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i.
Dear Archons… They have got to be kidding her.
As if her day wasn't already terrible from having to travel all the way to the Kuvaahki Experimental Design Bureau for investigative measures because the one and only Boss Nef ordered her to, of course it was just ideal to return to the Curatorium of Secrets with the building doors locked shut.
After letting out groans of frustration and kicking nearby rocks, she catches a glimpse of a noticeable difference outside the building.
Expecting Jahoda’s arrival was a folded, light green, hand-written letter, which she could immediately tell was written by the agency's owner. Amazed at the inanimate object’s persistence to not be flown away by the breeze, the bounty hunter reaches out to grab the paper placed behind the lantern hanging by the entrance.
Jahoda, my apologies for not telling you sooner. It has slipped my mind to make you aware of my endeavors. With that said, I’ll be attending business with Lauma beginning at midnight, hence why I had to close the Curatorium early.
I’ll be off for a few days, so don’t expect me to return any time soon. As for the Kuvaahki commission, I know and am sure that you have accomplished it flawlessly, so thanks as always. Let’s discuss this matter and your pay once I come back.
Use my time away to relax for the time being. Aino told me she might need a hand at her workshop, if you have the time, why not visit her and Ineffa?
Folding back the note to its original form, Jahoda looks upwards, at the stars, searching for the absent moon. The sky looks immensely dim tonight, giving the impression that the stars shine a lot more. Having no choice but to leave, she takes a long deep breath before planning her actions.
While she had been expecting her boss to give her a kind of break soon, it being lent to her in the middle of the night was definitely not in her array of expected scenarios. What's worse is that the key to the Curatorium was with Nefer.
Fuck… Where do I even go now T__T Boss Nef you owe me big time.
Walking back and forth in thought, the bounty hunter quickly recalled the last sentence of the letter. Staying over at the Clink-Clank Krumkake Craftshop wouldn't necessarily be her last option, but it honestly felt like it was her best and safest bet considering the dangers of her mission just a few hours ago.
It's not that she doesn't trust the people in Nasha Town, but with her line of work involved, there's no reason to not be paranoid over noticing a couple of stares lasting too long from complete strangers. Yup, it was definitely better to be safe than sorry.
Without wasting any more time, she grabs a hold of the letter and a scrawny looking bag filled with newly acquired electrical components before proceeding to run hastily to her next location.
ii.
Thankfully, when Jahoda turned up a few meters right outside the craftshop’s doors, the lights inside were still on, indicating that the two who lived in the building were awake, and most probably, were still working.
Upon hearing Aino’s voice across the metal wall, Jahoda decided to give the door a few but quiet knocks, announcing her unprecedented arrival. As she waits for a response, the bounty hunter fixes her appearance, tidying up the seams while brushing away any remaining dust particles clinging to the fabric of her clothes.
A few seconds pass, she finally hears tiny and slow steps approaching the entrance. It's Aino. Not long after however, the noise of the movement stopped. “Aino, stay here. I’ll get the door.”
Now, she hears a familiar robotic response take over, the uniformed metallic sounding steps coming an inch closer.
“But it might be really really important! You’re not the boss around here, Ineffa!” Aino says while stomping her feet, getting one last of a pathetic attempt out before the automaton decides her final verdict.
“Aino.” The taller woman repeats, Jahoda notices the quality of the automaton's voice becoming firmer. Damn, it gets strict in here? She isn't too fazed about it though, after hearing The Traveler’s stories about Ineffa’s past, they’ll surely need all the protection they can muster.
Unable to counter back an argument, the mechanical inventor sighed in defeat. “Fine! But if it's another food delivered by Lauma, I better have a portion myself!”
Without needing to unlock the door, Ineffa’s own intelligence database had successfully analyzed and mapped the not-so-unfamiliar stranger outside the craftshop. “Jahoda? Is that you?” Ineffa blurted out.
“I– Uh? What? How’d you know it was me?” She replies in disbelief, surprised to hear her name come out from the automaton. “Also can we at least talk inside, it's getting really cold here, you know.” Jahoda says while rubbing her hands down her arms, freezing.
As requested, the doors open. What was in front of her now was no one other than Ineffa.
Jahoda offers the automaton a quick smile before completely barging in the building, accidentally bumping her shoulder with the taller woman’s own. She then proceeded to make herself feel at home by tripping on a lying metal scrap and landing her back on the cemented floor.
