Open [Bhrani Library] Through the smoke the books do speak.

[Saej]

Early Afternoon, 27 Summer 515 AV

After an hour or so of a walk from her aprartment in the Okomo Estates to TenTen and the Baliska, she finally made it to the other side of town. What she loved about Baliska was that it was such a beatiful cultural hub; fortune tellers, debaters, and occasionally a musician of two. She doubted there were any other places like it in all of Mizahar. Admist the whimsy and intrigue Saej reminded herself that her actual destination was the library but her inner slow poke sighed and said 'take it easy'. It was only a brisk walk away, through the crowd to the door. The affects bluvi, her slang for the tobacco Blue Vision, she smoked earlier had all but worn off. True to form she neglected to bring any with her, which was unfortunate as pipe was the best to smoke here. Everyone had a bag of something good, trades, shares, and mixes abound. Many willing hands ready to light a pack and strike up a great palaver. After a few more moments of soaking in the sun rays she lifted herself from the stone bench and made her way to the exit, promising to herself she would return to burn one soon.


This morning had been trying, she was rudely awakened by a dog howling in the street at an awful hour in the morning, though truth be told the Syna's arrival to the world is beautiful. Too often she found herself sleeping in late, but waking up early in the morning nearly always left her feeling groggy, amazing sunrise or not. Like clockwork Thak arrived before she could get out the door so she fed her cat some pieces of jerky, crazy bastard chews it like a hound, she vacated her home and purchased a simple quill*, a small vial of ink*, and 5 sheets of paper*. This is what she arrived to the library with, rolled up and protruding from her coinpurse. She needed to spend a litle coin to make some coin.

Finally arriving at her destination she was reminded by how beautiful Bharani Library is. On the side facing the mountians the architects built huge windows which showed off a temendous skyline befit any dreamer. Surrounding the windows was a mix of a half dozen chairs and couches, stylish to the city. Lantern light lit between the biooks so the patrons could read. It was relaxed and sullen at the same time "Stay quiet to let the book speak," Saej remembered being told once.

After a few moments of gawking in the entrance she shook the butterflies out of her head and waved down the librarian. The librarian was a middle aged man, human, with frosted hair and a slightly bedraggled composure. Saej wondered if he wasn't really a morning person either. "Ekscuse", she said as she walked up to him with one finger in the air as if to stop him. "I am here for books about plants and garden-nings." He gave her a mildly surprised expression, likely translating the poor inflections and jerky manner she spoke, which quickly turned into a smile. Before she could explain herself further he waved a hand and lead her into the jungle of tomes. It wasn't long before he lead her to what he said was the section she was looking for, pulling out a book for her to inspect. The front text was written in common.

Although her common was so-so she was sure, if worse came to worse, her Inarta brothers and sisters would have been attracted to this city as she herself had. Her brain turned to swirlling colors at the thought of Skyglass, the reason she first heard of Lhavit in glass blowing classes so long ago. Absent-mindedly she returned the book to its rightful spot, swept up in a day dream. As the redhead wandered through the vast bookshelves, she was mildly impressed that found herself unable to read more than half of the books. 'Herbalism.... Herb.. Nothing.'

Often she found herself in these types of mindsets, so drowned out in the big picture she forgot what she was doing. Someone once told her it was the funkus that would do that to you, though it never stopped her much. Luckily she wasn't completely scatter brained and usually found her orginal train of thought after chasing the rabbit down the hole for awhile.

[Rathe]

Rathe’s lips pressed together. The library's bookshelves loomed in front of him, a reminder of his painful past. He couldn’t remember the last time he'd been inside it's walls. It was the only place in the city he avoided, until recently. His eyes glossed over as he took in row after row of books. It was hard to keep his composure as he walked down the aisles.

No one knew what his condition was. When he was younger, they thought it was a problem with his eyes. As he got older, it became obvious that it was more than that and there was no cure for what he had. What he saw when he looked at writing on paper wasn’t the same thing everyone else saw. Words on the page twisted in front of him like they were alive. Trying to make sense of the strange patterns gave him a headache and sometimes made him sick to his stomach. Yet here he was.

This morning he’d gone to Chevu’s business to see him, thinking they’d already gone too long without speaking. He’d had every intention of stopping by and putting an end to their dry spell, but for some reason, seeing his friend so hard at work, stopped him from going inside. The last few years, his friend had been building his business, while Rathe had spent his time in the same kitchen, doing the same job he always had been. Nothing had changed for him. A few chimes of seeing his friend had twisted his gut. He’d left in a hurry, not really sure where he was going until he ended up at the library.

The glittering candles seemed to be too bright. He pulled on the already loose collar of his shirt and scanned the rows, not sure where he was going. He tried to find an aisle with the least amount of people in it, that way there would be fewer stares as the sweat beaded on his forehead. Did he really believe he could teach himself to read this way, when a lifetime of lessons had failed? There was no getting around what was wrong with him.

A soft voice drifted in his direction. Rathe steadied himself and turned to find the source, not sure if someone was talking to him. He caught sight of a girl with fiery red hair, sounding out the words on one of the books. Though her accent was thick, and she struggled, she pushed through the words better than he could have. He smiled at her, despite his racing heart. There was something about her determination and unusual voice that caught his attention. “I love your accent. Where are you from?” he asked.

[Saej]

It was so much easier to speak common than read it. "Pah!" Frustrated, she pulled out a book at random and opened it. It was very thick, leather bound, and plain. The front read "Creatures of the Scaled Skin", whatever that meant. Opening to the first page she read "Written by Smithy Yewbarrow". When she opened it she was assaulted by the bitter smell of old book, it made her nose feel dry and every so often as she flipped through the pages she rubbed it. Inside there were pictures of various reptiles and toads; despite it not being what she came here for the sketches fascinated her. It seemed with each page she turned the beasts became more fantastical, some frightening, and there was no denying the fact that she wished to meet very few of them. As she continued to turn the pages with interested furvor one in particular caught her eye. "Gr.. ee... ate... Great SalAH-men-der? WOW." The words came out in hushed awe. It was as large as a small dog if the drawing of it by a human was to scale. Another sketch was of its mouth, many tiny teeth lined its gums and she traced them with her finger. It was honestly kind of cute, in a way. A visual of one being walked on a leash by her through Lhavit graced her mind and she giggled nervously. THAT would make her popular for a day. How would the cat react to it? She giggled again, but more heartily, as the question was rhetorical. Saej could almost see the look on the tom's face. No salamenders today. With renewed interested she pressed her attention back to the book, before she could read any futher, as if on cue, a voice greeted her.

The man in front of her towered over her head by at least a foot and was easy on the eyes. She nodded her head to him and replied, "I travel from Wind Reach, thank you." His words were spoken in perfect common and she didn't feel much like carrying on a conversation. To that end she shut the book, an audible THUMP accompanied the smell of old parchment, and busily brushed by him, giving him a slight apologetic smile as she turned the corner to delve deeper into the library.