A Bodyguard In Waiting (Finn)

[Rickter]

A Bodyguard In Waiting
Ash 8th, 120th Year, A.o.S.

It was about midday with the sun glowering down over the city, blanketing Kalzasi in a bath pleasantly warm rays as people went about their daily lives. The average citizen carried out whatever routines needed to be prioritized in their day, leaving foot traffic at a moderately high number as people traversed the streets. Rickter had decided to stop by the High Hopes Tavern for a bit of lunch, seeing as how he and his companion Telion were bound to poke around the city afterward today.

What with the way everything had been going on, the wolf felt it worth taking time to plan things out a bit, seeing as how he hadn't really been doing so great within the past several days. Physically he was still fine considering, but the last few excursions he'd experienced were beginning to take a toll. A beat down from a few Low-City bastards, followed by a run-in with a horde of shinaegri, and then to top it off a search and rescue quest; which by the way almost went completely south near the end... and then as of yesterday a close call with a royal assassination right in this very tavern.

Yeah, just those few things added up collectively, exhausting Rickter as he realized the real problem at heart. He wasn't strong like he wanted to be, nowhere near ideally what he wanted to be capable of. He'd seen mages in action as they'd harnessed the elements, even so much as made telekinetic force act unbelievably lethal. Yet what could he do? The Rune on his nape was nothing more than a means of storing away weaponry at this point, to which he realized he wasn't used to its full potential. If One-Day were to see him now he could only wonder, what on Ransera would the man think of him as he were now? Weak? Worthless even?

The thoughts beat him down even more as he entered the tavern, his eyes diverted to the floor as he appeared well-occupied. "Good afternoon Rickter!" The barmaid Margo greeted him almost a little too enthusiastically, warranting a suspicious stare from the wolf as he took a seat on the stool nearby. "Oh, sorry! Your friends have told me a bit about you. Hope you don't mind?" He stared at her in silence as he nearly looked uncomfortable with her friendliness, but ultimately groaned a quiet approval her way as he leaned into the counter before her.

"Oh right, quiet type, sorry! Anyways you here for a meal?" She inquired curiously as she pulled away to start pouring a drink, clearly able to see his need for one from the distracted look in his eyes. Still the wolf nodded a little reluctantly, barely cracking a smile her way when she placed a mug of ale in front of him. "Sure thing! Here you go. I'll be right back!" She enthused, though in his case warned, with a bit of a perk in her step towards the kitchen doorway, leaving Rickter to enjoy a few sips from his drink before she returned with a bowl of steaming stew. Beef, carrots, and celery floated within the rich creamy broth it soaked in, with a blend of seasonings such as sage or even parsley noticeable by his sense of smell. Admittedly... he approved.

Thus with his hand quick to fish out the same amount of coin he paid with last time, except this time with an extra gold piece for the barmaid to keep for herself. "What's this?" She checked as she picked out the gold from the rest, Rickter just barely looking up from his bowl after he scooted it closer.

"For good service." The wolf muttered as he poked his fork at a chunk of beef.

"Awe, thanks!" The ginger cheered with humble appreciation, pocketing the tip with a vivid grin shot his way. After that, however, she noticed somebody else coming around the bar, as it just so happened to be Telion as Rickter came to see. "Well hey minstrel!"

"Hey there Margo!" Telion giggled at the nickname as she took a stool next to Rickter, setting down with an elbow used to prop herself on the bar. "Don't be afraid to call me Telion though. Or just Teli, it's what my friends call me." After likely reminding the barmaid of that again, gods only knew how many times, the bard looked from her to Rickter still with a pleasant smile on her face. "Hey Ricky, how's your day going?"

"It'll be better after this meal." He reasoned with a sheepish look her way, the meaty chunk pronged on his fork briefly blown on before he ingested it to begin chewing. Telion giggled a bit as she looked to Margo afterward, clearly in the same vote as she decided on eating also.

"Hey Margo, I'll have what he's having." At the request the barmaid looked from Telion to Rickter, before smiling once more with a response.

"Consider it covered." She told the bard as she retreated to the kitchen once more, the statement surprising Telion as she looked at Rickter in a touching manner.

"That was awfully nice of her!" She remarked in regards to the gesture, to which Rickter simply groaned in agreement. Of course, he could see where the generosity stemmed from, nonetheless, it was a bit rewarding to see it circle back around in one form or another.