“Jahoda? Is there an emergency? It's not very… you to come here this late?” Aino, who came running over and was now directly looking over her, states in concern. “Oh! And I just finished eating all of Ineffa’s krumkakes, so don't expect anything!”
“Well… sort of, but not really?” Jahoda explains, trying to ease up the pain she got from both the harsh impact on both her shoulder and back. “Apparently, Boss Nef had to go somewhere with Lauma for business reasons and she forgot to tell me, so after finishing today’s commission, I arrived at a locked Curatorium of Secrets with no keys to enter.” She further adds.
Although Jahoda remained to be a tiny bit upset at the current events, she had wasted no time in placing her bag at the chair by the desk. Naturally, she headed over to reorganize any scattered documents and books on the floor right after standing up from her original position.
After fixing the alignment of the books on the shelf, the woman immediately gloomed down as she remembered Aino’s last words.
Running back, she kneeled and grabbed both of the prodigy’s hands and shook it with light force, imitating a fake cry recalling the disappointment of the news. “W-wait, Aino, did you say you finished all of the Krumkakes? Why? Couldn't you have saved some for me???”
“Hey! It's not like you warned us in advance that you’d come here in the middle of the night!” Aino responded while letting out a giggle or two from seeing the agony plastered in the woman’s face.
“B-but! Couldn't you guys have I don't know? Krumkakes in stock somewhere? For midnight snacks? I mean–” Jahoda continued to voice out, expressing her endless need for krumkakes, and as if Archons had blessed her with another vision, the appetizing and sweet aroma of the subject of her misery filled her nose.
Following the smell, both Aino and Jahoda arrived at the kitchen side of the house, seeing that chef Ineffa just finished making another batch of the delicacy.
“Oh, you two are here. I was certain that you’ll be too busy talking, but here, I had decided to make some krumkakes.” Ineffa calmly states while placing two plates at the table.
Not wasting another second, Jahoda sat at one of the chairs, eyes in awe and admiration as she stared at the food, practically drooling herself. “H-how’d ch-you know?” She asks the automaton right after taking a huge bite.
“As you can expect, Aino created the sensitivity of my ears to go beyond the normal hearing level of a human. In simple terms, I had heard your stomach grumbling even from outside.” From the statement alone, Jahoda could feel her ears turn red from embarrassment. “While you were explaining to Aino your situation, I had begun creating the krumkakes.”
“Wow! You’re really the best Ineffa!” The shortest of the three announced, crumbs of the snack visible to the sides of her mouth.
“Aino, you have had enough intake for krumkakes today. If you eat another portion, I’d have to take away any sweets and sugar snacks for the next two weeks.” The robot absentmindedly says while taking a bite of the snack herself.
“W-what!?”
iii.
“Goodnight Ineffa.” Aino shortly yawned with her eyes half opened, smiling softly at the automaton before falling to the deep state of sleep.
This is a routine for them.
Ineffa gives it a minute or two, readying herself to hear the first hint of a snore before letting go of Aino’s hand. While waiting, she rubs the smaller girl’s skin lightly, hoping it would help ease Aino’s journey throughout dreamland.
Once the faintest sound of a snore comes out, the automaton calmly and safely unclasps her robotic fingers away from Aino's, moving away from the bed as silently as possible. “Goodnight Aino.”
With enough distance between the two, Jahoda walks up to Ineffa to ask a couple of questions.
“Do you do this everyday?” She suddenly questions, genuinely curious to know more about the two’s relationship.
“Yes. There are days wherein Aino experiences nightmares. There are also times where she can't sleep.” Ineffa quickly remembers an instance when she had to stay beside Aino for longer than two hours past midnight.
“When Aino’s having difficulty sleeping, I hold her hand, and sometimes we even engage in meditation. Results from the trials indicated that both methods significantly helped her troubles in sleeping, so I decided and ought to do it everyday for her wellbeing.” The taller woman expounds while looking at her own mechanical hand.
The explanation touched Jahoda. It wasn't everyday where you get to see such a familial and loving connection, especially one coming from an automaton, more so from Ineffa. Additionally, she had wondered whether it would be possible for the taller woman to experience and feel more intense emotions.
“You had mentioned that Nefer and Lauma are on a business trip.” Ineffa breaks the silence, heading over to the kitchen to wash the remaining dishes they used just a few minutes ago. “Do you know what for?”
“Can I be really really really honest with you?” Jahoda eggs on, plopping herself down the couch as she watches Ineffa clean the utensils.
The more spoons Ineffa finishes cleaning, the harder Jahoda tries to not ask how the taller girl’s not malfunctioning from her inner machineries interacting with water and other related chemical liquids.
