Sera's Journal / Side stories

Sera gets a place to live! And a potential job offer?!

The sound of a bell rang through the surrounding area as Sera opened the door. The smell of sawdust filled her nose. It reminded her of when she was young; human age young. She stepped into the shop and watched as a man sat up straight from within a coffin; he turned is head with incredible lethargy to look at her.

"Welcome to 'My Boy Builds Coffins', I make them all day, but it's not just for work and-" the man yawned for a good while. It almost seemed as if he were going to fall asleep right there, "and it isn't for play." After finishing, he lay back down in the coffin.

It was well afternoon, yet the curtains were drawn over the windows, and no candles were lit. The curtains were thin enough to let some light in but only enough to add a soft glow to the room.

"And don't let the name fool you, I'm an all around carpenter. I build more than just coffins," came the shop owner's voice from within the open casket, "please look arou-"

"I'm here for a coffin," Sera interrupted, "Oh! My apologies. I interrupted you."

The shopkeeper shot up from the coffin like a rocket. Leaping out of it and hurrying towards Sera, grabbing her hand.

"What do you need it for my lady?" He asked overly charmingly. Before she could reply, he had begun again, "A funeral? A church?" He gasped, "firewood?!" He stopped for a split second, gazing upon Sera's face with red eyes; eyes full of lust. "Or perhaps..." He paused as he ran a hand through some of Sera's hair before running his finger along her jawline up to her chin, "Yes, perhaps it's for sleep?"

Sera's face was beyond red, amplified enormously by her overly pale skin. She saw the lust in his eyes as he went through the motions. It wasn't a lust for sex, but a lust for blood. Regardless, she was speechless until he pushed some of her hair over her shoulder, revealing her neck. Then, she slapped him.

"Ah! You wound me my lady," he jokingly sobbed. Then his face turned serious, and his smile revealed a slight fang protruding more than normal humans, "but I am right? Am I not?"

Before Sera could answer, the bell hanging above the door rang as the door was opened. A beautiful rich looking woman walked in. Her dress was made of high quality material and her hair was a vibrant blonde. She wore a equally vibrant red scarf around her neck. Sera could even see a carriage outside, as she looked past the woman.

"Ah! Maria! What brings you by so late in the afternoon?" Asked the shopkeeper.

"I baked you a pie," she said awkwardly, "here, eat it." She walked past Sera with a glare and a shoulder check, before handing a small box to the shopkeeper. "I assume our plans are still on for tonight?" She said confidently, glaring at Sera over her shoulder.

"But of course!" The shopkeeper smiled, bowing extravagantly.

"Hmph," Maria grunted, "then I take my leave."

The shopkeeper smiled stupidly as she left, before setting the pie down on his desk, "Where were we?" He began, "Oh yes! A coffin."

"Why did she leer at me so angrily?" Sera pondered aloud, "Is that some form of female greeting perhaps?"

The shopkeeper looked like the wind was blown completely out of his sails, "Uhhmm..."

Sera looked at the shopkeep as if she had completely forgotten the events before the woman had glared at her, "Yes, I would like to buy a coffin..." Sera paused, becoming nervous, "F-f-for...sleep."

The shopkeep laughed, "No need to be nervous my dear. We are one in the same. Ours is a morbid life, is it not?"

Sera nodded. Her thoughts swirled as he began showing her the coffins he had lain out. She was shocked more than anything, to find another Dhampir like her. She knew her kind weren't very welcome in society, but here stood another. He even held a business; his own shop near the market district. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sudden sound of the bell once more.

Another upstanding woman entered the dimly lit room. Her dress was just as elegant as the first, and she too wore a scarf around her neck; blue. However, this one was an elf. She approached the shopkeep with a small bag that looked as if it were filled with cookies. "Trevor," she paused staring at Sera, "who is this woman?"

"A customer my dear! Who do you take me for?" He asked with a faux sense of sadness and hurt.

The elven woman frowned at Sera as she handed the shopkeep the bag, "Here, I had the maids bake cookies as thanks. Our date is still on for tonight?"

"But of course my lady! I wait ever patiently for your return when the moon graces the night sky," he smiled slyly. The words seemed to dance out of his mouth and around the elven woman's pointed ears.

She sighed happily as she turned to leave. The happiness was gone as she locked eyes with Sera, whom immediately averted her gaze. The woman snickered confidently, as if she had just attained dominance as she stepped outside.

"You seem frequented by quite a few women. Peculiar, you said the same thing to both...are you seeing them at the same time? And why did they both glare at me so?" Sera pondered out loud, "Perhaps it is a female greeting after all."

"Jealousy my dear! Jealous of your-"

Sera cut him off, "Or! Perhaps they knew what I am and were looking down on me with disgust! Guh-huh!" Sera grunted with defeat.

