2019-12-10 - Meetings in a Gray Harbor Bookstore

Every business benefits from the holiday season shopping, and Likely Stories is no exception. It's unusually busy for a weekday morning, and there are at least a dozen or so shoppers browsing through the shelves. Alexander is one of those, looking through the poetry shelves - although perhaps his is tastes are eclectic, because he's got an armful of books with everything from a forensic medical textbook to a couple of bloody true crime books, to a book on cryptids of the Pacific Northwest. He also looks like a homeless guy, not someone particularly well-read: disheveled and somewhat haggard appearance, oversized clothes worn almost clean through, and an oversized green army jacket with all the insignia removed. Other shoppers tend to avoid him.

Zach is one of the shoppers browsing the shelves. He's currently lost in the business section, eyeing up books on accountancy and tax law as if he has no idea how he got there or why these books are near him. He spins around in a circle twice before eyes alight on what he's actually looking for, which appears to be books on cocktail making. "A-ha!" he mumbles triumphantly, flicking through them quickly.

James isn't exactly a fashion icon himself- jeans and hoodies all the way, with today's hoodie displaying cartoon drawings of Godzilla and Mothra embracing while a tiny scientist at the bottom corner of the artwork says '... let them kiss'. He trundles through the door, and those with sharp noses may notice a whiff of ye olde cannabis around him before a breeze wafts it away (that same breeze promptly feels the need to find some cheetos it can waft near next). He looks around for a moment, then takes out his phone, pulling up the list of topics he wanted to find books on. "... ghosts... holiday baking... frogs... the crumbling difference between wrong and right in a world where morality is determined by the whims of fragile humans with no comprehension of the powers they're dealing with... cats..", he mumbles to himself as he goest through the list, then nods to himself and goes on the hunt through the shelves.

A couple in nice coats, who look like the woman's name is definitely Karen, and the guy's name is probably Chad, come in just behind James, and push past him without a word of apology as they trundle through the store, talking loudly about how Seattle has a much better selection, and why isn't there a proper cafe so they can have a latte as they read? They fetch up by Zach, because 'Chad' desperately needs to brush up on his Sigma Six skills and needs this one specific book to do it. Does he remember the title? No he does not, but he's sure it had a blue cover, and gawd, why does this store have to be so badly organized that he can't find his book? Karen rolls her eyes in sympathy for the inadequate shelving, and gives Zach a quick up and down, sniffing when she notices the book he's picked up, like it's proof positive that he is an alcoholic in the making. And probably not even the expensive alcohol.

Alexander, meantime, finds a couple of small books on poetry, and peeks around the shelf, drawn by the sound of the voices. He blinks at Zach, a touch suspiciously, as if trying to place him. "You were at the gym," he says, at last. Then looks at the couple, and his eyes narrow. "I don't know them."

Zach turns at the yapping from the couple, crossing his arms as he listens to them. Karen gets an unimpressed look, the up-and-down and the sniff getting a narrowed-eye look. Alexander's comment gets a wry smile, Zach looking back to him. "I was in the gym," he confirms cheerfully. He gestures with his thumb at the couple. "Neither do I. But I know what kind of people they are," he says helpfully.

Meanwhile, in James-land, he's already circled around Karen, and scooted by Chad (getting in his way just as the man was reaching for Six Sigma For Dummies and causing Chad's hand to instead grab a copy of 'Monogamy is Overrated: How to Convince Your Partner You Should See Other People'. Let's see if Karen notices.), and has come up behind Alexander, spotting that book on cryptids in his arm. "Hey- sorry, uhm, did you see any more copies of that one around?"

Hera steps into the book shop wearing her flats instead of heels. This likely makes her announcing her appearance less probably, save for the typical sounds a newcomer might make. She does manage to hear some of the rude customers and frowns. Thinking to herself, she pauses to remember the merits of not saying what is on her mind. Not everyone is kind but, the books won't complain. For a second she doesn't seem to be noticing anything in particular but she does catch wind of some of the best sellers. "I wonder if Zora Roberts had made a comeback" she mutters and goes over to chek on that.

Alexander jumps when James comes up behind him, and spins around, nearly spilling all of his books. "I, uh, um. What?" Oh! The question. He ducks his head and nods. "Yeah...there was one. It's upstairs, between, um, 'Vampires Among Us: Bloodsuckers of the West Coast' and 'The Tree Octopus: An Unreal Bestiary'." He clears his throat. "The vampire book is pretty silly, but has some interesting historical notes about the wild days of Portland, if you're into that sort of thing."

Karen's attention was drawn by the jumping, and her nose wrinkles when she takes in Alexander and James in all their scruffy glory. "Oh, gawd, don't you just hate it when the homeless hang out in shops, stinking up the place?" She reaches out for her partner's arm, like she needs protection, only to notice his 'purchase'. There's a gasp. "David! What is that filth?"

