The Finest Little Honky Tonk on Skalga [14: The First Finale]
Thank you to u/SpacePaladin15 for the universe and thanks to the other fanfic writers for giving me the inspiration for this little masterpiece of nonsense I have cooked up. Thank you to u/rookamillion and u/Roddcherry for the artwork! Can’t forget, also got an awesome ficnap from u/Heroman3003 and a kickass new ficnap series by u/Thirsha_42
Not to mention, this series has the incredible honor of having an actual written and recorded song for it done by u/AlexWaveDiver and an associated piece of art done by u/RoddCherry ! If you’re wondering where the link is, you’ll just have to read through the chapter…
Thank you to u/AlexWaveDiver , u/Inside_Judge5855 , and u/rookamillion for proofreading!
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I also made a profile post with a synopsis for all four of my stories and each chapter with individual links to everything! If you haven’t caught up with Honky Tonk in a while or want to read the other series, that’s the place to start!
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Intro: I think there’s been enough scheming going on for too long. Let’s just have a normal day at work. It will be a normal day, right? Right?
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Memory Transcription Subject: Halin. Venlil Manager for Little Branson.
Date: [Standardized Human time] February 24, 2138
I awake to the most gentle shake I think is possible. My eyes creak open to see a very lovely face staring down at me as her tail wags forcefully behind her. She’s saying something, but my brain is taking an unusually long time to boot up into a usable state. The less I focus on her face, the clearer her words become.
“Come on, Halin! We need to get to work; the bathroom is open for you.”
I steal a glance at my pad charging on the bedstand and then back to Tiltva. And then back to the pad, and then back to Tiltva. Her tail stops dead in its tracks as I try to form a whole entire sentence.
“Tiltva, it’s only 5:30 a.m. Little Branson Time. Breakf-irst meal with Ray and Thyla isn’t until 8 a.m.”
“W-well, it’s not a bad thing to be ready when the car gets here, right? I-I just think you-we should be ready early this paw.”
Woah, this is a weird version of anxious Tiltva. What is… wait, is she wearing fur brightener? What is she so styled up for?
“Ooookay… I’ll get going then.”
Her tail resumes its wagging as she skips out of my room back into the hallway. Giggling to myself over the strangely excited Tiltva, I slide myself off of the bed and shuffle out of my room to the bathroom. Like I expect, the air is still steamy from her routine, and I gladly jump into the already hot and ready-to-go stream of water. Aiming a jet down at my leg, I can feel my leg release tension as I scrub some of the pain-relief shampoo into the area.
Time flies as I finish my scrubbing and then my drying before I finally find myself brushing out in front of the mirror. I look down at the bottle of fur gloss on the shelf, and a thought comes to mind.
She’s all fancy this paw. Don’t want to look too drab next to her in front of everyone. Although, I will be just sitting in the office until it’s time to go home… Eh, whatever, I’ll look nice for her.
Taking the extra time to make myself look nice, I even contemplate redoing my braids but stop short as I realize that I’ve somehow burned enough time and that the car will be arriving soon. I exit the bathroom and see Tiltva waiting for me in the hallway. She takes a rather predatory look over me as I flick an ear to the front door and start to put my new mobility boots on. The normal one slides on so easily, but the mechanical-assist boot is just a bit harder to slip on. The faux-skin boots look so similar to the ones used at the dance hall, but the ease of walking is priceless.
Tiltva steps past me and opens the door just as the car is descending on the street just behind Mom and Dad’s front gate. I actually jog behind Tiltva as she opens the door to see… no one?
The normally occupied car is empty as I follow Tiltva inside and sit down beside her on the large wool seats. As the car begins to rise and speed off towards work, I feel a force on my leg and look to see Tiltva hauling my foot towards her lap.
“Tiltva, what are you doing?”
She freezes in place as her ears and snout flush bright orange, but she continues rotating me to face her, and then she removes my mobility boot as she uses her claws and paws to massage and work the forever-sore tissue in my leg.
“I-it’s just another leg massage. Relax for a bit; you just seem a bit tense this paw.”
“No, you seem a bit tense. Is everything alright, Tiltva?”
