Was this the house? Noah stared at the building and then down at the advert he had ripped out of an old Whitby Gazette. 25 Robin Way. That seemed right. He walked up to the door and knocked. For someone who usually had a big mouth, he felt awfully nervous. But then again, usually he didn't try to make a good impression. At least he wore the new (though second hand) clothes that Mr. North had given him and his brother. He had even gone home to take a bath and had tried his best at combing his hair. It was still standing up in the back, but his cap hid that for now. 

He had heard a lot about Uriel Meijer. The man was feeding the children in the school and people spoke about him like he was a good person. Noah tried to make James go to school, not just for the certificate, but for the meals as well. If he got the job, he had an additional means of pressuring his little brother. But the fact that the man was a teacher was a problem as well. Surely, he'd be even more likely to ask for a school leaving certificate, and Noah had none. 

Still, it was his best shot at his new ambition: becoming a farmer. Mr. North had said he was willing to fund him if he could come up with a career path, and Noah had been desperate for about a month, for he wasn't really good at anything and his lack of a school certificate made many options almost impossible. But then he had seen the ad. If he could learn farming and start a farm, he wouldn't have to work for anyone and he could settle as far away from Whitby - and especially his parents - as he liked. He could make a good life for himself and rescue Alice. Yes, it was a brilliant idea.

If he got hired.

He nervously brought his hand up, lifted his cap, and tried to flatten the hair at the back of his head again.

He answered the door amid the sounds of barking. When the door opened, a snout bursts through the crack of the door and a wriggling hound bayed at their feet. It was clear the dog was still a bit of a pup by the size of it and the demeanor. "May I help you?" said the tall, husky fellow in his early twenties. He was still a pup himself, but he was the one hiring. He looked the young man up and down and thought immediately that he would do just fine as a farm hand, for he was a strapping young lad and he didn't stink of alcohol either. But he had to determine more than that.

He gestured for the kid to come into his house, "I assume you're here for the job?"

Noah quickly lowered his hand and put his cap back on when the door opened. He jumped a little at the sound of the dog, but eased when it was clearly but a playful young dog. He bent over and clapped it on the side. Then he looked up at the far more intimidating inhabitant. He had heard that Mr. Meijer was tall, but this man was a giant, not only taller than he had expected, but strong and bulky.

Poor school kids.

"Eeeeeeeeeeeh, yes ser." he said when he finally remembered that he had to reply. Shit. Brain. Work. "Noah Longbottom, ser. I don't know much about farmin', but I can work very hard, ser." Shit. It didn't help to begin by saying he didn't know much about farming. He could have lied about that. Like he had lied about hard work.

The pup sniffed at the lad's feet while Uriel looked down at him. Hoping to ease the kid's nerves, he patted him on the shoulder and said, "Well then you are in good company. As long as you don't have foibles... ah... that is, issues... mucking and getting dirty. You look like you can handle it." In other words, Uriel was pretty desperate because the baby was coming at any moment and he knew he needed the extra help when that happened. "Are you sober and hard working?" He ushered Noah in. He gestured to the chair at the table, "You look like you could use a good meal, you hungry?" And without waiting for an answer, the big man was already making a cheese sandwich and the dog must have been left outside because he was not gravitating toward his master or the food in hand. It just so happened that Uriel was in the middle of making sandwiches when interrupted by Noah.

"That's no trouble ser." Noah replied. He had no trouble with dirt. He had slept in dirty places and the house was often dirty for his parents were useless and his siblings were almost as useless. "Aye ser," he lied in reply to the next question. Well, he was sober now, so he wasn't really lying on that count, and he intended to work hard.

He followed the man in and looked around. It was a pleasant house, quite different from any of the small worn down tenement dwellings he was used to. It looking cleaner and lighter, and certainly more spacious.

He sat down. Oh... was he getting food now? This guy really liked handing out bread, didn't he? "Erm... aye ser, if it's no trouble. Thank you." He watched him preparing sandwiches, frowning a little as if trying to figure this Mr. Meijer out. This was certainly not what he had expected. If the guy was genuine, James was a bloody fool for playing truant so much.

"Here you are," he said as he set the food down. He then glanced over to Noah and said, "I have a problem with spirits and wine, so I do not want it in my house anymore. It is important that I share my table with like-minded individuals." He paused and sat down, hitching up the legs of his trousers in the process like he was annoyed with the loose fabric. Then he abruptly got up again, grabbed two tumblers and filled one with milk, and the other with water. He set the milk down in front of the lad and then sat down again. He smacked his thighs as if trying to remember things, looking tired.

"I find myself stretched thin between teaching, trying to finish building this farm, and tending to things. With a baby on the way now, I will be stretched even thinner, and it would be best for me to hire a good, strong set of arms to help me along. I don't care about your lack of experience because I am learning too, I cannot fault you for that."

[CW: reference to alcoholism]

Noah thanked the man and began eating. His cap was still on his head, the thought of food having distracted him from what little manners he had. Oh. This was good. He ate eagerly and forgot his the rest of his manners as well, until Mr. Meijer began about spirits. He looked up with mild interest. Anymore? Had he had a drinking problem? That hardly intimidated the boy. Half his family had a drinking problem. "I wouldn't bring no alcohol into yer house, ser," he promised with his mouth half full. He eagerly took the milk when it was placed before him. If the man decided not to hire him, at least he had gotten his stomach filled. "I'm eager to learn, ser. I want to start me own farm one day."

