AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 3:51 PM
Seren walked to the library, a small smile on her face at the idea that she might have gotten Rhys to read something more solid then a magazine. If he asked about the smile, though, she'd simply tell him a second truth... The library had always been a place of happiness for her. She felt safe in libraries.

She looked around, and spotted him where he was waiting. "Hey."
Pao - Yesterday at 3:58 PM
The brunette was casually leaning against the wall just inside the door--the walls outside were all wet because the rain was still going. Truth be told he'd never been to the library since coming to the island, so it was all really strange. Not necessarily in a bad way, just different and unfamiliar. Thanks to Seren he had a feeling it wouldn't be entirely unfamiliar after today. She'd mentioned something the other day that mildly piqued his interest, so there he was.

At her greeting Rhys lifted his gaze from the floor and smiled. "Yoh." He pushed off of the wall and walked toward her so they kind of met in the middle. "Thanks for coming."
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 4:03 PM
She nodded, casually. "No problem. This is one of my favorite places to escape to, so I've done some familiarizing." She began to move towards the stacks, smiling back and up at him to indicate he should follow. She was heading straight for the fiction section, and then into the Fantasy section.

She wondered how much time he'd ever spent in a library back in the States, when in school, and suspected the answer was 'not many' beyond what was required. Still, she hoped that would change now, because he was about to get himself into a series about a Wizard Detective fighting the Bad Guys in what was almost real-world Chicago. It was an intense series, and she, at least, found it caught the mind and pulled one in. "So this is the section with the Fantasy novels. They're alphabetical, by last name." She took him past the A's, and into the B's, and knelt to point out the 17 books, so far, of the Dresden Files.
Pao - Yesterday at 4:15 PM
If she did ask that question the answer would more accurately be "almost never." He would typically just call and ask if there was a book for school that he needed, then swing by to pick it up later on so he'd never actually learned how to find books on his own.

Rhys followed her, making sure to keep a safe distance so he didn't just run into her if he wasn't paying attention. He made mental notes of the instructions she gave him, glancing around to see where they were exactly so he would remember for next time, and then stopped just short of tripping over her. "s**t, my bad," he muttered as he knelt beside her. "So it's here?"
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 4:22 PM
She blinked and laughed. "Be careful. You don't want to knock into the shelves. I don't know how sturdily bolted they are. And the last thing you want is to be responsible for a Book Shelf Domino effect, yeah?" She shook her head at him, amused by how focused he had been on making sure he remembered the right place.

"Yeah. They're all here." She eyed the spines of the books, and muttered something about idiots and shelving, then selected a book in the middle of the row. "For some unknown reason, the person who organized these put all of them in chronological order except the first book. This is the one you want." She pulled it out and handed it to him. It was called "Storm Front." She gave the name an amused glance. "Ironic, that, given all the rain but... Well you'll see." She held it out to him.
Pao - Yesterday at 4:31 PM
He nodded, giving a little scowl as he glanced over his shoulder at where he'd been looking earlier as though it was at fault for his not paying attention. When his attention was back on the books he just nodded along, and then smirked when he heard the muttering.

"Might've been someone like me not knowing where it actually goes," he said with a smirk and a little nudge as he took the book and inspected it. It was pretty old and tattered but the picture on the front was still there and it did catch his eye. Mostly it was just the question of "what the ******** is he carrying?" though.

"So what's this one about again?" he asked as he turned the book over to see if there was anything written on the back cover.
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 4:39 PM
She laughed a bit and shrugged. "That's why there's the numbers on the spine, though, to tell people. And they ought to have a Library page-type person, to prevent that issue, buuuut I guess given the limited resources on this place, I can't expect more." She sighed a little, but nudged him back, before standing and stretching her spine.

"Um. It's about a Wizard, living in Modern Day Chicago, who works as a Private detective. He helps with the oddball cases, occult and the like, for the police force, and he... well. I don't want to spoil too much, but he's a ********' bad a**."
Pao - Yesterday at 4:47 PM
"Bad-a**," he echoed as he flipped the book open and skimmed the first page, then closed it and picked out the second and third books before standing back up. He blinked at her before glancing down at the three books he was holding, then back at her again. "Since I'm already here," he said, sounding like a kid who was volunteering an excuse without any kind of prompting.

"Anyway, while we're here didya wanna pick something out?"
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 4:53 PM
She watched him do it, a small smile on her face. This was a pleasant site to see, honestly. She wanted to see him expand that mind of his, though she'd never say it, because she was quite sure there was a lot going on... And finding a love of a good book might be something to help. Also, it'd be something else to connect over. "Of course, I can understand that."

