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"W-well, i-if you could just let me explain-" Knotty glanced to the side with a light chuckle. He had his hands up at his side as if in surrender. "How the- how has this happened? This is a disaster!" Ben Thackery, a short and rather impatient man, exclaimed dramatically. He was in a state, a big one, unfortunately they where both rather... dramatic people... so they both where in the same boat.
"It uuuuuuhhhh..." Knotty slowly raised a mangled book from his bag, he had it pinched from the corner like it was radioactive. "I am terribly sorry-" He said nervously, grinning almost pleadingly. He held the book out, not looking at the mangled cover. "It was the c-cat..." He explained hesitantly. Ben was looking as if someone had just died. As an insult to injury, a loose page floated down from the book, something Ben caught like it was going to smash. "Cat? Cats are simply the worse!" Ben cried, snatching the book away quickly from a startled Vincent. He looked it over, holding his glasses closer to his face as if the scratches would look better when clearer.
"I- I am sorry-" Knotty said a little more remorsefully this time; in a manner of someone who has deeply betrayed a friend- not in a manner of apologising for a damaged book. "I can try and repair or... find a new one?" He started, the nervous grin returning. He was absolutely expecting Ben to go ballistic, a expectation that only increased in likelihood at the wide-eyed look Ben gave him through wonky glasses. Vincent gulped. "Did you get to read it all?" Ben blurted out in a pressuring voice. Knotty did not do well under pressure. "Yes- yes- I read it all through multiple times-" He replied putting one hand up to his face. "The cat got to it just this morning when I had it on the desk"
"Well... in that case..." Ben interrupted. He put the book down hesitantly, seeming to steel himself before he spoke again. This man looked like he was fighting a full war within himself. He turned back to Vincent, adjusting his glasses with a strained smile. "It isn't such a disaster- yes- if you got to read it-" Ben muttered, but Knotty was not sure if he was talking to himself or not, due to the rather faraway look in his eyes. Ben sat at his desk and picked up the book again, staring at the destroyed cover very, very closely. He seemed to forget that someone else was even in the room. Knotty just stood there awkwardly.
"He means to say yer apologies accepted" Knotty yelped as O'Malley walked abruptly through the door. The rather scruffy-looking witch of Widdershins was followed by the tall figure of Wolfe (Pronounced "Vul-feur" as Knotty embarrassingly realised after saying it wrong). "Although, I don' reckon he'll be lendin' you another book for quite a while." "Don't take that personally, though" Wolfe added from behind O'Malley while covering a smirk the best he could. "Right...-" Knotty replied hesitantly, looking back at Ben. He watched Ben sigh in defeat, holding the book like it was a wounded child. "Ben, y'know yer can jus' get another one," Mal piped up again with a roll of his eyes "It ain't like yer don' have any money." Ben hesitantly nodded, looking up from the book resolutely and back to Vincent. Knotty noted that O'Malley was looking slightly above Ben with an amused but almost fond look on his face. He noted he was also squinting slightly. "I can, and the main thing that matters about a book is that it is read." Ben said, seeming to finally come to terms with the fact that his book was not going to repair itself. He took a deep breath, and then smiled at Knotty. This time it looked... genuine, and not unhinged. "My apologies for being so rude." He added with a slightly embarrassed look on his face "N-no, it's OK," Knotty replied with his usual anxious grin. But this time it was his usual passively-anxious-when-nothing-is-really-wrong face. "I apologise about Parsley..." He noticed Ben's inquisitive look. "The cat I m-mean- she's called Parsley- anyway- my apologies." he finished.
And soon, the two where sat together, talking and laughing- and the book sat forgotten.
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Ben was always anxious even if he refused to knowledge it- his spirit was spiky and fizzed like a firecracker at any sign of dirt. And... Knotty was always anxious, that is just him. Especially about upsetting anyone. All this new friendship stuff most likely was going to give O'Malley a lot of headaches- the two anxious spirits shooting and flashing in the same room was a lot to handle. But as he looked at the yellow edging of Ben's spirit when he and Knotty started to talk about books and other nerdy stuff, he decided he could get used to it.