Book Education

[Lixue]

8th of Spring, 512 AV The weather was too warm out for Lixue. A dribble of sweat coursed down her forehead, weaved around Vantha almost-too pale facial features, raced down her thin neck, and disappeared underneath a white blouse. The snow had all melted after a huge storm ripped through Avanthal, and was instead replaced with insufferable heat. Morwen's palace was melting, even with the help of others! The high temperatures needed to leave! To escape the unusual weather and in an attempt to cool off, Lixue was headed to the library. The library itself was smaller, with only two rooms that Lixue knew of. There may have been one more, but she had never ventured past the actual library. The books were in neat order; by title and the topic they covered. Upon entering the library, Lixue made her way towards one of the workers. He seemed to be intently focusing on placing books onto shelves. Quietly making her way toward him, Lixue cleared her throat and quietly chuckled when the worker seemed to jump. "I am sorry," she told him in Vani. "Just a quick question, where are the medicine books?" "Come with me. I shall show you," the male told her and walked away. As she followed, Lixue could not help but to compare him to Ly, her best friend. Jack almost seemed to share the silence of the library; Ly walked loudly and with energy. Ly had a darker skin tone and the man leading her did not. It was not that the worker was not attractive, it was simply Ly stood out more in Lixue's mind. Realizing what exactly she was doing, Lixue was startled. Comparing him to Ly? Why? The action had seemed almost natural, scarily so. She was popped back to the present when the man stopped and spoke, "Here they are. You may find what you need by alphabetical order." Lixue was scarcely aware of the librarian walking away. With one fingernail skittering along the spines softly, she scanned the titles with only one topic in mind: aiding . Only a few seconds had passed before she found a title which seemed to match up with the topic: Remedies To Insomnia. Plucking the book from the shelf, Lixue plopped down in one of the many seats littering the library. Thankfully, the book was in common and she would be able to read it. Opening randomly to a page, Lixue began to read… "Spring 9, 500 AV A woman came to me complaining of sleep problems today. She said it was hard to fall asleep and was often up in the night. I asked her several questions along the lines of how long she stayed in dream-land for, what she did before going to bed, and what she did after waking. I asked her name; it was Alyia Snowsong. Alyia told me of her schedule. I made sure to write down the important pieces. Prepare household for bed Go to bed initially: 19 bell Wake first time: 21 bell -Works on carving Wake second time: 23 bell -Works on sharpening tools Wake third time: 24 bell -Sits Wake fourth time: 6 bell; stay awake. -Starts preparing household Her schedule seems hectic and the cause of the dark bags under her eyes. I ask her if she has any young children who wake during the night… No, her youngest has twelve years. Several chimes passed as I wrote. She seemed restless, unsure. I questioned what she wanted. Did she want to stay asleep? Quit tossing and turning? Sleep longer? Sleep deeper? Alyia said she wishes to stay asleep until her body was ready to awaken. I informed her I had reached an option for her; it was a herb, though she might need to adjust her sleep schedule a bit of when she first goes to bed. The herb I prescribed was one I have been studying and testing. I told her so. She agreed to be a practice patient. I gave her Garden Heliotrope. I found this plant elsewhere, in a moderate climate, and brought it back. Garden Heliotrope grows to a child's height and stands proud. Leaves outbranch; almost like ferns. At the top of the plant grows tiny, sweet scented white to pale pink flowers. I was informed by someone who knew the plant that it only blossomed from the end of the spring to the beginning of fall. It is claimed to help with mild pain and help sleep. The person also said it might cause nausea, loose bowel movements, and headaches. It was to be prepared in a tea using the roots, to drink before sleep. Alysia was told all of this; she understood. Spring 16, 500 AV Alyia Snowsong is came to visit me today. It appears her insomnia was slowly fading and the tea put her sleep almost within a bell's time. When asked if she had had any nausea, loose bowel movements, or headaches, Alysia told me of the headaches which were becoming less common. She was sleeping deeper and longer. I asked her schedule now and wrote down the important parts. It appears she had to adjust her schedule to sleep longer. Prepare household for bed. Go to bed initially: 17 bell Wake: 6 bell Start preparing household for day Garden Heliotrope, which I found was truly named Valeriana officinalis, appears to work. " Lixue glanced up from the journal, mind whirling with possibilities. The writer had not mentioned where Garden Heliotrope was found, but the information was useful. Only after several moments of staring into space, book open on her lap, did Lixue realize she was actually staring directly at someone.

