Hill Giant{species}: The hill giants are the largest of all sentient races in the settled world with mature specimens ranging in height from between 7 and 9 feet tall. Due to this size, hill giants often struggle to adapt to cities and towns built by their smaller kinsfolk. Likewise, settlements created by the hill giants are made to a scale that most would find uncomfortable to use. This disparity had lead to a rift between hill giants and other sapient races, with the large humanoids preferring to keep their own company. Those that try to integrate often find that little to no accommodations are made for their size.

  “So did they let you keep it?” Gretta asked from her place by the couch. The orc woman was currently leaning back, supporting herself against its upholstered surface with Sarah cuddled up in her lap. For her part, the little cat girl seemed content to stay where she was, though her tail whipped back and forth in evident interest in Joe's story. Joe and Moira were sitting on the other couch, Joe’s formally broken arm in Moira’s lap. She was absentmindedly kneading the appendage as if checking it for damage.

  Joe shook his head, “nah, the blaster ended up being almost the whole value of the loot. I got a tidy little sum from its sale though, so it’s not all bad.”

  Gretta let vent to her disappointment with a resounding “booo!” that was echoed by the girl in her lap.

  “I wanted to give it a try!” Sarah grumped. The look that shot between the three adults in the room confirmed for each how likely that would have been, even if Joe’d kept the magical gun.

  Gretta dug her fingers into Sarah’s ribs, distracting the girl with a bout of giggles. “So when’s your next delve going to be, and can I join you?” She asked as she fended off the return volley of tickles.

  “I was just going to keep inviting Micah and Jill.” Joe admitted. He’d not yet tried to retrieve his arm from Moira. Something about the unconscious fussing over him felt good and he didn’t want it to end.

  Gretta stuck her tongue out at him. “Spread the love around! There’s more people out there who’d jump at the chance to go on an all day delve this close to town. I’ve got a couple of friends I could tap to fill out a party. Are you looking for any formation in particular? How many are you allowed?”

  “No, and two.” Joe responded, still getting his arm massage from Moira.

  The blacksmith spoke up for the first time in awhile. “Have you thought about what sort of a weapon you want for your next delve?”

  Joe made a ‘so-so’ gesture with his free hand. “Not really? I figured another hand shaker would probably be for the best. I don’t have a lot of time to practice with it.”

  “Even if you go with a hand shaker,” Gretta interjected as she pinned her opponent to her chest and dug her fingers into the little girl's ribs again, “you still need to spend some time practicing. I’ve got a friend I can put you in touch with who’s a wiz with a hand shaker. I’ve watched her quarter an afflette midair and still have time to skewer them before the pieces hit the ground.” Gretta yelped as Sarah brought her sharp little teeth into the fray.

  “Sarah, no teeth.” Moira chastised, although she didn’t put much force into the command.

  “She started it!”

  “I don’t care, no teeth. You’re not a kitten anymore.” Sarah crossed her arms and pouted, all the fun draining out of her face at being scolded by her mother. Gretta tweaked one of her ears and got swatted for her trouble.

  “Shouldn’t you two be heading out soon?” Gretta asked as she ruffled the little drama queen’s hair. “Something about dinner reservations at Two Brother’s Stables?”

  Reluctantly Joe extracted his arm from Moira and helped her to her feet. “You’re right, thanks for watching Sarah for us.” Do babysitters get paid? I mean technically Gretta does work for Moira, but this feels a little above and beyond what she signed up for, Joe thought as Moira led him to the door. I’ll just ask Moira when we get out of here. I don’t want to embarrass her if the answer is ‘no’.

  Gretta shrugged, “I live here, what else was I going to do? Let her run amok while I read my stories?”

  Joe perked up. He was about to ask her what sort of books she read when Moira tugged at his arm and got them underway.

