Annie D
Deliah delivered the Fosters to the front desk, then went to check in with her boss.
The desk staff at the Center were all sylphs. They watched as two clerks used chopsticks to search a computer for their reservations.
Ray started to offer to design a much more convenient interface but was stopped when the clerks started to laugh.
“This isn’t really the interface, sir, that’s a guy under the desk with a virtual screen and voice-activated software,” one explained. “This,” and he waved to indicate the normal sized computer and screen, the keyboard and his partner.
“Is for tourists,” Annie guessed. The clerk gave her a wink. Pet looked confused. The sylph turned to her and smoothly explained.
“People come here to see what sylphs can do, and they want to see sylphs performing jobs all through the building. So we make sure they see sylphs doing jobs all through the building. And we do them just like ‘real’ people would, so they know what we’re doing. Even if it’s a bit silly.”
“Oh,” Pet said. “So if they see you using a keyboard like they do, but with the difficulties we have because of scale, they smile and feel good about how hard you’re working to be normal people, but if they saw you using the highest possible tech they’d be afraid that the sylph uprising was juuuuuuuuuuust about to break out and they wouldn’t feel superior, they’d feel scared.” She blinked. “Right?”
“I, uh, couldn’t have said it better, miss,” the clerk said. He gave Pet a bow.
Annie threw her arm around her friend’s shoulders. “You are so smart,” she said.
Pet looked at the floor. “It just seemed like something you’d say… Sylphs have to work twelve times as hard to be taken half as seriously.”
“I taught her that,” Annie told the clerk. By that time, the other clerk was taking the room cards out of the dumbwaiter and carrying it over to Ray and Denise.
Another set of cards were for Annie and Pet. They gave brief instructions on how to use the cards. They’d been designed for illiterate sylphs to use, so it hardly stressed Pet’s still-limited reading skills.
Then they followed the color coded walkways to their room.
Foster unpacking started with ‘what’s the best spot for the sylph carrier?’ They were all in favor of putting it next to the sylph-sized bathroom, complete with tiny toilet, shower, bath and sauna.
After that, the humans were discussing what to do with their evening when there was a knock on the door.
“We’ll get it!” Annie shouted, grabbing Pet’s arm and running for the door. There was a small sylph-scaled door next to the hinge side. Next to it was a big red button that opened the human door.
Pet was thrilled to operate an entire human sized door all by herself.
Deliah came in. “Ray! There’s a problem and you were the first person I thought of!”
“Oh?” Ray and Pet asked interestedly.
“Oh?” Denise and Annie asked suspiciously.
“Electra’s got about seven hundred forms for the sylphs that want to be on her show and they’re trying to figure a way to organize them and they’ve got six categories but twelve piles and they might need two more piles and it’s all got to be done tonight and tomorrow and the FIRST person I thought of was you, Ray.”
“Oh, God, Pet,” Annie moaned, “you’re contagious.”
“I could maybe help,” Ray said softly.
Deliah turned to Denise. “I’m so, so sorry, I don’t know what you were planning to do tonight-“
“Neither did we, yet,” Denise said easily.
“Um, great, and, uh, I don’t know what you do for a living?”
“I’m a purchasing agent for a hospital. I have a degree in accounting.” She offered her hand and Deliah took it. “If there’s some place we can get dinner, we’d be glad to help.”
“Oh, I’m catering the whole effort,” Deliah said proudly.
“Can we fill out OUR forms, first?” Pet asked.
“Let Ray set up the categories, first, Pet,” Annie said. “THEN we’ll know what to put down.” She looked up at her owner. “Like Sylph Rescue or noodle forts or stuff.”
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Index
109. Kerri D
111. Electra D