“Yes. Don't worry. I’ll keep your secret.” Ineffa responded.
“No, no! It's not anything bad or gossip-y like that. To be quite honest, I just think they're not even on a business trip.” She finally lets her thoughts escape her mouth and wander around the air.
Jahoda knew her boss was practically convincing when it came to persuading people. Furthermore, she would definitely be a heavy contender for receiving the title of being the best in everything. It just hadn't crossed Jahoda’s radar that her boss would have the money, the connections AND the lover.
Although Boss Nef had told thousands of lies for the betterment of the Curatorium of Secrets, her attempts in trying to hide her girlfriend had been incredibly unsuccessful. Jahoda knew better than to ask directly though. For her, it was already enough of a key indicator to see Lauma and her boss steal glances during “business” meetings.
Archons… She had felt like a third wheel whenever she was in the same vicinity as the two, and the feeling would only get worse if it weren't for The Traveler and Paimon also being in the same room.
“What would they be doing?” Ineffa asks the second time, her own database lacking enough understanding and connection to predict Jahoda’s next statement.
Once she finished setting the plates to dry, she went to sit beside Jahoda on the couch, who had now turned to face her. “Well… I just think they're on a date.” The shorter of the two voiced out, again sighing her frustrations.
“A date?” Ineffa repeats, tilting her head to the side upon hearing the woman’s answer.
“Yes. A date. The two of them. Lauma and Nefer. LauFer or something. They're dating, Ineffa. Trust me, I’m 100% convinced they're girlfriends.” Jahoda declares with full confidence, placing her hands on Ineffa’s shoulder, shaking the automaton with all her might.
“LauFer?” The blue-haired girl mumbled slowly, eventually getting ignored by another of Jahoda’s outbursts. “And to be fair, I get it, like truly. We’re all bound to have someone someday, but really????? Boss Nef has a girlfriend and I don't? What am I doing wrong?” Jahoda complains while staring at the ceiling.
How the hell do you even make people fall in love with you?
Love in itself is complicated, but reciprocated love sets out to be a disaster. As the shorter woman falls her head back to hit the soft cushion of the couch, she gazes at the ceiling and gets into an existential crisis.
“Say… Ineffa. Am I annoying?”
Ineffa doesn't waste a moment to respond back. “Yes.” The reply earns the automaton a furrowed brow and a weak slap to the arm. Robots surely are infuriatingly direct. “Ughhh, you shouldn't say that! Didn't Aino ever teach you to be nice to people!”
“I’m nice to you.” The taller girl says, but Jahoda doesn't react like she usually does. She connects it instead to the comment prior. “No you’re not, you called me annoying.”
“I was simply being honest.” Ineffa asserted, the emotion and environmental modules inside her sensing the atmosphere to be very light and peaceful. “Whatever…” The bounty hunter brushed off.
A few minutes marches along where neither of them talk. Surrounding them was nothing but the familiar cozy atmosphere of the craftshop, the fusion of both mechanical and vintage furniture setups and the lingering aroma of krumkakes.
For a split second, Jahoda finds it weird.
Considering the events of yesterday, she had to be tired, exhausted. If anything had to be done with absolutely everything, but the weird thing is she somehow isn't.
She should be drooling asleep on the very couch she's lounging on currently, and yet she's the calmest she’s been since…
Maybe it's the krumkakes. It's definitely the krumkakes.
Jahoda swears it's the krumkake's fault. And Boss Nef’s. And the time being 1:30am. And Aino sleeping, which ultimately left her and Ineffa alone with each other's company.
Jahoda swears it’s all those things combined.
Oh Archons… I really want a girlfriend.
“Ineffa?” Jahoda speaks out, assessing whether the robot woman shut herself down. “Are you still awake?” She added.
Thankfully, the automaton responded back “Yes. What do you want to talk about?”
The shorter woman sat up, lowering her head and began to look down at the floor, shying away from what she's about to say next. “It's less of a commentary thing, but I was wondering… Can you teach me ways or steps in making someone fall in love?”
As if her request wasn't already cringe inducing as it is, the silence that followed after had hurt her pride even more. “Ummm… Ineffa? Hello? Did you hear me? Are you still there?” From the silence, she was fully convinced that this mechanical woman was torturing her for her own personal enjoyment.
Life truly is unfair.
“I’m here. To be quite frank, I was just… Hmmm… What do you people call it? Shocked. For approximately 5 seconds, I was shocked to hear your request.” The blue-haired girl voiced out, staring at Jahoda like there was no awkward type of tension filling the room.
