The old sewers leading from the Cottage Core Pub back to the hideout underground were dirty, poorly maintained, and full of bugs. At one point, TO and Pearla came across a spot in the walkway where the old stone had fallen away, and someone had set metal panels over the resulting gap. Still, despite the filth and disrepair, the long trek back was relatively uneventful.

Well, until they neared their hideaway. Once they got close, they could hear someone in the hallway up ahead of them, just around a turn. TO put a hand out to stop Pearla, their ears tensing as they focused on their hearing. Had the authorities figured out where they went? Had Gyrini sent a group of people down into the underground to search?

A sound hit their ears; the familiar chirp of echolocation from another synth. It was familiar to TO, comforting, and made their ears flutter.

“DH?”

TO spoke softly, but their voice carried well in the hallway and DH’s hearing was just as good as TO’s. The sound of someone walking over the stone walkway ceased for just a moment, then TO could hear someone running over the walkway at full speed. DH turned the corner, running so quickly that it felt like TO could just see them a moment before they barrelled into them, burying their head in the crux of TO’s shoulder, then wrapped their arms around TO’s waist. They didn’t speak right away, they just held TO tightly, nuzzling into their neck. TO wrapped their wings around their mate, held them tight, and pressed their cheek against the side of DH’s head.

“I missed you too…” TO whispered next to DH’s ear, “So much more than I thought I could miss anyone.”

“I was so worried.” DH whimpered, “I was watching everything that was happening. Vik told me You’d be fine, and Flit and Snout said that you’d be fine and that I was just making myself worry by watching you too closely so they told me to help Goretta out, but even then I was still so worried about you! I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t think-” They stopped, suddenly gasping for breath as though they had forgotten to breathe while they were talking. They panted against TO’s neck, holding them tight as they caught their breath. When they could talk again, all they said was, “I was just so worried about you! Never do that again!”

“I don’t plan to.” TO said as they reached a hand up and gently scratched DH’s neck as they nuzzled against DH’s face. “I missed you so much. It was awful there.”

They were content to hold DH there, but they suddenly and rather unexpectedly felt DH’s lips brush against their neck. They stifled a yelp of surprise, but only just. Before they could say or do anything more, Pearla loudly cleared her throat from behind TO. “Well!” She said, “Since we’re basically back I think I’m going to go find GiDi.”

TO had, for a moment, entirely forgotten that Pearla was there. From the moment that their mate had embraced them, DH was all that existed. They pulled away, their ears hot, blue, and low. DH had clearly not remembered that Pearla would be with TO either, as they seemed to jump when she spoke, and their ears were just as dark as TO’s; maybe more.

“Er, Right, that reminds me.” DH said, stepping back just a little. “Flit and Snout want to talk to us.”

“Yes, go on and talk to them.” Pearla said as she started down the hallway, “Have fun.”

“Come on.” DH said as they took TO’s sleeve and pulled them forward, “They said they wanted to talk to you right away, because it had to do with GiDi, and Flit promised you that as soon as you got back they’d explain things?”

TO was just composing themself, but at the reminder of the upcoming conversation with Flit and Snout, their ears dropped once more. DH pulled them forward just a few feet before TO stopped in their tracks, taking DH’s hand in their own.

“I-it can wait.” TO said. “We don’t need to talk to them right away.”

DH’s ears flicked as they turned to look at TO. Their eyes wandered over TO’s ears before they spoke again. “What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing is wrong, really.” TO muttered. It was mostly the truth. There was nothing wrong. They just didn't want to dive into the conversation right away. Or later. Or at all. Their mind floundered for an excuse and landed on one almost immediately. “I need a bath first.”

“A bath?”

“Yes!” TO said, “I haven’t had one since I went into the Indebted Center!” With everything that had been happening, they could ignore the layer of dirt that covered them, but now that they were relatively safe, it was impossible. The focus on hygiene back in the training center had left too big of an imprint, and even after a day in a clean environment they could feel the natural scum on their body. The unclean environment they had been staying in, the black goo on their wings, and their recent trek through the sewers made them felt like they had to peel off a layer or two of skin before they’d feel clean again.

Thankfully, the focus on hygiene had stuck to DH as well. As soon as TO mentioned how long it had been, they wrinkled their own nose. “And you’ve not been in the cleanest of places…” DH mused. “So… Yes, maybe a bath first.” They rubbed their arms. “Maybe I’ll take another today, just to be safe.”

“Because you hugged me and I’m covered in filth?” TO asked, their ears twitching as a smirk covered their face.

DH didn’t even try to deny it. They nodded solemnly. “Because I hugged you, and you’re covered in filth.” They agreed. “A hot shower first, and then a bath. I’ll help you get the black off your wings.”

TO’s ears relaxed, their shoulders dropped. “That might take a while.” They said with a smile. “I had some of this on my face, and it took forever to get it off. I think it might take a few soaks to get this stuff off my wings.”

“Oh, Vik didn’t tell you?” DH smiled, “They have an oil that’ll get this stuff right off. It’ll only take a few minutes instead of hours of scrubbing.” They tilted their head, “Nobody told you?”

TO remembered how hard they had scrubbed at their face to get that gunk off. They had scrubbed to the point of pain, and still had some clinging to them. “No.” They said, sighing as they pinched the spot between their eyes. “Nobody told me.”

“Well, you go on ahead to the showers. I’ll go get the oil, some clean clothes, and I’ll meet you there!” They hesitated a second more before hugging TO again and placing a quick, light kiss on their lips before taking off to get their things.