David looks down at the book, his eyes widening. "What? I didn't--what's that book even doing here? This is the business section! It's not mine, sweetie!" He looks around frantically, then shoves the book at Zach. "It's his. He must have reshelved it badly. He looks like that sort." Other customers are starting to look around.

Zach dips a nod to James in greeting, and he's clearly about to say more to James and Alexander when a book gets shoved at him. He's not quite quick enough to stop it from impacting with an 'oof', though his hands come up to take it instinctively. "'That sort'," he echoes, his back going ramrod straight as his eyes flick down to the book in his hands. "And what, exactly, do you mean by 'that sort'?" he asks, tone dangerously cold. An eyebrow shoots up. "Worried I might be after your ass, -David-? Rest your pretty head, it's a bit too scrawny for me."

Hera had paused from her moment of looking through the best sellers and casts a glance toward the potential conflict. Her face reveals a bit of annoyance in the rudeness, but she doesn't comment verbally just yet. Taking a step toward the potential chaos though, that represents curiousity or concern. It may be hard to tell at this point. No one here is anyone she considers a close friend per se, but, within her mind at least, she doesn't like the fact poor Zach got a book slung in his direction.

James jumps as well when Alexander does, bringing up his hands, palms out, placatingly. "Sorry, sorry, I forget to not skulk sometimes." He listens to Alexander's reply, and nods. "I'll take all three, and a side of fries.", James quips, brightening at hearing there's more upstairs. But then he hears Karen's comments, and raises an eyebrow as he looks around Alexander to actually spot the pair. "... oy. Tourists.", he mutters, but Zach's reply has him smiling again, and he steps out from around Alexander, giving David a cheery wave. "Oh shit man, Dave! Buddy! Holy fuck, you were a monster at the strip club the other night!" He looks up at Alexander, and waggles his eyebrows. "Dude had like 3 lap dances going at once. Beast mode." A quick glance at Karen, and he winks. "How you doin'?"

David's eyes widen at Zach's cold reply. "Hey, man, how dare you! I ain't no--" And then there's James stepping forward with his own commentary on David's amatory adventures, and the guy goes pale. "Uh. Uh. You must have someone else. I've never even been to the Platinum Cabaret, babe," he tells 'Karen', hastily, "and you know I don't want lap dances from anyone but you." She's staring at him with pursed lips and the mental equivalent of a tea-kettle about to go off

Alexander, who briefly looked confused by all of this, tilts his head to one side and says, "He didn't specify which strip club, so I'm not sure why you're so quick to deny having visited that particular one." He offers it like he's genuinely trying to help.

"Oh. My. GAWD. David! Strippers?? Is THAT where you were when we were supposed to be having dinner with my parents last week?"

"No, babe, I LOVE your parents! I totally had to work!"

Alexander is watching him with a peculiar amount of focus, and says, still helpful, "He didn't have to work."

'Karen' storms away, bursting through the little knot of James, Alexander, and Zach, and glaring at Hera. "What are YOU looking at," she snaps at the other woman, while David works his mouth like a stranded fish for a moment, before scurrying after. "Babe. Babe, let's talk about this. Don't tell your father!"

Zach opens his mouth to say more but Alexander and James 'handle' it, and the couple storm off. There's a sigh from the bartender as they go, the man carefully putting the book that was just shoved at him back where it came from. Hera gets an apologetic smile before he glances to the other two men. "Thanks guys. They were a bit of a handful."

It looks like Anne is about to open the door to 'Likely Stories' at exactly the wrong time. She's coming in as Karen is storming out, and gets an elbow right into her shoulder. It knocks her into the nearest bookshelf, which she hip-checks and rustles the shelves, sending a half dozen hardbacks down onto the floor right onto her shoes. "Ow! What?!" She's so confused right now.

Hera is, yes, a real redhead, and the combination of her viewing Gray Harbor as her new 'utopia' and rediscovering her own self confidence well those three things do cause her to start to go off. "NOT you, you crazy bitch!" she exclaims, "Neither one of you are worth the time and your money is also not worthy of being spent in a NICE place like this. That guy over there, he was just minding his own business and the last thing he wants is for a flying book to hit him, as far as lap dances he's LUCKY to get one over there. I have friends that work there and, so help me god, if either one of your type does anything disrespectful to ANYONE there I'll shove his one of his balls down his throat and gag you with the other one, assuming he has balls to begin with." Well, maybe they left before they didn't hear all that but with a groan she looks over and tells Zach, "You didn't deserve that."

