Snickerz gladly returns to the group in the quieter corner of the bar eager to show the bartender their trust was well placed.  He walks with a little dance in his step, tail swishing and fingers snapping to an imaginary happy tune.  Addressing the rest of the group, "Ok, who needs a drink over here?  Hard Cider, Mulberry Gin, or Dwarf Ale?"

Snickerz is focused on this group but if there is any hesitation, he will let his eyes and ears wander to other tables.  He is looking for near empty mugs or comments from patrons about needing another drink.  He will ask what they were having and quickly report to the bartender, then return to the group in the corner to see if they are ready.

Zania smiles.

"Hard Cider sounds good," she says. "Are there free refills?"

"One cider coming right up!  I don't think I can get you free refills but let me check on it.  Montgomery?  Anyone else?"  Snickerz points to each group member and backs away slowly before heading to the bar with the cider order.  He will pay attention to the other servers to see if anyone is getting free refills.  If he sees patrons leaving he will immediately head over to buss the table and see if he can scavenge any leftover drink for Zania before taking the dirty dishes to the bartender.

The riverkin bartender half-snorts, half-snickers.  "Sure, she can get free drinks.  Same way you're getting free coins.  Every drink she brings another table, takes the job off our hands, she gets a refill.  Long as she can stay on her feet, that is.  See if you remember a song called 'Johnny Jump-Up'."  The title does indeed call to Snickerz' mind  scraps of a song about cider drinking, the longest of which is the partial refrain, "... I fell to the ground, and couldn't get up / after drinking a quart of the Johnny Jump-Up."

As he brings the first mug over to Zania and turns to see if anyone else wants anything, the strange kender who has been following him tugs suddenly at his tail, looks first him and then anyone else remaining in the corner in the face, and points over to a shadowy corner near the door.  "Mad Maudlin goes with dirty toes to save her shoes from gravel.

My horn is made of thunder, I stole it out of Heaven,
The rainbow there is this I wear, for which I hence was driven.

Tom's a'cold ...!"

Peering over at the corner she is pointing at, you think you can make out three or four shadows that are likely other patrons occupying the chairs around two small tables.  To learn more will require a DC 13 Perception roll ... or going over there to find out who they are and why the strange kender pointed them out, of course ;)

Nodding and shrugging with his hands out to his sides Snickerz excitedly relays the good news, "Zania!  If you are up to delivering drinks to tables, you get free refills!  Anyone else before I go?"

As the kender finishes her riddles he will pet her head and put his hand on her shoulder while he quietly asks, "Are they bad people?"  Snickerz will continue doing his job but intentionally approach those tables that the kender pointed out.  "Who needs another drink or refill over here?  Tom?  Maudlin?"  He will point to each one as he makes mental notes of their physical features, race, gear, clothing    He will pay attention to see if any of them react to those names as he speaks them.  This should give him a good opportunity to take a closer look.  Perception: 20

Arden will continue to nurse his drink

*walks over to everyone* hay?

While no one seems to react to the names 'Tom' or 'Maudlin", Snickerz'  sharp feline eyes take note of two small blobs of red in the dimly lit, smoky room.  He can't be sure, but they are the right size and position to be two more amulets like the one the kender wears.  One of these is too indistinct for him to locate any more precisely than "somewhere in between our corner and here"; but the second definitely seemed like it was around the neck of the closest figure he is approaching, a stocky male human with lime-bleached hair who watches the approaching tabaxi with one eyebrow raised.  This figure lit a pipe as Snickerz approached and coughed out a vast, fragrant cloud; and whether or not they hid their amulet at that time, their hand did pause a moment at their throat before moving up to cover their cough.  Certainly, no amulet is visible now.  But looking more carefully at the group, one of the figures seems to be missing too.  Meanwhile, the leader's stiff, chalky white spikes of lime-stiffened hair bob as he nods sardonically to Snickerz.

"We'll take a round of the dwarven ale, if you didn't sour it all just now.  Them's the breaks some nights.  Sometimes you're Taliesin's love baby, sometimes you're his goat."

