Zhāng awoke to a new message on his phone. Bonus duty for work. Mandatory but at least it was paid. A new client was coming in for a meeting. He was selected as the sacraficial lamb for make nice.
He grabbed his framed glasses and put them on. He felt himself squirm into a more meek posture as the uniform took shape. The frames held unmagnified lenses and only made him look less threatening. He checked the batteries on the spycam and swapped in a fresh micro sd card. Plenty of space for blackmail. He took a quick inventory on fluffies and selected his next round of companions. Maybe they’d make him seem like some bleeding heart softie. Blue and Tangerine seemed to be getting along a little too well for his liking so he had to take them. Purple was an obvious choice for the next best. Her mannerisms were unbearably cutesy and might win him over. He called out to them as he fit his suit to look more disheveled and unprepared.
“Purple, Tangerine, Blue heel!” They ran up with a pattering of padded hoofbeats.
“Yus daddeh?” Purple asked trying to take the point on the walk. It was an admirable effort but there was no power to be gained in this walk.
“We going on business walk. Keep to best behavior and do not dawdle. This very important.” He checked the message for one last confirmation before heading out. It was a harmless ramen shop. This tourist should be easy pickings.
a harmless ramen shop in a bad part of town
His mark had made no attempts at common courtesy as westerners usually did. By the time he had arrived his new business partner had already ordered and was just polishing off his bowl waiting for him to show up and pick up the tab. He did so of course as it was to be expected. Zhāng sat for the meeting not even bothering to order for himself or the fluffies. He suspected his partner to be wouldn’t afford him time for that.
This new partner was familiar with the sort of negotiator he was dealing with but he wasn’t really good with it. He had all the subtlety of a police raid going through your door when he suggested a change of scenery.
“Why don’t we take in the sights as we’re out here? I hear there are some fantastic bathhouses about.” They were closer to the pleasure districts than the tourist traps so his interest was clearly far from cultural. The only reasons a tourist asked about the pleasure houses was if they either wanted to partake and have a good time or wanted blackmail to help their negotiations.
“What kind of place you have in mind?” Zhāng asked. He wasted no time in pulling out a scrap of paper with a handwritten name on it.
“The slippery dolphin.” Playing the part of concierge and making sure a new partner wasn’t ripped off was a part of negotiations. The only times a partner didn’t refer to the negotiators guidence was when they’d already scouted it out for themselves. He wanted to make sure the only camera in there was his own. Zhāng smiled ticking off a few boxes in the back of his head. It was definitely a trap. He agreed to meet up immediately.
the slippery dolphin
Zhāng walked out to the bathhouse room they’d rented wrapped up in only his towel and his glasses. He dropped the former and slid into a tub feeling the heat ease his joints. It was seated and more than big enough to share. He did a quick headcount and found all three fluffies present and alive. “No drowning.” He called to them and they nodded quietly. He thought he could hear one whining “nu want tu.” and chuckled. They tried to be good but a bare tile room was boring to entertain themselves.
His partner finally arrived unable to make his entrance more blatant of a setup. He wore swimming trunks he’d apparently worn in under his suit and carried three rolled towels under one arm.
“Sorry to keep you waiting!” He laughed gingerly setting down the soft pliable towels and joining him. Zhāng nodded with a knowing smile.
“Need a hand with those?” He asked innocuously. His mark dove for them trying to keep it close.
“That’s alright.” He tried to bluff. “Just grabbing towels so we can dry off when we’re done here.” He pulled them closer but left them rolled up.
“Hey daddeh?” He heard a fluffy voice to his side.
“Not now.” He gently chided without looking to them. They should know better than to interrupt business.
“Otay den… stud.” It replied and he was confused enough to look over. The fluffy that met his eyes was none of the three that he had brought.
“Who are you?” He asked the plain brown mare.
