The White Rabbit

The Valois family carriage rolled through the guild's streets. The hooves of the horses clopped along the cobblestones. As they rolled along, Tyr hoped Macha would like the restaurant they were going to. Krystof claimed Luna adored it and told him that he should take Macha sometime.

As they pulled up to The White Rabbit, Macha began to hop up and down in her seat, "Tyr, Luna told me about this place. Are we really eating here?" She never expected Tyr to take her to this restaurant. It was known as a dancing restaurant for the nobility and rich. He hated dancing, so she had never asked to eat there.

Tyr assisted Macha out of the carriage. "If you don't want to eat here, we can choose a different place," he teased. He already knew she was excited about the restaurant and made a mental note to thank Krystof.

As they walked towards the entrance, Macha pulled on his arm, she was moving faster than he. For every stride he took, she needed to take two. Normally he slowed his speed so she would not have to rush everywhere. The mere notion of eating at this restaurant made her so excited that she almost jogged to the entrance.

"No, no, no. I want to eat here." She already enjoyed seeing the unique entrance and her eyes were darting about at the sights. This was the only building of its kind in Marseille and Macha felt proud that it was in the Obsidian Dragon's restaurant section.

When Macha met with the owners during contract negotiations, they insisted on having their restaurant be built in the area belonging to the Obsidian Dragons. They loved that the area had more foliage compared to the other areas of the city. They also appreciated that the district had a variety of building types. None of the buildings had to conform to any one style. The owners viewed this as a perk because their building was not so much a building, but a large tree. Despite being a tree, it towered fifteen stories high with an extremely thick trunk.

The White Rabbit was a restaurant that had been built so the customers entered on the highest floor. The floors spiraled around the center and they set the tables up against the walls and railings. When peering down the rabbit hole, one would see the dance floor at the bottom.

Every night, a live band performed, and the servers were all from an Al-mi'raj family that moved into Marseille a few years ago. They wore crisp white clothes which made their soft yellow fur stand out and they polished their horns till they shone.

When Tyr and Macha reached the reception desk, the owners stood on their hind legs to greet them. Wang Wei and his wife, Wang Fang, spotted the couple approaching and gave a deep bow. Their rabbit ears flopped over their heads and they held the bow for a few moments. Wang Fang straightened up, "Macha and Captain Tyr, it honors us that you decided to visit us. You both look radiant tonight."

Coming out to eat was already taxing on Tyr's patience. Not eager to socialize, he let Macha do the talking. She smiled warmly and shook their paws. "We have been so busy. Tonight we found some time and decided to visit you. I hope the location is working out well for you." she inquired.

Wang Wei nodded enthusiastically, "Yes, we love it here! It worked out perfectly and business is doing excellent! Come, you can eat in the area we reserve for the family." He realized that Macha and Captain Tyr were both open-minded people. His family was thankful that they had not been racist against them.

The Obsidian Dragons gave him the same rates that the other business owners paid, which ended up being easier for them to handle than what they were charged in their previous restaurant. They originally owned a small restaurant that lay on a side street in the Azure Bengal district. The high overhead made it so they barely turned a profit. Now, their restaurant stood on the main street and they were given the leeway to design the building to what they envisioned. They had to take out a loan for construction, but the rates had been fair and they would be able to pay it off in another year or two because the business did so well.

Wang Wei personally escorted them to their table. As they descended, Tyr observed Macha's reactions. It pleased him that his efforts made her smile so much. The soft lights which lined the walls coupled with the firefly lights floating around the restaurant gave off a romantic mood. Tyr understood that most of the atmosphere was created using magic, but he could see why she would enjoy this place.

Macha turned her head and caught him not looking at the scenery. She moved to hold his hand and pointed out the firefly lights that flew around them. He nodded and grinned. The lights reminded her of the nights they trained on his family estate. Many fireflies flew around the lake since it had been summertime and she still looked back at those memories fondly.

When they were seated, Tyr did not bother to take the menus from Wang Wei. "Just send one of everything so we can try a little bit of everything." He did not want Macha to have any regrets when they got back to the apartment. He was willing to come to The White Rabbit but did not want to visit more than occasionally.

Their table lay on the bottom floor where they could watch the dancers twirl around the dance floor. Macha enjoyed seeing the band play and enjoyed the images that their music created. Many forest creatures hopped around the floor and butterflies and birds flew around them. It almost felt like she and Tyr were on a picnic in the woods.

Tyr cut the food as it came to the table and they sampled the various dishes. Some of the food had been wrapped in leaves while others created artistic sculptures. None of the food was plated normally, which helped add to the magical atmosphere.