James watches the couple storm off and just busts out laughing, just real genuine laughter that brings tears to his eyes, one of which he wipes away as the couple shoves off and Hera explodes at them. "... ahahaha! Oh, man. Oh. That... That was... Man, I love tourists.", he says, and asides to Alexander mock-confidentially, "They don't realize we're doing them a favor spooking them away from this hellmouth, eh?" But then there's the sound of books hitting the floor, and his eyes widen in concern. "Oh, shit." He quickly skitters over to Anne, to help her pick up those books, because somewhere deep down he knows this was all his fault (it was). "Hey, you ok?", he asks, though he's looking at the books as he kneels down to help pick them up. Poor books. Did Anne hurt you?

"I didn't really do anything," Alexander says, quietly. "He really wasn't working." And then Hera goes off, and his eyes widen. He sidles back around towards Zach, like he might hide behind the bartender from the angry redhead. He peeks out from around Zach to look towards the retreating not-customers, and their collision with Anne. There's a wince. "Miss Washburn. Hello. Are you okay?" At least he's definitely talking to her, and not the books, even if he makes no move to help her up.

At least it was the books on the floor and not Anne; the archivist was just leaning in an awkward angle against the bookshelf, wide-eyes still focused on the door that 'Karen' fled out of. "That's just unbelievable, how can people.." she mutters under her breath, idly rubbing at her shoulder as she tries to straighten herself up, just in time for James to come to the rescue! "Oh, I'm fine, I just -- you're not talking to me," he's come to the rescue, all right. The books rescue. At least there's Alexander, and he gets a pleasant (albeit somewhat thin) smile. "I'm great," she lies. "I think the books are all right, too, but we should check for rips." See, James? She cares. She even bends to help pick some of them up.

Zach gives Hera an unconcerned look. "I'm fine, but thanks, yeah?" he says with a bit of a shrug. "I've had a lot worse," he offers with a crooked grin, gesturing to the door after the storming couple. He winces as he sees Anne's condition. "Hey, you okay over there?" he asks, calling out to her. James's hellmouth comment gets a curious look, but no comment.

Hera smiles suddenly and mutters to herself, "Maybe I don't need to work on my confidence." But when Anne has her incident, she is one of the many who look in her direction. "Are you ok Miss?" she asks, "Those people didn't hurt you, did they? They need to be corrected. Too bad I can't drive the karma bus when that happens." Her attentions go from Zach to Anne as she can only assume the woman tries to get her bearings. "I'm so glad those two left. Hypocritical nonsense."

"... hmm?", James murmurs, brushing off the cover of one of the books as he hears Anne's voice and then she bends down to help. "Oh, hey. No rips, we got lucky.... this time.", he tells her, giving a quick flash of a smile before standing up to help re-shelve the fallen books. And at this point he notices something- she's shorter than he is! By like a whole inch! She must be protected from all harm. Smols stick together. He's about to finally ask if she's ok, but the rest of the shop seems to have that covered, and he relaxes. "Don't worry. People bump into me all the time too. It's 'cause of the skulking, but it's not like we can help it, right?", he tells her, expression serious, and nods, then looks around until he spots Alexander again. "Second floor you said, right?", before the little ginger one man chaos crew takes a step towards the stairs.

"They were very rude," Alexander agrees, his eyes flicking towards the street when Hera mentions them needing correction. His lips press together for a moment, before he shakes his head and sidles over towards Anne and James, and bends down to help pick up a couple of the books, juggling his own armful of texts to check for tears, before stacking them back. "The holidays make some people more irritated - but I think they were just assholes in general." His voice is dry, and he looks to the people he doesn't know. "Alexander Clayton." A pause. "That's my name." There's an air of expectation, and a nod for James' question.

"I'm fine, I'm fine! Honest," Anne insists to the chorus of questions regarding her well-being; it's nice to have so many people care, which explains the quiet laughter that follows the assurances. "I fall into things all the time. Mostly on my own accord, but sometimes.." She tips her head to James, a faint glimmer of amusement in her eyes. "I do not skulk. I just blend into certain environments well," she jokes with him, setting the last book onto the shelf before she gets back up and smooths a wrinkle out of her skirt. To Alexander, she crinkles her nose. "You have to wonder what it is about the holidays that get people so upset. It's a time to be jolly! Not grumpy. How are you, Alexander?"

Hera grumbles a little but it doesn't take her long to settle down. "Feeling a bit off due to the holidays, sure, I get it, but that's more than feeling a bit off." Seems like the drama is over with though and Anne, insisting that she is fine, and Zach, not have even sustained much of a bruise, at least from what she can tell, she goes back to perusing the bestsellers that are out.

"Zach Morgan," Zach introduces himself to anyone that's still hanging around. Or himself, possibly. He nods to Anne now that she seems okay, turning back to his search for bartending books.

"Suicide, overdose, and domestic violence rates all spike during the holidays. Research suggests a combination of cultural stressors - including the expectation that holidays are a time of togetherness and happiness -, undiagnosed seasonal affective disorders, and overburdened public services not being able to meet the needs with reduced staff loads." Alexander says all of this in a rapid recitation to Anne, like someone just smacked him with a textbook and this is what popped out. He smiles. "But I like the holidays, usually." There's a flick of his eyes towards Zach when he introduces himself, and he nods, making a note. Hera and James are stared at. Expectantly.

