Rainy Days and Fated Meetings [Private/ Varian]

In the middle of Bellmuse Central and down 6th Street was a brick layered building with a small patio and outside seating, it was a restaurant called Callaway's. Normally this bar and grille were packed with people as it was the lunch hours, however, heavy relentless rain pounded the sidewalk and roof and would deter any potential customers away. Inside the slightly tinted windows sat a couple, a guy was attending the bar and washing out glasses and stacking them, he was making idle conversation with the female who had her long black hair tied into a ponytail, she looked at the rain pattering at the window a daydreamy stare in her eyes.

“Emily?” she didn’t hear him, he sighed and placed the glass down on the counter. He turned at her and snapped his fingers in front of her and she jumped back in response.

“Huh?! Oh...sorry Danny, what were you saying?” the raven haired girl turned in her boyfriend's direction and he gave a small smile.

“I was asking if you still wanted to go see that movie this weekend?” he resumed cleaning the glass as his question hung in the air before she replied.

“Oh, yeah. Totally!” she said, she snapped out of her daze and hopped onto a bar chair and spun a full 360 Degrees. Her demeanor seemed to change as she faced Danny again, her head was lowered and her arm was up on the bar now, she pretended to tip a hat and looked into her boyfriend’s eyes.

“Give me a strong drink partner!” she said with a really bad western cowboy accent and Danny laughed at her goofy change, he pretended to pour her some vodka but instead was just water and slid it across the table at her.

“Here ya go… partner” he was chuckling as she drank it, Emily broke character.

“Danny! This is water!” she feigned anger as she downed the drink, he shrugged.

“You’re 19… tough shit” he was obviously teasing and Emily slid off the chair and danced around the tables, she spun and hummed and as Danny watched her he rolled his eyes. She continued being silly in the completely customer less restaurant, the rain wasn’t letting up and as Emily glided towards the window a loud bang of thunder shook the building which didn’t seem to effect the black haired beauty, she was bored and this way her way of entertaining herself, it’s not like anyone was going to come in anyway.

Empty streets all across town, seemingly voided of all life as the rain poured down from the sky like an never ending waterfall. Everyone was avoiding going outside, the few who were roaming the city were the ones who had the bad luck of having nowhere to go. An outsider was one of them, someone who had just arrived days ago on the island and had absolutely no idea where he was going and of course he was cursing this everlasting torrent that was droping on him. With his jacket pulled above his head, the young man was running down the 6th Street in search of somewhere to take refuge for at least the time of the rain. This is when he saw a building, one that looked like a restaurant if he judged by the patio. Through the window he was able to see figures moving, which was a good sign considering that other shops and misc establishment were closed due to the weather. Without thinking for too long, the guy walked toward the door and opened it before nearly slamming it shut to avoid getting too much rain inside as the wind was getter stronger and picking up speed.

Leaning against the door, he began to mutter to himself while keeping his head staring down as he lowered his coat from his head, revealing his auburn hair almost completely dry. "Just my luck... the moment I found a roof to protect myself I'm already soaked to the bone..." The young man then raised his head and looked at the two employees before bringing two fingers to his forehead then forward as a salutation. "Hey! Sorry to barge in like that but the rain was really getting intense. You're not closed are you? I'd like to stay just the time the rain stops. I'm not going to squat though, I'll buy something in order to stay if I need to." Not really waiting for an answer, he removed his jacket and hung it up to dry on a hook near the entrance before walking towards the bar where the other guy was.

Siting on one of the stool and leaning his sword against the counter, he gestured to the boy while looking at him, noticeably exhausted. "One bourbon please, no ice." While waiting for his drink which would hopefully come his way, the outsider looked around, inspecting the room he was in. It had a rather simple look yet filled with small details everywhere that made the place feel comforting. Dark shades of wood, accents of red on the furnitures, a fireplace in the farther section... this place was made to feel welcoming and warm to the customers, which obviously worked with the new guy in town. As he was scanning around the room, his eyes fell on the dark haired girl who seemed in a rather good mood, a sight that brought a smile to the man before he turned back to the one tending the bar.

Emily was mid-twirl when the door swung open and slammed just as fast, she stumbled slightly as the noise surprised her. She luckily caught herself on one of the tables and steadied herself, Emily turned around and saw a taller guy and probably slightly older than her, maybe Danny’s age, she couldn’t tell really. He raised his fingers in greetings toward her and Danny.

"Hey! Sorry to barge in like that but the rain was really getting intense. You're not closed are you? I'd like to stay just the time the rain stops. I'm not going to squat, though, I'll buy something in order to stay if I need to." the guy said as he took a seat at the bar.

Emily rushed over next to the bar counter again and in a comedic fashion swung her arms in an “No Good” gesture.

