"Kren" Part Thirteen: Koppa Gets Propositioned In a Bar

 

Koppa looked after them, face solemn.

“Well, that took a sour turn pretty quickly.” He sighed and finished off his ale. He cocked a humorous eye at Kren. “It seems I’ll be leaving your friendly little town in the morning.” He turned. “Innkeeper! Do you have a room for the night?”

Pappy scowled.

“Not for the likes of you, I guess.” He leaned forward mulishly, hands planted on the bar. “You heard the Hetman. I don’t need no trouble, sheltering a madman or worse. You’d best leave, mister.”

“You wouldn’t like it, anyway,” Kren stuck in. He grinned. “Too many fleas. You’d be better off in a nice clean haystack in the fields.”

“Now don’t you go sticking your muzzle in,” Pappy growled, shaking his bar rag at him. “I’m closing up. You can bugger off for the night, too.”

“With pleasure.” The Morg scraped his chair back and stood up. He stretched his back until it cracked, yawning and showing all his teeth. He looked at Koppa, then clapped a paw down onto his shoulder.

“Come on, Mr. Loony. You’re going to spend the night at my house.” He glanced over to the flabbergasted Pappy. “You can tell the Hetman that I’ll keep an eye on him and see him off in the morning. Far Reach can sleep safe in its bed tonight.”

Koppa rose slowly to his feet, watching Kren speculatively as if to judge whether there was any malice in his offer. Then he smiled.
“Let’s go,” he said. He turned. “And a good night to you, my merry host.”

The two left, shoulder to shoulder. Pappy watched doubtfully until they shut the door behind them. He walked over, muttering to himself, and put the barring plank into its braces. It had been a strange evening. He began going slowly from table to table, extinguishing the candles and gathering up the empty mugs.