The next day was hot again, and for Kaina this was not good. Her Fomorian body thrived in lower temperatures. Had she been at MacCallan Castle, surrounded by many people, baking in their collective body heat; it would have been bad enough. But this world was hotter than her own, and to make matters worse, she had no place to go. And she had no friends to come to her aid.
She still had bodily needs, which were driving her to the edge of insanity. She stopped a total stranger on the sidewalk. "Excuse me. Is there a washroom nearby?"
"Yeah, right in there." The woman pointed into a restaurant, and Kaina wandered through the doors, looking in trepidation at all the people looking back at her. She turned and poked her head back outside.
"Are you sure? This looks more like a dining room."
"Oh, for Pete's sake." The woman rested the broom against the wall of the restaurant. "Follow me, I'll show you."
"Thank you." Kaina followed her inside and down the hall.
"See this big sign that says washroom?" the woman asked rudely. "Well, that's it."
"Thank you." Kaina slipped into the room and stopped, looking at the ugly green wall that had multiple doors. She was accustomed to using outhouses; she was not accustomed to everyone hearing it being used. What a disgusting civilization!
She slipped into a stall and relieved herself. The toilet made a loud, automatic sound and she screamed. Hearing laughter in an adjacent stall, she asked, "What just happened?"
"It flushed, you moron!"
Kaina did not know what a flush was, and she did not know what a moron was. In Partholon, these words did not exist. She finished up and opened the door, watching with interest as another woman went to the sink and started washing her hands. Wondering if that was normal for the people of this planet, Kaina copied her; not wanting to stand out. She must have made the right call, because the woman paid her no mind. Relieved in two different ways, Kaina followed her out of the washroom; where it smelled like food. She sniffed appreciatively, watching the chefs prepare a whole myriad of different things. One person was adding food to a display, and as Kaina continued to watch, he took food out and put it in a basket. Her eyes went wide as he raised the basket over a garbage bin.
"Can I have that?" she asked, and at his expression hastily added, "Please?"
"No, I'd get fired!"
Kaina tilted her head. "What does that mean?"
He looked at her like she was stupid. "I would lose my job," he said, speaking slowly.
Kaina briefly considered. "And that weighs less on your conscience than letting me starve?"
"Lady, why don't you just buy something, alright?" He tipped the basket over the garbage bin and continued working. Kaina did not understand the question and let herself out of the cafe, feeling like her face was beginning to match the fire-colored highlights in her hair. She may not understand their grammar, but she definitely understood ridicule.
There were chairs outside, and Kaina sat down, grimacing at the searing temperature of the seat. She almost lay her arms on the table, but quickly settled with putting her hands in her lap when she realized her legs were in the shade.
"Here." Suddenly a carton was placed before her. It smelled good, and Kaina raised her eyes to the man who had put it on her table. "I remember those days."
"Which days?"
He smiled at her strange, lilting accent. "Not being able to afford much. I like to pay it forward." He started to go back inside, and she lurched out of the warm seat.
"Thank you, I really appreciate it!"
"Don't mention it." He let himself inside.
Kaina blinked at the unusual response. Had she offended him…? She sat and opened the carton, looking at the array of foods. She tried one of the pastries. Pleased by its flavor, she tried not to cram it into her mouth. When she had finished the pastry, she closed the box, picking it up by its paper handle. She walked down the street a ways and stopped at the sight of another pole on the sidewalk. This one was even thinner, and instead of having wires that went high above the road, it only had a sign on it; a circle that had a diagonal line cutting over the letter P. Below that, another sign that Kaina couldn't make any sense of. And not because it was written in numerical code.
She was fanning her face and looking around for shade when a big vehicle rumbled to a stop in front of her. She jumped as the doors whooshed open; and she and the bus driver just looked at each other. He returned her inquisitive glance with an impatient expression, and finally snapped, "You getting on or not?"
"No."
"Then don't stand there. Ignorant bitch."
The doors closed and Kaina stared at her own shocked face. The bus roared away from the curb. Kaina narrowed her eyes after the loud departing mode of transport, feeling her temper flare.