Audra listened intently as the person at the front of the store asked where the fantasy stacks were. She sighed in relief, it was just a new customer. Though the voice did sound familiar...Audra thought for a moment Could it be? No...the voice is far too cheerful to be her... She stood and slowly made her way to the front of the store. "Oh I'll show you where it is, sorry I was in the back doing inventory...is there a particular author you're looking for?" She called out to the front of the store.

"Something I haven't read before? And I'm one of those super geeks..." Morgan took pride in being one of the geeks of the fantasy genre. Like it entitled her to something or made her better somehow. Those fools who didn't enjoy it didn't know what they were missing, didn't deserve to find out. If she hadn't been so engrossed in trying to create her own world...she might have learned Elvish, actually...

The person was moving closer, good. She'd be able to put an end to this foolishness just as soon as she came out. Besides, it was good customer service -anyway-.

"Well we got a few new titles in earlier this week, there's I think one or two by new authors..." Audra was in full scale service mode now; the dream, the death, the fear all faded away as she moved closer to the front and closer to a potential sale. "The place is a bit complicated for newcomers, I apologize." Almost to the front of the store Audra didn't feel the need to yell anymore, and without the stacks to muffle her voice she was much clearer. She appeared from the stacks all smiles, barely looking at the customer before waving them over. "Follow me the fantasy section is in the back near the cookbooks."

New didn't necessarily mean good, but new was precisely what Morgan was after. She'd read -everything- it felt like, and she was certain that she could recite off all of the fantasy storylines that existed. A fresh take on it would be exactly what she needed. Another rehashing of the same plotlines, maybe it would give her some inspiration on how to rehash it herself.

And then she saw the girl from her dream.

Seeing Audra didn't actually phase Morgan as much as she thought it would. While it was an unconfirmed variable she couldn't be certain of, it felt like a vast cavernous terrible thing, that might manage to swallow her up and eat her. The voice was familiar enough, but not certain. She was never certain till she had her eyes on something. But this was... This... This was perfectly normal.

This was a bookshop--the sort of place she'd go in her day to day life. This girl worked here, likely lived around here, it was perfectly reasonable to assume she'd seen the other girl some time, and in lieu of creating someone from archetypal scratch, her mind had filled in someone else that she could believe was a fan of books and fantasy. It made perfect sense. So after a momentary pause, she was back to normal.

If her dream had been based on things this close to home, no -wonder- it had felt close to home, no =wonder= it had her addled. A few days' vacation, a good book, a hot bath...she'd be right as rain like nothing had ever happened.

"New authors are good. I let my book club subscription lapse, so I guess newer stuff is probably the only way I'll get stuff I haven't read before. Have you had a look at them yourself yet? What are they like?"

As Audra moved through the shelves her mind moved quickly; she hadn't gotten a good look at the customer, just enough of a glance to make sure they weren't armed or demonic. But, she did indeed look like the girl from last night...should she say something? At the dining hall she hadn't been too open to the whole experience...maybe approaching her about it would only make things worse.

"I've only skimmed the jackets of a couple of them, They came in yesterday and...I haven't had time to thoroughly read them." She hadn't had the time because her co-worker had been found mysteriously dead and her boss had left the busywork for her to do. Audra sighed I wonder if she's had any weird feelings today too? Shaking her head, she continued speaking. "However there was one whose cover design caught my eye...looks rather old school fantasy, but these days with all the genre combining it was nice to see one with a knight and dragon on it..."

Old school fantasy, huh? That -did- sound promising. Or else it would be launched across the room into the Pit of Books Not Worth Reading, also known as the trash. She was a discerning reader, also known as a judgemental person not fond of stepping outside of their box. Books were meant to follow a certain format, and if they didn't...they weren't her style.

"A knight, huh? It'll either be really good or really bad, then, I guess. Sure, I'll give it a go." If nothing else, her choice of work gave her plenty of disposable income. Not to the obscene level, but certainly that she could buy a tall stack of books just on a lark. A bit of retail therapy would be nice. It would feel normal, and normal was something she sorely needed.

Audra smiled brightly as the woman agreed to check out the book. A sale would make the boss happy, and maybe Audra too...spending all day hiding in the back of the store alone only bred more fear about what could be following her. Reaching the Fantasy section she knelt down over a large cardboard box on the floor. "They aren't even on the shelf yet...we had some...personal trouble earlier this morning but hey, it means you'll be the first official customer to see it!" Pulling the top of the box open Audra removed several random titles before spying the tell-tale cover. Holding it up like some sort of prize Audra passed it to the customer.

"It's a new author, but the critical reviews have been good...if you do decide to buy it you'll have to come back to the shop and tell us how it was."

She nodded absently. "Yeah, I'll have a copy. Let me have a look at all of your newer fantasy titles...I need -new- stuff." She wasn't going to comment about the 'personal troubles'. What if she confided she'd had a strange dream? Morgan was certain she'd never live down the strangeness. So she fidgeted nervously, trying to pretend that nothing was going on. Why was that so difficult any more?

