It's still very early in the morning, but the ring over the front doors bells lazyly as the first customer of the store comes in. And, not surprisinly, it's a known face. Ben, and his loyal companions, comes to the counter and looks around."Kip? Are you there?" He asks with his voice higher than normal so the other man can hear his name even if he's in the Staff Only area.
Kip is, in fact, in the back room. Betsy, the nerdy girl who works part time, spots Ben but just glances him over and leaves him to his own self and goes back to organizing the books. Apparently Kip got to them in another fit of OCD and arranged them overnight into the order he thought was best, in a form of logic only apparent to himself during the manic episode that prompted it all. When Kip comes out of the back room upon hearing his name, he has his favorite I <3 BOOKS mug in one hand and a throw blanket wrapped around him like he's sick of something. It's held closed just below his chin by his other hand. He hasn't slept and he looks like it. His face is drawn and pale, forehead pinched so tight it might leave those worry lines creasing it forever. His hair's down and in need of a brush, a good deep shampoo or scissors. Or all three. It just hangs limp in his eyes. But he tries to muster up his best smile in greeting. "Hey. I was wondering whose voice that was."
Upon seeing the state that Kip is, Ben arches a brow in light concern."Are you alright, Kip?" He asks carefully. Even Helga, the crow on his shoulder, tilts his head to the side in curiosity. The goblin half hiding behind his legs, though, looks more curious about the human a few steps away.
Kip's hand still clutches the mug, but his fingers loosen so some of them can wiggle a bit and the hand-mug combination is waved in a sort of universal motion that means anything from 'I'm fine' to 'Don't worry about it' to 'It's all taken care of.' In this case it's an attempt at the first, bolstered by a comment of, "I'll be alright. Rough night. I was--" His gaze moves toward the back corner where Bets works. "I was apparently up all night reshelving books by color. I don't remember doing it. But I /feel/ like I was doing it. I'm just tired and everything aches and at some point I passed out on the chair in the back room. Very uncomfortable chair, I might add."
Ben listens and glances very quickly to Betsy in the back before focusing on Kip's eyes."Do you need something? A place to rest? The Red Clover Hotel is quiet and very confortable. I can give you a room for free for a night." The Autumnal offers casually putting both hands into his pockets.
"No, I'm good. I-- I just have bits where I don't really remember doing things, but I turn around and-- suddenly everything needs to be reshelved," Kip says with a little bit of a shrug. He does finally move the few steps to the tall chair behind the counter and drops into it, letting go of the blanket around him so it sort of pools against his back and flops over his thighs. "Thanks, though. I got a little apartment upstairs. It's small but I like it. Makes the commute to work in the morning easy." He tries to laugh a little at his attempt at a joke. It's a bit flat sounding, though.
There is no smile from Ben. The Witchtooth looks tense and ponders for a moment in silence for a little while. At some point, Helga crackes and Ben returns back."Kip. I discovered something about that /friend/ of ours I was looking for. Is there a place were we can chat in private? I think you'll want to listen." He gives to the bookstore owner.
Kip's eyes glance over toward Betsy and he gives a tiny nod of his head to the back room. "We can go back here and talk if you want. I made coffee." Actually, he made /more/ coffee. The stuff in his mug happens to be the last of the first pot of the good overly strong stuff he makes in the back room. He's such a coffee snob. What a waste since he drinks it so fast he hardly tastes it some days. The blanket is grabbed in the free hand that doesn't hold his mug, but it's not wrapped around him again, it just is pulled with him as he pushes through the door into the back.
As Kip pushes into the back room, Ben trailing behind him, he's got his usual favorite I <3 BOOKS mug in one hand and a throw blanket stolen from his apartment upstairs in the other hand. He looks like he's been up all night and called Betsy in extra extra early in the day to undo the 'help' he did reshelving a whole section of books by color overnight. Not that he remembers doing it. Which is sad. And maybe a little scary. Lately he's had lapses of memory like that, but it's not something you can really get used to. He looks like he hasn't slept and moves like what little rest he did get was in the uncomfortable plastic chair.
It's not Betsy working back here though. Cerise has taken over the back room's large, wide table and used several book carts to create a little work station for herself. Books get pulled off of one cart, set down and organized on the table and then moved to one of the several order carts. Cerise has been here a while, judging by her uncharacteristically rumpled appearance and the mostly empty 'Poe Me Another' mug sitting close by. A little bit away, the coffee pot is working eagerly on some fresh coffee for the store.
Ben comes follows along and closes the door behind him after he, and his companions, crosses the threshold. The next second, he looks around to get acquaintance with the place. When he spots Cerise, the ogre offers a nod to her before turning to Kip."I went to the Market. Looking for the Troll you and CB told me about. I double checked the information I gathered talking to different Marketees." He then stops while his wicked eyes stare at Kip's. Something close to pity comes into them for a second before dissipating and leaving the place back to that intimidation look."They all told me the same. The Troll is dead. That lead was a dead end."