"Well," he said without biting into his own sandwich, "How about this..? We'll give this a trial run. I'll give you a month to prove yourself, and that includes room and food, and even pay you for your work just so long as you put effort into it." He nodded and slid the other sandwich over. "You should slow down though, your stomach'll ache if you don't. When's the last time you had a good meal?" He stood and went over to the bread and cheese to make another sandwich for himself. He spoke easily over his shoulder, "And ya might want to take off your hat too since you're in my house. There's no hurry though, you can finish eating first."

Noah looked up in relief and disbelief. He was hired on trial? No questions asked? "It sounds good ser." he said. He took the other sandwich. "I won't disappoint ye." He quickly took off his cap when the man mentioned it. And then began trying to flatten his hair self-consciously. He decided not to answer the question about the meal.

"That long, eh?" he murmured the question knowingly, "I'll show you about after you've finished eating. Yoivey, you must be famished." He took a bite of his sandwich before turning back to the table and sitting down. He eyed the kid and chewed thoughtfully for a long pause. Upon setting his sandwich down on his plate, he steepled his fingers, "One thing you won't have to worry about is food here. You will be fed as much as you want to eat, and you do not need to ask to help yourself to my larder. I have plenty." He would, of course, make sure Kitty knew about all of this, after all, she was a stubborn lady. Ah, but he loved her so, but she would have to face it that she needed to rest until the baby came and that was that. That and Uriel was stretched thin. He thought about hiring a housekeeper too, but that was only a thought at the moment.

"You'll move in as soon as you're ready, and you're going to get a full night of sleep and wake whenever you want the next day, but after that I am going to ask that you rise before the sun comes up because that is when the day begins. You'll start work after your day of rest, which will give you a chance to settle in. The plan is to tend to the animals first, get them happy. Right now, we only have chickens, the dog, and a horse." He paused and then said, "I'll explain it as we go along."

Uriel was quite the talker, a very friendly fellow it seemed.

[CW: Reference to child abuse/neglect/alcoholism]

Noah looked up. "No, ser. I've eaten." he said. It was just that the quality of the food hadn't been that good. There was the money that Quentin had given him, but well... his parents had found out. It had resulted in his father taking the money, and in one or two good blows for his selfishness in hiding it from his family. His father had taken the money to feed the family and take care of the accounts, but it had been spent surprisingly quickly.

He was surprised that the man was so easy about the food. Probably too trusting. Noah wouldn't trust the likes of himself helping himself if he had a home and a larder.

"I can begin tomorrow, ser," he said, eager to make a good impression. He tried to flatten the hair on the back of his head again, failed, and finished his sandwhich.

"I insist you have a day to get settled and rest. Trust me when I say that you'll have plenty of things to do after that day. Farmwork never ceases for too long, there is always something on the list of things to do." He spoke like a man who enjoyed a good siesta himself.

"If ye insist, ser," he said. He left his hair alone. "I'm finished eatin', ser."

Uriel nodded and collected the plates after finishing his own sandwich. Then he nodded, "Come with me, I'll show you to where you'll be sleeping." He waited for the boy to get up and follow him.

"Aye ser," Noah replied. He picked up his cap and followed the big man. "'Ave ye built t' house yerself, ser?"

"That I did," he said, "Took me a while to get it started, but there's something about the smell of freshly sawed wood that makes it exciting to build your own house." He babbled a little as he led the way toward the upstairs, a decent-sized room was up there. There was a comfortable-looking bed made with unfinished pine that looked rustic but fitting, a table and chairs that the kid could do his eating at if he wanted to be alone, and a chest of drawers. He said, "I provided you with the basic needs, it is up to you to furnish your room as you see fit beyond the furniture here." He clicked the button to turn on the light, and the sound of the bulb kicking on could be heard in a buzz of electricity. "Lights if you want them." He clicked it back off. Then he showed Noah around the house, to where the bathroom was with the mosaic floor tiling that was particularly artistic. Uriel Meijer had built something lovely and welcoming. When the tour of the house was over, he showed him where things were outside, such as the chicken coop and the foundation of a barn.

Noah looked around, very impressed. He could do a little bit of carpenting because his father owned a repair shop, but they wouldn't even be able to do a poor rip off of this. "In t' house?" he asked, surprised, when the man led him into his room. Then when the light was switched on, his jaw dropped and he stared up at the lamp as if he had never seen light before. He had his own room with electric lighting! Was this a dream? He followed Uriel around the house. "It's very impressive, ser," he said.

The only disappointing thing was that he had assumed he would sleep in the barn and could sneak James in. He'd need to find a solution for that.

Unfortunately for Noah, the barn was not built just yet. There were a chicken coop and a dog house, but no barn yet. He was going to arrange a barn raising. "I don't have a barn yet. I have to build it." It was going to take some time. But he looked at the boy and was satisfied that he made the right choice, for the kid seemed to need this job. If Uriel knew that he would want to be with James, he probably would give permission just as long as they pulled their weight. He didn't know, though.

"Aye ser. I'll help ye build it." Noah offered. James would have to sleep at home for now. He'd just have to impress on the boy the importance of going to school. Noah didn't like the fact that he couldn't keep an eye on him. "Will ye make a list of jobs for me, ser. I ain't ne'er worked on a farm before and I'd hate to forget owt, ye see."

"One thing at a time, Noah," he said kindly. "We're going to have to learn how to farm together." He would probably have to leave teaching eventually, which was something he didn't want to do but those children were just... well, the job was thankless! Perhaps he had been wrong.

"You go on now and get your belongings."

"Aye ser," said Noah, still hardly daring to believe that he was hired. He made an awkward little bow, because he didn't really know how to show respect and then hurried off to get his things.