“Nononono! We’re open, welcome to Callaway’s!” She had a large smile that was almost forced. The guy had removed his coat and ordered a drink from Danny, he gazed around the room and Emily could have sworn his eyes fell on her, if only for a second but when she tried to register if they had or not he had already turned away. She noticed the sword, it was fancy but not over the top but it was clear that this guy was a huntsman or something of the nature, which of course intrigued the young waitress. Danny slid the finished beverage, which had no ice at the guy and it perfectly landed at his hand as if Danny had done it many times before.

“So…” he gestured toward the sword, “You a Huntsman then? Vagabond? Bad boy?” his manner was slightly condescending and the smirk on the corner of his mouth proved it. Emily was still transfixed but a short cough from her boyfriend brought her back down to earth. She quickly skirted at the stranger's side, she bowed slightly, her eyes glanced back at the weapon before back to the guy.

“Is there anything I can get you? Food, anything?” being in sync Danny slid a menu from under the counter at Emily’s hand which she picked up, she didn’t directly offer it yet as she didn’t want to impose on him but kept it close by just in case. Up close she got a better look at him and his auburn hair, she had to admit, he looked pretty good except for the fact she was happily taken. What really interested her was not his looks but his sword which she kept stealing looks at, it was so cool… she slowly started to drift off again, being a huntress…she could dream.

Varian nodded and smiled to the girl as she confirmed that they were open and welcomed him. He it felt like the girl's attitude was matching the ambiance of the place called "Callaway's" while the boy behind the bar seemed more the match the rain outside. The way he handed him the glass was always used to put distance between you and the customers and his question that would follow, especially with the face the guy had, just confirmed one thing to the customer: her didn't like the bartender.

Without answering his question right away, the girl asked the auburn haired guy if she could get him something to eat. Turning his gaze to her, he smiled once more before nodding. "Surprise me. I'm not a picky eater so anything will be fine really." With his many travels, the wandering man often saw the same things pretty much everywhere, only with some regional twist. He would rarely find something new he never had before and that was something he enjoyed.

Lifting his glass to his face, he gave a slight glare to the boy about his question from earlier before taking a sip from his drink before he answered. "I don't see how my answer would be of use to you, but yeah, I'm a little bit of all three. Although I prefer the term "traveler" to "vagabond". And you? What are you? Definitively not supposed to be tending a bar if you can't even respect the rules of bartending." Giving the guy a smirk he too another sip of his bourbon before placing the glass on the counter and gesture a "1" with his fingers and would change number as he'd go on. "Rule #1 when tending a bar: Never ask questions first. Rule #2: Never judge your clientele. Rule #3: Look somewhat friendly enough. Hell, the girl would be a better bartender than you I feel."

Taking another sip of his drink he would turn around on his stool, leaning slightly against the counter with his glass in hand while looking at everything and nothing in particular in the room. His eyes ended up lockong themselves on the fireplace which was lit in order to counter the humidity of the rain outside. Standing up, the customer grabbed his sword and headed towards the flame and pulled a chair close so he could sit by the fire while drinking. He stared at it peacefully for now, waiting for the girl to come back with his order.

"Surprise me. I'm not a picky eater so anything will be fine really."

Emily looked down at the menu in her hand realized that she wouldn’t need it, she repeated the stranger’s two finger salute from earlier which caused Danny to sigh from behind the bar and Emily giggled as she turned and walked towards the back of the restaurant. She disappeared behind two double doors that were slightly out of sight from the main dining area. The man had criticized Danny’s attitude which he thought wasn’t even that bad and between this time Emily had come back just in time for him to point out that she could be a better bartender than him.

“Told ya so!” she almost shouted but quickly cupped her hand over her mouth at her outburst, Danny just glared at her, whose side was she on anyway? Eventually, the guy would stand up and walk towards the fireplace that gave the room a bright hue that contrasted nicely with the ever darkening skies outside. Danny motioned for Emily to come closer and she slid his way, he was speaking in a low whisper about the “Huntsman” and he kept gesturing his head and finally with one last chuckle and eye roll he let her go. She gave him a dismissive hand wave “Whatever" was her response as a quick ding from the back alerted the girl and she gave her boyfriend one last wink before heading through the double doors again. Another muffled conversation occurred but it was considerably shorter than the first one, she left with a small wooden tray of food. The tray consisted of three small but delicious portions, starting with the one on the farthest left of the tray was a small bowl of gnocchi noodles with a dribble of red sauce and shredded Parmesan cheese. In the middle of the wood was a buttered garlic roll that was freshly baked this morning and finally on the farthest right side was a grilled chicken that was slowly marinated in a sweet and spicy glaze. With one last glance at Danny who just shrugged with indifference Emily made her way to where the man was sitting, she careful set the food down on a small table that was next to his armchair. She quickly explained the meal before bowing once again.

She looked at the sword for the tenth time before making eye contact with her pale blue eyes. “I hope you enjoy everything! If you need something don’t be afraid to wave me over!