[Nakita]

Nakita There were only a handful of seats scattered about the limited space of the library, consisting of a rigid wooden chair and a desk with hardly enough space to place multiple books. They were each polished and flawlessly clean, though obviously well used by the inhabitants of Avanthal. Dents here and there, accompanied by scratches, marks, contoured shapes, suggested that the library, though almost empty now, held a legacy of life. Now, however, only a few individuals dared enter and engage themselves to the pursuit of knowledge. One of these individuals was a young Vantha, ornately dressed with black and indigo hair cropped just above her shoulders. She wore a tunic that feathered off just above the knee, of a deep oceanic blue fabric that held a subtle glitter, decorated with ribbons, jewels, and the like. She sat perfectly statuesque, surrounded by over a dozen books. Some lay open on the desk, overlapping one another, others lay open on the floor, or slung over the arm of her chair. She held another in her left hand, eyes darting over the words, leafing through pages and soaking in information. Her mind raced with an adrenaline that she knew only through the excitement of filling her thoughts with information. Research was an adventure- exploring the frontiers of unknown ideas and events, places and people, skills and artifacts. Lifting the book in her hand closer to her face, she drew in a deep sigh, running her fingers over the finely printed pages, tracing the lines of written words. A carefully drawn image sprawled across the next page, interrupting the lines of meticulous words. It was a simple enough shape, and she held it forward over the desk, comparing it to a similar image in another open book. Cocking a brow, she set the book down, bending to reach into the bag that was slung over the back of her chair. Pulling out a leather bound, tattered looking journal, the girl flipped it open, shuffling through tattered pages to end on the same image, though poorly drawn. She traced along it with a painted fingernail, following the subtle curves and sharp lines. A sudden impulse drove her eyes upward, at which point they met the stare of a woman across the way. The girl snapped her journal shut, maintaining eye contact for a split second before her features broke into a warm smile. She produced the slightest of waves before stowing the journal in her back and hurriedly shutting each of the other books. A moment later, she had before her a neat stack, seated atop the desk. Leaning back in her chair, she flitted through the pages of a book in her hands, eyes wandering up toward the other Vantha on occasion. Looking down again, she reached into her bag to produce a crumpled bit of paper and a piece of charcoal. Scrawled across the top, in flawless cursive, was her name. Nakita set to work tracing the glyph she'd been studying, trying to appear inconspicuous.

[Lixue]

In response to the woman's wave, Lixue gave a quick toss of her own hand and an apologetic look. She had not meant to space out and stare. In the future, she would have to watch where her green eyes wandered. Twitching the paper in between two fingers, Lixue returned the smile and shifted the book off to one side before moving to her feet. The cane was instantly in her hand as she hobbled away, back toward the counter. Someone was standing behind it. Approaching them, Lixue questioned, "I am sorry. Do you have a piece of paper and a pencil, or piece of charcoal?" A smile twitched at her lips. Nodding, the man quickly retrieved both. "Thanks!" Lixue made her way back to the comfy chair. In the book, a picture was drawn by the author. The picture had several leaves out-branching. Each was doubled, one opposite the other. Anywhere from five to twelve leaves were sketched. As the leaves traveled up the stem, they became smaller. The flowers themselves were a mixture of white and pink. They branched off on smaller stems and seemed to almost cluster together. On the picture, the artist had drawn a line to demonstrate the height of the plant, which claimed it was five feet tall. Using the table she was seated at, Lixue sat the book down, before laying the white paper over top of it. When pressing downward, she could see the herb's outline beneath. She leaned over it, close and eyes squinting. The pencil was held in her right hand between the thumb and the tip of the middle finger. Gently, as if afraid to break through the thin paper, Lixue pressed downwards. The pencil was held at an angle, tip barely touching. Slowly, painstakingly slowly, she began to use quick strokes to trace. It was obvious Lixue was unsure on her drawing abilities, and with good reason! The lines were not straight and sometimes not even visible, but the image slowly began to take form. Kind of. When it came time to trace the flowers, Lixue tried. They came out looking more like giant circles with scribbles in them. Lixue had earned some respect for artists. Who knew it was so difficult to trace an object, much less draw freestyle? The paper was constantly moving under hand, the pencil either pressed too hard or too light, the lines were never straight, and forget shading! Frowning, nose scrunching, Lixue held the paper up, scrutinizing it. The drawing looked nothing like the diagram in the book. How? She had placed the pencil over the lines and copied it exactly. A huff was exhaled loudly. Maybe the paper had moved? Or the pencil was not sharpened correctly? Had Lixue's hands wobbled? What if the book, instead of staying flat, had bumps in it? The ideas were endless, but Lixue knew it was from her own skill at drawing that had created such a horrible picture. Staring off into space again, Lixue zoned out for several chimes. Her eyes had accidentally latched onto Nakita, the girl across the aisle. What was she doing over there? Her arm was constantly moving, though it seemed to focus mainly on her hands. The girl was looking from one thing to back to another. Wait. Was she… drawing? Lixue perked up. If the woman knew how to draw, would she be open to doodling the plant? Leaving the paper, pencil, and book where it was, Lixue made her way, with her cane, toward the girl. "I do apologize for disturbing you," a friendly smile was inserted, "but I noticed you drawing. I have a small, question: Would you be open to sketching a plant for me?"