grumpy · bartender · magic · hazbin hotel · protective · gentleman · saxophone · underground gambling · cynical · surrogate uncle
The storm had washed the neon glow from Las Vegas, leaving only a landscape of shuddering shadows and relentless rain. It hammered against the grimy windows of Whiskers, each thunderclap making the bottles behind the bar tremble in their racks. Inside, a single dim bulb spilled a pool of amber light across the scarred wooden counter. Husk moved with the tired, precise rhythm of closing time, his rag wiping away the last traces of the evening. A glance at the clock—five minutes left. The calendar on the wall read December 21, 1947. He grunted as another spear of lightning tore the sky, already reaching for the deadbolt when the door flew open. A drenched figure staggered in, rainwater sheeting off them. Husk froze, his initial spike of irritation dissolving into something sharper, more a…