‘Or don’t! Seriously! I’d rather relax!’ she was smiling and turning slightly pink in the cheeks with the inward comment and quickly turned and dashed away, she propped herself back at the bar and turned to Danny.

“Do you think he’ll like it..?” she asked slightly concerned and he turned and smiled at her reassuringly.

“I don’t think there is someone in the world who doesn’t like your Father’s cooking, I’m sure it’ll be fine.” he also leaned up on the bar next to his girlfriend and they waited, they occasionally made comments to one another but they were mostly quiet, waiting to see if the man needed something else and of course his reaction.

The girl's reaction brought by his comment about her probably being more suited for the job of tending the bar than the one currently behind it made Varian chuckle lightly before focusing back on the dancing flames in front of him. Even though he had his back to the two others, he noticed that they were whispering and figured it was about him. What would they be whispering about if it wasn't that? He also heard the faint sound of voices in the room the girl went in after a ding was heard earlier. The guy by the fireplace didn't really care about what was said, it's not like it was really important ot him anyway since so far he had no reason to come back here, not that he had reasons to avoid it either.

The girl then came back with his food, a nice three portions plate, that she placed on a small table right beside him and talked about the food for a moment. After she said to call her if he'd need anything, the customer nodded as thanks while watching her go back to the bar. Then turning to his plate, the man began to eat by breaking his bread in half and putting some pastas on it before taking a bite. Eating slowly, he finished the current half of bread before attacking the noodles. He began to slurp the food silently and before long was already cutting the chicken. After a while, he had finish his meal, all the plates were empty and he was eating the other half of the bread to finish. Watching back the fire he leaned in the chair peacefully with a smile on his face. The food was great, even though his silence during his whole time eating could have been taken as a bad sign. But no, he enjoyed it greatly.

He turned his head after a moment, facing both employees before he took out his pipe from a pouch strapped to his belt and raised it enough so that they would see it before asking. "Can I? It's for medical purpose, I swear." Unlike the moment he walked to the bar without waiting for an answer earlier, he prefered to wait before beginning to smoke inside an establishment that could forbid that. So he waited.

Emily and Danny sat mostly in silence now as they watched the stranger eat the food, they couldn’t see him eating but he didn’t take the food back or anything so the pair both assumed he was enjoying it enough. A head popped out of the double doors that led to the kitchen and motioned for Emily. She gave Danny a kiss over the counter real quick before disappearing. Danny just raised his eyebrows and checked her out as she left. He turned his attention back to the glass, it was clean already but he didn’t wanna look like he wasn’t working. He had a face on, it was stoic and plain but he kept looking up at the stranger and more specifically his sword that he brought in and narrowed his eyes, he wasn’t going to pretend that he didn’t see Emily checking it out when it walked through the door, he knew why and he hated it. It was probably the only thing they argued about ever, he knew her dreams and he didn’t wanna hold her back, he loved her and he didn’t want anything to happen to her because she was the only thing he had left, her dreams were his nightmares and that day they never came home haunted him but of course he’d keep it buried and away from the light… away from her, he didn’t want to impose his feelings and problems on her. Danny’s eyes were almost glazed over and a light tap from Emily who had now entered the room again awoke him.

“Heeeeelllloooooo?!” she was still talking low as if she didn’t want the huntsman to hear her, she repaid Danny's favor from earlier and snapped her fingers in front of him.

“Sorry.” was all he mumbled. Emily gave him a concerned look but a gesture from in front of the pair brought them to attention again.

"Can I? It's for medical purpose, I swear." he had a pipe in his hand and Danny just shrugged and Emily also did the same, they didn’t have a large smoking clientele and sending him out in the rain which had slowed but not stopped didn’t seem like a good idea and so the two employees didn’t see a reason to stop him. Emily walked calmly over and looked at his empty tray and smiled.

‘So… he did like it…’ she thought.

‘Of course, he did!’ was the retort thought of her as well.

Her eyes caught his weapon once more and instinctively she extended her hand.

“My name is Emily, Emily Callaway!” she froze as she realized how sudden and stupid that probably sounded. She blushed and rubbed her neck with a closed-eyed smile on her face. She let out an awkward laugh and grabbed his food tray. She looked back at Danny who wasn’t paying attention, go figure.

“If you’re done with this, I’ll take it, is that okay?” she asked, her eyes kept trailing in a triangle, him, outside, weapon and repeat. She knew why she was interested in him but she didn’t want to intrude, that would be rude and besides… her daydreams were just that, dreams and even though she enjoyed working she was always reminded how futile it was when she came in. Every. Damn. Day.

The outsider got a glimpse of someone by the double door that the girl went through earlier. It was a man who waved at her to come see him. The customer figured it was probably the chef who cooked his meal since from what he could see the next room seemed to be the kitchen. The auburn head waved at the man with a friendly smile to catch his attention in order to give him his respect. "Sir, I don't want to disturb you but I need to tell you... I really enjoyed the meal. It was tasty, the textures felt great, the aroma was entrancing. I'll definitively come back depending how long I'll stay in town. But yeah, thanks for the meal Sir, it was great." Giving another smile to the man, he let him go talk with the girl in the next room before lighting his pipe.

