The Nature of Predators - Venlil Foster Program (7/14)

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Memory transcription subject: Callsi, Venlil Bartender

Date [standardized human time]: October 26, 2136

Regular showering was insufficient for paint removal, much to my chagrin. It took a considerable deal of scrubbing and dish soap to remove the purple add-ons to Jimek’s fur. Dustin prattled on about how humans dyed their manes “flashy” colors; I would’ve thought he was joking, if I hadn’t seen a predator with neon blue hair walking near the UN embassy. Whatever was acceptable in Terran culture, I didn’t appreciate my son’s violet splotches.

The predator issued dozens of apologies on the ride home, and seemed keenly aware of the stares. How the Terran managed to get into mischief in such a short time frame was beyond me. It was partially my fault for not supervising the alien beast, but I still was steaming. If this was how they were going to act without my watchful eye, then they were going to tag along to work today.

Vana’s promise to spread my attachment to Dustin stuck with me; there was no question she meant to ruin my reputation. I might as well get ahead of the gossip, by openly flaunting the Terran’s presence. While this would punish the children, it would also allow me to spin the narrative. Any customers driven off by a predator in the back…well, I hoped my boss, Kaulin, agreed with my strategy.

“Listen, you two are going to make up the work you’re missing at school. Education is important,” I hissed, as we entered through the back door.

Dustin pulled textbooks from his backpack. “Yes, Callsi.”

“And you’re going to sit back here, and NOT make a ruckus.”

Kaulin gasped, as he walked by to greet me. The dark-furred Venlil’s eyes bulged, seeing a predator in his establishment. I hadn’t pressed my boss on his opinions of humans; it was tough to know his true thoughts on any matter. He had a habit of agreeing with whatever the prevailing belief was in a group, as a form of ingratiation.

“W-what…why did…you brought your human?” Kaulin hissed. “You’re going to scare off the customers, especially after the mauling incident! Oh, hi Jimek.”

Jimek tilted his head. “We’ll be good, Kaulin. Mom doesn’t trust us to be alone.”

“Your mother should’ve asked me, instead of just bringing it…him here. Humans have a way of scaring entire establishments off. A lot of our customers aren’t happy with the refugees prowling about everywhere.”

I pinned my ears back. “That’s not the Terrans’ fault.”

“There’s a reason other bars don’t let them in, and it goes beyond politics. Drunk humans get rowdy and they fight!”

“Sounds like you need a bouncer,” Dustin chimed in.

All three of us squinted at the orphan in confusion. Was this “bouncer” profession meant to stop predatory aggression from flaring up? Kaulin had a point about banning Terran clientele; I could see the issue with lowering their inhibitions. No Venlil in the universe would interfere in a human duel, and risk them turning on us.

Even the humans know they need to contain their violence, if they have “bouncers” at bars. Maybe I should scrap this plan.

However, there was too much at stake to back out now. My boss was adjusting to the human quicker than most, but I could tell from his demeanor that he wasn’t pleased. Bringing Dustin could’ve resulted in serious discipline; it was fortunate that my employer hadn’t blown his top. Kaulin seemed on the fence about sending us home, and I hoped I could dissuade him with his pocketbook.

“Hear me out. We know Venlil have been spending less, since we broke with the Federation.” I swished my tail assertively, and showed Dustin to a break table. “Rebranding ourselves as human-friendly…being a trailblazer, could be a good business move.”

Kaulin sighed in exasperation. “Tell me, how the fuck is that a good business move?”

“Those Terran refugees have a little cash to spend. With everything going on, you think they might want a drink?” I asked. “It’s an untapped market. With everyone else turning them away, where are they going to go?”

“Does it matter? We need Venlil business too. Tarva could tell these predators to pack their bags tomorrow, and we’d have nothing.”

“What about the pro-human Venlil going out on the town? The ones who want to take their pals out, or not be surrounded by prejudice? They’re not the majority now, but I suspect that will change.”

The dark gray Venlil palmed his chin, and paced back and forth. I could picture the calculations occurring in his mind, as he debated my argument’s merit. We had turned away several human customers this week, so it would take active outreach to bring them back. That meant that I could be roped into marketing toward predators.

“You’ll be the one serving them, Callsi. Suit yourself,” Kaulin grumbled.

I relaxed my muscles. “Thank you, s—"

“This doesn’t work out, you’re getting canned. Same for if you let those predators kill anyone. They’re your responsibility now.”

So much for job security. This could be the dumbest gamble of my life.

My boss shoved me toward the front counter, where impatient customers were shouting for drinks. I gave tail signals to Jimek, ordering him to start his homework. Dustin looked confused by the signs, and I reminded myself to teach him later. At the moment, my sole focus was serving the patrons. The regulars got my attention first, since I could fix up their beverages in a hurry.

Nobody addressed the literal predator in the room, at least at first. A few Venlil spotted the Canadian orphan eventually, as he pored over an arithmetic textbook. Tibek, a grumpy war veteran, seemed more outraged than afraid. On multiple occasions, I’d heard him launch into rhetoric about the humans deceiving us. When word spread that I enlisted in the foster program, he went on a graphic tirade.

