A New Home

 The elevator doors opened with a whoosh and a girl stepped out into a large apartment dragging a pink suitcase. The apartment opened to a large common space for the residents to share. Along the walls were keycard access doors, two on the right side and three on the other. The side with two doors had a large reading nook with rows on book shelves at the end opposite the elevator. In the very center of the common space was a large communal kitchen. The wall facing the elevator was a large glass window giving a skyline view of Tokyo.

“I guess this is my new home then huh”, the girl said in a self deprecating tone. This was her fifth “home” in the past three years.

To the right of where the elevator deposited the girl was a cozy living area with several grey couches. The space was tied together with a fluffy rug directing the flow to the electric fireplace above which housed a large TV. There was a brown coffee table in the center of the couches with several dirty cups and plates.

To the left was a shoe caddy filled with various women's shoes. A pair of light pink slippers stood out, on them a note reading “for Amelia”. Above it was a full length mirror.

“Wow… I look… terrible, "Amelia said in a stunned voice as she looked in the mirror.

She was 19 and quite tall at five foot eleven. Her long blonde hair was matted and oily after traveling for nearly two days. Her normally grey blue eyes looked dull with the dark circles under them. Her clothes were wrinkled and some stains were visible on her jacket.

She looked down and began taking off her tennis shoes and sliding on the new slippers. “Damn, it's going to take a lot of mental effort to not wear normal shoes inside here” she sighed.

Amelia turned and began walking towards the kitchen area. The slapping sound from the slippers already started to get on her nerves. As she walked she looked more closely around the room. The walls were white and completely bare. The kitchen area appeared to have a large serving counter with stools on one side and a sink and prep space on the other. A large commercial fridge was positioned at the end of the counter. There was an adjacent island with a six burner gas stove and an oven.

“Where's the pantry though?” Amelia let slip, while shaking her head confused.

On the counter was a note and a key card.

“Hi Amelia! We’re so excited to have you on the team. Here is your ID card. From now on it’ll let you get into the building without the help of the counter staff, and it will also let you into your room (the one right next to the reading nook!). While we normally eat dinner on our own, we’ll be having a communal dinner right here at ~5pm. If you have any questions feel free to knock on my door, it's the one on the opposite side from you in the center, it has bats on the door. See you soon -Veronica”

Great just what you want after a sixteen hour flight Amelia thought, shaking her head again.

She walked to her room, the new slippers testing her patience even more. The door to her room was a pale blue, with a simple badge scanner next to it on the wall. Using her new ID card on the scanner, she heard the door click and pushed it open. She flicked her wrist and the card disappeared into thin air.

Her room was spacious. The walls were a light yellow which coupled with the numerous windows made the room feel bright and warm. The door opened into a wide hallway at the end of which she could see a sitting area with a coffee table, a comfortable looking couch, and two plush chairs. Branching off the main entrance to the left was a second hallway about halfway down.

Amelia stepped into the room soaking in the view of her new home. She felt at peace for the first time in months and wanted so badly to explore the hallway that led out of her line of sight. Her brain was spinning with excitement until the sound of the door closing behind her made her jump. She turned and saw the automatic closer at the top of the door and breathed a sign of relief.

Moving further into her new space she peered down the side hallway. Unlike the common area and entryway, it was carpeted. There were two doors on the left, one leading to a large office space and the other leading into a small bedroom complete with its own small bathroom. 

On the right was a small coat closet, along with a large master bedroom, furnished with the softest bed she had ever seen. The bedroom had two large windows that gave her another breath taking view of the city. The size of both her closet and bathroom shocked her as she had lived in places that size alone. At the end of the hall was a door that led directly into the reading nook she had seen from the common area. It was filled with all kinds of books from manga and light novels to textbooks and ancient looking tomes, the names on the spines she couldn’t make out.

Retracing her steps she headed to the sitting area and discovered a small fully stocked kitchen and pantry. Along with another bathroom. She saw one last door which opened to a small private library where there were more books geared towards her personal tastes.

Realizing she left her suitcase by the elevator she turned to leave.

I think I’m going to like it here. It’s quiet and has lots of books. And most importantly it seems like it’ll be hard for others to find me. I can be a total ghost when I’m not working. Maybe if I’m lucky I can get some magic practice in!

As she stepped out of her room she saw a short girl standing in the common space’s sitting area. She had long black hair and wore a modest tan dress. When she saw Amelia she panicked and ran to one of the room on the other side of the floor.

Well, not everything can be perfect, Amelia laughed to her self.