“...And afterward, you will make sure you stop by Ameiko's tavern and apologize for the incident you caused there yesterday. Honestly, after all these years in Sandpoint, you think you'd have learned to avoid brawling every other day.”

Thurrg flattened his ears at the reprimand, an expression that was less of an apology and more indicative of annoyance, as the same spiel repeated itself again for the, what, third time this week? The gnoll, seated on a bench that barely supported his weight—and heaven forbid there be any chairs in his size anywhere in this human settlement—waited patiently while the young man before him continued to scold him for the events of the day before. It wasn't anything new, and honestly, Thurrg found himself quite bored as he waited for his adoptive brother to finish telling him off. It was just so predictable: a reminder that he had done something wrong, a mention that he was raised by Koya to be more civilized than this, and a sigh of exasperation from an older brother that was a third of his size and yet somehow managed to somehow hold some sense of awe from the hyena-like gnoll staring down at him. It would wind down within a few minutes, and then he would be free to go.

Thurrg suppressed a sigh as he leaned forward, resting his chin on one paw while the other tapped impatiently upon his thigh, waiting for Jin to finish. It really was strange, being told off so easily by a human who possessed maybe a third of his mass, yet Jin's natural authority as the “big” brother always seemed to win through. The man, at least in his human form, was pretty typical of humans, generally well-built but not exceptionally massive, and stood just below six feet in height. Comparatively, Thurrg was [i]much[/i] larger; he stood at seven and a half feet, a head and shoulders above his adoptive brother, and weighed a solid five hundred and some odd pounds. A good deal of that was muscle, rippling through powerful arms, a firm chest, and strong thighs, but just as much was centered around the gnoll's middle. Possessing a hearty appetite for food and drink, the latter of which he was fond of imbibing in excess, Thurrg's belly jutted out in a thick sphere that somehow was still fairly solid, though it caused the cloth shirt that had been tailored to his size to seem a bit small.

Thurrg found himself looking away, wondering when Jin would be done; speaking of food, the gnoll was craving some now, as it had been a long day of few breaks, and that meant no meals aside from a meager breakfast earlier in the morning. Now that it was midway through the afternoon, Thurrg found himself famished, especially given that most of his work was heavy labor and took a lot of energy out of him. But it would be rude to simply walk away, and Jin would make sure he knew it, if Koya hadn't already driven that point home more than once. Thurrg wasn't going to disobey [i]that[/i] lesson; Jin would give him an earful, and maybe tug at his ear—after jumping to reach it, anyway—but Koya's methods of proper punishment gave the gnoll plenty of cause for pause.

Unfortunately, Thurrg's disinterest earned him the former punishment as a furred hand suddenly caught his ear and yanked it, albeit gently enough to cause pressure to turn his head without making it hurt. The gnoll turned to find himself facing a less-than-pleased tiger staring at him eye-to-eye, Jin having shifted forms in a moment of frustration to try and get his point across. Thurrg's adoptive brother wasn't a human, but rather was a Fanglord, otherwise referred to as a were-tiger, so such shifts were not uncommon. But there was a notable difference between a human's glare and the ferocious gaze of a big cat, enough to make even Thurrg pause for a moment. Of course, that moment would pass quickly, and Jin was lucky that Thurrg was a more civilized fellow, or he'd find himself on the wrong end of the gnoll's fist or hammer, as would any animal that threatened him.

“Are you listening, Thurrg? Repeat back to me what you're supposed to do.” Jin demanded, his expression suggesting that he wasn't exactly amused.

Thurrg sighed and rolled his eyes. “Supposed to go to Ameiko's tavern. Apologize for yesterday, though I cleaned up. Try to drink less, try to fight less. Anything else, brother?”

Jin's gaze softened, and he let Thurrg's ear go before giving him a pat on the shoulder. “Alright, get going. I'll finish up with the work here, you get things settled.” Finally! Thurrg happily stood from the bench, and the wood let out a loud creak as he did so. A glance back showed that there was a slight indentation from the wood warping under his weight, and the gnoll sheepishly grinned at his brother. “Uh, you mind fixin' this brother? Yer the carpenter.” This got a sigh from Jin, but before the feline could respond, Thurrg was already ducking out the doorway and making his way down the road, creating a good amount of distance between himself and more reprimands. Likely the next round was going to be about his weight, and Thurrg just wasn't in the mood to hear it.