She again freezes as her blue eyes look up and waver for a moment before blinking and going back to massaging my leg.
“Everything is fine. D-Don’t worry.”
Ah, she’s just really nervous about her upcoming first performance. Brahk, if not for that, then I’d like to finally confess, but I don’t want to get in her head and mess up her moment…
“If you say so. Thank you, Tiltva.”
“Y-you’re welcome.”
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The car comes to a stop just beyond the Oakley household as Tiltva nearly throws open the door and steps out onto the pavement. I do my best to hurry up and follow her as my reequipped boot thunks rhythmically along. I somehow manage to catch up with her as we are already at the door, and she gives a quick knock before unlocking the door and stepping in.
Immediately I can taste a fresh pot of coffee and a similar but subtly different bitterness in the air. We close the door behind us and round the corner to see Ray and Thyla sitting at the table, both waiting on their pads. Just as soon as they spot us, they put away the electronics and give happy smiles in greeting.
“Good mornin;, you two. Both of you are lookin’ very fine today!”
“Why, thank you, Ray! What do you have for first meal this paw?”
“Oh, I think you’ll like this one. Thyla has already said they’re pretty good, but I made a tray of homemade granola bars with a chocolate coatin’. Pretty much oats, grains, nuts, and some chocolate. Goes great all day, but it’s nice and soft right now for breakfast. Oh, and I melted some chocolate sauce for Thyla.”
Thyla’s tail wags underneath her short blue dress as she takes the small bowl full of thick, shiny brown liquid and pushes it towards Tiltva and me, sitting down on the opposite side of the table.
“Here, Tiltva, you try some! It makes them even tastier! Oh, Halin, you can have some too, I guess.”
I break a bar off the sheet of wax paper on the tray and give it a quick dip into the chocolate sauce. I let the excess drizzle off before bringing it in for a bite. Although there is already some of the chocolate on these bars, the liquid version has so much more warmth. The sweet bitterness is soon complemented by a crunch of nuts and a slight hint of salt. Comfortable with my reaction, Tiltva grabs a bite of her own and seems similar in opinion.
“Mmmhm, Ray, these are really good. Good job!”
“Thank you two, of course; help yourselves to some coffee. I have the insulated pot right there with a fresh batch. Though, it’s a lil hot at the moment.”
Hearing his offer but ignoring his warning, I quickly pour myself a cup of the wonderful beverage and slightly burn my tongue on the first sip. The rest of first meal goes on just the same as it usually does, though I thoroughly enjoy as Thyla gets a bit too into the chocolate sauce, and by the end of the meal, her white and red fur snout is a shade of dark brown.
“Now, just look at what you’ve done to yourself, girly! Y-you gotta leave for school in, like, five minutes. Agh, okay, come over here and let’s wash you off.”
As Ray drags the not-at-all-remorseful and giggling Thyla over to the sink, Tiltva pushes back from her chair and seems to march away to the other side of the house.
“Tiltva? Where are you going? I thought your practice was in the dance hall this paw.”
“It is; I’m just getting my dress.”
Oh, that’s right. New… nice dress…
“Okay, uhm, see you in a bit!”
Just as Tiltva is out of eyesight, I see Ray nearly chasing the shrieking and laughing Thyla around as she tries to put on her backpack and dart out the door with her snout and whiskers dripping with water.
“N-now you get out there, and don’t you dare use my car seats to dry your face! Use your backpack or something, I don’t care, but not my seats! Hey! Wait!”
He manages at the last second to halt the darting Thyla to a stop at the door and then pulls her in close.
“Love you, have a good day at school.”
“Love you too, Dad.”
With that, Thyla is out the door, and Ray gently closes it and leans against it with tired eyes.
They’re just so sweet, I honestly don’t know if there’s a safer pup on Skalga.
“Chocolate, I swear it, Halin; it makes Farsul nearly go feral with energy, and I’m not willin’ to say no since she loves it so much. Anyway, I see Tiltva is dressin’ up, so I’ll ask, don’t you also have an outfit to wear around today?”
“Oh brahk, you’re right! Let me go change!”