James taps the side of his nose at Anne and winks. "Right, right.", he agrees, as she mentions blending into environments. "Be right back. Vampires.", he non-sequiturs at her, then pauses when Alexander introduces himself. "Oh. Right. Hello.", he says, and gives Alexander a nod. "Hecker. James Hecker. No autographs, please."

Hera waves at Zach as he goes to take care of other things. It's not a very intrusive wave, but a casual one most likely. "Hera" she introduces if anyone looks her way, "And a lover of books myself. I need to get back to writing but, I'm happy to say, starting to get my art classes together." she muses, "Makes me happy." A sweet demeanor seems to have returned to her. No rude people, no need to be anything but pleasant.

There's not even a blink at the recitation from Alexander. Anne just nods her head as though all of that made a lot of sense to her. "I like the holidays too," is all she says about that, before there is a blink over to James. "..Vampires?" Her brows hike upwards, and she looks worriedly in the direction of the second floor. There's a few steps sideways to get closer to Alexander, and she leans to whisper something to him. But after that's said and done, she fits a pleasant smile to her lips. "Anne," she offers up by way of introduction. "It's nice to meet you two," she says to Hera and James. "And nice to see you, Alexander."

No rude people? Well, maybe not deliberately rude, but Alexander stares at James with a bright-eyed and sudden interest when he identifies himself. "I remember you. Your parents caught on fire," he says, sounding a bit fascinated. "I was wondering--" Luckily, Anne steps closer and distracts him from sticking his entire leg down his mouth in the immediate moment by her whispered question. He shakes his head and says, in more conversational tones, "Not that I'm aware of, but there's a book on them on the second floor. Several books, actually."

Oh my god Alexander you can't just ask someone why their parents mysteriously burned to death 15 years ago! James' left eye twitches and his smile becomes frozen for a long moment- the more imaginative types might hear a distant wind blow in the silence, a single tumbleweed drift past. "Yup. Those were my parents, the ones who caught on fire- haha real pranksters those two, just the best. It's just like them, y'know, to reduce themselves to cinders and leave me an orphan, haha, those rascals. It's ok though, I'm fine, totally fine, came out fine, look at me, so fine they should call me Mickey." A pause. "Because I'm so fine." And then he blinks and his smile- it doesn't soften, more like when ice cracks and tumbles down? That. "Anyway, gotta hit the second floor a moment- no one catch on fire and die while I'm up there, ok? Haha just kidding it's fine, all the cool kids are doing it, smoke 'em if you got 'em, haha.", he mumbles, eye twitching again as he starts stiffly making his way to the second floor like a totally normal person who is totally fine and not, in any way, fucked up about losing his parents to mystery fire.

Hera has a business card handy and to further the introductions she manages to hand Anne one. "If you are into art or anything like that, stop by." There is the information about Vivid Dreams, but then the conversation takes on a bit of a unique turn. She starts to think of how the day got /that/ interesting. Books stores seem to attract different topics of conversation. But then her cellphone goes off to buzz away, reminding her of an appointment or something like that. "Well, time for me to meander on. Have a good day folks. Try to avoid terrible tourists." Hopefully there won't be many more of those today.

"Oh, I guess that makes more sense than.." Anne begins with Alexander's explanation of what's on the second floor (hint: it's not actual vampires), before her attention drifts back to James. The mention of the boy who's parents caught on fire has her looking a little more intently at the man. But unlike some people (coughcoughAlexandercough), she doesn't say what she's thinking, and hides all those curious little thoughts behind an expression of wide-eyed concern as James looks like he's about to crack. "Huh," she remarks, as though that single statement encompasses every and all thought she has about the outburst. Hera's business card is taken, the distraction indulged in for a moment as she looks to the card and then to the woman - "Oh, I do like art. I'll stop by!" she promises, and then turns back to Alexander with a slow raise of her brows. "What kind of books does Isabella read?" it's not on topic, but it's a new topic!

Alexander nods briefly to Hera as she goes, then blinks a couple of times at James' retreating back, and his expression goes blank as he rewinds that conversation and tries to figure out where it went wrong. Because clearly it did. "He's...being sarcastic, isn't he," he says, to Anne. "And that was a rude comment." He ducks his head. "I'll...have to apologize when he comes back." His boot scuffs the carpet. "Um. History, I think. Right now, a lot of text books and academics. Emphatically not Cosmo," he adds, with a twitch of his lips upwards. "I was thinking of getting her a book of Greek poetry, but I have to order online for it."

