A female goblin

"Ease off him gramps, guy ain't no lord, but he's got somethin' they don't." the new addition declared, drawing your attention to them.

Standing directly behind you was a short woman, only three feet tall, if a little taller than that, with emerald green skin and long red hair pulled back into a high ponytail. Between her height, skin color, and the large, almost comically so, ears she had, you could tell without a doubt she was a goblin. While you didn't have any experience with them, you'd heard of them before. Greedy little humanoids that wanted everything and came in hordes, fluctuating between total savages and cunning bandits.

What stood before you seemed a bit... special though. While there was a sort of savageness in her violet eyes and sharp teeth, the way she carried herself seemed to indicate that was more of an instinctual drive than what she truly was. Dressed in a black dress pants and tunic with coattails that seemed a bit more fitting on a man, she was definitely someone who seemed to negotiate things. Perhaps oddest of all was the fact that most goblins, at least as far as you knew, were supposed to be rather thin, yet she had an ample chest and wide hips with an amount of body fat that was enticing, which you could only assume was soft.

Suddenly clamming up, the halfling man bowed to the woman. "M-Miss Mestra, I did not mean to r-rant in your presence, but I was led to believe-"

"Leadin' ya to believe things is easier than gettin' a rabbit to follow a carrot. Shut your mouth an' get back to work." the goblin woman growled at him, her purple painted lips curled back to better expose her sharp teeth before pointing a sharply manicured finger back to the tables. The halfling didn't waste any time returning to his work.

Giving a derisive snort before turning back to you, her face softening a bit, Mestra says "Sorry 'bout that. Dagus over there is an ol' student of the Academy, but somethin' of a washout. Couldn' handle anythin' too big or complex. Teachers gave him some mercy an' put him to work in here, but don't worry bout that. Name's Mestra Silvering, at least since I came here. Not many care for the ol' language an' I can't much blame them."

Giving a somewhat lopsided smile, you reply "Well, it sounds nice. Nice to meet you Miss Silvering."

Another snort and she shakes her head at you. "Just call me Mestra, ain't like I'm a teacher or nothin'... well, not fully. I'mma senior student here, one of the best if I do say so myself. Sir Grigor asked me to help ya out with some additional lessons, says ya want to learn Alchemy, is that right?"

You started to nod, but then stopped, realizing something odd about it. "How did you know I was the student Sir Grigor asked you to help out?"

"Swung by your room, found ya weren't there, then got a whiff of the breakfast. I was privy to some of yer past, so I figured ya wanted somethin' good ta eat. Didn' think ya'd have to be subjected to Dagus' exceptional failure so early in yer time here though." the goblin explained, casting a poisonous glare at the halfling man that made you pity him a bit.

"Right, um... gotta admit, I didn't think Sir Grigor would get on it so quickly." you admitted, sheepishly rubbing your arm.

Pointing one of her talon-like fingers at you, Mestra replies "That's cause yer somethin' special. Us older students didn' see the ceremony, but we all heard 'bout it. Some new hotshot damn near drowned those beneath him in liquid gold. Only, I came ta learn from Sir Grigor himself that ya sprouted outta some hick village in the middle of bumfuck nowhere an' never used magic or science a day in yer life."

With a short, if somewhat unnerved, laugh, you answer "That's about all there is to me."

Your awkward laugh was dwarfed by the goblin's boisterous one. "Ain't nothin' bad 'bout that! Probably no secret from the way I speak, but I ain't from no high society. Came from a ravenous pack of goblins that did little more than sleep, eat, an' fuck. Got lucky an' was noticed not unlike yerself. Came ta learn I got a talent fer Transmutation an' Alchemy. Way I see it, the both of us are pure, raw material. Untouched an' without purpose or use, but also unspoiled. Let the right hands get at it, an' we become the most impressive things 'round. I'm already halfway there, now it's yer turn."

A sincere smile broke out on your face, finding it hard to take the goblin's somewhat abrasive mannerisms poorly when she clearly shared in your rough past. Nodding your head once more, you said "Well it seems I've got no excuse to be anything but the best if it's your hands molding me."

Giving you a playful nudge to the leg, which almost made you stumble due to the way it almost offset your balance, Mestra said "Well I'm glad to here it. Course, ain't gonna do me much good that I don't know yer name."

Looking down, you swallowed a lump that suddenly formed in your throat. "I... don't really have one. Just sorta been known as Bastard on account of my being, well, a bastard."

Rubbing a hand under her chin, Mestra looked you up and down. "Well... again, not too far off. My Goblin name isn't so easy to pronounce, hence my name here, Mestra Silvering an' all. Hm... Fine then. I'mma name ya Midas Golstard." Seeing the raised brow on your face, Mestra quickly explained herself.

"Midas is an ol' fable 'bout a king that could turn things to gold with a touch of his hands. Ended up being a curse fer the guy, but ya just gotta know how ta do it. Seein' as ya made gold of all things with the chalice, that fits. The Gol- in the last name is from gold as well, the -stard is from Bastard. Know it may suck a bit, but always remember where ya came from, I know I never forget."