  <><><>

  The walk to Two Brother’s was a pleasant one. Moira had chosen a backless dress of shimmery blue material that made her look like she was wrapped in flowing water. Her red hair was covered by a bandana of matching material and a pair of silver earrings sparkled on her ears. Next to her, Joe looked like a bum despite wearing the best set of clothes he owned. The muted earth tones of his red tunic and tan pants were the rocks to her stream. This didn’t really bother Joe, as he’d never been one to dress fancy. Instead he just drank in her beauty completely alright with fading into the background next to her.

  Each of them took turns to tell and listen to stories as they walked arm in arm. The physical contact felt good to Joe. He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed simply being in contact with another person until he had it back. It turned out Moira had already paid Gretta to watch Sarah, but Joe managed to get her to tell him how much it had been and he reimbursed her half. She’d tried to protest since Sarah was her daughter, but Joe pointed out that Moira and Sarah were a packaged deal and he fully intended to be just as much a part of Sarah’s life as he was Moira’s. This had finally gotten her to relent and they lapsed into a pleasant silence the rest of the way there.

  The companionable atmosphere was shattered when they entered Two Brother’s however..

  “Look Twiggins-”

  “That’s Higgins-”

  “I know what I said.” One of the two hill giant brothers, presumably Paule, reached across the bar and poked a stick thin youth in the chest with a hamster thick finger. “She may be ‘your girl’ any other time, but she’s my employee and right now she’s on the clock so she’s mine. If the two of you want to make lovey faces at each other, do it on your own time and stop trying to bother her here.”

  Joe looked over at Moira who shrugged.

  “I just need to speak with her for a moment. Please could you go get her?” Despite being outweighed by orders of magnitude, Higgins pushed ahead anyway.

  “No, now fuck off.”

  “What if I ordered something?”

  Paule crossed his arms and gave a shrug. “Well, then you’d be a customer. But if you try and drag out her taking your order, I’ll throw you out by the ears.”

  “Well, table for one then.” Higgins moved off to the indicated table, apparently perfectly willing to listen to directions now that he’d gotten his way.

  Once he’d moved off, Joe caught Paule’s eye and was directed to their own table. He was none too pleased to find that it was within spitting distance of Higgins however. I swear, if that guy keeps making a scene and ruins dinner with Moira, I’ll be the one to chuck him out. Joe grumbled in the privacy of his own head, knowing full well that years of customer service had thickened his tolerance for idiots up too much to actually go through with something like that.

  Moira however, had had no such thing happen to her. The object of Higgins' attention was not long in showing up. Over the years Joe had had his interpersonal skills honed to a fine point and, while he sometimes missed the subtleties, it wasn’t often. Even had he not had years of practice reading people, he would have been able to tell immediately that Becky in no way wanted to approach the man that sat less than twelve feet away from them.

  Him and Moira shared another glance, as the short moz goblin went to Higgins table first. Because of how close they were sitting, and because they were both eavesdropping, Joe and Moira could easily hear the exchange between them.

  “Good evening sir, I’ll be your server for-”

  “Hey Becky, you look really lovely tonight.” burbled Higgins, leaning far too closely to the waitress.

  “-this evening. What can I start you off with?” Becky steamrolled on, eyes glued to her notepad.

  “I was out shopping today, and I saw this in the jeweler's window and thought it’d look amazing on you.” Higgins produced a small wooden box and tried to hold it out to Becky, who completely ignored it.

  “If you need some time to think, I could start you off with a drink?” Becky’s eyes flashed up to the box before going back down to her notepad.

  “I don’t want anything on the menu. I just want you, why won't you give me a chance?”

  Joe watched as Moira leaned forward, planting both elbows on the table and resting her head on her fingertips. The two of them locked eyes over their own table. This smells of ‘creepy stalker’. If I guess the look on Moira’s face right, she’s about ready to resolve this issue herself. Well I’m not going to stand in her way. Hell, I’ll shut the door for her so the dumbass has to go through it when she throws him out. He gave her a small nod, which she returned. Next to them things had escalated.