There's a softer look from Anne to Alexander as the man recognizes what just happened. "He was, yes," being sarcastic. But she does not comment on whether or not Alexander's comment was rude. "An apology would be nice. Or maybe.. just don't bring it up. He might actually prefer that." She glances aside to the stairs that lead to the second floor before she looks back to Alexander, her smile a touch warmer for him. "I can do history books, something fascinating should be easy to find! I like your idea," about the Greek poetry. "Books are usually my go-to for presents, though I've admittedly not had to do Christmas shopping for anybody but my brothers for awhile," she admits. "But Isabella said she got me something, and I'd rather not be the kind of person that receives and doesn't give. So. Here I am!"

"But it is a particularly interesting sort of death, even here in Gray Harbor. I was only curious," Alexander says, patiently, as if this needs to be explained. "But if you think that's best, I won't mention it further." He gives her a curious look. "I can understand that. I think she'd like a book. She's almost finished with her thesis, so something that would be a bit of a mental palate cleanser might be appreciated." Her smile is matched by a brief, but warm, one of his own. "You two seem to have become friends. I'm glad."

"I remember the news report. The bedroom was the only room burned, wasn't it? It is fairly peculiar," Anne replies of James' parents, another glance stolen up the stairs to the loft before she shakes her head. "Probably best to leave it alone," she says in the sort of way that could be taken as a reminder to herself, moreso than Alexander. "I'm not much of a crime junkie, but I like a good mystery. Especially since our mysteries often lead us to ... other ... places." She rolls her shoulders back into a quick shrug then, turning to take a few steps over to the nearest shelf. The books there give her hands something to fuss with, as she works on rearranging the spines since a few of them are upside down. "I'm glad we met," she says of Isabella, "She makes a very good friend. It's nice to have somebody to talk to, someone who understands."

Alexander nods. Clearly agreeing that it is fairly peculiar, but also (more reluctantly) that it's best to leave it alone. At least for the moment. He drifts after her when she moves, because she's talking about two of his favorite subjects: mysteries and Isabella. No getting rid of him now, Anne. Sorry. "They do tend to. Although these days, it doesn't take much. I was in a video game the other night." Other customers probably just assume they heard 'playing a video game', but that's definitely not what he said. "And yes. Isabella is a very good friend. She likes you, too." He smiles. "And how have you been? Last I saw, you were liberating Addington wine."

James does eventually come back down, looking quite a bit calmer now that the initial moment of panic has passed. He's got a few books tucked under an arm, too- one is a copy of that Cryptids of the PNW book Alexander has. Another says 'Vampires of the Mid-West: You Betcha!'. And the third reads 'What to Expect When You're Expecting Zombies: A Parent's Guide To The Apocalypse'. He stops at the base of the stairs and looks around, spotting Alexander and Anne and giving them an awkward smile. "Oh, hey. Sorry about that. Just, y'know, was feeling really normal and ok there for a second, but it's passed now."

Anne doesn't seem to mind that Alexander's following, though it's really only a few steps from there to here, where she's taken to the task of reorganizing these here books. There's no surprise when he talks of being in a video game, just a curious cant of her head. "What kind of video game? Role-play, first person shooter? I hope it's not the latter," she frowns, the concern evident. But it's only a temporary emotion, his talk of Isabella and liberating Addington wine earning him a soft laugh. "I didn't get to take the bottle, but Patrick let me have a glass." It seems like there might be more to that considering the thoughtful look that passes across her eyes, but James' reappearance distracts her and sends her looking in his direction. "Oh! Well we can't have that. You know, the welcome sign into the city should really say: 'Welcome to Gray Harbor, no normies allowed."

"Role-play, I think? Something like Dungeons and Dragons. I could summon demons, and Easton was an elf." Alexander's lips twitch upwards. "As one of those go, it was actually pretty entertaining, and nobody got almost murdered or worms attached to their brain, or anything." His standards for 'good Dream' might be a little skewed. "You got injured in the line of battle. He could have spared a bottle," he tells her, but it's light and a little teasing. That ease, or something closer to ease, slips away when James returns, and he stares at the man. Voice flat, he says, "Don't apologize. I was rude. I'm sorry. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Hecker. I'm not being sarcastic."

James smiles a little at Anne. "Or, y'know, there's my personal favorite, 'Welcome to Gray Harbor: Turn Back Now, For God's Sake'.", he replies, then looks to the suddenly serious Alexander. "Hey, no, it's... I mean, it's not ok, but it's also not your fault. I, ah... shit happened and then my uncle shipped me out of town and I didn't really have to deal with any of it for like a decade and a half and now I'm back and suddenly people are asking me about this shit that no one in New York ever asked me about and that I never really dealt with and also this town is a harrowing nightmare from which none of us ever really escapes so, y'know... Sorry if I overreacted."

