[Scene: “The Velvet Ledger Meeting”]Location: Private back room of Kareshka’s Favor, 2nd floorTime: Just after sunset — 8:13 PMLighting: Soft amber nternlight, one flickering sconce, a wax candle shaped like a moon?

  [The Scene Begins]

  The room was quiet, save for the occasional scratch of quill on parchment. Melodia sat primly on a cushion, ankles tucked beside her, her posture demure yet deeply focused. Her fingers, delicate but sure, danced across the open ledger with all the fluidity of a harpist tuning her soul.

  Melodia (softly):“So… if we allow customers to pre-purchase table reservations for festival nights… we can secure deposits, reduce chaos, and introduce a moon-tier premium seating pn. Optional wine pairing. Or… um… poetry pairing, if they’re lonely.”

  She blushed, chewing the corner of her lip.

  Krummar (grinning):“Poetry pairing. Gods, that’s brilliant. Loneliness markup is real. You charge more for the gentle lie.”

  He leaned forward, voice dropping to a sermon-worthy hush.

  Krummar:“We sell emotional fiction wrapped in dinner. That’s what a tavern is. That’s faith but with gravy.”

  ?

  Melodia giggled softly — breathy and porcein-fragile. She clutched her moonstone choker, then blinked rapidly to suppress a glow reaction.

  Melodia (whispering):“We could… even unch a private room service called “Starling Nights”. You pay extra to eat in a candlelit room. Alone. Or with… someone who’ll stay silent unless you ask them to speak.”

  ?

  Krummar (pausing mid-sip):“…Melodia. Are you monetizing emotional isotion with romantic tension yering?”

  Melodia (voice smaller, but sparkly):“Yes?”

  Krummar (grinning wider):“I would invest in that. I would tithe to that.”

  ?

  He pulled out a folded napkin blueprint from under his armor. It was smudged with gravy and ambition.

  Krummar:“Now—hear me out. We establish an in-house Moon Vault. A bank. For us. Party members, staff, Lorin. You log your gold and earn divine interest. Small radiant blessings on high deposits.”

  ?

  Melodia leaned closer, eyes huge, star-flecked. Their shoulders nearly touched. Her curls brushed his elbow.

  Melodia:“Oh… so like… faith-based accruement. Like a radiant stock dividend.”

  Krummar:“EXACTLY.”

  ?

  [Codex Trigger: Emotional Business Enthusiasm Overp]? Comfort +1 (Krummar → Melodia)? Attraction +1 (Melodia → Krummar) (slow-burn: soft voice + economic wit)? Scent Layer Triggered: faint warm pastry and vender sugar

  ?

  They leaned in again. Simultaneously.

  Their foreheads bumped. Very gently. Melodia’s beret slipped. Krummar’s gsses fell into his tea.

  Krummar (blinking):“…We are very bad at physical proximity.”

  Melodia (blushing furiously):“I-it’s fine. I… brought back-up charts.”

  She opened a second ledger. It glittered with glitter. Pink ink. It had tabs.

  Krummar (softly, like a prayer):“You color-coded profit predictions.”

  Melodia (nodding):“…Yes.”

  ?

  [ENTER: LORIN, quietly with a tray of tartlets]

  She sets the tray between them. She says nothing. But she smiles. Then she walks out.

  Krummar and Melodia both stare at the tartlets like they just got proposed to by a baked good.[Scene End.]?

  [Scene: “The Velvet Ledger Pitch (a.k.a. Mistake #1 Was Including Daka)”]Location: Kareshka’s Favor, main common room, central tableTime: 9:02 PMLighting: Firelit glow from the hearth; nterns catching the shimmer of Melodia’s ribbons and the sweat gleam on Daka’s colrboneMood: Capitalism meets chaos, with background judgment and passive nature-based sarcasm?

  [The Scene Begins]

  Krummar (booming):“Thank you all for gathering. This is a moment of opportunity, strategy, and emotional trickery. Melodia and I—Lady Ledger, if you please—have devised a set of innovations to turn this establishment into Waterdeep’s number one destination for romantic micro-capitalism.”

  Mel raised an eyebrow.

  Mel (ft):“That sounds like a sex cult for people with tax folders.”

  Melodia (gasping):“N-no! It’s about pairing soft ambiance with structured intimacy options.”

  Daka (perking up):“Oh so it is a sex cult!”

  ?

  Krummar (smming a chart on the table):“Exhibit A: The Moon Vault. Faith-based savings, radiant interest, emergency access if a party member dies dramatically or flirts correctly.”

  Mel (mutters):“…So I just never get my gold.”

  ?

  Melodia (nervously flipping pages):“And Exhibit B… is the Starling Nights Suite. A private, candlelit dinner chamber where patrons can request a silent dinner companion… who will not speak unless asked a question. All staff trained in eye contact, slow blinking, and emotional nodding.”

  Beat.

  Daka (choking on crust):“…Wait. So like. Paid awkward dinners with hot people who say nothing?”

  Mel (still monotone):“Congratutions. You’ve monetized my coping mechanisms.”

  ?

  Lorin (from the bar, dry):“I already do that. It’s called ‘Tuesday night.’”

  ?

  Melodia, flustered, tugs her beret down. Her thighs shift as she crosses her legs again beneath the table. The moonstone at her throat glows faintly.

  Codex Triggers:? Presence +1 (Melodia, emotional fluster yer)? Krummar → Attraction +1 (seeing her defend economic systems under pressure)? Daka → Obsession +1 (jealousy spike: Krummar complimented her math)

  ?

  Krummar (trying to regain control):“We’ll also be introducing a Guilt Pie Menu. You eat different fvored pastries based on who you’ve emotionally hurt that day.”

  Mel (nods, finally interested):“Okay. That one’s just… emotionally accurate.”

  Daka (loudly):“I want a pie called “Sorry I flirted with your ex while punching a beholder.””

  Lorin (sighs):“Triple berry. Already on the menu.”

  ?

  Mel leans forward now, resting her chin on her knees, hair falling into her eyes.

  Mel:“…If I name my guilt after pnts, do I still get pie?”

  Melodia (soft smile):“You get pie and moss tea. And… maybe a private booth with soft pillows and no questions.”?

  [Codex Fallout Begins]? Mel → Comfort +1 toward Melodia? Krummar → Trust +1 toward Mel (for honesty about pain-food)? Daka → Presence Drop (-1) due to emotional interruption and being ignored? Lorin silently adds “pie politics” to her nightly ledger

  ?

  Final Verdict:? Moon Vault: Approved by majority vote (Lorin abstains)? Starling Nights Suite: Test trial next full moon (Melodia to design lighting with Krummar)? Guilt Pie Menu: Already in rotation. Daka gets his name on one. He cheers. Shirt flies off.?[Scene End.]