all alone again | open

[Eponine Thenardier]

It had been raining in Paris, and it was raining here. That, Éponine noted, was the only similarity between the place she'd inhabited only a few minutes ago. Staring out at the street from her vantage point in an alleyway with wide eyes, the girl attempted to make sense of what she was seeing. Buildings all around her stretched all the way to the sky, taller than anything she'd ever see, even in Paris. And there were so many windows on them! Éponine briefly wondered just how much glass had been needed to cover each and every one.

In the street just outside where she was crouched, wheeled things flew by, faster than any carriage ever could. They weren't propelled by anything, certainly not horses, and she couldn't help but retreat a little as one passed by, a loud noise that came from it making her covers her ears for a moment. Normally, Éponine prided herself on being hard to scare or rattle, but in this horribly strange new place, all of that simply disappeared. She never thought she'd ever wish to be home again, where nothing but misery awaited her, but at least there, things were familiar and not so terrifying.

She trembled from fear and the cold that was so quickly settling in around her. The tan duster she wore over her chemise and skirt was rapidly becoming soaked through with rain water, and the thin material could only keep her so warm before the wind was able to slice right through it.

Her eyes scanned the street, briefly dazzled by the presence of so much light. Huge things attached to the side of the building flashed colors and bright lights, most of them featuring words in another language that she couldn't understand, no matter how hard she tried to read them. Despite her background, Éponine could read and write as well, but she couldn't understand a word of what was in front of her.

What was even providing the light? Éponine couldn't imagine there being so many candles, something might catch fire at any moment and the entire building would be ablaze. No, it had to be something else, most likely something she wouldn't understand. Slowly, she stood from her crouch, moving out of the alleyway and into the street. Best to keep moving, she thought, and perhaps find something, anything in this place that made some semblance of sense. The street was crowded, too much for her liking, but staying in that alleyway wasn't going to do anything for her.

Even the people in this place were strange. Were they all poor, she wondered, for most of them only had one or two layers of clothing? And some of the things the women wore! Éponine could hardly imagine the prostitutes of Paris wearing such...suggestive clothing, and yet, it seemed common enough here, even in the rain. She pulled her coat closer around herself, desperate for any warmth it might provide. A few of the people she passed looked at her oddly, and Éponine even caught sight of a group of girls watching her and whispering among themselves, though she couldn't quite make out what they were saying.

She paused, staring at them for a moment before carrying on. It didn't really matter either way, did it? What did matter was finding some manner of shelter for now. Everything else could be worked out later. But, how was she to find a place to stay in this place where she couldn't even read anything? Hunching up in her coat, she tried to ignore the scents from the bakery she was passing, even if they caused her stomach to let out a rather loud growl. Her hand instantly flew to it, pressing to quieten its protests. How long had it been since she'd last eaten? She couldn't remember. Ah well, it wasn't as though Éponine had gone without food before. Once she was able to figure out a way to steal off these people, she'd be able to fill her belly, if only a little.

Finally, she caught sight of a park, a welcome thing among all these intimidating buildings. Casting a wary glance around the street, Éponine slipped inside the wrought iron gates, staring off down a path. Anything was better than being out there, and the trees at least protected her a little better. She shivered, glad the park was empty so no one would have to see her little moment of weakness. With a soft sigh, she moved to sit on a nearby bench, hardly caring that it was just as wet as she was. It didn't matter much anyway, she just needed a place to rest and try to sort all of this out.

{Well, this was a long post about nothing. Apologies!}

[Anya]

Did that moronic human weatherman never get anything right?! He'd said it was going to be partly cloudy - partly cloudy - not dark and dreary and pouring down rain! If Anya'd had even the faintest idea of how to find that man in New York City's sea of people, she would have marched right up to him and given him a piece of her mind. But for now, she was stuck outside...in the park...without an umbrella. Because unlike some people, she didn't make the absurd claim that she could predict the weather, and she hadn't exactly prepared for this when she'd decided to venture out today. On the bright side, she'd managed to hurry under the trees before too much damage could be done. Still, her coat and what was visible of her jeans were now damp - and her mood was damper.