"Coffee?" Kip offers Ben before he sinks back into that damn plastic chair that pretty much has an imprint of his backside in it after the many hours he's spent in it, most recently the previous few hours when he was crashed out in it. The blanket is dropped onto his lap absently and he gives a bit of a guilty look over at Cerise, head ducked down slightly. "I told her she didn't /have/ to do it," he points out quietly, nodding his head in Cerise's direction. His voice is low, like he's afraid of reminding her that he's there and a good target for her wrath. Or maybe her mug. Kip's experienced in having mugs thrown at his face, after all. But he looks at Ben and listens, nodding a bit. "So he's dead. Did he... did he die from whatever this is?" His finger motions toward his head as if to indicate his own illness.
"I needed something to do." Cerise's response is clipped and no-nonsense, like she so often gets when she's working. It's almost as if she didn't entirely think about that answer before giving it. Then her head lifts slowly, with one book in her hand. Her head tilting as she gazes at both men. "What is this now? Who's dead?"
"No, but thanks for offering, Kip." Ben says calmly before turning to Cerise."I talked to Kip and CB Alexander and they gave me a description of the Hobgoblin that encountered Kip. Two nighs ago I headed to the Market to find a lead to where the Troll was so I could examine it and try to discover how to revert Kip's situation and, at the same time, find out if this can affect the rest of us. But the Troll is dead. No one managed to tell me what was the cause of death." At that point, he turns back to look at Kip."We don't know if he died of that thing or not."
Kip's expression falls in a slightly fatalistic expression. "So... I might die from this." Which he knew was a possibility all along, it just didn't seem so... possible previously. But he tries to be chipper and smile a little. "Thanks. For trying to help. Sorry it was a waste of your time," he offers Ben before looking over to Cerise with a slight wince for some reason. "I-- I'm sorry," he mentions to her quietly. "That I keep... I didn't mean to. Mess the store up. I don't remember doing it."
Cerise picks up the book in her hand, but apparently only does so in order to slap it down on the table forcefully. Then hands move to her waist, and she twists to face the man. "You're /not/ dying. We're going into the hedge soon. We'll get the cure." Then her eyes flash at Ben, bringing him into this. "Right? He's /not/ dying. Tell him."
"If we suceed in bringing a Hera Pear from the Hedge, yes. You're not going to die. But I'm not a doctor. Neither a member of the Spring court. It's beyond my knowledge if you're going to survive or not without the Goblin Fruit, Kip." The Autumnal explains casually as he looks from Cerise to Kip. He then pauses a second, as podering his next words."But I'll do my best to find the Hera Pear, Kip." He assures the man as he stares at him.
"I-- I'm sure it'll be fine," Kip mumbles, though he doesn't /look/ fine. He looks conferned. To say the least. But his hands both wrap around his mug, like his fingers are frozen and seeking out the warmth the mug still slightly offers. "I'm sure everyone is doing their best. I-- I really do appreciate everyone taking so much time to help. I didn't expect it. Even if the uhm, even if we don't find the Pear, or if we do and it doesn't end up working, I know people tried to help. Which is more than I expected. I mean, I had /hoped/ Mina would want to do something to help, and Cerise... well, you're a friend so while I don't /expect/ it, it makes me feel good. But I didn't... I didn't think may people would notice or care, really. And it sounds like it might be dangerous. What if someone gets hurt because of me? And nobody'll let me go be the one at risk. It feels wrong."
Cerise's fury lasts only for a moment. She soon softens, and leaves the stacks of books behind to slide into a plastic chair next to Kip's. I hand reaches out and lays gently on his arm for a moment. A smile gets flashed and then fades. "We're doing our best to stay safe, and Mina and I will do our best to make sure that no one gets permanently hurt. But I think you need to realize how many people do care for you, Kip."
"Cerise is right, Kip. There is a group of people who volunteered to head into the Hedge and try to find you the Hera Pear. It means people does care about you. And you're sick. You can't go. Don't torture yourself. You'd be a burden more than a help." The Witchtooth says plainly. His crow, nested on his shoulder, crackles to that, as in an attempt to say she agrees with that.