Without warning Jahoda, Ineffa’s eyes then turn a completely different color, readying to load up her intel on the matter.
“However, I had already begun searching my database right after you finished your sentence. I apologize since my knowledge could be quite limited from Aino never updating my love module, but from what I could gather… These are the four essential steps to make someone fall in love…”
Not wanting to miss a singular detail, the bounty hunter immediately fixed her posture, leaning closer to Ineffa as a result.
The taller woman continued to enumerate the recently acquired information. “First, be in communication with the person. When communicating with them, it's important to be open and honest about your feelings. While doing so, listening and giving your own thoughts about topics help them to know who you are as a person as well.”
“Second, once you have established a type of relationship, it's better to show your intentions with the person after some time. Show interest in them, ask them what they want in a partner, whether they're looking to be in a relationship or not, ask them on a date if you're brave enough.”
Before Ineffa could continue, Jahoda launched herself off the couch to scavenge the nearby area for a pen and a piece of paper, wanting to note down the steps and intricate details needed for her new operation: Get a Girlfriend.
“Third, be consistent. It's highly discouraged to give away any mixed signals, or let the other person guess your true intentions. Being consistent and showing them you’re interested through your actions helps the person you want to fall in love know that you're genuine and chivalrous.”
“Last but not the least, be yourself. People appreciate it when the person they're with is being authentic. It should be noted that it's better to be yourself than change who you are for the person you like. In that manner, you're not only lying to them, but also to yourself.”
Right after Ineffa finished enumerating the steps, Jahoda could sense the automaton’s machinery slow down. The woman’s eyes had returned to their usual color, back to her normal self. As if nothing happened, she turns her head to look at Jahoda whose eyes are locked on her.
With her mind being elsewhere, Jahoda absentmindedly ponders about the four steps given by the taller woman beside her.
Communicate and Listen
Show Interest
Be consistent with your actions
Be yourself
Seems easy enough, but who do I want to fall in love with?
iv.
A few days after Jahoda had chosen to welcome and pamper herself at the Clink-Clank Krumkake Craftshop, Ineffa had noticed strange signs happening with regards to her own inner workings.
To be more specific, she felt the need to reset her systems at least four times a day, for reasons she can't quite get around. That was twice the daily routine she had been accustomed to.
A bug. She classified whatever this was into that category. Errors. Malfunctions. Things that cause trouble.
It had to be a bug of some sort.
To clarify, it's not that there were any actual errors that caused her problems, nor did those things harbored any negative and detrimental effects. It wasn't even the first time she encountered that many malfunctions for such a short amount of time.
In fact, she had gotten them all throughout her life in this particular vessel given to her by Aino.
But something was wrong.
Something had changed.
And Ineffa, who usually had the logical answer and explanation for everything, was beginning to feel conflicted from having no official way to solve the root of this very new problem.
Enough about her though, because as Jahoda mentioned just a few hours prior, today was her day.
Today marks the first time that the blonde girl goes on a date. From what Ineffa could tell, Jahoda was beyond ecstatic, the happiest she's seen the woman from all the years knowing her.
Seeing Jahoda with the widest smile on her face makes her feel weird. Nonetheless, she was happy for her, she thinks. When the shorter girl was readying at the craftshop, allotting hours to choose the best dress to wear, Ineffa had stopped whatever she was doing to assist her.
“Are you sure you're not doing this to make fun of me?” Jahoda curiously asks, not used to receiving any form of help from the automaton. “Don’t tell me you paid Netochka to do this whole girlfriend thing with me.”
“I do not know a Netochka, nor am I aware of your endeavors, I’m simply helping you because I want to.” Ineffa calmly explains as she picks out a dress to suggest. “Is that so wrong? To help a friend?”
A few hours passed and Jahoda had suggested that she’d join her, just in case, as a lookout for potential danger.
She thinks about it, what it would entail, what seeing Jahoda on a date would make her feel. She doesn't reach a definitive conclusion, but decides to nod in agreement to the invitation.
Now, the two are inside The Flagship and are seated at completely different tables. From what Ineffa could observe two tables away, it initially looked like both women were enjoying the date. There were loud laughters, friendly slaps on the shoulder and even feeding each other their ordered food.
For the first few minutes, they seemed to have gotten along, probably sharing a lot of similarities, solely guessing from their body language alone. The only thing that's bothering Ineffa is that she knows and recognizes the way Jahoda is when she's nervous, and as expected, right now, she's tense.