"Fascinating," says Anne of the game that Alexander was swept into, the interest genuine - it glimmers there in the blue of her eyes, but she doesn't indulge any further. As for Patrick sparing a bottle? "I know, right? That's what I told him, but he's extraordinarily stubborn," a statement that sounds equally frustrating and endearing. Clearly, her feelings towards Patrick are incredibly complicated. "I hope he paid you and Bennie well. It's really the very least that he could do. Are you going to the cocktail party?" she lifts a brow at Alexander to punctuate her question, before her attention drifts back to James. Her lips tip into a frown at his over explanation. "I'm sorry for what you're dealing with," the sympathy there is genuine. "But I will say, as bad as things can be? Gray Harbor isn't a complete nightmare. There's so much here that is interesting and amazing. You just have to have the right perspective."

"Welcome to Gray Harbor: Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate," is Alexander's contribution to the potential re-mottoing of the town. He flashes James a quick, nervous sort of smile. "It's fine. No one ever likes when I ask about the weird deaths in their family. Sometimes there are guns, so my standards for 'overreacting' are pretty high. You're okay." The fact that he could stop asking people about the weird deaths does not seem to occur to him. A glance back at Anne. "Um." A long pause. "If Isabella wants to? I'm not much of a...party person, on my own. And I don't think I've ever been to a cocktail party."

"Yeah, Diana tells me the same thing.", James admits to Anne, and sighs, then shrugs. "And she's pretty amazing and interesting, so I guess she proves her own point.", he adds, almost reluctantly, then scratches the back of his head. "... Aaaanyway. I.. uh. Wait.", he says, and tilts his head as he looks up to Alexander. "Why are you asking about weird family deaths anyway?"

"What language is that? It sounds pretty," Anne says to Alexander's contribution, turning away from her reorganization of the books on the shelf. At least all the spines on that row are facing the same way now, it was going to drive her crazy! "Sometimes, it's hard to see the good in between all the bad. It's easier the longer you live here, though," she promises to James. As for the cocktail party, she replies to Alexander: "She told me she was going. The Addingtons hold it every year, but I've only been to a few of them. I'm determined to go this year though." But why, Anne? "To have fun, I mean. Plus the tree is massive."

Abandon all hope, all ye who enter here.

When Isabella enters, she's still moving slowly, but not as pathetically as the last couple of days have seen her, and she's fully decked out in full Christmas gear, because she's been delivering presents from the bag in her hand. And her Christmas sweater is absolutely hideous. Santa and all of his reindeer are emblazoned in a field of red and green, flanked by snowflakes and two other smaller sleighs with the words ARCHAEOLOGIST: WILL WORK FOR COOKIES on it in white lettering (with the OO rendered as chocolate chip ones). There are snowflake earrings on her ears, there's a headband with plushie antlers on her head. She wears upon her person the very glaring and obvious fact that this is her favorite time of year and like everything else she does in her life, she goes all out, with nothing of herself left behind - as if she's swinging the other way to compensate for just how much she actually hates Halloween in Gray Harbor. This year did not help that any.

The first thing she does is move to the front counter and lean over it, as if she's expecting Elias Weber to be hiding behind it. When she doesn't see him, she grumbles a little bit - ambush completely derailed and leaves a small package by the counter for one of his employees to deliver to him. She's about to step out when two other recipients happen to be inside the bookstore and she wanders over in that direction.

"Latin. It's from Dante's Inferno: Abandon all hope, ye who enter here." Alexander's voice is dry - it seems that he's more on James' side in the 'how bad is Gray Harbor' debate. "There are good people here, though." He blinks, turning his attention back to James at the question. "Because they're weird?" Duh. "I don't like not knowing why things happened. Or how they happened. Or who is responsible for them. Being where we are, it means a lot of people's deaths or disappearances get...glossed over. Forgotten. That doesn't seem right. Someone should know." Looking back at Anne, he seems surprised and dubious that a party could be fun. "Well. If she wants company, I'll go. Hopefully we'll see you there."

Speak of the devil, and she will appear in incredibly committed Christmas style. Alexander notices her the moment she walks in, but he doesn't say anything - just watches her with a soft smile playing around his lips as she makes her way to the counter. It's not until she notices them in turn and approaches that he says, "Hello, Isabella." He shifts the armful of books to hide several of the titles from her. "Have you met James Hecker?"

James sighs a bit at Anne's statement of 'the longer you live here'. ".... yeah, don't worry. I did the math, I'm stuck here forever, so I got all the time in the world to learn to live with it.", he mutters. And then he's nodding quietly along to Alexander's words about his curiosity, and goes thoughtful for a moment. "... yeah. Yeah, I... I get that. Look. You, ah, asked at a bad time, but.. Once, y'know, I've had a chance to clean the old house out, I... actually wouldn't mind some answers myself.", he admits, somewhat reluctantly. Isabella's arrival gains a slightly surprised look from the little ginger beardo. "Oh, hey Isabella." He looks up to Alexander. "Oh yeah, we've met." A pause. "There was fruitcake."

