Yes...but they get separated.

6+1+0 Cool = 7 - the Keeper gives you a worse outcome, hard choice, or price to pay

As Phuong and Daisy back down the row of aisle, the man growls and begins to walk more quickly. "Daisy, run!" Phuong snaps. As Daisy turns and bolts, the man reaches out his arm and white tendrils whip out at them. Phuong tucks and rolls, hearing the strands slap wetly against the concrete floor. As she comes up and sees the man still coming toward them, face rippling like a pond after a rock's been thrown into it, she grabs a book from the nearest shelf and hurls it at him. It catches him in the face and he's knocked off-stride for a second, giving her and Daisy just long enough to dash down the corridor toward the exit from the stacks.Behind them, they hear the man snarl and a strange, schlurping sound. "Don't look," Phuong pants. "Keep running! Must be...a stealthy monster...won't want to be seen by a lot of people!" They charge toward the exit, toward the lobby and study areas where there are at least other people around, and the door is in sight when the man steps out of an aisle ahead of them, smiling faintly and eerily. The girls skid to a stop.

"What do we do?!" Daisy gasps, cowering back slightly as the man begins to walk toward them. Phuong hesitates a split second, then shoves the other girl into one of the aisles. "Go. Run. I'll lead him off!"

"But you - "

"Do it, Daisy!!"

Daisy swallows, then nods and turns and sprints away. Phuong waves at the man as he strides towards her, then flips him the bird. "Have to catch me first, asshole." Turning, she dashes away deeper into the stacks.

The next three minutes or so are a blur of terror, a panting, stumbling agony as Phuong plays cat-and-mouse with the man - the monster - but always as the mouse. Finally, quivering as she hides under a desk in an obscure corner of the stacks, she listens and doesn't hear any movement at all. She gives it a long count - 90 seconds - and finally creeps out, padding softly down the aisles of books, head a-swivel as she looks for the monster. I think...I think I lost him.

She can't shake the anxiety, though, and as she gets to the door leading into the lobby she pulls out her phone and shoots off a text:

It's here. Daisy, check in!! Everyone, back to the room NOW.

When Ali leaves the group, she strides toward the stacks, then suddenly, making sure the others aren't in eyesight, turns and crouches down behind a shelf as though she's tying her shoe. She hears Phuong and Daisy pass, chatting quietly, gives it a few seconds, then stands up. Fishing under her shirt, she pulls the amulet that hangs between her breasts out, staring at it. It's a twisted thing of green, discolored bronze, like an eldritch knot or perhaps a strange, cursive interpretation of some sort of rune. At the very center of it sits an opal the size of her thumb. Usually when Ali looks at it, it flickers with an inner radiance, like a flame is trapped in the stone, a warm, reassuring presence against her chest. Now, it just looks like a black rock.

This thing is dead, she thinks anxiously to herself. And I'm pretty sure it's the only thing that kept that freak from breaking any of my bones, earlier. I've gotta recharge it. She glances around, biting her lip. Not the best place for that...but it shouldn't take long. Just need to find someone...

She looks around the quiet hall for several moments, scanning the tables of students and professors bent down, working, occasionally murmuring to their neighbors. Finally, she spots a likely candidate. Tall, clean-shaven, blond hair...looks like a normal-enough guy. He's reading from a book he's got propped up title Molecular Biochemistry. Perfect.

Tucking the amulet back under her shirt, Ali makes her way over to her mark and sits down next to him. He doesn't pay her any mind until she leans over and taps him on the shoulder. "'Scuse me," she whispers, "but aren't you in my intro bio class?"

The man blinks and smiles at her. "Uh, don't think so," he whispers back. "I did intro three years ago. Any luck I'll be TAing it next year...sorry."

"Oh no, no worries," Ali whispers brightly. "Sorry. You just have one of those faces, I guess..."

He chuckles. "Ok." He starts to turn back, but Ali taps his shoulder again.

"Ok, look, I'm not actually in intro bio, I just wanted to make sure you weren't, like, a freshman," she murmurs. "Truth is I'm looking for something else...biology-related." She puts a hand on his thigh, and he looks down in surprise. "You wanna take a little study break with me? I just...need to blow off some steam right now, and you look like you'd be fun to do it with." She bites her lip and raises her eyebrows at him, trying to make sure he fully understands what she means.