pre-intro with Annie

[dominoeffect]

[it wasn't easy, but Hal somehow found his way to the mess hall. which smelled absolutely horrible, but at least there were no remnants of blood in the Tuesday soup. he's ended up cowering in the corner with a cup of tea and a book he had on hand. in fact, he's been there for a while. in the hand that isn't holding his book, he's holding on to a domino and gripping it very tightly]

Comments

[dominoeffect]

It would be less moist.

[departea]

But a different kind of bad smell.

How long have you been sitting here?

[dominoeffect]

Four hours and fifty-three minutes.

[departea]

Ah, you kept an... exact count...

Why don't I make you some tea that isn't completely terrible, huh? How does that sound?

[dominoeffect]

And go outside.

[dominoeffect]

That's not really an option right now, Annie. No, we'll stay here.

It's quiet.

[departea]

I'll just pop into the kitchen then and see if I can salvage anything in there.

[dominoeffect]

All right. That'll do.

[departea]

[ she casually walks into the kitchen, and once there, she takes a few moments to just breathe deeply. after she manages to get her hands to stop shaking, Annie looks through the cabinets and calls out: ]

I may be able to make you some here. It might not be my best, but it'll still be better than that rubbish.

[dominoeffect]

As long as it doesn't taste burnt.

[departea]

It won't. I'm the one who's making it.

[dominoeffect]

Yes.

Yes, I know. But it seems like anything is possible here.

[departea]

Well, that's because it is. There was a dinosaur with a hat and tattoo around a while ago.

[dominoeffect]

Brilliant.

[departea]

It was more destructive than anything.

[ after an appropriate amount of time, she comes back out with two mugs of tea in hand ]

One for you, and one for me.

[dominoeffect]

[give him a moment to nurture the smell of the tea. the feel of the cup. the warmth of the cup. the fact that the cup has no blemishes ...

and then he savors the taste. every second of it.

yes]

[departea]

[ sits across from him and lightly taps her fingers against hers while he drinks ]

[dominoeffect]

It's not always this empty in here, is it?

[departea]

No, it's normally one of the busiest spots. It's just not that popular on Tuesday.

[dominoeffect]

Where will I hide? All these people ... To claim to have self-control, to think I can truly accomplish anything of the sort ... What was I thinking? I must've been mad. I've been in swamps before. Marshes. In England. Italy, too. I traipsed all over them when I was younger. Ah, younger in this form, that is. It was the sixteenth century and the condottieri were still causing problems. Free men, indeed. I enjoyed myself. It was interesting how they clung to false ideals while thinking that they deserved money for all of their deeds. Ha, I thought. These men would have the last laugh.

I never was very fond of marshes, you see. After I was done with them, I moved on. I've tried to stay in dryer areas. That's why I was never terribly fond of London, but at least you know where the wetness is typically coming from. Typically.

[dominoeffect]

But my past is irrelevant here. This is America. Leo always said that America's South would be like Hell on me. Well, he said it once or twice, but it stuck with me. Because it was really no different from other places. Hot. Mixed together. Muddy.

[dominoeffect]

Naturally, I've been here before, but even in one of my ... other periods of my life, I avoided them. After all, how would I recover my shoes?

[dominoeffect]

My shoes, when you see them removed from underneath this table, are very dirty now.

[dominoeffect]

There is so much mud, just as there are so many people. Too many.

So I ask again, Annie. Where will I hide? It doesn't seem to be possible.

[departea]

[ she has been trying to figure out what the hell is a condottieri ]

Well, for your shoe problem, you can always cover them. Maybe get a whole set for every day of the week? That would be nice, right? Camp shoe covers?