2. A place to stay

Meister swung open the door to Ariela's Tavern, relieved that he had gotten there without being spotted by any other guards. He was definitely in need of rest, as he was completely exhausted from running about earlier, and his ankle wasn't going to be any better without rest. He made it to the counter, doing his best to avoid brushing any shoulders with the drunken people at the tables, before he sat down at a stool and waited.

A young woman appeared a few moments later, and Meister looked at her carefully. She had reddish brown hair, pushed back by a red bandanna that she wore. She also wore a white tank top with a brown off-the-shoulder shirt with dark pants and shoes.

"Welcome to the tavern, sir. Would you like to order anything?" She asked, gesturing to a menu she had brought with her.

"No thank you." Meister responded politely. "Actually, I was wondering if I could speak to Miss Ariela."

"Well," The young lady replied, smiling. "You're talking to her right now. What is it that you need to speak to me about, sir?"

Meister swallowed, before speaking. "I was wondering if I could reside here for a while. I don't know how long it will be, though, so perhaps I could work here if you'd like." He started. "I would pay, but I don't have any money, and I don't even know how I got into this city in the first place...Or how to get back..." He trailed off quietly.

Ariela paused, before speaking up. "Well, I suppose that could be arranged. Things have been getting busier lately since the fighting between Lazulis and the Gurak ceased about a month ago, so we could use all the help we can get to keep up with things. You can run errands or help in the kitchen. Can you cook?"

"Yes, I can. I can learn quickly, too." Meister responded, nodding once. "Thank you, Ariela."

"It's no problem. I can show you to a room now, if you'd like. It should be the first one to the right." Ariela replied as she walked out from behind the counter. The two started to walk up the stairs when she spoke up. "What's your name, by the way?"

"My name is Sylvan. Sylvan Kirisaki." He responded, smiling a bit at her. "It's a pleasure to meet you and to work with you, Ariela." While he was speaking, he accidentally opened a door-revealing two women who were in the process of getting changed. The two ladies let out a scream as Meister shut the door quickly, mortified. "Erm...I suppose I should apologize to them later...Sorry..."

"It's supposed to be the first one to the right, not left..." Ariela trailed off with a sigh. "Mirania may let you off easily, but I don't Syrenne will be too happy about it...You might want to be a bit more careful around her."

"Thanks for the advice..." He muttered quietly as he entered his room. It was small, but surely decent enough. There was a comfy-looking bed in one corner, with a window at one end of the room as well. There was a dresser that was opposite the bed, and there was a bedtable as well. "Thank you for the lodgings, Ariela."

"It's no problem at all." Ariela responded, smiling. She then paused, looking at him carefully. "Are you some sort of travelling entertainer? You look the part."

"Um, yes. I'm a travelling magician." Meister responded, looking down at his attire. "Unfortunately, this is the only outfit I have. I lost all of my other attire on the way here." He fibbed. He hated to lie, but again, he doubted anyone would believe him if he said he was a general manager of a bakery, taking his appearance into consideration. "I'm sure I don't need anything too fanciful to wear if I am going to work in the kitchen, however. Nice-looking clothing doesn't belong there."

"True," Ariela agreed, "But if you ever need to perform, you need to look somewhat professional, right?"

"Hm. True." Meister agreed with her statement. "Perhaps I can get myself a few sets of clothing that can be used appropriately during work in the tavern, and I can get one set of spare clothing for whenever I perform my magic tricks."

"That sounds good." Ariela paused for a moment, before speaking up again. "You know, I think I could probably purchase some spare clothing for you for work in the tavern-"

"Oh, um...You don't need to..." Meister trailed off, but Ariela continued.

"Well, we can't have oil splashing on that attire, can we?" She concluded, gesturing to his frilled shirt and the rest of his fancy clothing that he currently wore. "And you'll have to take your mask off while working in the tavern, otherwise I'm afraid some people will think you're creepy or something."

"Oh." Meister didn't think he looked too creepy with the mask on, honestly, but he supposed it was better to be safe than sorry. Besides, the guards had never seen him without his mask on, so it would be harder for them to recognize him. He could probably tie his hair back, too, and the change of clothes would help conceal his identity further as well. Maybe a bit of makeup, once he could afford some, to look even more different-but only if necessary. "You have a point there, Ariela. Thank you, though I swear I will pay you back as soon as I can."

"At this rate you're going to go into debt and be unable to pay it off." The reddish-haired other responded, crossing her arms.

The long-haired blond let out a sigh. "I'm aware of that, thank you..."

Meister sighed as he lay in bed, the moonlight streaming through the window. He and Ariela had went off earlier to purchase some appropriate work clothing when in the tavern. Dang it, she was right-At this rate, he was going to end up in debt...The few sets of work clothing was already more than enough than he could afford, so he decided to not purchase any fancier clothing until he paid Ariela for everything.

I do hope that things will turn out alright... If there was one thing he hated besides not being able to repay people for favors such as these, it was lying. He hated lying-he never saw it as being the moral thing to do, but again, no one would believe him if he told them that he worked as the general manager of Pantasia. Maybe once things get a bit clearer, I could tell Ariela the real story if she still trusts me and all.

He paused in his train of thought, glancing at Coo, who was roosting on the top of the dresser. Ariela had been so surprised when he introduced the pet to her, and she promised not to roast it-as long as it wasn't an annoyance. Considering that he couldn't wear his mask for fear that the guards would recognize him, he couldn't really bring Coo around with him anywhere without people staring at it, so he would have to keep the poor bird locked up in his room.

Meister shifted his position a bit in an attempt to make himself more comfortable, He slowly drifted off to sleep, but not until he thought of something else.

I wonder if anyone else I know ended up in this world...