Who needs help?! [Alisa Free Time]

Despite how exhausting the previous day had been, Alisa wasn't tired at all.  At least, that's what she kept telling herself; there was way too much to do for her to be tired! She'd already busied herself with arranging all of the things she'd brought with her in her room, which was coming along rather nicely.  Her bookshelf had the essentials of alchemical reference, and on a long table was the small wooden box that she kept her components in, along with a magnifying glass and the rest of her brewing equipment. A good start, but it didn't feel like enough...

So, after a quick dash back to her master's now completely empty building, Alisa was staggering down the guild hall of the with a formidable stack of books: all the things she'd sneaked away and hoarded in her room before her master had the audacity to disappear with everything else.  Considering the size and number of these volumes, it was a wonder she'd made it this far into the building (she was lucky enough to come back while someone already holding the door open).  She could feel her fingers starting to burn with the strain and she'd already gotten a ton of funny looks, but this was the final stretch.  "Just a little more!" Alisa huffed, just as she felt her boot snag on something--



"Aaaaaah!"

Unable to right her balance while carrying so much, Alisa toppled to the floor, her stack of books collapsing like a poorly constructed tower.  As she sat up, supporting herself with one arm and smoothing out her skirt with the other, the alchemist looked dejectedly at her prized possessions splayed out all over the floor.  "I was so close, too...!"

Ready to set about in the day, Cecilia had changed into more casual clothes to go shopping for whatever else she thinks she needs in her new home. She eventually decides that she should still carry around her sword while in town-- while capable of defending herself barehanded, maybe the sight of the weapon would discourage aggressors.

But then... this probably isn't just any kind of town. And with the adventurer's guild here, maybe it could even encourage aggressors. Muttering wordlessly, the knight assumes a concerned expression, unsure of what to do.

Her drifting thoughts were interrupted by a sound akin to crumbling towers, and she decides to bring the weapon with her as she heads out.

"Ah!" The source of the sound, a crumbled tower of books and an alchemist on the floor. Slinging the sheathed blade on her shoulder, Cecilia moves in to help the girl out.

"Alisa!" she holds out a hand. "Can I help you out?" is what she asked, but she doesn't really have any intention of not helping.

"Cecil--!"

Alisa stared up at her teammate for a moment, feeling the color drain from her face. Way to look totally incompetent.  Surely Cecil wouldn't think too poorly of her after what they went through together the day before, but Alisa still felt pretty self-conscious. Especially compared to the knight, who would probably not ever do something as silly as carry too many books and then drop them all over the place.  

She took Cecilia's hand and got back up on autopilot, but once she was on her feet she seemed to snap. "I got it!" Alisa suddenly yelped, stiffly looking away and reaching for the closest fallen book.  She collected them as quickly as she could, as if she could get them all before her companion had a chance to help out.  Not really a likely scenario.  "I mean, uh, thanks for offering! It's really not a big deal though, I can handle it myself if you're busy--"

Stopping for a moment to adjust her grip on the books she'd collected so that she wouldn't stupidly drop them again, Alisa glanced back at Cecilia and noticed she had her sword on her.  Oh no, maybe she really was busy!  Or was she the type to just carry her weapon everywhere?  Alisa's brow furrowed a bit as she thought; but she would feel pretty guilty if she was holding Cecil up.

"Um, were you on your way somewhere or...?"

Alisa has some cute reactions, and Cecilia finds them a bit amusing. Of course, it might be rude to point that out, so the knight refrains from doing so, and instead helps her pick up some of the scattered books.

Cecilia laughs and waves her hand. "Oh no, you won't be imposing on me," she replies to the alchemist, adjusting her weapon then proceeding to take half the pile of the books she's carrying.

"This is something I want to do anyway, so let me indulge," she smiles disarmingly. "We're teammates-- but even if we weren't, I'd really love it if you could ask me for help whenever you need it.

"So, which way to your room?"

