In the lively atmosphere of a night bar bustling with adventurers from all walks of life, a white wolf sat quietly at the counter, drinking ale and chatting occasionally with the bartender, a black wolf and his old childhood friend and former military comrade. The night was vibrant yet peaceful.
Until it was interrupted by the loud and imposing entry of a female fennec fox, that is.
"Calidum! Today is the day I will finally convince you to return as our commander!" Her voice echoed throughout the bar, earning a few looks and laughs from those already familiar with the scene.
"Good evening, Sgt. Miseri. Care for an ale tonight? We have some good stock today," the black wolf bartender asked.
"No thanks, Vinum. My only goal tonight is to convince my stubborn commander to return to his rightful glory," Miseri replied with a huff.
"Former commander, Missy. I'm no longer with the army, and still don't intend to," the white wolf, Calidum, said casually.
Miseri pouts and stood imposingly in front of the door. "At least listen to my speech before you reject me!"
Calidum smirks and ignores her, lies back on his chair and gulps down half a pint of ale, while Miseri pouts even more.
"There, there, Mii. At least go in and sit down first. You're blocking the doorway," came a voice from behind the fennec fox. A pair of long bat ears appeared, followed by four hands that gently pushed Miseri to a seat at the counter, revealing a female bat with four arms.
"Evening, Lanivet. Time for your shift?" Calidum greeted the bat with a smile.
"Nah, still another hour early, but I ran into Mii earlier, so we decided to come in together. Besides, I wanted to see our handsome barmaster earlier today, too," Lanivet said with a flirty, mischievous smile at Vinum.
"Well, a pleasure to see you sooner tonight, my diligent employee. Do fetch the good sergeant a cup of grape ale while you're here, Lani," Vinum replied, shaking a cocktail bottle. "Oh, and we do have some new stuff in stock, so if you want, you can try them out with the sergeant before your shift starts."
"Oh, new stuff, you say? Okay! I'll go get changed first, then. Thanks, Vee!" Lanivet beamed with excitement and skipped into the back, humming a cheerful tune.
Calidum, having witnessed the heartwarming interaction between his childhood friend and his employee, jokingly teases him, "So, when's the union rites happening? Don't forget to invite your best friend here. I'll bring something good."
Vinum chuckles, shakes his head, and puts another pint of ale in front of Calidum and puts the empty one.
"I'm still surprised you two aren't lovers," Miseri groaned. It's like a romance folktale with funny elements in it. Seriously, you even have nicknames for each other."
"Haha," Vinum laughed non-committedly, "I thought your goal tonight was convincing Calidum here to be an officer again."
"Oh, right! Calidum!" Miseri gasped before shooting Calidum an intense look.
"What—don't throw me under the bus like that! Geez, my ears were finally enjoying some peace and quiet," said Calidum, slightly annoyed.
"Buahahaha! Great routine today again, guys! Vinum, one pint of that new lager ya got imported in the other day. Delicious stuff, that one," a booming voice cackled.
"Ah, Mr. Gideon. Welcome. Sure, I'll have it right out." Vinum greeted a tough-looking chameleon that walked through the door, and walked to the back to get the ordered lager.
"Heya, boss. How did that last job go? Heard it was rough," asked Calidum, looking slightly concerned.
"Buahahaha! Me jobs are always rough. Not rougher than Missy here trying to convince ya to go back to the army though! Keep on trying, tough gal, one day ya'll get through his stubborn skull!HBbbbadsfasdfa" Gideon cackled loudly and gave Miseri a good pat on the back.
"Yeah! See! Even your current boss wants you back in the army! Come on!" Miseri pulled on Calidum's cheeks while he groaned.
"Urgghhh…nahhh I'mm goooodd." Calidum mumbled, gently pushing away Miseri's hand and lying his head on the counter lazily, "Caravan guarding and goods delivery ain't that bad of a job; pays well, too. Rather than getting yelled at every day for a month and getting coins, my life now feels much more fun, you know?"
"Like I said before, Calidum, the army's reformed now! Since General Leonheart took over, everything's a lot more relaxed and less corrupt now!" Miseri insisted, refusing to give up.
"You say that every time, Missy." Calidum mumbled, his face fully lying flat on the counter.
"But I'm not…"
"…lying, it's a fact that can't be more true and if you go back to the army, you'll see what I mean. Right, Mii?" Another cheerful voice nearby continued Miseri's standard routine speech and giggled.
"Oh, hey! Hi Bell, you fluffy thing." Miseri turned to the voice of a petite female dog, and she shuffled over and nuzzled with her, the two rubbing their faces happily.
"Hi Mii. Hey guys. Where's Vinum and Lani? I got the delivery they wanted today." Bell said, wagging her tail while getting nuzzled.
"Oh, hi Bell. Hey, Lani, Bell's here with delivery!" Vinum called Lanivet at the back.
"Okay! Coming!" Soon after, Lanivet walked out, with her bartender outfit on in all her dignity.
"Hey Bell!" Lanivet, seeing her fluffy friend, walked up to her and nuzzled her, too.
"Hi Lani, it's my last delivery today so I'm joining yall for a drink after we move all the goods in."
"Okey dokey. Let's get moving then." Lanivet said, readying herself for some heavy lifting and followed Bell out the door.
"I'll give a hand too, Bell." Miseri said with a smile and followed the two out.
"Buahahaha! Let us help too, my boy! Capable as them are, we can't just leave three young females lift heavy things while we men sit on our laurels, can we?" Gideon cackled loudly, while pulling Calidum along.
"Ahhhh, boss, you don't…have to…pull me…ahhhhhh…not the collar…larghhh" Calidum mumbled as he gets pulled off the counter and dragged out the door with Gideon.
"Hahaha…" Vinum chuckled at the heartwarming scene that unfolded before him.
"What a different vibe we had five years ago. Now we're all smiling and laughing with each other."