In Which Annie Leaves San Francisco For Stranger Climes
Annie literally had no idea what was going on. There she stood, the tawny strap of her well-worn bag over her shoulder, sunglasses on her face, dog eared and margarita-stained map dangling from two fingers sporting badly damaged polish. In a manner of about half an hour, she'd seen two elves, a dwarf, some sort of pirate cyborg and a talking raven. What sort of Lord of the Rings/Terminator/Watership Down bull**** had she gotten herself into"
The map made no sense and she wasn't quite sure where she was supposed to be going. Her buzz from the excitement of being somewhere new was starting to wear off, replaced with hunger. And hangry was not going to help her find a cab, or rickshaw, or palanquin to carry her to her destination.
Wherever her destination was. Just when she was considering throwing herself at the mercy of the crowd, a voice sailed to her like a dart. "Annie!" Turning, her dark eyes bounced from this person to that' uhhh, My Little Pony?" what the f". "Hey, Poppy!" Salvation! Moving toward Annie was a woman of no particular height or build, but possessing a lot of dark hair and a pretty face. An Asian face. A sweet, sweet, familiar Asian face. Poppy Oshiro, Rhydin entrepreneur and fellow San Franciscan transplant, was soon upon her and bestowing an enthusiastic hug. "You made it!" "Yeah, imagine that. No plane crash and I've still got all my fingers." Wiggling them to get the point across once they parted. Poppy smiled, showing straight white teeth. Dentist father. "Good. You ready?" "Sure," Annie replied, hefting her bag higher up on one inked shoulder and following along as Poppy blazed a trail away from' well, where they were. As they walked, she looked at everything she could get her eyes on. Buildings, trees, cracks in the sidewalks. Vendors, clouds, animals and most of all, people. Annie wasn't scared or apprehensive- living in San Francisco certainly acclimated people to strange surroundings, but RhyDin was something on an entirely different level.
This was exciting to the adventurous Annie. So when Poppy had contacted her and said she had a job for her, she'd jumped on it. What had there been to lose, anyway' No boyfriend and no job since the studio had burned down (Master Wang's unfortunate incident with a distracting mistress and a wife who had lighter fluid and a match). So instead of moving into a spacious cardboard box on the sidewalk or back with her parents" moving to a different universe seemed like a stellar idea.
And sane, right' Totally.
It was a bit of a walk, but eventually Poppy slowed them down, indicating they had reached their destination. Annie trailed to a stop as well. "Here we are," Poppy said, brandishing an arm to indicate the buildings that were so close together they touched like people shoved into a train. A little awkwardly and almost no room for daylight between them.
Annie's eyes slid across the front of the buildings. The one on the left was a store selling colorful lamps and likely vegan hemp clothing, if the smell of patchouli was any indication. The one in the middle was a bakery, and to the right' A clog store. Nothin" but clogs.
"What am I looking at here?" she queried, eyes shifting back to Poppy. "Or do I need to anoint myself with essential oils and then eat a baguette while I clog to polka?"
Poppy shook her head. "No. This is where you're staying." Pointing specifically to the bakery.
Annie was a little skeptical. "This is where I'm staying."
"Yes."
"In a bakery."
"Yes."
"I'm staying" in a bakery. Must I also knead for my board and keep, milady?"
Poppy waved a hand in the vicinity of Annie's mouth, as if that would get her to be quiet.
"No, you're staying above the bakery. There's a loft there." Ohhhhh. Well. Color her informed. Poppy was already moving for the bakery, but not the front door. Oh, no. There was a narrow door at the very edge of the red brick building, as if someone had slapped it on there as an afterthought. Maybe they had. Withdrawing a key, she unlocked it and then stepped inside. "This leads right up the side of the bakery, so you don't have to go through the front."
Annie followed Poppy up the stairs, which were just as narrow as the door entrance, to another door. A jingle of keys, a jiggle of door knob, and then they were inside. It was simple, but it was furnished" well, mostly. A living room met them, housing a couch, which appeared to not be disgusting or covered in" dubious fluids. A small side table and tiny coffee table that might have been borrowed from the 1970s. In the right hand corner was a micro kitchen, totally fine for her since she sucked at cooking. A bathroom and small bed alcove off in the near distance completed the place.
It was old, it was dusty, and it smelled like bread. Like Annie had walked off the patchouli-scented, hippie-van of an avenue straight into a crescent roll. She looked over to Poppy. Who was smiling at her. "Perfect, right' Rent's cheap, and all the pastries you could want!" As if trying really hard to sell it.
"You waited until the last minute to find me a place, didn't you?"
"Yes," she admitted readily, without a pause to consider. "But," she forged ahead. "It's really close to the studio. And there's a supermarket around the corner, and then restaurants down about two blocks." Poppy was moving backwards, toward the door. "The lights in the bathroom don't work and there's no bed, but I'll see if someone can find you a cot." Out the door then, mostly, with her head still inside. "Also no hot water, so' you'll have to be fast."
Annie was staring at her. "Anything else you want to add?" Blandly. And then the strap of her bag broke and it fell to the ground with a muted thud.
"Bag store three blocks down. I'll come get you at nine tomorrow! Goodnight, Annie, glad to have you!" Poppy disappeared then, shutting the door behind her quickly. All that remained were the sounds of hurried footsteps clattering down the stairs. And then silence.
"Welcome to RhyDin," came another voice, from the window. A strange, scratchy voice. Annie turned her head to spot that talking raven that she'd seen when she'd first arrived. It was sitting on the window sill, peeking in from where the window had been left open. "You've got black mold." And off it flew.
"**** you, bird," she said, but she was talking to the air.
