Library, Wednesday

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

Sholeh was doing her best to maintain a calm facade for the patrons of the library. No one was going to benefit from a panicky library aide. No, she needed to be composed, collected, and helpful. The library was where people came to figure out solutions, not see a ninny hiding under her desk with her pinafore over her head.

So Sholeh set to work, straightening the research tables and tidying the books. The ones that had been deemed useless were put away, the ones that had seemed useful were set to the side, and another armload were brought down for people to look through for clues. She taped a few sheets of paper to the circulation desk for people to make notes that everyone could read. It was all well and good for someone to have the answer written down somewhere, but it wouldn't do anyone else any good if it wasn't disseminated properly.

The flying creature that was roosting on the bookcase squawked at her several times, but a few dark glares from Evan had it quieting down. He'd been sticking to her closer than her own shadow for the past several days and with all the sharp-toothed creatures lumbering about, Sholeh couldn't quite say she minded.

And--rats! Now her nose was bleeding again. There really was no rest for the weary.

Comments

Researchers

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

For the discovering of facts and clues, or the frustration of NOT doing so.

Re: Researchers

[becauseshesang.livejournal.com]

That morning (http://fandomhighdorms.livejournal.com/2339865.html) had left Elizabeth... unsettled. She had rushed on to the library as fast as her feet could carry her afterwards.

There were no more flowers in her hair. Just a quiet girl, pouring quietly through her books.

Re: Researchers

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

A plate of cheese and crackers was slid in front of Elizabeth at some point in the morning. Sholeh stood just off to the side, a shyly welcoming smile on her face.

Re: Researchers

[becauseshesang.livejournal.com]

Elizabeth looked up with dull surprise. "Oh," she said, sitting up, trying to achieve some measure of perk. "Thank you. I haven't had breakfast today."

Re: Researchers

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

"You're welcome," Sholeh said, her smile losing a bit of its shyness. "I figured everyone who showed up today might want to stay, so I brought snacks and things. Can't have our researchers fainting right before they find a clue, can we?"

Re: Researchers

[fly-so-serious.livejournal.com]

"Thank goodness you're all right," Jeff said to her by way of greeting. "Yesterday, you were kind of a little... comatose."

Re: Researchers

[becauseshesang.livejournal.com]

"It's been a long couple of weeks," Elizabeth said wryly, dropping her head down next to the crackers she'd gotten from Sholeh. "Sorry about that."

Re: Researchers

[fly-so-serious.livejournal.com]

"Okay, but there's 'worn out', and then there's 'completely unresponsive'. You sure you're all right?"

Re: Researchers

[wildandbrave]

Since Jess had been kind enough (so to speak) to dismiss them so quickly from class, such as it had been, Cosette -- still preoccupied with the strangeness of that tidal wave this morning -- went directly to the library afterward.

Wherever it had disappeared to, was that connected to the same place their hostile new "friends" had come from? Éponine had said the dinosaurs and Vikings had only seemed to appear after the man with the gun ran through and while Cosette didn't exactly trust her to volunteer information without keeping her own interests at heart most of the time, this was not one of those situations, and she did trust the older girl's observational skills if nothing else.

Dinosaurs, Vikings . . . those were things out of history, Cosette reasoned, though admittedly she'd only learned that fact this week, in the past several days of seemingly futile research. She ventured into the History section of the library today, this time with a more specific purpose in mind.

One book led to another, one section into the next until she found herself in History of Fandom Crises Past. And sure enough, there were the dinosaurs in one book, and the zombie piranhas, and --

She kept going, flipping through book after book until she ended up on page 265 of a volume entitled (inexplicably) "Plaaaaaaaaaaaaaague!" She snapped a quick photo of one of the illustrations and sent it off to Éponine with a message: this your cove?

The second she got a confirmation she came bolting out of the stacks with the book held over her head, shouting, "Look, look, look here, it's your weather machine!"

Re: Researchers

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

The loud commotion made Sholeh start, but once she was over her fright, she was peering at Cosette with interest.

"Our weather machine?" she asked. "It's in that book? Surely not, that's been there forever!"

Re: Researchers

[wildandbrave]

Sorry, Sholeh. If she'd been raised in a more civilized manner Cosette might not have been yelling quite like that, and she'd probably apologize for it when she was back to being her usual self.

"Perhaps not," she said, and put the book down on the table. Sure enough, there was a schematic drawing of the weather machine along with the somewhat sketchy illustration of the mysterious man's face, but beneath it was a caption that Cosette pointed to.

"There's a plague that's hit the island before," she said, "that's what this book's all about, but it says here that the first time it happened this man pinched this --" and here she stumbled a bit over the words -- "'magical artifact,' the machine, I suppose, and disappeared with it rather than send his child away."

Re: Researchers

[fly-so-serious.livejournal.com]

Jeff jerked his head off the table and stared at the book. "DUDE!!!"

He blinked a few more times, a grin slowly spreading across his face. "Duuuuuuuuude!!! Cosette, you beautiful, beautiful girl! I could kiss you! You are magical and special and wonderful and... and pie!"

Re: Researchers

[wildandbrave]

Cosette, under normal, non-AU circumstances, would have been blushing half to death. As it was, she only laughed and said playfully, "That's a bit forward of you, but perhaps later."

So much mortification later. So much. But she was nothing if not practical either way, so first things first.

"You got a closer look at it, didn't you? This is the same machine, isn't it?"

[OOC: Aaaaaaaack sorry I didn't realize I'd missed this!]

Re: Researchers

[fly-so-serious.livejournal.com]

Jeff was back at his usual table, thumping his forehead against it loudly.

His picture of the weather machine floated in the air above him, rotating slowly. Jeff had looked at it from all angles, and nothing identifying -- well, other than the label proclaiming it a weather machine exclusively for Fandom Island -- was jumping out at him.

His omnitool was running a search across all possible computer networks connected to Fandom looking for a matching image. It was taking forever, but at least it was something?

"Why can't the thing just have a 'stop breaking reality' button?," Jeff whined. "I mean, is that too much to ask?"

Re: Researchers

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

"Around here? Absolutely," Sholeh said, frowning. "Did you see what Cosette found? It's another piece of the puzzle, but it doesn't seem to help us find the bigger picture yet."

Re: Researchers

[fly-so-serious.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, if the machine starts causing 'plaaaaaaague', too, then I just quit." Jeff sighed. "I think the bigger picture is 'we are all fucked'."

Re: Researchers

[fjordicswagger]

Some time into the evening, Tamsin returned to the library. She hung around for a while, soaking up whatever information she could in her own, special, 'don't even come near me or I'll snap your head off' fashion.

Once she'd picked up enough, she swept back outside.

Re: Researchers

[pulseof_life]

... Did anyone really expect Yeul to have made it from the dorms to the school in one piece when there were monsters out and about?

No one?

Good, because she hadn't, though remembering that Sholeh would likely be upset about injuries meant that she did take the time to down a potion to heal them before settling in with a new stack of books to go through.

Healing the injuries didn't do much for her clothes, which were a bit torn and blood-stained. It didn't bother Yeul, though, so she didn't really consider the possibility that it might bother others.

She leafed through her books, skimming more than reading and looking up now and then just to people watch with calm green eyes.

The List

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

For the writing down of said facts and clues!

Anything that might be helpful for other people to know, feel free to list it here!

Talk to Sholeh

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

If you're willing to brave the glare of a very unfriendly Evan!

Re: Talk to Sholeh

[genesishero]

Not just very unfriendly. Very, very unfriendly. His eyes were glowing red as he sat just behind Sholeh, a little to the side, as if silently daring anyone to give him a reason to set into them.

The attacking creatures outside had him maybe just the slightest bit on edge, today.

Re: Talk to Sholeh

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

Fortunately, they had missed the tidal wave that hit the dorms, or it probably would be even worse!

Sholeh laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's okay," she murmured softly. "We're safe, here in the library."

Re: Talk to Sholeh

[genesishero]

Evan's gaze flicked briefly to her, and then he looked up toward the little dinosaur that was still happily chewing on the bookshelves.

"Looks to me as though they can still get in," he noted, softly. "I'm not about to take any chances."

She died too many times through these things. Not this time.

Talk to the Librarian

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

If he's here!

OOC

[3girls-1core.livejournal.com]

Evan modded with permission, of course!