Meanwhile, Arden has been feeling a bleary set of eyes slowly taking note of his offensively peaceable demeanor.  As he takes another sip of his drink, he feels more than sees a large grey hand clump him on the shoulder.

"Ha ... huh ... hey!  Yourrr withh them, aintcha?"  The massive finger points over at Snickerz and then at Zania.  "Wha's wrong withem?  They're not <hic> they're not DRINKIN'!  You're BARELY drinkin'!  Whass wrong with ALLAYOU 'round here?  This is s'posed be a PARTY!!!"

Arden looks at the large grey hand on his shoulder. His medic instincts kick in as he reaches in his bag for a medicine sackett. He places it in his new friends pocket and says "Here, take this tomorrow morning, with some water. It will help take the edge off the in coming headache you're going to have in the morning."

Zania looks at the drunken stranger, not quite sure what to make of him...

"Um... can we help you with something? I hate to break it to you, but booze costs gold, and we only have so much of that... and apparently to get it free I need to play the part of a tavern wench. Sounds fun until someone gets a bit too hands-on, in which case I can't promise it will end well, especially if I've had a drink too many..."

*sits down with everyone and asks the bar tender for a drink*

Snickerz smiles and laughs at the stocky human's comment.   His laugh opens with a bit of a growl and finishes with some purr.   "I only know about being the goat, trying to work my way up to love kitten.  A round of Dwarven Ale coming right up, lets see..."  Snickerz points to each person to count how many drinks to bring back, noting one is missing.  "Four non-sour Dwarven Ales?"  Snickerz confirms the order with a look to the leader among them.  He will pick up the empty glasses and fill the order, looking around to see if he can locate the missing member of the group.  Upon returning he will hand over the drinks," Here you go....I'm sorry I was rude and did not get your name, I am Snickerz...(wait for response)"  He will attempt to gather a little info out of them by asking if they are with the riverkin at the bar or what type of work they are into.  "Yeah, I didnt understand what they were saying but one of them pointed your way, thought maybe they knew you.  Anyhoo, roar when you need a refill."  

He will then return to the quieter corner where his new acquaintances were sitting to check on them. 

Looks at everyone my ears twitch I get up from the table and slowly leave completely wasted 

The drunken stranger sways in the shadowy corner, slurring his eyes back and forth between Zania and Montgomery.  Then he stumbles forward a pace.  An unshaven half-orc man glowers muzzily at you,   "Th' ... t ... tavrn wench haz free booze?!  You ... you said if I play wid' tavrn wench, she gots free booze!"  A slowly smoldering comprehension begins to dawn in his eyes; only temporarily is it diverted by Montgomery's professional 'bedside manner', as it were.  He extracts the packet from his pocket with the slightly unsteady fingers of one burly hand and sniffs at it.  "Wassis?," he mumbles.  His nerveless fingers play with it while his other hand closes around a locket or pendant around his neck and begins absently playing with it.  Unless you look closer (DC 15 Investigation roll) you can't see any more details, but at least you think he's too drunk to be able to notice you looking.

Reaching back to a table whose sole occupant left to join the considerable line for the latrines only moments before, he scoops up a nearly full mug of cider, dumps the entire contents of Montgomery's packet in and adds the dregs of a glass of mulberry gin.  As the mug begins spluttering and frothing alarmingly, he sniffs at it with eyebrows raised even higher before his gaze returns to Zania and he forgets the brief interlude.  A crooked grin starts trickling across his face like oil as slow connections come together in his muddled brain.  "Hhheeey ... YER a tavrn wench now, aintcha?  YOU can getus free booz!"  Raising the spluttering glass, from which sour and acrid humours are beginning to curl up and blend into the smoky air, he toasts her with a lopsided grin.  Meanwhile, some gazes have been drawn by the commotion, and you think you hear some some snickering half- sentences along the order of, '...yeah boy, it's Disathairne night fer sure, old Rohkutar 's firin' up...!"