I jump out of my chair, and my boots thunk as I make my way back to the recording studio. In a mini-whirlwind of red and glitter, I briefly pass by Tiltva as she makes her exit. She gives me a light tap on the snout with her tail as she heads back to the kitchen, and I resign myself to not following behind.
I walk inside to the wonderfully weird space and head right over to the storage closet. Among stacks of chairs and instruments, hanging on a rack with all the others’ performance outfits, is my specially ordered ‘flannel’ shirt. I take the garment off the hanger and unbutton the topmost two buttons to slip it over my head and snout. With it on, I grab my white cowboy hat and slip out and back towards the kitchen to hear and then see Tiltva and Ray cleaning up the leftovers and dishes from breakfast.
Even just the short walk down the hall already has my arms feeling hot. As I stand at the edge of the dining room, I remember the sleeve-rolling method Ray taught me, and I quickly start on shortening one sleeve to let a bit more air flow on my arms. As I get the first one done, I look up to see Tiltva wide-eyed, staring at me, stopped in the middle of the room with a few dirty cups in her paws. As I tilt my ears down, her entire head flushes a bright orange, and she scampers off to the kitchen with a bleat.
What? Why was she staring at me like that? Is it this shirt? But then why did she bloom?
Just as I finish up the other sleeve, Ray and Tiltva seem to finally be done with cleanup, and they come out of the kitchen. Ray takes one long look at me and then over to Tiltva before deeply nodding his head.
“I just gotta say, you two look real nice in western wear. I’m biased, of course, but I’d guess that other alien folks are gonna be rather jealous when they get eyes on you two fitted out.”
Even as Ray compliments my outfit, I can feel myself blooming, but not to his compliment. As Ray talks, I can’t take my eyes away from Tiltva as she shuffles back and forth on her paws, causing her dress to shimmer and sway around her.
The white boots, the red dress, the white hat… How lucky am I to be able to just have a glimpse of the most beautiful girl on Skalga…
“-and I think that should cover everythin’ that needs to get done today. Well, before lunch, that is, if we can, I’d like to have a light afternoon. Got that, you two?”
I forcefully peel my gaze from Tiltva as I flick my ears in approval at Ray. All that despite not knowing a single word or task he asked of me.
“Yeah, sure, Ray. Umm, what was that about second meal?”
Strangely, Tiltva answers for him.
“Oh, Ray just said to work hard this first claw; then after second meal it’ll be easier on us. Ah, uhm, speaking of second meal, do you want to join me in the dance hall to eat lunch?”
“Oh, yeah, we can. But why not the restaurant?”
“I, uh, dunno, just thought it’d be a nice change in scenery. That’s all…”
Ray strokes his chin and suddenly gasps just a bit.
“Oh, but remember, the employee doors are under maintenance today, so you two will have to use the front doors only.”
Tiltva’s tail thrashes in agreement as Ray reminds us of the door maintenance.
“Yep! And Halin, don’t worry about grabbing food; I’ll grab it for us. Just come straight to the dance hall for lunch, but give me a bit of a warning that you are so we can wrap up practice.”
What is going on here? Are they teasing me because I didn’t help with cleanup? Or is it something else?
“Okay… you two are being kind of strange. Is it my outfit?”
“No buddy, it looks awesome, it really does. Now let’s get to work. Tiltva, get some warmups in, and I’ll join you in a couple hours.”
Tiltva takes no time to shuffle her boots across the room and out the door as Ray gives a half wave to her goodbye, and I follow behind him as we head up to the office to work our respective jobs. I let my work pad load all my programs as I take a moment to check any sleep claw emails that might’ve come through on this work account.
Restaurant order confirmation…
Payroll reminders…
Rental boot repairs…
Multi-million credit tourism grant…
Parking lot repair-
Oh speh, wait!
“Ray! Ray! I got an email from the Mirror Lake Magister of Tourism. We’re approved for the grant to build the amphitheater on the lakeshore downtown! He said that he agrees this will help bring in money to the city and lake district, but we do have to allow other performers to use the stage on occasion.”
“Oh shit! That’s awesome news! Congrats Halin!”
“‘Congrats Halin’? But Ray, this is your project and business.”
