Open For Business [Closed]

[Ekaterina]

Ekaterina set the stave aside for the time being, though her attention was quickly grabbed by the awakening girl. Her words came out weak and strained, but still audible. It sounded like the girl was in quite dire straits of late. A runaway or something? She wasn't sure, but it didn't matter all that much right now. "She's right, rest for now. I'll be back in a moment." The violet haired shopowner left the back room, heading over towards the door of her shop to flip her open sign to a closed one before stepping into the back room yet again. The witchy woman stepped over to her desk, drawing one of the drawers open and reaching in before pulling out an apple.

"Odd habit of mine from when I'd get lost in study." She briefly explained if they were curious, but mostly she just shrugged any reaction off and held the apple out to the blue-haired girl. "Here, go ahead and eat it. You need it much more than I do, dear."

[Micah]

Micah simply watched as the redhead and the shopkeeper both told her to rest for now. The redhead had helped Micah to drink some water, too, which helped the dehydration a good bit. The shopkeeper went back out presumably to make the sign say "we're closed" before returning to her. It seemed as though the shopkeeper kept an apple in the drawer. Actually, who knows whether that apple was edible at all. But honestly, Micah didn't care when the shopkeeper offered it to her, saying Micah needed it much more than she did. Micah smiled weakly, nodding and uttering out a small "Thank you very much, ma'am" before slowly taking the apple with both her hands... And then proceeding to devour it like a savage. It would be, under normal circumstances, rather uncouth and unseeming of a young lady like Micah, but she was way too famished to particularly care about the situation. She was able to finish eating the entire apple down to its core in a couple minutes. After having viciously consumed the apple, Micah smiled and looked at the shopkeeper.

"Thank you very much for your generosity," Micah said, it seemed that what little she had was able to re-energize her a good amount. "I am a wandering healer. My name is Micah, of the Myrtus family hailing from Solis. Actually, I don't belong to that family anymore. They disowned me after they discovered I couldn't use tomes. I became a beggar and lived on the streets for the past... I don't know how many years. I'm really looking for a new home. Earlier, I managed to incur the wrath of an angry drunk who tried to kill me. I ran as far as my legs could take me, which was here." Micah said, pointing at her cut, bruised, and battered bare feet.

"I'm... I'm really looking for a place to stay. If you could point me to anyone kind enough to take me in... Please, please, I beg of you, please tell me..."

[Verena]

Why did Ekaterina have an apple in...no, never mind. That was a good enough explanation for now. Verena had seen weirder things. So long as it was edible enough for the blue-haired girl, it was fine. And...well. She really tore into it. It reminded Verena of the sort of crowd she ran into in taverns before or after a performance than a young lady. But if she was as famished as she seemed, then that was hardly surprising. Just...maybe she shouldn't have eaten so fast. Made it last longer, or something like that. Verena didn't actually have much experience with people starved to this degree.

She smiled though when, after eating, the woman seemed to have regained some of her energy. She introduced herself and explained that she had been disowned because of a lack of magical talent (some families were shitty like that. She never did find out why her parents had left her to the Liane shrine.) Then she mentioned the angry drunk that had chased her here. "Well, if he manages to find his way all the way here I'll deal with him. I perform in taverns, I'm used to dealing with drunken idiots." Hopefully that wouldn't be necessary, though. It would be better for everyone involved if she'd managed to lose him. "Can't help you with a place to stay, though. I kinda go from place to place myself." She glanced over at the shop owner, wondering if she had any advice.

[Ekaterina]

Myrtus? Hm... She was sure she'd heard that name somewhere before, but where? Well, regardless. It seems they were fools. Disowning someone just because of a lack of magical talent? Bah! Either way, it was clear this girl needed help. And given she was looking for a place to stay...

"Then you can stay with me." The violet haired lunaen decided for her. "We'll work out terms later, but I've decided that you'll come with me." Truth be told, Ekaterina wasn't doing this all for altruism. The woman would make for a good employee to help clean up around the shop and even in her amaciated state, there were hints of her underlying beauty. To say that the somewhat hedonistic woman didn't see something to gain for herself here would simply be incorrect.

For the time being she looked over at her redheaded customer. "I'm afraid I'm going to be closing the shop early today. I'm sure you can understand."

[Micah]

Micah couldn't believe her ears. While she nodded acknowledgingly towards the redhead who offered to 'beat up the guy' if he had chased her all the way here whilst also admitting she couldn't help, her ears perked at the mention of the purple-haired magician saying Micah could stay with her. Even though she said they could work out terms later, Micah just couldn't believe that this beautiful and kind woman would just decide on the spot to take her in. "Ma'am, you would really let me go with you? Oh, you are simply just divine!" Micah said almost in an exasperating, dramatic manner. "Indeed; terms would not be necessary to discuss; I would be happy to do anything for you if you would take me in. I'd be more than grateful to help you around your store, I'd... Yes... I'd do anything. I'd ask for nothing more than shelter..." Micah said, the tears began to well up in her eyes; she was just so happy. A place to stay? She had been searching for years, for someone to accept her into their household, and here, a beautiful, stunning magician who happened to own a bookstore?

