that perfect tranquillity of life ( OPEN )

[flecks]

Date & Time: April 10, late afternoon & evening
Location: The library
Characters: Leo Baskerville & YOU.
Summary: There's some weird guy sitting on the floor, come trip over him or be weirded out at him because hey, there are perfectly fine seats in the library!!
Warnings: idek

[ When Leo isn't busy with the extra training the Initiative forces him to do and the community service at the orphanage, he can be found reading in the library. Reading books now isn't the same as it was before. He can't quite enjoy it like he used to, but it's the only way of coping he knows and so he keeps on reading. Not knowing what else to do, it's easy to fall back on old habits. Old habits die hard after all and his only escape from reality had always been books.

The Initiative library isn't nearly as grand as the one in Lutwidge Academy or even the Nightray family library, but it's plenty spacious and there's a lot of chairs to sit in, at a table or otherwise. However, Leo sits on the floor. Also out of force of habit. The library at his orphanage had been quite small with not much room for any chairs at all, but no one ever came there and that's why Leo loved it and willingly resorted to sitting on the floor. It's become so normal to him that he has actually come to prefer sitting on the floor when he's reading, no matter how comfortable a chair or bed is. That hasn't changed here either.

He's found a nice beanbag though, but rather than sit on it, he leans back against it. The beanbag is big enough to hide him out of sight and he's placed it near some bookshelves so he has new books within reach. Unfortunately this also means he's made himself an obstacle for the unwitting and he's too caught up in his current reading to realize it. ]

Comments

[bloodyashes]

[It's not that Leo's any kind of obstacle - rather, the beanbag he's chosen to lean against just happens to be where Asch intended on sitting to page through a couple of books himself. For the most part, they're books on capentry and plumbing - the sort of thing you'd be looking at if you had an abandoned building you wanted to fix up. The redhead isn't paying that much attention to the boy on the other side of the beanbag when he kind of sprawls into a seat -

At least not until his head basically bonks into Leo's over the back of the beanbag. Whoops. Asch jerks his head forward again, startled by the impact, then turns to look over his shoulder at the kid reading on the other side.]

Sorry. Didn't see you there.

[Hey look, he's actually being kind of polite. Then again, it was his bad.]

[flecks]

[ Although Leo can certainly feel the shifting of the beanbag as it suddenly accompanies more weight, it doesn't quite register immediately in his mind. He's busy catching up with the last few volumes of Holy Knight as he's certain he's much farther into the series than Elliot and Oz so those last volumes won't be missed for a little while. The current chapter he's on proves to be quite enticing and it's because of the suspense and how into it he's gotten despite himself that he doesn't instantly react to someone joining him at his beanbag until—

Ow. Something of a yelp escapes him in both his surprise and the sudden pain shooting through his head. He glances over his shoulder sharply as he clutches the back of his head. The urge to snap is there, but it's mollified somewhat by the apology.

He could be polite in return (albeit through gritted teeth) despite his annoyance. It's a good thing he was too startled to resort to yelling straight away at least. ]

It's okay, I should have noticed.

[bloodyashes]

[Or made yourself more noticable, maybe, but Asch doesn't say that aloud. He can already tell this kid is just on the edge of snapping, and he's not actually out to cause trouble. He's had enough happen in the last day to last him a long time.]

Should I go somewhere else?

[Think carefully, Leo, because people are less likely to trip over you if there's someone else they see first. And that red hair certainly attracts attention in the drab library, doesn't it?]

[flecks]

[ His knee jerk reaction is to go "yes go away" but luckily Leo doesn't blurt out every first thing that comes to mind unlike a certain someone else of mutual acquaintance. So, after a small moment of consideration, he ends up shaking his head. ]

No, it's fine. [ Just don't bump heads with him again, please. ]

[allsongs]

[no talking in the library? goodness.

how about humming? a gentle hum. that's not so bad, right? it seems to suit the place: a pondering, breathy melody easily melting away between shelves of moderately shabby books and bouncing sharply against walls housing the more advanced stores of knowledge the Initiative has salvaged.

the sound precedes her as she drifts out of an aisle, her fingers idly grazing the spines of books as she moves, slowing to a stop before the lump on the floor. a moment to gaze and consider, and Simmaeri finds that little discolored bump near the top to be a head of hair...

she smiles.

at that hour, it's lucky to see one awake in such a place.]

[flecks]

[ If Leo wasn't such an avid lover of music and a piano player himself, there's a big chance he would have been annoyed by the humming. But as it stands, Simmaeri's in luck. The melody slowly pulls him away from his book and back to reality where he finds himself closing his eyes and listening intently.