His favorite plate was a spicy jerk chicken dish that was paired with a flavorful rice. While Macha considered it to be too spicy, he liked the strong flavors that the dish had. Compared to his spicy preference, she liked a salmon dish that had a sweet glaze on top.

Across the floor, Kurbiika spotted Macha and made her way to their table. Tonight, she dressed in a flowing silk dress that swayed with each step. She thought Macha looked beautiful and wanted to see if they could hit it off. She touched a hand lightly on Macha's shoulder to get her attention, "Nice to see you again. How have you been?"

Macha turned around and found Kurbiika standing behind her. "Kurbiika! I've been doing well. Busy, but well. How about you?" She was excited to meet an acquaintance and respected the woman as a fighter. Grabbing Tyr's hand, she introduced them, "Tyr, this is Kurbiika. She's the person I fought in the tournament. Do you remember?"

Tyr tilted his head slightly to acknowledge Kurbiika's presence. He did not appreciate the interruption, but Macha loved to befriend everyone. Over the past year, he decided it was a cultural thing because no one acted like that in Marseille. He sipped his wine and waited for her to finish the conversation. This happened all the time when they were running errands.

Noticing Macha's hand on Tyr's, Kurbiika lifted her eyebrows. "Macha, would you like to dance? I admire you and would like to get to know you better." She still remained unsure if Macha was with the Captain, but did not want to regret being too afraid to ask later. The only thing she heard about the two, was that she worked as his secretary.

When Kurbiika asked Macha to dance, Tyr was unsure if she meant as a friend or not. He frowned, deciding to wait for Macha's reaction. He always found women's interactions to be strange. They often hugged and held hands, which he would never do with Krystof. Thinking back, he even remembered Luna and some of her friends sleeping in the same bed during sleepovers. Only a demon would get him to cuddle next to Freyr or Krystof in the same bed.

Macha wanted to dance with Tyr, but he had not asked her yet. She confessed, "I don't know how to dance well. The steps are foreign to me and I never learned them. I wish I could dance though." She noticed that many nobles ate at this restaurant and she did not want to be an embarrassment. His mother's words about her being unfit for social circles still rang in her ears.

Kurbiika pulled on Macha's hand. "Don't worry about it. I'll teach you." She was delighted that Macha did not turn her down directly. While she twirled Macha around the dance floor, she asked, "Where are you from? Your accent is so unique." She liked how Macha's voice was soft and felt it lent to her feminine charm.

Memories of her past entered her mind and made her smile disappear. "I'm not from this world. It isn't really something I enjoy talking about." She did not want to ruin the dance, but she hated to reflect on the family and friends she left behind. While Macha loved her new life, she still missed the old familiar world she was from.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," Kurbiika apologized softly. Wanting to lighten the mood, she instructed Macha on a few moves and twirled her around. She admired the sparkle in Macha's eyes. It made her want a small sliver of the passion Macha captured from life. At the end of the dance, she bent down and lightly kissed Macha on the lips.

At the end of the dance, Macha had been looking at Tyr. She was ecstatic that she did the moves without stepping on Kurbiika's feet. She did not expect to receive a kiss from her. Immediately taking a step back, her eyes grew wide. "Ah... Can I talk to you?" she breathed. Macha looked around to determine if anyone noticed the kiss. Tyr's face was cold and deadly. He definitely witnessed it. Macha saw that he threw his napkin down and was rising from his chair. She grabbed Kurbiika's hand and ran to the restroom.

The restroom had a lounge, and they sat down on a couch. Macha had never been kissed by a girl before and still wanted to be Kurbiika's friend. "I think we misunderstood each other. You're beautiful and I respect you, but I like men." Macha realized this was harder than turning Freyr down and her heart raced. She did not want Kurbiika to feel bad about her actions.

Kurbiika's smile faded. She thought Macha led her here to confess that her feelings were the same. Her voice raised when she asked, "Why did you dance with me then?" Now she felt wronged and embarrassed. She would not have kissed her if Macha had been clearer.

"I wanted to dance, and you said you would teach me! I swear I misunderstood. It would be impossible even if you were a man, I'm Tyr's girlfriend." It was not like she led Kurbiika on maliciously. Macha tried to keep her voice low, despite being upset.

Everyone knew Kurbiika liked women, so naturally, she considered herself to be wronged. No one in her guild would ever lead her on the way Macha did. Pointing a finger, she yelled, "No. Everyone knows I prefer women. How could you be so cruel?"

It mortified her that she kissed Macha in front of so many people. "I Kurbiika of the Azure Bengal guild challenge you to a duel. See you at midnight by the Zaysan Lake!" With that, she hurried out the door to go home and prepare. She wanted to show Macha that she was not someone to be toyed with.