Besides, it wasn't like he could do anything about it. Genetically, the gnoll was predisposed to bulk up pretty easily. Most of it was muscle—as evident from the strength he had developed from all the hard work he did around town, including most of the heavy lifting—but with all the eating that he did, it was not surprising that plenty of it had turned to fat, adding to his already large frame. Spoiled by human food as opposed to the raw meat that many gnolls ate, Thurrg had developed quite an extensive appetite, and as a result it was not uncommon to see him stuff himself until his middle was packed tight and round, with literally no more room to fit anything in.

An incident that would likely repeat itself shortly, Thurrg thought as he made his way through the front doors of the Rusty Dragon, the major tavern in Sandpoint. Owned by Ameiko Kaijitsu, a friend of the family, the tavern was one of Thurrg's favorite places within the town simply because of its good food and plentiful supply of ale. If it weren't for the price on it, even with the discounts Thurrg got, he'd probably pick up a whole barrel of the latter for himself and spend most of the evening chugging it. Well, he'd enjoy what he could get anyway, and experimentally hefting his money pouch in one large paw, Thurrg was pretty sure that he could get quite a bit after a long day of well-paid work.

As he pushed his way through the swinging door—quite loudly, given that he simply bumped it open with his broad gut as opposed to reaching out for it, as Koya was hardly here to scold him for his manners—a young woman looked up from the bar. Black hair with two streaks of white-dyed bangs framed her face, and she brushed these back as she took in Thurrg, her expression somewhat wry. Crossing her arms across her red-patterned dress, Ameiko smiled after a moment and shook her head. “Ahh, Thurrg. Let me guess, your whiskered brother sent you to apologize yet again. Even after you repaired as much as you could, repaid any remaining damages, and still remain one of my better-paying customers with how much you eat and drink.”

“Mm. Jin's mad again.” Thurrg replied simply; it wasn't that he wasn't practiced at conversation, given how long Koya had worked with him to improve his speech, but the gnoll was simply lazy when he wasn't speaking formally, shortening sentences and spending as little effort in response as needed. “Jin's mad a lot.”

“That boy needs to learn a little tolerance. Kids will be kids, and pups will be pups, I suppose.” Ameiko eyed Thurrg, looking him up and down. “...Though I suppose it's unfair to call you a pup when you're an adult for your species. Hard to believe a big fellow like you is like you is only eleven or twelve years old.” Thurrg just shrugged; gnolls aged and matured faster than their human counterparts, much in the way that humans seemed so short-lived to races like elves and dwarves; it was just the way things were. “Either way, I'll talk to Koya about teaching Jin to be a little more patient with you. It's not too much to expect that you're going to be a little rowdy, bein' the beast you are.”

Thurrg just grinned; the remark was a compliment towards him, and he enjoyed remarks that made him feel big and powerful. “Nah. Jin's okay, I just don't listen when he talks.” The gnoll playfully placed both paws over his ears, and the two of them just shared a good laugh before they settled back down. Thurrg's reinforced bench, a stone seat reserved just for him so that he'd have somewhere to sit without breaking some of the more delicate chairs, was dragged out from the kitchen and pulled up to one of the tables. The gnoll did it himself, of course, as the seat was much heavier than the others, made to be reinforced for a few hundred pounds of mass.

Ameiko herself came to serve Thurrg, getting along rather well with the somewhat brutish gnoll. That, and he suspected that she enjoyed seeing how much money he'd spend stuffing himself that day. Either way, the woman was pleasant as the gnoll ordered a tall flagon of one of the house's finer ales, pausing briefly as the beast's middle rumbled loudly enough to cut off their conversation. Grinning, Ameiko gave it an almost friendly backhanded slap. “Filling up the tank again today, Thurrg? Hope you've got enough money, you know I don't like to open tabs.” Thurrg just grinned and grabbed his money pouch, shaking it a few times to get her attention. That was more than enough incentive to send the woman towards the back to fetch his drinks from the kitchen.