However, at the twenty minute mark, the automaton had noticed several indicators of Jahoda possibly being uncomfortable at the very moment. She only needed the signal though, the one they decided on beforehand from when Jahoda thinks she wants out of the date.
And there it was.
The bounty hunter reached upwards and wore her pink-tinted glasses. As quickly as she could, Ineffa hurriedly stood up from the leather couch and headed straight over to where Jahoda was seated.
Ineffa puts her hand on the woman’s shoulder before speaking. “Jahoda, there you are. Aino’s having an emergency at the craftshop.”
Pretending like they hadn't practiced the scenario over and over, Jahoda expressed her worry for the little girl. “Oh! What? No way!? We better go help.”
While packing her belongings, the blonde woman carefully stood up from the booth and apologized to her date. “I’m so very sorry, I have to go. Aino gets into a lot of trouble when she’s alone.” She laughs it off, hoping Netochka would fall for the act.
“It's fine! Will I be in contact with you again?” The latter asked. “Ummm, I don't know, but I’ll let you know my thoughts in the future.” Jahoda told her, unknowingly taking a hold of the automaton’s arm with her own robotic one.
After bidding goodbye, the two set off to head outside the bar.
When they arrived inside the craftshop, Jahoda dropped to her knees and crawled over to lay her head on the side of the couch. “Thank you Ineffa, you really saved me there.” She let out a response before gasping three more times
“Would it be okay to ask why you wanted to leave? It looked like you were having a good time.” Ineffa commented, still somewhat confused at the turn of events.
“I think she may have mistaken our date as a platonic hangout. Also, she was weirdly obsessed with Reed Miller, so I feel like she isn't even into girls.” The girl expounded while rolling her eyes in disbelief.
Just when the shorter girl planned to take a sip of water, the automaton had placed down a glass beside her to drink. “Thanks.” She drinks, gulping down half of the poured liquid.
Ineffa sits beside her. “Well…” The taller woman starts off. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ve never been on a date.”
“Really????” Jahoda widens her eyes, almost knocking down her own glass of water, surprised to hear even a tiny bit of information about Ineffa’s (non-existent) dating life. “Yes.” Ineffa replies without any hint of emotion.
“Do you want to go on a date?” The bounty hunter asks, intrigued to hear the answer of what once was a sovereign lord. “Like do you ever feel the need to seek love and affection?”
It takes a few seconds, a delay to her ideal standards, to fully register the heavy loaded question. However, trying to come up with an answer resulted in an even harder predicament.
Does she? She had fallen to forget the roots of her own home, had almost surrendered to the means of chaos and destruction. At some point, she had forgotten about Aino…
“Hmmm…”
Was she even deserving of love in the first place? Would it hurt to try? To search for the unknown? To yearn for something she can't even fully grasp? To feel it?
Would it be okay to give herself the chance?
Sensing the heaviness from the automaton, Jahoda immediately tried to stir the conversation into another direction, hoping it would lessen the pressure she inflicted. “Hey… You know what I realized from this little experiment?”
Ineffa snapped back into reality.
“Experiment?”
“The whole girlfriend thing… I realized that maybe it's better to take things slow, to not force anything that maybe isn't meant to happen now.” She mumbles while playing with her fingers.
“It's okay to not know what you want right now, to be confused. We’re all here for the same reason anyway. To live, and living is very confusing, so… It's okay.” Jahoda states, warmly smiling at the robotic woman.
For the third time today. For the nth time this week.
Ineffa’s gears and internal systems had increased in pace, but unlike the previous instances where she had no concrete and logical idea of the cause, now, with a smiling Jahoda in front of her, it was clear as day.
There were no bugs, no errors, no malfunctions. Ineffa thinks it would be unfair to call it that. It was not a thing of the moment, nor was it something to be fixed and debugged.
She doesn't have the courage to label the thing she’s feeling at the moment. She’s not even sure if it’s alright to feel the way she's feeling, but Jahoda said whatever she felt was valid, and maybe she had to realize that too.
Like clockwork, silence engulfs them both, like sharing a space with nothing but their own presence had been their own secret language.
Maybe she won't have the answers to her questions today, maybe she won’t have them in the next few weeks. Maybe it’ll take years before she could accept the truth.
Ineffa suddenly thinks of something.
A longshot of a question.
A step to the unknown.
An inch closer to the girl beside her.
“Jahoda.”
“Yes?”
“Would it be okay if I take you out on a date?”
“Huh!?”