Jack finds the store number and calls it. He's in a mission and doesn't wait around - soon as he's left one task, he's on the next. Assuming someone answers, he'll ask for Kip if he doesn't answer himself.
It takes a couple of rings, but Kip answers. "Homepage Books," is said in way of greeting. His voice sounds a little gruff, like he's maybe got some sort of anger simmering under the surface, but is trying his very best to be chipper and hide it. There's the sound of keys being jangled around, too.
Anger suits Jack just fine. He's not Mr. Sunshine himself at the moment, though his rage is cold and concentrated. "Kip. This is Jack Fry. I donno what the hell you all know, but Cerise /is/ gone. And we got a plan." He doesn't waste time, Jack Fry.
"I--" Kip cuts off, quickly like he had a hand slapped over his mouth or something. When he speaks again a moment later, his voice is slightly shifted. "What exactly do you know? And what's this plan? Talk fast. I'm heading out of town with Mina for a couple of days. Got something to take care of." He mutters something under his breath, probably prompted by the sound of keys being dropped and scrambled for.
"This won't take long," Jack says dryly. "And I know loads. Enough to know where she is, and what is in her place. You're her friend, so I figure you'd want to know. However, I need to know - is there another plan in motion? Cause apparently, there's political bullshit here too. And though I personally don't give a shit about that, some others do. So - is there? A plan?"
Is that an almost choked sort of sound that comes across the phone? Maybe. Or it could be caused by Kip and his picking up of his keys. "I can't talk about it. Just-- trust me. I'm doing all I can in getting away for a few days. You're not-- you don't have to be involved. Cerise is being taken care of. That's all I can tell you. But--" He stops, like he's thinking very hard on how to form his next words, "If there is something you know, I'll make sure someone contacts you." Is this some of the political bullshit that Jack mentioned or is it something else? Kip's being very particular about his wording.
"Well fuck. You all just make things way too complicated. You can tell them all to go f-" Jack cuts himself off, and is heard taking a very deep breath. "I'm not going to stay away of anything. You might have to, but I don't. So, sure. Send someone. I'm not promising we won't go ahead with our plan anyway though. Least we got one."
"You think I don't /want/ to--" Kip starts to snap, even though his voice is still that thin quiet whisper of his. He takes a few breaths in and out, like he's centering himself. "I love Cerise. She's my family. She's practically all I have and I will do /anything/ to protect her." That's not giving anything away is it? Kip pauses to make sure he's not about to be struck blind by uttering the words that slipped out before giving them proper thought. "Jack, I mean it. I want to do anything I can for her. But right now, I can't be part of any plans. I can't explain it. Just know that I'm doing all I can within the confines I have to work. There's a lot you don't understand. You have no way of knowing what I'm juggling here. So when I say I have to send someone else, it's not because I don't care. It's because I'll hinder things, not help them." A pause. "What's the plan? I can't help but I can listen."
"Fair enough." Jack's voice is calmer and there's sympathy in it. He's quiet for a moment now, thinking over the question. "If I tell you, are you obliged to tell someone else? I'd rather not reveal it to be honest. You're not the only paranoid one."
Kip's shake of his head is almost strong enough to be heard over the phone. "No," he says quietly. "My obligations are much different than that. And I would never do anything to endanger Cerise's wellbeing, even if it means I face certain consequences."
"Well damn it. Don't make me regret this," Jack says, his voice serious. "I don't know Cerise as you do, but the short time I did know her, I know she's brave and brilliant and I like her. She's a friend. So..." He takes a breath. "We're going to try to reach her through dreams. Someone I trust very well knows this shit."
"No," Kip says flatly, like he expects that there will be no argument. But after a heartbeat, he continues, almost talking over himself in his rush to get the words out. "It's-- it won't help. Just, just trust me. It's not worth the risk and it's not going to accomplish what you want it to. At least, I don't think it will. Can uh, can you just wait? Before you act on anything? Wait to hear from someone? They'll tell you I sent them. You can trust them. You can-- you can tell them what you're going to do so they can advise you on it. Will you trust me enough to do this?"
"You all keep saying that. Someone I trust says otherwise. Either or, this doesn't happen yet... there's time. As for advice? If the advice is 'Please don't do this' - don't bother sending someone. I want a solid plan laid out before me. Or I will just leave, and go do what we plan. You tell them that they can trust me in turn - but only if they're not talking bullshit. Okay?"
"Yeah," comes Kip's voice over the phone. "Look, you don't know me. I don't know you. But if you're going to trust anyone without knowing them, it can be me and I'm not bullshitting about it. If only because you know Cerise is very important to me, you should know you can trust I have her best interest at heart. But there's a lot more going on than you know about and it could very easily backfire and cause her harm in ways you won't even realize. So if they say don't do it, it's not because they think they know better than you or they're better than you. It's because there's actual reason for it. Just keep that in mind, okay?" He adds a quiet, almost pleading in the undertone, "Look, while I'm gone for a few days, will you just make sure she's okay? Safe? Even if it means sticking by her side. There are people you shouldn't trust to keep her wellbeing first and foremost and I just worry about something happening to her."
More prolongued quiet. This didn't turn out to be so fast, after all. There's a muttered curse. "Hope you're not talking about the fetch. Cause I don't care about that one." It's said with determination. "But I will stick by Cerise - for her sake. I've got all weekend off - you got my number, have them call me or send me a text, and we can meet. I'll keep you in the loop, alright?"
"How did you-- Nevermind. But this isn't Mean Girls. Fetch isn't happening. You probably want to delete it from your vocabulary right away." Oh did Kip just make a pop culture reference? Someone's caught up on the important movies! "And yeah. I'll have my cell with me, too, while we're gone. I gotta go, though. Thanks for keeping me informed." He doesn't even say goodbye before he hangs up.
There's no time for Jack to respond. So he ends up staring at the phone and having a sudden urge to destroy it. But, he's way too composed for such outburts - he pockets it and gets on with his next job...
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