  “For non-alcoholic drinks we have lemonade and water, if you want something stronger there’s a nice pale ale we’ve just got in as well as a red ale” Becky said, not even trying to put on her bubbly customer service persona.

  “No, I’m fine. Please Becky, look at me. I want to see your beautiful brown eyes. I love you and it hurts the way you’ve been treating me.” The creep made a grab for the moz’s hand, but Moira’s chair was already skidding backwards before he got halfway to her. Joe got up at a more leisurely pace, gently inserting himself between the waitress and her customer as Moira’s hand clamped down on the man’s arm.

  “Now if I recall,” Moira growled, switching her grip to get a double handful of the youth's shirt. “Paule over there said you weren’t to tie up his waitress.” The muscles of her arms and back were on full display in her backless blue dress, and Joe could see every one of them tighten as Moira lifted the suddenly wide eyed Higgins out of his seat. Despite technically being shorter than the man, Moira still lifted him up until his feet dangled. “So you’re either gonna put in your order and eat it in silence or you’re going to be heading on your way, alright?”

  Joe glanced at the bar where Paule was watching the proceedings with eyes narrowed. The hill giant didn’t move to stop Moira however, so Joe assumed they’d not crossed whatever line Paule had drawn in his head. However, the look in his eyes told him they were getting pretty damn close.

  “G-Get your hands off me!” Higgins squeaked, still midair on Mnt. Moira. “You have no business-”

  “You,” and here Moira gave the youth a good shake, “are interrupting my date. Do you know how hard it is to find time to get away when you are simultaneously running a business and raising a child?No? I have exactly one hour before I need to get home to put my daughter to bed and I’m not wasting it watching you not take a hint!”

  Joe checked on Paule again to see how close the line was. To his surprise the hill giant was covering his mouth, apparently recovering from a none too convincing cough.

  Moira dropped Higgins, who somehow contrived to end up on his ass despite only falling three inches. He glanced from the fuming blacksmith to Becky, but was met with Joe instead. Becky had tucked herself up completely behind Joe, who stood with his arms folded doing his best to look intimidating. Higgins was brought back to Moira when she dropped the little box into his lap.

  “I think you’d better go.” She said, ice forming on every word. “I’m down to fifty nine minutes because of this, if you waste any more of my time I’ll be taking it out of your hide.” That finally did it, and Higgins fled for the door, leaving the little box on the ground where it had fallen.

  Moira scooped it up and flipped open the lid. Inside was a necklace that glittered far too much to be real diamonds. It sat on a red cloth cushion with the silver-ish chain tucked underneath.

  “I don’t want it.” The comment came in a small voice from behind Joe. He didn’t need to turn to know it came from Becky.

  Joe and Moira exchanged another silent glance before Moira shrugged. “Put it in the lost and found then. If he comes back he can pick it up.” She looked around Joe, “we’re ready to order by the way.”

  Joe thought not giving the clearly upset goblin woman a chance to collect herself was a little callous, but the call to action actually seemed to snap her out of her brooding.

  “Right,” Becky said, blinking a few times before plucking her notepad and pencil from her apron pocket. “I’m sorry about all that, what can I get you?”

  Having not had a chance to look at the menu, Joe just doubled up on the order Moira made. Said order was unsurprisingly mostly composed of meat. I swear, if I go in for a kiss and find her mouth full of shark teeth, I’d not be the least bit surprised. Joe thought as they sat down to wait for their food.

  Across the table, Moira was still clearly caught up in what had just happened. She stared menacingly at the unlit candle set in its wooden holder, her thoughts clearly violent from the glint of fire in her eyes. “Wishing he’d given you a reason to turn him into a corkscrew?” Joe asked, leaning forward to catch her hand with his own and give it a gentle squeeze.

  “What? Oh,” Moira looked a little embarrassed about getting caught. “A little, is that bad?” She returned the squeeze before looking up at Joe. “She’s just so small, my motherly instinct kicked in and I had to protect her. I know, she’s a full grown woman but…” Moira trailed off as she failed to come up with a good reason to justify her actions.

