Open For Business [Closed]

[Ekaterina]

Another day, another chance to make a hoard of wealth. The bookstore was on the larger side of the stores that dotted the main thoroughfare of Port Alietum's landscape. And if one were to believe rumors, the new owner had only just recently purchased the store. Yet she was already turning a tidy profit that would make even a wealthy man grow envious. In truth though, that particular rumor made the owner chuckle. While she was certainly capable of making a neat sum, it was rare that people who had the money for those rarer books and tomes actually came into her shop. And admittedly, she had a habit of spending heavily at times anyways. Nonetheless though, it was a living.

The violet haired woman unlocked the backdoor of her shop, stepping inside and locking it once more before closing the door. She begun to hum a brief tune as she walked to the front of her store. From the window outside, one could see the voluptuous witch milling about the store, going over her stock before opening up. After a time, she strode towards the front door and unlocked it before flipping over a sign that indicated her store as being open to the public. Ekaterina then rounded the counter, seating herself at a chair behind the counter. She fetched the latest book that she had begun to read the previous day from a shelf beneath, cracking it open and starting to read as she awaited customers.

[Verena]

Another day, another chance to hope for a decent chance to work. Port Alietum was a fantastic place for a perspective tavern performer - the trade hub had more taverns than Verena could shake a staff at, and most of them were even relatively above board. True, many of their patrons would rather sing their own sea shanties than listen to a troubadour, but it was still one of the better places in Sidus to play. She always went out looking for work early in the morning, when tavern owners were trying to shoo the patrons of the night before out and rarely had to deal with any new customers. This helped her establish why she was there, lest one of them try to convince her to stay a night when she already had lodging.

Today had been pretty successful. One job, one "we're actually closed tonight because some idiot burned half the bar with a fire spell, but we can set you up once repairs are done", and one "hey, your last show was great, could you come back next week?" All in all, a good morning. Verena still wished that she could get work at more than just taverns, but she knew that she needed to work her way up. Now, she was left to wander the main street (she had expected this to take longer), wondering what to do next.

Eventually, she caught sight of a rather large bookstore she recognized as the subject of a few rumors passed along at nearby taverns. If they were to be believed, it had only recently changed hands, but the new owner was already profiting considerably from it. Verena wasn't sure what to think about someone finding so much success so quickly, but it probably meant that it was a good business at least. Besides, if it happened to sell magic tomes, it would benefit her to check it out. She'd recently burned up her last one, after all. Curious, she approached the door and stepped inside.

[Ekaterina]

Ekaterina leafed through the pages of the tome in her hands. It had some interesting possibilities about so-called "Light" Magic that the writer theorized would be possible in the future. A mirror to the elder "Dark" Magic that they believed would have a pinpoint accuracy, even if it would not have the sort of power that the more established schools had. If nothing else, it was an interesting theory. The violet haired Dark Mage didn't buy much into it, but it made for an interesting read.

The bell above her store's door jingled as the first customer of the day stepped into the shop. Ekaterina placed a strip of white fabric between the pages, marking her place before she shut the tome and placed it on the counter. She looked up to her customer with a cheery smile on her face that well suited her refined looks. "Greetings, dear customer! What can I help you with today?" Her customer was a pretty lass, with a head of fiery red hair that left a lasting impression. Quite to Ekaterina's tastes, truth be told.

[Verena]

Well now. The owner, or at least Verena was assuming this woman was the owner, was quite cheerful. She was very quick to greet her, and enthusiastically at that. The troubadour chose not to give too much thought to her outfit or her figure, other than that it was a likely and possible explanation for why the rumors claimed her shop as being so successful and so fast. Actually, even for her it was kind of hard not to get distracted, but she did her best.

"Hey there. I'm looking for anima tomes in particular," she said, returning the owner's enthusiasm with some of her own. "'Course, I may also just have to look around and see what else is here. Seems like you've got a pretty good selection." Curiosity was an interesting thing. She'd come in with a purpose (even if that had been made as an excuse to come in in the first place), but now that she was here she couldn't help but wonder what else was in stock. Verena was fortunate enough to know how to read, but when most of what she'd read in the past consisted of the holy scriptures of Solis's patron goddess, even an ordinary bookstore was full of new experiences.

[Ekaterina]

The violet haired owner nodded as the redhead spoke. "I do have a few tomes still in stock, mostly Fire tomes to be more specific." She briefly considered what other sorts of books the pretty redhead might be interested in as well. "And I many different sorts of novels as well. Ones of fact and of fiction. I have biographies and autobiographies. As well as books that are composed of famous poems and lyrics by minstrels over the ages. I'm certain you'll find something that you can enjoy." She smiled again as she finished speaking. "Please, feel free to look around at your leisure. My name is Ekaterina if you need help finding anything. Allow me to retrieve the Anima tomes for your perusal."

