A Night at Sherrera's

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Overview

Author: @UPRC
Written On: February 28, 2011
Featured Characters: Dead Eye, Gus O'Leary, Winterstar (Spirit at time of story)

Story

"Yo, bartender."

Gus O'Leary, bartender of forty years, turned to face the direction that the gruff voice came from. Sitting in one of the stools at the bar counter of Sherrera's was a tall man who looked to be in his thirties and, despite the fact that he was sitting, Gus estimated that he was probably about six and a half feet tall. Aside from his height, there wasn't anything outstanding about the man except his black cowboy attire. He had a tired face, his black cowboy hat casting a shadow over half of his face that made him appear perhaps older than he truly was. The man's face was definitely starting to look a little rough with stubble. Forget five o' clock shadow, it was almost midnight on this man's face. What was most catching about the man's face was the fact that his left eye was simply blank, giving Gus the impression that he was probably blind in that eye. Gus observed the cowboy attire a little longer, leading him to believe that he was a superhero who came by on the off hours to relax. Gus decided not to keep the main waiting, just in case there was more to him than meets the eye.

"Evening, friend. What can I do for you?" Gus asked the man in a welcoming tone of voice, but after almost a full shift behind the counter, his elderly voice was showing signs of weakness. The man grunted and shrugged a shoulder before pointing a lazy hand towards what looked like a young girl sitting at the opposite end of the counter, happily chatting up a storm. Gus followed the direction of the man's pointed finger with his eyes, observing the girl for a moment before looking back to the man. "You want to order her a drink?"

The man shook his head quickly before replying, his rough voice reminding Gus of the sound of heavy stones bumping against each other. "Naw, Pops. That ain't it. Don't ya think the gal looks t'be a li'l on the young side?"

Gus exhaled quietly through his nostrils as he removed his glasses, wiping at them with the nearest cloth before putting them on and squinting at the girl. "I suppose you're right. I suppose I should ID her or-"

"Naw." The tired cowboy cut Gus off abruptly. "I'll take care of 'er for ya."

With a nod, Gus moved away from the man and towards a few impatient patrons who were clearly paying attention to the entire exchange while waiting for Gus to serve them. As Gus walked towards their end of the counter, he kept an eye on the cowboy as he slid off his stool and moved towards the girl. Gus' ears perked as he heard the sound of spurs with each step, mentally noting that the man must've been really serious about being an authentic cowboy.

"Scuse me, darlin'?" The cowboy had reached the girl and put a gloved hand on her shoulder. The girl was much smaller than him, measuring in at a little under five and a half feet. She had shoulder length blonde hair, big blue eyes, and skin that would make an albino look tanned. She was dressed fairly casually, wearing blue denim jeans and an orange spaghetti top.

As soon as the cowboy's gloved palm set itself on her shoulder, she jumped abruptly. The girl quickly looked up to the cowboy, her face looking very nervous. Her big blue eyes stared up at him as if she were a deer staring down the headlights of an approaching car. "You s'posed to be here? Ya look a li'l on the young side. Ain't sneakin' in here and tryin' to order drinks, are ya?"

The girl's eyes widened even more as she swallowed hard. She fidgeted a moment with her hands in her lap before working up the courage to answer. Her voice came out sounding more mature and softer than the cowboy expected. "Yes, I am. Would you order a pina colada for me?"

The cowboy could only blink at her in response for several seconds. He was not prepared for such a brutally honest answer, followed by such an odd request. Finally, he came to his senses. "How old are ya? I ain't orderin' anything for a minor."

The girl smiled from ear to ear, the nervousness being completely washed away as her voice suddenly became very chipper. "I'm eighteen! But I'm Canadian, and I'm legal in Canada. It wouldn't hurt! And I really like pina coladas too."

It was impossible for the cowboy to comprehend her honesty as well as her logic for a moment until he shook his head as if snapping himself out of a trance. "I told ya, I ain't orderin' if yer a minor!"

The girl slowly crossed her arms in response, though she didn't look at all displeased. Instead, she looked as if she wanted to challenge the man. "Fine. I'll just order something when one of the dumb bartenders is working. Can you get me some yogurt instead?"

