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Subject: Mimi's Story
Date: 7 Aug 1994 17:37:02 -0400
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  She sat at her corner table (corner #13) and twiddled her thumbs
nervously. Mimi had been hanging around the Inn for days, watching those
funny little men (who all looked exactly alike) at the booths...they
seemed like they would listen to anyone! She'd seen braggarts at those
tables, and liars, and shy folks. She had, in fact, been thinking of
telling one of them *her* story. She had no doubt they would listen, so
she built up her courage and walked over to one.
  "Why, hello dear!" said the story gatherer when she walked hesitantly up
to his table. "Please, sit down. Would you like a drink?" 
  "Um..yes, please. Ale...if you don't mind..." Mimi stammered. She didn't
drink much, but she needed to calm down. 
  The drink was delivered to the table, where she accepted it gratefully.
She took a large, quite unladylike gulp that left the mug half empty, then
blushed furiously. 
When her face had returned to normal color, the little man across from her
asked her for her story. 
   "Oh, of course" she said, and began. "I was born in a very small mining
town. My house, which was very small, was in the woods. You wouldn't see
it unless you were looking for it, so we didn't get many visitors. I guess
I lived most of my life so far not knowing anyone but my parents... but
when I was 13 they decided that it was time for me to marry. I didn't want
to, it seemed immoral to me that I would spend the rest of my life with
someone I didn't even know... and I never did meet him. I'd bet anything
that he was the product of many generations of inbreeding, and dumb as
dirt." Mimi laughed at this, but it was very true. there wasn't much
outside involvement in the town, it had contained most of the same
families for hundreds of years, she was sure. She took a much smaller sip
from her mug this time, and began again.  "There was nothing to do but run
away. The thought of mariage to any of the men of that town disgusted me.
So packed up a knapsack, snuck out the window late one night, and that's
the last that I've seen of my parents or that town since, and good
riddance.
  "I walked for weeks, doing odd jobs for people and searching for
something... I'm not sure what it was. One night I walked into an inn...
much smaller than this one. As soon as I walked into that inn, I knew I
had found someone who could help me find what I had been looking for. My
salvation came in the form of a man, rather drunken and raving about
magic. He was obviouisly of elven descent, I could tell from his height
and, of course, his ears. I went to his table and asked him if he could
help me, and he quickly used his magic to sober himself. His name was
Shadowlaine... he gave me directions to a city that he said was a perfect
place for a bar... I know it sounds silly when I say it but he really
meant it.
  "I started a bar there in a renovated farmhouse, and named it Shad's.
Eventually  Shad showed up, but left the waitressing and management to me,
because he was phenominally irresponsible"
  Mimi smiled at that, and she hoped she wouldn't start crying. She really
missed him! 
  "We didn't get many customers, except for two regulars. One was an
android who loved to just sit and drink yoo-hoo after yoo-hoo for hours on
end, he had no limit. His name was R.C.  Then there was Commodore
Masters... he flew in on his spaceship one day... landed on the roof...
and just never left.  I miss him more than anyone else at Shad's, even
Shad." She did cry then, steadily and silently. She missed walking into
the bar and knowing that he'd be there. She missed dancing with him to the
sound of some old music on the jukebox... she missed his arms around
her... A tear trickled down her face.
  "I... I'm sorry. This isn't what you wanted to hear, I'm sure. I'll
leave now." she said through tearful gasps.
  "But wait! Please sit down. You didn't say why you left." said the tiny
man, and she didn't want to be rude, so she sat back down.
  "I left Shad's because of a fight. My sister, Kay, heard about the bar
from some traveler to the viliage, and she wanted to build one too. She
was so jealous. She had every right to build in that town, but Shad didn't
see it that way.  He saw that I was nervous about her coming, we had never
been on good terms, and he thought he had to do something. 
  "I told him not to do anything irrational, to just leave her alone, but
irrational is Shad's middle name. He went out one night in his green
cloak, saying that he'd be back by dawn, and not to worry. When he came
back, he told me that he had set fire to Kay's place. It was burned down
completely by morning, and I decided to run away rather than face Kay.
God, I didn't even say goodbye to Masters!  I guess that's what brought me
here. I have to go now." with that she left the table, and her empty mug,
at the Storygather's booth. She walked over to the still vacant table in
corner #13, and cried.