Being a tavern wench was not the life Penny had envisioned for herself when she had run away to the city. It really wasn't much better than being a farm girl. The stale smell of manure near the horses, the gossip, the rowdy drunks...
The only real difference seemed to be that nobody minded that Penny herself was often one of the rowdy drunks in question. Well that, and now Penny wasn't required to wake up at the crack of dawn. Just that had her sold on life at the Tavern/Inn.
Seriously, try waking up to a rooster for every miserable day of your life and then sleep until it's midday once. Just once was all it had taken to convince Penny she had done the right thing leaving the farm.
It was also nice that she didn't have to pretend she wasn't sleeping with a guy that hadn't even attempted proper courting. Judge her all you want, but there are frankly not many fun things to do in a farm. And the winters were long, and cold. Penny was utterly unashamed of what she had done in order to keep herself sane and warm. It was an open secret that most girls did that in her village anyway, and everyone understood that if you got pregnant you got married, end of story.
Fortunately her grandmother had taught her a little herbal recipe to avoid that. She had said the women in her family were usually more affectionate than most with a very disturbing wink. Penny had just shrugged and moved on. Like hell she would ask what the wink was about. She was pretty sure she did not want to know. And she didn't really care why she got it as long as it worked.
She was especially grateful on her fifteenth birthday. She had been the only girl of marriageable age not pregnant in their village. It had even gotten Penny the title of Corn Queen that summer.
Her Kernel crown was one of the few things she had taken with her when she'd stolen away one with a band of travelling actors. Just watching them perform on that stage had shown Penny what she wanted to do in life. Not just what she wanted, but what she was destined for. If only the travelling band had made it to the tiny village of Omaha a few years earlier. Then Penny wouldn't be nearly twenty now.
Or at least not nearly twenty and a bar maid. Professionally.
Penny knew she was a spinster, all things considered, farm girls usually married at sixteen, but that had been the year Penny had ran away, and when it turned out that the travelling troupe she had left with didn't mind giving her two bit parts, it soon became clear that she was never going to be their star. No matter how much prettier than the actual leads she was. Or rather because of how much prettier than them she was. Penny was never allowed onstage without something covering her face.
And Penny wanted to be a star.
She wanted to be the center of attention. Penny wanted the world to hold it's breath to hear her speak, she wanted everyone to know how beautiful she was, inside and out. Penny wanted to be a Princess, or a Queen, even if it was just pretend. And when it had become clear that she could never be one with them she left.
No one tried to stop her.
It didn't take her long to realize that most acting troupes had just two real stars, the rest just followed. And no one would take her seriously about starting her own. Penny had taken up tending the bar temporarily. Something to keep a roof over her head and to keep her from the bad side of town. It had taken her not so innocent mind a good year before she realized why those so called stars held their positions.
In the end it all came down to one thing; sex.
Penny hadn't liked that. Not that she had anything against sex, she enjoyed it, actually and wasn't willing to give her own sex life up. But while Penny didn't have much in the way of possessions and proper upbringing she did have her pride. And she would never use her skills in the bedroom as means to an end. It just wasn't going to happen. It made her no better than a working girl. And Penny had talent, damn it! She didn't have to crawl into some guys bed to make her dream come true.
Working at the tavern was suppose to be temporary. A way for Penny to regroup, figure out how to start an acting troupe on her own where she didn't have to sleep around to score the lead role.
That had been a year ago.
She was still working on it.
Meanwhile she worked in one of the more upper class parts of town, looking at her in her fine dress and pretty smile no one would ever guess she was a common farm girl. And those lessons from the actors troupes weren't wasted on her, Penny spoke and walked like an upper class villager, despite the fact that only a disgraced one would work in a tavern, and everyone knew that. But the tips were more than worth the effort.
"Good morning," Penny smiled brightly at one of her regulars. Leonard Hofstadter was one of the most well educated men in the whole of Pasadena. No matter how unattractive Penny found him, she had to admit, the attention was flattering. She always figured that, worse come to worse, she could always bed him. Lack of proper upbringing or no, she knew Leonard would take her, keep her as a mistress, the way most wealthy men did. But somehow that thought made him even more unappealing.
"Good morning Penny," He replied with one of his little grins, squinting at her through the glass things only nobles could afford. She thought they were supposed to help him see.
"The usual?" She asked, Leonard nodded. And Penny would have gotten him his toast and bacon as usual, and forgotten all about it, if not for one little thing.