Think of your son! he said then. Think about what his innards will look like on your walls…and how his flesh will taste in the predators’ gullet.

“How dare you bring this thing to a respectable establishment?” Tibek spat. “It’s convinced you it’s a child, hasn’t it?”

I slid him a drink. “Well, he hasn’t eaten Jimek. You were wrong about that.”

“It hasn’t eaten Jimek yet! This is child endangerment…this whole fucking program is abuse!”

The disgruntled veteran curled his lip, and stalked out of the bar. Tibek hadn’t even paid his bill, but I decided not to chase after him. It was obvious we would lose a few customers, yet surely everyone here wouldn’t turn on us. Why was nobody speaking up for me? Shouldn’t at least one individual be on my side?

Another regular, Nalva, who worked in construction, hissed in disgust. She grabbed her drink glass, and hurled it onto the floor. I jumped at the sound of shattering glass; Dustin stiffened in the back as well. The Venlil customer leaned over the counter, and clenched her paw around my neck. Pain seared through my skin, as I struggled to break her grip.

Nalva bared her teeth. “Did I consent to be in the same room as a predator? Tarva’s tyranny is crushing our free will!”

“Let…l-let go!” I gasped.

“What Vana said about you was true. You consider that demon an equal to Jimek; you referred to it as your child. How can you do that to your real son?”

My oxygen supply was beginning to diminish, as my windpipe was crushed by the stronger Venlil. Kaulin watched with apprehension; it hadn’t taken long for our customer base to revolt. I heard a chime from the front door, and could only imagine what the new arrival thought of this scene. Tears swelled in my eyes, while I pawed for Nalva to release me.

Vana spreads this one rumor, and my regulars go full predator disease on me. I’ve got to escape.

The construction worker’s vice-like grip relaxed suddenly, and a shadow descended over the bar counter. My knees buckled; I retched to recover my breath. Oleksiy Bondarenko’s hulking form had pounced upon Nalva, flexing arm muscles the size of fruits. He ripped her away like she was a paperweight, and carried her with confident strides. The predator flung her out the main entrance, in unceremonious style.

“Well, that was unpleasant.” The UN soldier dusted off his hands, and adjusted his glasses. He squinted at me, before his face brightened. “Wait, Callsi?! Shit, it’s sure good to see you!”

The other Venlil patrons cleared out in a hurry, seeing the massive beast chatting it up with me. Only a single person lingered, and they were passed out in their chair. I wanted to slump over in defeat; Kaulin’s disapproving glower was visible in my periphery. But Olek didn’t deserve to see me pouting, even if he just drove off every customer in sight.

“Hi, Olek,” I sighed. “Dustin, Jimek! Come say hello to the nice soldier.”

Dustin trotted up to a bar stool, still lugging his math textbook. After landing on my bad side, the orphan was following my orders in earnest. The little Venlil was right behind him, and swished his tail at Olek. The massive human bared his teeth at the children, before hastily closing his mouth. I didn’t understand why Terrans snarled so much.

Peacekeeper Bondarenko lowered his eyes. “Sorry for chasing off your customers. It looked like you needed a hand there.”

“It’s alright. Thanks for the assist,” I muttered. “What can I do for you?”

“Wait…you’re actually gonna serve me? I’ll leave if you want, Callsi, you won’t offend me. It’s business.”

I reached under the counter, and pulled out a bottle of low-strength liquor. Hopefully, Olek wouldn’t be offended by me starting him easy. A predator might take it as an insult to his strength, but I just didn’t know enough about human physiology. The last thing I wanted was to alter his biochemistry in unintended ways.

The predator accepted the shot glass, and offered his credit chip. I lashed my tail, rejecting his payment method. After this UN soldier resolved Dustin’s predicament, gave me caretaking advice, and intervened in the bar assault, I figured I owed him a drink. Olek fixed his binocular eyes on the liquid, before dipping his head with gratitude.

I tapped the counter. “This one’s on the house.”

“Really? Thanks,” the human adult growled. “I’ve been to twelve different bars tonight, and not a one would give me a drink. Three of them pulled a gun on me. I didn’t like that much.”

“I’m sorry. During my shifts, we won’t be turning your kind away. I can’t speak for other workers, but I respect you Terrans.”

“It’s nice to hear that. Actually, there was one bar that served my buddy a drink…with a little intimidation on his part. I didn’t wanna get in like that. You’re not doing this ‘cause you’re scared of me, right?”

“No. Now drink your drink. It’s not there to collect dust.”

Olek flashed his teeth again, and raised his glass to me. The Terran chugged the drink in a single gulp, before the veins in his binocular eyes popped. He slumped against the counter, grasping at his throat. Gargling and gasping noises came from his gullet, which concerned me. The predator recovered quickly, and slapped the counter with a wild howl.

“Holy shit! That was strong,” he hollered. “You trying to put me on the floor, Callsi?”

