*Bang bang bang* “Come one, time to get up.” I groan as I force my eyes open hours before the sun peaks over the horizon. I take a moment to fantasize about rolling over and going back to bed but a moment’s all I can afford before I have to drag myself out of bed. I yank on my dyed-brown cloth pants and hand-me-down shoes before splashing water on my face. After the ripples stop I have a glance at my face, hoping to find a whisker or two. No dice. All the other sixteen year olds in town are thin and starting to grow hair on their chins. Letting out a hefty sigh I push my wavy, black, shoulder length hair back and console myself that I got my mother’s clear blue eyes while the others in town have the standard brown. I hear pans banging downstairs. “Shit,” I mutter while rushing through the door pulling my shirt on. I drop halfway down the ladder that leads to the kitchen from the loft where my dad and I live. “You took your time,” came from a corpulent man busting around the space with amused admonishment. I look at the ground to hide my sheepish expression, “sorry Pop.”

“Help me get the bread started.” Wordlessly, I move to the counter to start in on the dough. This is my morning routine. Every morning, up at the crack of dawn getting breakfast ready for the customers at our inn and the odd local stopping over on their way to work. We live in a small town, mostly farmers in the surrounding area with a few shops for essentials. We aren’t poor though, the Academy is only three days away by wagon. Our farmers supply them and their people travel through occasionally even though we’re off the main roads. I love when the Venturers stay at the inn. They always have at least a few stories they’re willing to share for a free pint. “Hey. Hey Ory! Quit daydreaming and start frying the bacon.” I nod my head and hop to it. Steps can be now be heard coming down the stairs in front so my dad squeezes through the kitchen door and behind the bar to greet the customers, leaving breakfast to me.

After breakfast I’m sent out back the the little patch of dirt we have fenced in behind the inn to pump water for the day and split wood for the cook-fires until it’s time to make lunch. After that I help Pop clean up the dining room and the rooms for visitors. Then dinner. Dinner is always the busiest meal of the day so after cooking I help with the serving. Not long after all our customers have finished eating, I’m taking Monty, the old millers son, his third pint while he tries to impress some local girl the door creaks open and three people clad in dust ridden cloaks sidle in. Immediately the room quiets when they notice these cloaks as they are much nicer than any could afford around here. Whispers of speculation start to waft around the room, “do ya think they’re from the ‘Cademy?” The girl with Monty asks in an excited voice. Despite my father’s substantial size he appears by the newcomers sides quick as a flash to greet them. “Good evening to my esteemed guests.” He performs a slight bow, “what can I help you with?”

“This is an inn isn’t it? What do you think were here for?” The tallest and thinnest of them snarked as they begin to remove their bags and cloaks revealing a young man in leather armor sporting the Academy crest with a permanent seeming sneer on his face. “Roli, cut that out.” Came in a higher pitch from the shortest member of the group, a beautiful women with auburn hair. “Food and ale right away for the travelers.” Pop bowed deeper. “How many rooms?”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

“Three,” said the last one to speak, a handsome man, in a tone that was polite enough if not kind. “Of course sir.” Pop scurried away for fetch their meals, he always handles the important customers himself. After hearing the first speaker I hurry back to work, giving up on all notions of hearing and grand stories from this group. I have to pass by them settling at the table they’ve claimed to reach the bar for my next order. As I do the mean looking man spoke up again, loud enough for the room to hear him, “what kind of shit place is this? Look at their bar maid! It’s a little fat boy!” I feel my cheeks heating and I freeze. I see a flash of annoyance in the woman’s eyes but neither companion spoke a word. I started to move again but the man stopped me. “What’d you stop for? You want to fight me piggy? Is that it?” I feel shame and not a small amount of anger well up in me but I force them both down “O-o-of course not sir.” I stutter out. “Sir?” He sneers. “Learn to address your betters boy. My father’s lord of Port Suend!”

“I-m sorry, m-m-milord.” Now all my previous emotions are being washed out by cold fear. “Rilo, you’re bellowing is giving me a headache.” The woman finally intervened just as Pop arrived balancing trays of food and ale bearing a worried expression. “Finest we have milords and lady, on the house for you.”

“Finest you have you say? Barely looks better than hog-slop. You think giving this to us will erase the stain on my honor from your sons insults?” Roli moved quicker than my eyes could register. I felt a shove on my shoulder and heard a grunt and a smack. When everything slowed down the first thing I noticed was the second man grasping Roli’s wrist. The second was the blood. I watched in shock as Pop slumped to the ground with a dagger in his chest. Numb I kneeled beside him as he gasped and grasped his hand. “Pop...” I croaked out “Pop what do I do?” I heard some of the others rush out to rouse the village healer. “P...” I started again but he stopped me. “There’s...there’s nothing to...nothing to be done my boy. Now listen to me.” I glanced up when I saw the three pulling on their cloaks, again the other emotion I saw was annoyance. The second man dropped a few coins on the table then they were gone. “Ory,” Pop started, “Ory take this.” He pulled a leather throng from under his shirt and showed me a key. “It’s opens your mother’s chest. Inside...inside are some of her things. Things I kept from you. But...” he wheezed, “you’re gonna be alone now. You should know.”

“Pop...”

“I love you, Ory.”

He stopped speaking after that. Not long after I felt his chest stop moving. Footsteps approached as the healer rushed to my side but everyone knew Pop was already gone. Silence reigned. Eventually, I was too in shock to know how long had passed, some of the village men came and covered his body. They carried him to the healers home but I didn’t move. I just sat there, staring at the space he had been, clutching a key hanging from a broken leather throng.