She considered, and nodded. "Probably nothing of interest to you, but yeah. I'm gonna grab a couple books out of the astronomy section. There's a few nice spots to read in here, though, if you're in no rush to leave and deal with the rain?"
Pao - Yesterday at 5:23 PM
Rhys nodded, glad that she seemed plenty understanding about hime grabbing more than just one book. For a second he thought she might say something, maybe tease him a little, but he was sort of glad that wasn't the case. When she made the suggested he nodded. "Sure, I'll flop on one of those couches I saw by the windows. The rain is s**t outside but it's not too bad to look at."

With that he took his books and turned to go find that couch. He flopped right onto the rug that it sat on, as it were, and laid his books out before getting comfortable. Somehow he had a feeling the rug might have seen better days than the couch given the amount of cracks there were in the faux-leather, and he felt a little safer on the floor. He picked up Book One and cracked it open, leaning back against the sofa as he started reading.
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 6:20 PM
She watched him go for a moment, before sliding off to the area with the books on astronomy. She spent several minutes hunting before she found a nice, thick tome on the astroid belt. She walked over to join him, and studied the situation, before settling in the couch, since he took the floor, not worried about the condition it was in.
Pao - Yesterday at 7:23 PM
He got a little sucked into the book just going into the first chapter, but when she took up some space on the couch he blinked and looked up, brows immediately furrowing at the sight of the book she'd chosen.

"You wanna read an encyclopedia?"
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 7:53 PM
She blinked at him, then smiled and shook her head. "It's a book about the asteroid belt." Her fingers caressed the cover a little, her eyes lost in thought. "Back when I thought I was going to go to college, my goal was to be an astrophysicist. Unfortunately, circumstances changed and college was no longer an option. I still love learning about space. Maybe I can't get my doctorate now, but.... I can at least keep learning about something I love."
Pao - Yesterday at 8:44 PM
Rhys made a little "o" with his mouth when she explained, eyeing the book curiously. It seemed pretty close to her considering the way that she talked about it, and by the time she was done talking he found something else that they seemed to have in common. "Sounds like me with my fitness stuff," said the brunette as he used his thumb as a bookmark and temporarily closed the book in favor of conversation. "Never been much of a book person so I learned a lot of what I know from short articles and videos on the 'net. But yeah, if you love it then go for it."

He paused as some memories of high school surfaced, when he was forced to stop dreaming about college. It was a bitter one but he kept his expression even. "We gotta live for something, right?"
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 9:11 PM
"Yeah, that's the goal." She was a little lost in thought for a minute, remembering the day she had given up her dream, just to survive. She gave her head a slight shake to feet her mind back on track. "So I'll study now, and learn... Like you keep working on your fitness, yes." A small connection, maybe, but it was there.
Pao - Yesterday at 10:52 PM
At the word "study" he couldn't help but wrinkle his nose, clearly not the bookish type even in the slightest. There was a part of him that didn't understand what he was doing here in the first place, but the other was convincing him that it was because he was genuinely interested in this author and his books. Which, after getting through a bit of chapter one, he was almost fully convinced of that. Not totally, though.

"Read on, then," he said, giving her a little pat on the knee before turning and leaning back against the sofa again and cracking the book open. He paused, then, and ********, lost my place..."
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 10:57 PM
She laughed a little at his nose wrinkle, guessing what it was about. She didn't blame him in the least for it, really. Most people didn't like it, but she wondered if he watched videos on training to learn new stuff. It was similar in her mind, honestly. She was about to crack her book open, but the pat on the knee distracted her, as it was a little more familiar then he usually was. She managed to decide it was just a case of it was closest, and made herself not dwell on it.

His comment, however, made her look down for a moment, trying not to laugh. She half sat up, and dug in her pocket, pulling out some ribbons with beads on each end. "Here, you can have one of these as a bookmark, so you don't lose it next time." She held out the selection, letting him take his pick of colors.
Pao - Yesterday at 11:05 PM
He probably looked more distressed than was appropriate given the situation, but he took the bookmark with a grumbled little thanks, brows furrowed as he tried really, really hard to find where he left off just a moment ago.

