A Certain Request (Neverwinter)

Nina was nodding her head to her ipod, her earphones in her fox ears with her eyes closed, listening to some A Day To Remember as she lightly sung along, although she'd be able to hear the bell on the door if anyone came in, but for now she was relaxing with her feet on the counter and nodding her head, just relaxing on the little break she had before someone came into the store.

The door gave a jangle as a girl with blue hair, a black shirt with a stylized skull, and a look of fierce concentration walked through the door. Her eyes alighted on the girl at the counter, but she didn't really pay her all that much attention - red hair, ears, fine. This was a comic shop - nerds were a thing. She naturally assumed the girl wasn't really a kitsune. She nodded to her though, just because it was what you did, and paid her no additional attention.

Eddie was more interested in the comic stock. She picked up a copy of Captain Awesome, with a big pic of the man in green and white tights posing dramatically with a nazi in his grasp, fist drawn back to give him what for.

"A SWITCH IN TIME" the title read - and she read it aloud in a low key mutter as she thumbed through as if looking for something. She didn't seem to find it. She replaced it, somewhat gently, and picked up another, marked "THE GOON" and did the same. No go there either - she kept looking through them, her face a fierce mask of concentration.

Nina opened her eyes to the jingle and sat up, nodding back to the girl as she waited for the girl to decide which she wanted, fiddling about on her ipod calmly, letting the girl tend to herself for the moment.

Irritably, Eddie thrust another comic back in place and rounded on the girl, knocking on the counter as she stared at her Ipod.

"Excuse me, can you give me a hand?" She said, doing her best to be patient. She knew this was a strange thing she was asking, but then again this was a comic book store. If she couldnt give her an answer, she wouldn't likely get an answer from anyone.

"What is the superhero's code?" She demanded.

Nina blinked as she looked to Eddie "the superhero's code? Sorry hun, don't know that for sure, try googling it" she said with a shrug "I can only help with comics and such" she said calmly.

Eddie tried again to help the girl understand, setting both palms on the counter and eyeballing the girl.

"Oh come now, you must know! You sell comic books, don't you read them? If you won't know what they do and don't do, why the heck shouldn't I get my comics online?"

Nina shrugged "because mine are mint condition and aren't used?" she said with a little smirk "that and they're cheaper than online too" she added smiling "I read manga and the odd Deadpool comic" she added as she stared at Eddie.

Eddie's patience parted with a twang and she slapped the counter. "That's daft! There's business in this for you and you're sitting here all pretty and petite going on about what you sell, about all of this like it means nothing at all to you!" She growled, leaning towards the girl, her eyes blazing angrily.

"What good are you? What use is something like you with your cute little ears and tail? Hm?" Her voice pitched into a shout then!

"WHAT USE ARE YOU!" She roared!

Nina smirked as five clones appeared behind her "I think you'll find me of much use" she said "just because I don't know some code because I don't prefer superhero comics, you think you can come into my shop and yell at me? You've got another thing coming hun, now either buy something or get out" she said as she stood up and her five fox tails flared out behind her, showing they were actually controllable and giving Eddie a fanged grin.

Eddie looked as if she might explode. She had to calm down - it was no help shouting at people or getting all intense. And there was something about this girl that was putting her off. There was something... Animal about her. Humans can't normally tell if a kitsune is really a kitsune - their nature is normally concealed... But Eddie wasn't normal. She was spirited, she had heart - that kind of thing counted. Wait.

... Ears. She focused on the girl. Fangs. And behind her. Tails. Five... Flaring tails. "Holy %#!@." She said, suddenly all rage evaporating. "What are you?" She said, and glared at the girl. "You're not human, are you?"

Nina rolled her eyes and clapped sarcastically "took you this long to figure it out? Wow...just wow" she said sarcastically "no I'm not human, I'm actually a panda" she said before laughing then stared at Eddie seriously "why? You want to pet my ears and feel all calm or something? This isn't a petting zoo I'll tell you that" she said.

"You know, you're a real smartass." She said very calmly now, standing straight and lighting a cigarette that seemed to appear in her hand almost magically - one second it was there, one second it wasn't. She'd read about fox spirits. It didn't pay to get all worked up at them. They fed on that kind of attention. Smoke trailing from her nose after a good hard pull, she sighed, streams of the stuff trailing lazily upward from her nostrils.

"... What's good this week? Got any special editions in?" She asked, all memory of the previous five minutes seemingly gone. Just like that, she seemed to forget the girl was a fox.

Nina shrugged "depends what you're into, got some new yaoi stuff in, of which I've read some of myself and find it very...interesting" she said with a smirk "but we also have some detective comics in too if you're interested in that, someone's started making these Sherlock Holmes comics, one way of getting the kids interested in literature I guess" she said, she too was acting like nothing had happened.

"Nah" she said, and shook her head hurriedly. Was that the hint of a blush? Her face told no tales about it, but she knew what Yaoi was, after one or two odd starts and a late night session on the internet one night in the computer lab at school (Breaking in was something of a given in her school - every student of a certain turn of mind and 'academic bent' did it. Usually, this was to steal things. She'd put a stop to that.) "I'm not into that stuff" she said, by way of explanation.

"I'm more into superheroes and stuff - can I have early issues? They don't need to be first printings or %#!@ like that, just... early stuff, like the first couple issues?" she suggested, looking the vixen in the eye.

Nina shrugged "I don't see why not, I always keep a few extra issues spare for those collectors" she said as she went into the staff only door and to the storage at the back at the store, coming back with a collection of first edition superhero comics "take your pick" she said smiling.