How annoying!!! The shopkeep thought. "I don't think that was it. Ah! Here! This one seems like a good fit," he said tossing the bag of cookies onto the main desk, and pulling a coffin propped up against the wall down to the floor. It was made of a dark ebony, giving it a black color, with silver accents. He lifted the lid and stood up. His hands were offering the open casket to Sera, "Please, try it out."

Sera pulled off her boots and stepped into the coffin, she could feel the plush fabric through her stockings. She sat down then leaned back until she was prone. With a few inches of headroom and legroom, it seemed quite a good fit. The interior was a velvety purple fabric that had been padded and buttoned down, making it quite comfortable. The small headrest at the top provided good support for her neck and didn't feel too firm or soft. Sera spoke up, "Hmmm... This is made very well, almost as if it were made for sleeping."

Trevor smiled a wry smile down at her, "A...friend of mine does all the cloth work for my coffins. And I'm guilty as charged for having them perfected for sleep. I am what I am after all," He smiled baring his fangs openly.

"Another woman?" Sera asked peculiarly, not really caring for an answer.

"Errr..." Trevor was taken aback for a moment before regaining his composure. However, before he could speak, the bell rang out once more.

Sera then had an internal struggle. There was a high chance the new entrant would be another woman, and judging from today's events thus far, there was an equally high probability she would be glared at. Did she sit up and risk another glare? Or pretend not to exist?

"Welcome to My Boy Builds Coffins," Trevor started on his opening.

Sera deduced that it must have been a customer who entered. She shot her arms up perpendicular to her prone body and slowly began to sit up.

Trevor stopped mid-sentence as he and the customer, an older gentleman, watched the peculiar girl. Sera slowly turned her head to look at the gentleman, who was slowly backing up towards the door.

"Hel-" Sera began before being interrupted by the vigorous jingling of the bell.

A small and scared grunt came out of the man as he exited and ran down the street.

Trevor sighed exasperatedly, How annoying!!! He thought once more.

"He ran away," Sera said matter-of-factly.

Of course he did! You just looked like you were being raised from the dead! Trevor sighed again as he grabbed a parchment from his desk, pulling a quill out of an inkwell as well. He began scribbling upon the parchment rested upon his desk. "There," he said walking over to the door with a small adhesive and the parchment. He opened his shop door causing the bell to ring, and placed the parchment on the door.

"A note?" Sera questioned, "What were its contents?"

"Oh, just that I was with a special customer, and not to disturb," admitted Trevor, "You sure ask a lot of questions."

Sera laid back down, ignoring his statement, "You are quite the craftsman. I think I would like to purchase this one."

"Great," Trevor said with slight relief, "Let us fill out the paperwork."

After filling out the papers and giving the man the appropriate coin, Sera had her new coffin on a very cheaply made sleigh. She looked at Trevor as he handed her a rope attached to said sleigh.

"Sorry I can't assist in transporting it, I'm sure I'll be quite busy the rest of the night," he smiled slyly.

"Thank you," Sera bowed before turning to leave. She abruptly turned back and stuttered, "H-h-how is it?"

Trevor looked confused, "Huh?"

Sera's cheeks grew red as she answered, "Su-su-su..." She stopped, unable to say it, "...blood."

Trevor looked at the girl with a shocked expression, "Do you not-" he stopped himself as she shook her head. "Ever?" He asked.

"Once, fifty some years ago," Sera answered.

"Hmm...well it's, uh..." the once fluent speaking Trevor began fumbling his words. His face grew serious, "Fight it as hard as you can. I hate what I am." He opened the door for her, "Please come again," he finished with a fake smile.

Sera dragged the coffin out into the street. The sun was setting, leaving a slight orange glow on everything in sight. Sera immediately heard women speaking at raised voices to one another. She glanced over to see three of them looking back at her. They were all wearing scarves, and were each elegantly dressed. Their yells towards one another became hushed whispers, as if Sera's departure from the shop brought upon them a common enemy. Still thinking it was some form of human greeting from woman to woman, Sera covered her mouth with one of her hands and began whispering to herself as she glared back at the women. They stopped, baffled at who she was talking to as she dragged her coffin down the street.


* * *


"Huff, huff," Sera panted, her face red from exhaustion.

She sat on the steps leading upstairs and tried to catch her breath. The moon had taken control of the sky as she had reached the inn where she was staying. She had managed to get the coffin into the inn, but her room was upstairs and thus her dilemma was created.

Sera sighed, "Where's that monster of a woman when you need her?"

After another moment Sera stood up, ready to try getting the coffin up the stairs once again.

"Everyone is so much stronger than I am," she thought out loud, "Alright, I can do this."

Just as she was about to start pulling, a barmaid from the inn approached her.

"Um...excuse me."

"Yes!" Sera shouted, startled from having been focused on the coffin.

"What is...that?"

"It's a coffi--box! A box!" Sera nervously stumbled.