"There ya are, ya little ********," he eventually muttered very triumphantly before placing the bookmark down so it didn't happen again. With a grin he turned and looked up to her, smiling now. "Thanks. s**t, feels like I haven't cracked a book open since I was in high school."(edited)
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 11:10 PM
She popped the others back in her pocket, other then a simple black one with silver beads, which she tucked into the inner cover of her book, for easy retrieval when she needed to mark her page. While he hunted, and grumbled, she gave a fond smile at him, amused by his reaction, and patted his shoulder.

His reaction to finding it earned a soft snort of laughter. She shifted to settle back into the couch more, controlling the urge to curl up on it in a public space. "No problem, Rhys. Bookmarks are important when reading, I've learned." She paused, then gave him a naughty grin, and teased "Are you sure you have?"
Pao - Yesterday at 11:23 PM
Rhys narrowed his eyes up at her when the joke came, his smile replaced by what could have been a pout. It probably looked ridiculous on a fully grown man. "Pretty sure," he said, then blinked and actually tried to remember, though he gave up after about two seconds and slumped back into his chosen seat.

"There was a long pause before he cracked his book open again and quietly said, "Might've been Sparknotes." Because that was his lifeline in his old English class--who had the time to read with everything he had going on, anyway?
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 11:26 PM
She patted his shoulder again, trying to say no offense meant with the gesture. "I get you. Life here is busy, and you have other things that interest you more. Nothing wrong with that, honestly. Being a bookworm isn't something everyone finds enjoyable." Her tone was gentle, understanding now.

She watched him, as he slumped, and controled the urge to run her fingers through his hair, which holy hell no brain why now? She sighed a little, but popped her book open to the first page, settling back further.
Pao - Yesterday at 11:44 PM
The comforting gesture got a little sigh out of him and he straightened up slightly, his focus now entirely on the book and the story that it had to offer. He heard what she said though, and was just relieved to know that she didn't judge him for not being much of a book person. Or for being a book person at all. He was kinda stretching, here.

Over time he shifted in his seat and got a little more comfortable, leaning slightly toward her. He didn't notice at all, just kept on flipping pages at a very liesurely pace. His reactions were more vocal than a normal reader though, which...might have been annoying, but he didn't notice that either.
AriaStarstone - Yesterday at 11:57 PM
His vocalizing while he read had her distracted at first. It was an odd thing, but somehow, she didn't find it annoying. It was, strangely enough, another cute thing he did in her mind. She smiled at him, softly and full of care, and then worked on focusing on her book. It took her awhile, but finally got herself into it.

She was a silent reader, and very focused. She wouldn't even notice herself moving, so over time she began to curl up on the couch, snuggling in deeply to the couch. If someone had been sharing it with her, they might have found themselves with a warm cuddle buddy over time.
September 14, 2017
Pao - Today at 12:05 AM
He wasn't sure how much time had passed before he finally slipped the bookmark at the start of the fourth chapter, then closed the book and stretched. It almost was exaggerated, how long the stretch lasted, but he'd been sitting down in almost exactly the same position for a while now and his muscles had gotten a little stiff and uncomfortable, so. Stretching. Kind of loud stretching, too, with a similar volume as his reading.

Rhys glanced over his shoulder at Seren, a smile soon spread across his face when he saw that she was totally curled up on the couch and looking quite cozy. For a second he wondered why he didn't sit on the couch earlier, and then he blinked and let the thought pass, soon just watching and waiting for her to notice that he was staring to get her attention.
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:09 AM
The change in noise style began to drag her out of her book, slowly. It wasn't a fast thing, because she really could get utterly enraptured by a book on astronomy. Or one of her novels, too, but that was another issue. Finally, though, there was a feeling of pressure on her, one she wasn't used too... Normally she was so focused when reading, she was actually at risk if a creeper or some s**t came up.

It actually confused her enough that she found herself putting her book down, trying to figure out who was staring and why it had caught her attention. And then she realized it was Rhys, and part of her went 'well that's why' and the rest went 'NOT NOW OK.' She blinked at him once or twice, before moving her bookmark into place. "Done for now?"
Pao - Today at 12:12 AM
The longer he watched her, the cuter he found this little quirk looked on her. It took a while but eventually she seemed to snap out of her little book trance and his smile brightened, like he'd just done the impossible.

He nodded. "Yeah, for now. It's a good book but I'm getting all stiff over here."
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:15 AM
His bright smile made her give him a warm, happy one in return. He had no idea how close to that being impossible it was. She sat up, slowly unfolding herself from the position she'd gotten into, and nodded. "Yeah now that I'm 'awake' so to speak, I see what you mean." She slowly stretched, arching her back to pop her spine a little, before standing up.

