Zinnia once heard that Arntzen District was a place for people who didn't know what was good for them. She disagreed. The people who lived in Arntzen District were more than aware that they were living in a cesspool. They just couldn't get out of it by conventional means.

"Work hard and you're guaranteed to get yours" may have been Zinnia's favorite lie. People touted that saying as if it was something that fit for everyone. Someone could work hard, and never make it up the mountain because, surprise, they reached an impasse they didn't have the tools to make it over. They could climb that mountain, and be forced to pay for somebody else's mistake and slip all the way down because of it. Anything could happen.

She walked with her head held high, careful to keep her eyes ahead. The wrong look could look like an invitation if she wasn't careful. Zinnia wasn't in the mood to deal with that kind of misinterpretation.

Something she'd never understand about Arntzen District was its residents' ability to shove trash into any space necessary. Sure, life was shit, but why force your surroundings to look that way too? She counted her blessings that her father had too much pride to move them into Arntzen, not that they weren't a half second from having to move here. They were a bad livestock supply away from being Arntzen'd.

Everything felt darker in Arntzen, too, like it even made the sun recoil.

Zinnia stopped in front of the house with the red door. The address number was slanted, hanging off of the nail keeping it up. 163 Mafalda Street. She rapped her knuckles on the door. A woman opened it, her mouse-colored hair frazzled.

"Oh, it's Baby Z. Come on in. Pull up a chair." Gracja laughed to herself. She moved aside so she could get in.

"I'm not here to chat." Zinnia clenched her jaw. She needed to keep a serious face on.

Gracja's house stunk of incense. Sweet, musky incense. Zinnia recognized that syrupy reek. Gracja shouted over her shoulder. Lucio bumbled down the hallway, a big ol' grease stain on the front of his shirt. He still had shaving cream on his chin. Zinnia pointed it out to him.

"Thanks, girl. What's up?" Lucio wiped his face. The cream left a streak across his sleeve.

"You know what I'm here for." Zinnia crossed her arms. "Is Noemi here?"

"She'll be here soon! Why don't you relax?" Gracja twirled into the dump she considered a living room. Her couch was missing a leg. The only other chair she had had gotten smashed a week ago. The story behind that hadn't been coherent enough for Zinnia to understand.

Lucio grinned. He was missing a tooth in the front. "I know what she's looking for. Me and Gracja have got you covered. Gracja, get our favorite lavender runner girl what she wants."

"That's for Noemi to handle." Gracja said. Zinnia reached into her bag. "Nuh uh. We don't touch the money. Wait for Noemi."

Without any other choice, Zinnia sat down on the floor. She wasn't going anywhere near their questionable couch.

Noemi better get here soon, she thought to herself. She only had so much of her sanity to spare.

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A/N: This is an interactive fantasy serial. Voting takes place on Thursdays through Sundays on the story's main site. The most up-to-date chapters can also be found there, but uploading will happen in parts on RRL as well.

The next post will be Chapter 7.

Chapter 13 is out now on the main site. This week, voting will end Sunday at 11:59 PM EST. Comments on the main site are especially encouraging to the author.