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 Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 10:47 am
 Where: A bookstore, The Royal Book Emporium, in New Hemisect City
When: Mid-evening, the moon is just starting to move up into the sky.
Why: In which Mutuna is found near a questionable section at the bookstore, only to be watched by a intrigued troll.
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 11:34 am
The Royal Book Emporium, as usual, was bustling with activity. Yet as the biggest bookstore in all of New Hemisect City, that was to be expected. Not only was it the largest bookstore chain, but it also sold the biggest variety of things. It wasn’t just books that trolls bought there. They could pick up a number of things: books, dvds, music, even stationery and writing supplies. There was something in the emporium for every troll, and it was precisely this that led a young orangeblood to frequent the store almost every time she came into the city. After all – what was a trip to New Hemisect without a stop to The Royal Book Emporium?
Mutuna Essoan was an avid reader, as one could tell from not just the book in her hand, but her overall looks as well. Oval-shaped glasses sat on the bridge of her nose giving her an automatic intellectual (or nerdy, depending on how you looked at it) appearance. Her thick black hair was also tied in a side braid, dangling off to the right of her head. If that wasn’t enough, the layered clothes that she wore would also give it away. Active trolls – those involved and sports in the like, probably wouldn’t bother with so many layers of clothing. It’d be too cumbersome and warm, but not for Mutuna. She enjoyed her style; it went well with her personality.
In the emporium on that particular day, the orangeblood could be found in the relationship section of the bookstore. In her hand she held a book up to her face that her eyes were skimming over. It was entitled Cupid’s Arrow: How to Woo the Troll of Your Dreams, and although the female troll’s eyes glanced over the page, there was something off, something distant about them. In actuality, Mutuna wasn’t paying attention to the book at all. Rather, she was pondering something – a very important question in her mind: should she, or should she not, pick up some new hentai comics for her collection. Alas, it was the dilemma of the century.
"I really wish you wouldn’t read such things, Mutuna," came a voice from behind her. Almost immediately, a frown tugged the troll’s lips downward, and she expelled a sigh. Leave it to her lusus to say such disapproving things. Turkeydad, her cow-sized bird of a lusus, naturally hovered nearby. He could never be found too far from his young troll charge. At 6.46 Alterian solar sweeps, Mutuna was far too young to be reading such material in the lusus’ mind. Regardless, that didn’t seem to stop her, and if anything she had Turkeydad to blame. "You’re one to talk," she commented back in return, her voice a quiet whisper, "gobbling at the most inappropriate times. I get it from you."
With this in mind, the young troll had made up her mind, it seemed. Closed was the book that she was reading, only for her to put it back in its proper place. Once she had returned it back to its original space, Mutuna then sucked in a large breath of air, as if she were preparing herself for something big, and then reached a hand out to the adult section shelves. She didn’t even have to think about what she wanted. The girl already knew, and she grabbed a few mature comics without any hesitation whatsoever. Finished with her mission, Mutuna couldn’t help but give her lusus a rebellious gaze before she made her way over to the cash register. The line, unfortunately, was relatively long, but this didn’t really bother her. Thank God for the patience she got from Turkeydad.
The hard part – actually grabbing the books – was over. Now all she had to do was wait to pay. Piece of cake!
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 6:27 pm
It was a shame that the streets were so alive already. Every time Aprife opened his notebook to write down some particularly juicy tidbit, fingers froze and his eyes snapped to the bottom of the page. The last page, the last few lines. Heaving a dramatic sigh, he would snap the book shut again, tucking it under his arm. It was very unlike the self-proclaimed meticulous note taker to run so low on supplies, but time and circumstance had left him distracted. A new neighbor had moved into the communal hive stem recently, which meant quite a bit of pestering was in order. At least this last notebook and half of one other had been dedicated to learning everything there was to know. By the time he stopped long enough to realize it, all that was left was one back-of-a-page. He needed to get to the bookstore today before he was left with nothing. This was an important mission!
Rounding the last corner before The Royal Book Emporium--the biggest, best place to find paper products on sale--he just so happened to spot the very object of the past few days' inspection coming out of a small, boutique-like store along the strip. Narrowing his eyes, he watched the unaware neighbor as she tucked a paper bag into her larger shoulder bag, glanced around once, twice, and shuffled off down the street. Well, well, well... Tossing a glance over his shoulder to make sure she was actually gone, he stepped up to the storefront. In the window were many unusual things, hanging, flickering, smoking. This was the place that always had that sweet-spicy smell wafting out into the street whenever he was lucky enough to be walking by when someone pushed through the door. So that was why there was always a pleasant scent in the air whenever he and the neighbor had their windows open at the same time. Candles or incense, he wasn't sure which, but he liked it. The grin was immediate.