“Sure, but you’re the one who wrote the proposal and did the initial meetin’ with the Magistar! This credit goes to you!”
“Yeah… I mean, I’m sure Begelen helped us out a lot, though.”
A twinge of fear runs through my heart as Ray’s eyes narrow at the mention of the Chief Exterminator.
Uh oh, that’s most definitely not a happy human stare…
“Halin, how much did Begelen help out here?”
“I, uhh, don’t know actually. I was just saying that she probably helped out. I-is that a bad thing? I thought you liked Begelen?”
Ray relaxes in his chair as he nods back.
“Oh, I love Aunt Beg. It’s just… sometimes I worry about causin’ her too much trouble or her overextendin’ herself to help us. I know she does some… let’s just say, ‘less than legal’ things to keep this place runnin’ nearly exactly how I want it to. I don’t want her to lose her job or public image because of us.”
Keeping Ray’s words in mind, it dawns on me just how bad it would be for all of us if Begelen lost her job or power. Inspectors and officials would swarm here and ruin everything Ray has had going.
Sure, Ray would still have his other two jobs, but I and many others would be out of a job.
We work for a while longer, and I feel myself desiring another cup of coffee when Ray gets a loud ping on his pad. I turn an eye and ear his way as I watch his expression over the contents of the message. He smiles before shifting to a frown.
“Anything important, Ray?”
“Yes, but no. One of the meat vats is throwin’ a fit, so I’ll go see what I can do then make my rounds of the property.”
Meat vats! I haven’t gotten to walk back there in a while. I’d like to feel the hot spring water again.
“Oh! Do you need any help?”
“Help? Ah, nah, it’ll be fine. You keep gettin’ us money, and I’ll try to hold this place a bit together. Catch up after lunch, yeah? Oh! Don’t forget your lunch with Tiltva!”
“Sounds good…”
Lunch with Tiltva? Yeah, I know he knows that I love Tiltva but even then he’s being a bit pushy. Oh whatever, second meal is in a quarter claw; I should just be glad to share it with her.
I click on and off a few more tourism grant applications, and I nearly jump out of my wool as I see the clock has somehow already made it to second meal. I save my work and slowly prepare myself to stand up and get going. My mobility boot thunks along the wooden floors as I go down the hall, down the stairs, and out the door to the property. I crunch along the gravel path to the dance hall, and just as I am about to open the back door, I remember to use the front entrance.
Going around the front to the customer side, I find the large sliding barn doors are shut, and I curiously hear no noise of any sort from within. I slide open one door to see the entire dance hall as I’ve never seen it before. All the skylights are closed, and the only light comes from the open door behind me. I cautiously slide it closed and hobble forward with a bit of anxiety in my chest at the dark and empty building, which seems more cavernous by the moment. I make it onto the dance floor itself and work up the courage to bleat into the darkness.
“Tiltva?”
Just then, the sound of the band starts to play from the stage, but I can still see no one there. I halt in place and listen; the whole band must be hiding from me as some sort of prank.
Is this what Tiltva and Ray wanted to do? Trick me into watching a practice? I already watch their practices when I can; it's not exactly a big request.
Suddenly, a single skylight opens its shutters, and on the stage of the dance hall, I see a red gem shining in the void. A beauty I am lucky enough to see every paw stands alone in the beam of golden light. Her white hat casts a small shadow over her head but not enough to blot out the blue diamonds that are her eyes. In her paw she is shakily gripping a microphone, but with a change in the song, I see her take a deep breath and-
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Memory Transcription Subject: Tiltva. Venlil Singer in training at Little Branson.
Date: [Standardized Human time] February 24, 2138
My breath seems to take up my entire chest, but I takes all of my effort to even start to relieve the pressure.
Just like we practiced, he’s there, but he’s not. Enough to not stall. That doesn’t even make sense? Eh whatever. Okay, here I go.
“Halin, I don’t know how to say it, but I think I can sing it.”
