Open [Sanctuary] Not Just Letters

[Dust]

Spring 6, 513 AV afternoon Outside the walls of Sanctuary, it was raining. But to say it was raining was like saying water is wet -- in other words, the understatement of the season. The downpour had started yesterday, and while it sometimes waned, it showed no signs of stopping in the immediate future. Accordingly, Dust was avoiding the outside just as much as she could get away with. The same was likely true for the rest of the Sanctuary's denizens. This afternoon, the raven Kelvic had retreated to the keep's library, staking out a large chair for her own and draping herself across it in a manner which was far more comfortable than it looked. She had a book held up over her head, a slim little volume whose pages held more picture than text. Two other books made a short, untidy stack by the base of the chair, in their disarray giving the impression of having been the subjects of her perusal at some earlier time today. At the moment, though she was nominally studying the book, Dust's manner was not studious in the least. In fact, she hardly seemed to be paying any attention to what was on the pages at all as she flipped through them. Her feet swiveled back and forth where they hung over the arm of the chair, providing a sort of visual punctuation to the Kelvic's verbal musings. "The Akalak was walking in the woods and saw a bear. He threw an apple at the bear, who fell and rolled down the hill like a barrel." Paper rasped as she turned the page. "The bear scared a cat as he rolled by, who climbed..." She stopped, corner of the next page lifted, and squinted at the pictures, apparently having some trouble fitting the next one into her developing story. "...I don't think cabbages grow on trees. I guess it ran through a cabbage bush!" Dust declared -- to no one but herself.

[Loken]

Loken's day had begun with an early start which was routine for him considering he always met the sunrise in the morning. However, this morning he stood at the center of the main entrance of the sanctuary observing the light gray clouds in the sky. Letting the heavy spring rains that had moved in the previous day fall against his skin. Loken had spent some time wandering the Sanctuary grounds trying to better his memory of the facilities layout. Loken eventually found his way to the Sanctuary's Underground, passing through the kitchen on his way to the library. Once he entered the Library he stopped at the door as he saw Dust. He took a moment to observe the way the light blonde women was sitting in her chair. For a moment his eyes shifted back and forth as he watched her legs kick over the arm rest of her chair, from what he perceived the women was clearly full of energy. He quickly headed over to an empty chair in front of a desk and after slipping off his back pack, began to rummage through its contents. Quickly slipping out a book which was his personal journal, a quill, and a vial of ink; setting them each on the table. Setting his backpack down to lean against a leg of his chair, Loken moved to search the shelves to find a any book to study for the day. Distinctly, one book caught his attention. It was simply entitled 'Shielding- Beginning and Advanced Techniques'. Grabbing the book by its spine, he slid it from if place on the shelve and opened it up. Reading it as he walked towards the desk he had set up his things at. After placing the book on Shielding down next to his journal, Loken glanced towards Dust. "How do you do?" He spoke with no clear emotion, yet his eyes were distinctly kind and soft, Casting a light on the true Loken behind his stoic nature.

[Tia'aria]

Contrary to what most people must have been feeling, Tia'aria loved the rain. It reminded her of playing with her mom outside of their family home in the city and had her recalling the days Corsin didn't frown at her for it. The smell revitalised her and gave her new zest for life, which in turn encouraged her imagination and creativity. Some people found it saddening, to sit in the rain and to hear it pattering on the rooftops, but she disagreed. Heartily. Rain was too beautiful to make her feel anything but happy.

She entered the Within Library dripping with it, smelling of horses and dogs. She had just mucked out the stalls and probably smelled like manure, too, but if anybody pointed it out she'd remind them that the smell of the natural world was a beautiful smell indeed. Even so, she knew she'd need a bath soon, but before she returned to her home for the night, she wanted to get in some reading. Or she wanted to attempt some reading. She knew these books were primarily in Common.

The Konti cast a smile at the two people present and made her merry way to a book about plants she had been looking at for the better part of the last five days, trying to understand what it was saying to her.

Before she got good and comfortable with the book, she unloaded her own notebook and inkwell from her bag, happy to find them unscathed and luckily not soaked, for which she was grateful to the cover on the book, but found her quill was broken. She wasn't worried, though, and instead went to take use of the supplies offered by the kind mistress of Sanctuary.

Ready now for a good session of note taking, Aria considered the people present. She didn't want to encroach on their time reading, but didn't want to miss out on what she knew would be valuable assistance if she needed help. She recognised them both from her admittedly short time here as a guard and a falconer Kelvic, and while she shared the views of the Akalak on Kelvic and Humans, she was polite enough to recognise them both as people too. She was still shy around them, though.

She sat down near the Human, curling up in her own chair with a quiet shuffling before she got comfortable. Her clothes, moist as they were, caused a pang of guilt to rush through her. She sincerely hoped she wouldn't ruin these seats during the showers that would happen over Spring. She didn't know if she could afford to replace them and vowed to try and bring something dry to wear next time she found herself here.

