* * *
"Hey, kid."
You looked up at the figure who called for you.
He was smoking his pipe as usual, you were certain his habits betrayed the priestly attire he wore.
His ugly beard must have grown from all the ash and smoke he kept inhaling.
"I can hear you, y'know? Cheeky brat."
Must have been his imagination.
You felt a fist land on your small head. It definitely didn't hurt you.
You asked him for what reason had he called for you. Maybe he'll finally teach you how to read, like he had always promised.
"That'll come at later time, don't worry. Let me ask you this, kid, what do you know of the history of this world?"
You shrugged your shoulders.
"Humor me, brat."
He no longer looked at you, he continued tending to the small garden.
Silence.
He conceded; it was your victory.
"We only know of the past due to the efforts of those that came before us. Yet, we know find ourselves in a hole we've buried ourselves in, where the past is constantly rewritten; the struggles and failures of our predecessors are discarded and omitted from the history books. I want you to remember this, kid, when you eventually leave this orphanage and venture forth into this vast world, you'll make mistakes, but do not ever avert your eyes from the past. I can see it in your eyes, that innate curiosity paired with that amazing memory within that skull of yours: you have talent, kid."
He laughed, his eyes shone with a pale gray lustre, it reminded you of the Moon.
"I hope that once you've experience enough of the world, or once you've settled down, you'll come back to this place—your home. We'll have a chat, and you'll tell me all the people you've met, all the areas you've been to, and the many encounters you've faced. I'm sure it'll make for a nice story."
He smiled. You now sat next to him, he proceeded to give you a small fruit, it looked delicious. Maybe you'll ask him how to grow them in the future.
"Haha, do forgive this old man for giving you this burden, my old profession still makes it so I can't help but want to meddle in the affairs of others. Maybe you'll come to understand me once you're older."
He wasn't always in charge of our home?
Now curious, you asked him what his previous profession was.
He simply responded with,
"Seeker."
* * *
Opening the door, Finn winced when his eyes met with the extremely lit interior of the inn, and though he was made uncomfortable by how bright the inside was, he was able to make out what was inside the inn.
5 sets of tables alongside chairs that strewn across the ground were spread across the inn. However, what caught his attention the most wasn't the disorderly state the inn was in, it was what was happening in the table at the center. The customers were huddled around it, shouting and laughing, and at the center of it all was a fierce looking woman with red hair and amber eyes who was in the midst of arm-wrestling a stoic man with hair was covering his eyes, his left cheek had a gruesome scar which ran to his jaw.
Shouting could be heard across the room.
"Get 'em, boss! Don't make us lose our wages now!"
"Dun' get scared now, vice cap'n! Your honor's at stake here, haha!"
The constant clinking of glasses and the shouting matches made for a new experience for the young Finn. Whether he liked it or not was undetermined for now.
"Rowdy bunch those folks are, eh?"
A voice rang next to Finn's.
"Not a change in expression, really? Never mind, so, what could I get for you in this fine establishment? Though, as you can see, you might be too young to hang 'round here."
Finn looked up at his new conversation partner.
The boy looked to be around his late teens, with orange hair and freckles. He wore a spotless white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow, alongside a pair of loose black pants and leather shoes. Finn noticed that the tie he wore was loose and crooked. Finn had heard of these people before from, with their uniforms: they were called waiters. Though the boy before him didn't seem to respect it much.
What was more interesting to Finn was that the older boy had two swords strapped to his waist. The design was fascinating, two snakes exquisitely carved out of wood that intertwined to form the grip, while their tails and heads formed the pommel and cross guard respectively. Yet, instead of a straight blade like other swords Finn had seen, these ones had a blade that started straight at the bottom but then curved inwards which formed a less rounded sickle shape.
Do most waiters always have weapons strapped to their waists? He also doesn't remember ever being told waiters could earn enough money to afford such intricately designed swords.
The older boy had long since noticed the interested gaze Finn had on his pair of weapons, but he brushed it off, and added, "So? Tell me, kid."
Finn simply pointed at the entrance of the inn and made a gesture to follow. The older boy, although still confused, decided to follow the boy.
'Not much of a talker, this guy.'
Well, he had nothing better to do anyway. Their dear customers would already know what would happen to them if anything were to be destroyed in the inn.
With the worker in tow, Finn opened the door and what greeted them was the familiar looking white dog, still sitting at the same spot, it had not moved an inch and now stared face-to-face at Finn and the older boy.
"So...what? Give me a bone here, kid—good one, me—what do you want me to do with it?"
Finn had indeed not explained himself clearly. Or at all for that matter.
Finn continued to stare at the older boy, his usual expression—or lack thereof, remained.
"Tough customer we got here."
The waiter seemed exasperated.
Finn shook his head, and then pointed at the dog and then straight ahead. He then mimicked running while standing still.
"You want me to... make it go away?"
Finn nodded his head.
"Alright, let's first try shooing it away first. Go, dog! Go!"
Finn watched as the waiter tried, and failed, repeatedly to make the dog move without harming it. The waiter even tried lifting the dog up from the ground, but it stood rooted in its place.
"Alright, let's test this."
The waiter lifted Finn up by his armpits, and proceeded to take a couple of steps forward, away from the inn.
The dog was no longer sitting, it was now following where the waiter went.
"That settles it. Seems like you won't getting rid of it. Unless you'd kill it, of course. But I'll leave that up to you."
The waiter added with a laugh, "Oh, looks like you do have emotions, after all."
Finn's displeasure must have clearly shown on his face.
It was a mighty beast, and not some cute dog. His life would be in constant danger now.
The beast had a terrifying smile on it's face, it must surely be plotting something sinister against Finn. What lied beyond those sinister, gleaming red eyes?
The freckled boy looked at the pair, a hint of interest flashed through his eyes.
"Alright, now that that's been sorted, I think you'll find my next words very interesting, kid."
The waiter offered a deal to Finn.
"How about working here? I assume you don't currently have a place to stay. Let's say, we'll give you 3 meals a day, with lodging included as a starting point. The finer details can be refined once we head inside. Oh, and you can call me Isaac."
The reason? Isaac deduced that the dog was certainly not a normal one, if it even was a dog in the first place. It had such strength that it could even stand its ground against Isaac, even while malnourished. And it seemed to follow the boy everywhere he went, showing great loyalty. If trained, the boy and the beast could prove to be a great pair and the boy could even grow to have a talent for beast taming.
Finn nodded and took the deal, he also reasoned that since he can't get rid of the beast, he might as well make it indebted to him with food. He resolved himself to show the beast who its master was now.
"Finn."
'He could've saved me the hassle if he had communicated before...'
Isaac decided not to question Finn's oddities. Being quiet wasn't necessarily a bad trait.
"A good name. Now, let's see if I can successfully convince my dear boss, and your potential new employer."
With that call, the three of them headed into the inn.
The stars flickered, filling the night sky with their laughter and dances.
The lights of the inn shone brightly with fervor and pride.