"Ah.." After hearing something that nice, Alisa wasn't sure how to argue.  And it would definitely be easier to get all these books into her room if Cecil was carrying most of them...  Alisa stared with a hint of jealously as the knight held all those books with no trouble at all before letting out a defeated sigh and an embarrassed smile.

"Thanks. My room's not that far, it's this way.."

With her considerably smaller stack of books held firmly, Alisa led her teammate just a little further through the hallway and to her room.  She opened the door and hurried over to her bookshelf, placing each book on the shelf with practiced efficiency.  Some of the older volumes were looking a little worse for wear, and Alisa cursed under her breath as she thought about how much of that damage could be attributed to that stupid tumble.  At least they were all intact.

Once she finished, she turned back to Cecilia and saw how many more books her friend was still holding on to.  "I didn't realize I had this many!" she laughed uncertainly.  "This wasn't even the whole collection... b-but it's more than enough, clearly! Ahaha..."

Cecilia was glad that the girl accepted her help with no further trouble. Sometimes before, there were people who'd be too stubborn. Of course, Cecilia was pretty stubborn herself. Smiling, she follows Alisa to her room. She's a bit curious as to how the place would look.

The knight bows her head slightly before entering the room, more out of habit than anything. The room looked as one would expect from a young alchemist's room-- it had its own charm to it. She hums softly as she looks around, then watches as Alisa put her books into the shelf with practiced hands. "It looks like a small..." she starts to say, moving closer so that Alisa could start on the stack of books in her arms. "Um..."

She tilts her head, thinking. "What was the word? The word for..." She mutters something in some unrecognizable language. A small moment of silence and mental head-scratching. "A-a place with a lot of books? That you can borrow?"

Alisa began taking Cecilia's books and adding them to the shelf, trying to continue putting books away while listening to the knight speak.  Her question made Alisa pause for a moment, a single book held in midair as she turned back to look at her friend.

"A library?" she asked, maybe a little too matter-of-factly before realizing and offering an apologetic smile.  She didn't want to make Cecil feel bad about forgetting a word, especially if she was foreign or something.  "A-ah, sorry! I didn't mean to be rude.  You're not from around here, right?"  Maybe that was a little presumptuous... the alchemist cleared her throat and continued on before she dug herself into a deeper hole.  "It's not much of a library, but you can borrow my books if you ever want to! I don't really mind."

With the last of the books  put away, Alisa straightened up and looked over her now sufficiently filled bookcase with a bit of triumph.  She turned to properly face Cecilia and smiled up at her.  "All done! Thanks again for your help. I guess I owe you one, huh?"

"Yes! That's it!" the knight claps her hands. "A library! Your room looks like a small library," she says, following with a small laugh. "That's alright, thank you for giving me the word." Not from around here... it's something like that. Cecilia scratches her cheek.

"I'm not perfect with the language so I'd appreciate it if you can guide me." She speaks it well enough, though, considering she's spoken it for the last two years. Of course, with her... forgetful nature, it doesn't all go well. And some words are still difficult. But practice makes perfect! Cecilia's spoken with a lot of the folks in the city, so she knows that she can speak it well, although her accent occasionally gets pointed out.

To the offer to lend books, Cecilia smiles. "Then, do you have books on history? The farther back, the better." Then she laughs sheepishly. "Or books on the language, that could work."

"I think you speak perfectly well!" Alisa encouraged with a small giggle.  "Even native speakers forget words sometimes, you know. N-not that I ever do!"

At Cecil's request, Alisa turned back to her bookshelf. "History? Let's see..." She glanced over the books, since she hadn't paid their titles much attention as she was putting them away.  Most of her books were specific to her professions, but she must have something more general somewhere.  She didn't want to let down a fellow academic.  "There's... 'A Brief History of Alchemical Science'.  No, that won't do..."

"Aha!" Triumphantly she pulled a somewhat thick, leather-bound volume from the shelf.  She spun around and held the book up towards her friend. "Here you go! If I remember right it focuses mostly on the history of this country, but maybe you'll find it interesting. "