"Yogurt?!" The cowboy's eyes widened as he blurted the word out in a completely baffled voice. Was the girl really asking for yogurt in a bar? The cowboy groaned as he looked between her and the entrance door and then back to her. "Listen, I ain't making any runs to the grocery store for ya. There's still a few of them dead heads runnin' 'round from all o' that horse feathers that happened over the weekend. I ain't gonna risk my hide just t'get you a cup of yogurt."

The girl suddenly looked sad but, when she spoke again, her voice seemed strangley playful as if she were taunting him. "But everyone gets me yogurt! That's the friendship test. If you get me yogurt, you get to be my friend. Don't you want to be my-"

Her rambling began to get to him, so he decided to cut her off. "Girl, you got problems. Yer talkin' like a dang fool."

Then she laughed.

And laughed.

And laughed.

Oddly enough, it was a genuinely happy laugh. She did not seem to be laughing at him. Instead, she just suddenly seemed to be beaming with happiness. The cowboy felt a little intimidated by the burst of joy and almost felt like walking away. He was prepared to do so, but then she spoke again. "I'm not a fool, I'm just happy because I've met someone new! And it's okay, you don't need to get me some yogurt to be my friend. I'm friends with everyone."

The cowboy let out a deep sigh and rubbed the back of his neck, accidentally knocking the back of his hat forward slightly. "Girl, you've got too much spirit in ya."

As soon as 'spirit' left his lips, she giggled. "You already know my name! We are already so acquainted! I would like to know your name too, but I have to get back to my training now! And your dead eye is a little spooky too."

With that, the girl waddled off of her stool and walked away. The cowboy watched her as she made her way to the door. She had a very light walk, almost as if she was on air. When she was finally gone, the man that she had been chatting to nodded towards the cowboy. He was clearly an UNTIL officer, as the cowboy noticed the blue uniform that he wore. "So, cowboy, first time meeting Spirit?"

The cowboy looked towards the door and then back at the officer. "Spirit? Y'mean that's the gal's real name?"

The agent shook his head took a drink from his beer bottle that had been sitting on the counter the whole time. "Nope, that's her uh, alias. We call her that because of her uh... Spirit, as you observed."

"And 'cause she's a pale li'l one, I reckon."

The officer nodded again. "She possesses quite a few interesting abilities that compliment the name, too. Wears a snow white outfit that's kind of spooky looking as well. Looks kind of soulless, which is funny given her name."

The cowboy tipped his hat and nodded to where she had been sitting. "So what's the deal with her? Seemed kinda carefree. Kinda immature, or uh..."

After taking another long drink, the officer let out a loud belch and looked at the cowboy with an honest grin. "Between us, that's a show she puts on. She's one serious girl, and pretty damn sharp too. I don't like admitting it, but... Girl pulverized me on an IQ test."

The cowboy could only blink a few times before letting out a simple "huh."

Standing slowly from the stool, the UNTIL officer left a bill on the counter and nodded towards Gus as he began to head towards the exit. He paused by the cowboy and smirked. "Don't misunderestimate that little chick. Believe me, I'm watching her train. You mess with her and she'll fuck you before you can fuck her. She's good." The officer seemed to place extra emphasis on his last word before slipping by. The cowboy found himself cringing a little at the officer's crude choice of words, but shrugged it off after he left.

"Want anything yet, uhhh... ?" The cowboy turned to see Gus peering at him inquisitively from behind the counter. He shook his head a little bit as he reached into his coat pocket. "Naw, nothing tonight. Name's Dead Eye, too. You'll be seein' me in here often, Pops. I gotta lot of ghosts naggin' at me that I gotta drown out."

Dead Eye pulled his hand from his jacket and laid out a twenty dollar bill on the counter, nodding to Gus. "Yer a good fella. Keep up the good service, yeah?"

Gus eyed the bill curiously as Dead Eye turned and marched towards the exit, his spurs jangling the whole way. Once he was gone, Gus reached out and pocketed the bill. He let out a long sigh as he turned towards a series of new patrons who stared at him with eyes like daggers. Gus grumbled quietly to himself as he made a few glimpses at the impatient patrons, their rude glares annoying him slightly. He knew that he couldn't let it get to him since he had been in the business for forty years.

"I've seen worse." He muttered before approaching the impatient patrons to serve them their poison.