"Why do you have a coffin?"

"To su-su..." Sera stopped. She quickly stumbled around to the lid of the coffin and opened it up, "...see! There's no one in it yet!"

Yet?! The barmaid pondered, "I need to speak with the owner. Excuse me."

Sera sighed as she closed the lid, "I seem totally suspicious!"

With a burst of nervous energy, Sera positioned herself behind the coffin, and pushed it quickly up the stairs.

The next morning, the innkeeper kicked Sera out of the inn.


* * *


Sera had barely made it through the market before falling to her hands and knees in exhaustion. It was early morning, but the market was already starting to become busy.

"I need to...hurry," she proclaimed in between breaths.

Sera grabbed the pant leg of some market goer as he passed. She looked up, panting lewdly from exhaustion.

"Unhand me whore!" He exclaimed, "I've no money for you!"

With that the man stomped off, leaving Sera alone. She stood up, wobbly from her exercise. It was more intense today; the coffin, heavier due to her belongings being placed inside. Having been kicked out of the inn she had been staying in for nights, she needed to find somewhere new to stay, better yet, to live. However, she had no idea where to start looking, which was why she panted at the passing man.

"Guess I need to ask someone else," she muttered, standing up and grabbing the rope of her cross.

Dragging a coffin through the market certainly drew the attention of many passersby, yet none of them stopped her to inquire about it. Sera stopped a few more people as she made her way through, each one either ignoring her, being rude, or backing away slowly. She stopped suddenly, remembering that she had managed to brew a few extracts before being asked to vacate the inn earlier that morning.

"I forgot I brewed a panacea," she spoke pulling a thin vial out of her pouch, uncorking it, and knocking it back like the town drunk trying to forget how useless of a person he was.

Sera immediately felt the effects. She occasionally brewed polypurpose panaceas so she could study longer before passing out across her books. Today was a different form of exhaustion, but the extract worked the same. In truth, she was extremely exhausted, but she felt like a million sails. The panacea could cause various effects, anywhere from sleepiness to a drunk feeling, sobriety to hallucinations. It tricked the mind and the muscles into thinking something else.

"Yes!" Sera exclaimed, readjusting the rope slung over her shoulder, "Let's do this!"

She blazed through the rest of the market and then some after that; however, incoherent yelling did wonders for drawing even more attention to herself, and she was shortly after stopped by a guard.

"Excuse me ma'am," the guard called out, "We've received complaints about a woman running through the market, screaming and dragging along a coffin."

"Oh that sounds scary! What terrible times we live in!" Sera almost shouted at him. Her eyes were wide, and she seemed extraordinarily fidgety. Almost like she was on drugs, which wasn't true, but it wasn't completely false either. "I shall inform the guard should I see this person, immediately!"

The guard sighed and cleared his throat, trying to remain composed, "Might I ask what you are dragging behind your person there ma'am?"

"Oh this is my coffi-," the word had barely escaped her mouth before she realized, "My...coffin." She looked up at the guard, a taller young gentleman, and pointed up at herself.

The guard nodded, "Might I ask you to come with me. I'd like to ask you a few questions."

Sera began panicking, "I...uh...I really shouldn't, I was always told to avoid strange men asking me to follow them."

"I am a guard of the city of Korvosa, not some strange man trying to scam or kidnap you."

"How am I supposed to know you're not lying!" questioned Sera, "Wait the city guard?"

The guard sighed and nodded.

"Cressida Kroft!" Sera exclaimed, "She knows who I am. I've helped her restore the city to peace! Just ask her!"

The guard sighed one last time, "I was trying to avoid this, but you'll need to come with me. You can explain your lies to Cressida in person, along with why you are dragging a coffin through the city streets!" He exclaimed as he firmly grabbed her arm.

"It's my coffin! And there's no one in it yet!" Sera tried to defend as she was dragged a few steps by the stronger guard, "U-unhand me!"

Suddenly, a set of double doors slammed open, and both Sera and the guard turned with curiosity towards the disturbance. In the doorway stood a figure. It was dressed like a woman but as she drew closer, Sera wondered if that was the case. She had extremely broad shoulders, her breasts seemed more like bulging pectoral muscles, her throat held a very noticeable and protruding Adam's apple, and her chin was thick and chiseled. Her dress was elegant with a slit reaching up to the thigh. She pushed her long brown hair with a sense of class as her heels clacked on the cobblestone. Behind her, the heads of a few girls popped out behind the doorframe.

"Excuse me sir," she said in a forced alto pitched voice, "Would you kindly let go of one of my girls?"

"I apologize..." The guard paused, equally baffled at what gender this person actually was, "...madam. But I'm taking this woman into custody."

"On what grounds?" The burly woman questioned, crossing her arms and flexing her enormous arm muscles.

"Dragging a coffin through the market district and screaming like a lunatic."