Deep down inside, Micah acknowledged that perhaps she would be strung along; that this wouldn't last forever. But even so, Micah needed a chance to settle down just for a while, to gain some energy and to make herself seem more of a walking and breathing human being instead of a pathetic little beggar who could barely walk and run properly. She would lunge at this opportunity to be taken in. "And... Thank you too," Micah looked at the redhead. "You both have been so kind to me. I don't know what I could do right now to repay the both of you for your extreme kindness and generosity."

[Verena]

And adding one more onto a string of odd turns of events, the store owner was quick and eager to let Micah stay with her. It was quick enough to make Verena suspicious although, as an ordinary customer who had just happened to also be in a position to help, there wasn't a lot that Verena could say against it. "Be careful saying things like that," she at least warned. There were a lot of people who would take advantage of someone like that. She couldn't know if Ekaterina was one of them. For that matter, she couldn't know if Micah would be completely okay with that.

She turned back tot he store owner. "I do understand. I guess I'll just have to come back another day for more minstrels' works. Although..." she considered for a second, then said "If you don't mind, I'd like to accompany you back, to make sure Micah gets there safely. I'm a healer myself, and I seem to be quick at catching people." She also kind of wanted to make sure that Micah would be treated right, but she wouldn't say that outright. Verena knew better.

[Ekaterina]

Anything? Oh the things that Ekaterina would use those words for... Hmhmhm~. It was such a good thing she wasn't some sort of cruel deviant. Just a mild deviant. But still, she genuinely did pity the girl. Fun times could come after she had grown healthy again. The violet haired woman smiled towards the blue haired girl and offered her a hand. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind." She winked to punctuate the end of her sentence.

She then briefly looked to Verena as she spoke up. "My home is a short walk from here. But I will not complain if you decide to join us as well." The witchy woman grinned nonetheless. Today was proving to be quite interesting. And if she could acquire a redhead to go along with new blueberry, well then this day would be simply divine.

[Micah]

Micah blinked as she saw the shopkeeper offer her a hand. Micah gently took the hand and stood herself up, finally the blush entered her cheeks as the shopkeeper winked at the end of the sentence, saying she would be sure to keep the fact Micah would do anything in mind. The redhead gave a friendly warning to Micah though, mentioning the latter would be better off to be careful saying things like that. As the witchy lady mentioned she lived fairly close by here, which gave Micah the impression she would definitely be asked to help around the house and the store. Honestly; Micah had done worse. And she would be more than happy to serve a woman as stunning and as generous as... ...What was her name? "Oh... Um, if you two do not mind, would you care to share your names with me? I do not think I caught either of your names, I must have been unconscious."

[Verena]

"Very well," Verena said. Yes, she was still going to accompany them for her own reasons despite the short walk, so it was good that Ekaterina was okay with it. Although, that grin was a little unsettling. What did she have planned? Verena would have to be wary about her, at seemed. Especially with how she, like Verena, had taken notice of Micah's statement of 'anything'. Well, helping around the house and store was a given. Anyone in this situation would be a fool not to expect that. Verena just hoped that Micah would be wary of anything beyond that.

"I'm Verena," Verena said when asked for her name. "Traveling performer, healer, and occasional bouncer. Can only find work in taverns so far so it comes with the territory."

[Ekaterina]

Ah right, of course. The violet haired woman had not had a chance to introduce herself before the Micah had collapsed. On the bright side, she finally got the redhead's name. And Verena had a cute name, to be certain. "I am Ekaterina. I run the bookstore here as you guessed. Though I've also worked as an apothecary in the past. And at heart I'll always be a magical researcher." She spared a bit of information for the other two, helping Micah to rise up from her seat. She reached over to take the stave from where she had leaned it up against the wall, handing it back to the blue haired girl. "Come this way, we'll leave out the back just incase."

Ekaterina lead Verena and Micah through another door in the office to what looked like a large storage space with a great number of books and even a couple of crates. She retrieved a set of keys from her person before unlocking the door and leading them outside. She briefly paused to lock the door once more and then lead them the rest of the way to her home. The walk was short as she had said, only going a couple of blocks before they had arrived in front of a two-story house. Once more she retrieved her keys before unlocking the door and ushering the other two inside.

The foyer was large and adorned with a few fancy decorations, a chandelier hanging high from the ceiling while a few paintings hung upon the walls. "Hmm. How about we have some lunch? I'm sure you're famished, Micah and I'm getting hungry myself." She spoke up after a moment, looking to Verena after her last sentence. "Would you like to join us as well?"