"I seeee…" he drew out, catching the attention of a few trolls nearby with his loud, thoughtless voice. Untucking the sacred, last notebook, he actually let his hand work at the page this time. 'New neighbor likes the' He stopped and looked up momentarily. 'Smokey Prophet store.' The pen scratched to a halt with only two lines left on the page. It was a good thing the Emporium was just at the end of the strip.
Pushing his pace into a jog, he found himself inside the familiar store in no time. It took everything he had to keep from butting into the nearest conversation. "Did they move the notebooks again?" he asked loudly, but to no one in particular. Most of the staff had taken to ignoring Aprife since he became a regular customer. Wandering closer to the back of the store, he soon began to realize that this just wasn't right. He would have to head back up front. Turning, he caught sight of a not so immediately unusual troll stopped at a shelf. She was speaking to her Lusus. He couldn't understand. Frowning ever so slightly, he pulled the pen back out of his pants pocket. Neither of them paid him any heed, he was no more than another customer.
'Nerdy troll reading' He could barely make out the cover from here, even while trying to nonchalantly crane his neck. Cupid's…? How to Woo…? 'strange book over by the mature section.' The period he drew was stretched out into a line as he felt the last rush that came with finishing off a notebook. He supposed this was as good a way as any. Flipping the cover closed, he pushed the uncapped pen quickly into his pocket, jabbing himself in the hip. Without looking back, he went to find what he came for.
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 6:46 pm
The patience she inherited from her lusus aside, it was as Mutuna stood in the never-ending line that she realized why long queues were the bane of her existence. They meant all the more lectures from Turkeydad.
"Trolls your age should not be reading those books, Mutuna," he squabbled, puffing out his wings in slight annoyance. "You’re just a young chick, only 6.46 sweeps old!" Yet the bird’s words seem to fall on deaf ears. His young charge stood silent in response, her mouth unmoving and her eyes gazing forward. If she didn’t acknowledge him, then he wouldn’t keep badgering her. All she had to do was wait until it was her turn in line. Then the two of them could leave, head back out to the plains, and go home. Piece of cake – easy peasy – nothing to it. Unfortunately, things were never that easy with Turkeydad. He was way too nitpicky.
"Would you shut your lusus up, kid," came a voice from a gruff-looking greenblood adult that was in line ahead of her. Awkward, and clearly embarrassed by being called out by another troll, Mutuna hugged the comics she was purchasing close to her chest to hide the covers while casting her head downward. When in doubt, just put your head down; that’s what Turkeydad told her. "Sorry…" she murmured back quietly in return, more to herself then anyone else. When the greenblood turned around, the orangeblood child gave her lusus a quick bonk on top of his little head. This was followed by a stern 'you-almost-got-me-into-trouble' expression. The fowl seemed to quiet down at the sight of his troll’s face. It was clear that she wasn’t happy, but he could lecture her later on the way home.
The two of them just wanted to make it out of the bookstore in one piece. To ensure this, troll and lusus both lulled into a spell of silence as they made their way forward. Step by step, closer and closer they got to the register, yet it still seemed to be many sweeps away.
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 7:35 pm
With a stack piled seven or eight high, there wouldn't be much need to come back here for a while. That's what most would assume. Aprife, however, could easily power through this tiny handful in no time. It was simply that after digging through his pockets, this was all he could afford. Arms full, he shuffled back and forth at the end of the line. This was going to take forever. And it's not as if he could just crack open these babies without paying for them to write down all the little nuances of the snuffling younger troll in front of him who probably had a cold or something. Or... could he? Maneuvering them all to one arm, he tried to reach around to the pocket with the pen. Okay, so he had done this the wrong way. Grunting lightly, he shifted all the books to the other arm this time. There we go. Just as he was pulling the pen from his pocket, he heard- Wait, what was that? A gobble?
Forgetting the notebooks and pen for a moment, he stood on his toes. It was that Lusus! The big turkey! He could see the tail plumage jutting up over the crowd. For a moment, he fidgeted. Leaving his place in line would mean waiting all over again. There were already at least five new customers gathered behind him. But... That Lusus was making such a racket. There was no way he wouldn't be curious. A groan, a foot tap, a bit more shuffling. That was it, he had to see. Slipping out of line, he cringed slightly when he saw the trolls behind him move up to fill his space.
