Thea

The streets of Hades were just as crowded as I had been expecting. In fact, it seemed a little worse than usual for some reason. I had Bryce give me anything she was worried about getting stolen to keep in my spacial storage. Then I took her hand and dragged her through the sea of people. All of that meant we actually made pretty good time, and I only had to break one pervert's wrist for trying to cop a feel.

“Is that seriously it?” Bryce asked as she stared at the temple in disbelief.

“What were you expecting?”

“I don’t know… something more traditional, I guess?” Bryce frowned. “How do we get it? Please don’t tell me we’re going to have to wait in that line.”

“Oh, we’re definitely not going to wait in the line.” I fixed my hair the best I could and adjusted my shirt to give my boobs a little help. “I know the bouncer, just try your best to look dumb and hot, not that you don’t already have the hot part down.” I slapped Bryce’s ass, which earned me an adorable squeak and a promising glare, before walking past the line to the front door of the club.

“Hey Taz, you back on door duty?” I stopped a few paces away from the shirtless incubus and did my best to ignore the dirty looks coming from the people standing in line.

“Yeah, I lost a bet when a certain little devil disappeared with my half-sister for two months and didn’t bother to call.” Taz crossed his arms and set me with a death glare.

“Uh, right… sorry about that.” I kinda just rubbed at the back of my neck, not exactly sure what to say. “I mean, I brought her back, eventually?”

“But if you had waited a few more weeks, then it would’ve been Nes standing out here freezing her tits off instead of me.” Taz smirked and I smiled. “Get over here. It’s good to see you, and I’m glad you’re okay.”

I rushed over and gave him a huge hug. “Thanks, Taz, but you really should learn not to bet against me. I’ll always come out on top.”

“Yeah well, one of these days you’re not going to come home and I’m going to make bank.” Taz broke the hug, and I punched him in the arm. “Ouch! When’d you get so strong?”

“Shut it, is Nessy inside? We need to talk to her.”

“We?” Taz finally seemed to notice Bryce and his eyes lit up, before he suddenly wilted. “Shit, are you two dating? I think I might have lost another bet.”

“Sorry, but it’s true.” Bryce approached with a smile. “Hopefully, you didn’t lose too much on that bet, but you’ll understand if I have a hard time feeling bad for you. I’m Bryce, by the way.”

“Tazris, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Taz smiled widely. “Don’t mind the betting, it’s a bit of an ongoing game between me and my sister, and I only ever bet on an outcome I don’t want to happen.”

“That seems like a strange strategy. Is there a reason for it?” Bryce asked.

“Of course, but I’m afraid an explanation will have to wait until next we meet. I’ve got a line of people eager to get in and we’ve already delayed them for long enough.”

“Are we good to go in?” I already knew the answer, but it was polite to ask.

“Yep, you two can go on in.” Taz stood aside and beckoned us forward. “Nes is working security on the main floor, but make sure you stop by Maya’s station to grab your bands before going out there.”

“Will do, thanks Taz.” I gave him one last quick hug before grabbing Bryce by the hand and pulling her into the club.

“He seemed interesting,” Bryce commented as she allowed me to lead her through the dark entryway.

“Yeah, most of Chorus’s children are at least a little eccentric. But Taz is good people.” I stopped a little ways in and pulled her aside. “I don’t know how familiar you are with these kinds of places, but the color code is a little different than normal. So, if you’re not sure what a color means, then you can just ask. Nobody will make fun of you for it.”

“Color code?” Bryce frowned, and I realized she was completely out of her depth.

“Shit, um, okay…” I wasn’t exactly sure where to start, but figured the absolute basics were probably enough. “We’re about to go talk to Maya, who is also good people by the way, and get a nifty little bracelet that you can change the colors on. The colors you choose tell people what and who you’re into. It lets them know what they’re allowed to approach you about, if anything.”

“That sounds… remarkably practical.” Bryce was blushing slightly, but mostly just seemed intrigued. “What should I do if somebody isn’t respecting the system?”

“That’s what Nes is for, and trust me, if she gets word of somebody ignoring your colors, then that person won’t be around for long. It’s the easiest way to earn yourself a lifetime ban, and if you’re being at all pushy, then it’s also an easy way to get your ass beat.”

“Okay, so which colors should we choose?” Bryce asked, getting surprisingly into it.

“None. It’s a strictly opt-in system, so no color means you’re not opting in,” I explained, but then quickly continued. “Oh! But make sure your band is visible at all times. It’s not a rule exactly, but it is considered polite.”

“Alright, I think I understand.” Bryce nodded.

“That’s it for the sex stuff.” I shrugged. “The only other bit of advice I can offer is to assume anything you eat, drink, or smoke is some sort of strong drug or alcohol, unless the label says otherwise. Usually whoever is offering it to you will tell you what’s in it and how much, but that’s not always the case. So, it’s better just to assume it’s the good stuff.”

“That doesn’t exactly sound safe…”

“For non-mortals it’s almost always fine, but yeah, it can be really dangerous if a mortal finds themself in here without knowing what’s going on. It’s one of the things Taz was screening for at the door.”

“If that’s the case, then I’ll probably just avoid eating or drinking anything you don’t pass off on first, assuming you don’t mind?”

“Consider me your royal taste-tester, princess.” I bowed at the waist and Bryce smiled.

“Always so charming. Was there anything else?”