Meanwhile, Snickerz' overtures only bring a thin smile from the stocky leader.  "Them?  No more than anyone who's taken their ferries or rode their barges.  Our master's had few dealings with the river folk thus far, so he's not asked us to seek them out.  The Crimson King can travel the winds' highroads if he likes"

OOC: #1 Has Snickerz heard of the Crimson King, to know what sort of organization this is?    Local or Regional influence?  #2 Has the Kender still been following him around?  Is she wearing shoes?

Snickerz continues working the tavern scene to glean bits of local knowledge and interesting lore while earning his wages.  As he returns to check on the quiet corner, he finds it not so quiet as he left it.  He can sense this is probably going to end in a bar fight.  Looking around he will try to determine if this drunk half-orc is alone or with anyone else.

Ability scores: str:-1(8) Dex:+1(12) con:+1(12) in:+3(16) wis:+2(14) cha:+1(13)

Character name: Sandy 

Character race: Fire Gensai 

Character class/planned subclass*: Ranger Level 1

(Background) Backstory: lives alone but one in awhile will spy on people wishing she had someone to talk to etc but knows no one will ever want to get to know me 

(I hope this is okay I can change anything if you need me to fyi a little about her personality she's like a Carmelo or a something similar hard on the outside and nice and beautiful on the inside I hope if it's okay if I have her be like a cat like have the cat ears and tail etc if not that's fine)

Quote from OldSkuul >>

OOC: #1 Has Snickerz heard of the Crimson King, to know what sort of organization this is?    Local or Regional influence?  #2 Has the Kender still been following him around?  Is she wearing shoes?

Snickerz continues working the tavern scene to glean bits of local knowledge and interesting lore while earning his wages.  As he returns to check on the quiet corner, he finds it not so quiet as he left it.  He can sense this is probably going to end in a bar fight.  Looking around he will try to determine if this drunk half-orc is alone or with anyone else.

 Snickerz cudgels his brain as he returns to the corner he came from.  The Crimson King ... the Crimson ...  The trouble was, the reference was so vague!  It could refer to a figure from History ; that was quite likely, in fact, but it could also be a reference to something as obscure as a secret technique from the esoteric world of Arcana ; or even the professional cant for a secret technique in Medicine that will restore all the virile fire of youth to an old and decrepit man.  The scene seems to hang frozen as he ponders, wondering which thread to follow in his search for clues.

Meanwhile ... (Stealth 9)

... his sharp feline eyes glance over at the right moment to spot the kender he is interested in slipping aside into the shadows after she's followed him halfway from the bar (PER in log: 21).  At the point it happened, he's not sure if she were headed more towards the group in the other corner or doubling back towards the group of riverkin near the bar.  If he wants to track her, he can; but it will mean losing his ability to observe the half orc.  He hasn't seen any companions so far; but then he's not been back all that long to watch for them.

Quote from LTwigy >>

Ability scores: str:-1(8) Dex:+1(12) con:+1(12) in:+3(16) wis:+2(14) cha:+1(13)

Character name: Sandy 

Character race: Fire Gensai 

Character class/planned subclass*: Ranger Level 1

(Background) Backstory: lives alone but one in awhile will spy on people wishing she had someone to talk to etc but knows no one will ever want to get to know me 

(I hope this is okay I can change anything if you need me to fyi a little about her personality she's like a Carmelo or a something similar hard on the outside and nice and beautiful on the inside I hope if it's okay if I have her be like a cat like have the cat ears and tail etc if not that's fine)

 (Sounds good.  Sent you a message, but basically I think we can handle the cat ears as a drop of tabaxi blood that can give you minor blindsight; but only if you close your eyes to avoid getting confused between what your ears are telling you and what you see ... I'm also thinking of ruling that it requires concentration just like some spells, since that's not your normal mode of perceiving and you're not used to it.  And since we're still in the starting bar there's no need to write a special introductory scene in this case, go ahead and just walk in)