She rose from her seat, revealing her full stature to her redheaded customer before stepping into a backroom with an alluring gait. The violet haired Dark Mage then returned a moment later, a trio of tomes in hand before placing each of them side by side on the counter. A Fire Tome, a Wind Tome, and a Thunder Tome.

[Verena]

Ooh. It was like the bookstore owner had seen right to what Verena would be interested in. The poems and lyrics in particular stood out. Her own music was very freeform. Sloppy even, one could say. But she still had an appreciation for the more formal sort. Poetry, well-crafted verses, formal, written music and lyrics, all of that interested her. Sure, she wasn't particularly good at reading music (a big part of why she fell back on improvisation when she played), but maybe if she had enough experience with it (and a bit of context to work from) she could learn. This was a good place to start.

"Thank you. I'll definitely have to check those out," Verena said with a touch of excitement. She quickly started looking for that section, using it it to try to distract herself from Ekaterina's swaying walk to the backroom. Not that it wasn't easy on the eyes, but...no, no way was she going to act like some drunken sailor. She pulled a book bearing the name of a well-known bard off the shelf and flipped it open, only taking occasional glances at the shop owner as she returned. Oddly frequent occasional glances. "How much for one of those?" she asked, giving Ekaterina her full attention once she set the tomes out.

[Ekaterina]

The seductive shop owner couldn't help but notice the way that Verena constantly glanced back towards her voluptuous form. After what seemed like the umpteenth time, she smiled before winking at the pretty redhead. After that though, the redhead's focus was entirely upon the Anima Tomes that lay before her. "I charge the standard price of any other simple Tome." Ekaterina replied before rattling off the price of the magical Tome, as well as the price of the book that Verena had selected from off the shelf. "Seems I hit upon a good suggestion, hm?" The lunaen woman chuckled while looking down at the smaller girl. "Ah, but he does have some excellent works. I'm quite the fan of his pieces about love and romance."

"If you like his works, I do have some other suggessions as well." She volunteered other names of bards and troubadors that she possessed the multiple works of within her store. "Ah, but I'm rambling on, aren't I? Is this all you'd like today?"

[Micah]

Micah landed herself in trouble today of all days. She never really angered anyon; only really trifled them on a bad day, but this time the beggar had gotten on the bad aide of a rather bad drunk. She had been running away from his wrath - barefoot, mind you - for a while now, but soon enough she lost sight of him and retreated into a bookstore to lay low. Only did she look inside the store did she realize that she found herself in that newly established store owned by a beautiful magician. "Miss? Miss owner" Micah asked in a clear but somewhat weak voice. The healer did not notice the other customer, an attractive redhead.

Micah carried Lemegeton tightly in her left arm, her staff in her right. By all means, the tome Micah carried would be the only logical reason why she would willingly come here. But instead she was here to hide.

[Verena]

Standard price, huh? Verena wasn't sure why she expected anything else. Well at any rate, that meant she wasn't likely to be able to afford more than one of them. Particularly since there was very little chance she was going to be leaving without one of the other books she'd taken an interest in. She blushed and pointedly looked away after Ekaterina winked at her, mostly out of embarrassment for having been caught at something she wasn't even trying to do in the first place. Certainly not trying to do.

"Ahh, I'm definitely going to have to come back again sometime. Or several times," she said, once the owner started going through a multitude of suggestions that she could barely even process. "There's no way I'd be able to look through even a little of that at once, much less afford much of it." She thought for a second once Ekarterina asked if that was everything. "Mmm...give me your best recommendation for one of these. I'll get that too."

Before she could jump to anything else, or the owner could answer, someone else stumbled into the store. Verena stepped to one side to let her approach the counter, but still asked "Hey, you okay?" She did seem to be out of breath. And if it was more than that, Verena had a staff on hand. Probably safer than letting the girl try self-healing.

[Ekaterina]

"I certainly wouldn't mind if you became a regular of mine." The shopkeeper replied with a flirtatious tone before she looked over at the ring of her door's bell. Another girl had stumbled into her store, and rather literaly at that. The blue haired arrival looked like she had seen much better days. An emaciated frame moved towards the counter, words escaping the girl's lips as she proceeded forward. "Oh my. Are you alright, dear?" She leaned down slightly to get a better look at the blue haired girl's face, inadvertantly giving both girls a better look at the ample assets that adorned her chest.