[Finn]

Finn wasn't a gossip, but he did enjoy a good story. He had heard a rumor of an attack on an important personage here in the High Hopes and he was curious. It was a place he wanted to play someday, and it seemed a good idea to take the lay of the land, so to speak. The minstrel could afford a few drinks and a meal there; he just couldn't afford to be a regular patron.

Yet.

And so he was savoring a pint and a savory stew when a gruff-looking man took a seat a few stools down from him. The bar wench seemed even friendlier to him than she had been to Finn, but it didn't sound like he was a regular. Finn noticed the sizable tip and froze for a second, not sure he had budgeted correctly for this place, though the woman seemed as surprised as Finn was, so perhaps the taciturn fellow used his mood as armor for a decent heart. It was nice to think that. The city could feel quite heartless sometimes.

Or perhaps that was how he ensured good cheer and good service from the ladies. Finn had a dalliance here and there, but in his experience, most people were trying to climb the social ladder and he hadn't ascended many rungs.

Yet.

He pulled a gruff face at his stew for a moment, though, wondering if that might help him in the meantime. Blinking at the mention of a minstrel, it only took a moment to realize that Margo meant Telion-called-Telly, who came to sit next to Rickter-called-Ricky. He rather hoped nobody took to calling him Finny. Finn had been just fine from childhood until now; though, perhaps he needed a stage name? Finneas? Finarfin? Finn the Fantastic? His family didn't have a name. He didn't know if he ought to invent a backstory more interesting than his own. His music ought to speak for itself, though. Wrapping it up in lies seemed wrong.

While he might have engaged another patron in conversation, the man didn't seem to be a conversationalist and the woman was focused on him, so Finn just enjoyed the ambiance, the woman's chatter, and the superior flavors of his repast. It would be nice to be accustomed to this quality of life. If nothing else came of this place, it would be a good memory to drive him when he needed more ambition and less dreaming.

[Rickter]

"So Ricky," Telion started as she waited for her meal to be brought back, "have you given any thought to what Aoren said?" The wolf simply stared at her as he paused from taking another bite of the stew, the pronged bit of steaming meat left hanging as he held the fork between two fingers. In a roundabout way, he pretty much thought of nothing else, especially given the fact it was the only thing on his mind since yesterday. Still, he decided to simply shrug for an initial response, before taking the bite and chewing it vigorously. "I mean... it's not often you get an invitation to the palace. Right?" Her lack of knowledge of Kalzasi was always ever so clear to Rickter, but of course, she wasn't entirely wrong on the matter either.

Aoren invited him to the Palace of the First Wind after what happened yesterday, and while Rickter felt a multitude of emotions in regard to it; he mostly felt at odds with the idea overall. He was a commoner, practically an undesirable in some cases, if one considered the fact he was a mixed breed. Hell, even the idea of joining up with the royal guard felt quite daft, mainly because in Rickter's own eyes, he wasn't anywhere near suited for such a demanding role to begin with. Being a bodyguard meant being able to protect someone, to shield them from any and all danger that threatened them.

As he was he could barely protect himself without getting hurt in the process, much less keep anyone else around him safe when he did act upon instinct. "Haven't even considered it at least a little?" Telion tried once more as she looked at him, the curiosity melded with concern as she watched him eat another bite of his stew. Margo came back from the kitchen after she'd said that, placing the bowl of steaming stew in front of Telion as she shot a grin at the both of them.

"There we are! Anything else I can get ya?" The ginger checked briskly with a lean onto the counter, her eyes fixated on the both of them before she leaned up from the bar once more.

Rickter simply shook his head a couple of times and took a swig from his mug, while Telion herself gave a faint smile to the barmaid and said, "this will be enough for me. Thanks Margo." With a nod of her head the barmaid moved on to take care of her other patrons, leaving the two to sit in silence as Telion poked at her stew, to more or less blow on a vegetable or two she'd pronged with her fork. After Rickter finished his drink from the mug and placed it down, he lingered in stillness for a moment as he contemplated on how to answer Telion's previous question.

"Maybe a little." He reasonably bluffed with his tone still firm, garnering a look of surprise from the bard next to him. "It's not a decision that should be made lightly."

"I can understand." Telion agreed with a bit more of a soft smile present, her fork lowered as she hovered it over her bowl. "Do you... want to go?" Now that there was the big question.