She'd almost considered just teleporting home, where it was warm and dry - but that seemed a bit risky in the middle of the park, even though it appeared to be mostly deserted by this point. So instead, Anya intended to exit the park and make for the nearest coffee shop...or at least she had, before she was distracted by a rather unusual sight. There was a girl sitting on a bench a little ways down the path, and upon initially noticing her Anya hadn't really paid her much attention - but then she did a double-take. A girl sitting alone in Central Park, in the middle of the rain - and looking considerably...lost, no less. The vengeance demon may not have been an expert in human behavior, but even she realized that something was a bit off here. She hesitated a moment...and then, out of sheer curiosity, decided to approach her.

Once she close enough to the stranger to get a better look at her, the blonde was quick to notice yet another unusual thing about the girl: her clothing. For a brief moment, Anya was puzzled. Maybe it was some sort of costume? Though it looked quite authentic for a costume...well, at the moment, that was the least of her concerns anyway. While some might have approached a complete stranger with a little bit more caution, Anya didn't seem to think much at all of what she did next: she paused briefly in front of the girl, quirked an eyebrow at her, and took a seat next to her on the bench.

..Oh, well, that was wet. What was this girl doing taking shelter here, of all places? Blinking several times, Anya wasted no time in addressing the girl in pursuit of the answers to the many questions that were currently racing through her own mind. "Um, hi. What are you doing out here?" she asked quizzically, getting directly to the point as per usual. Glancing outside the shelter of the trees where the rain was pouring down the hardest and then back to the girl again to emphasize her point, Anya continued, "Doesn't the rain bother you? I mean, you look kind of...cold. And miserable." It was a blunt observation, but a faint hint of concern edged the vengeance demon's tone. Was there something wrong? Maybe she could help...as long as it didn't involve staying out here for too much longer. That was what heroes did, after all. They helped people - and she supposed helping people didn't always involve saving their skins from...bloodthirsty vampires, or whatever vicious creatures happened to be plaguing the city at that particular moment.

The only thing was, she wasn't exactly sure how to go about helping. Going around asking nosy questions wasn't very helpful, after all. She studied the girl a moment longer with a slightly furrowed brow, trying to figure out how best to approach this whole thing.

[Eponine Thenardier]

The rain continued to fall, but now that she had a place to rest, Éponine paid little mind to it. Yes, it was getting her wet, but honestly, she was already soaked enough that it didn't really matter. Besides, she really was no stranger to being out in the cold and rain without a place to go. It had happened all to often at home, and she hadn't expected it to change with this new place, wherever it was. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to give some illusion of warmth, but it really was hopeless. She sighed quietly, just watching the rain for now, and letting her mind wander to things that didn't have anything to do with this place.

However, she wasn't left alone with her thoughts for long. When she had entered, Éponine had been sure the rest of the park would be empty. After all, if a person had a choice, wouldn't they rather be in their warm houses, far, far away from cold, wet places like this? However, the figure of a woman nearby caught her attention briefly, but she quickly turned away. No doubt she would simply be on her way, which was fine by her. While she did wish she had someone here for company, Éponine was also perfectly fine with being alone. She was used to it, after all.

It took her by surprise when the woman stopped in front of her, making her look up. Éponine tilted her head slightly, more than a little confused. Closer, she could take in the details of the woman a little better. She was nearly as wet as Éponine was, and had clearly been out in the rain for a bit as well. However, unlike Éponine, her clothes looked clean and her general appearance looked quite a bit better than hers. It was because of this that she couldn't help shifting a little under the woman's gaze, waiting for her to at least say something or simply continue to walk.

She blinked in shock as the woman sat beside her, instinctively moving over to make room for her. No doubt such a woman wouldn't want to be too close to a street rat like her. Éponine didn't blame her. "...hello," she replied warily, a little taken aback by the friendly nature of her greeting. The only person to use something close to that sort of tone with her at home was Marius, and it wasn't one she heard often. Her head tilted to the side in confusion at her next question. "I've got nowhere else to go, mademoiselle," she answered simply, not quite understanding why she was so concerned.