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  They sat in silence for a few minutes, just holding one another's hands. Eventually Joe spoke up. “You don’t have to justify it. She obviously could use the help.” He lowered his voice and leaned in. “I”m just surprised Paule even let him sit down.”

  Moira gave a shrug. She glanced over at the bar before continuing. “I’m not. Hill giants are a lot more…. straightforward people. Their courtship is a lot of back and forth with the male needing to prove he’s worth the female's time. If they get snubbed enough times though, they give up. Someone not taking the hint and stopping isn’t really common amongst them.”

  “Really? With that sort of a set up I’d think it’d be really common. I mean if the idea is to wear the female down then the most stubborn should win right?”

  Moira shook her head. “Not really. I’ve heard the idea is more to show he’s committed to her and her alone. Although I’ve also heard in the few cases where the male doesn’t get the hint then the female’s family kicks his teeth in.”

  “Still, she needs to talk to him about it. Or find a different job with a boss who won't put up with that sort of thing.”

  At that point Becky brought their drinks over. Joe’d decided to indulge in the beer he’d shared with Paul, while Moira had gone for a crisp cider. They swapped glasses briefly so each could try the other's drink. Joe had found Moira’s to be pleasantly refreshing, like a bubbly, slightly bitter apple juice. Moira did not approve of Joe’s drink, pulling a face and declaring that if his breath smelled of that after he was done, she wouldn’t kiss him. Despite the remonstration, Joe’s heart fluttered at the idea that a kiss was even on the table. Privately he weighed whether or not it was worth finishing his drink if a kiss was on the line.

  They picked up their aborted conversation from earlier, with Moira doing her best to sketch out her idea for Joe’s handshaker. From the sound of it, her pride wouldn’t be satisfied with making him something like what he’d borrowed from Jill. Although the thing she described to him sounded more like a squat version of a halberd than a hand shaker.

  Eventually their meals came. The racks of ribs they’d ordered had been marinated in herbed butter until the meat practically melted off the bones. Each rack had been placed on a bed of roasted root vegetables that looked like carrots with white skins and red interiors. They’d absorbed the juices that had sweated off the meat while in the oven but still had just a bit of crunch that added texture to the flavor. The fair was good enough that the two of them ate in silence, words abandoned as they each got lost in the meal.

  Eventually, Joe managed to pull himself back to the present and continue their conversation. He swallowed the overly large bite he’d been masticating and wiped his mouth. “How much would something like that cost me?”

  Moira took a pull from her drink before responding. “Don’t worry about it, it’ll be a good exercise for me. It’s been a long time since I’d needed to make something that complicated on the forge. I’ll probably have Gretta help me on the ax blade. She needs to work more on her forge welding and axes are a good way to do that.”

  Joe knew next to nothing about metal working, so just nodded and took another bite. While he wasn’t sure exactly what ‘forge welding’ was, just listening to Moira’s animated discussion about the finer points of blacksmithing was pleasant. Her face came alive and her hands wove back and forth as she mimed first the actions, then the reactions of various types of splits, draws and bends she could do on her anvil.

  She’s got some pretty skilled hands, I wonder what else she can do with them? The thought came unbidden to Joe’s mind, a withered bit of humor he’d not used since his wife’s passing. He’d been a real terror to her, saying the most outlandish things just to watch her pretty eyes roll in exasperation at his antics. I’m not there yet with Moira though, let's not make things awkward by saying dumb shit she may not find funny.

  Despite the pleasant distraction, the conversation eventually drifted back to the scene they’d broken up.

  “I wonder how long she’s been putting up with that shit for brains.” Moira grumbled into a lull in the conversation.

  “Dono, but I can safely say ‘too long’” Joe answered. He went back in with his fork, exploring around the picked clean bones in the hope of finding a bit more meat. Sadly, there was nothing left.