"You leaned close to ask me
If my drink had gone too warm
But I was too far gone already
In the quiet of your warmth
-
Your laugh filled up the corner
Of a place I used to dread
I just sipped and nodded slowly
And just answered you instead
-
If not now, then maybe never
If not us, then just pretend
I'll smile like I'm not aching
and call it love... between old friends
-
And if not, if this never turns to more
If I'm just another story behind your door
If someone else sees the clues I missed
then I'll still thank the stars
For every time we kissed
-
In my head, at least...
'Cause none of 'em were real"
With the first chorus done, I find myself pacing the stage, and as I move out of the first skylight, a second one opens to follow me. Despite wanting to make it easier on Yvette controlling the lights, I just can’t stop from prancing around the stage.
"I tried to write it down once
But the pen got stuck mid-line
Guess even paper didn't want 'em
wool-headed dreams of mine
-
If not now, then maybe never
If not us, just one more dream
I'll laugh about my feelings
and how dumb my hope can seem
-
If someone else sees the clues I missed
then I'll still thank the stars
For the "almosts" of my list
for what I thought was my chance
-
And if not...
I'll move on and heal"
Coming up on the final moments of the song, I look out and once again stare down Halin in his outfit that has been burning me up all paw. The lights finally come on, revealing the whole band is here in support, and even Ray is playing supporting guitar. Halin now stands on the lighted dance floor as we bring the song to a close.
"If not now, I'll learn my lesson
If not us, I'll take the fall
But loving you in silence
was better than not at all!
-
If not now, I'll stop my waiting
If not us, then I'll let it be
I'll fold away these daydreams
like lyrics never seen
-
And if not...
I'll move on...
But stars know how I'll feel"
With the final note hanging in the air, we receive as big of an ovation as one man can produce coming from the brightest void in my life out there alone on the dance floor. I take a small moment to catch my breath before sitting my microphone back on the stand and leaping off the stage to run up to him. He lets out a bleat of surprise as I nearly tackle him in a hug. He hugs back even stronger.
“Halin, d-do you understand now?”
“Y-you…”
Come on, come on, here it goes! Exactly as planned!
“Yes!?”
“You’re really good at singing.”
AHHHH!
“No!”
“Ah, uh, you’re really pretty in your outfit?”
I’m gonna kill him and then myself! Right here, right now!
I find my tail using a mind of its own as it goes up and wraps around Halin’s neck as his eyes go wide.
“NO! I mean, thank you, but brahk Halin, I-I love you! That’s what I wrote that song and just sang about! I was all for you… I-if you don’t feel the same way, that’s fine. I-I just needed to finally say it, but I couldn’t, so I sang it…”
His ears flatten on the brim of his hat as he tilts his head at me in confusion as if I had just said the stupidest thing he’s ever heard. My face flushes orange in embarrassment as the stupid brahking plan had failed just like I thought it would. I’m about to run away to hide when a loud thump scares me still. I see Ray up on the stage with the microphone in his hands, and with a wave, the band starts up again.
Once the shock of the band just going right into another song wears off, I resume my rapid exit of shame but am stopped by a firm paw grip around my wrist. I try to pull away through forming tears, but instead I am turned around and hugged again. To my surprise, the hug slightly loosens, but the hugger begins to pull me side to side, around and around.
Dancing, dancing, you idiot. He’s dancing with you.
"I don't believe in superstars
Organic food and foreign cars
I don't believe the price of gold
The certainty of growing old
That right is right and left is wrong
That north and south can't get along
That east is east and west is west
And being first is always best
-
But I believe in love
I believe in babies
I believe in mom and dad
And I believe in you"
I play along, and even though we both keep quite literally stepping on each other's paws, we make it work to keep time with the song in a slow dance that seems just as natural as the sun hanging in the sky.
"Well I don't believe that heaven waits
For only those who congregate
I like to think of God as love
He's down below, he's up above
He's watchin' people, everywhere
He knows who does and doesn't care
And I'm an ordinary man
Sometimes I wonder who I am
-
But I believe in love
I believe in music
I believe in magic
And I believe in you"
Ray and the band morph into something beyond a background. The world swirls,, and I feel whole and warm and loved. At last…
"I know with all my certainty
What's going on with you and me
Is a good thing
It's true
I believe in you
-
I don't believe virginity
Is as common as it used to be
In working days and sleeping nights
That black is black and white is white
That Superman and Robin Hood
Are still alive in Hollywood
That gasoline's in short supply
The rising cost of gettin' by
-
But I believe in love
I believe in old folks
I believe in children
I believe in you
-
I believe in love
I believe in babies
I believe in mom and dad
And I believe in you"
As the song comes to a slow end, Halin stops and pulls his head down into my shoulder. I feel just the smallest tear roll off his eye and into my neck.