"You look like you need to sit down. Would you like to go to the back?" She didn't usually make such an offer, but the girl seemed as if she was about to collapse at that very spot.

[Micah]

"I could be much better. Could be having some bread and water right now," Micah heaved weakly, looking at the redhead who asked her if she was alright. Micah weakly smiled at the friendlu gesture, though at this point her body was trembling. The shopkeeper approached Micah and the other customer... Up close, Micah couldn't help but blush - if the color was able to ever reach her face. Pallid and malnourished as she was, Micah nodded even before the owner offered to take her to the back. "You are too kind, ma'am, I assure you... there is an explanation for this... And thank you too," Micah addressed the rather pretty redhead too. Both these ladies were stunning in their beauty. "I need to hide, I have... incurred..." Micah collapsed before she could finish what she was saying.

[Verena]

That...wasn't good. Verena could tell at a glance that the new arrival was barely able to stand and move. Her features were pale, her body was shaking badly, and the words were coming weaker and slower with each time she tried to speak. Malnourishment, as Verena suspected from her pale features and thin frame, was beyond the ability of a staff to fix, but thankfully she knew a collapse and fainting before it came. Verena rushed forward before she could fall, catching the woman in her arms. She'd already passed out, but thankfully she'd managed to keep her from hitting the ground.

"I can carry her to the back, if you don't mind," Verena said, turning back to Ekaterina. "We should give her somewhere to lie down before anything else."

[Ekaterina]

Ekaterina blinked in surprise as the blue haired girl suddenly began to keel over. Luckily, her new redheaded acquaintance was quick on the draw and managed to catch her before she hit the ground. It was a good thing she did, Ekaterina wasn't sure she would have been quick enough. Nonetheless, the girl's staff and the book she bore fell to the ground. The violet headed woman looked at them for a moment before looking back at the red and blue girls.

"Right, let me get the door." She stepped over to the door that lead to the back of the shop, opening it for Verena. The room was more or less an office, having a bookcase lined with various records and a desk that was piled with sheets of paper and a jug of water. "Just sit her down at my desk. Try and get her to drink some of the water I have there. Poor thing looks like she needs it." Letting Verena care for the emaciated girl for the moment, Ekaterina stepped back around her counter to see the stave and book the blue-haired girl had in her hands. She picked up the stave in one hand and placed the book atop one of the Anima Tomes before stacking all of them up and taking them to the back with her. She looked at the title of the book she'd picked up from the floor as well, noting the title upon it. She had not heard of the book before, but it was in mint condition. The violet haired woman set the stack down upon the edge of her desk, paying it no more mind for the moment while looking over the blue-haired girl.

[Micah]

Micah collapsed, but her body was caught by the redheaded customer before the shopkeeper could do anything more than move closer to see what everything was about. The shopkeeper had kept the staff Micah dropped and her Lemegeton elsewhere; for the unconscious girl, it seemed as if she had run out of juice, figuratively speaking, and passed out requiring rest after she had spent the better part of the morning trying to get away from an angry drunk with little in the way of food and drink. Micah was placed by the shopkeeper's desk and it seemed as if after a few moments Micah came to again, though her vision was much more blurry than usual. She looked at a pile of Anima tomes on the floor and saw her Lemegeton on the top of the stack, eliciting a sigh of relief. She looked at the shopkeeper before sighing, more out of regret than anything. "I am sorry, ma'am..." she said, taking deep breaths. "I... I'm very poor... I can barely eat anything each day. I don't want to inconvenience you..." she said softly, a bit weakly. It seems as though even after regaining consciousness, she could barely talk normally or even do anything more than just shuffle about from where she was seated.

It felt a bit wrong for her to be in this state and disrupting someone's business, but if these two women didn't mind, then she couldn't feel too bad about it. They seemed to be very caring after all, more caring than a lot of strangers Micah had met.

[Verena]

Verena carefully carried the unconscious woman into the back of the shop, laying her out on Ekaterina's desk. She spared a moment to look around the office, noticing and taking the jug of water. Then, she turned her attention back to the blue-haired woman. Thankfully only moments later she came to again, at which point Verena lifted up her head and encouraged her to drink.

"Shh, don't talk," Verena whispered when the woman tried to apologize. "Worry about that later. Right now you need to regain your strength." Or maybe she would be gaining it in the first place, looking at her condition. Either way, it was more important than talking at the moment. She didn't know about the bookstore owner, but for Verena, helping people came first, any worry about inconvenience came later. Or not at all, preferably.