  Moira looked across the table at him while he explored the shattered depths of his meal. “Have you had any luck finding an assistant? Or are you planning on letting Goober run the shop again.”

  “No, while I made a tidy profit that day, I have a feeling he was bullying people.” Joe gave up and wondered about the dessert menu. “I’ve had more than one person peek their head in asking if the ‘dog’ was there. As far as I’m concerned, he’s fired.”

  “Why not ask Becky to step in then? You’re doing good enough you can afford an assistant, plus that will give you enough time to practice with your handshaker.”

  Joe frowned, “I’m not going to poach a worker from somewhere I plan on eating regularly.”

  Moira gave a chuckle, a wicked little grin scuttling across her face. “Didn’t stop me, I poached Gretta from Merrie while the fluffy flirt was training her. Walked right up and said ‘look, do you want to stand around being told to smile, or do you want to hit things with a hammer?’ She practically jumped the counter.”

  Joe couldn’t help but chuckle himself. He could just see the lanky orc vaulting over Merrie’s counter with no regard for the current contents perched upon it. “You’re right though, I could use a bit of help around the shop.” I’m the only game in town, so it’s not like I can’t afford it. Joe thought to himself. Part of him felt bad for having a monopoly on chemist goods, part of him liked the guaranteed income and security having said monopoly gave him. “ How would I go about a job posting? Am I allowed to just stick a sign in my window or is there even more guild paperwork I need to fill out?”

  Moira laughed at that, the sound filling Joe’s stomach with warm fire. “No, thank the gods. You’re allowed to have as many workers as you can afford to pay.” Joe was about to ask if there was a ‘Guild of Workers’ but decided against it. It sounded like something he should know, having already stated he’d worked for someone else in the past. “If you want to go that route, fine, but at least let Becky know of the option. She’s a good girl and would be a hard worker for you.”

  Joe cocked an eyebrow, “and how do you know that?”

  Moira gave a shrug. “Every time I come in here, she’s the first to greet me and gets the orders in and out fast.”

  Joe had to admit, she had a point. The two times he’d been here the little moz woman had been an attentive and speedy waitress. If tipping was something that was done here, Joe was sure she’d be making a killing. “Alright, I just hope Paule doesn’t mind that I'm offering his employee a job.”

  “She’s not his slave.” Moira chastised gently. “He doesn’t own her and she doesn’t owe him. Especially after throwing her to the wolves like that.”

  “I thought you said he didn’t know what Higgins was doing?”

  Moira shrugged, “I know, but I still don’t like it. When she comes with the bill, ask her.”

  Joe hadn’t planned on doing it right then and there. He didn’t even know what he could afford to pay her, let alone what her workload would be and when she’d start. But the matter of fact way Moira had stated it made it hard to say no to. You could never say no to Mary, what made you think Moira would be any different? Joe smiled “What, don’t I get a say in this?”

  “If you think you need one,” Moira answered, completely unabashed. “But I can tell you now, it’d save you a lot of time and hassle if you just went for her straight away.”

  “Um…” the small voice came from their left. When they turned to look, there stood Becky with her notepad in hand. “Actually,” she said sheepishly, “I’ve been wanting to go into more career type work. Are you looking to hire Mr.Alderbright?”

  “I guess so,” Joe answered, glancing at Moira who had the decency to look a little embarrassed. “I don’t know exactly what I’d pay you, so why don’t you let me figure that out and I’ll get back to you with a number? Let’s say, tomorrow morning.”

  Becky nodded, looking more than a little relieved for some reason. “Ok, I’ve got a class early in the morning, but I should be done with it a little after ten. I’ll make my way over to you then”

  Joe nodded. They skipped dessert, despite Becky’s insistence on buying them something as a thankyou for their help earlier. Moira hadn’t been kidding when she said they only had an hour before they needed to get back and dessert just wasn’t in the cards this time. On the way back, Joe hashed out potential wages for Becky. Alternative payment was apparently quite common, with food and lodgings being the most frequent examples. Part of Gretta’s wages for example came from the room and board she got from Moira.