Reclining in the chair, he relaxed there for a while, staring into the flames in the fireplace dancing while the smoke coming out of his pipe was doing its own sets of move in front of him as he let it out from his mouth after each puff he took from the simple wooden object. Taking deep breaths as the pain he was starting to feel in his chest was slowly vanishing, he was able to finally feel more comfortable than before. He was glad that they were letting him smoke inside and was especially happy that his herbs weren't wet from all the rain, which would have made it impossible for him to light them up.

With his focus on the fire, he didn't notice the girl as she approached him and was surprised when she introduced herself and extended her hand. He couldn't help but chuckle at her obvious embarrassement but exchanged a handshake nonetheless. "Wright, Varian Wright, 'pleasure to meet you. And yeah, I'm done, it was delicious by the way. Already told the cook but just to let you know as well."

He gave her a smile before looking at his sword before focusing his gaze on the girl once again. "So... you've been looking at my sword for a while now... care to tell me why? Maybe there was something you wanted to ask? If so go ahead, I'm not a very secretive guy. I'm sure you won't be yelled at for not working for a minute or two." He gestured to a nearby chair and offered her to sit nest to him if she'd want to. She clearly had something on her mind and he had a feeling it would take more than just a minute or two.

"Wright, Varian Wright, 'pleasure to meet you. And yeah, I'm done, it was delicious by the way. Already told the cook but just to let you know as well."

He smiled at her, it was a nice smile, and best of all, he complimented the food, she liked him already. Emily kept looking over her shoulder, Danny wasn’t paying attention and seemed completely checked out for the time being and her Father was nowhere to be found so when he invited her to sit and ask any questions she practically bounced and slid into the chair next to him, she never got this kind of chance before! Most of the students she’d notice roaming Bellmuse’s streets always seemed unsavory or obnoxious at best. Emily had her hands in her lap and was leaning forward in her chair.

“Ohmygosh thank you! You see I’vealwayswantedtobeahuntress! It’s like my dream ya know! What's it like out there?! Where did you get that sword?! She lowered her voice slightly after her rapid spew of English and looked over her shoulder again, she took a deep breath and looked at Varian’s sword and back her own hands, she started daydreaming again… but she caught herself and snapped out of it and looked back up, she noticed he had brown eyes, they were very calming eyes. Emily glanced around one last time as if she was worried about someone hearing her but that couldn’t be possible now because Danny had disappeared from the bar and it was now just the two of them in the restaurant. Just the two of them, the soft pattering of rain and the crackle of the fireplace, a lovely scene indeed.

The reaction of the girl made the Huntsman laugh a bit. She was so enthusiast to learn more about his world, it was refreshing. She sat right next to him while looking all around as if she wanted to avoid getting caught. He assumed it was so she wouldn't be yelled at for not working and decided to whisper back to her. He picked up his sword and took it out of its scabbard, the blade letting its orange glow mix itself with the one of the fire before extending the hilt to the girl for her to inspect. "I got my sword from... a old friend of mine that I haven't seen in years, so nothing to say about that really..." Of course, it was a lie. He wasn't proud of the way he got it and he didn't want to feel worse by telling her the truth about how he acquired his weapon. It's not like she'd learn the truth anyway.

Letting her look at the sword, the outsider reclined on his chair and kept smoking his pipe, making sure to avoid sending any smoke towards the girl while he thought about what to reply to her first question. "How it's like out there? Look, since it's your dream, I'm not going to sugar-coat it. You deserve to know what you'd be getting into if you follow this path." He looked at her, his eyes were filled with seriousness before his gaze drifted back to the flames. "It's dangerous, Grimms are more dangerous than some people like to think, often underestimating them when they here tales of a single Huntsman taking care of 2 dozens at the same time. What they often forget is that it was probably an elite Huntsman and maybe he was fighting simple Creeps. A lot of things come into play during a hunt and unfortunately lots gets killed trying to show off or by simply being unprepared. Years of training goes into this lifestyle and to be honest, you never really stop training either. It is not an easy life I can assure you, especially alone..." The man knew that he was being really negative about it, but he gave the girl a smile as he was about to come with the good sides of the job.