Plenty of people in Paris had nowhere to go as well, but perhaps things were different in this place. Was she the only one, then, with no home, or at least a place to stay? The thought wasn't an entirely pleasant one, and luckily the woman spoke again to distract her from it. Her thin shoulders rose and fell in a shrug. "It doesn't matter. If it did, there isn't much to be done for it," There wasn't anywhere she could really take shelter without being chased out for her appearance. Besides, lodging cost money, and if there was one thing she didn't have it was that. She didn't even know if francs or sous worked in this place.

"Why does it matter to you?" Her tone wasn't rude, just curious. The woman looked rich enough, with soft-looking, clean clothing, and quite clearly, she had a place to go to. Why she was bothering with someone like her puzzled Éponine, who was used just being ignored or thought of as one of Paris' many, many street rats.

[Anya]

This girl seemed a bit thrown by being addressed so suddenly, but Anya tried not to think on it too hard - she wasn't exactly unaccustomed to getting those sorts of strange, wary looks from people, so she simply shrugged it off and focused instead on the reply the girl had given her. It took Anya a moment to register what she'd said, and the matter-of-fact manner in which she'd said it - but then the vengeance demon blinked, even more confused than she had been a moment ago. "Nowhere else to go? But..." What did she mean? She had to have somewhere else to go...didn't she? "..I don't understand." she finished, rather lamely. And that was before she'd even processed the girl calling her 'mademoiselle'; not exactly a term that local New Yorkers used in their daily vocabulary. Something very odd was going on here...

Anya narrowed her eyes a fraction and took a closer look at her. Though her clothing was out of place, there was also something distinctly familiar about it, she realized. Or, well, familiar to a thousand-year-old demon, anyway. Now that she was concentrating, she noted that it looked distinctly European, perhaps early nineteenth century...or, late nineteenth century...goodness, her history was getting a bit rusty. She opened her mouth to question the girl's choice of apparel when she realized that instead, she probably should have been contemplating the inquiry that the girl had just shot back at her. Why had it mattered to her? This whole 'concern for others' thing was still relatively new to the demoness, but wasn't it typically what humans did? If someone had just walked past this girl when they could clearly see she needed help, well...that would have been wrong! Wouldn't it? There, getting the hang of this morality thing wasn't so hard.

"Oh, I don't know. It's not really any of my business, but I saw you sitting here in the rain and I thought you might be...I don't know, hurt or lost or..something. I would've felt bad just leaving you here without even making sure you were alright." Anya told her with a small shrug of her own. As to whether or not the girl was alright, she still wasn't entirely certain. She seemed somewhat resigned to being caught in the rain, anyway, but she'd also said that she had nowhere else to go. That couldn't be good. And Anya wasn't quite sure how to handle this, not until she knew a little bit more about this girl - cleared a few things up. Only she wasn't all that sure how much the girl would be willing to tell her. She still seemed a bit wary of Anya, after all and...of course the last thing the blonde wanted was to spook her, but her directness sometimes tended to have that effect on people whether she wanted it to or not.

Well, it was worth a try, anyway! Smiling slightly at her, Anya announced, "I think we should talk. Do you want to talk? Maybe some place...dryer, though. We could get coffee! Or tea. Or...um, insert-your-choice-of-warm-beverage-here. Y--we might get sick if we stay out here much longer." She'd been about to say 'you', but figured that 'we' sounded a bit more...human? Demons didn't exactly catch colds the way humans did, but she was hardly about to make that common knowledge. The point was, the poor girl was practically drenched...at the very least, Anya figured it'd be a good idea to get to somewhere a little warmer. Besides, coffee really did sound nice right about now - that was, if she hadn't yet overwhelmed this girl with her continual rambling.

[Eponine Thenardier]

The older woman's face showed clear confusion, something that threw Éponine off completely. Why was it such a surprise that she had nowhere to go? Well, of course, she had the streets, but the thought of being thrown back into that terrifyingly strange world wasn't a good one. Even if it was raining, she much preferred the park, which was a decidedly more peaceful and empty place.

She shrugged again. "I...I don't...really know where I am." Certainly not Paris. This was, she suspected, some sort of city, but these people certainly weren't the sort she was used to seeing. Even the woman sitting next to her seemed different, seeing as she'd just started talking to Éponine out of nowhere. People in Paris mostly just minded their own business, not concerning themselves with poor people like her.