Leo's never slept much and in Exsilium he sleeps even less after everything that's happened leaving not only his waking moments troubled, but his sleeping ones as well. His bed is practically a home to his books, just like it'd been back in Lutwidge Academy, and Leo gets by with short naps whenever he falls asleep reading. The librarian is nice enough to occasionally just let him stay the night so finding Leo in the library at late hours is nothing unusual.

Only when the humming comes closer and seems to stop right behind him does Leo open his eyes and look up. Or well, more accurately put he tilts his head back and—

Suddenly finds himself staring right at a smiling face. There's an owlish blink before Leo catches himself. ]

Ah, good evening.

[allsongs]

Hello.

[her eyes crinkle a little at his reaction, his expression. mostly, the tone of voice.

the last step nearly puts her toe-to-toe with the edge of the beanbag he's reclining on, and she bends to peer down at him, at his upside-down face, as she combs her hair away from her own, keeping it out of the way.]

What story keeps you here? [it's a bit of a purr, still quiet for the environment. sure, she asks about the story, but she's hardly interested in letters on a page.]

[flecks]

[ It's . . . really a rather awkward, uncomfortable way of looking up at someone for a prolonged time so before he answers, Leo shifts his position so he's sitting against the beanbag sideways and he can look at the lady who has approached him more easily.

Normally he'd most likely be annoyed at someone interrupting his reading, but her previous humming had already distracted him (pleasantly) and he's left feeling intrigued. He briefly glances to the the small stack of Holy Knight volumes next to him almost guiltily. Although his friends had been all over the network gushing about it much to Leo's secondhand embarrassment, in the end he really was no better. ]

Holy Knight. It's a very popular book series from my world, it was quite a surprise to find them here. [ He pauses, hesitating for a small moment before figuring that if she asks a question, so can he. Politely. ]

If you don't mind me asking, what was that song you were humming?

[eyecontact]

[there's not a whole lot to draw in Exsilium unless you like rats, scraggly trees, grim buildings, the people...

okay, there's a lot, but Jericho misses the mountains. the flowers. there's a few lovely images at the library, he knows, so he's back to peruse. inspiration can come from anything, really, so who kn--

what is that?

Jericho blinks at the beanbag now in his way and stares for a good length before stepping forward, leaning to investigate.

well, he sees the top of Leo's head and whatever book he's got cracked open at the moment, but that's not telling very much for Jericho.

sorry for standing in your light, by the way. Jericho-shaped shadows are fine with you, right?]

[flecks]

[ Not really, actually. Leo can't say he appreciates a shadow falling over him. It'd be one thing if it was someone just passing by, but as the shadow lingers that doesn't seem to be the case. It's more the fact that someone is just hovering on the spot that quickly comes to annoy Leo than anything else.

He endures it for a few more seconds before he's abruptly glancing over his shoulder. "Do you want something?" is what he means to say, but when he sees who it is . . . ]

Oh, it's you.

[eyecontact]

[Jericho's face contorts into...well, the icon above.

he blinks, and it only takes about a half a second later for him to get his own oh, it's you revelation.

he cringes a little. oh, boy...]

[flecks]

[ The feeling is entirely mutual, Jericho.

Rather than cringing though, Leo ends up sighing. ]

Do you need something? [ Since you were awkwardly hovering there and all. ]

[velveteened]

( he is here for his holy knight. it has become something of a mission over the course of the past week or so to catch up on it properly - and who knows when he may next get the chance? for now, there aren't any missions and things are quiet, even peaceful. no invading armies. none playing pretend. no major conflicts among those from his home world unless you count book disagreements, and despite proclamations to the contrary, he really wouldn't.

he actually has no intention of disturbing leo once he notices him, but there ends up being a problem. leo is very much in the way of where he needs to go. maybe if he just carefully steps around leo he won't be noticed...... )

[flecks]

[ Leo too is catching up on Holy Knight. In fact, he's doing so right now! Luckily he's ahead of everyone else and so he's on the last few volumes which shouldn't be missed for a bit. However, unfortunately for Oz, he's actually grabbed a few of the earlier volumes to reference some of the older stuff as he reads through the things new to him.