There's a sympathetic look from Anne to James, but she doesn't try to reassure him of much. She'll just keep her own feelings internalized like a good girl! Instead, she looks back to Alexander and blinks. "Oh, I should've known that," she says of where the quote is from, though the rest of what Alexander says has her looking vaguely bothered, her lips slipping downward into a faint frown as her brows furrow. "Quite a lot gets forgotten," is all she adds to the conversation, shifting to fold her arms over her chest as she looks around the shop, perhaps to find the book she's come in here for. And that's when her sights fall upon Isabella. It's not immediate, but she brightens after a second or two, finding her smile again. "Hello Isabella!" she gives the woman a once over with a soft laugh. "You are looking incredibly festive."

"James and I recently shared a death-defying adventure through a trap-laden labyrinth together, I would hope he remembers me, especially since I crawled my way into the Jeep this morning just so I can deliver this." And with that, Isabella hands James a small festive package, grinning faintly - it looks like the exact shape and size of what she had just delivered to Elias, only with color-swapped wrapper. "Merry Christmas, James." She leans over to Alexander, mouth pressing into his cheek briefly before murmuring, in an exaggerated aside: "He dates investigators also. I'm going to have to keep an eye out now since he's officially competition."

Eyes grow wide and frantic at the mention of fruitcake; a hand immediately, instinctively, attempts to press her palm into his mouth to silence him. "....I have absolutely no idea what he's talking about, ha ha ha ha don't be silly, James," she tells the other two, her words coming out as a rapid fire deflection that does nothing of the sort. The bandages on her hands are gone, but they are replaced by festive band-aids around the fingers. They retract relatively quickly though, digging out a small box, this one simply wrapped in red cellophane with white and gold ribbons - it's got more weight to it than James's. "Merry Christmas to you too, Anne."

Alexander arches an eyebrow at James. "I'm not sure I understand. Are you under some sort of penitentiary sentence? And I'd be happy to look into it for you, if you like. I mean - the other thing. Not whatever sentence you may or may not be under. Just let me know. Er," he pauses, and juggles books to grab his phone. "I can give you my number." And while there are a lot of social interactions that Alexander is pretty bad at picking up on? Someone trying to hide something is one of the ones he never misses. Not that Isabella is exactly subtle about it. His attention shifts to her and states there, flat and focused and not even the giving out of gifts can divert him. "Fruitcake? Explain, please."

"Death was definitely defied-", James begins to say, but then he's being cruelly silenced by Isabella. "Mmf!", he protests, and gasps as she pulls her hand away, looking a little dazed- and now he's holding a box. Did Isabella give him that one? He sniffs at it cautiously, and gives it a shake. "Merry Christmas? I, uh, didn't get you anything.", he says, and pauses. "Unless you want a book about Midwestern Vampires? Says here they go 'ope' if sprinkled with holy water." And then Alexander is offering to trade phone numbers and talking about sentences. "Oh, yeah, my number is [blah blah number]. And, yeah, I mean, you could say that. It's basically here, or the loony bin."

Anne lifts eyebrows at Isabella when she silences James. "What is wrong with fruitcake?" she wonders aloud, but there's no time to ponder shitty Christmas cakes because PRESENTS! Her eyes go wide as she takes the red cellophane wrapped present from Isabella with care, her smile broad and bright. "You are too sweet," she says to her friend, and then suddenly jumps when her phone buzzes in her pocket. She doesn't even need to pull it out to know what's going on, and looks a little disappointed at the group. "That's my signal to go, I'm so sorry! Isabella, I'll text you. And James?" She turns to look the man squarely in the eye, saying solemnly and sincerely: "It is far better you are here, than there." She pauses, and then adds in a happier tone: "It was nice to meet you!" and off she goes.

She blanches visibly when she's asked about the fruitcake, her expression shifting from cheerful to incredibly embarrassed. "It was absolutely mortifying and I'd rather believe it was all some kind of ludicrous fever dream that just happened to involve me," Isabella mutters, which is clearly not an explanation. With her gift taken, she smiles back at Anne. "You better," she says simply, before she turns towards James and shakes her head. "Not the point, besides it's just something small, don't you dare worry about it."

With Anne leaving, there's another glance at the interior of the bookstore. "Anyway, I've got a ways to go yet, so I can't stay long. Stay out of trouble, you two."

"Ah." Alexander stares at James for a moment longer, then gives a short, abrupt nod. "Understood. And," a sidenod towards Anne, "she's not wrong. Better here than somewhere with even fewer people who understand." Another of those flickering and brief smiles at James, before he tells Anne, "Have a good day. Don't die." And then Isabella is leaving, too, and she gets more than a brief goodbye; he leans in and if she allows, gives her a long and lingering kiss. Then he smiles, and whispers, "We'll have to talk about the fruitcake later. Be careful if you're out and about."