Had she been able to better understand the tone of concern in her voice, it might have been nice to think someone was worried for her, if only a little bit. Unconsciously, she shivered again, drawing her now-drenched coat closer, almost a little worried for it. These clothes were all she had, and it was a little troubling to know that they might not be dry for a day or two.

She mustered a faint smile. "Y-you're very kind, mademoiselle..." It dropped almost immediately, though, as she wrapped her arms around herself again. It was still strange for Éponine, to be receiving kindness from this complete stranger, but she wasn't about to argue with it. Kindness was almost a foreign concept to her, from the life she came from. The only person to ever show her anything besides contempt was Marius, and she was trying desperately at the moment to avoid the thought of him altogether. It would only make her even more miserable than she already was.

"I am lost," Éponine continued, somewhat reluctant to admit it. But, this woman had to know this place better than she did, and perhaps could at the very least tell her where she was. Éponine didn't dare hope for anything more, for she knew she would most likely be let down. "This place...it certainly isn't Paris..." The thought that she might ever be homesick for her old life never crossed her mind, but at this moment, Éponine would do anything to return to Paris, where she could at least know where she was. "Do you know where we are, mademoiselle?"

Her head tilted to the side as the woman spoke again, as if she didn't quite understand what she said. And, in a way, she didn't. "W...what?" was the only that that would come out of her mouth. The idea that the woman would ever offer her someplace warm to go for the time being and a hot drink (something she hadn't had since she was a small child) hadn't even begun to cross her mind, and yet, Éponine was quite sure she hadn't misheard.

She searched the woman's face for any sign that she might be deceiving her, but there didn't seem to be any malice in her expression. The inward debate raged for just a moment more before Éponine slowly nodded. "I...yes. Merci." After all, while it might not exactly be food, the prospect of having something warm in her stomach was too good to pass up, especially seeing as she might not have the opportunity much in this place.

{Feel free to move them along, if you like!}

[Anya]

So this girl didn't know where she was - but how could that be? Maybe she had amnesia, or...well, Anya was trying to think up a slightly less far-fetched explanation, but she wasn't having much luck. As she attempted to puzzle this out, she was half-aware of the next comment the girl made - calling her 'kind'. It was enough to make the vengeance demon blink; mildly taken aback. Because kind wasn't a word she'd often heard in reference to herself...but it meant she was doing something right, didn't it? She decided not to question it, merely brushing the comment off with another smile - though this one was a tad more hesitant.

"Oh...no, you're a long way from Paris. We're in New York City!" Anya informed her matter-of-factly. So evidently the girl was French - but wait. How did someone get from Paris, all the way to New York without knowing where they were? At first it didn't make much sense. But then, as the demoness began to try and put the pieces together, something clicked. Maybe not an outright realization...more like a hunch. But this girl's manner of dress, the fact that she had nowhere to go, her wariness at suddenly being addressed - and of course, the fact that she seemed entirely lost, all very much suggested to Anya that there was more to this situation than met the eye. Perhaps, like Jimmy had been, this girl was from an alternate...something. Time? Dimension? Or, well...maybe she was just crazy, but she didn't really seem like the crazy type. And Anya didn't want to decide anything definitively without knowing a bit more about her, so she abruptly cut off her inquisitive thoughts and focused on getting them out of the rain.

"Good! Come on! It's just a little bit of a walk, but...I guess a bit more rain isn't exactly gonna kill us at this point, right?" They were both pretty much drenched by now anyway, and Anya decided to resign herself to the fact as well. The brunette still seemed a bit surprised that her helpful intentions were genuine, however, so Anya tried to keep her demeanor as reassuring as possible as she motioned for her newfound companion to follow her, and made for the park's exit. They'd get a few too many odd looks in a coffee shop, the vengeance demon decided - and she could hardly see this girl wanting to deal with that on top of everything else at the moment. And her own apartment was a bit too far a ways to walk in the rain - the magic shop she'd opened last summer, on the other hand, was just a few blocks away.

Right. A magic shop. She was sure that would go over well. Refusing to be deterred by this thought, however, she glanced at the girl again and decided she might as well introduce herself. "My name's Anya, by the way. I'm taking us to the shop I own, if that's alright with you! It's kind of...um, unique, but it's a lot warmer than rainy Central Park. Promise." she said brightly.

