Library, Sunday Morning

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

The library wasn't officially open today, but Henry had the keys, and he couldn't resist coming in on a Sunday to take a look at his new domain.

Once he'd gotten the doors open and taken a step inside, his jaw hung open until he told himself he was drawing flies and abruptly shut it.

He'd been in some big, nice libraries. He'd worked in one for years. He just hadn't expected to find what bore all the hallmarks of a first-class collection in a high school, even one that based itself in a castle. (And he hadn't even noticed the door marked Special Collections yet. If he had, let alone if he'd gone in unprepared, that jaw might have stayed dropped for good.)

He made up a sign for the front desk -- Librarian is in. Shout if you need help. -- and let himself explore. The outgoing librarian should have left some guidance somewhere, and, if he or she hadn't, he'd have to get to know the collection on his own.

[OOC: For aides, or anyone who wants to visit the library today! OCD-free because it is Sunday, weekend SP disclaimer applies.]

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[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

Henry had emerged from Special Collections and an adventure yet to be played out and was trying to make order out of the chaos that was the librarian's office once again when he heard the voice.

No one was talking inside his head this time. Even though things with Jono hadn't ended badly, the normal speech was somewhat promising, though he was starting to doubt anyone here was exactly normal.

"I'm over here," he called, popping his head and shoulders out of the room. "Mind coming on back?"

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

Well, Gabrielle was fairly normal, depending on who you asked.

"I'm on my way over," she replied cheerfully, heading on over. Okay, maybe her outfit wasn't quite so normal by relatively contemporary Western standards. Or most people's standards of the classical world, for that matter.

"Hello," she said again with a bright grin once she'd arrived at the doorway to the office. "You must be the new librarian. At least, I assume you are, since this is the office and all, and you're in it. It's nice to meet you; I'm Gabrielle. I worked here last semester."

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"Hi, Gabrielle," Henry said, looking her over casually. The outfit was outré, but nothing compared to what some of Clare's artist friends wore in certain moods. And he had to give her a few points for the red hair. "You assume correctly. I'm Henry DeTamble. It's nice to meet someone else with library experience."

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

"I love it here," Gabrielle said honestly, looking around the library with a hint of awe that hadn't diminished one bit despite several months of being there regularly. "So many stories and records, all in one place, where anyone can read them if they want. It's something special. There aren't many where I'm from except in Alexandria or Rome, or the ones in the Persian Empire."

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

Henry tilted his head and looked at her oddly. He was pleased by what seemed to be a genuine reverence for the books, but the combination of the outfit and the place names she'd mentioned...

"This might sound a strange question to ask a new acquaintance," he said, "but are you one of the time travelers the bartender was telling me about last night?"

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

"Oh, good. You've been warned about that already." Gabrielle grinned apologetically. "I'm sorry, I just came back from a trip home, but yes. From what people tell me I've come at least three thousand years into my future. I'm from Poteidaia, in Thrace. Books like these were quite the revelation when I first got here."

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"I'm seven years off, which seems on the paltry side," Henry said with a little shrug. It wasn't the kind of time travel he was familiar with, but it was still interesting.

He tried to remember what he knew about ancient Greek literature. "That's amazing. You're coming from ... Homer's poems would have been new for you, wouldn't they? How did you learn English?"

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

There was no such thing as a language barrier if you came from the Very Special Greece, apparently. "I'm good with languages," she replied modestly. "And I know Homer, actually -- you know, they call him the Blind Bard because he has an awful habit of closing his eyes when he recites?"

Only in your world, Gabrielle.

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"Really?" Henry was legitimately fascinated. "I didn't know that. My college professor liked the theory he was really a bunch of different people. So, that's not true."

At least not in Gabrielle's world.

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

Truth and fiction in Gabrielle's world were separated by a very, very fuzzy line, and frequently did an insane dance back and forth across it.

"Oh, he could have had doubles. I'm not ruling that out," Gabrielle mused. "Xena does. He's a nice boy, though. Much less pretentious than Euripides."

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"... hunh." Henry didn't think Euripides and Homer had lived at the same time, but his college courses on ancient literature had been a long time ago, and it seemed rude to argue about it with someone who apparently knew them personally.

It was time for a subject change, perhaps.

"We should talk about that more later," he decided. "So are you just visiting, or did you want to keep your job?"

Please, please let her want to keep her job.

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

"I was hoping I would get to," Gabrielle confessed. "That was part of why I came down here, to ask, although even if I didn't, I think you'd have a hard time getting rid of me." She punctuated that statement with a bright smile.

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

Henry had to smile at that. "I wouldn't want to drive anyone to sleeping on the study tables just for more time with the books," he said. "The job's yours as far as I'm concerned. Which days are you free?"

He fished around for the scrap he'd written Jono's availability down on. Somehow the schedule would have to come together.

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

Gabrielle did not do a little dance of glee. She didn't. It was just a tiny fistpump and whispered "Yes!"

Oh, right. Professionality.

She pulled a small piece of parchment out of her top (she couldn't help it if her skirt didn't have pockets) and consulted it. "I have class on Tuesday and Friday this semester, but I'm completely free any other day. I'd like to keep my weekends available, though; I go home to visit sometimes."

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"So, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday?" Henry checked as he scribbled Gabrielle's information. "One of those should work. Actually, let's call it Monday -- that way I'll know there's someone here tomorrow."

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

"Bright and early," Gabrielle promised, and really, the prospect of books was about the only thing that would make sure she was awake and cheerful that early. "That works just fine for me."

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"Fantastic," Henry said. "I may pester you for stories about the library then -- I'm still recovering from my first voyage into Special Collections just now."

A pause.

"We don't go in there just to say hello, by the way. Even if we have Oreos."

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

"No, I'm fairly sure that isn't a good idea." Oooh, Oreos. She'd missed those while she was home. Gabrielle grinned. "And that sounds like a story I may pester you about sometime, but not today, since it looks like you're still getting settled in."

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"Mr. Starsmore somehow talked me into it." Henry was blaming the teenager, yes. He was a horrible person. "We got out in one piece, so that's what matters. I'll tell you more later."

He waved her off, and, as an afterthought, added, "Start the coffee if you get here before me, will you?"

Henry's caffeine addiction was not to be trifled with.

[ancientbschamp.livejournal.com]

Gabrielle's own growing caffeine addiction might threaten to rock the foundations of one version of the ancient world. Whoever was responsible for this should probably worry.

. . . or not.

She started to turn away, but paused and nodded firmly. "I'll make sure to put on an extra pot, in that case. And welcome to Fandom!"

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

"Thanks," Henry returned with a smile. "It's ... certainly an interesting place."

Not bad. Just very, very different.

And then he went back to poking through his desk. Was there something moving in the top left-hand drawer?