Plans For the Next Turn

Writers: Eimi, Paula
Date Posted: 27th August 2013

Characters: Puwul, Fayazel, Gelb
Description: Fayazel checks in with his tavern master after Turns End...
Location: Vintner Hall
Date: month 1, day 4 of Turn 7

After three days of celebration, Puwul and his staff were cleaning up the
tavern and making an inventory. Things had got bit rowdy at the end of the
Turn's Over gather and they needed to take a stock what was broken and
needed replacement. The sales had been good and store were running low.

"So, we got only five kegs of ale left?" Puwul checked and wrote the
numbers down on his hide. "Shards, people drank a lot. How many broken
chairs you said there was, Gelb?"

"Three, one can be repaired," the bouncer replied. "Rest are trash."

"Cut those to firewood, and take the repairable one to woodcrafters,"
Puwul instructed.

"Better chairs than heads," the Hallsecond said as he sauntered into the
tavern, hands clasped behind his back as he surveyed the room for damage.
"Glad it's you running this show, Puwul, and not me."

"There might have been few black eyes and bloody noses," Puwul said with a
grin. "No serious incidences."

"Black eyes and bloody noses are for common taverns, Puwul, _not_ one
associated with a respectable Hall," Fayazel cautioned the Tavern master in
a gentle tone. Just because the alcohol was made on site by expert
craftsmen, that was no reason that this should turn into a drunken den of
base behavior.

"Turn Over is only once in a Turn," Puwul said calmly. "Things don't
usually get that rowdy."

"I'm sure they don't," the Hallsecond said with a nod of acquiescence.
The point had been made, though. "How did they like the new brew? Master
Daigoro has been perfecting it all Turn."

"They liked it, I don't think we have more left than a drop at the bottom
of the barrel," Puwul replied with a grin. "Journeyman's Rinchen's
experiments with combining berries and ale didn't sell," he continued. "And
you can inform journeyman Keayd that his apricot brandy is fast become
ladies favourite and we need more of it."

"That's too bad about Journeyman Rinchen," Fayazel said with a thoughtful
frown. "Let's make sure to tithe some to the Weyr anyway. Perhaps if they
can taste it for free, some of the riders will take a liking to it."

"Those people seem to drink _anything_ ," Puwul nodded.

And it would reduce their stock while fulfilling their duty to the Weyr.
It certainly wasn't the perfect result, but better than wasting all that
time. Besides, Fayazel had tasted it, and actually thought it had lots of
possibility. "Keayd will be pleased, I'm sure, to hear his work has been
well received. I only wish women drank more."

"No you don't, not after you're seen how _some_ women act when they are
drunk," Puwul muttered.

Fayazel smiled, understanding all too well what the tavern keeper meant.
"Perhaps we should send a couple bottles with our compliments to the Baker
Hall. I'm sure they can come up with something they can use it for."

"That's a worth of trying," Puwul agreed. He knew his wife already used
some liquers or other alcohols in her cooking. It was the secret incredient
in many of her most popular dishes.

"How are we in terms of profit for the Turn Over? Better or worse than
last Turn?" He was sure had made marks, but just how many, he could not
hazard a guess.

"Well, I don't have the final numbers yet, I have to deduce the expenses
from the income, but certainly look promising," Puwul replied with happy
grin.

"Very good," the Hallsecond smiled. He liked profit. "Let's pour
ourselves a couple of drinks at the Hall's expense and have a seat, Puwul.
I want to discuss your ideas for the new Turn."

"Sure. What would you like to have?" Puwul said and asked. He poured
himself a beer.

"A dry red wine. Whatever we're running out of." That was a sure sign it
would be the better one.

Puwul checked the store behind the counter. He found a opened bottle with
half still left. After smelling it he decided it had gone stale and wasn't
fit to be served. That bottle was poured to sink, the empty bottle joining
others to be collected, washed and refilled. He picked one of the more
popular reds. "Amber red, this is always on demand," he said, opening the
cork and pouring the hallsecond a glass.

"That will do nicely," Fayazel consented, accepting the glass with a smile.
"Now, we have be doing well bringing in dragonriders of late, but how does
that effect our Holder business?"

"Not as much as you could think of, although...I wish we could get the Lord
Holder and the members of the Blood come here more often. That's always a
good signal for the locals," Puwul said.

"True, but they have a tavern much closer to home," Fayazel said with a
slight frown. "If we could tempt more river boats to stop here on their
way to Amber Hills, that would be something."

"Yeah," Puwul agreed. "We just need to figure out how."

"Surely, not _everyone_ traveling up the river is stopping off at Amber
Hills. Not _every_ boat needs to stop there for the night. How many rooms
do we have free any given evening? Enough to lodge a boat's worth of
travelers?" Surely they didn't take _that_ many passengers on each boat.
They were so small, and carrying a lot of cargo up and down river to
boot.

"Well, there's five room but one or two of them are pretty much permanently
rented for visiting crafters. And then there's the communal bedroom," Puwul
replied.

"And what's the look of them? Basic or with a bit of flare?" Fayazel had
always been far more interested in the alcohol aspect of the Tavern and not
so much the rooms they had to let.

"There's two kinds of them, larger, more suite than rooms and smaller, more
modest ones" Puwul replied.

"Perhaps we should look into how much it would cost to redecorate all
those rooms. Make them a bit fancier. Give people a _reason_ to stop off
at the Hall for a night. Do you think we do enough business throughout the
Turn to cover such a cost?" If they could actually expand their
enterprise, that would ultimately mean more marks for the Hall down the
road.

"I'm sure we can manage it financially. We might ask the nearby Woodcraft
hall, an apprentice work may come cheaper," Puwul caught on with the idea.
"Or we can invest bit more and get master to re-design them."

"Or go middle of the road and find a journeyman. I'm sure many are eager
to showcase their skills." And probably need some kind of Master's
project. That could be incentive enough for them to do their best without
breaking the Hall's coffers.

Puwul nodded. "I'm sure the woodcraft hall has plenty to choose from."

"Let's get to it, then," Fayazel said, wrapping the table with his knuckle
in emphasis. "Let's make this a banner Turn, eh, Puwul?"

"Aye," The Tavern master replied with a grin.

Last updated on the September 3rd 2013

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