Junie sensed the coffee shop before she saw it, to the left and up the escalator. Near the food court, but separate… that was good: it was easy to find but the smell of the food didn’t overpower that of the coffee Shavian seemed engrossed with getting new clothes, and Junie realized she probably needed some as well. But there was coffee to be dealt with, brew before threads.
Junie veered off, but a strange feeling came over her and she thought to look back. Fipps smiled at her and she smiled back, tilting her head in the direction she was headed. He caught up to her quickly.
“Let me guess where you’re headed… the coffee shop?” he said.
“Of course! There’s something on the second floor but it doesn’t smell right.”
“Uh oh,” Fipps said. “You’re going to try to fix it again aren’t you?”
Junie glanced at him bemusedly. “Yes, naturally. What’s wrong with that?”
Fipps looked hard at her for a moment, thinking. “You know what? Absolutely nothing,” he said decisively. “I think more people should have a ‘fix it’ attitude when they find something wrong with the world.”
I think he thinks better of your intentions than they really deserve, said Bob.
Shut it, you old grouch, Junie replied.
Bob said nothing but Junie could sense a mildly affronted air.
Junie could tell that there was something strange about Fipps. He didn’t treat her like most everyone else did, and while no one treated her badly by any stretch she liked the way Fipps was with her. It was like the way Elliott was, only from a guy she didn’t think of as a hopeless little brother.
You do realize Elliott thinks of you as a hopeless little sister, right?
I know he does. But that’s part of why he’s so hopeless. Also why he’s so amusing.
Yes, he is a cheeky little blighter, isn’t he?
Cheeky little-? Bob, why do you sound like Stephen Fry?
I’m only here because of you, duckie. You should ask yourself.
Junie’s nose led them off the escalator to a tiny coffee shop. As predicted, it was adjacent to the food court. Or what was left of it. Most of the food court had been ransacked and abandoned; unsurprisingly the McWhirter’s was still open, its familiar golden W present over the counter. The employees looked as though they hadn’t noticed a thing different with the world. There were still a lot of people in this part of the mall, unlike downstairs; they’d organized quickly and people were here keeping safe.
At the coffee stand was one harried looking girl trying to serve a whole crowd of people. She was tiny, slim and five-foot-three at the most, with chestnut hair cut in a bob and enormous brown eyes that looked about to well up in tears. She didn’t look older than twenty-five or so. She was examining her espresso machine expertly, but with growing panic, and no one was being handed coffee. Something was wrong with the machine.
Standing clear of the line so as not to look like she was cutting in, Junie peaked around the counter just enough to see the machine and the girl’s apron and name tag. The tag indicated that her name was Haley, and just beneath it was a little gold pin the shape of a coffee bean.
Junie’s heart leapt in joy, and she leaned in close to whisper, “All hail the black bean.”
Haley’s turned to her, eyes wide. “Bringer of the god, Caffeine,” she replied, her voice low but brimming with excitement. “You’re with the Order of Saint Omar?”
Junie nodded, smiling. Fipps, who appeared to have bionic hearing, leaned over as well, smiling at Haley. “Who is Saint Omar?”
“He was a sheik who is attributed with discovering coffee,” Junie whispered. At Haley’s stricken look she explained, “It’s okay, this is Fipps. He’s cool.” Fipps waved.
“And they sainted him for that?”
“He discovered coffee,” Haley said. “Can you help me with this? My machine is broken and I can’t figure out what’s wrong with it. I was never that good with the machines themselves, but I trade the coffee to other vendors and to the mall for safety and supplies. Without it, I don’t know what will happen to me.” Her resolve broke a little and silent tears streamed down her face.
Without another word, Junie stepped up to the machine, examined it thoroughly and knew at once what the problem was. “You have no water pressure.” After another moment, she turned to Fipps and Haley and said, “I can fix this. Is there a hardware store in here?”
“No,” Haley replied.
Junie thought a moment longer. “Okay, we can still do this. Someone find me a knife and a rubber duckie.”