“Am a gud hewpew fwuffy. Gib b-bestest wickie cweanies an’ g-gud feews.” She seemed on the verge of tears and was trembling but stuck to the routine they ingrained on her. It took zhāng a moment to realize she was the entertainment being sent in.
“No. I take my girls human thank you.” The mare looked at him, surprised, and hugged him. “Fank yu.” She whispered before running off to inform the receptionist.
Zhāng took the time to start his spiel. It was all just nonesense and buzzwords to lure people in but it filled silence and made him focus in. He gesticulated wildly intentionally throwing water in his marks face. He apologized quickly and grabbed one of the towels to help dry him. With his free hand he reached into the mishaped bundle and felt the camera that had been trained on him. Cheap bastard hadn’t even prepared far enough ahead to bring one from home. It was a common model sold on street corners or in cheaper shops. Zhāng used to know a guy that built this model, good guy, killed himself a few years ago.
He pressed the side and with a click he pulled out the sd card. ‘Let him think he has his footage.’ He figured as he tucked it between his fingers where it would be missed. As he pulled away a new distraction came in. The receptionist was trying to flag his attenton with both the fluffy and a new girl in tow.
“Pardon me sir, I understand you were requesting a different assistant? Is that correct?” She asked. The fluffy visibly winced as she spoke. Seems the receptionist also held the title of manager, or madam if the place was more honest about it. Only understandable that she’d want to confirm it. The line of work may be different but he’d be just as quick to kick a man under him to the street for refusing to work.
“Correct thank you. We simply have no need for a fluffy.” She eased up on hearing it and quietly jabbed the fluffy to get her to leave.
“Many apologies sir. We simply assumed from the fluffies you had brought in. I trust this one will be more to your liking.” She started in on her routine immediately. Comically it seemed almost identical to the fluffy’s routine. The
manager couldn’t be more right about the selection. She was perfect! Young to be sure but well within legal right. Nothing worse than being banned from the bathhouse would fall to him if the footage spread to any, and every, one who knew him. Somehow he felt the same could not be said of the superiors and family of his business partner, what with their western sensibilities. The mark visibly relaxed the moment Zhāng set his hands on her. After all, He had his blackmail. What could go wrong now?
“Always good to see a culture alive and well.” He remarked staring at the girl on his lap. Zhāng wasn’t sure if he was joking or legitimately thought this was the height of culture. Could go either way with a tourist. “So many wonderful places abound. You should try this new health place downtown. medico or something. Good to see a medicine shop handled properly.” That was surprising. Most westerners balked at good health. uselss tubs of lard.
“I’ll check it out.” Zhāng promised adjusting his glasses for a better recording.
elsewhere in the slippery dolphin
Purple sniffed about as she wandered the back halls. She wasn’t quite sure where she was but she didn’t worry. If her daddy needed to find her he’d call and she could run to him. She poked her head in another room but was dissappointed to find yet more humans doing silly things to each other.
The air in this place was uncomfortable. It was hot but in some way it was also wet. It felt like the hotter she got the harder it was to cool off. She desperately wanted a drink but every water source she’d found so far was tainted with soap. It was a nasty taste and she didn’t want to experience it after the first time. All she’d said was treating work friends better would make them happier to help with work, but her daddy washed her mouth out all night for it.
She checked another room and found a new but no more satisfying layout. It was a bathroom of the less literal kind. There was a row of toilets one after the other all the way to the end. There she paused and stared at something new. It looked like a little hole with a fresh water stream trapped within it. To either side were wide flat pavers of concrete. Her daddy had told her not to drink out of toilets but he hadn’t mentioned imprisoned sreams. She leaned down to drink but found the pavers elevated just a little too high. She stared with a moment of concern and saw no harm in jumping in. The water wasn’t even a foot deep and she could reach to climb back out. She stepped in and quickly the world turned to darkness as the constant pressure of the flow pulled her down stream.
