Spurs n Shotguns

Day One II

Authors & Characters
- Tod (Claude & Tender)
- Skonk (Drunk stranger & Jay)

Tod:

The terrible singing was the best way to get the man's attention, how could he not look at what disaster would even dare to sing like that. The bird, lovingly named Tender, fluffed up her feathers slightly at the approaching man. Claude took note of this, behavior that would be overlooked by anyone who wasn't very knowledgeable about birds. He clicked his tongue and Tender flew up to rest on a safe perch as Claude turned to the man with a smile.
"Well! Seems like yew've had a bit too much t' drink, my friend! Have a seat, down some water, sobre up a bit so y' don't pass out in the dirt on yer way home?"
He had an odd accent, one you'd only get after being out at sea, an accent you can only really call 'pirate'.

Claude kept his bright smile as he talked, though he was on his guard, as he usually was when dealing with drunkards.
Running a hand through his brown hair, he looked the drunk man up and down with a raised brow, the piercing on said brow giving a small sparkle in the cozy lights of the saloon.
"Ahh, Tender? She's not fer eatin'. She's my friend, though often gets me into trouble. One time, she brought me a bag she found, turns out it belonged to some bandits and they came around 'fer it. That was a fun day. For me anyway"
He burst into a charming laugh, showing off his teeth. His narrow eye watched the man's every move, waiting for any kind of muscle twitch or any other indication of an oncoming movement.

Skonk:

Claude had professionally responded to the slurring drunk, but in the sing-song tone of his voice it became mere sounds to the ears of the man who leant across the uncomfortable patron to place the empty glass onto the bar. With uncoordinated hands, the glass had tipped and ice scattered onto the bench and into someone's lap. The drunk paid no attention to Claude as he muttered a series of unintelligible remarks, sometimes swearing halfway through as he then pushed himself away from the sitting peoples.
He turned back to Claude, a glaze over his eyes that made it seem like he was looking straight through the neat man dressed in green, rather than at him.
"Hwere'd et go'ven?" He leant his head all the way back to scan the high wooden beams for the missing bird, the motion leaving his lower jaw set down, the grey and swollen roof of his mouth exposed to everyone. "Heurrnggnahh. H'where ehrhh..??"
Finally when he spotted the Vulture, who watched him cautiously from above, the man let out a loud "HAR!" Before swivelling his body to grab an ice cube that had fallen off into a woman's lap and then proceeded to throw it right up at the bird with the intention of receiving a reaction from it.

Tod:

Claude watched closely, handing the now wet patron a napkin afterwards to hopefully help clean it up for now. He turned his attention back to the man, furrowing a brow slightly as he watched him look for his beloved bird.
The man didn't get too far, Claude catching the ice cube before it was thrown and throwing it right back at the man's face. NOBODY even attempted to harm Tender in any way and got away with it, it was a one way ticket to pissing him off immensely.
"Say hello to th' fishes fer me"
Was all he said before throwing his fist into the man's face with a rather satisfying crunch of his nose. Claude shook his hand a bit, realizing he hit a little too hard that time. Oh well.
Claude blew some hair from his face, as it has fallen from its neat style.

Claude fixed his vest and looked up at Tender to check on her. She was restless, but only because Claude was pretty pissed off. Claude then turned his attention to the nearby patrons.
"My bad, 'e was lookin' fer trouble ."

Skonk:

Hearing the heavy thud of a body hitting the floor, Jay sat up and looked over his shoulder to see the well known singer, Claude, shaking his hands to release the painful tension in his fist, standing over a passed out figure whose nose now bent the wrong way with thick blood dribbling down along the ridge of his cheekbone.
Jay turned back with his eyebrows raised and cheeks puffed out with air escaping through the corners of his lips. The thought of being home and sleeping in a bed became more and more welcoming that a drink in this environment wasn't worth it.
Jay leant his body forward to create space between his coat and the back of the stool as an arm reached behind him to fish out a worn leather wallet. Just like his handkerchief, it had pressed imprints of a variety of unidentifiable flowers, a sign it originated from outside the country.
Jay pulled a note out and placed it onto the bar. The leather tips of his fingers quietly creaked as they pressed into the paper, Jay slid it forwards across the surface so that it'd be in the bartender's reach.
"For old mate on the floor when he wakes up. Don't worry about my order anymore, i'm gonna head off. Thanks, Doll."
As he took his fingers off the bill, Jay swung his legs around and leant forwards again to push himself off the stool. He grabbed his hat and returned it to his head where it had fit neatly around his curled brown hair, greased into the shape of where the hat would always sit.
Jay didn't bother making eye contact with anyone, his boots stepping over the legs of the passed out man and headed towards the doors.
He stopped, turned back to look at the fallen man and narrow his eyes at the hat for a moment, uneasy with the style it had been made, unmistakably the same as his father's.
Without another fuss and feeling the pull in his heart to return home, Jay cared not to press on the matter and raised a hand to swing the doors open.

Jay skipped his pace down the stairs his hands up at his collar adjusting. The sounds of the tavern had already become muffled, the golden light shining rays from the windows and into the dancing particles of dusty air. There was only a soft yellow glow along the horizon, the final remnants of the Sun's farewell, more and more stars braving into the darkening sky. Jay wiped his nose and curled saliva at the back of his throat until a gooey lump of mucus formed into a shape solid enough for him to spit onto the ground in which the parched Earth welcomed and wrapped its sandy arms around the glob.
Jay's chestnut was waiting patiently for him where he had left it, its head raising upon hearing the familiar stride of footsteps. Its tail swished and a hind hoof stamped into the dust as Jay approached with a hum and worked to untie the reigns from the pole when he heard a nearby horse nicker to him in greeting. Jay's hands held still on the knot as his head raised and then turned to look behind him. There were more horses around him now majority offering him no attention besides a slimmer head poking up from the sea of saddles and ears. In the low light, its creamy face took in what was left that the sun had to offer, making it stand out from the dark hides of the others. The young horse snorted at him, ears focused forwards. Jay released the binds of his horse to approach the palamino and extended his hand out to the soft grey nose.
"Tinker! What are you doing here?"

The tiny muscles in Jay's face that knotted his eyebrows together released, his lips parting.