Chapter 9: A good night
It was a lively night at the 10-7 with every table filled and drinks flowing free. There was a constant hum of conversation punctuated with laughter and clinking of glass while the jukebox played in the corner, serenading the space with slow jazz. It happened every once in a while when the different shifts of each department just seemed to line up like the planets. Where the different departments would just descend on their beloved watering hole. Nights like these required all paws on deck which is why Savannah could be found delivering drinks to thirsty patrons along side Trisha and Em.
This wasn't the first time the maned wolf had worked for the 10-7 like this. Though by no means a regular occurrence it gave her a convenient cover story when anyone asked why a none first responder was allowed in the bar. As well as an alibi should any law enforcement come sniffing around.
The 10-7 didn't have an official uniform as such with Echo deeming a shirt with the bars logo on being enough. But Em and especially Trisha had taken that as permission to get creative and make their own. Which had started a tradition that when you started at the bar you needed to create your own shirt. It was a right of passage for each member of the team and even though Savannah was only working part time she was by no means exempt.
After all the more convincing the cover story the better.
The maned wolf had taken an EMT white T-shirt and added the bars logo in black to the front left breast whilst tying the bottom off on her right side, revealing the secret vigilantes chiselled abdomen. While on the back in it read 'Kick start my heart' in the same font as the bar logo, with a stylised design of a heart being kicked just below. To complete the shirt the maned wolf had stretched out the collar to allow her left shoulder to be revealed. A pair of tight karki shorts that stopped halfway down her thigh completed her look.
Having just delivered a fresh round to one of the many full tables Savannah made her way back to the bar where Echo was refilling Em's empty glasses. The otter had gone for black shirt with yellow trim tonight. As she approached Em praised the maned beauty "Lookin good" raising her voice over the din.
"I've spent a lot of time on this body. Only seems right to show it off." she chuckled while flexing her guns finally able to do so without wincing, though the slight twinge in her lower back stubbornly refused to go away.
"And on behalf of everyone at the 10-7, thank you" the sultry otter flirted.
The painted boss finished filling the last of Em's glasses, placing it on her tray. "Your up Em" she called over the din of the bar.
The otter sauntered away calling back to Echo "Thanks boss" revealing the stencilled headset on the back together with the words 'talk dirty to me'.
As one of the girls left another arrived "I prefer her other uniform" a certain brown bunny teased. Savannah tensed as her eyes widened, a blush colouring the inside of her ears as she thought back to several weeks earlier.
Savanna swayed on her seat, the spirits in her system making the room spin as she stared down out the victorious and overly smug bunny. When asked what Trisha intended to do to the maned beauty Savanna was surprised when Trisha simply said she will have to think of something. Grateful to be spared for the moment the canine smiled. Before she parted however Trisha reminded Savanna that next shift was tropical Tuesday, which meant the girls all had to wear a tropical swim suit top and maybe a flowered skirt. Not wanting to be out of place Savanna agreed and showed up the next day in bikini top that accented her trim figure nicely, showing off a little extra fur was always fun. To her surprise though no one else was in anything remotely tropical. It wasn't until she heard wheezing at the bar that she realized what had happened. The canine storming over to Trisha who was laughing so hard she was laying on her back on the bar, holding the stitches in her side.
"Fool me once Trisha..." The maned wolf playfully scowled.
The small brown doe jumped up onto the bar "But think of all the tips you made" she pointed out planting her butt on the bar top.
That was true. The secret vigilante had made nearly 3 times the tips she would on a normal night as well as twice as many phone numbers. But the shear embarrassment out weighed this gain. "don't care".
"I don't know Savannah I think you looked pretty good and we got a lot more costumers the days after too." Echo chimed in causing Savannah's ears to and tail to drop while Trisha keeled over laughing. "Maybe we should make Tropical Tuesdays a permanent thing"
Dropping her forehead onto the bar with a gentle thud the maned wolf gave a muffled groan. "I hate both of you" drawing more laughs from the other staff.
The maned wolf couldn't stop her own sniggering in spite of her embarrassment. There was no shame in being out played by the small brown trickster especially since she'd gotten her revenge shortly after by sneaking into the bunnies locker in the backroom and replacing her shirt with one that was a size smaller than she was used to. The bunny spent the next evening constantly adjusting and looking down, concerned she would tear her outfit, only to accidentality tear the shirt down the middle when she was stretching her back.
As Savannah lifted her head from the bar and the laughter died down she looked over to her painted friend. "Thanks for the extra shifts Echo" Savannah had needed time to recover from her injuries after the botched raid at Angel falls but the idea of laying around all day wasn't appealing in the slightest.
Echo shrugged "No problem, we could always use the help and besides it means I can keep an eye on you" The bar would often take on temporary staff and this practice had become a lot more common after the move to the nocturnal district. Several members of the team were unwilling to work in the shady district, or had family that didn't want them down there, so giving Savannah a part time job that doubled as an alibi was no sweat of her back. It also meant Echo could make sure she was recuperating following her injury.
Savannah rolled her eyes at the last comment. "I'm not that bad" the painted boss gave an in believing look "I'm not!"
"Uh huh" Trisha chimed in making the maned beauty petulantly cross her arms and huff.
Just then Echo noticed one of the tables near the back raise their nearly empty glasses. The ever attentive head of the 10-7 already had their next round ready and waiting to go. "Ok girls back to work. Savannah could you take these to table 13".