TO watched their mate disappear around a corner before they headed off towards the showers, a smile on their face and their ears slightly flushed. Despite knowing how filthy they were, DH had still hugged them once more, and even kissed them! Even though they still desperately wanted to get out of the conversation with Flit and Snout, they were so happy to be home once more.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

======

TO had never taken a longer bath. They insisted on getting every bit of the black goo off of their body, soaked until they had to refill the tub with hot water twice, and showered before and after their bath to ensure that every bit of grime was off them. With how thorough they had been, the quick passing of time still surprised TO. According to DH, they had been in the makeshift showers for two hours at least, but to TO who was dreading the upcoming ‘conversation’, it felt like it had been only a handful of minutes.

“Come on!” DH said, TO’s hand in their own as they pulled their mate through the underground hallways towards Flit and Snout’s room, “Why am I more eager to find out what’s happened to GiDi than you are? This is the kind of thing I thought you’d jump at!”

TO’s ears twitched as they followed along. “I suppose I’m just worried about what they’ll say.” TO finally said. It was true, if not for the exact reason DH might assume.

“Well, not knowing isn’t going to change things.” DH said, “If something’s wrong, then we need to know.” They glanced back, and took in the anxious quivering of TO’s ears, “... Maybe it’s not as bad as you’re thinking.” DH said, “I mean, if there were something medically wrong, Goretta or I would have been called to help, right? If GiDi needed surgery or something, Flit and Snout wouldn’t hide that from us.”

Surgery.

While the word normally brought horrible thoughts to TO’s mind, this time it brought a glimmer of hope! There was no reason that Snout had to talk to them about anything regarding reproduction since they had surgery while they were still in their incubation tanks to remove all the equipment related to that! Snout told them that back when they first arrived, explaining how King Decon ‘created’ synths by taking the genetic materials from reproductive organs harvested while they were still growing! Pearla had to be wrong!

“You’re right.” TO said, squeezing DH’s hand and quickening their pace, “You’re absolutely right.”

“I was considering what might have made GiDi like that.” DH said, “Seeing Pearla looking like that, looking like she was dead, it mustn’t have been fun. And watching her get slapped…” They glanced at TO again, “Well, If I saw you get slapped while looking dead, I’d want to rip apart someone too. Didn’t you feel the same when we got separated?”

TO nodded. True, they hadn’t acted quite as GiDi had in that moment, but they didn’t get to see DH get slapped, they only knew that the insurgency had taken away their mate from them, and they didn’t know exactly what was happening to DH back then. Maybe the issue was just another strange side effect from their brains being unaltered, combined with their training.

TO didn’t know, but they weren’t nearly as worried about this talk anymore.

======

Once they got to Flit and Snout’s room, the two older synths ushered in them and gestured for them to sit at the table surrounded by shaky folding chairs which sat in the middle of the room. TO had never noticed the smell in here before, but now they could; the familiar smell of other synths, and the sweet tang in the air from the opened cans of drink set before them. Even the well scrubbed stones in the room seemed to have a scent.

Had they forgotten these small smells, or had the stench of poorly kept, crowded living reset their snout and now they were smelling things all over again? TO didn’t know, but they weren’t too concerned at the moment. The sweet smell from the can was enticing, and before everyone had gotten settled and sat down, TO had already finished the first can.

“... Thirsty?” DH asked as their ears twitched.

“I'm guessing that there wasn’t a lot of sugar in the center.” Snout offered, “At least, not the amount we need.” They took the empty can off the table and offered TO a fresh one. “Go ahead, have as much as you need.”

TO didn’t need to be told again. They grabbed the can off the table, opened it, and started chugging. They weren’t sure if it was a lack of sugar causing them to crave this strange, sugary drink, but the smell of it drove them crazy and made their mouth water. Breathing could wait; their mind focused solely on getting as much into their body as they could.

“Alright.” Flit said, sitting down across from TO. “We need to talk.”

“We know.” DH said, “You told us that. Tell us what’s going on with GiDi.”

Snout clasped their hands before them, resting their elbows on the table. “What’s going on with GiDi is going to require more background information.” Snout said.

“Well, give us the background information!” DH insisted.

“You know what? I’m going to get some food.” Flit said as they stood up, their ears low and flushed, “TO’s sugar deprived. Some good food might help, and-”

“Flit, sit down.” Snout said, their ears going parallel, “Honestly, this is important.”

TO finished the second can of drink and set it down with a gasp. Before TO could even ask Flit took the empty can and came back with a third.

“Try to breathe while you drink this one.” they said before sitting back down.

“No promises.” TO muttered as they opened the next can and started chugging. They really were reliant on sugar! How much of it hid in their normal food? How sweet would the bars even taste if the food engineers allowed the sweet flavor to remain?

“Right.” Snout said, their ears pinning back slightly as they watched Flit sit back down. “Now then. I’m more than happy to tell you what’s actually going on. We’ve been meaning to talk to you about this for a while, anyway.” They glared at Flit. “Some people just kept putting it off.” They shook their heads and looked back at TO and DH.

“We have to talk about Chilacian reproduction.”

At that moment, TO learned an important thing about Chilacians and synths alike. Their three lungs were absolutely vital to their language; allowing them to inhale and exhale at the same time and pronounce syllables that would otherwise be impossible. It also made their breathing far more effective than species with only two or even a single lung.

Despite their extra lung, they apparently could not give an involuntary squawk and drink at the same time without inhaling fluid and breaking into a vicious coughing fit.