"Well the coffin is for my late grandmother. I asked Pako here to go retrieve it for me. As to why she was yelling. You see how frail she looks, I'm sure your reports were exaggerated as she expended the necessary energy to pull the coffin all the way here," the woman explained.

The guard looked at her while he thought, with Sera's arm still in his grip, "If it is truly your coffin, why did you not go retrieve it yourself? You seem more than capable."

The large woman continued her lie, "Pako offered. My girls do know how to pamper after all. And my, my, are you implying something?"

Sera tried to speak up, but the large woman glared at her with an intimidating glare that said, 'Kindly refrain from speaking while I take care of this.'

The woman grabbed the arm of the guard that held Sera's, and squeezed as she smiled at the guard. In a suddenly deep voice that didn't seem forced at all, she stated, "Please unhand my employee."

The guard felt the crushing power of this woman's absurdly large forearm, forcing him to release his grip.

"I thank you for understanding," the woman said in her forced alto once more as she let go of the guard, "And do let Cressida know that Lady Blanc's establishment will be continuing donations to the restoration of the city."

The guard had an irritated look of shock before sweeping into a bow, "I will do that. Your donations are much appreciated for the good of the city."

The guard turned and left, cursing as he left Sera and the strange manly woman behind.

"Th-thank you..." Sera stuttered starting to lose the effects of the panacea. She fiddled around her belt and offered, "...I can give you money."

"I don't need your money dear," the woman laughed as she grabbed the rope from Sera, "Where are you heading? I can help you there."

"Thank you, but I have nowhere," Sera explained, "I have been looking for a place to stay all morning."

"Oh ho ho!" The woman laughed, "Fate surely smiles upon you my dear! You may just be in luck! Turns out I have a spare room upstairs. I'd be willing to offer it to you."

"Really?!" Sera exclaimed aided by a look of shock.

The woman smiled and nodded, "I'll only ask one thing of you. Assist me and my girls if we ever need help."

"Of course! That is surely a small price to pay for such kindness! Truly...it is right? Thank you so much! But are you sure? You don't mind coffins? Explosions? What I..." Sera grew timid as she paused, her excitement completely faded, "...am."

"Your business is your business, as long as you don't blow up my establishment, and," the woman gently grabbed Sera's chin and pulled it up to meet her eyes, "What you are, is a beautiful woman in need of aid. I cannot allow that to pass."

Sera's heart skipped a beat, as this was the first time she had been called beautiful since she had been told so by Callen, the ex-paladin-turned-priest who raised her; even if it was by an oddly manly woman.

"I am Lady Blanc," Blanc introduced as she moved towards the building. She pulled the coffin filled with Sera's belongings as if it were just a sleigh with nothing on it. When they stepped inside, Blanc was almost attacked by a handful of pretty girls. "This, is my establishment!" She exclaimed opening her arms wide, "The Shy Lass!"

Tables and long couches filled the decently sized room.

"Lady Blanc you were so amazing!" The girls almost squealed in unison, "You showed that guard just who runs this street!"

"Thank you ladies, I just can't take more beautiful girls being harassed by the guard, or by anyone for that matter!"

The girls shouted in admiration.

"This is Pako, she'll be staying upstairs, since we lost Liz," Blanc explained, waving her free hand towards Sera.

"Will she be working with us? She's quite cute!" exclaimed a half-elven lass.

"I will not force her hand, no. Though I did ask if she would aid us if we were ever short."

The girls crowded around Sera, shouting various welcomes and pleasantries.

"Your hair is so pretty!"

"Your skin is so soft! And radiant!"

"Your eyes pierce my soul!"

"Please girls, we must prepare for tonight. Let Pako get settled in. You can talk to her as much as you want later, since she'll be living upstairs with all of you. And make sure we have plenty of Dom Perignon for tonight, I believe our supply was running low."

The girls pouted, laughed, and ran off.

"They look forward to living, and working with you," Blanc smiled.

Sera smiled back, speechless and red faced from having been surrounded and talked at by a plethora of girls, each of which had complimented her. She finally spoke up as they made their way upstairs, "My name is Sera, sorry for not introducing myself earlier."

Blanc smiled, "Here my dear Sera, you are Pako. I give all of my girls names. It's an alias I offer to protect who you are, or were, or who you want to become. So when you are here, you are Pako."

Sera nodded, unsure of what it meant, or how she should respond.

Blanc stopped in front of a door, pulled a key from her pectoral cleavage and unlocked the door, pushing it open and pulling the coffin inside. She grabbed Sera's hand and placed the key in the palm.

"Let me know if you need anything," Blanc smiled, cupping Sera's hand with her own, "We can talk rent once you get settled. I'm in no rush."

With that, Blanc left the room, closing the door behind her. Sera stood in her new room for a moment, before beginning to unpack her coffin.