fandomhigh | Library is open (12/7/05)

"Have you gotten any requests for it?" asked Janet. "I had one of the weird ones come in looking for it, but I kicked him out. He didn't have a note from his teacher asking for porn and he was too embarrassed to get one."

"I had one guy who I *think* was leading up to it, but he heard me say something about records to another student, and when I turned around, he was gone." Parker smirked, then added to Rory and Angela, "The Dean, Dr. Jerusalem and Dr. Pierson can access library records any time they want. So it tends to discourage check-outs."

Nobody's tried it with me. Possibly they know I'd laugh in their face.

"I would hope all of us would," Rory snorted. "Of course, I want to see the class where the assignment is to check out pornography, but that's me."

Parker smirked, and opened her mouth to say something, and then--"Oh, damn." (http://www.livejournal.com/community/fandomhigh/432202.html?thread=20102218#t20102218)

"And we make them get a note from their teacher for every trip in," said Janet. "We ask the teacher to include what the student needs to research."

Suddenly, a grinding noise came from behind them.

A bookcase slid out, then to the side, and then over--

and the way back to the entrance was blocked.

Oh, swerval. Hey, Parker, give Rory the map. See how she does for a bit.

Resigned, Parker gave Rory the map. "We either have to go around, or get really creative." She winked at Angela, who put hand over her mouth. "Let's see if you can find us a way to the magic books and back, okay?"

Rory frowned at the map, and bit her lip. "Okay. If we go around this way," she pointed to an opening in the shelves to their right, "and then wind around here," she gesticulated to the left, and behind her, "it should work. That's assuming nothing gets in our way, of course." She hesitantly stepped forward. "And if I lead us into a deathtrap, let me know."

"No obvious death traps over there that I remember," Parker said. "But you first, Gunga Gilmore."

The death traps are further in. Lead on, Macduff.

As they came out of the first row of books, the shelves and decorations changed to dark gold wood, with brass fittings. Hanging lamps with gas jets were suspended from the ceiling. A purple-and-gold Persian rug stretched between them an the next row of shelves, and a small stone fountain stood in between. The latest movable bookcase was as spiraling brass-and-ebony affair, with tiny gargoyle heads on the banisters.

"Nice," said Janet. "I haven't seen this setting before."

Rory arched her brow. "Pretty." She looked around, and spotted a way through to the path she had indicated. "I don't trust it, though. Too pretty."

"I think you're right." Parker turned around, looking up. "I remember this fountain, and it has a bad tendency to move-- you can't count on it for a landmark." She pointed off to the left. "That way are the chained-up books that bite, that I showed Angela last week, I think."

"Oh, do we want to go look at them, then?" Rory asked, gingerly poking the fountain to see what might happen.

A stone molding on the fountain gave way under Rory's hand.

And the floor beneath them suddenly dropped away--

--to deposit them on another floor, this one stone, with candles on the wall.

More shelves, with haphazard manuscripts and scrolls on every level, surrounded them.

*scrambles to her feet*

...Well. This is new.

*yells at ceiling* Very cute!

"Ow." Parker rubbed her legs, and staggered upright. "NOT funny!" she called upward, imitating Zero.

Rory frowned. "Okay, that's exciting," she said, dusting herself off. "Any way for us to maybe climb out? Or do you guys see stairs?" She squinted. "My eyesight's not that great in this light."

Angela spins around, inspecting the space. "Sometimes it does stuff if you just ask," Angela asks hopefully. "Library? COuld you show us how to get back where we were?"

A couple candles lost their illumination on the walls.

A few others, to the left, got brighter.

"Um. To the left then!" Rory said, trying to sound braver than she felt. "I wonder if we should take a candle with us. In case, y'know?"

"Unless Zero has a flashlight in that backpack, I'd say yes," Parker said, looking around, then checking one of the scrolls, very carefully unrolling it. "Cardenio? Okay, by... W. Shakespeare." She blinked. "Right."

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