"Although it is dangerous, the thrill you get from fighting Grimms is unique. Nothing gets you hyped just as much during your first fight, even if it's mixed with fear which is totally normal. The satisfaction of completing a hunt is so entrancing that you just want to keep going, even if you're completely tired from what you just went through. The first Grimm you kill is often the most important in a Huntsman life from what I can tell. Once I was on a hunt with two Huntresses and we talked about our first kills. The oldest of the two had to face off against a pack of Beowulves, four of them she said and she was on her own. Her weapon being a chain-whip at the time, she couldn't simply attack them one at a time since she was totally open while bringing her weapon back to her. So what she did was get close and personal with one of the beast and tie it up with the chain and use it as a shield against the others' attacks. Rinse and repeat until one was left and she had no trouble at all dealing with it normally. So she basically made them kill each others. The youngest her it was during a mission with her old team. It was the first time they all worked together and they were unlucky enough to come face to face with a King Taijitu. They were able to deal with it by removing they fangs to make it way less dangerous. If I remember she said that they even cut one of the heads in half. Everything went smoothly but it was still pretty intense to deal with that species of Grimm on your first hunt."

"As for me, my first kill wasn't all that special. A Nevermore had attacked us by surprise while me and a guy I had met earlier that day were taking a boat from a city to another years ago. It was a rather big bird I won't lie but it was alone so with everyone that had weapons on the ship it was rather easy to deal with. Me myself I didn't have a weapon at the time so one of the crew member of the boat threw a gun at me to use. I couldn't aim for shit with it, the recoil was too much for me to handle with no training at all. Apparently though I was the one landing the final shot that took it down but I never believed it since I saw none of my bullets hit the Nevermore." The man shrugged with a smile as he remembered that day. "So yeah, that's pretty much how it is to be a Huntsman. Some will settle in towns to offer permanent protection to civilians while others, like me, prefer to roam and travel, helping wherever we go. Anything else you'd like to know?" With a smile the customer brought his glass of bourbon to his lips, taking a sip while looking back and forth between Emily and the flames of the fireplace.

As Emily listened to Varian’s tale she becomes more and more engaged, her eyes grew wider and her mouth slightly dropped open, he.was.so.flipping.cool! She was particularly interested in the stories of the other two huntresses he talked about, she thought about herself in their shoes… having their bravely, their skill and probably their looks… She sighed outwardly as he finished describing his first encounter, would she ever get to have an experience like that? Probably not. Emily visibly perked up at the mention of traveling, she had never been anywhere outside Bellmuse’s Central city really, she had been to the Skylight Woods once and Kompress Beach only a handful of times.

"Anything else you'd like to know?" Varian asked her, he took another sip of his drink. He glanced at her and then back at the fire. Emily still had so many questions but before she could ask any of thoughts swimming through her brain she felt a pair of hands gently be placed on her shoulders. She jumped slightly in her chair and spun her head around, Danny was standing behind her chair and he gave her a soft smile before look Varian in which his smile vanished.

“I think we should get back to work sir huntsman, the rain has stopped and we should get ready for our dinner crowd that will surely come through soon.” he paused and glanced back down at Emily. “Right Emily?” she cursed very lightly under her breath, she didn’t want to be pulled away, she still wanted to know so much more but as she looked out the windows she realized Danny was right the rain had halted to a light drizzle that could barely be classified as rain and let alone a hazard to keep people away. Emily stood up and bowed her head slightly.

“Yes...we should, thank you for sharing.” she seemed unusually formal for the quick second there before being shepherded away by her boyfriend who twisted his head over his shoulders and gave a displeased glare at Varian. Now that the pair was walking away from Varian, Danny looked down at her once they reached the bar and trapped her on the wall.

“What are you doing? I only heard part of that conversation and that’s all a load of bullshit and -- “ he was interrupted by Emily.

“Who do you think you are? My Parents? I can watch over myself!” her voice was whispered and had a harsh edge to it she huffed annoyed that Danny came in when he did and started walking away but Danny grabbed her arm.

“I’m not done talking to you Emily!” he raised his voice slightly and she shrugged him off forcefully.

“Don't touch me.” her attitude took a complete 180 from her previous conversation from with Varian, she went towards the far side of the restaurant and pulled a rag from her waitress apron and started wiping off one of the tables. She looked at Varian from across the room and back at Danny.

“Jackass…” she muttered before returning her attention, Varian. ‘Whatever…’ her mood was effectively ruined. Why did Danny have to be like that? She loved him but he was ALWAYS like this when it came to huntress/adventure talk. Emily always wondered why...why...was he trying to hold her back? She shook her head and returned her eyes toward the table and scrubbed it forcefully clearly frustrated. Meanwhile, Danny was across the room walking back towards Varian, he forced a smile but his skill in faking it wasn’t nearly as good as Emily’s, he looked resentful as he picked up Varian’s trey which Emily seemed to have “forgotten” probably because he pulled her away before she could take it. He was about to leave but remembered that despite his personal feelings, he was still at work, his vision focused on Varian’s drink, he never met the huntsman’s face.

“Would you like another drink sir huntsman?” he couldn’t keep the edge from his words, he looked for Emily who like Danny before wasn't paying attention as she was cleaning. Danny looked back at the huntsman and awaited his response, he was patient but agitated.