[Eponine Thenardier]

The explanation that they were in New York City did little for Éponine. She had never been outside of France, and had too little of an education to know much else about the world outside of her own. Besides, where her next meal was coming from, and whether or not she'd even have a next meal was much more important than geography, in her opinion. Well, at least knowing the name of wherever she was, and that it was far, far away from Paris was a start. The way things were looking, she was going to be here for the foreseeable future, so perhaps she'd learn more as she went along. If not, this woman seemed fine with answering her questions.

Her immediate helpfulness still made Éponine a little wary, but listening to her and trying to believe her was much better than staying out here in the rain and freezing to death. She'd come close to doing that on a few occasions, much too close for comfort, and seeing as she was being promised somewhere to warm up, and something hot to drink on top of it, Éponine couldn't help but get her hopes up a little bit. Feeling the woman's eyes on her again, she shifted uncomfortably, huddling a little more in her coat. It didn't do much but get her even more soaked, but it was an instinctual reaction to what she thought was being scrutinized.

"No...I don't suppose it will," she replied, mustering a faint smile and rising as the woman did. Truth be told, she'd take any amount of walking through the rain if it meant getting to someplace warm and dry by the end. Her coat, now completely soaked through, fell to it's usual place at her change of position, now nearly touching the pavement. Seeing as it was a man's coat, it was a little big on her, something that hardly mattered to Éponine. It was her only other piece of clothing besides the dirty chemise and ragged skirt underneath it. She followed the older woman like a silent shadow, eager to get inside and maybe warm up a little.

There seemed to be a moment of indecision as they walked, but it lasted only a minute before the woman spoke, giving her name and telling Éponine where they'd be going. She nodded silently, casting a wary glance around the park once more. "I'm Éponine," she replied quietly, debating for a moment whether or not to give her name. However, Anya didn't seem to be the sort she couldn't trust with at least that small bit of information, and she was the first friendly face that Éponine had encountered in a long time, apart from Marius. She could feel her resolve and defenses starting to weaken a little, something she wasn't so sure she was comfortable with. Ah well, it didn't really matter just yet.

Giving Anya a nod, Éponine managed another faint smile, encouraged by the promise of somewhere warm to stay, at least for a little while. She was a little disheartened, though, by the fact that there didn't sound like there'd be any food or drink in it for her, but by now, she had to take what she could get. And, she also caught the name of the park they'd just exited. Central Park. Right, she'd remember that. This place was absolutely huge, by the looks of it, and knowing the name of a place or two would certainly be helpful.

She bristled once they were back on the street, surrounded by people once more. This place, Éponine noticed, was so very loud, louder than even Paris was on its most crowded days. Those wheeled things she'd seen earlier kept passing by, some letting out blasts of sound that made her jump as she followed behind Anya. Again, people were glancing her way, taking in the drenched and battered duster that covered her, something that Éponine had initially been grateful for, but now resented somewhat for attracting attention. Still, it was better to be stuck here with something that might keep her warm.

"Is it much farther, Mlle. Anya?" Éponine asked, after a few minutes of trying to ignore being stared at. The streets of this place still didn't fail to put her on edge, even more so than she would have been at home, and that was saying quite a bit. She shivered a little, her wet coat doing little to warm her up as they continued to walk through the rain. Hopefully, it wouldn't be long before they could get away from these prying eyes and somewhere warm.

[Anya]

When Anya had first settled into New York, she'd admittedly found it a little...overbearing. The only place she had ever really called home before, after all, was a tiny Californian town - so she could only imagine what it must be like for Éponine. So the demoness tried to stick relatively close her to as they traveled through the busy city streets, wishing that people would be at least be a little less obvious with their blatant staring. Didn't they all have somewhere to be? Well, it didn't matter too much now - they were nearing the magic shop anyway. With that in mind, she focused her attention forward and ignored the people they passed - hoping to encourage Éponine to do the same.

