"How exactly did you 'show so much promise' as a Zigzagoon that those around you started grooming you for better positions?"
"Was there any place you studied at or with your father during your childhood to become a servant?"
♫ Pure Class
Cadbury leaned back in his chair, producing a quiet squeak. "Curious lad, aren't you? It's not often I chat with someone so full of questions." With a single claw hooked through a teacup's handle, he paused to take a thoughtful sip, planning his wording carefully.
"Well, first of all, 'showing a great deal of promise' was the word my father used. Not all young footmen take to their job, you understand -- many begrudge their work. I've seen it myself. I remember my peers, fellow footmen and the like, they saw it all as... as chores they were being forced to do by some man with altogether too much money and influence."
Cadbury's shoulder lifted in a one-sided shrug, his expression showing a moment to consider the notion. "And that view isn't wrong, strictly speaking. But I relished the role, personally, even as a boy. It was less about the work I was doing, and more about the act of serving others. Of course, I did the work well, and I was highly polite, and that's what my father meant when he said I showed promise." The butler chuckles. "It doesn't hurt that my father wanted me to become a butler in the long run, in the first place. I suppose he was biased!"
After another sip, he continued along the same line of questioning to explain his studying. "I was tutored, actually. There isn't really a school for this type of thing. I had a tutor who would come to our house, or invite me to his, to teach me etiquette and common chores and tasks, and how to perform them with class and efficiency. This tutor worked closely with my father, and my father was also a good teacher when it came to etiquette."
"It sounds pretty unnatural to stand biped for your species ... does it hurt? Do you ever resent being raised so rigidly by your father? Do/Did you ever yearn for something other than high-class servitude?"
The Linoone broke into a polite laugh. "Oh no no, it doesn't hurt!" His paw batted at the air dismissively. "Here, look at it this way. A Pikachu is perfectly comfortable standing quadruped or biped, yes? And it doesn't hurt him at all. Even quadruped Linoone will frequently rear up on their hind legs; they simply don't walk about that way. I was trained to stand upright -- this was again at the behest of my father -- so I could easily perform my duties with my forepaws. Not to mention it lends an air of, ah... how should I say... sophistication? Civilizedness?"
His eyes glanced away in recollection. "I wouldn't describe my father as rigid. I don't think there's anything to resent. I'm grateful for what he's done for me. I can't imagine my life as some uncivilized..." Instead of finishing his thought, Cadbury's eyes returned to his conversation partner, and he chuckled, catching himself. "Nevermind, let's move on, haha. Mustn't insult anyone."
"I do yearn to be something more someday," he agreed with a single nod. "Own some land of my own, my own butler... Host social parties at a mansion, or even a pleasant cottage if I cannot afford the former. Wouldn't that be a pleasant way to retire?" he asked, his smile spreading across his muzzle.
"Speaking of your father, did you ever get to know your mother? Was she ever in your life? I mean, you at least must be curious, considering you're the same species as her."
"Ah, I was a bit of a daddy's boy, I admit. Mother worked as a maid. Still does. Fortunately we've never worked under the same master." He laughed politely. "Imagine that, hm? A butler telling his mother what to do in the workplace."
He stopped there, and it became clear he didn't have as much to say about his mother as he did his father, or even his tutor. They must not be close.
"I would love to hear about some of the families or masters you've served! Were any particularly memorable or left significant impressions on you or the way you live your life?"
"What caused you to be 'in-between masters' during the time you discovered Finer Things? What happened to the last one? Why have you had several masters instead of just having had one all your life?"
The butler perks up in his seat. "Ah, of course! Let's see... I'll just list some as they come to mind.
"I have worked for a Galvantula. Very sweet woman. Affectionate, kind. Lived alone. She had an interesting way of decorating her home, with these intricate webbings of spider silk." He spread both arms, gesturing to the entire room he sat in. "Everywhere. The house was completely overtaken with them. They were pretty, but still sticky. It took some getting used to, that's for certain!" he laughed.
"In some cases, a butler serves for a family and not just one person. I personally worked for a family where the parents were good proper folk, but their son was the one who demanded the most of my work. There's no other way of putting it: he was lazy. It was exasperating, I admit. He wanted me to bring him everything, do everything for him. And yes, that is my job, but in my opinion it was just him acting in sloth.
"A later master I worked under taught me that the relationship between master and butler can be so much more than that," he added to lighten the mood.
"A butler can be... a personal servant, an advisor, a confidant, a close friend," he spoke slowly, his gaze cast toward a window.
Cadbury's teacup was placed on its saucer, freeing his paws. Subconsciously, one of them rested atop his other in his lap, squeezing lightly.
There was a distant look in his eye, a smile on his face.
His attention returned, as did his eye contact. He hadn't realized he'd broken them until just then. "Ah, yes. Who else...?" he asks himself, pulling another example from memory.
"I've also worked for an Alolan Meowth. She was single and enjoyed gambling a great deal. In fact, I... I was 'won' by her. You see, this Meowth, she and my employer at the time, they were gambling together. And in the final hand, during a fit of desperation to cling to their pride, my current employer bet my employment. The Meowth won, and I was obligated to go work for her."
The Linoone leaned forward and inclined his head, tipping his nose downward to look at his conversation partner just a bit more seriously. His tone of voice hardens just enough to be noticeable.
"Let me teach you a hard lesson I've learned: no matter how successful you are at your job, there are always things beyond your control that may cause you to lose it. I've had my employment gambled away. I've had it transferred to friends of the family (under friendly terms, mind you). In a couple jobs, I was only hired for a temporary position to begin with. In one, I was to work with that master for life... and I did, as they passed away. Bless their soul." He shook his head, shutting his eyes in a brief moment of sad recollection.
"In other situations, your boss loses his fortune and cannot afford the luxury of a butler anymore. In some, political danger necessitates you abandon your position."
With another shake of his head, Cadbury took up his teacup and leaned back in his seat again. His eyes closed. "There are myriad reasons why you may transfer hands, or have to look for new work. It is in fact a rare myth that butlers find perfect masters whom they serve for life."
P.S. I had to go back and correct my tense after every set of paragraphs. x.x
I don't like past tense in roleplay, it's contradictory to the engagement.
I'm going to explain my reasoning and don't take this as me trying to change your mind about the past-tense requirement, I just want to explain my reasoning is all.
When you roleplay, it's something that unfolds. When you tell a story, it's already happened and is being retold.
In a roleplay, you are playing that character in the present moment. That's what I mean by contradictory.
[insert two-cents here]