Deep down Rickter knew he didn't but at the same time, part of him felt that he at least owed it to Aoren to visit. And Talon as well, deserved to be checked in on, if the notion were even a possibility for one's stature such as Rickter's. Again he felt heavily against the idea for a multitude of reasons, but overall the main factor was the lack of faith in his own skills. "Not that it matters, but I think you should at least. You may always run head first into trouble, but at the end of the day you're still a protector."

"And yet I couldn't protect Talon." He rebutted plainly as he continued to eat his food, somewhat continuing the conversation in between chews. "Just like I couldn't protect you and Hannah when it mattered either."

"You still saved us though," Telion quickly argued, "just because you didn't see the attack coming doesn't mean you're bad at protecting others, Ricky." A rather dumb statement in his opinion. To him, a bodyguard or protector should be able to deter any danger or threat, which meant being able to keep their charge safe from all potential harm. It was bad enough he'd slipped up once or twice before, but if he were to actually fail in keeping his peers safe? He didn't want to think about it, and sure enough, he realized just how attached he'd started to get to some people. Telion, Hannah, Talon. It wasn't that long ago Rickter narrowed that list down to one, and left it at that because of how alone he became afterward. Still, he wanted to make sure Linden continued both his life and his work, and since their adopted mother passed, Rickter felt it best to keep his presence minimized for the younger sibling's sake.

"Why are you so pushy on this matter anyways?" He remarked still with a plain tone of voice, his gaze briefly fixed on Telion before he raised his eyebrows at her. Rickter even went so far as to grunt a "hm?" at her before her smile widened a bit, and she answered the question in turn.

"Because I actually think you'd be good at it." A response that merited a brief chuckle from the wolf, surprising Telion before she too chuckled at the reaction. "What? I'm serious!"

"Yeah, I know." He assured her with a look down at his stew, getting ready to take another bite as he added, "Not sure if I'd agree." As he continued eating the bard teased him with a glare, before shaking her head and finally taking her first bite of the stew before her.

[Finn]

Again, Finn was not a gossip, and yet these people were having a conversation not six feet from him and the names they mentioned were names associated with the rumors going about town. Perhaps he ought to have felt guilty listening, but they were in public, after all. There were names he didn't know, of course: Aoren; Hannah. Everyone in the city knew Talon Novalys, though. This Rickter fellow, then, seemed to have stumbled upon his lucky star; whether he would hitch his wagon to that star and ride it into the firmament, however, Finn couldn't say. He didn't know the man, though now he desperately wanted to know what was going on behind his façade. Or was that truly who he was?

"Pardon?" he asked quietly when Margo interrupted his reverie. "Oh, no seconds, thank you. I'll be ready for another pint by the time you return with one, though. No rush, of course." His smile might have been charming, but it was more sincere. Most of the people he knew were barmaids and they didn't get enough respect or coin for their work and what they had to put up with. When she nodded and went to fill him another tankard, he tucked into his stew, which was cooling. Best to finish it while it was still warm, at least. One couldn't nurse a meal forever, no matter how fine.

He began to hum quietly as he finished his food, though nothing that might disturb. His bowl couldn't have been cleaner when Margo returned unless he had stooped to licking it. He smiled, finished the dregs of his drink, and let her exchange the new one with the old. "Thank you," he said, and when she drifted away, the snatch of melody drifted back. It was then that he realized what he was doing, letting music order his mind so he could open himself up to his neighbor's symphony, getting as much of a sense of him and his emotional state as he could with a simple overture. There was no active manipulation of the song, just a sharpening of his own awareness, his "ears," so to speak. It was another layer of awareness added to the reading of tone and posture, timbre and gesture, even the smallest. It was magic, though.

His hand came up to rub the back of his head, ruffling the shorter hair of his undercut, which hid the Rune his red-robed teacher had inscribed there. It was likely his imagination, but it always tickled when he was practicing.

This was the most he would attempt most of the time, and he was getting better at it—at reading people. He only reached out with magic when he was performing, nudging his audience toward more enjoyment, more relaxation, more release of their daily tensions, their worries and troubles.

[Rickter]

Telion seemed to finally give Rickter a break at least, likely because she realized how empty her stomach was once she began to eat. Rickter himself had already gotten halfway through the stew, so within a few minutes of the pair working through their meal, the wolf finished by scarfing what remained in his bowl; and then gulping down what warm broth was left. "Goodness, someone was hungry!" Margo teased in passing as she approached from down the bar, after delivering another patron a second round to drink a moment prior. "Have you gotten your fill?" She added a little heartily, getting a simple nod out of Rickter after he placed the bowl down.

