K. Solomon's Bookstore & Cafe - Under New Management - Open

Weather Report: Cool autumn winds blow multi-colored leaves and the smell of apples and pumpkin spice down the streets of Durem.

.	100.0%	[ 22 ]
Total Votes:			[ 22 ]

[darkqueenie]

At first, Claire was a bit confused as to what he was doing. She didn't recognize the chant or even the language. But the giant skeletal hand, that startled her enough to fall on to her bottom, shocked at the sight. Her face turned bright red when he said she had a pretty face, not fading the slightest until he was gone. It took a few moments before her heart slowed down from racing in both fear and embarrassment. Slowly getting to her feet, the witch tried to sneak back to the main room before Natalie could see her up and moving instead of resting with her injuries.

[Lady_Mandrake112]

A young man approached the shop he had been to once before. There always seemed to be something in this shop going on. It was like chaos was drawn to the shop. He had not been around it for a long time. However, he found himself needing to return.

He slipped inside looking at the books. There were a great many inside and a wide variety of topics to choose from. Where should he even begin?

[Mademoiselle Alvinette]

Natalie blinked. And blinked again. And again. Von Shade was pulled into a vortex by a skeletal hand, and he took the statue of the Gosei with him, leaving poor Claire knocked off her axis and on the floor.

"People come and go so quickly here!" Natalie quipped, quoting Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. She noticed another customer then, a young man who had slipped in quietly and was browsing the shelves.

"Hiya!" she greeted. "Can we help ya with somethin'?" And by "we" I mean ME. Claire needs to rest! She turned to Claire and asked, "Anything I can do to help ya, sweetie?"

[darkqueenie]

Claire laughed nervously when Natalie asked if there was anything she could do to help her. "Ah, no no. I'm just gonna go rest in my tent. And not do anything or use any magic." She said as she laughed again before going out to her tent.

((Got an early shift tomorrow so gonna turn in as well))

[Lady_Mandrake112]

The young man slipped a book off the shelf as he was addressed. He looked over and put the book back into it's spot. "Oh! Hello." He said with a kind smile. "I am not even sure what I am looking for to be honest. I haven't been here in quite a long time." He said as he faced Natalie. He remained where he was however neither approaching nor retreating. "Have you ever wondered something but couldn't find the right words to ask the question?" He asked.

[Mademoiselle Alvinette]

Natalie chuckled and playfully wagged her finger at Claire. "Good!" she said. "I didn't wanna have to threaten to duct-tape ya to a chair, the way Iris and Getoth always threaten me when I get injured!" Her grin softened into a smile as she added, "Good night...sleep well!"

Turning to the new fella, Natalie chuckled and said, "Yeah, that happens to me sometimes too! Makes me think of those old Ritz cracker commercials: 'What're you hungry for when you don't know what you're hungry for? Somethin' on a Ritz!'" She laughed. "Anyway...don't mind me. I'm tired, so I'm a little scatterbrained. I don't remember if I've seen you in here before, so I don't know what you were researchin' last time..."

[Lady_Mandrake112]

The boy gave a chuckle of amusement. "I always think those crackers look tasty with cheddar. I usually settle for peanut butter however because I get lazy." He said before shaking his head. "I actually do not think we have met before." He said before dipping into a bow. "I am Ardal." He said introducing himself.

[Mademoiselle Alvinette]

"Dang it, now I'm all hungry!" Natalie said with a laugh. "But I guess I did it to myself, mentioning those old commercials like I did!" She took the offered handshake. "I'm Natalie. Pleased to meet ya!"

[Lady_Mandrake112]

Ardal gestured to the books. "All this information at our fingertips. Yet without the right questions, how can we find the answers?" He said before chuckling. "OK that sounded a bit dark. I apologize. So how long have you worked here Miss Natalie? " He asked.

[Mademoiselle Alvinette]

Natalie chuckled. "Oh, I don't work here!" she admitted. "I'm just a customer. But I have a lot of friends here, so I stop by to see 'em! I could probably help you find somethin', though, if it's not too complicated. I don't know much about spells or artifacts, though..."

[Lady_Mandrake112]

Ardal seemed to think over her offer a bit. "Well, I know this probably sounds creepy and I completely understand if you don't want to help me, but I want to find my mom." He said looking at the ground. "I never met her and I kinda want to. I was raised by my dad and he is a great father and all, but I always wondered what would it be like if she never left." He said sounding awkward. "I'm sorry that sounded weird didn't it?"

[Mademoiselle Alvinette]

Natalie studied Ardal's face. "I don't think that sounds creepy or weird or anything," she replied. "It's natural to be curious about a parent you haven't seen in a long time." She was curious about her own birth parents, who had been murdered in 1932, which had led to her being brought to the 1980s to live out the rest of her childhood. She loved her adoptive family dearly--they were the only family she'd ever really known--but ever since she found out about the adoption, she sometimes wondered how things would have turned out if her parents had survived. I'd be in a nursing home by now...and I probably would have grown up in the circus, since that's what my parents did.

"So...if you want me to help you, I'm gonna have to ask ya some personal questions," she said gently. "I know it's hard to talk about, but we need a place to start. What's her name, and when, and where, did you see her last?"

[Lady_Mandrake112]

"I never met her. My father isn't human so there is the chance she isn't either. I don't know her first name but her last name is Adderstone." He said to Natalie wondering if that would help.

[Mademoiselle Alvinette]

Natalie thought for a moment. "If you've never met her, then that might make it a little harder to find her, unfortunately," she mused. But the name "Adderstone" was familiar, tickling the back of her mind. Somehow she thought she'd heard the name "Kathleen" attached to it, but she couldn't be sure.

"D'you know her first name?" she asked, wondering why that name sounded so familiar.

[Lady_Mandrake112]

The boy stared at Natalie for a bit before answering. "Uhh...no. I just mentioned I only knew her last name." He said. The poor woman must really be scatterbrained. It took him aback that he had to repeat that. "Have you met her?" He asked trying not to get his hopes up. It was horrid odds really.