It was clear that Sirus was not in the mood to let completely unknown harass the girls who worked for him, but Theolin also noticed that the man’s words didn’t at all prohibit the Elf from talking to Mercedes. All Theolin had to do was not harm the woman, and it would be entirely up to him to how to talk to the woman. This suited the Elf just fine, though he made it clear he didn’t have any malicious intentions.<br/><br/>“Yeh sir, won’t do anything to harm her, I swear. She’ll be treated right, I bet a purchase of your best wine on it.” He glanced at his boss, who was still talking with Hani and Doryn, and realized now might not be the best time to approach Mercedes. “Will come back tomorrow, after things settle down. No need to tell her about me if you don’t want.”<br/><br/>While Theolin was offering reassurances to the frustrated tavern owner, Ethirdir was finishing up his discussion with the two he had invited to his home for dinner. Both seemed very smitten with the idea, though Doryn requested moving the date by a date in either direction, which was fine for the Elf. “Very well, how about we move the date a day ahead? That should give us plenty of time to look forward to the event.” He punctuated that statement with a sly smile, as if to suggest he was not the kind of party host to do anything half-heartedly. He planned on making things memorable, no matter how small the affair was.<br/><br/>Hani left shortly thereafter, though not before he confirmed with her that their meeting would indeed still be tomorrow at noon. After she departed, Ethirdir felt it proper for him to depart as well. He offered best wishes to Sirus, complimenting him for such an incredible place of business, and then faced Doryn, placing an encouraging hand upon the Captain’s shoulder.<br/><br/>“Hani is a lovely young lady, my dear Doryn. She deserves only the best, which I intend to give to her. I expect you to do the same.” The statement made it clear Ethirdir’s intentions regarding Hani, though it also implied a mutual respect for the Captain so long as they both gave Hani what both of them likely felt she deserved.<br/><br/>With Theolin in tow, Ethirdir departed from the room and made his exit from the inn, making the long walk with his associate back to his home estate in anticipation for the following day.<br/><br/><hr/><br/>Ethirdir awoke early the next morning, eager to get the day started by prepping for his meeting with Hani later in the afternoon. His eagerness was partially fueled by the numerous dreams he had experienced last night, many of which had directly involved Hani. Elves were known to be fairly vivid dreamers, and some of those dreams were enough to bring a small amount of shame to a race that seemed incapable of feeling any. However, nothing that Ethirdir could recall from his dreams involving himself and Hani made him feel ashamed – if he played his cards correctly, some of those dreams might eventually become reality.<br/><br/>Despite his immense wealth that he had accumulated over the years, Ethirdir never once considered hiring staff to help him dress – he considered such a thing an unnecessary luxury. Instead he enjoyed choosing his own clothing, and he did so this morning with a careful eye. Eventually, he settled on a slender red suit adorned with light splashes of complementing color across the shoulders and the hems while not blending too easily with his crimson hair. A pair of black boots and a weapon attached to his black belt that looked more ceremonial than functional (though it was heavily the latter) helped complete the ensemble, and as he looked himself over in the mirror he felt satisfied that he would look good for his meeting with Hani.<br/><br/>A quick but full breakfast was eaten afterward, and after some morning business that needed to be taken care of he departed his estate to make the walk to the store where he and Hani had agreed to meet. Upon arriving, he found Theolin was already there, dealing with a pair of customers, a male and a female. Upon closer inspection, Ethirdir realized that the male was a full-blooded Elf, a Peridan, and the woman looked like she was a half-Elf. It had been a while since he had seen a half-Elf, but she looked beautiful enough that he could see why the male Elf seemed utterly smitten with her.<br/><br/>The pair were wrapping up their business with Theolin as Ethirdir strolled to the front counter, and as they turned to leave he politely stopped them. “Good morning, I’m the owner of this establishment. I trust you were treated well by my associate?”<br/><br/>The male smiled warmly and nodded. “We were, thank you.” A long arm reached out and embraced the woman beside him. “We’re on our honeymoon, traveling the world together, and we stopped by looking for something to remember this city by. Your associate gave us some good options to choose from that we will decide on.”<br/><br/>“I see,” Ethirdir said with a pleased grin. “Well, congratulations to the both of you, I wish you both the best.”<br/><br/>The couple thanked Ethirdir and walked out of the store, hand in hand. The merchant smiled, finding the couple almost adorable – he knew that half-Elves didn’t live as long as full-blooded Elves, but he suspected those two would make the most of their time together.<br/><br/>With that aside finished, Ethirdir turned to face Theolin, who stepped out from behind the counter so he could approach his boss with an almost sheepish look on his face. “Hey, um…was wondering, sir…do you mind if I take off a little early from work today? Wanted to stop by that inn and see if that lady is available…can stay if you need me, though…”<br/><br/>Ethirdir grinned and laughed before nodding. “Oh, go on, you. Have a little fun. I can take things from here. Just treat Mercedes right, you hear? She’s a sweet young woman, and I’ll join her father in chasing you down if you harm her in any way.”<br/><br/>“Yeh sir, understand,” Theolin acknowledged before allowing a smile to creep up and hurry out of the story, allowing Ethirdir to notice the Elf was dressed in a surprisingly clean set of clothes for the first time in a while.<br/><br/>This was how, around the time Hani might be leaving for her meeting with Ethirdir, a resolute-looking Elf stepped into the inn, finding the place a little less packed than during its breakfast rush that morning. He spotted Mercedes almost immediately, but keeping Sirus’ words in his mind he didn’t approach her for fear of bugging her during work. Instead he took a seat at one of the booths so that he could talk to her when she would come to take his order. As he waited, his head came up with dozens of possible words to say to her, and yet when she walked up to him finally, all he could say was something simple and basic:<br/><br/>“Hi…nice to meet you…”