“Nope!” I latched onto Bryce’s arm and started leading her down the short hallway. “Just try to enjoy yourself. I know we’re here on business, but I bet Chorus will be a lot more agreeable if we do a bit of reveling before we meet with him.”

“Well then, I suppose we really don’t have a choice.” Bryce laughed as we entered the club’s receiving area.

“Hey Maya! It’s been awhile!” I greeted the demon sitting behind the counter as we approached. Unlike me, Maya was a proper imp. She was a couple dozen generations removed from the last god of the forge, which meant she wasn’t particularly powerful. But she made up for it in her own way.

“Oh my gods, Thea? Is that you?” The shorter woman vaulted over her desk to glomp onto me from halfway across the room. The enchantments in my boots triggered and just barely stopped me from being bowled over. “I was so worried about you. People were saying that Vurdex turned you into an ice sculpture, but I didn’t believe any of them. I mean, who would want you as an ice sculpture?”

“Hey! I’d make a great ice sculpture, any number of people would love to have me on display!” I lifted Maya off the ground to glare at her. She was a little over a meter tall, with short black hair and red skin.

“I just call it like I see it. Say, who’s that?” Maya pointed a finger at Bryce. “I haven’t seen her around here before, and I remember everybody.”

“Hello, Maya. I’m Bryce, Thea’s girlfriend.” Bryce gave something of an awkward wave towards the imp.

“Oh, that makes sense. You both smell like each other.” Maya patted at the arm holding her in the air, and I gently lowered her to the ground. “Do you two want paired bands, or individuals?”

“Paired please,” I answered immediately as she started walking towards her desk. “Do you know who’s on kitchen duty tonight?”

“Javier, but he’s going through a breakup and it’s real bad, so I’d stick to the bar.” Maya leapt onto her chair and pulled out a pair of the black metal bands from a box on her desk. “Here, each of you take one of these and put them on, then hold them near each other to get them to pair. It shouldn’t take long.”

Bryce and I did as we were told, and I felt the band tighten to fit as it activated. I had to stop myself from immediately switching it to orange and instead left it blank. Which earned me a raised eyebrow from Maya, but she didn’t comment.

“Right, well Bryce, since you’re new here, you’ll get the whole spiel,” Maya started into her usual lecture. “Only eat or drink stuff that you ordered directly. The waitstaff will know to warn you if it’s too strong for a mortal. Thea isn’t the type to do it, but if anybody tries to pressure you into anything, then press the little alert button on your band and… Nes? I think she’s the one working the floor tonight. Anyway, somebody will rush to help you. There are private rooms on the third floor for quick jaunts along with more comfortable places on the fifth if you need to sleep something off. All of our rooms are pocket dimensions, so we never run out, but you’ll have to front the mana. Usually, I’d go into detail about how to get a room if you don’t have the mana, but I can tell that’s not going to be a problem for you. Questions?”

“Uh, I don’t think so. That was rather thorough.” Bryce was distractedly fidgeting with her band. “This is magi-tech, isn’t it? There’s definitely a tracking spell here, and it looks like there are a few others that are dormant.”

“Yep!” Maya agreed cheerfully. “The tracking spell is there to ensure security can find you if there’s a problem. The other ones are to counter recording attempts as well as detect shapeshifting or illusions. Not that we discourage those sort of things, we just require partners to agree to it first.”

“Come on babe, if you don’t have any more questions, then we should move on. Taz can’t let in the next group while we’re still here.”

“Fair enough. It was a pleasure to meet you Maya.”

“You too!” Maya waved cheerfully from her desk. “And if you and Thea are long-term, then we should totally meet for brunch tomorrow. I’ve got so many stories.”

“Time to go!” I pulled Bryce by the arm through the sound proofed curtain, into the pounding bass and flashing neon lights of the temple.

~~~~

“Thea! I heard you were back!” I felt a familiar somebody slide up next to me at the bar and wrapped an arm around my waist before whispering into my ear. “You rushing back home won me quite a few bets with Tazris, and I’d love to take you someplace private to thank you properly.”

“Sorry Nessy, I’m blank tonight.” I held up my wrist to show off my still blank black band and felt her immediately release me.

“Dammit Thea, that means I just lost everything I won by you coming home safely.” Nessy smiled at me as she wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me in close. “Although you can make it up to me by telling me about the person who convinced you to finally go blank.”

I was just about to tell her all about Bryce when a large demon wearing nothing but an apron set a plate down in front of me. “Here you go, Thea. I made them just how you like it, and they should be fine for a mortal.”

“Thanks, Javier.” I reached out and grabbed his hand before he could rush back to the kitchen. “I know it sucks right now, but things will get better, and you know what? You’re hot as all the hells and if they don’t know what they’re missing, then fuck those two. You don’t need them.”

Javier smiled at me in a way that nearly met his eyes before reaching out to mess up my hair. “Thank you, Thea. I appreciate it.”

“Poor guy.” Nessy commented as he disappeared back into the kitchen. “Both of his partners ambushed him right before his shift with all of his bags already packed. Guess they didn’t like him taking the extra shifts, said he wasn’t spending enough time at home.”

“Bullshit. He was just trying to pay for culinary school. They should’ve supported him.”

“It’ll work out, and he’ll be better for it in the end,” Nessy reassured me. “But don’t for a second think I didn’t hear what Javier just said. A mortal made you go blank? Please tell me it was an elf.”

I rolled my eyes and grabbed the plate of chicken wings Javier had brought me. “Come on, I’ll introduce you.”