It hadn't been very long, two weeks at the most, but she found herself going back anyway.
It was quiet that evening. The lights in the city were just about to come on, and in particular the temperature in Sahara Square was about to plunge.
The small feline put her paws in her pockets as she walked down the streets. Donna was a margay, among the smallest of all Zootopian cats. She subconsciously avoided many larger mammals on her way to her destination; her mind was elsewhere. As night was approaching, she found her senses starting to become more acute, but that was only one of the reasons she preferred the night life.
Donna just barely smiled when she approached the building. There it stood rather prominently among similar buildings on the block.
Different Tails.
The cat tried to remember what she knew about the history of the building. The concept was actually very old, dating back to almost as old as the foundation of Zootopia itself. The original owners were a fox and a rabbit, as she recalled. In the early days of Zootopia, tensions were high and peace was still shaky between predators and prey; love between the two was almost unheard of. So, the founders wanted a place where interspecies relationships of all types could feel safe and welcome.
The desire for such a club quickly made itself apparent as love blossomed between more and more disparate types of couples. Different Tails had thus flourished and endured for nearly all of Zootopia's history as a place where the shunned or scorned lovers within Zootopia could come together and have fun. Interspecies was never dying down in popularity, quite the contrary.
So it almost seemed unbelievable for Donna to be staring up at a big "CLOSED" sign adorning its doors. She let out a long sigh, staring up at the establishment.
One of her ears twitched as she heard a similar sigh not too far away from her. She saw a familiar feline figure; the much, much taller form of Kaycee, one of the club's regular DJs.
"Hey!" Donna called out in a friendly voice, dragging one of her paws out of her pockets to wave at Kaycee. The cheetah flinched from noticing the smaller cat, and looking away after running a paw through her head.
"Oh, um, hi Donna," Kayce murmured.
Donna's eyes widened. One of the cheetah's more distinguishing facial features was their black "tear streaks", and Donna thought she saw that Kaycee's were actually wet.
"Kaycee... is everything okay, pretty kitty?" Donna placed a paw on Kaycee's leg, looking up at her.
"Just... it's- I dunno..." Kaycee let out a trembling sigh, her head hanging down. "I just really wish I'd come here and see that it was open again, that it was just some misunderstanding or bad dream."
"I know, I know," Donna smiled gently, patting Kaycee on the leg. "I did really like working here."
The cheetah was quiet for nearly a minute before she spoke again. "Do you know why they closed it? I mean, they gave us plenty of warning, but... I mean- was it like mismanagement or...?"
"I'm not quite sure," the margay scratched at one of her cheeks. "But I know what I'd like to think. I'd like to think that maybe a place like this isn't as needed as much anymore, y'know? Now that interspecies is so commonplace that it's actually kinda a non-issue nowadays."
"I mean, that's a good thing and all," Kaycee's head hung slightly, staring at the ground, "but I- I wasn't done with it yet." The cheetah's paws balled up slightly, and she slowly released them with a sigh.
"You'll find who you're looking for someday, Kaycee-cat," Donna said warmly, walking in front of her and looking up with a smile. "You'll find her."
Kaycee scoffed loudly, throwing her arms out to the sides. "Will I, though? It feels like it's been forever I've been working there, and yh- y'know... am I just being too picky...?"
"You shouldn't have to settle in matters of the heart, Kaycee," Donna held a finger up, giving her a firm glare. "Someone that's perfect for you is out there somewhere. Maybe you weren't meant to meet her here."
"I mean you say that, but..." Kaycee's teeth were barely visible in her distress. She started playing with her claws, rubbing them against each other nervously, wishing she could fully retract them. "You met Calvin here."
"My shugie..." Donna placed a paw to her chest, tilting her head in adoration while her eyes wandered away. She suddenly snapped back to reality. "That is true, but it's not going to be the same for everyone. Maybe a change of scenery will be good for you; let you meet some new mammals! Maybe you could get a job in the Meadowlands? Plenty of prey that like to party there; I'm sure your DJ skills will be in high demand!"
"You say that like they're actually 'skills'," Kaycee rolled her eyes and looked up to the closed building she'd previously spent a lot of her life working in.
