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The city had a pace to it as quick as the bloodstream after a brisk run. Streets bustled with cars and pedestrians, very much like a tangle of veins that lead to one giant pumping heart -- the Underground. Seraph couldn't imagine that even one more person could cram themselves into the white tiled tunnels. Claustrophobia loomed just one breath away from them all as the steady stream flowed to and from the central Tube lines below. She didn't dare slow her walk in order to take stock of her surroundings just yet. She had to laugh a little, as it was not unlike running with the bulls in Pamplona. But at least she would have plenty of time on the train to get her bearings, without the threat of being flattened in the process.
It was a good thing that the throng of people were all heading in the same basic direction she was. It made it easy to go with the flow, maneuvering through the ticket booths, the escalators, and onto the platform to wait for the train. She gave a sympathetic smile to a pair of tourists struggling with their luggage. The tiny wheels on the bottom of the overstuffed bags were only adding insult to injury, as it made the bags wobble like penguins when the tourists would drag it all forward.
At least she didn't have to worry about such a cumbersome process. She could directly thank the Elders for that. No matter what Passage it was, they always had everything arranged for her when she arrived. How this worked, she was uncertain... but she refrained from examining the matter too closely. The Elders took pleasure in spoiling her wherever she went, and she gladly accepted the benefits of being their Mediary.
She felt the train approaching before she heard it. A shift in the air, pushing outward, preceding the roaring whine of the tracks as the subway shot out of it's dark tunnel. It rolled to a stop, and she waited in the crowd for the doors to open. There had been the temptation to take a cab to Monmouth Street, but her main objective was to be in contact with as many people as possible. There was little chance of that in a cab, aside from the cab driver -- and so the decision was easy. However the eye contact, or lack thereof, made her agenda difficult. So many people kept their heads down, attention diverted, nose in their own business so to speak. But, it was nothing that a little initiative did not work out.
"Do you need help with that?" she asked, smiling to the tourists still wrestling with their luggage. The two young women looked up with haggard smiles in return. A few last stragglers bolted down the stairs and through the train's doors, and Seraph motioned for the women to hurry. "It's about to head out again, here... let's give it a heave-ho." They all three grabbed the handles of the unruly luggage and hoisted it up over the threshold.
A voice overhead droned on the loudspeaker. "Mind the gap. Please, mind the gap."
The Covent Garden Hotel was unassuming where it sat in the middle of Monmouth Street. The tall brick building blended in with the rest of the shops, distinguished only by its black front and elegant gold lettering. Seraph brushed her hair neatly back behind an ear as she stepped up to the door, but before she could reach out for the handle, it swung open and a man on the other side motioned for her to enter.
She nodded to him, and noticed his head turn to follow her movements as she walked by. Her smile deepened at that, but she didn't return the gaze. Instead, she made her way through the lobby, to the front desk that was flanked on both sides with rich rose drapes, making it seem more like a theatre's stage than a place to check in. The wood of the desk was well oiled, the clock on the wall ticking in the comfortable silence. There was a plate of bright red apples on the counter, and Seraph took one, already thirsting for the taste of the crisp sweetness.
"Ah, hello there! Yes, welcome to the Covent Garden Hotel, may I help you?" said a woman. She appeared a moment later from a side door, her hair neatly pinned at the nape of her neck.
"Yes, I am Seraph Lore, I believe a room has been arranged for me?"
"Miss Lore... indeed! The Loft Suite. Oh you will be quite pleased with it I believe. It has been prepared for your arrival, if you would just sign our ledger here." With that the woman slid a large leather bound book around to receive Seraph's signature.
Seraph did so quickly, giving only a cursory glance at the other names penned in the book before smiling across at the woman. "So there is nothing else I need to do then, as far as payment?"
"No, Miss Lore... it has all been arranged for you. Stay as long as you wish, your first month has been paid, with credit ran on any further time you may need."
"Excellent. Thank you..." she paused, polishing the apple on her coat as she leaned in to read the name on the woman's gold lapel pin. "...Laurel. I have a feeling I will enjoy it here as well."
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To be continued....
2000 - A.S. Foxfires Arts
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