Nanowrimo 2021 Day 22 - Word Count and Favorite Bit

Today I added 2090 words to Seek the Oasis, bringing my total word count to 36,094!

That night, they took respite at an inn. It was larger than the one in the city, and far more crowded. Creatures of seemingly every free-roaming race gathered around round, wooden tables on the main floor, eating and drinking to their heart's content.

"How many rooms can I getcha?" the dwarven innkeeper asked, stroking her intricately braided beard with one hand.

"However many needed to fit nine," Aysel said, sliding several gold coins across the table. "We will also need evening and morning meals."

"Nine, eh?" The dwarven woman muttered to herself, pulling a large ledger out from under the counter. "I do still have the ‘royal suite’ left. I'll have to pull some sleeping mats from the linen closets, but we could make it work. Gonna need a bit more coin for that and the meals, though."

Aysel simply pulled out a small gem of a deep green color. "Will this cover it?"

The innkeeper's eyes bulged at the sight of the gem. "Hoooo! Big spender are we? Take the coins back, darlin'. I won't be needin' those. Unless you'd like to tip, of course..."

Aysel shrugged, unsure what a 'tip' was in this context. "If it will make sure we are well taken care of, you may keep the coins as well."

"We love a generous patron," the innkeeper said with a wide grin, sweeping the coins off the counter and into an apron pocket. "What's your name, darlin'?"

"Aysel."

"Well, Aysel, you just let ol' Moyra know if you need anything at all. Me and my staff will make sure you want for nothing! Here's your room key. You got horses? We can stable them, no additional cost."

"Not horses, naksa," Aysel said. "Though I would be grateful for their care as well."

"Naksa, eh," Moyra scratched her cheek, her eyes drifting as she thought. "Do those eat oats and hay?"

"Desert fruits and meat, mostly," Aysel corrected with a shrug.

Moyra nodded. "Got it. Got it." She turned towards the open kitchen. "Oi! Keiton! We got any desert fruits?"

A young human man looked up from his work, clearly bewildered by the question. "What kinda fruit grows in the bloody desert?"

Moyra shrugged. "What have we got, then?"

The man looked about. "Uhh, mostly apples. Some oranges and stuff like 'em. Couple of watermelons we've gotten most of the good stuff out of."

The innkeeper turned to Aysel. "Any of that work?"

"Apples would be best, I think," Aysel said. "Those and any raw meat you have left over would make them very happy."

"Well, if you spend like this all the time, we'll keep the beasties as happy as a clam!" Moyra said with a loud laugh. "Make yourselves at home! If you grab a table, someone will be around with food for ya shortly."

Finding a table was easier said than done, and they ended up having to push several smaller ones together to make enough room for all of them. A human woman not much taller than the dwarven innkeeper came around soon after they settled, passing around meals consisting of sourdough bowls filled with hardy stews and small plates of fruits and cheeses. Aysel stared at the bowl made of bread with fascination, unsure what to make of it. The human woman laughed at her gobsmacked expression.

"Clever, ain't it?" she said, a wild grin on her face. "Moyra's girl came up with it because she hated doing all the dishes. She said 'why have a bowl for the stew and a plate for the bread when the bread can be the bowl. Folks liked it, so it stuck. I tell ya, the girl's too clever by half, but she knows how to use it."