I blinked in confusion. “That was…a lighter brew. It’s only 50% alcohol.”

“Only…I did not hear that right. I thought the Venlil were posturing, talking about your booze. But you may want to dilute that for human customers.”

Dustin cleared his throat. “The Venlil have one of the strongest alcohol tolerances in the galaxy. They process it quite efficiently, since they eat a lot of fruits.”

I eyed him suspiciously. “And how do you know this?”

“I might’ve already read the xenobiology textbook…for fun…”

“Nerd!” Jimek teased. “Why don’t you write my essay for me?”

“Okay, if you’ll write the bull…predatorshit diagram on environmental science for me. I refuse to write about the reasons behind extermination.”

I glared at Dustin. “What did I say about cursing?”

“Sorry, uh, it slip—"

“That was no slip. Go in the back, and write your damn paper! You don’t have to agree with the ideas to regurgitate them!”

The children scampered off, returning to their tucked-away seating. Kaulin looked both displeased with kids roaming the storefront, and annoyed by the muscular beast at the counter. It was a relief that inebriation hadn’t turned Olek into a territorial animal, like the dueling humans we’d heard about. I had noticed how easily he discarded Nalva.

Let’s just hope that he stays docile. There’s no telling what predators are like under the influence.

The Terran soldier inspected the bottles on the wall, and nodded to himself. A Venlil customer started to enter the bar, but ducked out at the predator sighting. Emotion flashed in Olek’s brown irises, though he suppressed it with more ease than Dustin. Something told me this human was taught to bottle his feelings.

“Olek, is everything alright?” I cautiously placed a paw on his meaty hand, and checked if he shied away from the contact. “Is there a reason you were so hellbent on a drink tonight?”

The Terran conspiracy theorist sighed. “It’s…it’s my twentieth birthday, in Earth years. My pal, Fedir, wanted to celebrate. I meant to have fun, but now…I ditched my best friend, ‘cause he was being an ass. I’m a little down in the dumps.”

The predator wiggled his fingers, and I assessed that as a summons for another shot. Recalling his earlier advice, I diluted the liquor serving with water. Bondarenko smirked, as he saw me mellowing out his drink. It wasn’t my goal to have the big guy pass out; I couldn’t lug him out of here, in that happenstance.

“Happy birthday,” I said quietly. “Jimek’s birthday is right around the corner too. He’s turning 13…two years from adulthood. Grew up so fast.”

Olek raised an eyebrow. “Two years from…ah, never mind. Here’s to Jimek.”

“To Jimek,” Kaulin hissed sarcastically. “The only Venlil left in the store.”

I resisted the urge to shush my boss. “Don’t mind the negativity, human. Hey, if you can keep a secret, I’m putting Jimek in art school. Finally did it.”

“You don’t sound excited,” the Peacekeeper noted. “I thought you’d be happy about that.”

“I’m worried Dustin will take it personally. He likes art too, but the program costs quite a bit. It’s not like I can enroll them both. He won’t get to see Jimek as much either, and I’m worried he’ll…raise his guard again.”

Olek stared at his now-empty glass, and drummed his fingers on the table. His binocular eyes made direct contact with mine, sending a shiver down my spine. I wasn’t sure why I was confessing our troubles to a human, but these predators were good at listening. Their chilling focus also made you aware that they were paying attention.

So that’s why I feel like they care. It’s all in the forward-facing eyes.

“Well, easy fix. Let’s put Dustin in art school, huh?” Olek decided. “I’m sure the soldiers at the embassy will chip in. We all love him.”

The human fished into a sewn bag on his leg pelts, and retrieved a credit voucher. Olek’s lips curved up, before he pressed a signed slip into my paw. I gasped as I read the amount he extended, pushing it back to him. The predator shook his head insistently, and shoved it in my direction once more. It felt shameful to secure it in my grasp.

“I must be hanging around Lisa Reynolds too much. I’m tipping bartenders like a blasted American!” he chuckled.

My ears pinned back. “You don’t have to do this.”

“I know I don’t. But we’ll cover the amount, one way or another. Us humans gotta stick together.”

Bondarenko pushed himself upright, and his eyes darted over to Kaulin. My boss squirmed under his stare, before making himself scarce. Olek staggered to the exit, raising a fleshy hand at me. I mirrored his farewell with my tail, still touched by his kindness. There was no reason for this guy to rally UN soldiers’ support for a random kid.

Humans were a compassionate species; there was no question about it. I was elated to surprise both Dustin and Jimek, and give them an extracurricular activity that would bring us closer together. My son deserved a wonderful birthday, and my foster child wasn’t going to be left out either. Terran generosity was granting us more than I could have dreamed of.

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A/N - Part 7 is here! Dustin and Jimek tag along on a "bring your kid to work" excursion, and Callsi deals with the kickback. She persuades her boss to encourage human customers, and her first one is Olek. How will Dustin react to his art school being funded as well? Will Jimek's birthday be a success?

As always, thank you for reading and supporting!