The face that Emily had while listening to him made the Huntsman smile. It was great to see someone that was so eager to listen to him. She didn't even interrupt him a single time. It was refreshing to see someone like that really. She seemed just happy to be sat here doing nothing but listen to him, a perfect stranger that could totally be lying to her yet, she was there believing him. Although, her smile disappeared when the other guy sneaked up behind her to tell her to go back to work. Since the rain had stopped the usual clientele would probably show up and the outsider had a feeling that the place would be packed thinking that some might have waited for the weather to clear in order to come. Varian could feel the animosity coming from the bartender as it seemed like he didn't appreciate his presence. Maybe it was his stories he thought.

Not before long after the girl went back to the bar with the other guy, the customer could hear, and see after he had turned his head just enough to see from over his shoulder, that the two were arguing. He couldn't make up the words from where he was since they were whispering, but he surely didn't like the way Emily was being treated. The autumn hair guy felt bad looking at the scene, getting the feeling that it was his fault. That is until the bartender came to him, asking if he wanted another drink. The man simply looked up to him with an annoyed look before his eyes shifted to the girl who was scrubbing a table, clearly frustrated. Finishing his drink in one go, he stood up and placed the glass directly on the tray as the barman was holding it before glaring at him. "Thanks but no thanks, I'll be fine." His eyes were clearly saying "I'd have a word with you if you were worth a damn of my time." A very specific look to give someone, but hey, that's how he felt right now.

Holding the stare for a moment, his eyes then wandered around the room before he noticed some more aprons hanging from a hook near the bar. Raising an eyebrow to the guy before walking towards the hook, he smirked and winked at Emily as he walked by her before putting on one of the apron and speaking in a decisive voice. "Alright so... In my travels, I learned than where the weather is a bitch like that, a lot more customers than usual often shows up. So here, I offer my help. Let me stay behind the bar and handle the evening drinkers while you two handle serving the customers. I'm not asking anything in exchange, see this as my thanks for the nice meal, which I'll still pay of course. You can trust me too, I've been behind a bar before so I know my stuff." Obviously, he had ulterior motives. First was to annoy that guy. It was clear he didn't want him around Emily for some probably stupid reasons so he'd stay a little bit. Second was to be able to hopefully catch the girl later to offer her to go have a coffee so he could tell her more if she wanted without having someone sneak up on them. Let's just hope that his plan wouldn't be thwarted.

"Thanks but no thanks, I'll be fine."

Danny could feel the heat rise to his face as Varian gave him a dirty glare only rivaled by Emily’s Mother when she found out the two were dating. He moved past the bartender and headed for his workstation and grabbed an apron that hung slightly sticking out behind the counter. What the hell was this guy thinking? Danny’s hazel eyes followed the man toward Emily, he took a few steps forward toward his girlfriend and now whoever the hell this guy thought he was.

"Let me stay behind the bar and handle some of the evening drinkers while you two handle serving the customers…”

That’s all Danny needed to hear, he stopped and forcefully placed the tray on the table causing the drink to fall off the counter and crack onto the wood floor which he ignored.

“Hell no, you can’t just come in here and take my job?! Who do you think you are? Act all high and mighty and try and worm your way into our work!” he was livid and he was taking more steps toward Varian, he wasn’t stupid, however, he knew he couldn’t win a fight against the huntsman and he hoped it wouldn’t come to that. Emily who was still annoyed at Danny but silent even while Varian was talking to her finally took a step forward on the incoming Danny and between Varian.

“Stop!” She had extended her hand into Danny’s chest and he took a deep breath but still seemed angry. She glared at both of them clearly not pleased with how things had turned out.

“Are you really taking his side Em?!”

“NO! Just listen -- !” things were getting out of hand between the two. This was one of the only times things had escalated this out of hand between the couple before but luckily before it could get worse the double doors opened up.

“Enough!” was the third voice, he was an older gentleman dressed in white, his once black hair had started to gray over but his blue eyes still shined. He looked between the three youngins. He had the stern look of someone disciplined by years in the field which you could only tell if you had spent some time out there as well. He walked up to Danny and Emily

“I’ve heard enough, Danny-boy get behind the bar and Emily stop causing a scene in front of the customer…” the two teens bowed out and Danny went to go sweep up his mistake and Emily grabbed her rag and went to another table taking deep breaths as she went calming herself. The man satisfied turned on Varian, he had a hard look at his features.

“And you… you want to help? Fine but I’m not putting you anywhere near the bar it doesn’t matter what “experience” you have. It just so happens one of my waiters called in sick, you can wait tables with Emily. Understand?” he was in a no kidding manner, he loved his daughter and like Danny enough but he didn’t want to be their damn babysitter he was too old for that shit. He awaited a response when Danny scoffed in the background out of disbelief and at the mention of her name Emily looked up and watched the scene unfold awaiting Varian’s answer, she’d love to work with him, she might be able to squeeze some extra stories or questions out of him plus he seemed like an okay guy even though he did set Danny off which wasn’t exactly what she wanted. The room seemed to grow quiet. Emily glanced outside and noticed there was a small party of at least 7 walking towards their doors direction, she hoped Varian would pick quickly there wasn’t much time and while the job super demanding they would need to drop running. She looked up at Danny who seemed to have calmed down as well, he shrugged and they waited.

