Olivia goes West

Chapter 19

The clinking of glasses and the smell of cigarette smoke hung in the air as the saloon piano played softly, Tanya singing and dancing in a tight, form-fitting black leotard, ruffles of blue feathers at her shoulders and thighs and a big feather in her hair, her legs bare aside from a single garter around her left thigh.

"Tangerine, she is all they claim,

With her eyes of night and lips as bright as flame.

Oh she's got the guys on the run,

But her heart belongs to just one,

Her heart belongs to Tangerine..."

She winked at Ratigan who sat near the stage with Fidget and Chula, smoking a long cigarette through a filter and sipping wine. The others were playing poker; the three orphan boys from New York were with them. Ratigan chuckled gently, mesmerized by Tanya's voice and beauty. Waul, not being able to fit into the mouse bar, was handling things outside the walls with the cats and dogs. But little did Ratigan realize he was being glared at from two young men at the bar, Tony and Vartan.

"Man, it's been two weeks of 'dis now," Tony griped, "How long does Nell want us to put up wit' dis?"

Tony eventually did let Nellie know he'd figured out that Waul and Ratigan had assassinated Fievel and Olivia. He agreed to stay out of the situation and wait for the arrival of Basil, but it was getting harder every day. He didn't want Tanya falling for scum like Ratigan or Waul. Ratigan was more her species, so she'd taken a special liking toward him it seemed.

"Maybe two or three more week," Vartan replied quietly. No one else was at the bar, everyone having grabbed a seat at the table to get a closer look at Tanya, "We must protecting her, until then."

"Ya mean Tanya?" Tony asked, "Yeah, I know...I don't like seein' dis one bit. I mean eh...seein' her flirt wit' Ratigan, not da performance itself..."

"I could watch her perform all day," Vartan said with a small grin.

He patted Vartan's shoulder, "Why don'tcha say hi to her sometime? Or 'ba-rev', whatever it is in your language?"

He looked down, "No, I could not. Not before it is safe to tell her the truth."

"So yer just gonna spy on her and draw pictures of her in dat sketchbook until then?" Tony chuckled, "She might think yer some kinda creepy stalker if she finds ya doin' dat before you've said hi to her."

He couldn't understand all of the words Tony was using, but he did get the idea.

"I cannot help but admire her from afar," Vartan said.

"Heh, well she'd be a nice catch," Tony said, cleaning a mug, "Ya know when I saw Bridget da first time, I didn't waste any time at all. I just grabbed a flower and gave it to her, and then we kissed, and dat was dat. Too bad for you though, I think Tanya's more into bad boys."

Vartan stared on as the song ended and the curtains closed. The room filled with claps, as Ratigan walked onto the stage.

"Thank you dear friends," he said, "I'm afraid that's all for tonight though, it is 2 in the morning after all."

The room filled with disappointed groans.

"The diva will be here tomorrow night, rest assured," Ratigan said, "Now go home, and don't forget to register to vote. The election is in two weeks."

With that, everyone not in Ratigan's gang got up, some drunkenly stumbling, and filed out the doors. Vartan, figuring the night air might do him some good, ventured outside as well. Tanya went up to her dressing room, quick to change into something less revealing for her walk home.