Cauwyn himself was quite a proficient at drinking, but then it was dangerous not to be when growing up surrounded by the most unsavory sort of people. Especially when a drink offered by those men turned down would mean a fight, often to the death. Unfortunately Cauwyn was also a mead drinker and the taverns ale wasn't settling well. He opened his mouth to speak, but the only thing that came out was a rather loud and rumbling belch.
"Oh." He covered his mouth and coughed, trying to cover the gesture. He had the common sense to know the difference between tavern or campfire manners, and business manners, "Sorry 'bout that.."
He sauntered forward, schooling his smile down to a merely pleased grin, and began his inspection of the shield. Much like her, Cauwyn ran calloused fingers over the face of the shield. Only it wasn't because he couldn't see, but because he could. The shield looked as if it had just been forged! While he didn't know every crack or scratch, Cauwyn knew the big ones. The pockmarks made by a mages lightning, a large didn't from an Adelan with a mace, even the gouges made by naga claws. All of which were gone! And the wolfs paw had even been replaced! Gone from a simple etching filled with red paint, it was now more prominently filled with bronze. He'd been opposed to the paw at first, even embarrassed by it, but steadily it had become a part of who he was. Even now as he was leaving his old life behind, he found himself loathe to part with it.
"By the hells, girly!" Cauwyn exclaimed with a broad grin, looking up at the blind blacksmith and her dangerous companion and not in the least put off by either, "Looks good as new!"
He dropped his things with a soft and partially muted metallic clank against the counter and opened the pouch on his belt. A single silver for this kind of work seemed like robbery and though Cauwyn had no problem resorting to banditry in the past when contracts were scarce, he also knew the value of good workmanship and keeping a solid relationship. Slaves, no matter how skilled they might be, tended to only work as hard as would keep them from the whip.
After a second of eyeing up the distance Cauwyn tossed the silver coin into the girls hand and then produced a second one from the pouch. He considered his question a moment, sifting through the gentle haze of the ale, before giving the coin a few raps against the shield announcing to the girl there could be more.
"I'm also in need of a new spear," Cauwyn said rather calmly, "an' judgin' by your work I think I'd like t' put you on..." And then he paused, trying to remember the word he'd heard others use. He fumbled around in his own mind, searching and stumbling and mumbling as he thought, "on uh... on uh... fuckin' hells.. On, shit!" And then it hit him and he blurted out with a bit more exuberance than necessary, "Retainer! Hells girly, I'd like at put ya on retainer!"