James blinks slowly as Anne looks him in the eye and makes that solemn statement. "... I like that one. She's sweet. Tells reassuring lies.", he murmurs, mostly to himself, when she walks off, then looks to watch Isabella's reaction to the questioning around the fruitcakes. "See, I can't promise that. Worrying is sort of my thing.", he tells her, but then smiles softly. "But, uhm... seriously. Thanks.", he says, holding up the still-wrapped present. He nods at Alexander's words about 'better here than elsewhere', and he gives a resigned nod. "I know, I know. But it's still like, would you prefer to be stabbed in the brain or shot in the heart? Both get you dead." And then Alexander and Isabella are making out, because that's what couples do. He, on the other hand, has yet to do anything more daring than holding hands in public with Diana, so... oh hey, look books. Let's look at the books. Books books books.

Her hand and its band-aided fingers twine in his, giving it a quick squeeze before she tips her head back to return his kiss with interest. She even reaches up with her other hand to tug gently into the collar of his sweater to hold him there in those extended, affectionate moments. "...I don't suppose I can do anything to bribe you to let go of the fruitcake thing that never happened?" Isabella murmurs; she can't help the hopeful note there. "But I will. Just going to deliver the rest of these, I'll see you back in your place. You be careful too, please." She playfully nips the tip of his nose while he lingers close, before winding away from him and winking at James as she heads for the door.

"Didn't I tell you I liked investigators, too, James?" she wonders in a sing-song voice on the way to the door, winking over her shoulder before she vanishes beyond the door.

"Miss Washburn? I think she's more optimistic than dishonest." Alexander grins down at Isabella as she makes that plea for forgetfulness. He studies her for a moment, expression deeply fond, then says, "Nope. Gonna remember it forever, and pester you until you tell me." Then he lets her go to do her very important things, although he watches her until she's out of the shop. Then looks around with narrowed eyes, like he expects to find something else. His attention returns to James, then, and he says, "You know, it usually takes people a few months to gain that amount of cynicism about the town, if they've been gone for a while." A brief smile. "Who is this investigator you're seeing?"

"Don't call it a comeback. I've been cynical for years.", James mutters as he watches Isabella head off, then tilts his head. "Did...", he asks, "... did she just threaten to steal my girlfriend?" And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the first time James has used the G-word to refer to Diana. Aww. He shakes his head and chuckles. "Her name's Diana. She used to be a psychologist but got into parapsychology after dealing with- you remember that Heaven's Gate cult? She says there was some weird shit going on there that reminds her of here. And now she's here looking for more weird, and, I mean, what kind of an asshole would I be if I just, like, let her poke around this town without at least trying to temper her curiosity with a good solid dose of 'no, don't try to pet the thing with the tentacles, please'?"

"I'm sure she didn't," Alexander reassures James, cheerfully. "That would be kidnapping, and I can't imagine Isabella wants to deal with the upkeep involved in prisoners." A thoughtful pause. "Oh. You meant to have sex with your girlfriend. I don't know. I can ask her, if you like." Every word of this is entirely serious, and doesn't seem to bother him a bit. "And I'd like to speak to Diana. I've been trying to find someone who was possibly the child of one of the Heaven's Gate cultists. She might have some insight." A faint smile. "I promise not to deliberately show her anything with tentacles, though."

"That's all I ask, really. Just... a lower amount of tentacles in my day to day life. You'd think that wouldn't be a huge ask, but you'd be wrong.", James replies, with a sigh, then glances up (and up, and up, like all 6 inches of height difference) at Alexander. "Honestly I'm betting she'd love to meet you. She's pretty amazing with people." This is how you know he's in love, because Diana is like maybe a smidge less awkward than he is, on a good day. "And, err... no, don't ask your girlfriend if she'd like to sleep with my girlfriend, it's ok. That's one of those questions I'm pretty happy not knowing the answer to. I mean, let's face it, Isabella is way hotter than me, I don't stand a chance."

"It's Gray Harbor, Mister Hecker. Into every Harbor life, a little bit of tentacle must fall." Alexander flashes a brief grin. "But, um. If you run into something that I can help you with, tentacle wise, let me know? You've got my number. And if, um, Diana would be interested in chatting, feel free to give it to her." He chuckles at the last. "Don't worry. I think you're safe." He shifts the books in his arm. "I should go pay for these and head out. But. Um. Nice to meet you? Try not to run into any murderous elves until at least New Year's."

"I'm gonna try, but I'm surrounded by lunatics.", James replies, and shrugs, then smiles. "But, yeah. Cool meeting you too. I'll be in touch, yeah?" He looks down at the books in his hands. "I'm gonna finish my shopping, still need to find a book about cats. Stay safe, avoid the Pond. Frogs, y'know." And he gives a little wave before returning to his book browsing.