  Joe wasn’t too sure lodging was an option. There was little enough space between him and the sack of meat known as Goober, adding a third person to the mix would make his meager living space feel positively cramped. Not for the first time Joe wondered about how much better things would have been with the living space upgrade from his application. Although if things work out with me and Moira, I might be able to work the apartment in as a bonus. Joe liked the idea of that. If he was going to have a worker, he was going to make sure they were taken care of.

  When they got back to Fairchild Foundries Joe gave Moira’s hand a little squeeze. “As always, it was nice spending time with you.” He said, looking deeply into her emerald eyes. She smiled up at him and returned the squeeze.

  “Same to you, we’ll have to do it again sometime. Until then, you’re always welcome around the dinner table here.” She turned to go, but Joe wouldn’t release her hand. When she turned back around and raised an eyebrow Joe continued.

  “I never finished my drink.” He stated, which got a questioning look from Moira. Alright Joe; smooth, not forceful. If she pulls away, let her go and give it up as a bad job. Joe tugged on Moira’s hand, causing her to take a few steps forward into hug range. Wrapping his arms around her, Joe took a moment longer to just drink in her beautiful face and gorgeous eyes. “You said you’d kiss me if my breath didn’t smell like that drink.” Joe elaborated after a moment.

  Moira chuckled, “no, I said I wouldn’t kiss you if your breath smelled like that. I never agreed to kiss you in the first place.” Her arms wrapped around his waist in return and gave him a gentle squeeze that almost popped his back. “But since you were such a gentleman and abstained from drinking any more of that swill, come here.”

  Joe tried to make that kiss last forever. While holding her hand had felt like food when he was starving, her lips were like breathing fresh air for the first time in his life. Eventually though, she pushed him away with a smile. “Alright loverboy, that’s enough for now. Come by tomorrow night?”

  “Sure,” his voice was breathy, and his head was full of her mixed smell of flowers and coal. “Good night Moira” he eventually got out.

  “Good night Joe,” she blessed him with one more quick kiss before fleeing up the stairs.

  <><><>

  “How can you get away with charging this much? It’s ridiculous. I’d be better off bulk ordering through the catalogs than standing for this racket. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

  Yeah go ahead, use the catalogs. Why buy today what you can wait a month to get? Joe looked across his counter at the fuming human woman hefting one of his shampoo/conditioner combo packs like it was a bag of dog poop.

  While most of the people Joe interacted with on a day to day basis were pleasant enough in small doses, any large enough group is bound to have a few monumentally unpleasant members. Unfortunately one such specimen had run out of shampoo that day.

  “I’m sorry you feel that way ma’am. If you would rather put in a bulk order, the catalogs are at Swiftly’s just down the road.” Joe gave her his best ‘pained, but helpful’ smile while simultaneously hoping she got trampled by a brox. The woman bristled, clearly not having heard what she’d wanted to from Joe. Sorry lady I don’t haggle, and before you ask; no I don’t care who you/your husband is. Everyone pays the same in this shop. Well except Moira, but she doesn’t need to know that.

  “Do you know who my husband is?”

  I really need to make those bingo cards. Out loud Joe said, “no ma’am, and even if I did it wouldn't change anything. My prices are fair for the volume you are buying and do not fluctuate based on who is purchasing it.”

  “He is Gerald Bacarti senior,” she steamrolled, apparently unwilling or unable to listen to reason.

  “Well good for him. I hope he’s happy with his life choices.” It was out of his mouth before Joe even had a chance to think of the implications of what he was saying. The woman in front of him turned a very familiar shade of purple as she interpreted his words in the worst possible light. At least I know where Gerald junior gets his sparkling attitude from. Joe thought as he stood before the silently fuming woman doing his best to look innocent. Apparently too angry for words, she slammed the bottle down on his glass topped counter hard enough to crack it before storming out.