"Would you shut your Lusus up, kid." Aprife's lips pursed at the sound of the voice and, for the shortest of moments, he almost turned around and went back to what would be his new spot at the end-end of the line. But he didn't. As was like him. He just grinned and kept walking. Peeking around the cow-sized Lusus, he watched the nerdy troll girl from before as she pulled her books closer to her chest. The corner of his lips slipped down just a bit.
"Whatcha got there?" he asked as he revealed himself and slid up next to her as if it were completely normal. The smile had returned tenfold. He could already feel the disapproving auras of the grownups who thought he was trying to line-jump, but until someone started to complain, he didn't plan on moving. "Booooks?" It was more of a statement than a question. He figured they both already knew the answer.
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Posted: Fri Dec 02, 2011 5:31 pm
"Whatcha got there," came a voice from a troll that she didn’t recognize. "Boooooks?" The troll that snuck up to stand next to her was a yellowblood, by the looks of it. His horns curved up and outward, and his hair was fashioned in thick, small dreadlocks. A big smile was plastered on his face, and just from looking at him, she knew that he knew the answer. Of course, she wanted to tell him. What else would it be? But she wasn’t that sarcastic of a troll. The least she could do was throw this kid a bone.
"Of course," Mutuna explained, matter-of-factly. Curious as to where this troll came from, the orangeblood glanced behind her shoulder slightly, only to meet the gaze of several disgruntled adult trolls. "He’s with me." This came as a quick, calm counter to the disapproving looks of the adults. While she had no idea, initially, who on Alternia this kid was, then at least she could pretend like she did. Better to do that and save him a chance of being culled.
Next to her on the right, the girl’s lusus gave the young male troll a long, hard look with his monocled eye. After assessing the lad, he gave a satisfied nod. "He seems harmless enough," Turkeydad gobbled, "a bit nosy, but that’s not all that bad. It could be worse." Mutuna chuckled at that. Turkeydad was right; it could be worse. Dealing with nosy individuals wasn’t as bad as dealing with others – a hostile highblood with a bone to pick, for example. The line started to move more fluidly after the lusus spoke to his charge. The bespectacled troll found herself taking a few steps forward, and with a casual expression she told the yellowblood at her side, "Mutuna. Mutuna Essoan. And you are?"
If she were going to pretend like she knew this troll, she’d at least have to learn his name. Why not play along while she had the chance?
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Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2011 8:59 pm
A brow quirked, half-hidden under heavy hair. Such a blatant, simple response. And in defense of some guy who just happened to show up out of no where to butt into her business. For a moment, Aprife found himself thinking that this girl was pretty slick. His smirk showed it. Though he did hide the look long enough to cast his own glance back at the other patrons. One of them caught his attention with their eyes, but the only thing they received in return was a mirthful narrowing of his own eyes and a mess of hair as he turned forward again. Aprife was sure that this girl's bluff had earned him a quicker check out and he wasn't about to give that up. The counter felt exponentially closer now.
"Of course, of course," he responded, a bit slow, but a response nonetheless. It wasn't as if he were actually expecting her to start spouting off the names and full summaries of said books. Before he had a chance to inquire further, her lusus began to gobble again, more sounds he couldn't understand. The corners of his mouth slipped down into a slight pout. So many things he could be missing out on. The notebooks in his arms were shuffled around again as he tilted his head towards the conversation. It didn't do squat to help his understanding, but there wasn't much of anything he wasn't willing to try at least once. He only leaned back when she began to speak, as if the surprise of her returning voice made him think he had been caught.
"Oh, me?" There was a pause as he again surveyed his surroundings. "Aprife Invasi's the name." Surprisingly, as if cautious of the people around them realizing they were just now making with the friendly introductions, his voice had lowered rather noticeably. It probably didn't help that it was only down what most trolls would consider a normal level. Not that it lasted long. The next moment he opened his mouth, his voice came out as loud and grating as ever. "So, Muuutuna…" He could almost feel the stares drilling into the back of his head as he drew out her name with an inflection that almost sounded like he really meant to turn around to the crowd and say 'ha ha ha, deal with it.' "Those books." He gestured with his free hand. "Anything interesting?"
Sure, they were probably interesting to her. Why else would she be waiting in this gog awful line? That didn't stop him from wanting to know if any of them happened to be that book she had been looking at earlier or even one that had something to do with why she was loitering so dangerously close to the mature section. His eyes wandered down to the collection in her hands, just in case she happened to pull them away from her body long enough for him to search for titles or cover art.
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Posted: Fri Dec 09, 2011 3:11 pm
"Aprife Invasi’s the name."