"As much as bartending!" Donna clicked her claws together. "You break out of your cocoon when you're in your element and everyone can soak in your vibrant energy when you're up at the turntables. You're a performer and an entertainer, just like I'm an entertainer and an amateur psychologist at the bar."
"You know what the other staff said about me, right?" Kaycee chewed on her black lower lip.
"What did they say...?" Donna looked instantly concerned, leaning in close.
"Heh... y'know, that it was so ridiculous that I'm a cheetah who can't catch a single prey..." Kaycee tried to play it off casually, but her lack of eye contact and a little hitch in her voice betrayed her actual feelings.
"Who said that!?" The margay snapped. "Who insulted my Kay-kay!?"
"I knew you'd make a big deal of it, so I didn't want to tell you," Kaycee murmured. "Forget I said anything."
"Was it Dustin!? That lousy hare..." Donna hissed for extra effect. "He was probably just jealous because you aren't into males. Hare and the grapes n' all that."
"I think that's fox and the grapes..." Kaycee mumbled. "But it's okay, Dustin's... Dustin. I don't want to burn any bridges."
"Now that we're here, maybe try yelling at the building?" Donna looked up with bright eyes at the cheetah.
"Pardon...?"
"Y'know, yell at it!" Donna looked enthused, scrunching up a bit. "Give it the ol' middle claw. Say 'screw you, Different Tails, for not giving me what I want'!"
"What!? No!" Kaycee rubbed at one of her arms. "That's... weird."
"I'll do it for you!" The smaller cat perked up both of her middle claws at the building. "Up yer tailhole, Different Tails! Kaycee deserves to be happy!"
"Donna... not so loud," the larger cat's shoulders bunched up. "You're gonna cause a scene."
"C'mon, Kaycee, get that frustration out! It's therapeutic!" Donna gestured encouragingly at her friend and workmate.
After looking left and right, Kaycee cautiously moved forward to the corner of the structure and gave it a half-hearted tap with her toe.
"Yeah, take that, DT!" Donna laughed. "See Kayce? At the end of the day, it's just a building. A place. Sure it might represent a lot to us, and me especially, but we can always have new experiences elsewhere. And speaking of, if you need anything, you have my number, so just gimme a call, 'kay Kay?"
"Okay..." Kaycee finally smiled, if faintly.
"Show me those teeth, DJKC!" Donna snapped and pointed at her. "Your future's gonna be bright!"
Kaycee forced a bigger smile for her friend, feeling a glimmer of hope from her enthusiasm. She closed her eyes and sighed through her teeth.
"There ya go!" The margay jumped up and pumped an arm. "Y'know what they say: 'every cat has her day', and I hope yours is soon!"
"You mean... ugh, never mind..." Kaycee's next smile was more honest, if a little worn.
Donna clapped once as loudly as she could. "Now! You wanna come see where I'm working now? It's a jazz nightclub just off of Trip Street called the Yakety Sax."
"Um, I guess?" The cheetah didn't look too sure. "Shoo, I don't think I could see myself working at a jazzy place. ...And that only drives home that we won't be working together anymore."
"I'm still just a text away, Kaykay, whenever you need," Donna smiled. "Now c'mon, you like shrimp, don't you? They have some great shrimp there. And the Catmulls. Oh my God. They do the best cover of 'Everybody Wants To Be A Cat' I've ever heard."
"I'm surprised people sing that song in this day and age..." Kaycee nearly whispered, a paw near her mouth.
"C'mon, y'know mammals are more easygoing on average now," Donna nudged her friend's thigh. "Let's go have some fun tonight, just you and me. Then you can meet tomorrow head on!"
It was hard not to smile with Donna's arm-twisting vivacity, especially when she started purring lightly. Kaycee simply nodded her agreement and started following the energetic, small cat.
Kaycee did spare a glance back to Different Tails before it fell out of sight. It may have been a little rough at times, and she still had more to go before she'd be truly happy with her life, but she did have some good times and make some good friends along the way. So, she gave a big, soft smile to the building with her eyes shut, and felt something welling in her eyes. She shook her head and took a sigh to steady herself, then continued on her way. She wondered where her own "tail" would lead someday.
But for that night, she was just going to follow Donna's.