It was confusing trying to right herself and she had trouble regaining her bearings in the dark. She continued on in total darkness with only scant flashes of light as she appeared in identical holes. With each she encountered she lunged for the lip to pull herself back out. Each time she was rewarded with only scrapes and bruises as she was pushed back into the dark.
Soon the path widened and she saw the scant light of the moon ahead. Her hooves flailed against air as she fell and landed with a splash. The undertow of the outtake that just spat her out threatened to pull her under and she had to work to get herself out of the way. She turned wildly trying to make sense of where she was.
The scent of raw sewage was strongest here but all around there were far more things to worry about. Random splinters and spears of broken wood formed collapsed heaps dotted around and plastic bags held all manner of refuse both biological and nondegradable. trinkets and bottles filled the spaces in between appearing as though they were a solid floor but giving way any time she tried to climb to them. A stinging film of greasy feeling motor oil clung to her fluff and made it hard to breath. She finally caught sight of a walkway overlooking where she was with a grassy hill. She recognized that hill from the things people left on it. They had walked along the top of it to get there but the only thing it overlooked was the river. She suddenly realized why she hadn’t found anything solid to stand on yet. She screamed that being the only thing she could think to do.
“Hewp! Hewp fwuffy! Wawa bad fo fwuffy!” She cried as she moved down the bank. Her legs churned in unfamiliar ways just trying to stay afloat. She was doing better than most fluffies would given the natural fear a river would bring. Still it would not allow her to hold out forever. She looked to the humans walking on the sidewalk and spotted something. A man walking against the surge of people with an orange and blue fluff in tow. It was daddy! It had to be! She drifted closer with her weak fluffy paddle fueled by a new determination. He could reach her. He had to!
“Daddeh! Sabe puwpwe!” She screamed, but he kept walking. He couldn’t hear her! It was the only explanation. Desperation filled her lungs as her legs slowed. The weight of the water was growing despite the oil holding it off for a moment. Trying to move her limbs they felt so heavy. It took so much effort.
“Cum back! No weab! Wait fow puwpwe!” She cried through bitter tears. Her daddy didn’t react. It was hopeless. He turned back. He was looking towards her! No, to blue! SHE had heard her! She stopped to get her! Purple kept pushing herself towards them. Her legs stomped down irresponsibly trying to make any progress until her daddy rescued her. She didn’t notice she’d escaped the river until she’d paddled and crawled all the way to the sidewalk. She looked up to her daddy who stood staring down at her. She felt filthy and she wanted so badly to sleep. She held her heavy head up and smiled. He really did love her. She wanted to ask him to carry her, to apologize for wandering off, to thank him for saving her. He broke the silence before she could.
“Next time you want go swim, I leave you. Get up and follow.” With that he turned and left her to catch her breath on her own time.
down the street
Zhāng approached the medi-co. building. it was a rather large location taking up a full street corner. the walls all along its length were made of glass. Something about it seemed off to him. The lights were too bright and the decor had too much white and glass. It seemed too sanitary to be a proper medical shop. He stepped inside trusting the recomendation. quiet muzak peirced his ears as he was forced to endure an overt eagar-to-please atmosphere.
“Well hello!” The receptionist said in a tone that suggested she had twice as many teeth as brain cells, and she matched it with a smile wide enough to show all of them. “Is there anything I can assist you with today?” She asked.
Everything about this place was wrong. There was no informtion or charts visible just a set of tvs the fluffs had latched onto immediately. They stared helplessly upwards at an advertisement showing a running horse fading into a steam engine. It was somehow supposed to market a skin lotion. There were no bins or open sources just politely labeled white bottles spaced out on display. They held cutesy names like “Ox-power” and “Bear-essentials”. The reception desk took entirely too much room and held nothing more than a phone and some mail in order forms.
“certainly, do you have any unicorn?” Purple looked over to you breaking the tv’s spell. She seemed suddenly concerned. The woman’s voice grew an irritating lilt as she feigned innocence.