She returned a moment later with not just one, but two large flagons practically spilling over with ale, froth dripping down the sides. Both were set atop the table in front of Thurrg, who looked at Ameiko inquisitively. The woman just gave a broad smile as she turned to walk away. “The second one's on the house; call it a reward for makin' every day so interesting in here.” Thurrg continued to look puzzled as  she walked back to the main counter to greet another guest stepping into the tavern; what was so interesting about eating his fill and occasionally beating up a drunk patron or three? Shrugging, the gnoll decided that he'd never completely understand humans, and went to enjoy his drinks.

The first flagon was lifted to his lips, the gnoll taking long enough to lick off some of the foam from the side before putting the glass to his maw and simply tilting his head back. Most people took a few experimental sips to get used to the kick of the alcohol, but not Thurrg; the gnoll simply took several big gulps, draining half the flagon in his first breath before setting it down. His head reeled slightly, but the beast was simply too big to be affected too badly. Wiping his lips, he closed his eyes, enjoying the taste of the ale flowing down his throat. A moment later he let out a rather loud belch, one that could be heard throughout most of the modestly busy common room.

To their credit, many of the regulars didn't even look up, used to Thurrg's antics as the gnoll was a frequent patron. Those that did were either only occasional visitors or, in more cases, people from out of town who stopped by to enjoy the exotic cooking of Ameiko's tavern. More than one looked a little nervous at the enormous gnoll sharing the room with them, despite the fact that he was in a corner table and facing away from him to try and put the other patrons at ease. That rarely worked, yet Ameiko seemed more amused than upset when people asked her why she served a gnoll, a monster of all things! The woman seemed to have settled on an answer at some point, always smiling when she responded, “He adds some adventure to this quiet little tavern.”

Thurrg had gotten used to it, though, and didn't really mind; he knew that he was unusual, much like his brother Jin was, yet the two of them had been generally accepted in Sandpoint thanks to Koya's intervention. The older woman had quite the influence in the town, and over time, the residents had become accustomed to the stranger individuals that lived there. People from outside still reacted the same way though, seeing a gnoll and expecting it to be hostile, rather than civilized. Well, somewhat civilized, Thurrg proved with another resounding belch as he finished off the first tankard of ale, licking foam from his lips even as he felt the pleasant buzz of mild intoxication, which in turn would lead to an even heartier appetite, or so he had learned.

Ameiko didn't take long to send his food, though this time the familiar server, Bethany, brought it in her place, as the tavern owner was preoccupied dealing with another table. It was only the first few dishes, of course, but it was a good start. Spiced potatoes along with a mildly hot recipe for chicken that Ameiko claimed to have brought over from Tian Xia were placed in extra-large helpings, but to Thurrg they were only just an appetizer. Forgoing the fork for the beginning of his meal, the gnoll was more than happy to grab thick slabs of seasoned chicken and simply tear off large bites of them in an almost feral manner, a method of eating he was far more used to than the use of cutlery and proper table etiquette, to Jin and Koya's dismay.

The chicken left a mild burn on his tongue, but it was easy enough to wash down with another swallow of ale from his second flagon. Though he had been left with six or seven large strips of the seasoned meat, it didn't last long, as four bites, maybe five if he took a smaller one, would finish off a single one. And seeing as the gnoll wasn't particularly inclined to table manners, he was more than happy to simply tear apart and snarf down his food as quickly as he could, taking the shortest method from hand to mouth. This was yet another display that showed the savagery inherent in his blood, yet despite that, most people seemed to take it in stride once they had gotten used to his presence. Someone had once described it to being similar to watching a dog eating the table scraps, and though it was meant as an insult at the time, Thurrg had simply shrugged it off after applying his fist to the man's face, along with one of the nearby chairs.

The potatoes were treated to no additional courtesy; Thurrg picked up the hot plate carefully and simply tilted it back, using his free paw to scoop them down its length and into his maw. He had to pause and gulp them down occasionally to free up more room in his maw, but three passes later and the plate was mostly cleaned off, leaving a nice warm feeling around the gnoll's middle before long. Of course, it didn't settle the feeling of being as hungry as he was, and Thurrg let out a mild growl and raised one big paw to get the attention of the server over to him. Bethany was a moment getting to him with how busy the bar was, but before long she was placing a basket of bread on the table to distract the gnoll while she grabbed another fresh batch of food for him.