"Oh, no not at all!" she responded, glancing back at her companion. "In fact it's...just up here.." Quickening her pace a bit, she led the way a little further up the block until they'd reached the next street corner where her shop was located. The sign over-top the door read 'The Magic Box' - named after her former place of business in Sunnydale, which now lay in ruins. Anya spent only a moment fishing the keys out of her purse before casting a bright grin back at Éponine, unlocking the door, and motioning her inside - but not before flipping the little sign on the door to read 'OPEN' again (as much as any customer seeing her drenched like this was unappealing, it wasn't deterring enough as turning away opportunities to make money was).

The interior of the shop looked significantly less normal than the exterior did. There were shelves stocked full of items that you wouldn't exactly consider normal - herbs, crystals, seemingly innocent but enchanted objects...ancient mummified hands...hopefully, though, Éponine wouldn't find any of this too disconcerting. Flicking the lights on, Anya moved a little ways into the shop before turning back to gauge the girl's reaction. "We don't sell clothes, or I'd offer you something dryer to wear for awhile. If you want, you could take your coat off, though! It'd probably dry more quickly that way - plus, it looks kind of cold." Which wasn't the point of a coat at all, Anya thought with a slight tsk! Or, well, maybe it was warmer than it looked - but it looked pretty wet.

So what to do next? First off, she figured, might as well follow up on her warm drink offer. The coffee maker and microwave in the back room made that somewhat possible, at least. "So are you more of a tea person, or a coffee person? I have water too, but warm water would probably be kind of...gross..." The vengeance demon wrinkled her nose a bit at the thought, thankfully trailing off before she could ramble too much. This time. While she waited for an answer, Anya occupied herself with wringing out her hair a bit, wishing she had a few towels or blankets or...well, something around. Or that she could have gotten away with doing a quick drying spell - but given that they'd quite literally just met, it probably wouldn't be a fabulous idea to make her magic abilities common knowledge just yet. Did they have magic where Éponine was from? Possibly, but even if they did, that didn't mean that the brunette would have a positive reaction to it.

...Though given that they were currently in a magic shop, maybe it was a little late to be thinking about that...

[Eponine Thenardier]

Thankfully, for Éponine, at least, they reached the shop without any trouble, apart from the staring people in the street. Considering that in Paris, it had been trouble to walk about without some man or thief approaching her, Éponine found this a welcome change. She waited silently as Anya drew a key from her pocket, glancing at the sign over the door. She squinted slightly, trying to make out what it said, but it was in the unfamiliar language that everything else in this place seemed to be written in. Ah well, it didn't really matter much, seeing as it only took a moment or two for the door to swing open.

A welcome wave of warmth swept over Éponine as she followed Anya inside. She shivered in the sudden temperature change, but made short work of taking off her soaking wet duster and draping it over the nearest available chair to dry. Of course, that would probably take some time, she realized, as she glanced around the shop, but perhaps Anya would allow her to stay at least until the rain let up. As the coat was shrugged off, Éponine was half-aware that what was underneath had been revealed: her dirty chemise and ragged skirt that did little to keep her warm without something covering them. The true shape of her body had been revealed as well, thin and gaunt.

However, she was quickly distracted from this by the things that were for sale around the shop. Anya had said it was unique, but Éponine had hardly expected something like this. She briefly picked up a rather pretty-looking crystal, turning it over in her hands and debating whether or not to slip it into the coat of her pocket while Anya had her back turned. The very small moral part of her won out in the end, and besides, it probably wasn't a good idea to steal from the person that was offering her shelter from the rain. Éponine did have some standards, after all, no matter how small they might have been.

Replacing the crystal on its shelf, she suddenly drew her hand back, her eyes wide, as she caught sight of what had been next to it. Was...was that a hand? Blinking, Éponine turned back to Anya, trying to ignore what she'd just seen in favor of listening to what the other woman was asking her. She smiled faintly, inwardly glad that she was indeed going to get something warm to drink out of this. "Tea, if you please, Mlle. Anya," she replied, remembering a few of the manners she'd been taught as a young child. After all, this woman was giving her something to fill her stomach (even if it wasn't food, but she could worry about that later) and a warm place to stay, at least for a little while. The least she could do was be polite.