“Ooh. I’m sorry, but international sanctions have forced us to discontinue that line. For much the same effects might I suggest our ox-power? It’s very popular.” She grabbed one of the bottles from behind the desk and twisted off the top to show him. The contents were just like the building around it. Entirely sanitized into a vaguely white powder. zhāng couldn’t identify there being anything in particular inside the bottle. He pointed to a small percentage on the label.
“What is this forty percent here?” She glanced down and pulled her smile wider.
“That would be the sawdust content! all medi-co bottles are carefully diluted to make sure you get exactly one dose from one proprietary medi-scoop. only 800 yuan!” He was dazed by her words.
“And how much is a medi-scoop?” He asked. She frowned slightly.
“About one and eleven twelfths tablespoons. For maximum efficiency we strongly recomend you buy the proprietary medi-scoop.” This didn’t make any sense at all. She was ripping you off right to your face! Not even respecting you enough to try to hide it. Everyone tried to fit fillers in where they could. Hell, some of your steel shipments were 12% lead just to meet weight on the cheap, but you still wrote up the fake reports. People didn’t tell you how they made things seem better than they were, it just wasn’t done.
He sank into a plush white chair. Hidden spikes within refused to retract detecting no coinage in the slot hidden on the side. They were too dull to do more than annoy so he ignored them. The woman walked over with a display box in hand.
“If you’re unsure we offer several premade foods for ease of use.” He looked at her questioning.
“What use would that be?” She shrugged as she answered.
“To give you incentive to use it.” That made even less sense. The incentive to taking medicine was not dying.
“Like what?” You ask knowing she’ll tell you anyway.
“We have all new ziheche dogs! Only 1000 yuan for a pack of six.” He looked to them and their all natural casing and felt sick. all he could think is of who lost their great treasure to make it.
“Not interested.” You say turning away. She comes around to meet your gaze with a new product.
“Why not a sweet snake treat instead?” She hands you an unwrapped cookie. It’s wider than your hand and has a whole dried snake coiled on top of it. You curl your nose in disgust and force yourself to take a bite. It’s disgusting. The frosting is nearly as tall as the snake and ruins any crunch it should have. It’s sacharine flavor curdles your tongue and you can’t really tell there is a snake inside without looking at it. She presses an open bag with five more into your other hand.
“Will that be cash or card sir?” She asks beaming. He sighed and reached for his wallet.
at the mall
“Stay close! I spending too much money already today.” Zhāng called to his entourage.
“How much fawthew?” Purple whined. Tangerine and blue shared a glance clearly thinking the same.
“One last errand before home.” It’s been a good few days. Now that you don’t have to worry about needing to abandon them all the time it’d be nice not having to worry about them wandering off. You turn to your destination, a little underappreciated pet shop.
“Hello! Welcome! What can I help you adopt today?” The smiling shopkeep asks.
“Nothing. Just collars today.” Zhāng said. The shopkeep nodded and returned to sweeping. The fluffies around him jumped and clamored trying to get his attention.
“Daddeh gib pwetty cowwa?” One of the fluffs asked. You don’t bother checking which before you answer.
“Sure. Pick colors.” You look over the options and find the cheapest among them.
“Tangewine!” “Bwue!” “Puwpwe!” They click off. Your eyes roll. Of course they’d choose their own. You drop the three requested and started looping the other colors over your wrist. There isn’t quite one with goldie’s color but brown seems close enough. You look down and see the filthy purple one hasn’t touched her collar and the other two have taken each other’s respective color.
“What are you doing?” You asked kneeling to their level.
“Wub bwue da best!” Tangerine cheered. Blue giggled at that and added “Bwue wub tangewine bestest tuu!” Zhāng thought that sounded suspicious but decided not to press the issue.
“As long as you don’t fight over colors.” He said and adjusted blues collar to fit more snugly. He grabbed its edges and pulled each way he could think of. She resisted and pulled a little in return but he was satisfied it wouldn’t just fall off. He pet her behind the ears and stood.