Kip. A burden. It pretty much sums up how he might be feeling if you judge based on the expression of his face. He lets one hand go off the mug to rest on Cerise's hand that's on his arm, his fingers half cold with warmer spots where they were touching the mug. "Promise you'll be safe." Uhm, she JUST DID, Kip. "I mean it. Don't just say it. Do it. And I tried. To help. I went into the Library to find what I could but.. it's not much. It's one of those damn things that you have to go and do, you can't just read about it to prepare for it, ya know? But I'll help however I can. I'll make coffee and look things up and... do you want to take a sandwich? I can make some to take in case you get hungry?" Grasping at straw there, are we? Aparently so. But he looks so ernest, so sincere. His gaze turns toward Ben once more. "I'm trying. To not dwell. But it's hard when you're stuck in your own head and the times that head space isn't turned backwards and upside down and melted into a fun house mirror, all I can think about is how everyone else is actually doing things as I sit here rearranging books all night without even knowing it. At least... at least /he/ wasn't here. Or if he was, I didn't throw a mug of coffee at him this time." Which apparently Kip did the other day. Threw a whole mug of coffee onto the floor for apparently no reason, yelling at it to shut up.
"I promise." Cerise's thumb rubs comfortingly over the bit of arm that she lays her hand on. It's a soft, sincere thing, that promise. Her mouth lifts a little in a smile and for a second it's possible to see just how tired her eyes look. Has she been sleeping well? Maybe she's been up worrying over Kip. Maybe. "But no, I don't need a sandwich. It feels good just to be able to do something. You know?"
Then her gaze turns to Ben, pulling away from Kip slightly, although she keeps the comforting hand on one of the Lost's arms, "Thanks for trying to find something out, at least."
Ben listen the other man's words and looks, for a moment, speechless. He sees the love between the two friends. Their hands. The support. When Cerise turns to him and thanks him, he offers her a sage nod of his head."Kip would od the same for me, I'm sure." He gives back to no one in particular.
Though to the casual Kip-observer, not that he has many because unlike Enid's column makes out he actually doesn't have a plethora of stalkers and fans that watch his every move, the fact that Cerise's hand is on his arm might look like a perfectly normal thing, those who /really/ know Kip know about his aversion to being touched and that there are some very very clear exceptions to that rule and those people are the lucky few who he not only doesn't mind touching him, he /likes/ it. There are very few people with whom physical contact works as an anchor to him. Cerise is clearly one of those people, since the underlying manic-tinged arc of lightning that races across and around his body calmed noticably when she made that contact and it stays that way as she keeps up the soothing stroke against his arm. Instant sedative, almost.
"I don't want to forget anyone else," Kip admits quietly, including both in the commentary even though his eyes are on Cerise. "I forgot someone. At the diner. She said she's known me for like a year. She works there. Knew what I liked and how I liked my coffee. Said I'm always nice to her when I'm there. But I had no idea. It... it was kind of scary. What if I forget someone else? What if I never remember?" He tears his gaze from Cerise, letting his mismatched eyes focus on Ben as he nods. "I'd be glad to help anyone, however I can. I just don't expect, you know, people to agree to put their lives on the line for something like this. Not that I don't appreciate it. It's very... humbling."
"If you forget me, I'm going to make sure you remember." Cerise's lips pull up in a teasing smile and a moment later, she's rising, offering out a hand to the man as if to help him to her feet. Once again, brown, tired eyes find Ben. The smile she flashes at him is not as familiar as the one Kip got, but it is still polite. "Thank you again. If you don't mind, I think I'm going to try and get Kip upstairs and settled?" IE - not messing things up in the store portion of the building.
Ben listens Cerise and nods to her sagely."Sure. It's a good idea." He says before turning to Kip."Rest, Kip. We'll bring you the Hera Pear and be sure you don't forget anyone else." He says and gives him a brief and supportive smile.
As Kip rises, he clutches the blanket in the hand that doesn't reach for Cerise's hand to keep it from falling. "Hey," he says to Ben. "Thank you." He reaches the hand off Cerise to Ben, holding it out to shake hands with him. "Let me know if you need any help. Anything I can do. I-- I want to help somehow." He seems like he almost /needs/ to help or something. Be useful. Not be a lump on a log. But Cerise is reached for again. If they're going up the steps, he's going to hold onto something or someone in case one of those bouts of vertigo slam into his face and knock him down again. "You take good care of me. I should get you a nurse's outfit. Cute little hat." He pauses. "Not like a /sexy/ nurse's outfit. I didn't mean... I mean, not that you wouldn't look good. I just mean... not..." He just stops talking.
"Yeah, I know that's what you meant because Mina'd have your hide if you meant otherwise." Cerise gives Ben a wave as she gently guides Kip to the stairs. Going up them, she stands close to the man, just a little behind him in case he goes tumbling down the stairs ... again.
Ben shakes hands with Kip using his black and cold to the touche hand. It looks fake, somehow, but acts perfectly. The shake is firm, but gentle."I'll remember that, Kip. We'll discuss this when you're all healed." He says. To Cerise, he gives a nod. When the pair is on the way to the upper floor, the Autumnal just turns around and heads outside being followed by his servant and the crow.
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