"Sweet rain," Hannah says on autopilot. "I -" She looks down at her hands. "Yeah, it's been a while. I'd like a wristband please?"

"Certainly," says the cashier. She picks up a wristband from the pile and touches it to the till, then reaches out an empty hand towards Hannah. 

Hannah pauses, blinks, and then digs in her jeans pocket for her wallet. "Right, yeah, I need a new wristband." She rubs the back of her neck with her other hand. "Here," she says, producing a bill from her wallet. "This should cover it." 

The cashier accepts the bill and returns a few smaller ones to Hannah in return, as well as the wristband. "Here you are," she says. "Have fun getting wet."*

*This is actually a much smoother innuendo in the original language, but English doesn't have words for rain that are also both gracefully and deniably words for sexual fluids.

Hannah cracks a small smile. "Thank you." She puts the wristband on, and walks across the room to the inner doors, where she scans the embedded chip on the reader and steps through. 

The back room of the il'ka is windowless, but lit by strings of incandescent fairy-lights that make the whole area feel warm and cheery. Soft tapestries hang from the walls, muffling the sound of low conversation. 

There are couches scattered around with plastic wrap on them, and a few long tables. A nude, olive-skinned woman curls up in her girlfriend's arms on one of them, having her violet hair petted gently; her girlfriend looks up at Hannah as she comes in and offers a small smile. The girlfriend's glasses gleam softly in the light, round rose-pink frames making her face a little rounder. 

Another girl casually browses softcore hentai at one of the tables, scrolling through curvy women in collars and leashes. She's wearing a women's t-shirt and a rose-patterned skirt, and her raincoat's draped over the back of her chair. A man in black slacks and a black dress shirt at the same table is nursing his coffee and just looking out across the room, clearly enjoying the sight of the various women in shades of undress. He catches Hannah's eye, and raises an eyebrow. 

Hannah smiles, but shakes her head slightly at the man. She passes him by and goes deeper into the room, sitting down on one of the unoccupied couches. 

She lets out a long breath and lays her head back against the couch, letting all her muscles relax again. 

She made it. She's at the il'ka. 

Another nude woman passes, her hip, thigh and shoulder all covered with twining black thorn tattoos. She doesn't even spare a glance for Hannah, occupied with something further into the il'ka. 

Hannah sighs softly, and unzips her windbreaker; then she pulls her sweater off over her head, leaving her in her bra and jeans. Bundling them both up in her lap with her phone still in her jacket, she raises her hand up over her head. 

A woman in a very light t-shirt and slacks comes over; there's a red sash across her body, marking her out as one of the employees.

"Sweet rain," she says softly. She extends her arms.

Hannah hands over her sweater and jacket, and, after a moment's consideration, unhooks her bra and adds it on top. 

"Thanks," she says. 

The staffer nods slightly and smiles. She taps a small device to the bracelet on Hannah's wrist, then gathers the sweater and bra into her arms and carries them across the room, where she puts them into a wooden cubbyhole, slides a door closed, and taps the device again. A lock clicks. 

She looks back across the room to Hannah and gives her a thumbs-up.

Hannah flashes a thumbs-up back, and settles back onto the couch again. 

It's been a long while since she was last topless outside her own room. She takes a slow breath, and leans back onto the couch.

The rain patters against the roof above her, and the soft murmurs of low conversation hum around the room. 

There's no rush.

Two women with undercuts in come in from the outer door, hand in hand, and approach the employee Hannah was speaking to. The left one is tall and slim, and wears a long dress patterned with wisteria blossoms; the other is slightly shorter and much curvier, with a steel piercing in her lip and a t-shirt on. The employee taps each of their wristbands with her scanner, then unlocks one of the doors at the back of the room for them. 

Hannah's gaze follows them casually, but she says nothing. Neither of them are really her type, and besides it's clear they're here for each other. 

She stretches her arms out above her head and shimmies her shoulders a little. 

The girl browsing hentai looks over, her gaze distinctly below Hannah's neckline, and offers her a small smile and an eyebrow raise.

Hannah smiles, but shakes her head. 

She's waiting for something. She's not sure what it is, but she'll know it when she sees it. 

The door at the other end of the room swings open, and a distinctly nonhuman woman enters. 

She's wearing a crop top and a leather miniskirt. Her skin is hidden beneath black fur, and her face comes to a distinct snout. Her hair is black, dyed with green tips at the ends. Three long fox tails trail behind her, hovering just above the floor. 

She looks around a little, as if taking stock; her arms cross over her body, shielding her from the room.

... A tourist, huh?

Hannah looks over, her eyes tracing the contours of the kitsune woman's body. 

It's been years since the OTC contacted Heart, and after a little disruption the world's settled down to become a sleepy backwater. Immortality's cheap these days, and there are OTC shops in the city, but... nonhumans aren't so common to see. 

She smiles at the stranger, and pats the couch next to her. 

The stranger's gaze flicks over to Hannah, and then down to her breasts. 

She comes across the room and sits next to Hannah on the same couch as her. 

"Sweet rain, right?" she asks. 

"Sweet rain," Hannah replies softly. She resettles herself on the couch to face the kitsune woman. "First time on Heart?"

"Yeah." She smiles slightly. "I was looking for a club, but... it seems you people don't really do that." 

Hannah shakes her head. "No. Festivals, yes, clubs, not really." She looks down along Kumi's body. "Is that why you're all dressed up?"

The stranger nods. "Yeah. I'm Kumi, by the way." She extends a hand to shake.

Hannah takes the hand, and shakes it. "Hannah." 

She props herself up against the couch with one elbow and looks at Kumi. "So do you know how an il'ka works?"