HOTEL LEX - FLOOR 5 (16/?) (Patreon)

You shake your head, apologizing for the sudden interruption.

He nods his head. "We'll make it through all the floors today; most stores are open all day long so there's no need to hurry." He meows, happily clicking the fifth floor.

The doors open and your jaw drops. Unlike the sleek marble tiles with store signs displaying bright and large over an entrance usually with glass windows, you look down at what appears to be the side of a store shelf with a guide rail on the outside. You can see each "floor" distinctly but it doesn't end there. The shelves seem to magically change material as they extend beyond your line of sight to what looks like an arcade. A giant air hockey table sits along a floor with each goal, some sort of tunnel or platform that takes toys to lower floors. The center is decorated like any outdoor mall pavilion with seating and a bunch of plastic palm trees extending into the open space. Each floor seems to have multiple ways to traverse and you even spot a giant stepladder bringing toys from the first floor to the second. Rails of sorts run all along each floor. Hot Wheels race tracks run alongside roller coasters made with K'nex pieces.

In the center of the Department Store sits some kind of display space. Fake grass runs in big, bubbly shapes along the ground with large plastic Lego trees shooting up. You peer upward from there and see a frosted glass ceiling shining brightly down and casting soft shadows over the toys bustling around. You also spot a giant light pole with more than a dozen street signs that are all pointing in different directions with numerous descriptions. "Construction, Air & Space, Art, Playspace, Wagons and Trolleys."

You walk alongside Bean as you marvel at the many different stores and their unique storefronts. You spot a space-themed store called "Astro Blast!" The ground outside their store looks like craters of a moon with the store being a giant toy spaceship with a landing bridge as its entrance. You look over at "STONEAGE" and spot a baking soda volcano bubbling at the top. Now that you're seeing all this, you begin to wonder: what is it that toys look for here? You catch up to Bean's energetic pace and ask him.

"Well, it's entertainment for most toys," he purrs. "Want a new hairstyle? You'll find lots over at 'Curls 'n' Waves.' Looking for some pastimes? 'Piece of Mind' for puzzles. Sometimes a toy also wants to repair or swap out body parts. You'll find more of that kind of thing on the first floor. I think today, they have a swap meet but we can work our way down. We'll stop on floor 3 to go find the Timekeeper too," he adds in before speeding off in the direction of "Carpet World."

You and Emmett walk up to the multi-colored storefront. It looks like someone felt that rugs need not only stay attached to the ground and so ran them up the walls and across the ceiling. Many different sizes of stools and chairs sit on the outside. You peek inside and it looks like a giant cat tree that extends in all different directions.

"W-wow," Emmett manages to say. He's been quiet this entire time, taking in the view as well. "A-am I dreaming?" He says, rubbing his eyes once over.

You walk into the store and see Bean pawing at different kinds of cat toys. One in particular is a wooden butterfly attached to a fishing line that you find quite cute yourself. You watch as Bean moves from one to the next down an entire row dedicated to unique kinds of cat toys. Bean's eye is wide with amusement. Though you were a cat yourself, you seem to have lost most interest in the flickering colors and spinning lines. You sigh, not wanting to dwell on that thought of who you once were.

"What do you t-t-think?" Emmett asks you as you find his hand to hold.

> Wait for Bean near the front of the store. > Ask to meet up so you may explore other stores on this floor.

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I often forget I majored in Environmental design...