The man with auburn haired immediately glared at the other guy as he raised his voice, obviously threatened about his job. He didn't feel like raising his own voice and would rather not have to do this but to Varian it was a sound plan. "Look, I'm not trying to steal your job here, I'm trying to help. If people were waiting on the rain to stop to come you'll have more people to deal with than usual and since I've never worked here I don't know the regulars like both of you do which would make it simpler for everyone if I'm not in your way. But if you're telling me that all you've ever done is serve behind this bar then fine, I'll try my best to serve the customer."

In the end the debate wasn't going to be settled by the two as the owner of the restaurant came in to put a stop to all this. The man had a rather imposing presence which made the outsider froze in place for a second as the old man spoke. Seeing the reaction of Emily and the other guy, it was clear that he meant business. At the owner's instruction, Varian simply nodded while feeling tense in all of his body. "Understood Sir." He didn't felt like apologizing, not because he was ungrateful but because he felt that at this point this man would have none of it.

Walking out of behind the bar, the temporary employee went towards Emily to get a quick explanation of the job he'd be doing. All he ever did in establishment like this was to tend the bar himself so he had no clue how to properly take order and how everything worked. "Hey, think you could teach me your job? I have no experience as a waiter whatsoever, which is why I offered to go behind the bar." He whispered the last part to her with a slightly embarrassed smile while scratching the back of his head before whispering again. "Help me and I'll tell you more stories behind a cup of coffee whenever you're free." Giving her a closed-eyes smile while he waited. Hopefully the rest of the day would be smoother.

"Hey, think you could teach me your job? I have no experience as a waiter whatsoever, which is why I offered to go behind the bar."

Emily didn’t even hear Varian approach her, she had turned everything around her off for the last few moments after her Dad had started talking. He was a good guy, he was just intense sometimes. At Varian’s words, she missed his smile as she looked down and continued getting ready.

“Of course.” was all she said as she finally looked up, she placed the cloth in her back apron pocket. She inhaled, she knew this was going to be a long night because after that little four-way engage between Danny, Varian and Her Father she was exhausted. Varian smiled at her response and slightly leaned in and whispered.

"Help me and I'll tell you more stories behind a cup of coffee whenever you're free." this caught her attention, for one, he smelled good even with the slight bit of smoke residue on him and second he was rather close to her and she backed away from him a bit not because she was uncomfortable but because Danny was now looking at the pair, she could feel his eyes from across the room at the bar but even so she smiled at Varian’s offer but she decided that she would maybe tease him a bit, see if he meant it or not.

“We’ll see how you do tonight... Mr. Huntsman” she had her finger on his chest and pushed slightly before giggling and walking him quickly through the operation. During the quick introduction, a small party had walked through the door. Emily smiled and greeted them but couldn’t exactly help them but by the save of grace, Alice had walked through the door, another waitress. She waved at Emily and Danny, she glanced at Varian and gave a warm smile but nothing more. She took the party on as Emily moved through the tables talking to Varian. They finally finished and she sectored him off near the corner of the restaurant near her so she could keep an eye on him. As the night progressed the dinner service seemed to work without a hitch, Varian was definitely a people person as he made conversation with the guests rather easily. Danny, Alice, Mark, and Emily worked the floor and bar as a well-oiled machine and before everyone knew it the last customers had disappeared into the night. Alice and Mark cleaned off their tables and clocked out with a wave leaving just Danny, Emily and Varian in the main building. Danny had finished cleaning off the last of the glasses and restocking the drinks for the next night and Emily finished her tables and collecting the tips. As she counted the Lien she turned to Varian.

“Here, you did great tonight!” she gave him a little less than normal and explained that she took out some pay from his lunch. Danny walked up to her and placed his arm around her and she moved her head into him, she pocketed her money and was about to say goodbye to her boyfriend when he leaned down and gave her a long kiss, a lot longer than he normally would, right in front of Varian. Emily rolled with the punch quite well but when Danny seemed to push her for a longer kiss she stopped him and hugged him good-bye. He told her he loved her and with one final glare at Varian, left out the doors. Once out of sight, she turned to Varian again.

“Sorry about that. I don’t know what’s gotten into him today, he’s not normally like that…” she seemed to trail off and sighed. Her arms seem to slump down. She was about to continue but her Father walked out of the doors behind the pair.

“Not bad! Any better and I would have to hire you!” he gave a hearty laugh and slapped Varian on the back. Without the stress of an incoming dinner service, he seemed much more relaxed. He turned to his daughter.

