Thread: Tokyo Trip: Interactive Fiction

Readers have spoken and picked a traditional hotel over a more modern one, lets see how it works for our characters... If the misunderstanding at the airport had helped make things awkward, the trip from it to the city wasn't helping at all. It seemed that the train had some issues, or so Aoi explained through the messages that sounded over the public address system. That made Sam experience something that she didn't expect unless in the subway at rush hour, and was being crowded in the train. Of course, it still wasn't as suffocating as a real get-yourself-pushed-in subway since there wasn't as much people, but since many of them carried some luggage it was still quite cramped. The lack of space made them stick together, showing the height difference even more as Aoi ended having to look down most of the way to avoid staring directly at Sam's chest hanging at eye level. The train windows almost felt like a slide viewer, sometimes showing brief glimpses of the outside through the shifting crowd, so Sam could see that the surroundings of the airport were quite normal and almost country like, but soon it started to get busier and busier as they approached Tokyo itself. It was hectic, hundreds, thousands of people transferred from one train to another, always busy, always in a hurry but rarely running. Aoi knew where they were going, but sometimes it was almost tempting to grab her and carry that petite figure on her shoulders to avoid her having to deal with the crowd. Of course it would be completely inappropriate, but Sam was so bedazzled by the boisterous city that it just added to her good mood. Finally Aoi said, tired but still holding the heat like nothing as they arrived at the top of a slope. Hotel Edoya she added, the name visible on the front. Sam followed her, handling the train trip and walk up the slope better than Aoi, but the heat was entirely something else, a humid warmth that seemed to seep in every corner of your body. The hotel itself seemed an old but nice half a dozen storied building in a street that had newer and taller hotels, so Sam was sure that it had something special to survive in the business. As they entered the lobby, Sam noticed that it was indeed quite old but clean and well preserved, having that feel of the second half of the twentieth century where you could almost see items from each decade preserved around from furniture to carpets. Luckily for Sam, Aoi took charge of everything, since the lobby was mastered by an ancient woman that Sam thought it was some wise witch out of a Ghibli movie, little and wrinkly beyond her counter full of stuff. Aoi gave Sam a key attached to a big wooden piece with a 505 carved on it, no fancy card keys in there but old fashioned ones. Last floor, at least the last one with rooms she explained, clearly trying to be professional despite their odd start. The floor on top of it has a resting room, a laundry with some washing and drying machines and the public bath she added as they went into an elevator that almost looked steam powered. They have an onsen? Sam asked excited about the public bath. She had hired the trip and hotel through an agency since she was horrible at those kind of things, so she knew little if anything of where she was supposed to stay. Doesn't the room have a bath? she wondered, more curious than worried. Being an athlete she was more than accustomed to be naked with other women, so it was no issue at all, at least beyond of the usual looks her body could attract but she was sort of accustomed. It has one, don't worry Aoi answered, slightly misunderstanding Sam's question but noticing that she was aware of Japan's public bath tradition by the use of the 'onsen' word. Out of the elevator and into the room, Sam soon got rid of her shoes in the entrance, so it was one less thing to explain to her. The room had a living space next to a sleeping one, separated by a set of sliding doors and equipped with a futon, a small tv and fridge in front of a couch and a little table. The entrance corridor that went to the room had doors for the bathroom and the toilet. It's beautiful! Sam said, walking around the room that luckily had a tall enough ceiling to accommodate her height, even if it wasn't for much. Oh, yes, air conditioner help me she said, finding a remote and fiddling with it until the device on the wall started to breathe cold air on her. Damn... I was told that August was rough, but this is something else... she said, removing the jacket of her tracksuit and throwing it on top of her still closed luggage. Aoi looked at Sam wordless, seeing how the giant moved around with more grace than she expected, but it was her bigger than expected chest the one that grabbed her attention. It fit nicely on her taller frame, but on someone smaller would look quite big, enormous on someone as small and thin like Aoi herself. Make yourself comfortable, you are already in Tokyo she said, smiling at her charge for the first time. I am in Tokyo, right? It sounds surreal Sam voiced, returning the smile and enjoying the cold air. Time to choose the next step for the story. Priorities!