Thurrg looked at the bread inquisitively; though he had eaten it plenty before, as Koya served it with meals frequently, he still never understood the human desire to eat baked plants. At least, that was how he interpreted the making of bread, though at least the plants were nice and smashed beforehand; he'd know, as he'd helped more than once. But it just wasn't meat, and it wasn't sweet like fruit, or tasty like spiced potatoes. There was no differentiating between other types of potatoes; if they weren't spiced, then they were just non-edibles as far as Thurrg went. He liked the way Ameiko's recipe seasoned them, as they had a nice mix of spice that gave just enough of a kick to make them pleasant.

But bread... bread was just weird. Yet despite that, Thurrg's hunger reminded him that picky eaters ate nothing, and so he just shrugged and grabbed a whole loaf in his paw, not even bothering with the large plate of butter set aside. The gnoll took a massive bite out of the browned loaf, pausing briefly as he did so; this bread was sweet, almost like honey! Pleased by this discovery of edible and tasty bread, Thurrg was more than happy to show his appreciation by simply devouring the rest of the loaf, followed by a second, and then even gulping down all of the butter in the provided dish before finishing the last loaf in the basket. 

Once he had emptied out the basket, Thurrg let out another loud belch to rival the first two, patting at his now-swollen stomach. Far from full, he was starting to feel pleasantly stuffed from his first course, and it was starting to show in the gnoll's middle as it took on a more rounded appearance, his peasant's shirt sliding up along the curve of his gut slightly. There was still plenty of room in his belly, of course, or at least plenty of stretch; Thurrg estimated another two rounds of food, not to mention another half-dozen tankards of ale, before he'd start to feel properly full. But that was fine; Ameiko always provided, and if Thurrg didn't walk home with a belly that he could barely squeeze through the tavern's front door, he'd be surprised.

Another round of meat was placed before him, this time broad racks of beef on long wooden skewers with fruit suspended between each slab. The spicy smell wafting up from the food made Thurrg's nose tingle, and his tail started wagging faster; the gnoll had quite a taste for spicy foods, and the more they made his tongue burn, the more he enjoyed them! Nine large skewers had been laid out for him, and Thurrg carefully laid out the couple of gold coins that he would be paying with, setting them on the table next to him. Once he had done so, assured that he had set enough money to pay for a full round of feeding along with a modest tip for his servers being so efficient, the gnoll returned to his meal.

He was greeted by two fresh tankards of ale, along with his half-finished one that was quickly ended in mere moments, the foam wiped free once more and the glass practically cleaned off before being set aside. Taking the skewer in one paw and looking at it awkwardly, Thurrg tried to remember how he had been shown to eat off of it. The last few attempts had left him with more than a few splinters on his tongue, after all. Opening his maw and shoving the skewer in carefully, pausing only when he felt it poke at the back of his throat, Thurrg closed his jaws slowly and started to tug meat and fruit off in equal measure without simply crunching through the skewer this time. He almost managed it, making it to the end before he finally clamped down with his teeth, thinking he had cleared the end of the stick, but a loud crunch and the splintered end of a skewer greeted him, informing him that he hadn't quite made it. Oh well, it was progress, and the splinters were mild.

The rest of the skewer was finished off quickly, and with far less wood involved, and the next disappeared only a moment later as the gnoll simply held it above his maw and used his free paw to just tug the food off of the stick, starting on the far end and tugging it towards his maw, letting meat and fruit drop past his lips. Delighted with this new manner of consumption, the gnoll repeated it again for the next three skewers, cleaning them off far more effectively than he had the first, before having to pause. So eager had he been to consume the skewers so neatly, Thurrg hadn't noticed the burn building in his mouth and throat. Suddenly it felt as though he'd swallowed a vial of liquid fire, and the gnoll coughed more than a few times before grabbing one of the new flagons of ale and pouring it down his maw, gulping it down in powerful swallows, actually managing to down the entire flagon in one sitting before sitting back to let his maw cool. “Phew... spicy...” He growled, but it wasn't a displeased sound; Thurrg took delight in the burn, and after a few minutes of sitting back—and another two loaves of the sweet honey-bread to help soak up some of the spice—he was ready for a second round, returning to finish off the remaining skewers.

