really pissed look in her eyes and a hand curled into a fist ready to pound him. "I don't see your name on it." I retorted before even thinking about it.

"Lime" the man said with a harsh voice. She let go of me still with a look of dislike as she turned and sat back at her desk doing whatever she was doing before. His harsh voice fell on me next" Young man it is her bed or do you not see the flowerly design on the quilt?" "Yea sissy," the girl said low enough that only I could hear it. I got up and started to follow the man to my bed turned and stuck out my tounge at her and she replied by doing the same. I didn't care what was on the bed... a bed was a bed to me.

[Altier Valstar]

The man showed me to the bed that would be mine. I tried to give him back the money when he said that he would show me the first room I had to clean. "Think of it as incentive to do a good job today" He said with a smile and gave me a spare bag to hold them in and I stuffed the coins inside it and stuck it under the bed.

He took me to the kitchen and handed me a broom. So this was my first job. I don't mind some hard work. And I had nothing else to do. The place was messy like there was only one cook and he or she was in such a hurry that things landed on the floor all the time and then was trampled. He then left me to the task saying, "I have some things at the front desk to take care of, you can find me there if you need anything." I nodded thinking I knew my way to find that at least and started sweeping.

[Serenity]

I walked into the inn and looked around and wondered where Altier was and then I went to the counter/desk and hit the bell and waited for someone to show up. After a few minutes the innkeeper showed up and said “How may I help you” and I shook my head and said “How forgetful we are today.”

Then his eyes went wide and said “Ahh Lady Serenity, I did not recognized you for a moment…if you want to know how the boy is I will send him out after he is done cleaning one of the rooms ok?” I nodded my head and then said “I will be sitting over there” I pointed to a table in a dark corner and then I said “Send him over but don’t tell him it’s me ok.”

I then went to the table and sat down smiling for I was now wearing a different hooded cloak, it was black as night and was made from velvet and I had the hood on so no one could see my face.

[Altier Valstar]

I finished sweeping the crumbs and other food that fallen to the floor and saw that the counters were messy as well and tidied them up and went to find Walter again. He was at the counter writing filling out some papers in front of him. "Done with that room!" I said. "The whole floor? Already?"
"Yep!", I piped in , " and tidied some dishes to be washed too. I beamed and he smiled back at me. "Good. Lime hates getting them ready almost as much as actually doing them." I helped her?... grrr.

"Before I send you to the next room you have a visiter. " He pointed to the dark corner of the room. I walked over to the table more than alittle frightened at the hooded person that was sitting there blending in with the darkness. Could it be...? Had my step-father tracked me down to drag me back to be toremented by him again even though he was the one who forced me from my home? I could bearly make the words come out, " You asked for me?"

[Serenity]

"Indeed I did" I said and cold tell he was a little scared and I laughed a little and got out of my seat and embraced him. "Hello Altier, I did not mean to scare you" I said and removed my hood and I had a big grin on my face and my eyes were now brown(eye contacts) I then moved back and said “So how are you doing?”

[Altier Valstar]

The person said they did indeed laughed a little and grabbed me. I was about to cause a scene hoping the man would come to my aid when the voice said it didn't mean to scare me and revealed who it was. Serenity!!! I was so releaved that it wasn't who I thought it was that I hugged her tears making their way down my face. She backed away and I let go.

"I'm doing great," my tears were drying up but my voice as still caught between the flow of emotions. I had a feeling she already knew, maybe even set it up, but in a more exited voice I said, " I'm working for..., " I was going to turn around and point but he wasn't there anymore, " the guy you left me with." I beamed with pride as I thought about how he had praised me. "He says I'm doing a good job!." I exclaimed. Well he hadn't said it like that but he was surprised I was already done with the kitchen.

[Serenity]

I smiled and listened to him and said "I am glad to hear that Altier, so does that mean you like it here then?"

[Altier Valstar]

"It's..." I started, then thought about Lime, "..ok." I began to wonder why she was asking. "Where did you and Ray go?" I looked into her eyes, something was different. Brown? "What happened to your eyes?!!" I shouted and moved my hand up like I was seriously thinking about poking one to see if it was real.I knew it was rude and that anyone in the room would have heard me and I blushed an even darker shade of red than before and lowered my hand.

[Serenity]

I laughed at his little outburst about my eyes and saw him turn read and thought *Awwww.* I then smiled at him and said "I had some business to take care of and I am not sure where Ray is" I then added quietly "I am wearing eye contacts, so thats why they are not red...I wish not to attract unwanted attention."