Telion chuckled and looked down at her bowl, a little over half of it eaten as she'd significantly slowed to a graze. "I think I have too." Margo looked at her a little surprised, and with a polite smile she started to reach to take the eating ware. Rickter on the other hand raised a hand to gesture for her to leave Telion's bowl, looking to the bard herself as he held a hand close to the bowl's edge. "Oh," she looked to him briefly astonished, "Go ahead!"

"My, my! Quite the appetite you have there Ricky!" Margo started to laugh now, with Telion chiming in softly next to him. Rickter merely shrugged in response to their remarks, scooting the bowl closer toward him so that he could scoop it in one hand.

"Never waste good food." He simply retorted back before tilting the bowl towards his lips, resulting in him slurping down what was left of Telion's stew.

"Thanks Margo, the stew was great today!" Telion complimented afterward as Rickter finished off the stew, handing the empty bowl over to the barmaid as a belch rattled the inside of his rib cage.

"Not a problem! Just lemme know if you need anything else." The ginger cheered with a brief tilt of her head, bidding the both of them farewell for the time being. As she retreated back to put away their used dishes, Rickter leaned a little more comfortably into the bar, sipping at his beer for a little bit longer as he noticed humming nearby.

Strange. He noted to himself as he avoided direct observation, from what he could see out of his peripheral vision, it looked as though some other bard or traveler sat a few stools down from him. I'll admit his tune is... relaxing. Odd that he felt that way all of a sudden, but granted he'd just finished eating, it didn't come as a shock he felt such a thing. Even Telion seemed to be enjoying herself, as she half-leaned onto the bar with one arm, while facing Rickter with a soft smile ever present to him.

"So what do you need to become a better bodyguard?" Rickter's eyebrows lazily rose as he turned his head to her, a little tired of the subject but at least willing to answer now.

"Training certainly." He spoke plainly with a bit of a lazier tone now, almost as if he were calmer in comparison to before. Clearly, he must've overeaten if he was feeling like that, all that was left was for the sluggish lazy feeling to settle in, and he could very well likely go for a nap before doing what they needed to for the day. "I'd thought to actually spend some time getting new gear after we leave."

"Huh, that's not a bad idea actually." Telion agreed as she contemplated that last statement, thinking back to their previous expedition into the Warrens no less. "Why don't we relax here a bit longer, honestly I'm feeling in a mood to play." She remarked as she rose from her stool, briskly sauntering away towards the hallway which led to her room. "I'll be back. Okay?"

Rickter lazily nodded as the grogginess actually started to kick in, along with the buzz that accompanied his alcoholic drinks. It'd actually be nice to hear the lady play, hell now that he thought about it, the other fellow a couple of stools down might join in with her. While the thought crossed his mind, of course, Rickter barely spared the guy a lot of thought, only glimpsing the man's way when he seemed to be distracted elsewhere. At first glance, he looked quite young, not necessarily mercenary material, and the lute was a dead giveaway to his profession. Dark hair that was well kept, somewhat muscular but just shy of lanky... Clearly, a bard much like his companion. Rickter simply exhaled a long and drawn sigh through his naval, his eyelids somewhat weightier than before as he sipped on his drink a bit more. The bloody thing was about empty too it seems, which meant after Telion played her ukulele, it was no doubt time for the pair to head out.

[Finn]

The man's internal life seemed mostly in sync with his external projections. He seemed thoughtful, troubled, and a bit torn; more immediately, his hunger was sated and he was a bit lethargic. Finn's own jaw cracked as he suddenly yawned wide.

"Pardon," he murmured, eyes watering, though Margo didn't seem to notice. He glanced to the side to idly watch Telion's assets as she walked away. Approving, he made no lewd comments or gestures, just felt the corner of his mouth tug upward in a pleased smile. His art might have been of the audible kind, but he could appreciate visual aesthetics too. He glanced at his second beer, wondering if the yawn was his own satiation speaking or if he was actually internalizing what he heard in Rickton's symphony. It was a question for his red-robed friend the next time they met, though now that he had mastered the basics, he was left mostly to his own devices.

Finn took a sip of beer and didn't go back to humming. The connection didn't break; he could still "hear" Rickter's feelings, attuned now, open to them. Relaxing, he didn't dismiss the connection, but was curious to see how long it would take to fade. Little details like that might be good to know.