So, good news is that Leo doesn't even notice Oz as he's too caught up in the latest plot twist. Bad news is that the small stack of Holy Knight volumes next to him might just contain the volume you need . . . ]

[velveteened]

( he does carefully step around leo and, relieved, continues on his way.

only to return a few minutes later. and - yes, there they are, the additional early volumes of holy knight. it's tempting to just take them and walk away, but he's already seen what leo's temper is like.

nothing for it, then. )

Ah...Leo?

[flecks]

[ It's a very wise decision, Oz.

Leo does notice the footsteps returning this time, but he doesn't pay it much mind. Not even when a familiar voice speaks up. It only pulls him away from the story a little, but not quite enough and as such he replies without even looking up. ]

What is it, Oz? [ Actually he could easily guess what it is, but he's too focused on his reading to bother trying. ]

[became_his_sheath]

[ Tomoe was still generally lost when it came to the city, although t he library was at least quiet. She'd come to find it almost relaxing after she'd stumbled on it a few days before, especially when it was all but empty.

Reading had never been something she'd had much time to do, with her responsibilities so this was a chance to at least try to learn something. She'd been browsing idly before she turned a corner, finding the teenager seated on the floor and bowed to him in greeting. ]

[flecks]

[ Leo catches the motion out of the corner out of his eye and the story he's reading has something of a lull now so that it actually catches his attention enough to glance up and find . . . a woman bowing to him? It's odd, but he automatically bows his head in return with an uncertain blink. ]

Good afternoon. [ Or is it evening? He's been in the library long enough to have lost track of time. Oh well. ]

[became_his_sheath]

Good afternoon. [ Tomoe returns the greeting politely ]

I did not mean to disturb you.

[nobleminded]

[Elliot's been trying to both pour over and yet savor earlier volumes of Holy Knight before jumping into the final volumes. This was a momentous occasion in his "life" and he needed to handle it properly!

So, while he's returning one volume in favor for another, he can't help but browse the other shelves for any other potentially interesting material. It's not like Holy Knight is the only thing he reads, after all. If this was really a library from multiple words, there might be more great literature here.

Elliot's a bit irritated when he spots the beanbag in the way. He's even more irritated when he realizes who's occupying it. It wasn't that he was surprised to see him here, in fact, he had been scanning the library as much as he could during every visit since he learned what it contained. But he had been meaning to have a face-to-face "discussion" with him, and now that he finally knew where he was...]

Leo! What, you're still trying to hide?!

[flecks]

[ The library wasn't exactly the best place to hide from people that knew of his love for books, but all the same Leo can't help himself. The library is at least big enough that maybe, just maybe it could work. Except when it doesn't. It was only a matter of time, he knew.

Still, his shoulders stiffen at the sound of the painfully familiar voice and he can't stop the feeling of dread welling up. As tempting as it is to ignore Elliot, it would be a futile endeavor and after avoiding him for so long, no doubt it would only piss him off more. So he resigns himself to his fate, shutting the book in his lap with a sigh before glancing over his shoulder, his expression kept a careful blank. ]

Don't yell in the library, Elliot.

[nobleminded]

[Your attitude really never changes, does it Leo? Which just makes him want to wonder all the more what exactly happened to him after he was gone, but that wasn't really important so he'll save it for later.]

If I'm yelling, it's your fault! You're even avoiding me now?!

[indirection]

[Wrathion is usually quite meticulous about his steps, but he's distracted by this library. It's an ordinary place, to be sure, but he doesn't recognize any of the books. He knows that should be par for the course; this isn't Azeroth, after all, but even so--the collection looks strangely disparate. As in, many items don't even look native to this place, either.

He's searching for something he might recognize when he trips over the guy on the floor.]

Oh--

[Wrathion rights himself; subdues the flash of anger he feels at someone being in his way. Somewhat curtly:]

My apologies.

[flecks]

[ Leo's too caught up in his reading to notice someone approaching and as a result, he doesn't react until it's too late and someone's tripping over him. The sudden jostle comes with both a startle and flare of his own temper as the volume of Holy Knight in his hands is send flying. ]

Wa— [ 'Watch where you're going!' he means to shout, but he manages to cut himself off before anger gets the better of him. The guy is already apologizing anyway (even though Leo doesn't like that tone of voice at all) and he's probably at fault for sitting in such a place himself as well. He takes a breath, puts on an overly pleasant smile before replying in the same manner of curtness. ]

No, I'm sorry. My bad.

[ He keeps the pleasant smile even if his irritation grows as he starts getting up to go retrieve his book. ]

[indirection]

[Your bad indeed, sir. Wrathion steps over Leo gingerly.]

You know, in future, the middle of the aisle is not an ideal place to sit.