As he made his way to the last, however, he was briefly interrupted by a drunken patron who accidentally bumped into his table, catching Thurrg's arm and causing the gnoll to miss his maw, several pieces of meat and fruit falling to the ground. The beast grumbled, and this time his growl was less pleased than before; he hated seeing food wasted, but Jin and Koya had insisted that food was not to be eaten off of the floor either. Feeling grouchy at a waste of good food, Thurrg caught sight of the patron making his way back to his table, a somewhat stocky man whose dusty armor and clothes made him look like a traveling caravan's guard. The gnoll made a mental note to speak to him on the way out about being rude; he'd had plenty of time to learn how to from the number of times that Jin had told him off!

Shaking his head, Thurrg finished off what remained of the skewer and the remaining loaf of bread in the new basket, waving Ameiko over again once he saw that she was free and requesting another bowl of spiced potatoes. The woman looked over at the small stack of coins set at the edge of the table, counting them up briefly before frowning. “Sorry, dearie, you seem to be runnin' a little short. I like ya, and you make it interesting here, but if I keep giving freebies to a big eater like ya, I'm gonna go out of business.” Thurrg paused, looking confused and counting his coins again, slowly and carefully; he wasn't stupid, and in fact was modestly bright compared to the average person, but even he made mistakes. Indeed, he was a few coins short of the amount he'd need for one last round of food, but he could have sworn that he had put out more than enough, as he was quite generous with his payments and tips. The gnoll's eyebrows knitted together in further confusion as he ducked down as best as his full middle would permit, seeing if some of the coins had fallen onto the ground when the drunken patron had bumped into his table...

Suddenly, something clicked in Thurrg's head, and he pushed himself back from the table, asking Ameiko to excuse him with surprising politeness. Standing at his full seven and a half feet in height, his broad belly protruding an extra six or seven inches before him and half-uncovered by his too-small shirt, the gnoll swaggered his way over to the table, where the guard was talking with three companions, laughing among themselves drunkenly. Even as he approached, the man was talking loudly enough for Thurrg to hear clearly. “Heh, that dumb beast probably can't count anyway! Don't worry, the next round's on him!”

The table went silent as Thurrg approached, however, suddenly looming over them. In the background, he could hear Ameiko sigh as the rest of the tavern went silent at the look on the gnoll's face, a mix of annoyance and long-suffering that he had learned from observing his brother long enough. The regulars knew what was about to happen, and a few of them quickly left, while others ordered another round of drinks to sit back and watch the show. The drunken guard that had bumped Thurrg's table looked up, intimidated by the massive figure looming over him, but trying to muster up some bravado as he addressed the “dumb beast” he had been speaking about only a moment later. “Oi, what do you want, you mongrel?”

“My money.” Thurrg said simply, grabbing a handful of coins that had been set at the side of the table, eying them critically. One or two were thrown back on the table hard enough to actually dent the wooden surface, an unintentional effort at intimidation proving effective as the men eyed the depth of each divot. One even caught the edge of one man's plate, chipping off a large section of the ceramic. Finally, Thurrg had a number of coins left in his paw, equivalent to the amount that had gone missing. He knew these were his, too; a divot in each coin showed where he had bitten into them lightly, his sharp teeth more than enough to leave a mark in the soft gold, and enabling him to track the money as his own.

“You thief, what do you think you're doing!?” The guard stood up, reaching for the money that was in the gnoll's paw. “Those are my earnin's, and I don't appreciate the tavern pet stealing!” He turned to Ameiko, who was sitting behind the counter with a tray in her hands, ready to deflect anything that would go flying in the next few minutes. “Shoulda known you ran a seedy business, woman! Sending this brute to intimidate money out of us honest folks! Forget this, we're never comin' back here!”

Ameiko said nothing, but Thurrg did, catching the man by the back of his coat as he started to head towards the door in indignation, trying to cover up the fact that he had been caught in the act. The gnoll easily picked him up in one hand, like holding a pup by the scruff of his neck, and gave him a light shake to get him to be quiet. “Thurrg's money, not yours. My money.” He quickly corrected himself; Koya would be so disappointed if he let his grammar slip too much! “I bite my money, see?” He turned the coins over in his hand to show the deep divots where he had indeed bitten them to mark them. “Can use you like nutcracker, if you want to prove they're yours. Want to try?” Thurrg curled his hand up in a fist around his coins, and it made enough of a point that the man's face went pale.

