Welcome to Gaia! ::

Amaravati most definitely did not like that sound. With the light out, the elevator was suddenly less romantic, and more creepy. "Um," she said in a surprisingly squeaky voice. "... I'm not entirely sure." Of course, just as soon as the sound had gone off, Tony had ended up with a lap full of girl, because the sound was creepy. Would the power please come back on? There was no flashlight, and they had no stories, and ... it was dark, and she should not have been afraid. But they were also trapped, and who knew what would happen to them if the power did not come back on in a timely fashion?

"Tell me a story?" she asked against his neck, arms firmly wrapped around it because quite suddenly the fearless Amara was scared. She wasn't powered up, and she couldn't just jump out of there anyway. "Something, anything. Just... whatever will be a distraction. Okay?" She hoped desperately that she didn't sound as panicked as she felt. They were seated as intimately as she could have hoped for in other circumstances, but there was an entirely different feel to this.

Calm. She needed to calm down. Taking in deep breaths, she closed her eyes as if that would make all the difference in the world. "Sorry. I've ... been in tight spaces like this before." And she just would not explain that one. At all. Shuddering a little when the elevator made another noise, she tried to ignore it. Tried to ignore everything but Tony, who was admittedly easy to notice. She was positioned so that she noticed.

Her ankle was aching dully now, and she didn't care. Why care for a little thing like pain, when they were trapped in the dark? It was ... just foolish to be nestled there like that, especially if the power decided to come on anytime soon, but she couldn't help herself. She couldn't think much further beyond 'Oh god, oh god, I am trapped in a metal box'. Before it had been fairly easy, because at first she'd thought the power would come back soon. And then it had been easy because they'd had the flashlight. Now? Not so much so.

When Tony didn't shove her off, and instead responded in a soothing manner, Amaravati calmed just a little. Of course, that was before he started stroking her back like that. Oh dear god, why had he taken it upon himself to be teasing and yet so utterly oblivious? And what was worse was that if he wasn't oblivious, he was ... well, not. Just not. All around not, and Amara should not. There were a lot of no's involved, here. No misbehaving, no moving, no lights, no... flirting. And it was crazy, because she didn't know how to not flirt entirely.

It was like taking out a piece of herself, and it was getting harder to manage. Of course, the fear helped. Sucking in another deep breath, she rested her head briefly against his shoulder, and then sat up. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have... well, all of this. It's just that... I guess I don't like the sounds it makes. And I should be beyond that, but somehow I'm not. Thank you, though. The stories do help."

If only she could bring herself to make some kind of leap here. But leaping could end up with Amara flat on her face. Not in a good way. ... Was there a good way to land that way? No, no there really wasn't. Just when she'd decided to go all independent woman on him, the elevator made a great, ominous creaking sound. "What. Was. That?"

Plastered right back where she'd been before, she turned a little, looking wildly about. It was not as though she could see anything, but it made her feel a little better regardless. The sounds were making her a little ill, and she wondered if anyone out there had bothered to go looking for them. "Do... do your co-workers know that you're in here?" she asked anxiously, pressing back against him, far too distracted by the elevator to realize just what she was doing.

Amaravati really, really did not like those sounds. Really really. Really to the point of almost hyperventilating really. She had never, ever allowed anyone to see her so small, so scared before. Not even her parents. So... why was she now? She could only conclude that it was because of the situation. It was not exactly a normal setting, and things were definitely out of the ordinary here. So far out of the ordinary that she didn't know what to think about them. As hard as it was for her, and as hard as it might be for him, it was still better to be close.

That way, if the elevator made another sou-- Oh GOD, what was that sound? "A-Are... Are you s-sure that it's... just them t-trying to pry the d-door?" Oh god, she was stuttering, she was %*#@ing stuttering, and the shaking hadn't abated. Closing her eyes tightly, she pressed her face into his chest, the sound of her voice somewhat muffled by his clothing. "... Yes, you m-must be right. There's no way it's a-anything else. No way."

He was right, he had to be right, because if he wasn't right, she didn't know what they were going to do. "Don't panic," she told him, the advice very much for herself as well. "We'll be fine." Empty words, but she needed to hear them, regardless. "We'll be... j-just fine." And then they would go look at his collection, and be able to laugh about this, possibly over a cup of tea, or something. Possibly.