“Did bwue du good job? Can fwuffies weaw cowwas homesie?” Zhāng thought of the whining that would greet him over the order he handed them out.
“No. Give collars here. You get them at home.” Blue pouts while tangerine tries to pull his collar off. She shakes her head a little as you undo her collar and puts on that happy expression again.
“Dat’s otay daddeh. Bwue can wait dat wong.” Tangerine seems shocked. He stops pawing at his neck to respond.
“Bwue suwe? Yu nu wan… somefing ewse?” She nuzzles him in a way you haven’t noticed the others doing.
“Am otay sp-Tangewine. Dewe be odew walkies wight?” He looks sad but nods. You take the collar off him as well. The three are already on their way out the door by the time you finish paying. They’re entranced by a call girl advertisement flashing neon yellow. You call for them as you walk past.
“Stick close.” you hiss but they’re still slow. You even have to stop and stand at the escalator for them to climb to your level. They look all around amazed by the signs and lights all around them. Purple is most interested in the moving floor that moves them without them moving. She’s babbling on with all kinds of theories of what’s happening underneath the escalator. Tangerine just watches, his eyes darting from ad to ad in the saturated mall. Blue just sits and hums something familiar bobbing her head along to the nameless tune. You reach the upper landing and your first step is met with a thunk that’s far too loud for stepping on it. Your heart skips a beat and you take three steps at once trying to get off it. A clang behind you confirms your fears. The metal cover buckles in slipping into the gearworks. Purple and Tangerine land either side of you. Blue was distracted by her song and only noticed something was wrong after the other two jumped. Her reflexes were quick but in the end she is only as agile as a fluffy. By the time she jumped the floor was already falling beneath her. She lands hard against the opposite ledge. Her hooves scrape and slide searching for traction. She bobs up kicking off of something within the pit.
“He-hewp bwue! Sabe fwuffieEEEEEEEE!” She screams. She lurches backwards her hooves only barely keeping her hanging over the lip. Theres a wet sound of tearing before she hangs limply, the tension gone. Her miserable cries of “huuhuu” show she still lives as she drags her chin back onto solid ground. Tangerine looks to you hyperventillating.
“Pwease daddeh! Hewp bwue! Bwue hab huwties!” He begs pacing tight circles around you. You lean over the open mechanism and assess the damages. Theres blood in the gearwork splattered in a crimson polka dot. The paterns shift and swim as the machine continues to turn. Blue is in terrible shape losing far too much blood. Her hips are gone and everything below them with them. Her torn torso drips blood openly and a thin pink ribbon winds down from the break and is feeding into the machine being pulled slowly. The only thing holding her remaining organs in is the bulk of her intestines. Her current state would take immediate action to fix, and even if you did you’d have to pay more than she would ever be worth in dialysis to keep her that way. You look to him and give the only response worthwhile.
“She’s dead. Only thing you could do is join her.” Tangerine looks shocked a dumb expression freezing him in place.
“Bu’ Bwue…” He says not understanding. You shrug unsure how much more clear you could make it.
“Keep close if you want home tonight.” You walk on and leave her to her fate.
Tangerine stood the world around him in shambles. The only one he loved pronounced dead before his very eyes. Her fate decided in a moment. His sister purple said something and ran off. It was a muffled distant sound. It didn’t make sense. Nothing did. He looked to his beloved Blue. Her eyes hung unfocused. Her legs shook with strain.
“Tangewine pwease. Hewp Bwue uppies.” She called to him. He snapped to attention. She sounded so weak, so tired. Here he was with everything he had wanted. His love was there with him. He had every opportunity and even encouragement to run away. He looked around and saw a flash of purple as the only home and family he knew was slipping away. Those words of warning came back to him, weighing at him. She was already dead. Daddy wasn’t going to stop her from leaving because there was no point. The only thing he promised for leaving is that he would die with her. Tangerine looked to her and back at the rapidly vanishing way home.