Sitting down to wait, Éponine attempted to arrange her thin and tattered clothing into something at least half-way presentable, running her fingers through her dark, tangled hair. She was, of course, little compared to some of the people she'd seen on the street here, but at least her clothing covered her up decently, unlike some of them. Watching as Anya retreated to the back, she found her gaze drawn again to the hand that lay on the shelf. Without meaning to, she voiced her thoughts. "What sort of shop is this, Mlle. Anya? I've never seen one like it before..."

[Anya]

Nodding once when Éponine answered her, Anya zipped back to the little room behind the counter - back where there was a sink, a coffee maker, a microwave, and a cabinet full of tea bags, bags of coffee beans, cups, and other assorted little items. All of this was normally just kept back here for those colder days when she just really didn't feel like running out for coffee - or when she decided to stay and work late and wanted something warm to drink - but twice now, it'd come in handy when she'd had unexpected visitors. And as an additional plus, Anya really was learning how to make a pretty good cup of coffee. Thankfully, tea was fairly quick and easy as well.

As she began to prepare two cups, warming the water first, the vengeance demon began to reflect on exactly what she was going to do about all of this. Whatever world or time Éponine was from, it was clear that she didn't have a way of getting back there any time soon. What was going to happen to her, then? New York City wasn't exactly the most...welcoming place to those who wandered the streets at night, especially if you happened to be in certain areas. That 'use common sense and look out for yourself' part of her mind that had guided her though so many years as a demon told Anya that it wasn't her place to be worrying about all of this, that she hardly knew anything about this girl - but at the same time, that 'morality' part of her she'd recently developed as a human argued that she couldn't leave Éponine in the city with no place to go, even once the rain stopped.

...Well. Perhaps she could talk to her a bit first. Get to know her a little, and then make a decision on what to do next. A cheerful smile back in place, Anya re-entered the main room of the shop with two mugs in hand once she finished the tea. Placing one down in front of Éponine, she took the other and sat down across the table from her, tilting her head slightly to one side at the question the brunette asked her. Right - she supposed it was inevitable that this had been coming. Glancing around the shop, Anya spent only a brief moment worrying about how to word this - before, as usual, just deciding to go with the unfiltered truth. "It's a magic shop," she stated matter-of-factly with a bright, fond sort of smile as she gazed around the place. "Not a silly fake one with card tricks and..." she shivered slightly, "...bunnies, either. No, this is the real deal." And the demoness sounded fairly proud of the fact as she stated it, too.

She did hope that Éponine wouldn't be too off-put by the whole thing, though. From what Anya could tell, she hadn't perceived the shop too negatively from the start - but some people had a more cynical reaction to magic than others. 'Course, Éponine had just been somehow transported to a new place with no idea how she'd gotten there. The idea of a magic shop probably seemed fairly normal in comparison to that. "How long have you been here in New York, anyway?" Anya asked out of curiosity after a moment. It couldn't have been long, she guessed - or at least hoped. She could see how New York might be...kind of overwhelming for anyone who wasn't used to it.

[Eponine Thenardier]

As Anya vanished into the back room, Éponine took the opportunity to sit at a chair nearby, idly rubbing her now-bare arms in an attempt to both dry them and warm them up a bit. Her gaze roved once more around the shop, this time warily. If there was a disembodied hand here, who knew what else was lurking in the shelves. However, she certainly couldn't complain about having somewhere warm to shelter her during the rain. Briefly, she wondered what exactly was going to happen once the rain let up. Would Anya force her to leave?

Well...it wasn't as if she'd hadn't had to live on the streets before. It couldn't be harder here than it had been in Paris. All she needed to do was become better acquainted with this place, to know where she could go for food or for shelter if needed. Éponine had nearly known Paris like the back of her hand, surely it wouldn't take long for her to know New York in the same way.

Wrapping her arms around herself for a little extra warmth, she bit her lip, just a little bit worried. What would become of her if she couldn't? She couldn't imagine dying in this place. At least at home, she might have been missed by Marius. Maybe. Here, she had no one. And, if she didn't know how to steal off these people and couldn't get the things she needed, death was all that was in store for her. The re-appearance of Anya forced those thoughts from her mind, especially the sight of the two mugs in her hands.

