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Changes [Self?]

Postby Indigo » 10/28/2015 3:08 AM

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The library had moved again, which was not in itself particularly unusual. According to the crumbling papers hidden deep in the stacks, it went wherever it was needed, and in his years of service to the library Alphonse had gotten more or less used to its tendency to unexpectedly pick up and move overnight. But this was not a standard move. The library had switched continents only a few months previously, and such a distance usually meant they got to stay in one place for a while. Yet here they were in Nabias.

There were other inconsistencies--it seemed to have moved faster than normal. Granted, Alphonse had never been able to figure out how it moved to begin with, whether it was even a physical transition, but a number of things had been knocked over or otherwise displaced. Quite a lot of them, really; he could still hear the faint sounds of Roderick trying to clean up the less public areas as he went to sit behind the circulation desk. The worst of the rubble had been cleared out of the lobby, at least, and so Alphonse could finally return to his duties.

He perched in his chair and slowly unfolded the newspaper that Roderick had left. There would be something, today. It had been nearly a week since the library had decided to come here, and it never took much longer than that for whoever needed it to show up. There was something electric in the air, something magical. Something was coming. Or someone, or possibly both. He would be ready.
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Re: Changes [Open?]

Postby Indigo » 10/30/2015 8:01 PM

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This was the problem--well, one of the problems; if she were to be perfectly honest she had an entire world of problems both magical and otherwise. But the problem that was most prominent in her mind, at this particular moment, was this: that her artifact-related credentials would not be enough to land her a decent job. No one would ever claim that Foxglove was not knowledgeable about such things, since if they did she would immediately set about proving them wrong, and it was simpler for everyone if they just skipped that step and believed her to begin with. But she was mostly self-taught, and that which she hadn't learned on her own had been with rather unusual help, and it made certain paperwork-y things a bit more difficult.

She was in the process of despairing about this, as well as fumbling with her keys, when she noticed the library. Noticed in the way that one notices something that has been slightly wrong for some time--it had definitely been there when she left the house that morning, and definitely hadn't at the beginning of the week.

Despairing could wait a little while. This required investigation, probably by someone who knew at least one thing about magic, and Foxglove knew a bit more than that. She crossed the street--and what an odd coincidence that such a place should appear right across the street from her house--and entered the library.

The doors opened into a small, dark room, windows overgrown and lights present but all switched off. In spite of this there was a Yonyuu reading a newspaper behind the desk. As she approached, he lowered the newspaper and stared at her over his tiny glasses in a needlessly dramatic way.

"Good morning," he said. "Is there something you need? An artifact identified, a book located? Perhaps to examine our collection?" His ear twitched. "Or perhaps you know something about the spirit that has recently invaded. I did tell Roderick to get someone to look at that."

"It's afternoon," Foxglove said.

"I think you may have missed the point."
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Re: Changes [Self?]

Postby Indigo » 10/31/2015 10:03 PM

"Well, then, would you enlighten me?" She didn't make eye contact; it seemed an unwise risk until she knew more. Instead she studied the wall behind him, the desk, the shelves she could see without turning her head, looking for--what? Her magic sight was long gone, disappeared when the spirit's contract was fulfilled, and while she was attuned to magic to some extent all that told her was that this place was brimming with the stuff. Not exactly new information.

The Yonyuu narrowed his eyes, which looked more than a little ridiculous. "It was a very simple question. Why are you here?"

He probably wasn't a magical guardian, she decided. Not quite roundabout enough, and she couldn't feel any particular energy coming off him, though she might just be out of practice. But he certainly seemed real enough. "A library suddenly popping up on your doorstep isn't something one usually ignores," she said. "Well. Practically on my doorstep. So, who are you, what are you, and why are you here? In any order. Unless I have to trade something for each answer--in that case I'll take the last one, because all I have that's of any value is a day pass for the bus."

"What?"

Foxglove rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. Real or not, he was certainly being difficult. "Travel has power in it, right? At least that's what I hear. It worked pretty well on that rain thing last year but there might have been other factors involved there. The point is that I want information, and since you're being so cagey about it I figure you need something in exchange. We could do a question for a question if you don't want the bus pass. I'm not picky." She smiled the most disarming smile she could.

The Yonyuu slowly lowered his newspaper, staring at her. "Are you serious?"

"At the moment? Yes."

"Roderick!" he yelled--presumably to someone in the other room--and then abruptly lifted the newspaper again, obscuring his face. Repeated meaningful throat-clearings had no effect.



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Re: Changes [Self?]

Postby Indigo » 10/31/2015 10:22 PM

Unexpectedly, there were a number of loud clunking and thudding sounds, which she could only assume were coming from the next room. After several of these, a Rollaby poked his head around the door frame. "Sorry about that. There have been some, uh, things. And stuff. Since the move." A loud crash of metal. "Yyyyes. What did you need?"