[Micah]

Micah nodded and smiled upon hearing the names of the two lovely ladies who pretty much saved her. Miss Verena and Miss Ekaterina; truly beautiful names to match beautiful faces. Micah was handed over her staff, softly she thanked Ekaterina before moving over to the pile of Anima tomes and swiping back Lemegeton again after finding it. Micah's ears perked too, upon hearing that Ekaterina was a magical researcher. Maybe she could help Micah decipher the meaning behind Lemegeton, after all. The witchy lady lead Verena and Micah through a door in the office to the storage room; it seems there were far more books and crates in here. A set of keys were retrieved; these were probably for the store. Ekaterina locked up once everyone was out through the back and they began to make a short trek to Ekaterina's residence. It really wasn't as far as Micah thought, it was as Ekaterina said. The house itself seemed quite large; two-storey, it reminded Micah of her old home back in Solis, it was similar, though somehow a bit bigger than this. The Myrtus family was very rich after all.

Inside, the foyer was large and seemed quite fancy. Micah felt a bit bad she entered the house barefoot. She looked down on her feet and fidgeted. But, when Ekaterina offered lunch to both her and Verena, the blue-haired healer perked up again and nodded. "Yes, please, Miss Ekaterina" Micah smiled and looked at the purple-haired witch before her. Micah couldn't help but blush at how beautiful she looked.

[Verena]

A magical researcher, huh? That would explain the stereotypical witch look and the wealth of tomes. Of course, Verena was still more interested in musical books than that, but she did know a few things about magic, and could stand to learn more. She probably wasn't going to avoid getting in too much trouble for her usual methods to suffice forever.

She stood back and waited as Ekaterina retrieved her keys and locked up the shop, then followed them out, helping Micah if necessary. Sure enough, the trip to Ekaterina's home was quite short, although Verena was surprised at its size. Perhaps the rumors of the bookstore owner's success were true after all. The interior was quite fancy as well. This didn't exactly satisfy Verena's concerns, but if Micah was treated well then she would be quite well off here. She'd only planned on staying around long enough for some reassurance of that, but the next thing she knew, she was being invited to stay for lunch. "Oh...suppose I will, thank you," she said.

[Ekaterina]

"Fantastic!" Ekaterina replied cheerily before leading them through a side hallway and into a dining room. She walked past the table and through a door into the kitchen, beckoning the other two as well. "I admit I'm running a bit low on food right now. I should really go to the market later." The kitchen was a large one, much like one would suspect from her the rest of her home looked. Though if the Mistress of the house had any servants, the blue and red haired girls weren't seeing any so far. "Feel free to look around and pick something to your liking. Micah, eat as much as you like, dear."

Ekaterina herself began to root through a pantry, obtaining a head of lettuce and a few other vegetables. After acquiring a bowl a knife, and a bottle filled with dressing in addition to the food, she began to chop up the lettuce and vegetables. The violet haired woman placed the dressing in the bowl first and then chopped up a carrot and radish before placing them in the bowl as well. Finally she chopped up the lettuce and greens, adding them to the bowl before she started to toss the salad. After a moment, the Lunaen was finished with her lunch and walked out into the dining room to sit at her table.

[Micah]

Micah smiled as Ekaterina began to lead her and Verena through a side hallway and into a dining room. Past the table was a door into the kitchen where there was also a pantry. Ekaterina admitted she was running a bit low on food right now but that she would go to the market later, or at least she should. Oddly enough, there were no servants to be seen if Mistress Ekaterina had any around the house. From the way the witch began to chop up the vegetables she got, it seems she lived here alone. Micah blushed and soon stepped into the kitchen as well. She fumbled about in the pantry by herself and grabbed some vegetables as well. She saw a strange pot which looked like moss was growing on it. I don't think that's edible. she thought, as she grabbed a small fish as well. Meat! MEAT! FIIIISH. Smiling, Micah went over to the kitchen and began to prepare the food. If Ekaterina and Verena observed, it seemed like Micah had a very good sense of cooking.
If there was any way to actually cook the meat, Micah had managed to do it with the things available in the kitchen, without asking anybody about it. Before long, Micah had prepared a fish dish with vegetables on the side. Smiling, she followed Ekaterina to the dining table too. "You know, it has been a while since anyone let me near a kitchen."

[Verena]

Verena looked around as Ekaterina led them into the dining room. For the size of the house, it seemed kind of...empty. Verena didn't exactly know how more well-off people lived, but it seemed like there'd be servants, or at least hired help of some name. But no, there wasn't any sign of any of them around. Maybe it was just a 'never seen unless needed' thing. Although, further confusing that idea, the kitchen was empty as well and Ekaterina seemed to be just fine preparing a meal herself. At the witch's urging, Verena poked around and found some meat and vegetables that she liked. There was also...a pot that she really didn't want to look inside. Just the edges looked like they had moss on them. Leaving it alone, Verena waited for Micah to finish before preparing something herself. She wasn't particularly skillful, but still functional, and managed to prepare a meat and vegetables dish that would still taste good, even if it didn't look quite as appetizing as could be hoped. Once she was done, she followed the two of them to the dining table. "I never did get the hang of presentation," she said quietly.