"You wanna walk back to dorms or something?"
Pao - Today at 12:21 AM
He really was starting to notice something a little extra in her smile, kind of like a bonus he got to see every now and again. With that thought he nodded again and stood up as well, stretching a little more before letting out a contented breath. "Yeah, back to the dorms. I gotta check and see if I'm supposed to be somewhere later."

The brunette leaned down and picked up his three books, eyes soon falling on the unmanned front desk not too far from where they were. "Do they even care if these come back here or is someone gonna pop up from under the counter if we ring a bell?"
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:28 AM
She wiggled a little, because unfortunately her pants had ridden up in an uncomfortable spot and there was No Way In Hell she was going to adjust that in front of him. She then picked her book back up, and tucked it into an inner pocket of her jacket. "Good idea. I had morning kitchen duties, so I should be ok, but better to check."

She blinked at his question, then slowly said "I have never seen anyone there, to be honest, and I've never checked anything out... I just make sure to return them so others have a chance, once I'm done."
Pao - Today at 12:31 AM
He made a face. "Well, I mean...I guess I can set a reminder every week?" He pulled his phone out and did that right that instant, knowing he would probably forget as soon as he stepped inside his dorm, and then he put his phone away and nodded toward the door.

"Let's go," he started to say, then paused and looked at the sky through the window. Still gray, still dreary, but it didn't look like it was raining. "Better hurry, I think. Knowing my luck it'll probably start raining as soon as I step outside."
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:35 AM
"Better safe then sorry on that. There might be some terrifying insane Hunter-Librarian in charge of this place that might show up at your door otherwise." She shook her head, vaguely imagining something along the lines of Conan the Librarian in her head, and shrugged. "I could also try to remind you when I go to take this one back."

She headed towards the door, and turned back when he spoke, looking out the window herself. "Yeah best to get moving. I still haven't been able to requisition an umbrella, more's the pity. If I had and it did, I'd let you use it, since I can fit mine in my coat."
Pao - Today at 12:49 AM
"Yes to the offer to remind me," he started as he followed her to the door. "And by the time I requisition an umbrella I'd bet that's when this Atlantis bullshit clears up," he went on with a little snort.

Rhys made sure to keep close for that added bit of warmth against a the chill breeze as they hurried back to the dorms. About halfway there was already a very light drizzle, which got a very audible grumble from the brunette. He tucked the books into his coat a little more carefully, not wanting to have to deal with a Hunter-Librarian lecturing him about how water and books really shouldn't mix.

"So you said earlier that you were into astronomy or something like that?" he asked, wanting to get his mind off of the rain.
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:54 AM
"I'll remember, and send you a text, then." She gave a calm nod, and then said "Even if you'd put in a request, you might be waiting. I did, and nada. I bet they're literally flooded with requests and I think there's only one person here more newbie then me, so I'm pretty much bottom of the request list."

She didn't mind, she never did, at how close he chose to walk to her. She liked him near, it made the world feel a little less insane, a lot more stable, and a way better place to be in. Thoughts she... allowed herself to examine as they were walking, for once. Until he asked his question, that is.

"Ah? Yeah. Yeah I am. I'm surprised I haven't mentioned it... Or that it's not obvious." That was a lightly teased statement, and she turned her head to give him a soft smile. The clips he'd given her glittered in her hair as a momentary flash of light caught on them. "I find it fascinating."
Pao - Today at 1:00 AM
When he saw the clips his lips turned up into a little smile, and he felt some warm and fuzzy feelings for a long moment, as though it just hit him that she really did like what he got her and had every intention of wearing them every now and again. He even let the little teasing go with a little huff.

"No, I mean," he eventually replied with a little chuckle. "I mostly thought it was a hobby of yours. Didn't realize you wanted to study it, too. You said...astrophysics?" The word clearly didn't roll off of his tongue.
AriaStarstone - Today at 1:03 AM
He had such a nice smile, she found herself thinking, wishing she knew how to make sure it stayed on his face more often. He really was a beautiful man, and she was grateful she had the chance to be in his company as often as he let her. He might not like showing it, but in her eyes, he was a kind, good person, and being around him made her straight up happy.

