It's...unproductive.

Daisy: Help Out: 3+1+0 Cool = 4 - miss. Daisy marks XP, which actually fills up her track. She takes +1 Charm.

Phuong: Investigate a Mystery: 1+1-1 Sharp = 1 - miss. Phuong marks XP.

Forty-five minutes later, Phuong slams yet another book closed in frustration. "Ugh! I don't know what I was thinking. Of course this fucking university library doesn't just have...books on weird mushroom monsters! I should've known better." She sighs and leans forward, thumping her head slightly on the shelf. "Hey, it's ok. We'll figure it out," Daisy says soothingly, rubbing Phuong's back. The older girl sighs.

"Yeah. Yeah. We'll get there...I hope," she mutters. "I just have the feeling this thing is really dangerous, and I - I don't want to let anyone down. Not the Paragons, and not you guys."

"Mmmm," Daisy hums. She steps behind Phuong and begins fully massaging her shoulders. "That's a lot of pressure. You should try to relax a little."

"Hard to do when there's a monster running around loose," Phuong mutters. "Oh, fuck, that's good, though."

Daisy chuckles. "You learn to give pretty good massages when you've been doing sports all your life. Well, you probably know. I'm sure the Beloved Paragons taught you all sorts of fancy martial arts healing techniques."

"Mmmm. Some," Phuong equivocates. "They weren't big on massage, though. You're really good at this."

"Thanks!" Daisy pauses as her phone buzzes. "One sec..." She fishes her phone out of her pocket and swipes it open, frowning as she looks down at a text from an unknown number.

"Hi Daisy. This is Christine - we met earlier today. Uh, in the showers? I got your number from the student directory. Anyway, just wanted to say thank you again. About to head out on my date and I'm feeling way more confident than usual."

Daisy smiles and fires a message back: "Nice to hear from you! Glad you're feeling good. It really was my pleasure. ;)"

She turns back to Phuong. "Anyway. Like I was saying, you gotta learn to relax. You can't do your best work if you're tense all the time. Hang on a second..." Over Phuong's protests, she turns the other girl fully to face the shelves and continues massaging her shoulders, moving down toward her back. "You really ought to be lying down for this, but oh well."

"We really ought to be hurrying," Phuong says, though she doesn't move. In fact, she closes her eyes. "Oh, man, that's good."

"Thanks. I've always been good with my hands," Daisy says with a chuckle. She continues kneading Phuong's back, working the knots out as she heads downward. Phuong groans slightly and leans back into Daisy. Daisy supports her with one hand while working at the knots with the other. "Damn, you're tight. Have you ever had, like, an actual professional do this?"

"Not really," Phuong mutters. "Never had time."

"You should!" Daisy continues to rub her lower back, just above the curve of Phuong's hips. "It can be really helpful. Hey, what's that?"

"What's what?" Phuong murmurs, blissful.

"On your chest?"

Phuong jerks out of Daisy's hands like she's been scalded, darting away down the row of shelves. "N-Nothing!" She hurriedly buttons her cardigan all the way up. "Nothing. Sorry. Just...some dirt or something, probably."

"You sure?" Daisy frowns. "Looked almost like writing."

"Nah, I just haven't had a chance to shower yet today," Phuong says, heart hammering as she covers over the large black "SLUT" under her clavicle. "Anyway...we should...we should focus." She clears her throat. "Thanks for the massage."

Daisy shrugs and smiles. "Sure. Any time!"

"Anyway. I don't think we're going to find much here. We should head back to Mike and see - "

"Excuse me." Both girls glance toward the end of the row, where a tall, bland-looking man stands. He looks like he's in his mid-20s - maybe a graduate student - but he's staring at them intently, a little oddly. "You are...excuse me."

"Yeah?" Phuong frowns. "Can I help you?"

"Mmm. No. I need...one of these." The man gestures vaguely at the books all around them. "Excuse me."

He strides briskly toward them, clearly focused entirely on them and not the books, and Phuong's eyes narrow. Something's...not right here, she thinks. She reaches out an arm, pushing Daisy back behind her. "Daisy. Let's go."