Invasi. That sounded a lot like the word ‘invasive’. Mutuna made a mental note of his name, and then proceeded to pull out a small, moleskin book filled with tabs of various colors. After she pulled it out, she flipped to a yellow tabbed page. Instead of a weekly planner, this page was lined with regular lines as a normal sheet of paper would be. In the top right corner the simple word "Notes," could be seen written in Alternian. A bunch of notes were already written down on the page, all of them neat and organized in small, cursive handwriting – some of them even going so far as to being highlighted or color-coded. Mutuna wrote down his name without hesitation and added the note – 'met at RBE,' to help her remember where she encountered this newfound companion.
Once she was finished, the girl closed her planner with a snap! A few of the other trolls looked her way when she shut it, but the troll child didn’t seem to notice, or if she did, she frankly didn’t care. The stares of other trolls were something she learned to faze out after a while. Let them look and let them stare. She didn’t really care so much. Staring didn’t hurt. It was the name-calling, the physical jabs, and the invasion of privacy, however that got to her. Invasion of of privacy, much like Aprife was trying to do. With a simple gesture of his hand, he was already trying to get information out of her; none of which she was happy or eager to oblige.
"Nothing really," she admitted coolly, her yellow eyes flicking over to meet with his. If Aprife was looking for a glimpse of the cover art or titles of the book, he wasn’t going to be getting any anytime soon, for the orangeblood pressed them even tighter to her body the moment she replied. What books she was buying were her business and hers alone. There was no way on Alternia she was going to tell him the truth – that the books were actually the latest in mature Alternian comics. All about filling pales and having all sorts of intimate relationships with matesprites and kismesises and things like that. Who knows what he or other trolls her age would think if they found out she was interested in such pervasive topics? They’d judge her for sure. "It’s just books on gardening and such."
Finally, her time had come. She had officially reached the counter. The troll in front of her completed his purchase, yet not before grumbling about the long waits, and quickly stomped out of the building. Mutuna’s eyes sparkled with happiness and relief. After all of this waiting, she had finally got to the front of the line. "I’d like to purchase these, please," she told the store clerk smoothly. After placing the two books on the counter, she didn’t even hesitate to pull out her bag of grubs. While she was in line, she had calculated the precise amount that the two books together would cost, and she handed the currency to the cashier. "Thank you," Mutuna went on to say, not even bothering to wait for the receipt to be printed or the books to be put into bags. She didn’t need bags to carry her books in, for she had one of her own, and she scooped the books off of the counter without a second glance. The sooner they were out of the public eye, the better. With the books safe and sound in her bag, which Munna slung over her shoulder, she didn’t have to worry. Her secret was safe, and the prying eyes no longer mattered.
Thank Gog.
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Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2011 1:40 pm
When her response wasn't immediate, Aprife found himself up on his toes, wobbling back and forth slightly with the extra weight of the notebooks in one arm, as little as it was, throwing off his usual balance. He was getting fidgety. The longer she held out, the more he began to think there was some kind of amazing reason for it. Chalk it up to one shameless, untamed imagination. As she reached into her bag, he leaned shakily in her direction again, as if pulled by some invisible force of nosiness to try and see what she was going for. This time, to his internal pleasure, he didn't have to guess.
Eyes were wide and growing ever wider as he dropped back flatly, all the way onto his feet. There was no effort made to hide the fact that he was gawking. By now, most of his tact had gone flying out the window. "What's that…" he muttered under his breath, not really meaning it as a question at all. If she heard it, he would have been surprised. Perhaps even more surprised than he was now as he noticed the neatly penned symbols slowly forming into his name. No way, she kept notes on other trolls, too? Most seemed to think it was weird. Aprife was mentally commending her on such an interesting hobby as he pulled his own notebooks a bit tighter to his side.
Laughing, he turned his gaze back to the line as she closed the book and filed it away again. The sound almost died in his throat when she spoke again. "… Nothing really?" Humming to mask the disappointment, he watched her set her books on the counter, blocking his view from them with the way she was standing. Gardening, huh? That was… anti-climactic. He hadn't pegged her the gardening type. Not that it really mattered. He had just gotten his hopes up, just assumed that because she had been so close to the mature section, she had something to hide. After she had packed her things away, he dejectedly dropped his own on the counter.
"Sure did," was the auto-response to the cashier when asked if he had found everything okay. When the total popped up on the register, he had to dig deep into his pockets to make up enough to pay. "That's… cool." It seemed like he was finally continuing the conversation with Mutuna from earlier as he took the two plastic bags and turned away from the counter. Not the most eloquent or interested response, but he grinned anyway. It was a practiced look.
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