“You're right, you won't be coming back here ever again, sir.” Ameiko said evenly, a small smile on her face as she watched Thurrg. “I don't tolerate thieves in my establishment, especially when they steal from one of my best customers.” She nodded at Thurrg, who put the man down; he had gotten his money back, and there was no other problem for him to deal with. The terrified guard stood there quaking a moment, letting out a sigh of relief and returning to his companions briefly while Thurrg made his way over to the bar, intending to set the money he had retrieved on the bar in advance payment for the rest of his meal as if none of this had ever happened.

Of course, when a thick glass bottle broke over the back of his head a moment later, the gnoll decided that it was enough. Hardly flinching from the wine dripping down his mane, Thurrg gave an inquisitive look at Ameiko, pointing a thumb back towards the man who, seeing that his attack had been ineffective, was standing there in horror. “Can I punch him now?” Ameiko gave a dismissive wave and sat back, holding her tray in both hands in anticipation for the ruckus about to ensue. Grinning broadly, Thurrg turned, and in the same motion slammed one of his large fists into the man's stomach, throwing him back into the table and knocking him over his chair, falling to the ground below. The gnoll held back, obviously; Jin would never let him hear the end of it if he left broken ribs, mostly because it'd be his brother's job to fix them.

The other three guards were more than happy to come after him, but Thurrg dealt with them all appropriately. The first was simply caught by a swing of the gnoll's massive arm, the bicep catching him under the chin and knocking him to the floor, while another was kicked in the stomach before Thurrg put his weight forward and practically stepped on the man, albeit carefully, to knock the wind out of him. The last found a gold coin thrown into his face rather roughly, leaving a deep red indent as Thurrg growled at him. Though his wounds were far lighter than his companions', the man took a hint from Thurrg's expression, and simply fled before the gnoll could pursue.

Once the initial fight was out of the way—and with surprisingly little damage, Thurrg noted, as the chair that the thief had fallen over was completely intact and the other two had simply been dropped on the ground—the gnoll leaned over and grabbed the first man, pulling him to his knees and sitting him down in his chair rather roughly. He had another idea, and frequent scoldings had taught him the value of a teaching through example method. Grinning broadly, the expression enough to make the would-be thief blanch again, Thurrg looked over at the mostly undisturbed table, food and drink still laid out, and set his coins back on the table.

“You want money? Sure, you can have it. But you get what I pay for.” Thurrg reached over and grabbed a thick skewer like the ones he had been eating only moments before, and quickly gulped it down, the spicy meat causing his tongue to tingle as he devoured it. “That was for skewer you wasted earlier. Wasting food is bad.” With that, the gnoll stabbed the now-empty skewer into the table, the wooden point actually sinking in a few inches and letting it stand up from the tabletop. This earned a cough of disapproval from Ameiko, and Thurrg gave her a sheepish grin; he'd fix up the hole he left in the tabletop later. Right now, he had a point to make.

“Now, let me show you cost of menu.” Thurrg said with a grin as he grabbed the rest of the plate, holding it up. “Good meal. Skewers, rare spices, well-prepared meat, tasty fruit. Ameiko makes this well, and it is one of my favorites.” Grabbing a gold coin from its pile, the gnoll slammed it onto the table hard enough to make the rest of the pile bounce slightly. “Skewer plate five silver, good meal. Gold coin pay for two plates, so if you want coin, you give two plates in exchange, yes? Business is a simple concept.” With that, Thurrg patiently and slowly finished off each skewer, pausing after the third to grab a flagon of ale from the table. “Ale is two silver. Up to seven silver for food and drink, yes?”

At this point the guard tried to push his chair back so that he could leave, his dignity all but shattered at this point, but Thurrg placed one large paw on his shoulder to stop him. “No, don't go. Good lesson in business, is rude to leave.” With the guard stilled, the gnoll was more than happy to tip the flagon back and start chugging it from top to bottom in one breath, his throat swelling with each swallow and his belly bulging louder with each gulp. By now, the beast's belly protruded a good way past his strong chest, growling loudly with digestion nearly in the guard's ear. “Ahh, so seven silver. Will need another mug after this, so let's say nine silver. Oh, and always tip good hostess. Ameiko is a good hostess, and Bethany good waitress. So one silver tip, total one gold. See? One coin, is yours now.” With that, Thurrg proceeded to finish off the remaining skewers, and staying true to his word, took a second flagon of ale as well, patting his belly as he finished downing it so that the man could hear it slosh from the liquid inside of it. “Good drink, Ameiko knows her ale. Worth every silver.”