She didn't say, though she was thinking, that they might not know where he was. She didn't say that they might have assumed that he was out to lunch, or looking for someone in the Library. She almost laughed, bitterly aware of how pathetic it was that she was contemplating all of these things while wrapped up in a very handsome man's arms. What was she, dead? No, not dead. Just frightened. And wasn't it demeaning that this was all that it took?

Taking in a deep, shuddering breath, Amaravati reminded herself that she was strong, and she was fine, and no #@%#ing elevator was going to take that from her. It helped that Tony was being everything that was soothing and supportive, that he was bolstering her nerves as he did so. His voice was almost hypnotic in quality, if only because it was so steady. The longer she listened to him, the more she believed him. "You're right. It's fine. ... I don't know why I freaked out."

And still was freaking out to an extent. "It's j-just the noises." The darkness didn't bother her, but being in that small space, being cramped and cloistered as she was, that bothered her. She took in some more deep breaths, matching his breathing as well as she could. If she could just do that much, it would be over soon. She swore to herself that it would be over soon.

Letting out a weak little laugh, she added, "I think next time we'll just take the stairs. Simpler that way." And less inclined to getting them stuck in a metal box. ... No, that was a bad line of thinking. A very bad line. It was strange that even in near pitch darkness she could-- or felt she could-- faintly make him out. They were close enough, at least, that she could feel as well as hear his breaths.

"They absolutely have to pay you overtime for this," she said in a rather pitiful attempt at a joke. "You're kind of going above and... and beyond the call of duty, h-here." No, she did not need to stutter. She was all right. She was with Tony. And $#*$it, she was strong. Small places couldn't keep her down, no sir. Except it was so obvious that they could. From the way that he spoke, the crew would be by to pick them up at any time, and she was really okay with that thought. ... Just so long as they didn't lose the box of books.

Pretty young girl. Pretty was a good thing. ... She wasn't so sure about 'young girl', however. Hmmn. Considering the grey in his hair it might well be bad. Then again, why would he say something bad in that context? It didn't make any sense at all! "Yes, well, you'll just have to leave that part out, won't you?" Amara said, clutching at him when the elevator dropped. ... Oh dear. That was... so very not okay. Wow, yeah. She did not like elevators. That was a rather recently developed phobia, but ah well. Fortunately, it came to a stop.

"I can't believe you're getting paid to do this," she said, trying to sound light and unaffected. After all, it was just a little bit of a scare, right? Just some darkness, and an elevator. "Really, I should be having you pay me for the pleasure of my company. ... Except for the part where you're being heroic again. Thank you for that, by the way. I don't know what I would've done if it hadn't been for that." He really was a kind man, wasn't he? Well, she could at least show her gratitude before they got carted off somewhere, assuming anyone came for them.

As it did so, she leaned forward, her lips brushing against his in what was meant to be a brief 'thank you'. ... However, when the lights went on, and the door opened on that, it ended up looking like a lot more. Amaravati pulled back, but it was too late. It was obvious that someone had seen them. It was more obvious just who had seen them. After all of that, it hardly seemed fair that in her single moment of weakness it had been Carol who had found them.

It would have to be Carol, wouldn't it? Amara sighed, and dusted herself off, trying to shift off of Tony without making a production out of it. She had nothing to be ashamed of, after all, no matter what the current icy glares were telling her. ... Okay, maybe not icy. There was something beyond icy in that expression. She would have muttered to herself, but that would have been a little problematic, given that she was in company. So, instead she settled on just getting her things together so that she wouldn't lose them in the elevator (of doom). "We should do something about these books now that the power is back," she said, trying so desperately hard to sound casual.

When they had the box successfully gathered up, Amara walked past the place that Carol had been, trying not to be too embarrassed. "... I'm sorry. I'm not sure what I was thinking. I hope I haven't caused you undue trouble." Which, she was fairly sure, she had. The question was, could Amaravati deal with the embarrassment? ... Probably. Anthony was still good company, and still the most hot Librarian in the history of ever. So, there were some things that she could let slide. They'd been caught in a compromising position, but it wasn't as... compromised as Carol might think. One little brush of a kiss, and everything had gone south.

Wasn't that always the way? It didn't seem fair, really. Well, $#%#. That woman was a terror, and if Amara had been powered up, she would've gone for her starseed. It wasn't entirely out of the question now, except that she was fairly sure that Tony would be very upset if something happened to Carol. ... No matter how annoying or pointed Carol was being. No matter how unreasonably jealous, or any of the rest of it. She made for the stairs, hobbling just a little, her goal clearly in mind. "I still think you should do readings in the Library, Tony."