“Excellent work as well sweetie, as always of course.” he kissed her forehead and mentioned to her to lock the doors and he’d be upstairs in the Callaway’s living portion of the building and to come up soon and with that he left. The two sat in silence for a moment but eventually Emily thought back to his proposal to Coffee and she smiled again, she took off her glasses and wiped them down, she looked even better without them on most would tell her. After putting them back on she broke the silence.

“And that Coffee for stories? I’m totally down… there’s a little cafe across the street from here, I’m still working tomorrow but I might be able to meet you early, I’ll have to be here for lunch.” she rubbed her neck, just a nervous tick that she had. “My schedule is always kinda of busy… Sorry about that…” she actually seemed apologetic because she really did want to hang out with him, he seemed nice, cute and of course he had the mysterious air about him that first made her interested in introducing herself in the first place. The night was only getting later and she was tired, she felt her scroll buzz in her pocket and knew it was Danny, it was time for Varian to get going, she began walking toward the door and held it open for him.

“I know it’s early but how does 9 sound? I hope this doesn’t look like I’m throwing you out b-but I’m SUPER tired.” she laughed and looked at him again, he was cute...defiantly... it was almost like her mind decided immediately for her.

After his offer for a cup of coffee that would be accompanied by his stories of travel, Varian got a teasing comment from Emily, something he wasn't really expecting but it made him chuckle a bit before following her around the restaurant while the other waiters arrived. After they were doing he was placed at some table which he would serve all night. The replacement waiter was glad to be not too far from the black haired girl as he felt as if he would need help at some point. Surprisingly enough the young man did pretty well for his first time on the job as he received no negative comments, at least directly, and seemed like the customers even liked him. He wasn't much of a people person but he was at least social enough to keep a conversation going with a group of people at least for the time that they'd eat.

At the end of the day, after all the customers had left, the auburn haired guy was sitting at a table, relaxing a bit after the day. It didn't went that badly but he was sure surprise of how much his legs were hurting from all that standing up. He waved at the other waiters as they left, leaving only him, Emily, Danny, who he finally learned the name off after a while, and Emily's father. The girl came to him with some Lien before handing it to him, explaining that it was his pay for the night. Normally he would have turned it down as he does when doing jobs but this time he had some pride in what he did. Maybe it was because of how "normal" of a job it was. An honest pay for an honest work he thought before taking the money with a smile and a thank to the girl.

Then, nearly out of nowhere, Danny showed up and pulled Emily for a long kiss. Varian had a moment of realization as he understood that the two were dating. He felt rather dumb too for not having found out before now. The outsider looked back at the glaring man as he left before whispering to himself. "...so that's what all this was about..." He then looked up at the girl as she was apologizing for her boyfriend's attitude while he shook his head. "Don't worry about it, it's fine really." He gave her a smile before he felt the large hand of her father in his back as he was praised by the man who just sneaked up on him. "Well, I think I'll be in town for a while so if you'd need someone and if I'm not busy I'd be happy to help again."

Varian watched the man leave upstairs before he caught a glance of Emily without her glasses. She was pretty cute, even more without them. No surprises that Danny was protective. She then brought back up the subject of going for a coffee which made him smile. It was nice that she was totally up for the idea. As she proposed 9 am the guy thought a bit to himself as it was earlier than what he was used to when it came to being up early but it was manageable, so he smiled to her once more before standing up and picking his sword and walked towards the door. "Yeah sure, 9 sounds good. So let's meet up there tomorrow. Goodnight Emily."

He smiled to her one last time before heading out. Not even on the sidewalk he turned and waved, not really caring if she was still there or not before he made his way towards the nearest place he would be able to stay for the night. Lighting up his pipe, he began to smoke while walking while mumbling to himself about how late he was on his scheduled smoking tonight. She sure was distracting...

-EXIT-

"Yeah sure, 9 sounds good. So let's meet up there tomorrow. Goodnight Emily."

She watched Varian walk away into the night and she sighed. Emily took her sleeve and wiped her lips from Danny's attack which wasn't the smartest thing to do because old food gunk from tonight's service was still on her sleeve. She made a "Ugh" sound and moved the doors to the restaurant closed, she locked them with a set of keys she had grabbed from the kitchen. As she turned around flipped the lights off and moved towards the back and a set of stairs in the kitchen. As she reached them she grabbed her scroll from her pocket and read the one "Notification" which was from Danny.

We should talk tomorrow. Goodnight Em. ❤

Even if the text had a light tone with the heart at the end she was dreading talking to him, a feeling she had never had before. Her mind drifted towards Varian as she waved hi to her Mother inside the Callaways upstairs apartment. She made her way to her room, brushed her teeth and hopped into bed. As she looked up at the ceiling and slowly drifted off to sleep her brain bounced from Danny to Varian and back before settling down on the Huntsman. She closed her eyes.

"He is so distracting..." Emily mumbled those words and finally fell asleep.

-EXIT-
-End Thread-