She tilted her head at his words, and smiled, a hint of sadness in it but mostly just a normal smile. "Yeah... I mean, if I'd had the chance it would not have been a hobby." She found his slight bit of difficulty with the word endearing, which might be odd but it was true. "Astrophysics, yeah. I wanted to study quasars."
Pao - Today at 1:17 AM
When he caught a hint of something different about her he tensed a little, concern already starting to cloud his better judgement. The explanation kept him from doing anything out of line though, and he just gave her was a lopsided frown by the end of it. Partly because he had no idea what quasers were.

"You said it earlier though," he said, purposely stepping in such a way that he naturally bumped her shoulder. "Doesn't mean you can't study it. You could probably buy books while on leave, too. Or I could for you until you can take leave on your own." He shrugged but smiled softly at her. "Just let me know if there's anything I can do, yeah?"(edited)
AriaStarstone - Today at 1:21 AM
She smiled at him again, even the hint of sadness gone, and she let herself gently bump him back. "I know, and once I run out of books there, I might do that. I wish Dr. Morris had gotten back to me... But it is what it is. I'll just keep learning on my own, and be happy with what I can get."

She gave him another smile, this one grateful. "And I appreciate the offer. I'll keep it in mind for when I get that far down the line. You're always so kind to me."
Pao - Today at 11:26 AM
He bumped her back again, nodding slowly. Self-studying was how he did his fitness things and he knew it was more than possible for someone to get things done if they were passionate about it. "If she's higher up in rank she might just be busy," he shrugged. It was weird how huge the range was between levels of busy on the island. For him a lot of it was just boring duty stuff, but he knew there was more imortant work he could be doing once he figured out where he wanted to put his focus...

"And yeah, I mean..." and he let the thought trail, not wanting to finish it since the last bit was "it's you."
AriaStarstone - Today at 11:31 AM
She listened, and a bit of hope swooped in her belly, hope she allowed but did not allow to grow too strong. Easier not to be disappointed if she didn't do that. "Ah, maybe. I don't know. I only know Melvin suggested I try messaging her about the subject." She was leaning a little towards him as they walked and talked, entirely subconciously. "But if she does, it would be nice. More focus on my studies."

She blinked at him a little, at the way he trailed off. Finally, unsure why he did, she said "Need to find out what it takes to get good chocolate and raspberry preserves though... And no I'm not asking you for that, I just am thinking of making cake sometime in the future."
Pao - Today at 12:08 PM
He didn't notice, per se, that she was moving closer, more so that he found he was a little more comfortable the further along they walked. Even if it was drizzling he found himself thinking that he didn't want this walk to end just yet, and he left that thought alone. It was innocent enough and didn't really hint at a whole lot that would make him want to shove it away...

The topic of cake got him to glance over at her and blink for a second. "Only way I can think of is going on leave and shopping for it. But cake for...me?" He grinned.
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:11 PM
She sighed, a comfortable sigh, just happy in his presence. Life was lighter, easier when he was around. Mostly, anyways. When they stayed away from the difficult stuff. She smiled, side long at him, for a moment, just from the pure comfort and happiness she felt in that moment.

His question earned him a laugh and a grin. "Why, have you done something to earn cake lately? I was craving it, but you're definitely welcome to share whenever I get the chance to make it. I'll just have to wait until I can take leave, then."
Pao - Today at 12:16 PM
He chuckled and shrugged, carefully tucking the books in a bit more as the drizzling got a bit stronger. It probably wasn't going to get that much worse, and they were close enough to the dorms now so no big deal.

"I...started reading?" he said, obviously joking, but he still bumped her playfully.
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:19 PM
She couldn't help laughing and bumped him back. "All right, yes that is a good reason. Once I get my things, I'll make chocolate cake. It's always been my favorite kind of cake." She looked happy at the thought of it, looking forwards to the day she could get leave and go get things.
Pao - Today at 12:40 PM
He "mm'd" thoughtfully and walked normally again, though all the bumping had him just a little bit closer again. "More things to look forward to," he mused while glancing over at her.
AriaStarstone - Today at 12:59 PM
She nodded quietly, eyes lost in thought about how much she was looking forwards to it. But at the same time, there was... Concern. She knew she wanted her revenge for all that groaning, but would it make things more complicated? She didn't know. "Definitely." She murmured, in an absent voice.
Pao - Today at 5:16 PM
He raised a brow at that kind of weak response but didn't say anything, instead just bumping into her again and offering yet another smile. This kept on going until they finally made it to the dorms, and then eventually to her door, which he walked her to before heading back to his own. He almost completely relaxed, too, until he got a text to remind him to head over to the pod room for several hours of mind numbing pod duty. At the very least, he had a book to read to pass the time.