His voice was nice, and he liked telling stories. "Although if I tell stories here, I think you may fall asleep," she joked, her tone as light as she could manage right now. After the elevator, after the failed kiss... she just couldn't take herself seriously. "Not that I think I'd mind. You probably could use more sleep." Conversation. Conversation was key. If she didn't want him to just vanish, she had to act casual, $@$#it. No matter how not-casual she felt, she had to pretend it wasn't a big deal, and that she wasn't upset. Except, she kind of was.

And it was a big deal. She would never know if he had planned to push her away, or if he had been more open to being kissed. It bothered her, because like all young women, she was more than a little self conscious when it came to putting herself out there. Well, where Tony was concerned. As a general rule? No. But somehow this was different. Perhaps it was because of how he carried himself? "Stairs are better, for sure." It was nice of him to still be apologetic after everything that had happened, but honestly, she didn't feel as though he had to be. None of it was his fault, after all.

The calmer Tony was, the calmer Amara was. So long as Anthony didn't freak out, Amaravati was all right. Mostly, it was her anxious feeling that he would just... tell her to go away, or something, but the more he proved that he wouldn't, the more confident she became. "I'm sure we will. It's not a big deal, anyway." She talked like kissing Librarians was a totally normal pastime, and maybe it was. Maybe more Librarians needed to be kissed, or at least this one did. He sure acted like he didn't, though.

Really, he needed to get out there, or something. Except that that gave Amara a slight twinge, so maybe she wouldn't suggest it to him. Not now, at least. "Heh, it sort of amused me that you all but fell asleep, honestly. You big baby," she laughed, nudging her shoulder against his. She was already leaning on him a little as she walked up the stairs, her other hand firmly gripping the railing. "Honestly, I've never read aloud to anyone before. I think I enjoyed it. Quite a bit, actually." Quite a bit more than she could say.

It was nicer than a lot of things she had done in the past, and gentler than a lot of things she was doing in the present. Overall, it was... good for her. "Maybe I'll come by and read you stories," she teased, the easy camaraderie that they had not quite established before falling into place now. "So, what were you doing when I arrived, by the way? You seemed to be staring into space, and I'm sure that wasn't it."

Because maybe, just maybe she had earned a little bit of gloating. An eensy weensy bit of gloating. At least she had earned the opportunity to discover how he felt about the whole project. "I hadn't realized that you'd replaced the furniture. Is it like the shelves that used to be there? I never did get to see them, you know." If he was savvy, he would catch on to her slips. She apparently didn't realize how obvious she was being, but maybe it didn't matter. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if he knew she'd been the one behind the donations.

Amaravati gave Tony a look, shaking her head. "Not while you're working, no. After work, of course, or if you've got a day off or something. You know, the sort of thing friends do?" Was that the sort of thing friends did, or was she just fooling herself? Possibly a little bit of both, really. "I'll try not to put you to sleep at an inopportune moment, how is that?" A fine compromise! It was sort of amusing that a grown man like Anthony could be lulled to sleep with just the reading of a book. "... And really, I shudder to think of what would happen if, for example, I sang a lullaby."

He might well be toast, if she did. She couldn't bring herself to mind, though. Happy to set the box in its place and move on, Amara turned to the Librarian, an eyebrow quirked contemplatively. "So... on to your collection, as promised? You won't renege on your promise, will you?" That would be absolutely wretched of him. And wretched men didn't get yummy treats brought to them in the Library! Yummy treats such as cupcakes, and cookies, and various other things that she made in her free time.

He was looking at her. He was looking at her with purpose. Why was Tony looking at her, and laughing like that? Hmmn. It bore considering. Except that then he had moved on from looking and laughing to talking. The talking was giving her a little trouble. ... Oh dear. She had been rather obvious, hadn't she? Perhaps she should have waited longer, but she couldn't bear the thought of old beautiful shelves being replaced by nasty metal ones!

"Y-Yes. That's... very odd. What a funny coincidence." Smoothness, thy name is not Amara. Oh dear. Tony had caught on, and she'd let him catch on, and she hadn't meant to. "I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for that." That did not involve her blushing like a $@$&#xin;g stoplight because she'd been caught at it. "So, yes, I suppose that's what you were doing? Installing shelves, and all?" Change the subject, change the subject, change the $%#$ing subject! "Seriously, though. You looked like you'd been hit by a two-by-four." Oh man, let him just let it slide.