Theme "Ah, there you are. I hope Lynn wasn't too much trouble." he tosses the boy a small pouch of coins. "For the cleaning you've done so far." he nods and goes to take off his boots and throws them by the fire much to Lynn's ranting about how dangerous that was. "Has anything happened since my departure ?" he asks curisouly, he had heard and met Soul some time before arriving and talked about Alder's involvement, he wondered if the boy would share such a tale. He removed the Silver swordand steel from his back sheathes putting them down on the floor.
"I have acquired uncut gems, of which one is exactly what I was looking for. "He pulls out a uncut red stone, it seems more like a rock painted but you can see past parts of rock the gem. "Its a ruby, I will add it to my new silver longsword which I will have soon." he nods once, as he turns the stone around in his hand admiring the shine if gives off. He had another set of uncut gems in his backpack but those would be for another time.
"Now, as a Witcher. I am ever so vigilante and all to regulaly to I 'let' things go along. But if I am to train you I should know this from you, who are you... what are you. Don't think that I am not aware that you are no human, I knew that the moment my medallion went off when we met. However as much as my medallion can tell me what isn't human and what carries magic it doesn't tell me what it is, so I will ask you boy. Beneath this charade you call Alder, whom are you ? " he said with a slight smile. If the boy didn't want to share this detail then so be it, the Witcher wouldn't hold it against him. The Witcher threw his backpack by some crates then sat down by the fireplace. "Now, come enjoy the fire. With your answer, I would like to ask you one final question." there was a pause. The WItcher could hear the rain splatter against the roof, lucky no rain water had found a hole in the roof so the area was mostly dry.
"I have considered the training you need, and obviously your usefulness. To make it more official, would you like to be my apprentice. You'll learn what you need from me, and you will be part of my legacy. So that at least part of my knowledge is not lost if and when I die." there was a pause. "I'm not asking for an oath, nor am I asking you to praise my every word. I am not perfect and nor shall my lessons be such, but I hold experience and knowledge and what you do with them will be your choice. So, Alder. Do you wish to be my Apprentice until you are ready to move on ?"
Witcher's never took on apprentices for the mere fact that they worked alone and solely alone, yet the boy held promise. The boy had the desire to survive like Reaver had when he had been but a child himself, and even if the Boy was no Witcher he would become a silent Shadow one day. That alone was enough for Reaver, to know he had done something right in his life.
((With your upcoming answer we can call this a finished rp and make a new one whenever somethin else comes up )
Youken inwardly muttered some very obscene words, but he had known this was coming. Well, it was time to earn himself a friend or drive away a potential one. Whether or not he chose to tell Reaver, he would do one of these things, either gain somebody who was willing to let his secrets remain secrets, or somebody who was willing to accept him for what he was. Or alternativley, he would find that Reaver would shun his changeling part or hate him for keeping secrets.
He had been considering his answer for a while. If the witcher did not honour his trust, then he'd probably either have to flee Widu or forge a new identity. Neither were overly appealing, but things were bad enough with just the rumours of a child snatched from their parents, and a changeling replaced there. Would Reaver know the rumors? Did he already know the answer to his question? Youken had been considering all of these things for two days now, and had become slightly irritable inwardly at how fruitless these thoughts had been. In the end though, he didn't have much to lose anyway here in Widu. The rumours had seen to that. All that he may have had was hanged and then never buried. The rest... he could find in any other village. It would be a shame to leave, and perhaps slightly troublesome to set up a new identity, but he could do it. However, if the witcher chose to attack him now, he may not be able to. Logic would therefore dictate that he lied or hid the truth, but friendship... it was a new concept to Youken, but one that intrigued him, and it seemed that it could also drive people to do illogical things if one looked at the evidence before him, namely, the completely illogical action that he was considering taking right now. Then again, it could just be his annoying inability to forget a debt. That could be a contributing factor.
The difference was that debts are temporary, once paid off, they are paid off. A single payment that when paid off is then forgotten. A friendship... well, Youken likened it to a contract. It was longer term, and more... beneficial to both sides. It was also something that once could come to regret far more, and he already regretted some of the debts that he had paid off, but... maybe he was making the concept a little bit too black and white, forgetting the shades of gray in the middle. They at the very least interested him. He could relocate if things didn't work out...
All of these thoughts had already passed through Youken's head, and he knew what his answer would be, but now... things were so much easier to contemplate than do. Slowly, Alder placed his coin on a nearby table, noting, through force of habit, that the face was a tails. Small details like that could be useful to memorise, since it usually meant something if they had changed. Likewise, he remembered that the cobweb behind him was home to not one, but two spiders, neither of which trespassed into the other's territory unless disturbed. A few other details around the room, which he had remembered and forgotten again suddenly became more clear to him than the broader more obvious details, such as which one of the tables had two rotten legs. In fact, he even noticed that the head on that coin was not queen Victorious. That meant that somebody had given him none Widuan coin earlier. Still usable, but strange that he hadn't noticed it... or well... not that strange at all really, but it appeared strange to him now, when all of these tiny details were taking the place of what would usually be far more important.
Alder sat back slightly and regarded Reaver. The last question would be the easiest to answer, yet he still measured his words, his tone ringing with care and... steadiness? Quite uncharacteristic of the boy's usual nervous, jumpy manner.
"I haven't had any companion in my life for about thirteen years. The concept intrigues me. I paid back my debt from the training session a while ago in my work here, and I was really not expecting pay. I was working here because I thought that for once in my life, I might have something to work towards beyond survival. If you would have me, and I think that you have already made your answer clear on that front, I would gladly be your apprentice for as long as I am still of use." he paused. "As for if anything has been happening... beyond the usual, nothing much." ((what did Soul say I'd done exactly?)) he paused again. This was the difficult part, and reflexively he started to dodge the question, asking in a questioning voice. "Surely there are some humans with power... perhaps I simply have not..." he paused again. The witcher wouldn't buy it, and that certainly wasn't what he wanted to say. He sighed and got ready to throw his dagger and run. Once he was outside, he'd make a break for the trees where he'd try to disappear, changing his skin color as he did so to make himself a little less visible. If need be, he'd double back on himself and try to get back to the tavern, where he could use this "gem" that the witcher had found to try to ransom safe passage.
"The name that the people who were my mother and father gave me was indeed Alder. They were hanged when I was five. I don't know how it came about, or what I really am precisely, but I have done my research. There are rumors about me, rumors which you apparently have not heard, or you wouldn't be having this conversation with me." Youken's gaze wandered to the witcher's hands, making sure that they were staying well away from his swords. "According to the rumors, my parents, who are "apparently non-existent" were tricked into raising a chageling whose son was snatched from its cradle at birth. I don't know if this is true or not. What I do know is that my name is not Alder. My mother would occasionally call me Youken when I was young, and the name... fitted. There's no other word. It worked, me and that name were the same thing. Alder was just a tag that I could be labeled with. But it is far from a common name. Alder was, although not common, not quite as exotic, so that is the name I have used."
Alder, or Youken, or whatever he was, stood up and took a slight bow "And I am fully amazed that I am actually telling you this, but I guess that now that you've paid me, I still owe you a debt..." The boy took a long pause and then sighed "This has got to be one of the most stupid things that I have ever done, but I think... that I'm what's called a changeling."
Youken half raised his hand in what might have been a short wave, before smiling meekly "Err, Pleased to meet you?"
))