The way Leonard was looking at her.
Now Penny was used to being leered at, especially by Leonard. She was a beautiful girl, and many of the eligible and modestly wealthy, as well as those that were neither, covertly appreciated her looks on occasion. And that wasn't factoring in all the leering done blatantly.
So Penny was used to male attention, and what that particular gleam in a mans eye meant. Which was why the way Leonard was looking at her bothered her. It wasn't just lust, or even a mix of affection and desire. The way he usually looked at her. No, there was an eagerness to it, an anticipation that made Penny's stomach turn with dread. Whatever it was Leonard was thinking about couldn't be anything good.
The last time Penny had seen a man eye her like that she had to take a thick glass tankard to his head. No one had ever managed to force themselves on Penny. But it wasn't exactly from lack of trying.
So she smiled cautiously at the man when she returned with his order. No one had noticed when she had spirited away a particularly sharp Kitchen knife into her apron. No matter what was said of chivalry, Penny knew the truth. Most of the time, a girl had to protect herself.
xXx
Leonard watched her in fascination.
His goddess.
His golden haired soul mate walked with a grace he found far above any others. But then, how could mortal women hope to equal her in anyway? Especially in beauty. The Queen herself wasn't half as lovely.
He had never found it difficult to find company among the women of lower class. It was simply one of the many privileges his status and upbringing had afforded him. Money was power after all, and Leonard had plenty of it.
But none of that power seemed to sway Penny.
The sight of her smile alone had convinced him to enter the tavern, an establishment he would have easily deemed far too beneath him otherwise. And she had him to the point where he would come in for whatever meal was provided during her shift. Despite having eaten at home, and that he could never finish anything on his plate.
No, Leonard only entered the tavern to look at Penny. Something he knew his goddess was well aware of. He had made careful overtures for her favor, but Penny would simply thank him with a smile. And while that alone did make the trinkets well worth it, it did not change the fact that he wanted Penny to grace his bed. Nor the fact that she seemed to hold no interest in doing so.
But Leonard knew better.
He had spoken of her to the manager, when inquiring about her schedule, and he knew his Penny was an actress. And that she spoke and acted the way she did on her shifts for her tips. It would have been unprofessional and unwise for her to show him the favor and affection she felt for him. And, if the way she wouldn't agree to meet outside of the tavern was anything to go by, he was sure she was also rather shy.
She was something of a spinster after all, no doubt having kept herself pure whilst waiting for him. Penny probably had no idea about what pleasure two people could find in bed. And Leonard was truly looking forward to educating her. To gently, slowly rid her of that innocence so that they could truly enjoy their time together. Of course, a proper courting came first.
But Leonard had grown impatient.
It had been three months since he had discovered Penny. They should be well into their honeymoon now. Or at least in the beginning of a fiery affair. Penny's shyness was costing them time they could have been spending together.
So he had called in a favor with the witch at the castle.
As someone of noble blood closely related to the king, Leonard had the good fortune to be a frequent visitor at the castle. And thanks to his studies, he was in line to be a court advisor. It was during his quest for knowledge at the library that he had met the witch. Though not many knew that was what she was.
Miss Leslie de Winkle posed as a lady in waiting for the princess. Her post at the castle granting her access to the myriad of hidden magical tomes in the Library. According to her, if not for his own sizable intellect he could have never seen the real title of the tome she had been studying.
It had been one of the best decisions of his life not to report her. Miss Leslie had opened his eyes to the wonders of magic. Showing him how to bend people to his will, making those of his acquaintance forget social faux passes or embarrassing scenarios he had undergone in his youth.
Thanks to her, he was closer to being a court advisor than ever before.
He was sure he could use magic to make others forget about Penny's lack of station when they were wed. That way it wouldn't impact his ambitions. Or her future position in court as his wife. A position she would soon take. After her shift that night.
Leonard had payed off some thugs to bring her to a dungeon in the castle. There the witch had prepared him a spell. She would enchant Penny to pursue her true desires whilst glamouring herself to seem some horrid warlock. He would then burst into the room and rescue her. After, the chips would fall where they were meant to be. And Penny would finally be his.
X
So I totally think I have one mideval shenny fantasy au left in me. There is a sad lack of dragons in this one but it is october so it seems seaon appropriate. Please let me know what you think. Also I will be participating in Nanowrimo this year which means no posting in november. Any other story in particular you guys would rather I focus on updating? Please let me know! I'll try my best.