Even at night, the Entertainment District was bright and welcoming. Strings of blue lights hung between the larger street lights, casting a mixture of warm and cool light on the street. Even the venues that TO passed all had brightly colored displays in the windows or storefronts, and music playing for those passing by. The mixing of songs created a discordant song of contrasting melodies that fought one another for the spotlight, while chatter and noise from the crowds around provided the chorus. Outside the theater, a street performer dressed in minimal chain-link clothing danced among whips of fire, their skin glistening with sweat as they worked while people walked past, taking no notice.
TO was certain that DH would like to see the fire dancer. They just had to find DH, had to hope that they actually went to the bar that Melissa showed them.
The carriage was still there, waiting for TO to return. The AI driver sat behind the two mechanical seahorses, a statue that blended in with the rest of the opulent scenery around the theater. TO ran up and checked inside, hoping that DH was just waiting in the carriage. They were not; it was empty.
“Did you see my partner?” TO asked the driver. It took a moment for the AI to respond, its eyes suddenly lighting up again as it came out of rest mode. It didn't have to answer after that for TO to know the answer.
“Apologies Mx, I did not.” It looked at TO, tilting its head, “If Mx Dee has gone missing, I can inform local authorities to have a search started.”
“No need. I think I know where they are.” TO said. They got into the wagon and looked at their map. “I have a new address to add to our itinerary.” They sent the new address to the driver’s system and waited a moment for the AI to analyze it.
“Of course Mx, right away.”
======
TO expected the side streets to be more like what they had seen in the Outer Ring; not as dirty, of course, but they expected them to be duller than the main roads. That was not the case. It appeared as though the various business owners, and indeed the council of the district itself, had gone through great pains to ensure that every part of the district, every tiny alley and narrow street, was a feast for the senses. They covered dead ends that would have held only garbage and debris in the Outer Ring in lights and painted the walls with fantastic murals. People filled the busy street, moving around statues and decorations that made it look even smaller than it already was. There were more cafes here, and more tables set outside where people could sit and talk.
TO couldn’t enjoy any of it. Every time they saw something beautiful, they could only think about DH, about how they wished they were there with them, and how it was their own fault that they weren’t.
If anything happened to DH, it would be their fault, just like losing GiDi had been their fault.
The carriage eventually stopped at the entrance of an off-road. “Apologies, but this is as far as I can go; the streets ahead are too narrow for my carriage to access. However, the road is short, and the bar you’re looking for is in the center. If you are stopping for only a short time, I can simply move to the other side of the street and pick you up there. Otherwise, I will park on the main road and come when you need me.”
TO didn’t respond as they jumped out of the carriage and made their way down the narrow street. They wanted to run; or better yet, they wanted to fly over all the obstacles, but the Entertainment District banned non-mechanical flight, and the narrow street was too crowded for them to run though. Still, the bar wasn’t too far in and TO got there quickly. It looked small on the outside but TO knew that it either led underground where it had more space to sprawl out, or sprawled out behind the other closed storefronts - oddly enough, a bakery and a flower shop- on either side. The exterior looked like wood, but it was obviously just resin. Fake plants sat clustered in neat planters that looked like stone but were again resin. The sign over the door seemed painted on to give it the look of an old pub, but the ‘paint’ was actually just clever lighting as the letters glowed white blue against the dark fake wood, spelling out, “The Cottage Core Pub.”
TO double checked their directions; Melissa said that it was a bar, not a pub. The directions were correct, so TO went inside.
There seemed to be some kind of noise cancelling tech installed in the walls, because the moment that the door closed behind TO the confusion of all the music and voices outside simply turned off, replaced with the sound of wind rushing through trees and owls in the distance. The bar, much like TO had expected, was much bigger than it seemed outside, but there were no stairs leading down to a lower level where such a place might freely spread out. Perhaps, TO thought, the owner actually owned the buildings on either side and simply made the storefront seem smaller on purpose. Well, at least a bakery and a flower shop would match the general feel of the pub. Fake windows showed not the illuminated night time street outside, but a forest at night, bathed in moonlight. Tables topped with pale tablecloths sat all about, lit by artificial yellow-orange light from fake candles. There was a fireplace in the corner with some chairs before it, but even from the other side of the room TO could tell that the flames were fake; played on a screen behind the glass of the fireplace with the sound of crackling fire and snapping wood playing to make it seem authentic. Most people inside wore pale pastel dresses with big skirts or very refined suits. As they drank alcoholic drinks from mugs, they worked on various crafts and they talked among themselves. The entire bar held this aesthetic which the patrons had adopted, making both the people and the place seem like a piece of artwork.
It made DH, sitting at the bar with their tight black dress and glittering jewelry, stand out.
TO went to the bar and caught the eye of the bartender; they weren’t sure of the species, but Melissa had mentioned their pronouns as Ze and Zim; at least that’s what she had said. The bartender looked something like a moth with a big puffy collar of fur around zheir neck, soft moth-like wings at their back, and long feathery antennae on their head. Ze tapped at the bar next to DH to get their attention. DH looked up, the bartender whispered something, and DH looked behind them. The moment they caught sight of TO, their ears went down, pinned back, and they looked away.
They were angry? DH was still angry at them!? TO thought that, given what Melissa said, they were more sad than mad. Apparently not.