At Rickton's sigh, he glanced at him and happened to catch his gaze.

With an apologetic smile, he said, "Hullo. I couldn't help but overhear some of your conversation... Is... is the Prince all right? There are so many rumors floating around, one doesn't know who to trust." In fact, he had been surprised not to find more people present with their curiosities needing fulfillment. He was glad, though, because the calm lunch had been enjoyable, and he thought perhaps this man might divulge a bit to one person that he wouldn't to a crowd.

[Rickter]

Easily it only took a single moment before their line of sight became connected, to which the reaction between them wasn't so mutually conceived as he'd hoped. Normally when the wolf about saw the eyes of another, the immediate response was to look away in another direction, which while that was the case for him the other bard seemed to smile? It was a bit of an odd smile for Rickter, perhaps one riddled with a hint of self-consciousness felt in the moment. There were times he himself experienced those moments, so the immediate thing to do was briefly smile in a way that showed no harm.

Though of course... Rickter rarely ever smiled, and if it did it had to be genuine. So when he was addressed by the stranger nearby, the inquiry that was made on behalf of Talon sparked a bit of interest. Perhaps even a bit of alarm? No. Rickter hadn't any reason to speculate about this man, he was simply curious as to the condition of the prince in general. From what he could trace through his nose, the man smelt fairly alright in comparison to most, maybe lightly perspired from the walk up here though. There was a light hint of moisture about him, yet nothing rank though, as the subtle notion of musk seemed masked by hygienic cleanliness. Therefore nothing about him registered as disingenuine, so, therefore, the wolf remained rather relaxed even with his gaze somewhat averted. "So then why ask? My word could very well just pass for a rumor as well." He pointed out firstly with a level tone, carrying only little tones of curiosity within it.

Oh, but the curiosity was there of course, now that the both of them had engaged in conversation at least. The wolf himself could only speculate who this man really was, and even so much as wondered if they might've crossed paths once before. "He should be alright in my opinion. The man's tougher than most men I've met." Of that Rickter was confident about, as he'd never seen anyone with as much strength and power as Talon. The capabilities of that one alone weren't to be questioned lightly, and given the fact Rickter had run to his aid twice now, he had started to gain the impression trouble also followed him wherever. In a sense, the wolf knew what that was like, though that stemmed from growing up as the troublemaker, before he'd had an actual figure in his life to offer a guiding hand.

Though that was then, and while Rickter hadn't so much as seen nor heard from him, it possessed little relevance to the fact the wolf knew Talon at this point. "My advice? Believe what you want," the wolf remarked almost in a casual manner, "it's your choice whether or not you want to believe something. And if someone like me is all it takes to change that belief, then odds are you're easier swayed by the minds of many... rather than the few." Yet why he felt like sharing this... Rickter didn't know. He felt a little too comfortable sharing that now, and for someone as insignificant as he was in that scenario, the advice itself wasn't something he'd consider giving to a stranger. So why? It confused him rather suddenly, but by then was when Telion had walked back into the lobby, the ukulele in her hand as she reached the bar once more.

"Got it!" She practically cheered as she held it up for him to look at, to which Rickter attempted a slight grin as his eyes fell on the instrument. Oh if only she knew... It'd been days now, several in fact, since he'd requested for her original ukulele to be refurbished. Now he couldn't help but wonder how close to being done they were, if they had even finished it at all that is. "Did you want to head out now? Or do I have time for a song or two?" In response to her inquiry the wolf shrugged, his expression still sloth-like as he watched Telion smile a bit wider, a couple of steps taken to sit on the stool as she started plucking at a few chords to generate a tune.

[Finn]

Finn had a smart response to the man's first words but then he went and actually answered the question, so he didn't bother with that. Finally, he just nodded, took a sip of his beer, and said, "I would tend to agree with you, but I live in Low-City and our news gets filtered through quite a few people before it gets to us. It might as well be made-up as you say. But here I am in the place where it happened talking to a man openly talking about it and his involvement. Can you blame a concerned citizen for asking? The Shinsei might not be our next Shokaze; that's the will of the Archons when the time comes. But if something were to happen to him, it would be like a stone dropped into a pond. The ripples would spread, affecting things, causing disruption and disturbance. The people who suffer the most for such chaos are those who live in the Low-City, so we have reason to be worried. We have reason to want to know. I meant no disrespect and I may not be a sage but I am wise enough to leaven your words with skepticism even if you do strike me as the trustworthy sort."