She smiled weakly, forcing herself not to snatch the mug up greedily, instead wrapping her hands around it and allowing it to warm her numb fingers for a moment. However, it wasn't long before Éponine couldn't resist taking a long sip from it, nearly gulping the whole mug of tea down in one. It had been a long, long time since she'd had something warm in her, and after being out in the cold rain, it felt wonderful. She finished it quickly, in two long sips, setting the mug back on the table once she was done.

It might not have been a substantial meal, but it filled her stomach just as well. She smiled a little more confidently at Anya, feeling better than she had in a few days. "Merci, mademoiselle," Éponine finally said, savoring this feeling. Something told her it would be a long time before she felt this way again, if she ever did. She had half a mind to ask for more, but instead found herself voicing her thoughts on the shop, her gaze briefly landing on the hand again. Éponine frowned slightly, not entirely understanding what Anya had said.

"...magic?" And not the sort that was mere illusion, according to her. At any other time, she might have begun to question Anya's sanity, but seeing as she'd just been taken here by something that couldn't be explained, she was a little more inclined to believe in such things. "What...sort of....magic," she was reluctant to use the word, but there really was no other word to use, "things do you have, then?" Perhaps stealing from here wasn't a bad idea after all. There could be something useful among these shelves...

Her thin shoulders rose and fell in a shrug. "An hour or two, I think, mademoiselle," Éponine replied. She was unsure of how long she'd sat on that bench, or wandered about in the streets, so it was anyone's guess of how long exactly she'd been here.

[Anya]

It was a bit of a relief to see that the tea seemed to be making Éponine feel at least a little better. Hopefully keeping her warm until she dried off would prevent her from getting sick - she already looked a bit more confident and energetic, so that was something. Nodding once when the brunette thanked her, Anya took a slow sip out of her own mug before setting it back down on the table to consider Éponine's reaction to learning that she was currently located in a magic shop. ...So far, so good...at least from what Anya could tell, and she hoped she wasn't too far off with the 'interpreting human emotions' thing this time. Sure, Éponine seemed a bit wary (what human unfamiliar with magic wouldn't be?) but at least she wasn't staring at Anya like she was crazy. Or...freaking out and trying to burn her for being a witch. Both of which were reactions the vengeance demon had gotten from people before, though admittedly the latter was...a bit less common these days.

Tapping her fingers lightly against the surface of the table, she considered how much to tell the girl sitting across from her. Her first instinct was to just sort of dive right into some in-depth explanation of the various magical artifacts they carried here, but...something stopped Anya before she could do so. That might just be a little bit much right now, she realized, and not particularly necessary just to answer her question. So to simplify, she just shrugged. "Lots of different things! Books full of ancient runes, potion ingredients - and potions, for the lazy people - crystals, charms, enchanted objects...mummy hands..." She trailed off as she glanced around the shop again, her gaze coming to rest on the mummified hand near Éponine. Right. Now that Anya thought about it, that thing was kind of...out in the open. For future reference, maybe it'd be better to store it...behind the counter, or something.

"Yes. Anyway," the demoness continued, snapping herself out of her thoughts and refocusing on Éponine. "This stuff isn't, like, freaking you out or anything, right? I mean, you seem to be handling it pretty well so far. Not just the magic shop either, the whole...suddenly finding yourself in an unfamiliar place thing. But I just wanted to make sure you're not secretly questioning whether or not we've both gone insane, or anything like that." Anya commented, casually taking another sip of tea. Not that Éponine was doing anything that particularly worried her at the moment - 'You don't think you're going crazy, do you?' just seemed like a considerate question to ask. Still attempting a bright, reassuring smile, Anya considered the girl's answer to her other question as she waited for a response.

A few hours. Well, that wasn't so bad - as long as she hadn't been out in the rain that entire time. Anya was just glad she'd been the one to stumble across Éponine before...someone potentially worse did. Not that she thought badly of this city's general population, or anything, but...there were some people here and there who, at best, might have responded a bit more harshly to someone who stood out even by New York City's standards. And at worst...well, at worst, there were people like Hazama. But there was no point in getting all worried about that now...it hadn't happened, after all! Now...it was really just a matter of what they were going to do next. Was there a way to get Éponine back to...wherever or whenever it was she'd come from? Anya wasn't really sure - and she was even less sure what to do if there wasn't. It was a...very peculiar situation, to be sure.