Audra looked up at her for a moment, her hands buried deep in the box. The more she looked at the customer the more Audra was sure it was the Morgan from last night...the nervous light behind her eyes was all too familiar at this point, she herself was seeing it in her own eyes every time she passed a reflective surface. "Of course...we have three or four new titles in here..." Audra carefully took the books out of their cardboard sarcophagus and set them carefully on the book shelf.

Standing slowly Audra dusted the knees of her jeans off and taking up the books in her arms turned to the customer. "...You know...I hate to try to guess about people's lives, but you look pretty worn out. We have a chair in the back if you'd like to sit and flip through some of these to make sure you'd wanna put money down..." It was strange, but Audra felt that if this person really was Morgan, she was likely safer in the store, and Audra was hoping for company in the empty store if only for a few extra minutes.

The offer gave her pause, but only for a moment or so. It was a little bit unusual, but...hey, some places -did- still believe in customer service. She smiled cheerily and nodded, the vicious bitch she'd been in her dream back to hidden away where she couldn't make a problem of herself. She wasn't like that normally; she wasn't like that to -real- people. Surely there was a Japanese video game that called out people like her on their flaws, but...she wasn't going to admit that her geekery sometimes went that way.

"Yeah...that sounds like a good idea. Slow day, huh? Just be careful, sometimes I fall in and don't come out..." And she didn't have anything better to do today--why not hole up in a book store? It seemed as good a place as any to hide out from the crazy that her mind seemed to enjoy tormenting her with.

Audra smiled widely as the woman accepted her offer. "Well I guess follow me then!" She made her way past the customer and back towards the front of the shop. Passing the front desk and down the isle marked BIOGRAPHY she came to a stop at an overstuffed chair stuck in the corner near one of the stores windows. "This end of the store is usually quiet...mostly professors or grad students." She explained, hoping the customer had followed her.

When she heard the comment about falling into books Audra laughed. "Well if it's a good book isn't that what it's supposed to do?"

She grinned brightly and nodded, flopping into the chair with her little selection of books. "Yeah...they wind up sucking you in like some crazy dream..." She chuckled to herself, finally relaxing enough that she could joke about what had happened. Even if it was something that only she would get. After all, it wasn't like anyone else had been a part of her dream, now was it? She smiled for the clerk, glad that there were shops like this still in the world.

Too many stores had been taken over by the big conglomerates...the big conglomerates that employed snot nosed brats who knew nothing about anything and didn't put any care whatsoever into their customers because they couldn't be bothered. Sure, a bigger book store had a bigger selection, and some of them even had frou frou coffee shops that all mimicked a certain popular brand but never quite were... But that was all worthless next to a clerk that would help out the customers properly.

Morgan decided that, no matter how good the book was, she was going to buy it, just to reward this girl for her work. Not that many places actually tallied up sales like that--her own profession was likely one of the few that genuinely -did- that. But it was a nice thought she had towards her, nonetheless.

"...Tell me about it." Audra replied, trying to sound casual. The statement was rather ironic, coming from someone who had done exactly that only the night before...at least Audra was sure it was her. "So...we don't have much in the way of confectioneries, but we do have a water heater and some Lipton tea bags if you would like a cup of tea." She felt odd, riding the line between customer service and whatever else she was doing at this moment, but numbers were important when you were being stalked. I have no idea if that...thing from the bedroom will follow us, in any case...

She laughed amusedly, shaking her head and stubbornly insisting that if she refused to think on what had happened, it would negate any truth behind it or power to it. Laughing it off was easy enough, surely. "It's like you're trying to keep me in here....is it that boring of a day, or are you on commission?" She picked up the first book. "Tea sounds great. Are you going to sit here with me and pretend it counts for working?"

Audra chuckled awkwardly at the customer's statement...was she that see through? "No...no commission...it's just been really slow today, a lot of our usual customers are staying away today." She spoke softly, not sure how much she should reveal about the recent loss of the bookstore. Perhaps it would scare her and drive her off? And that would end poorly for the both of us I suspect...

As the customer settled and requested tea, Audra felt a renewed sense of purpose. "of course, I only wish we had a larger selection." She replied before making her way to the back office to brew it. "Shall I bring some sugar packets and powdered creamer?"

"Sounds great." Sweet tea was one of her guilty pleasures, and creamer would be just the thing to bring it all together into a wonderful illicit treat. Whoever said it needed to be fancy or expensive to be nice? This was perfect; just what she wanted, just what she -needed-. A great streak of normality in the wake of crazy dreams about booksellers that...

Wait.

Audra had said she worked in a bookshop.

Well, only one way to find out discreetly without feeling stupid. She could pass it off as a literary quip and obscure reference if it didn't go over well. And why would it? It's not like things like that -really- happened. It's just that it'd be weighing in the back of her mind if she didn't do -something-, that was all.

"Thanks, Audra."

As she made her way to the back to put on tea, the customer called her by name. Pausing, she looked down at her shirt to see if she was wearing a name tag. Which, of course she wasn't, her boss had never bothered with those sorts of things stating that if a customer wanted to know your name, they would damn well ask. Well...jig is up I suppose...poor things mind is gonna get blown... Audra thought to herself, wondering how to respond. "You're welcome?"