“Am sowwy Bwue.” He whispered and sprinted off after his sister.
“Whewe tangewine goin’? Nu am dead. Am awibe! Cum back!” She called after him. He didn’t look back surging further and further away. “NUUU! Pwease cum back! Pwease nu weabe. Nu wan be awone. Speciaw fwiend!” She screamed with the last of her strength. He was already out of sight. Far too far away to hear her. She collapsed sobbing. She suddenly felt her lungs fill with the deepest breath she’d ever taken. Curiously she found she couldn’t breath out. There was a pulling sensation at the back of her throat and she slipped into the gnashing gears. Her last thoughts were of being utterly alone. She closed her eyes as the metal bit into her smashing her into a pink paste.
back home
Lèsè waited by the front door. The sun had set hours ago but still she waited hopefully. As little as she loved her daddy she still wanted her babies to be safe, and if he didn’t come back who would feed the rest that were here? She nearly fell asleep waiting on his return and had to stretch when the door finally clicked open. She started to speak but her nose curled in disgust before she said anything. There was a strange fluffy in various hues of black and purple with streaks of every other color along her, and next to her was tangerine weeping bitterly.
“Whewe puwpwe an’ bwue?” She asked him. He looked up to her, his jaw working up and down. Without a word he set his jaw closed his eyes and ran blindly past her.
“Puwpwe hewe mummah.” The strange fluffy said. Lèsè was shocked but assumed it must be true. Counting carefully she reallized another of her children must have gotten out. She smiled slightly wondering if lime helped her get away.
“An’ Bwue?” She asked giddy to hear the details. Purple dragged her hooves and stared at the floor.
“Bwue gone mummah.” That didn’t tell her much. Purple was always so talkative. Why wasn’t she saying more?
“Gone whewe?” she pressed. Purple blinked away new tears clearing twin lines in the black grime.
“Bwue nummed by scawy staiw munstah.” Lèsè froze. Nummed? By a monster? She’d completely forgotten just how dangerous it was outside. She was so focused on the danger she was in staying here. Her baby Blue gone after all she’d done to try to help her. She walked with unsteady steps, her world spinning around her. Had she really sent her out to some beast? Had she pressed her own daughter to leave the best home she’d known on some dream of better? Had she been wrong? Her legs buckled as her heart pounded in her chest. Pink walked up to her oblivious to her discomfort.
“Hewwo mummah! Whewe Bwue? Wan gib huggies.” Lèsè reeled at the question. She had done this to her. The thought of her in the jaws of some terrible monster. She couldn’t be reached. She was…
“Babbeh sweepin’.” She said. The hollow words ringing in her ears. Pink looked confused.
“Whewe sweepin? Mehbeh gib wakies fow huggies. Pink suwe sissie fowgib.” Her mother hyperventilated. The questions weighed at her fragile mind.
“BABBEH SWEEPIN’!” she screamed, her hoof stamping to make her point. Pink leaned back her ears shooting back with her. She knew better than to keep pressing. Lèsè waddled to her bed and collapsed on her side. She didn’t make the effort to move to acomodate as the others turned in for the night. One by one her children joined her. There was two and two… She closed her eyes and forced her mind to stop counting. ‘All babies here’ She forced her mind to think. ‘Blue is my baby so she must be here. Maybe she’s that leg lined along my back. maybe she’s that little voice whispering with purple as she helps clean her. Maybe she’s that consoling voice over by tangerine.’ She thought ignoring all the colors she remembered seeing. ‘A sleepy baby will likely be the last one in the fluffpile, all that sleep will mean they’ll wake up first. She’s here, I’m just not awake to see her.’ She reasoned. The obvious contradiction was completely ignored. ‘She’s here, just when I’m not awake. She’ll just be my little sleeping baby. That’s enough.’ She drifted to sleep with these comforting thoughts. She forced the lie ‘that’s enough’ through her mind again and again; after all, it would have to be.