He shrugged and offered a conciliatory smile. Nothing in his tone had been condescending or judgmental, but one never knew how people would react, even if one had heard a bit of their symphony, he had recently discovered.

"Thanks for your opinion," he said after a quick sip of beer. "I hope your assessment of the Shinsei's health is prophetic. We don't need any chaos." He grinned, but then Telion was returning and claimed the man's attention so Finn returned his attention to the beer. This one he would savor and then he would return to his regular haunts, perhaps more inclined to nod hopefully when people said they heard from so-and-so such-and-such about the prince's impending recovery.

[Rickter]

Admittedly the stranger who'd garnered his interest started to intrigue Rickter now, enough for him to become mentally engaged in comparison to before; to say the least. The guy had quite a point of view that made the wolf briefly chortle, seeing as how he'd plainly admitted to eavesdropping on their conversation earlier. It was a two-fold situation of course, had Rickter been considerable about it prior, he would've decidedly kept the topic itself between him and Telion. As it stood, however, he barely had the gall to worry over the matter, much less consider the fact he'd been invited up to the palace.

"You're not the only one." Was all Rickter could briefly remark, hinting at where he came from also, before Telion rejoined him with her ukulele in hand. Truthfully he wondered more about this bard now, and how exactly he came to live in the lower side of town in turn. He'd understand if the man was born into it, because after all, the wolf himself knew no other upbringing besides Low-City.

"Right, I think I have a tune in mind..." Telion muttered to herself as she strummed delicately for a few tries, before shifting her attention from the ukulele back to Rickter. That was when she noticed how distracted he seemed, due to the fact the wolf himself tried to keep from staring at the man nearby. Yet where Rickter saw a stranger in their midst, Telion immediately saw something entirely opposite, and it brought about her a familiar glow Rickter had only seen once. "Oh!" The look in her eyes was pure excitement, glistening with opportunity as the blonde bard had lain eyes not on the fellow bard; but the instrument he had brought with him.

"Excuse me!" Telion then called down to him as she scooted off her stool, and moved to stand between Rickter and the other bard nearby. "Would you like to play together?! Telion's the name by the way, but my friends call me Telly when they want." The blonde then turned to the side with her head tilted towards Rickter, the beaming smile on her face a bit wider as she proceeded to introduce him next. "This here's Rickter! Don't let his demeanor fool you, a stick in the mud he may be, but he's not so bad when you actually get to know him!"

The wolf simply scoffed and flagged the barmaid Margo down for one more drink, merely watching the pair interact as Telion took the full initiative in his stead. "So how about it? Would you like to play one song together?"

[Finn]

Finn offered a tight smile. If the heir of Novalys didn't recover, there would be repercussions that he couldn't foretell. But if Rickter was from the Low-City as he intimated, then he understood. And it seemed no harm, no foul for sitting close enough to hear them speaking.

When the woman returned, he went back to his drink, but she apparently saw his lute where it was leaning up against the bar by his feet. Eyes widening mid-sip at her ebullience, he swallowed and smiled.

"Hey, I'm Finn. And I suppose so... if Mistress Margo doesn't mind." He certainly didn't want to be on the wrong foot with the woman bringing the beer. And the food. And a possible voice in his favor if he was ever under consideration to perform here in the evening when the money would be amazing.

But, of course, he assumed she wouldn't mind if Telion was friendly with her and had made the resolution. He leaned down to grab his lute by the neck and pull her up into his lap. It didn't take him long to tune her on the fly. He might not have been a world-class bard yet, but he knew how to keep his instrument right and proper. Her instrument, however, was one he knew only a little.

"Is that a tenor?" he asked, wanting to prepare his mind for what was to come. What keys. What songs. "And what song did you have in mind or are we just playing?"

Either way, he was happy. An old song would be easier to riff on. A new song would be a learning experience. If they were just going to improvise, that was a skill in and of itself, and one he had been attempting to cultivate more. Not only did it help him pass the time when there was a slow night, but it helped him explore new sonic territory that might eventually lead to something more solid when he was writing music of his own. In any case, this was unexpected and nice. If he was investing in the meal and the drinks here, at least he was going to get a bit of artistic return on his investment, even if he never did get to make nice with the owner and get himself on the roster of musicians who made their living here.