It had come out more as a question than a statement, but Audra really wasn't sure which was the best way to dealing with the situation. Morgan had been a bit stubborn and incapable of taking in her surroundings, but at least then the woman had been able to write it all off as a dream...what about in the real world? Audra pushed the thought from her mind and walked into the back room. She checked to make sure the hot water heater was full and flicked it on, the switch giving off a satisfying red glow informing the user it was on. We'll just have to see where this goes now won't we?

Morgan heard the uncertainty in the woman's tone, but she stuck her nose firmly in the book and vowed not to question it. She didn't want to know, and she did -not- want to have to question reality. Dreams were one thing, but she -was- a sane person, damn it, and she didn't want to have to have herself evaluated.

As she waited for the water to heat up Audra searched for a clean coffee mug, finding one in an upper cabinet. Well...I don't hear her freaking out... She thought, dropping a tea bag into the mug and setting it under the spigot. Then again it wouldn't surprise me in the least if she thought herself into a sense of security. The heater began to make a soft bubbling noise, signaling the water was boiling. Audra pushed the lever down and watched as the mug slowly filled with hot water.

She set the mug down, letting the tea steep while she pulled out the container filled with various sugar packets. She then grabbed the mug and made her way back out to where Morgan sat. "Here you go, careful it's a bit hot."

Morgan was already well into the second chapter by the time Audra appeared with tea, but she looked up and smiled cheerily nonetheless. The other girl hadn't mentioned that it was in fact her name, and who knew, perhaps it -was- a reference to a book that had been written. She'd read so many that sometimes they all blurred together.

"Thanks. You're a star."

Audra set the tea down and returned the cheerful smile. "No problem, if you need anything else I'll be in the back doing inventory, just yell." She then made her way back to her hiding spot deep in the stacks, returning to her real work, feeling safer with Morgan within yelling distance. Now hopefully things are OK...

Morgan settled in with her book, perfectly happy to just sit there and read. Maybe she'd spend the whole day like that. Yes...spending the whole day reading and pretending there was nothing unusual in the world sounded like a -fine- idea. She looked up when she saw another customer walking by. The woman paused just after she'd gone by, and turned back to look at her. Eerie thing, was she a goth? Morgan wondered as she looked at the girl's pale skin, though it was only through staring at her that she realised the woman was speaking to her. Was she? She barely heard the words, and yet it was utterly unsettling. Like she wasn't -wanted- here. A chill went down her spine, and she put her book up as though she was blocking the woman from her sight--and her mind--and continued reading.

Audra settled back into her work, sorting through books and checking their titles off of the long list attached to a clipboard. Inventory was rather dull, but in this case the mundane was comforting...besides Morgan was just across the store and her even minimal presence was enough to but Audra at ease. As she paused to check off another title, she saw a streak of white in her peripheral. what on earth? She looked up and down the isle of books, only to spot, Sanaii? The white haired woman walking past the isle certainly looked like Sanaii..."Hey!" Audra called out, catching Sanaii would hopefully explain what had happened last night.

Throwing the clipboard onto the ground she hurried down the isle and back towards the front of the store. However, when she got to the front there was no one there; and without the telltale ringing of the bell above the door Audra knew no one had exited. What the hell was that now? A ghost? She contemplated asking Morgan if she had seen something, but first things first. She returned to the isle she had been occupying and carefully traced where she had seen Sanaii move from. "Was she looking for me?" She mumbled as she scanned the stacks for anything out of place. Audra was somehow not surprised to see one of the books on a lower stack halfway slid back onto the shelf, as if someone had been reading it. Ghosts do not read...

Pulling the book off the shelf Audra read over the cover, an academic study on the science of dreams, a requirement for a graduate level course this semester. Maybe someone was thumbing through this but I didn't notice it off kilter... To be safe she opened the book, flipping through the pages until a piece of paper fell out. "Ghosts don't leave notes either..." She slid the book carefully back into the stack, bending over to pick up the paper. She opened it, the note contained nothing more than an address and a time. 9pm huh? Audra pocketed the note, walking back towards the front of the store. "Miss?" She called out to Morgan, "I'm sorry to interrupt but...perhaps did you see another patron walk through here?"

When Audra called out to her to ask about another patron, Morgan couldn't help but shudder. "Some goth girl...and rude, too. She left again. Don't worry about it." She wasn't going to admit to it, but she was quite rattled by what she'd seen. Which was stupid, and it was upsetting her further that she had gotten upset to begin with.

It looked like Audra was quite bothered as well, though, so she set her book down and frowned. "Is there something wrong? She wasn't shoplifting, was she?"

Audra paused as she listened to Morgan's reply; so there HAD been someone in the store. If Morgan saw her too then she had to have been in here...but how did she get in, or leave for that matter without the bell going off? She looked up to see Morgan gazing at her, asking about shoplifting.

"No...I don't think it was that...I mean it's a bookstore who steals books?" She tried using humor to lighten the growing heaviness on her, but it wasn't really working. "I just thought it was kind of weird...I mean I get into my work but normally I hear the bell on the door ring when someone comes in..."