Just outside of Special Collections and beyond [Wednesday late afternoon]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

Belle couldn't believe it had taken her this long to think of this. She blamed the exhaustion clouding her brain, but a possible answer was looming there at the other end of her library.

Of course they hadn't found anything, out here where the books she understood lived. But why would they? These books dealt were normal, and while they spoke of otherworldly things, Belle knew where the dangerous material was kept.

So she'd emerged from her office (nearly tripping over Gabrielle's gift (and her heart melted a little at the thoughtfulness, but this wasn't the time), tying her hair back and looking more awake than she had in a week. She stopped by the circulation desk to tell Gabrielle to keep things under control here as she moved towards Special Collections and stopped at the edge of the entrance in.

She wasn't stupid enough to go in alone, but she also hardly wanted to drag anyone else in. So she cast a glance around, hesitating. She'd only pause a minute, but she needed to see if there was anyone else she could or would take with her. The idea of bringing in students caused her to pause a fair amount.

[for our intrepid team, and please hold for OCD is up, even if lj bloooows.]

Comments

Gather [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

For those who need to find an excuse to be here.

Re: Gather [SC]

[time-flyer-5.livejournal.com]

If there were people gathering outside Special Collections, Jen would notice and want to know what was up because, well, Special Collections.

She got a conveniently self-modded Gabrielle to look after her computer and research materials and headed over, asking in a sleep-gritty voice, "Have we got a lead, or is this a last-resort thing?"

Re: Gather [SC]

[awakestheghosts]

Chloe saw the group gathering and it didn't take her long to figure out where they were going. That would be why she shut the book she was going through, grabbed her messenger bag and went over to join them.

Re: Gather [SC]

[wheeler-360.livejournal.com]

Marshall had had absolutely no luck with books... so seeing a group of people gathering, he wandered over to see if there was something else he could help with.

"What's in there?" he asked, looking at the door. "Anything else that could help? I'm coming up dry out here."

Re: Gather [SC]

[wesleynotponcy.livejournal.com]

Since he'd handwavily and otherwise been spending nearly every day in the library for weeks now, Wesley was starting to find that he was running low on sections to go through. Today, his search for something useful brought him to the stacks just outside of Special Collections. And then people seemed to be gathering there, so...

"Are we...?" he guessed, nodding toward the entrance.

Re: Gather [SC]

[atreideslioness]

Ghanima had gone to the library after her class, fully intent on putting her language skills to use and spending the rest of the day pouring over non-English texts. While her attempt at the spice trance had failed to give her anything useful, all of her inner lives could be put to work in the library.

And then she saw Belle hovering at the entrance to Special Collections. "I would not traverse that alone, if I were you."

Re: Gather [SC]

[notmyownage]

Claudia's class assignment was to hit the library -- which she would have done, anyway. She noticed the group gathering. "Are you going into Special Collections? Can I help?"

Re: Gather [SC]

[halfman-lion.livejournal.com]

Tyrion noticed the hubbub and edged over toward the group.

"Did someone find something?" he asked. "I'd wondered why this area seemed to be closed off. I thought it might be cleaning supplies."

Into Darker Depths [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

As the group carefully made their way into the depths of Special Collections, it seemed as though there was nothing here but books. Particularly musty, old, moldering books. The occasional one might snap, or growl, but there wasn't anything that literally or figuratively seemed to jump out.

Re: Into Darker Depths [SC]

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker glared at one of the snarling books, and muttered, "Oh yeah, I remember you."

Re: Into Darker Depths [SC]

[wesleynotponcy.livejournal.com]

Right, Wesley hadn't been expecting that. Startled, he leapt back the first time one of the books snapped at him, nearly tripping over his own feet.

"Ah. I see. Er, nothing to worry about," he announced to the group, who was surely waiting on his expert judgment in that regard.

Re: Into Darker Depths [SC]

[time-flyer-5.livejournal.com]

For the reputation that Special Collections had, Jen -- who was used to much less subtle forms of sinister -- couldn't help being a little thrown by how . . . library-ish this seemed. Well, and maybe a little like a creepy dark abandoned warehouse, and she was familiar with those.

. . . aw. Even down to the sinister growling sounds coming out of the darkness. Okay, you know what? This was actually vaguely reassuring, and yes, she was stalking through this area like someone who was trying to avoid leaving her back exposed while trying to maximize her field of vision. Speaking of which --

She activated her FUTURE SPY OAKLEYS visual scanners for a moment and instantly regretted it when the entire place made them go haywire. Yeah, not worth the headache; looking chastised and a little sheepish, she tapped the unit behind her right ear and deactivated them again.

Re: Into Darker Depths [SC]

[wheeler-360.livejournal.com]

"... This is not what I expected," Marshall admitted, walking through Special Collections -- and keeping as close as he could to the rest of the group. "Are some of these alive?"

