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Katherine "Kit" Augustine
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Kit walked a bit into the town without saying much. It seemed quainter andmore touristy than anything. It had shops lining down the streets, mostly cafes and boutiques with clothes that would probably be too expensive to imagine.
James wasn't saying anything. She didn't know how he was feeling-- overwhelmed? Confused? Scared? Or did he simply just want to get even farther away? It was easy to assume all of the above. Kit just knew she didn't want to overwhelm him with too much information, especially with all her own conflicting emotions. She hadn't been out in the real world for awhile herself. Technology had probably changed, so far from what she'd saw the fashion had too. But trying to direct her train of thought back to the problem as hand, she also knew she needed to find information place or the bus station, whatever came first. They needed to take this one step at a time. Kit tried to keep her and James walking not too much on the main roads unless they had too. The less people asking questions the better, especially when James was hurt.
Eventually, they crossed what looked like a cheap souvenir place, one of those dollar stores. Thankfully outside was a bench, so she led James over to it and helped him set himself down in it. "I'm going to pick up some stuff that we'll need, just sit here for five minutes. Don't talk to anyone, keep your head down and people will most likely walk right by you." Bending down slightly, she tried her best to smile encouragingly like she had felt she'd been doing the whole time. It wasn't a truly genuine smile, James would be able to tell that, but she just didn't want him to worry. Kissing his forehead instinctively, hoping it gave some sort of friendly reassurance, she gripped her backpack and walked into the store which signified her entrance by the small ringing of a bell.
"Hello sweetheart," greeted a friendly woman who appeared to be in her late forties - early fifties, from behind the cluttered counter. She wore a pale blue sundress with a dark green apron that bore the stores name on it. Kit was taken aback for a moment. She sounded so... nice. She didn't look like the cold women or men who ran the institute. Her smile was the realest one she'd seen in years, and it was only in greeting. Kit couldn't find words to come out of her mouth, so she awkwardly raised her hand and gave it a small wave, before trying to scurry away behind the various shelves of things she didn't know exactly what where. However, the sweet tone of the woman cut her off once again as she added, "Oh sorry hun, you have to leave your backpack with me here at the counter, store rules." Kit turned around suddenly, stunned a bit at what she said. Instinctively she clutched the straps of her bag tighter than she already was, and she could feel the blood rushing out of them quick from the exertion of pressure. "I, uhm-" Kit sputtered before a moment later regaining her composure. Trying her best to give a smile, it faltered pretty quick. "Yeah, of course, sorry," she said quietly, before walking up to her and very reluctantly slipping it off her back and handing it to her. She was a teenager, a little shifty looking one at that. It was protocol, she couldn't imagine how many teenagers with backpacks came in to steal. The sooner she'd give it up, the less suspicious she'd seem. The woman also wouldn't have to look through it before Kit left. "Thank you," smiled the woman, completely unfazed. Kit just give a weak smile back and nodded before moving behind the shelves.
All she wanted was to see if there was some sort of first aid kit or tensor bandage in order to make walking easier for James. Maybe painkillers, but she didn't think there would be considering this place wasn't a drugstore. He'd have to live with pain for a little while longer. Browsing took a bit, but eventually she came across a cheap small first aid kit and a knee specific tensor bandage she hoped would fit James. On her way back to the counter, she saw sunglasses and hats and figured that might help them talking to people without revealing any notable features of their faces. She highly doubted the woman at the counter worked for the institute, but hell, anyone else could. Grabbing a floppy sun hat for her a baseball cap for him and two pairs of sunglasses, she made her way to the counter and plopped them off. The woman smiled and rang the items through, so Kit took the time to quickly grab two water bottles from the cooler and two random chocolate bars. It wasn't a sustainable meal by far, but it would help. "That'll be thirty-two dollars even," smiled the lady. Kit spoke softly under her breath, replying, "Okay, the uhm, money's in my bag." The woman gave a small laugh, somehow managing to smile brighter as she said, "Of course! Silly me," before reaching it up and handing it over to her. Kit quickly scrummaged through it and picked up one of the stacks of bills she'd shoved in there. Trying to hide the odd amount of bills, she plucked two off the top, which thankfully was two twenties, and handed them to the woman. She quickly gave Kit the change and plastic bag with her newly purchased items, saying a "Have a good day!" Kit began to move towards the exit, before suddenly swirling around and blurting out "Sorry! Uhm, could you tell me where the bus station is?" The woman seemed a little surprised, but she quickly answered. "Just two blocks down! You'll pass the town library if you continue up the street, turn left until you hit the next street over, then walk on down to the yellow Grey Hound station." Kit smiled wider then, saying "Thank you so much," before finally exiting the store.
Making her way back over to James, she tossed the tensor bandage package at him and said, "Slip that over your knee, it might help," before sitting herself down beside him. Kit opened the plastic bag and ripped the tags off the hats and sunglasses. Passing James his set, she put hers on quickly, tucking her very light blonde hair up so it wasn't peaking through the hat. Passing James also a water bottle and a chocolate bar, she opened her own bottle and took a large gulp before twisting back on the cap and taking a moment to sit and rest, giving James time to ask any questions he may have before they walked to the bus station.