Foxglove threw up her hands. "Answers!"

The Yonyuu crinkled the newspaper in what she thought might be frustration. She ignored him.

"...Okay!" The Rollaby stepped fully into the room, and bowed, rather unnecessarily. "I am Roderick Hodges, Librarian of the Unnatural, and probably the second-best person to answer your questions. And I won't get in a snit if you say something I don't like, which is more than can be said for Alphonse over there. So! What'll it be?"

"Look," she said, "do I have to trade you something or what? This is really not how I thought this was going to go."

"Trade? No, this isn't that kind of place," Roderick said. "Not a lot of trickery here. I couldn't really say why, never bothered to look into it, but maybe--"

"Roderick," said Alphonse in a pained tone, "I want you to interview her, not stand there and ramble."

"Interview?" Roderick tilted his head. "If you say so, I guess. Why don't you, Miss...whoever you are...come into the back and we'll--"

"I've definitely lost track of this conversation," Foxglove said. It didn't quite carry the tone of righteous indignation she'd been hoping for, but there was nothing for it now. "All I want to know is what this library is doing here, and maybe whether it's really a library at all. No interviewing required."



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Re: Changes [Self?]

Postby Indigo » 11/01/2015 1:46 AM

"Of course. Might we interview you afterward?" Alphonse said. "It's...rather difficult to explain why until you've heard the rest, but I think it will be necessary."

Foxglove shrugged. She didn't want to say it out loud, preferring to keep her embarrassments private, but she was actually rather out of her depth here. She had come in expecting a regular supernatural entity or magical library or something between the two, something with traps or obstacles or...something other than a couple of librarians in need of getting their act together. As long as she didn't sign anything she was reasonably sure she'd be all right, but if she wasn't...well, that would be quite interesting. It was her informed opinion that the best way to understand something was to fling yourself face-first into it.

"Right, the...library," said Roderick, after a moment. "You have to realize we don't know exactly how it works--listen, if you didn't want me to tell her that you should've explained it yourself--we didn't come with it or anything. We're normal." He glanced at Alphonse. "I'm normal, at least. Uh, but it's magic, obviously, and it kind of moves around to wherever it's most needed, which it doesn't do very often. It also attracts artifacts! Specifically ones of a magical nature, not, like, a skeleton or something. Also devices."

"Those are pretty nonspecific terms."

"Yeah. A lot of what we know comes from some weird old documents Alphonse--"

"Roderick." Alphonse lowered his newspaper. "Mm. Allow me to be concise. This is a real library. It is magical in nature. It is here because someone here needs it, or perhaps because it needed someone here, or possibly both. It will remain until it is more direly needed elsewhere. We don't know when that will be. And you..." He fiddled with his glasses, though he would have described the action in a more dignified way. "I think the library may need you."



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Re: Changes [Self?]

Postby Indigo » 11/02/2015 4:59 PM

"We used to have someone who studied magical artifacts," Alphonse continued. "Mainly academic, I doubt he had ever gone looking for one, but he knew about the way they are protected and stored and a bit about how to get around a magical guardian, things like that. As we seem to attract such things, it was useful to have such an expert on hand."

"So what happened to him?" Foxglove said.

"He...the library moved on without him. I think he had been in it when it moved, but it left him behind, and I believe it has hidden itself from him. We don't know why," Alphonse said, and she immediately doubted the truth of that particular statement, but it seemed unwise to interrupt. "One can only assume he offended it in some way. It is a somewhat temperamental building. This was years ago, and we have no way of finding out what he did now."

"Do you have a point?"

"I was getting to it. I cannot be certain, since we haven't been talking for very long, but from what you have said I have the impression that you know a great deal about these things." All that talk about a question for a question, he meant. "The library could use someone like you. But since we have only just met, there will have to be a test."



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Re: Changes [Self?]

Postby Indigo » 11/02/2015 5:03 PM

"A test?" She was beginning to feel a little foolish, and also more than a little like she'd walked into something she ought not to be part of, never mind what the Yonyuu said about the library needing her. She didn't know a lot about sentient buildings but she was pretty sure it wasn't safe to be in one.

"Well, it doesn't have to be like that," Roderick said. "We got a call this morning from a woman who has some kind of artifact or device she needs appraised. She wasn't sure which it was, and said it was too hard to describe over the phone. Not very helpful but it happens. We need you to go out and have a look at it."

"Okay, okay, slow down," Foxglove said. "I only just got here, and I only came in for basic information, and now you have me running errands for you? What makes you think I even want to be your artifacts person?"

"The library does pay reasonably well," Alphonse said. "At least, if you have reasonable expenses."



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