Living books was definitely a new one for him.

Re: Into Darker Depths [SC]

[awakestheghosts]

You would think that someone that could raise the dead wouldn't be surprised at growling books.

You'd be wrong. She'd never been attacked by a book before.

She eyed them warily as they approached.

Re: Into Darker Depths [SC]

[atreideslioness]

One with something vaguely resembling Ancient Greek on its spine snapped and growled at Ghanima, and somehow almost seemed surprised when she growled back at it in the same language.

It was entirely possible that even books got lonely sometimes.

But then a forest grew... [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

As the group moved deeper into Special Collections, around them, a forest grew, and grew, and grew until the ceiling hung with vines and the walls became the world all around, and an ocean tumbled by with a private boat for Max our explorers.

Re: But then a forest grew... [SC]

[time-flyer-5.livejournal.com]

Okay, now this was cool. Not that Jen thought it was at all random to be exploring a forest as part of trying to solve the mystery of the multiverse-eating clouds -- it was finding the forest in the middle of the library that threw her. Ordinarily she expected to get flung through a magic mirror or some kind of portal (which, in the current situation, no thank you) to end up in a place like this, but to have the forest practically sprout up around them?

That was weird. But neat.

Oh, hello, ocean.

Re: But then a forest grew... [SC]

[wesleynotponcy.livejournal.com]

Wesley was completely dorking out about this, thank you. He looked out in awe as the trees and vines and ocean formed around him, his mouth slightly open while he took it all in.

"Amazing," he finally said, reaching up to touch one of the vines. Upon verifying that it was indeed really there, he hurried forward to examine the boat.

Land of the Wild Things: Take the boat [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

It's kind of the only way to go, at this point, since the way the researchers came seems to be blocked by vines, now.

It's okay. We'll only be on it for a minute, rather than the canonical "weeks and almost over a year."

Re: Land of the Wild Things: Take the boat [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

Belle looked at the boat with trepidation before reaching out to climb aboard. "It's not like we have a lot of options at this point," she called to the rest of the group, shrugging.

Land of the Wild Things: Um, there they are, on the bank. [SC[

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

As the group's boat approached the shore (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_qRy7i8Xa2g4/TA441fYOibI/AAAAAAAAPh0/7J2rBXmdDwM/s1600/Maurice+Sendak+-+Where+The+Wild+Things+Are_Page_23.jpg), the land showed its inhabitants -- wild things. They roared their terrible roars and gnashed their terrible teeth and rolled their terrible eyes and showed their terrible claws.

Have fun with that.

Re: Land of the Wild Things: Um, there they are, on the bank. [SC[

[fh-wildthings.livejournal.com]

On the shore, the wild things roared and clawed, anticipating the arrival of new wild things, or less-wild things.

Land of the Wild Things: Wild Rumpus [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

It really doesn't matter if you weren't interested in going to a party and want to go back to your research. The wild things have demanded a wild rumpus (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qRy7i8Xa2g4/TA44an36x8I/AAAAAAAAPhM/H96Y-xmeZjY/s1600/Maurice+Sendak+-+Where+The+Wild+Things+Are_Page_28.jpg), which means there's going to be a lot of crazy dancing and hanging from trees and roaring for awhile.

Re: Land of the Wild Things: Wild Rumpus [SC]

[fh-wildthings.livejournal.com]

The wild things coerced the Fandomites into a circle, dancing around them and hanging from trees as they yelled and cried out happily.

There were worse places to be, probably.

Land of the Wild Things: Time for bed [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

Eventually, though, even wild things grow tired, and as the last wild thing settled down to sleep, the Fandomites might have noticed their opportunity to sneak back through the forest, towards a flickering that might have been the candlelight of a lantern.

Back in Special Collections...[SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

And we're lost. The walls have shifted, the way out seems impossible, and the lanterns on the walls are all that are left to guide the poor Fandomites.

And we're out! [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

The flickering of lanterns eventually gave way to the brightness of the actual library, and the group might have been able to see their way out.

Without any answers. But at least they got a wild rumpus, okay?

Re: And we're out! [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

As they left Special Collections, Belle spotted something a little bit away from the group; a bit of black, almost like smoke but somehow like tar, trying to eat away at a few books. After an admirable attempt, though, it melted away, blinking out of existence itself.

She paused, processing that. Special Collections ate the Nothing. She was sure that was what she had just seen.

She could process it away from this dangerous place, though, and her mind was full as she reentered the library proper.

OOC [SC]

[bookworm-beauty.livejournal.com]

Why, yes, I did drag out my copy of Where the Wild Things Are just so I could quote it directly. Shut up, I love this book.

Also, this would have been easier if LJ DIDN'T SUCK.

Re: OOC [SC]

[wwiii]

... EeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeSENDAK.