Welcome to Gaia! ::

((Sorry for the absence. OTL The beginning of this summer has turned out to be busier than expected. Thankfully, it's only the beginning. XD I don't have too much time to post right now, but I feel I've waited too long already. I'll do what I can in the time I have! >o< I don't remember if Jarod threw away his banana peel. sweatdrop Also, I don't know the coding for those "hide spoiler buttons" sweatdrop . Could someone please PM me how, perhaps, so I can be one of the cool kids? c: ))

The mention of Chaim further piqued the interest of mother and son. Loki had learned of Chaim when she learned of the ongoing battle between the Defenders and Destroyers and first became a part of it all.

"Really?" Jarod grinned. "That's awesome! I'll ask as nicely as I can," he stated, with a sudden cheerful determination in his voice. He had learned of Chaim from his mother, and could imagine nothing but good things of this man. Considering Chaim's position in the world, Jarod thought he must be the kindest, wisest person who could ever exist.
Now, not only might he have a teacher, but this teacher was... (he had to think about what Vanessa said here) ... she was... just... two jobs away from Chaim! Or something like that. AND she could use a sword! But anyways-

"Well, we really are very thankful," Loki said to Vanessa. "And we'll be as much of a help as we can be here and... well, anywhere else we can be." Loki looked down at Jarod, as he had taken her hand, then back at Vanessa. She recognized that Jarod's mind had begun to float. "I'm afraid he's lost in his thoughts now," she laughed quietly, and smoothed the hair on top of his head with her free hand.

Jarod was indeed quite lost in his thoughts, and only tightened his grip on his mother's hand in response to her petting him. He could see himself learning to use his abilities for good, becoming a valuable member of the Defenders, and maybe, just maybe, one day, he could meet Chaim himself! Everything could work out somehow, and if it didn't he just had to keep on trying-

"He hasn't been getting enough sleep because of our traveling the last couple of days. That's usually when his mind starts to... wander about this way." Loki explained, then smiled. "Excitement and new things tend to keep him awake." She hesitated. "...would it be alright if I began to get him settled for tonight?"

((How many powers does this guy have haha, you know it cant be infinite right?))

—OOC

Vanessa glanced to Jarod at his mother’s explanation of him being lost in his thoughts, the child’s expression showing his excitement making the librarian smile.

She looked back to Loki as the girl continued to speak.

“Is it already so late?” Vanessa asked in surprise, looking to the large, ancient-looking analogue clock hanging on the wall above the desk, its second hand soundlessly showing as time passed. “Four-ten,” she muttered, her eyebrows furrowing with worry. “They should be back by now.” She turned her disconcerted gaze back to Loki. “Come,” she said, moving to her double scythe and picking it up. “I’ll take you to the living quarters.”

Vanessa hurried into the maze of books, glancing behind her once to be sure the two were following. She led them into the cluttered back room, the musty scent of books condensed in the air.

On quick feet, she strode to a door on the far right side of the wall. Picking up a pile of books she had placed there earlier that day, she set them on a box to the left of the door and pulled a leather string around her neck to reveal a brass skeleton key that had hung beneath her shirt. Taking it from around her neck, she stuck into the lock, turned it, and, with a satisfying click as the latch released, opened the heavy, wooden door. A steep staircase waited beyond, its stained wood gleaming from a coat of wax as Vanessa flicked on a light switch.

“Remind me to give you one of our spare keys.” Vanessa glanced back as she placed her free hand on the railing and ascended the stairs. “Whoever built this place decided to give only one access route to the home two stories above. There’s no entrance to the library’s second floor from here, and, as a fair warning, most humans can’t get to the second floor without either my brother or me accompanying them. No books can be taken off that floor, no matter what. Too many enchantments. We keep books of the arcane type there. It’s kind of like the ‘Restricted Section’ in Harry Potter, only much better.” She looked back again and winked. “History of mystical families, documents of the extinction or near extinction of races, and so much more can be found there, as well as records of the Battles of the Armies. No first editions, of course. Those are at Chaim’s personal library.”

They reached a stair twice as wide as the rest, marking where the second story began.

“This building was one of the first built here some twenty-three-hundred years ago,” Vanessa continued. “It’s been remodeled a few times, but it’s been as you see it for about the past four hundred years, minus the light fixtures.” As she passed, she tapped one of the lights hanging from the wall every couple yards, the key in her hand dangling from the string. Shaped like an old-fashioned lantern, the bulbs of the fake candles inside flickered like overly-bright flames. “My father installed the first ones in 1885. Rodger and I were about Jarod’s height, I believe. It took us forever to convince him that it would enhance the library experience and wasn’t invented by an evil warlock.” She chuckled at the memory.

“Here we are.” She stopped on a second landing where another heavy door blocked their path. Unlocking it with the key, she replaced the key around her neck. “The doors close and lock on their own. You can get out without unlocking them, but you need the key to get back in.”

“Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed the history lesson!” she said with a quick laugh. With that, she turned the tarnished brass handle and opened the door.

A small chandelier hanging in the center of the quaintly sized room flicked to life of its own accord from where it hung above a pair of brown armchairs flanking a matching couch. Two small glass-and-wood tables separated the chairs from the couch, a pile of books sitting on one and a coffee mug on the glass of the other. The light from the chandelier’s fake candles fought against the light of the evening sun shining through a large window across from the couch, the glass looking out across the tops of buildings behind it and to a grassy park with a fountain in its center

A Persian carpet bordered by a few feet of varnished wood covered the center of the living room’s floor. Mahogany paneling created the dado of the wall, the upper half white plaster. The wall gave way to an open archway leading into a kitchen, a few modern appliances just visible in the darkened room beyond.

Turning to the right of the doorway, Vanessa pulled open one of the three drawers of a stand sitting against the wall. Reaching inside, she pulled out two silver skeleton keys, each with a cord strung through their bow.

“There’s two beds in the room three doors on the left down the hall.” She gestured to another archway across from the kitchen, two covered lights bursting to life on the ceiling to reveal a long hallway that branched off into a T shape at the end. “Bathrooms are the last doors down on either side. Make yourselves at home. The fridge’s fully stocked, so if you get hungry, help yourselves. I’ll try to have breakfast ready tomorrow by eight.” Vanessa handed Loki one of the keys, her eyes growing contemplative as she thought of Karinda and Saiirin. “How does bacon, eggs, toast, and hash browns sound?” She offered Jarod the second key.

__________________________________________________________________

Karinda glared at the man as he answered, another set of closed metal doors visible through the elevator’s still-open ones. She let the air dense beneath, keeping the elevator in place.

“By whose word shall we again meet?” Karinda grumbled. She opened her mouth to speak again, but the man interrupted.

“This will take you back up,” he said, and disappeared.

Turning on her heels, Karinda quickly forced her blade between the doors of the elevator, trying to pry them open, not wanting to discover what would take them up.

“’Tis enough of my fate being beneath the hands of another,” Karinda snarled under her breath.

With a shout of triumph as they opened, Karinda lunged through the metal doors and onto the waiting floor, Saiirin taking flight from her shoulder as collapsed to the carped floor, her hand momentarily rubbing the rough fibers.

“What are you doing?” a gruff voice demanded.

Karinda jumped into a crouching position, her sword at the ready and muscles tense.

“Point that somewhere else!” Liam shouted, his face twisted in anger as he took a step away.

“My apologies,” Karinda said slowly, lowering her weapon.

Liam snorted. “Do I have to find someone to babysit you?” he grumbled. “STOP brandishing that thing around like a harmless foam weapon and GO HOME.” With that, he pushed past Karinda, muttering, “I have enough problems to deal with as it is.”

Karinda stared after him a moment. With a sigh, she leaned against the wall between the elevator doors and sunk to the floor, Saiirin landing and sitting beside her.

((I will actually post later on. For now, though...

It is that old. The last remodel was 400 years past, making it look the way Jarod and Loki are seeing it. As the years went on, the owners had to improve it, get it up to code, and whatnot, so it does not look the same in this roleplay's current year as it did 2,300 years past. I will have Vanessa state the age of the building, if that makes it easier for you to understand in the context of the writing. smile Oh, also, Nothing opens automatically. The glass would neither have shattered because of enchantments, nor it be opened from the outside, so, could I make it so Vanessa opens the window for him? No changes needed on your part, mind, I will just put that detail differently when I post next.))

Vanessa looked up as a flash of red scales near the third-story window caught her attention.

“Excuse me a moment,” she said to her guests before hurrying to the window as Plushy’s head appeared on the other side of the glass, his eyes scanning Loki and Jarod.

Using both hands to open the large window, she stepped aside as Plushy stuck his head in the room and began to speak to her.

“A vampire?” Vanessa’s brows furrowed. “Good for Saiirin for joining Karinda in the time of need, then,” she continued as Plushy finished and turned his attention to Jarod.

“Before you go off and do that,” she interrupted, striding across the room and to the door, “if there’s a malicious vampire on the loose, I need to know where you last saw them and what the vampire looked like. What’s the address you left Karinda at, and did you notify someone nearby before you left, so they could keep an eye on them in case the two can’t handle themselves against the bloodsucker?”

She glanced to the door, visualizing where she had sat her double-scythe down when she moved the books out of the way ((somehow, I forgot she had that weapon with her. My bad)).

--OOC

Plushy

Plushy glanced back to Vanessa...
“if there’s a malicious vampire on the loose, I need to know where you last saw them and what the vampire looked like. What’s the address you left Karinda at, and did you notify someone nearby before you left, so they could keep an eye on them in case the two can’t handle themselves against the bloodsucker?”

Problems must be done in order, yes. Plushy answer Vanessa "No, the vampire is a Hanucani, it tells too many lies to be safe, and their in the hospital where doctor Yovlyn works."

"Vanessa... aren't you worried that people outside will... see... Plushy?"
This question seamed silly to Plushy, humans loved looking at him... he knew all the humans in town, and many creatures too.
Plushy said whith a happy voice, "No she is not. Humans see Plushy all the time. No point in worrying about it." Plushy smile at the banana boy.

”Thank you, Plushy. I will see if I can’t find anything out about her.” Vanessa looked to Loki as she spoke, Plushy beating her to the answer.

The librarian nodded. “This town was built specifically for those like us to be who we are. Even dragons can reside here without worry. The humans here know about us, and if any human in the dark enters, there are enchantments in place that keep them from really seeing us, and many of us get a warning so we can take the necessary actions.”

She turned the knob of the door leading to the stairs. “Before I head out,” she opened the door and turned her head to look at Plushy. “Did the hanucani have a name?”

__________________________________________________________________

Karinda close her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. Her eyes snapped open at the sound of the familiar voice of Noci.

She glanced curiously to the iron pole Noci held as the young girl crouched down

“I stand no worse for wear, Noci,” she replied, straightening her back against the wall behind her. Her smile faded as she glanced at the partially open elevator doors, her voice darkening. “As for the man…” She shook her head. “His presence was fleeting. To whence he vanished, I cannot say.”

Taking a deep breath, Karinda got to her feet and gave a small smile. “Come. I believe I have a library to show to you, if we can discover its location!”

With a few beats of her wings, Saiirin returned to Karinda’s shoulders as the girl held out her hand to Noci.

"Next time, I'll be faster Mrs K, I promise" she took the offered hand a giggled, beaming a smile up at Karinda.
"I can't wait to see it"