“Tiltva, I love you more than I can really handle. Like really, I’m trying to think of words, but you and now Ray are doing a lot better at that. Is it okay if I just hug you really hard and have this dance count instead?”
It worked, it really worked…
This time, I lose my ability to speak, and I resolve to just give a big lick to the side of his snout as an answer. He quickly pulls his head up and gives me a lick. As I’m prepping to do it back again, I hear laughs and whistles coming from the stage, and a familiar voice booms into the microphone.
“Hey, get a room, you two!”
Laughs erupt even harder from our human coworkers, and Halin and I bury our faces into each other’s shoulders to hide. Ray quiets the band down and as he speaks up, I can see him wiping tears from his eyes.
“Ok, ok, that’s enough laughin’, but seeing as that went so well, how about you two take the rest of the day off and head back into town? To do what? I don’t care; just keep my car clean!”
"Ray, are you crying?"
"Ah, just a bit. I Believe in You was Mrs. Oakley's and my wedding first dance song."
Wedding?! That’s it. I’m going to combust right here and now. At least I got to confess first before dying of embarrassment and excitement.
“Thank you, Ray! I, uh, guess we’ll be leaving now! I was promised lunch with Tiltva and there are plenty of places downtown!”
Before he can make a move, I grip his wrist, wrap his tail in mine, and drag us off the dance floor and out the back door towards the garage. I practically throw open the door and fling myself inside and bury my snout in my paws. The door closes, and a warm mass scoots up very close beside me and wraps me in a hug with another big lick on my partially covered snout. I hear a destination being entered in, and I glance up to see an extremely nice restaurant downtown targeted and the hovercar leaving and going on its way.
“Halin, that’s a very, very expensive restaurant. I mean, I won’t complain, but-”
“The restaurant isn’t the destination. We’re going to the building across the street.”
I look at the map and see…
“A hotel?”
The words barely leave my tongue before both of our faces turn as orange as the sun.
Bold, MY bold void.
“Y-yeah, u-unless-”
“NO! I mean, yes, let’s go.”
“Good, good, I just… Okay, there’s no good way of saying this without being awkward and I don’t expect ‘it,’ but I got the gene reversal not too long ago and it does worry me a bit if you don’t-”
Aw, how thoughtful and practical.
“Oh, Halin, I’ve had the reversal since it was released.”
“You did? Why? Was there someone…”
“No, don’t you dare go there. Trust me, I’ve loved you since my mom died, but if you really want to know why I already got the treatment…” He quickly flicks his ears at me over and over again in cute excitement. “Remember the first time I was living with you and your parents after my dad died, and that one time you came into my room and sat with me and talked with me on my bed all through the entire sleep claw and I had to go to work super tired?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, the reason I was late for third meal that paw, was I went to a gene reversal clinic right after work in the hopes that you’d come back into my room and then we could…”
I watch and giggle as his face falls in horror and realization.
“Ah, brahk me…”
“Oh trust me Halin, we’re getting to that part.”
I get oh so closer and grab both of his wrists in my paws.
“No, no! Tiltva wait! Ray asked us to-”
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Memory Transcription Subject: Halin. Venlil Manager for Little Branson.
Date: [Standardized Human time] February 24, 2138
A wild-eyed man stares at me in the mirror. His fur is ten types of disheveled, and he begs to catch his breath. He leans down into the stream of water coming out of the sink faucet and takes a long drink until he comes back up for more air and does it all over again until he finds the strength to stare at me again.
I am a man. I. Am. A. Man! I have the job. I have the girl. I have it all!
“Oh, Haaallllin. Come back in here…”
I guess break time is over. Stars, I’m the luckiest man alive.
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Posted Dec 16, 2025, 12:01 PM UTC