An Ale to Get in Tune

Writers: Heather, Francesca
Date Posted: 4th February 2019

Characters: C'rin, Arrilon
Description: Arrilon and C'rin perform at the Amber Hills tavern.
Location: Vintner Hall, Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 9, day 14 of Turn 9

C'rin

Arrilon smiled and waved when he caught sight of C'rin and Dasveth in
the Weyrbowl. As he headed towards them he checked his bag to make
sure it held his transverse flute, some loose pages and graphite
pencils in case he had the chance to draw, and enough marks for a
beer. Tucked under his arm was a heavy jacket. Satisfied he had
everything, he picked up the pace and had soon reached them. With
another smile he asked the brownrider, "What's the plan for today? I
have a newly carved flute to try out."

"I have tucked away my reed pipes, and my gitar," he patted the
leather case that was strapped to Dasveth's riding harness. "I had to
replace the strings on the gitar last night, it's been so long since
I've played. Fortunately, I think I at least got my fingers back in
working order so I won't make a complete fool of myself." The
brownrider grinned as he shrugged into his riding jacket, knowing that
the Amber Hills area would be much colder than Dolphin Cove.

"I'm sure your fingers will remember what they need to do, even if
your mind doesn't," Arrilon reassured his friend, as he also donned
his jacket. Muscle memory was a wonderful thing. "Are we heading to
the tavern at the Vintner Hall?"

"That's right. I think it'll work out so that we get there right as
the lunchtime rush starts." C'rin tugged himself up to Dasveth's
neckridge and then turned and extended a hand toward his friend.

Arrilon was grateful for the help up and he quickly got settled on the
dragon and braced himself. Despite numerous rides on dragons, he had
never reached the point of feeling completely at ease with take off or
landing. "Ready," he told C'rin.

"Hang on," C'rin warned just before Dasveth reared back and then
sprang aloft, sending them surging into the depths of the sky. The
brown leveled out for only a moment as he and C'rin conferred on their
destination, and then he pulled them /between/.

After the cold of /between/, the air above the Vintner Hall didn't
feel so bad. While still holding on tight, Arrilon looked down at the
fields and buildings below. For a moment he allowed himself to pretend
he was riding his own dragon, directing him to an open spot to land.

Dasveth reported in to the watch dragon stationed at Amber Hills as
they descended to land near the Vintner Hall. There were a couple of
other dragons present, and runnerbeasts were tied to the hitching
posts out front. "Looks like we got here just in time," C'rin said as
he unbuckled his harness and dropped to the ground.

Arrilon dismounted as well and the two young men made their way to the
tavern at a brisk pace in an attempt to ward off the cold. "Anything
in particular you want to play today? Still remember that arrangement
of "Just A Little Song" for gitar and vocals?" They hadn't performed
it together in awhile.

"Remember? How could I forget? We only sang it every day of our lives
as Candidates." C'rin chuckled as they entered the warmth of the
tavern. The corner generally tended by harpers was vacant, leaving
plenty of room for C'rin and Arrilon. The brownrider set his gitar
down and shrugged out of his coat as he looked around and nodded at a
dragonrider or two he recognized. "Might need an ale to get in tune,"
he waggled his eyebrows as he took his gitar from its case.

Arrilon grinned in agreement and they soon had two ales. He hoped
there were more where that came from. In his experience, there was
usually a listener or two who expressed their appreciation by keeping
their glasses full. "I bet you half a mark that we get at least three
requests for 'No Regrets.'" The song, composed by a previous tavern
harper, was always a popular one, although he had never heard it
requested more than twice. He had a feeling though that this crowd
would be particularly nostalgic.

C'rin took a hearty sip of the ale as he surveyed the crowd, "Oh
definitely, and I'm sure we'll have some help singing the choruses."
He set his cup aside and started tuning up his gitar, which inevitably
garnered the attention of some of those at the bar.

Arrilon took out his transverse flute but set it to the side for the
moment, planning on singing for the first few songs. There was
something about just a gitar and vocals that helped draw an audience
in. He found he no longer reached the level of nervousness he
experienced the first Turn or two of apprenticing. The constant
rehearsals, individual lessons, and performances large and small had
accustomed him to being listened to, and even critiqued. Now he just
felt a hum of energy move through his body, ready to be harnessed.

As they played people in the tavern danced, or sometimes sang along if
they knew the words, or made them up if they didn't. By the end of the
set, they'd played about ten songs, C'rin was drenched in sweat and had
lost count of the ales he'd gulped.

"Let's get some fresh air and a bite to eat before we head back, eh?"
he said as he packed up his gitar.

"Agreed!" Arrilon still felt the buzz of energy in the room as he
safely packed away his flute. This had been a particularly
appreciative crowd, which had made their job easy. If he had accepted
any additional beers it might have impacted the performance. "Hey,
what happens when you have too much to drink?" he asked C'rin,
curious. "How much of it does Dasveth feel?" A disoriented dragon
would be dangerous, but he couldn't remember ever hearing of alcohol
leading to draconic injuries.

"He can tell that I'm not myself, but it doesn't disorient him. The
worst that can happen is if I'm too impaired and give him wonky
coordinates /between/ and end up /between/ing into a rock or something
equally horrible." C'rin flashed his friend a grin, "But no worries, I
always keep a tight rein on my drinking when I know I'm going to be
flying."

"Oh, I'm not worried," Arrilon quickly reassured him. "I had just
never thought about it before and was wondering out loud. Now, on to
more important matters. Food! I think we deserve it."

The brownrider clapped Arrilon on the shoulder as they headed for a
table and hopefully some hot grub.

Last updated on the February 28th 2019

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An Ale to Get in Tune