The Old Man ' o+ G; i/ S% Z
Tika Waylan straightened herback with a sigh. flexing her shoulders to ease her crampedmuscles. , c# M {& R; |- f0 |# O
She tossed the soapy bar rag into the water pail and lanced around the empty room. 1 F' E* Z0 z( U5 X6 d& g& Y: K2 E
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It was getting harder to keep up the old inn. There was a lotof love rubbed into the warm finish of the wood, : P1 d- A2 L# E$ s/ `; ]$ j, F
but even loveand tallow couldn't hide the cracks and splits in the well-usedtables or prevent a customer from sitting on an occasionalsplinter.
: b/ z( F, v4 ^1 g! |% ]8 HThe Inn of the Last Home was not fancy, not like someshe'd heard about in Haven. It was comfortable. ) Z; ~0 K8 n6 R9 L0 l- f; X
The living tree in which it was built wrapped its ancient arms around it lovingly, while the walls and fixtures were crafted around theboughs
3 j# _$ C) Q" j% l5 ?0 Z1 l- U' w& Xof the tree with such care as to make it impossible to tell where nature's work left off and man's began. The bar seemed to ebb and flow like
. t5 k2 w% Z- A, x1 V* wa polished wave around the living wood that supported it. The stained glass in the window panes cast welcoming flashes of vibrant color ' g- R9 ~# d( C% y6 Q) W' j
across the room.Shadows were dwindling as noon approached. The Inn of the Last Home would soon be open for business. 7 q4 F- w+ S3 _7 I! ^' `2 b
Tika looked around and smiled in satisfaction. The tables were clean and polished. All she had left to do was sweep the floor.
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She began to shove aside the heavy wooden benches, as Otik emerged from the kitchen, enveloped in fragrant steam.
: m) Q9 V9 ]6 a, s6 m5 c"Should be another brisk day—for both the weather andbusiness," he said, squeezing his stout body behind the bar. Hebegan to set out mugs, $ |4 f4 E& J% Q Y
whistling cheerfully."I'd like the business cooler and the weather warmer," ( ]8 X& I$ N9 B% { ^% l) I
said Tika, tugging at a bench. "I walked my feet off yesterday and got little thanks and less tips! Such a gloomy crowd! Everybodynervous,
# f; _' A+ z6 j5 ^jumping at every sound. I dropped a mug last night and—I swear—Retark drew his sword!" / U! x+ B. P- w8 _2 b
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& p3 o7 S/ U7 T- T不一定要全文翻译,翻译有趣句子 或者难点句子即可。
6 v8 E* s6 o8 q( r, g一定几率获得威望 |