Thurrg quickly counted the rest of the pile, noting another four coins worth to clear off. “Mm, four more gold. Eight plates of skewers, or lots of ale. You still have food and drink for me to pay for, yes?” Looking over the table, Thurrg noticed another three flagons of ale, along with a large bowl of spiced potatoes and a plate of chicken, along with two more baskets of bread. “Mm, six silver for ale, potatoes are three silver, chicken four silver, bread five copper each. That's one gold and five silver.” Thurrg grinned and pulled the basket of bread over, sitting himself on the stone bench that two of the regulars were more than happy to bring over so that he was now a little more level with his new friend, albeit still a good deal taller. “Here you go.” He slid two more gold coins across the table, and then started on his food.

The first loaf of bread was downed directly in front of the terrified guard, torn apart by the gnoll's sharp teeth, pauses given to show the man just how much the beast could tear off with a single bite. The second and third loaves vanished nearly as quickly before Thurrg paused and let out another loud belch that made the man's face somehow go even whiter, if it was possible. Picking his teeth with one of the skewers to get a chunk of bread out, the gnoll continued to stare down his companion before grabbing the potatoes next, tilting the bowl back and simply scooping them down into his maw. They were washed down by another flagon of ale from the three remaining, and another table-rattling belch followed only a moment later. For the first time in the evening, Thurrg actually remembered his manners as well, “'Scuse me.” The way he said it was nonchalant, uncaring, and wouldn't begin to pass for polite,  but he said the words that Koya had taught him, so it was okay, right?

Next was the plate of chicken, but something else had to be dealt with, first. Thurrg's shirt was not made for a gnoll of his size to begin with, and it was suffering all the more trying to contain his swollen belly, which could now cover a third of the table with ease if he wasn't leaning it against his “friend” that he was lecturing. As it was, two of the buttons along the bottom had popped off, and the remainder had slid up along the upper curve of his belly; at this point, his shirt was doing no good, so Thurrg politely undid the remaining three buttons and peeled the tattered cloth off, hanging it over the back of his chair to take home with him. That only made things worse for the guard, who was now able to get a full view of Thurrg's large body, from his strong pecs to the sphere of a belly that was pressing up against him, stretching the spots along the sides of it. 

There was only one dish left, and Thurrg was more than happy to grab the strips of chicken directly off of the plate and stuff them into his maw slowly, one by one, for the guard to watch him stuff himself. The gnoll was admittedly getting quite full, his belly round as a ball, but he was determined to finish his “lesson” before stopping. Fortunately, there was enough room for the chicken, and Thurrg finished off the last strip with a satisfied growl, his belly creaking and gurgling from digestion, the massive gut bulging out over his strong thighs. Despite his fullness, however, the gnoll made the effort to down not one, but both remaining flagons of ale, draining them both dry before letting out a groan at how full he was... and then rocking the room with one last enormous belch that caused Thurrg's captive to simply pass out by the end of his rough “lesson.”

Feeling more than satisfied, thinking he had perhaps overdone it a bit, Thurrg rose unsteadily to his feet, his belly leading the way before him by a good two feet more than normal. Grabbing the coins off of the table, the gnoll tucked the two that he didn't “spend” back into his pouch before returning the remaining two to Ameiko, setting them down on the counter. “Payin' the man's tab for him, he's a little incapac... incap... asleep, right now.” The alcohol was making Thurrg's head spin a bit, and big words were annoying anyway. “Thanks for another good night of food, Ameiko! And tell Jin I didn't break anything this time!”

“Of course, Thurrg.” The woman grinned, tucking the coins beneath the counter. “I'll also take care of our oh-so-generous patron over there.” She pointed a thumb at the unconscious guard. “I'm sure he'll wake up when we dump his head in the horse trough.” Giving another smile to her favorite customer, the woman playfully patted his large belly. “Take care on the way home, and thanks for making another night interesting.” The gnoll just gave his own smile back before heading out the door, pausing momentarily to wiggle his broad gut through it, disappearing in the distance as he made his way back towards Koya's house for a night of well-earned rest.