Welcome, indeed.
Annie literally had no idea what was going on. There she stood, the tawny strap of her well-worn bag over her shoulder, sunglasses on her face, dog eared and margarita-stained map dangling from two fingers sporting badly damaged polish. In a manner of about half an hour, she'd seen two elves, a dwarf, some sort of pirate cyborg and a talking raven. What sort of Lord of the Rings/Terminator/Watership Down bull**** had she gotten herself into"
The map made no sense and she wasn't quite sure where she was supposed to be going. Her buzz from the excitement of being somewhere new was starting to wear off, replaced with hunger. And hangry was not going to help her find a cab, or rickshaw, or palanquin to carry her to her destination.
Wherever her destination was. Just when she was considering throwing herself at the mercy of the crowd, a voice sailed to her like a dart. "Annie!" Turning, her dark eyes bounced from this person to that' uhhh, My Little Pony?" what the f". "Hey, Poppy!" Salvation! Moving toward Annie was a woman of no particular height or build, but possessing a lot of dark hair and a pretty face. An Asian face. A sweet, sweet, familiar Asian face. Poppy Oshiro, Rhydin entrepreneur and fellow San Franciscan transplant, was soon upon her and bestowing an enthusiastic hug. "You made it!" "Yeah, imagine that. No plane crash and I've still got all my fingers." Wiggling them to get the point across once they parted. Poppy smiled, showing straight white teeth. Dentist father. "Good. You ready?" "Sure," Annie replied, hefting her bag higher up on one inked shoulder and following along as Poppy blazed a trail away from' well, where they were. As they walked, she looked at everything she could get her eyes on. Buildings, trees, cracks in the sidewalks. Vendors, clouds, animals and most of all, people. Annie wasn't scared or apprehensive- living in San Francisco certainly acclimated people to strange surroundings, but RhyDin was something on an entirely different level.
This was exciting to the adventurous Annie. So when Poppy had contacted her and said she had a job for her, she'd jumped on it. What had there been to lose, anyway' No boyfriend and no job since the studio had burned down (Master Wang's unfortunate incident with a distracting mistress and a wife who had lighter fluid and a match). So instead of moving into a spacious cardboard box on the sidewalk or back with her parents" moving to a different universe seemed like a stellar idea.
And sane, right' Totally.
It was a bit of a walk, but eventually Poppy slowed them down, indicating they had reached their destination. Annie trailed to a stop as well. "Here we are," Poppy said, brandishing an arm to indicate the buildings that were so close together they touched like people shoved into a train. A little awkwardly and almost no room for daylight between them.
Annie's eyes slid across the front of the buildings. The one on the left was a store selling colorful lamps and likely vegan hemp clothing, if the smell of patchouli was any indication. The one in the middle was a bakery, and to the right' A clog store. Nothin" but clogs.
"What am I looking at here?" she queried, eyes shifting back to Poppy. "Or do I need to anoint myself with essential oils and then eat a baguette while I clog to polka?"
Poppy shook her head. "No. This is where you're staying." Pointing specifically to the bakery.
Annie was a little skeptical. "This is where I'm staying."
"Yes."
"In a bakery."
"Yes."
"I'm staying" in a bakery. Must I also knead for my board and keep, milady?"
Poppy waved a hand in the vicinity of Annie's mouth, as if that would get her to be quiet.
"No, you're staying above the bakery. There's a loft there." Ohhhhh. Well. Color her informed. Poppy was already moving for the bakery, but not the front door. Oh, no. There was a narrow door at the very edge of the red brick building, as if someone had slapped it on there as an afterthought. Maybe they had. Withdrawing a key, she unlocked it and then stepped inside. "This leads right up the side of the bakery, so you don't have to go through the front."
Annie followed Poppy up the stairs, which were just as narrow as the door entrance, to another door. A jingle of keys, a jiggle of door knob, and then they were inside. It was simple, but it was furnished" well, mostly. A living room met them, housing a couch, which appeared to not be disgusting or covered in" dubious fluids. A small side table and tiny coffee table that might have been borrowed from the 1970s. In the right hand corner was a micro kitchen, totally fine for her since she sucked at cooking. A bathroom and small bed alcove off in the near distance completed the place.
It was old, it was dusty, and it smelled like bread. Like Annie had walked off the patchouli-scented, hippie-van of an avenue straight into a crescent roll. She looked over to Poppy. Who was smiling at her. "Perfect, right' Rent's cheap, and all the pastries you could want!" As if trying really hard to sell it.
"You waited until the last minute to find me a place, didn't you?"
"Yes," she admitted readily, without a pause to consider. "But," she forged ahead. "It's really close to the studio. And there's a supermarket around the corner, and then restaurants down about two blocks." Poppy was moving backwards, toward the door. "The lights in the bathroom don't work and there's no bed, but I'll see if someone can find you a cot." Out the door then, mostly, with her head still inside. "Also no hot water, so' you'll have to be fast."
Annie was staring at her. "Anything else you want to add?" Blandly. And then the strap of her bag broke and it fell to the ground with a muted thud.
"Bag store three blocks down. I'll come get you at nine tomorrow! Goodnight, Annie, glad to have you!" Poppy disappeared then, shutting the door behind her quickly. All that remained were the sounds of hurried footsteps clattering down the stairs. And then silence.
"Welcome to RhyDin," came another voice, from the window. A strange, scratchy voice. Annie turned her head to spot that talking raven that she'd seen when she'd first arrived. It was sitting on the window sill, peeking in from where the window had been left open. "You've got black mold." And off it flew.
"**** you, bird," she said, but she was talking to the air.
Welcome, indeed.