She lifted her head to scrutinise the two sharing the library with her. The way the woman sat looked very awkward, but Aria shouldn't judge. The man didn't express much emotion when he addressed the woman, which was strange. Eyeing him up curiously, she looked down to the book and opened up her notebook. The first few pages were lines of notes she had taken in regards to understanding what was being said, followed by some crudely drawn pictures of leaves and flowers and more notes beside them, marking the book as one she would likely take in the field when she was looking for herbs to add to her dishes or to study. She had written in red what bad effects were in the plants and black for everything else. It was in Kontinese.

Her attention delved into the book at hand and her brow furrowed in concentration. One would think she was really into the book she was reading, but she had barely gotten through the first page of her book. Learning a language through reading wasn't that easy.

[Dust]

Footsteps in the doorway distracted the raven Kelvic from the book in her hands, and she looked up to see a tall, dark human figure entering the library. Dust closed her book with an audible thump despite the volume's slenderness, offering Loken a jaunty wave once she had a free hand to gesture with. Another appeared in the doorway as he moved on, and she gave Tia'aria a wave too. Saved by their arrival from having to figure out what to do with the dog and the dress in her ad-libbed story, Dust promptly dropped the book she'd been 'studying' down with its fellows and hopped up to her feet. "Hello!" She moved over towards the desk Loken claimed, peering with interest at his books. "I was getting pretty bored, actually," she confided in both of her new companions. Following through on her curiosity, Dust picked up the book on shielding -- the one with the more elaborate cover, and actual text on it, even if she couldn't read said text -- and held it up for examination. She looked at the front cover, the back cover, the spine; opened it and riffled through the pages without really trying to read any. The tome had a distinct shortage of pictures, relative to the much littler book she'd just been playing with. "What's this about?" Dust eyeballed Tia'aria's desk, too, where the Konti looked to be setting up for something serious, but she could only physically be next to one spot at a time. She'd just have to go investigate her doings next.

[Loken]

There was a distinct smell that didn’t directly compute in Loken’s mind when he smelt it. It was an odd mixture of a wet dog smell with hints of horse droppings that caused him to glance towards the newest person to enter the Library. However his attention only lasted on the Konti for a brief moment until the sound of a loud thud made him glance back towards the very energetic blond woman. He met Dust’s wave with a slight bow of his head towards her in greeting. He sat back down in his seat to flip through his journal until he found an empty page, flipping past his previous notes on poison crafting which reminded him to one day buy himself an appraisal kit to further his studies in that area. A natural soft smile remained on his face as he turned to Dust to watch her examine the book. Her question dazzled him off for a moment since assumed she knew how to read because she was in a library. “It is a book on the arcane art of Shielding. I wish to study the magic and possibly better protect the sanctuary with it.” Loken held out a hand to retrieve the shielding book back from her possession. “My name is Loken.” His introduction was said aloud to both Dust and Tia'aria. "You are more than welcomed to join me in study if you wish to cure your boredom. I'd be happy to read aloud. I'll just need the book back first. "

[Dust]

The arcane art of Shielding, she was informed. Dust closed the book in her hands and peered quizzically at its cover, as if trying to make the words of the title match what Loken had just told her. "Magic?" she echoed, curious and intrigued. "You do magic? I'm not sure I've met anyone who did magic, not before coming here. Is it hard?" The Kelvic looked down at the book in her hands, and wrinkled her nose a little. "If it takes reading, it must be hard," she remarked, somewhat answering her own question. Belatedly, she handed the tome back to its proper possessor. "But I would like to listen! Then you're doing the reading," Dust declared with cheerful glee. She found herself a comfortable chair and tugged it over close to Loken's desk, where she would be well-set to keep him company. Dust plopped down in her seat, sitting back with her ankles comfortably crossed and her attention intent upon Loken. "So... what is Shielding art magic, anyway?"

[Loken]

Loken nodded at her comment, slowly lowering his head so that his eyes fell onto the tome in his hands. "I am unsure of its level of difficulty since I have never personally preformed this arcane practice. The only real experience I have with 'magic' is the use of the divine mark granted to me by the goddess Gnora." He set the book down onto the top of the table to flip it open to its first chapter. "However, this is why I am here. To learn and study the contents of this book." His right hand lifted to tap the book lightly. "Now, what is Shielding?" He repeated her question aloud while musing over the contents of the books page. He began to read to himself silently until he found the answer to the question. Once he found the answer Loken began to explain it to her in simple tongue and well placed words, systematically reading from the books page word for word. "Falling under the classification of Personal magic, Shielding allows a user to extrude their djed into barriers which serve primarily to blocking foreign djed from passing through the barrier. Thus, defending anyone or anything from foreign Djed that might try to pass through the barrier." After reading the basic introduction, he glanced up to Dust with a quirked eye brow. No longer reading from the book as he spoke to her. "It is clear by the magics 'namesake' that it is used to make shields from Djed."