  Anger flared in Joe’s heart, but he banked it quickly. He could probably get her or her husband to replace the glass she’d damaged, but how long would it take and how much of a headache it would be could be anyone's guess. In the end he just let her go.

  “I need a fucking vacation.” Joe muttered into the empty shop.

  As if once again reading his mind, Becky chose that moment to open the door and peek in tentatively. She saw Joe and scurried in the rest of the way, her fur tufted tail sticking up behind her like an RC antenna. “Um, hello Mr.Alderbright. I’m here for the job interview?”

  “Job interview?” Joe’s mind had trouble shifting gears as he did his best to tamp down the rest of his annoyance.

  “Um yes, from last night? You told me to come by the shop this morning and talk to you after you’d had a chance to figure out what my pay would be?”

  The right bit of fluff finally rolled into place and Joe’s brain was able to fire up properly again. “Oh, yeah. Come on back.” He walked to the little flip up trap door that separated the front of the shop from his work space and flipped it up. He really hadn’t needed to, as the little moz goblin could have easily ducked under the divider without issue, but it was the principle of the thing.

  When Becky entered the workspace her eyes went wide as she got a better look at the space. Her mouth hung open slightly as she looked over the glittering glassware all lined up on their shelves, sparkling under the mana light from the orbs on the pillars. “Wow, it’s so pretty up close.”

  “It does have a certain charm that’s not visible from the shop floor.” Joe agreed, watching the little goblin woman roam the space. “I can start you off at two bronzes an hour. My apartment only has one bedroom so no room is available, but I can provide three meals a day for you nonetheless.”

  Becky winced. “I really need a place to stay. If I leave Two Brothers, I’d have to either pay for the room over the stables I’m using or move out.”

  Joe’d been afraid of that. He didn’t want to leave her homeless, but he really couldn’t afford more than what he was offering her at the moment. He scratched the back of his neck and threw an idea out there. “Well, there’s the basement. But it’s all one big room and the dungeon entrance is down there…”

  To his surprise Becky perked up. “Oh I don’t mind that, I’m training up at the college to do some adventuring before I settle down and I could use the space for my drills.”

  Joe raised an eyebrow, “the dungeon portal doesn’t bother you though?”

  Becky gave a shrug, clearly not all that concerned. “Those things are sealed up good by the guild. It’d be no more dangerous than sleeping in the same room as a locked exterior door.”

  “I don’t have a spare bed.” Joe pointed out, trying to feel out all the pitfalls ahead of time like someone poking a rotten tooth. “We’d have to get you one and I’m not sure I’d be able to find something right away.”

  “I’ve slept in worse,” Becky said scratching her chin. “Have you got support pillars down there?” Joe nodded before she continued “I’ll string up my asymmetric camp hammock I’ve got in my travel pack. If you don’t mind me cooking down there I can also set up my camp cook set. It runs off mana so you wouldn’t have to worry about smoke.”

  It was Joe’s turn to give a shrug. “It’s all stone down there. Well, stone and some storage boxes. If you want I can drag those into a rough wall as well. It’ll give you some privacy at the very least.”

  “No it’s fine.” Now the little moz was hopping from foot to foot, clearly excited at the prospect. “Oh this’ll be fun. So what’ll my duties be and when can I start?”

  “Well, first you’ll be on mundane production duty. They’re what I go through the most of and quite frankly they’re boring as hell at this point. Later I’ll train you up on the magical potions side of things with the eventual goal of working into enchantments as well. You can start as soon as you’re all done at Two Brothers.”

  “Awesome! Today’s my day off so I’ll go tell Paule right now and get my stuff moved over.” To Joe's surprise, Becky actually skipped over and gave him a quick hug before rocketing off and out the door. She almost bowled over poor old Mrs.Parker on the way out and had to throw a shouted “Sorry ma’am!” over her shoulder.

  Joe was left in just as much shock as his new customer at her antics.