The maned wolf collected the filled tray and headed towards table 13, shooting a mocking dirty glare at the other females. Echo simply smirked while Trisha gave a teasing wave as she lounged atop the bar. Rolling her eyes Savannah focused back on her task strolling past the jukebox in the corner that was playing smooth jazz, though it was being drowned out by the full bar.
Approaching the table the maned wolf recognised several familiar faces. "Hey Savannah" called Jack as she approached. Jack Hornby was a middle aged red deer while to his left sat Jessica Shelby a beautiful clouded leopard and opposite them sat a handsome maned wolf called Markus Clawford.
Arriving at the table the waitress couldn't stop the fond smile from appearing on her face, knowing what was coming from her favourite patrons. At her arrival Jessica nudged Mike under the table while teasing "Well she's here now Mark. You finally gonna grow a pair and ask here out?" There it was. Savannah wasn't quite sure when or why it started but someone had commented about how the two maned wolfs would make a cute couple and to be honest Savannah couldn't really argue. She'd given the male a once over on a number of occasions. He was tall and lean without being skinny and kept his fur immaculate. Except for the fur below his elbows that almost always had a thin layer of oil and grease that he would inevitably wipe on his face as he thought of a solution to a new problem. His passion for mechanics was well known and Savannah found it only added to his charm.
There was just one small, tiny problem. "My boyfriend might take issue with that" Yes. Mark was gay. If only someone had told Savannah that before she asked him out it would have saved both of them a lot of embarrassment.
Those around the table chuckled at the two canines. "Har har" came Savannah's sarcastic response before she began passing out the fresh round. "2 Bogo specials and a bottle of Brew-Dog" She detailed as she handed out the drinks but noticed that Jack was tapping his watch as if trying to fix it. Curios the server asked "What are you doing?"
Without looking up the buck cheekily responded "Could have sworn it was tropical Tuesday" Savannah went beet red as a wave of chuckling and laughter rose around them. "Maybe if we give a big enough tip Echo will make it a thing" as further laughter then ensued. Mark, who'd just taken a mouth full at the time, didn't know whether to keep his drink in his mouth or fire it across the table.
Savannah had been caught off guard. 'Trisha I am actually going to kill you'. But right now she had a red deer to put back in his place. Her eye lids lowered and her tail began slowly swaying back and forth. Cocking a hip and placing a paw there she maintained eye contact and adopted a mocking, flirty tone loud enough for the whole bar to hear "Oh Honey your tip would never be big enough". Mark lost his battle. Spraying his cocktail all over the table. Fortunately Hornby's reclined posture meant that the jet of alcohol missed him.
The bar erupted around them in a series of laughs and hollers while Jack took another swig of his beer, smile still firmly in place. Echo looked over from the bar silently wondering what had caused all this. After a minute the ruckus began to die down but Savannah maintained her pose as well as her attention on the deer in front of her. "How much?" she asked knowing full well who'd put him up to it.
"She promised to clear my tab" he laughed back. The maned wolf rolled her eyes at the brown does antics.
Turning back to Mark the waitress needed to catch up with her friend. "Its been a while Mark. Is it a special occasion?" her fellow canine had been down the last time he'd visited the bar having just lost his treasured job as fire house 48's chief mechanic. Everyone at the station had fought tooth and claw to keep the maned wolf, knowing how much it meant to him and the fact he was damn good at it. But in the end the unyielding pressure from the mayors office had forced him to leave.
"Oh yeah!" Jessica replied "Marky finally landed himself a new job."
"That's great!" The secret vigilante couldn't be happier for him having been trying to cheer him up the last time he'd visited. "Where?"
The mechanics tail began to wag "Murry's"
"The Junk yard in the rainforest district?" The Muscle bound hippo had chosen an odd place for his junk yard.
Mark's excitement was palpable. "That's the one. The moister is rough on cars over there so business is booming."
Savannah could imagine. She spent much of her time in that district. "I take it his side business still going strong?."
"The demands there but well he's been short pawed until now. Poor guys been desperate after ratchet and clank left" Mark remembered ruefully. The 2 Fennec foxes had been masters of mechanical and electrical engineering. Some joked the 2 were masters of black magic and the occult. Didn't matter how badly beaten and damaged a car, bike or truck might be those 2 would get it running again. They'd been in charge of running a repair and custom shop along side Murry's normal junk yard business. Their skill rapidly made them one of the most highly sought after in their business. None of it mattered though as Bellwether and stamped on them.
Savannah couldn't help the sigh as she thought about the fate of the 2 Fennecs. Jack couldn't let the conversation devolve into melancholy though, joking towards Mark "Yeah he must be desperate to hire you".
The joke worked as intended chasing away the bitterness that had set in, a light chuckle rolling around the group while Mark rolled his eyes. Realising that time was marching on and that the rest of the bar needed attending to Savannah began her farewells "Well good luck Mark. I'm glad you found a way through this". As if to prove a point the sound of shattering glass reached everyone's ears. One of the other patrons had become a little too animated and knocked their glass from their table. "No rest for the wicked" Groused the secret vigilantly "Enjoy yourselves guys" she waved but stopped to call out to Mark "and Mark" the male perked up "I expect to see you around here more often from now on" Mark raised his glass in response a friendly smile gracing his handsome face.
If Savannah had any misgivings about returning to the vigilante game after the angel falls job her talk with Mark had eradicated them. Oh she had every intention of going back to her work after recovering but nerves were only natural after her first run in with 'Mr Smith'. Those nerves had just been silenced. She had to get back up again. And she would keep getting back up so long as Bellwether was still in charge. "no rest for the wicked" she chuckled under her breath mind drifting back to the carrot pen and Giuseppe.