They took a steadying breath as they wordlessly sat down next to DH. DH turned away from them, looking in the opposite direction at the wall.
“You shouldn’t have run like that.” TO whispered, their voice low as they spoke in synth speak.
“Well, you told me to leave.” DH snapped, but the moment they did, their ears went down again, “Not that I blame you.”
TO looked over and saw a glass sitting before DH on the bar. It was mostly empty, with just a few drops left in it; not enough for them to see what it was.
“I didn’t want you to leave entirely.” TO muttered, “I just needed a second.”
“I figured it’d be better If I left without you.” DH said, “That way you wouldn’t have to be seen around me.”
“You know it has nothing to do with that!” TO snapped.
“Well, you ran off from me in the lobby. What am I supposed to think?”
“You’re supposed to think that I’m trying my best to keep us together, to do the job properly and make sure we can retire and stay together!” TO huffed and looked away, “But... Clearly you don’t think I can do it.” DH’s words ran through their heads once more, and they once more saw GiDi being pulled away from them.
DH finished their drink, and the moment they set it down, the bartender was there to retrieve the glass. “You finished that quicker than I expected.” Ze said.
“Yes. and I’ll have another drink.” DH said, their ears back, their eyes narrowed, “That tornado thing we talked about.”
“That’s really strong.” the bartender said, zheir antennae twitching.
“I’m aware.”
The bartender nodded, glanced at TO, then went to get the drink.
“What is it?” TO asked.
“Nothing. A drink.”
“Alcoholic?”
“With a few other things that actually make it have an effect”
TO felt their stomach twist, “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” They said, How much had HD already drunk today? “We had those drinks with the berries earlier, right?”
“Does it matter? If you’re worried I’ll embarrass you, just go home. I’ll get myself home later.”
TO’s ears dipped back, their eyes narrowing, “Obviously, I won’t leave you here.”
“Well, maybe you should!” DH snapped. “Maybe you should, so I don’t say anything else horrible to you and upset you and-” they choked, closed their eyes, and held their hand to their mouth. TO could see the tears in their eyes welling up for moments before DH willed them away. “Maybe you should leave me here, so I don’t say anything nasty to you again.”
The bartender came back with the drink on a tray. It was bright green, and served in a very tall, very narrow glass. “... Now legally, I can’t refuse to serve you this.” The bartender said, “But I don’t recommend drinking it; you said you don’t drink a lot, and you’ve never had anything with fungal extracts before.”
TO’s ears flicked back, “Fungal extract?” They asked the bartender as they switched to Common. Ze nodded. TO turned back to DH. “Are you insane?”
“It won’t kill me.” DH muttered as they took the glass. TO grabbed the glass from them and pulled it out of their reach before they could realize what was going on.
“I don’t know how much you’ve been drinking already. We had that berry drink at the theater, and now you want this? Have you even researched the interactions between these things?”
The bartender tried to say something, but DH spoke over zhem, “I looked it up, it’s fine!” They reached out, trying to take the drink from TO.
TO didn’t trust DH's words. They weren’t lying, but DH clearly wasn’t thinking straight and TO didn’t know how much they had already consumed. Regardless, given emotional and potentially chemical influences, TO didn’t think they could rely on DH’s judgement.
They knew, however, how much they themself had consumed so they could more easily weigh the risks of consuming the mystery drink. With DH grabbing for the glass, TO took it and quickly downed the whole drink in one gulp. It burned as it went down their throat and exploded in their stomach. The taste of it took the breath away from them, and for just a moment, their vision seemed to go blue before shifting back to normal.
“... That was stupid.” TO said, surprised at the sudden reckless action.
“Exceedingly.” The bartender said, “For two reasons. First, I wouldn’t have blamed you if you threw it on the ground. Second, I was trying to tell you that your friend here has had no mind-altering substances since they came here.”
“What?” They looked at DH, “I thought-”
DH’s ears, now twitching with worry, sunk down, “Well, I never told you I drank anything.”
“They came in and asked for the strongest drink we could serve. Given the aesthetic, we’ve worked hard to cultivate drinks based on mushrooms, and that one-” zhey pointed at the now empty glass that TO still held in their hand, “Is our strongest, and its meant to be sipped over a long period. I convinced your friend not to order that earlier when I said it’s a bad idea to get messed up when you're sad and alone!”
TO, already feeling their vision slipping around, looked for the glass that DH had before them earlier, but remembered that the bartender already took it away, “But… They were drinking-”
“A lavender syrup, cut with carbonated water.” The bartender said. Zheir antennae twitched as their soft, furry wings shuffled behind them. “I hope you’re not piloting yourself anywhere this evening.”
“I... No?” TO panicked. They had drunk that way too fast, and now they were only going to make DH worry about them again. Maybe they’d end up making themself sick, and DH would have to care for them “We have automated-”
“You said you had a room, right?” DH asked the bartender, “You have rooms for rent if I needed to stay away for the night?”
“I did.”
“Is that offer still open? I’ll get them to lie down for a while. Maybe that’ll help.”
“That might be best, unless you want to carry them home.” zhey said, “I’ll get a server to bring you there.”
TO looked down at the bar, their ears down. They had been having such a good day, and then they ruined it all just because DH had been unexpectedly affectionate with them. They still had a little spark of anger for what DH said about GiDi, but that was well tempered both because this entire issue started because of TO, and also because in the end, DH was right.
