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 Posted: Tue Oct 22, 2024 5:17 pm
Quote: Characters: Dwayne & Evelyn B. Prompt: Two book lovers in the library before the students arrive.
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Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2024 5:31 pm
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Posted: Tue Nov 19, 2024 10:16 am
  Evelyn had found herself ensconced in the Utopia Academy’s castle walls for only two days, and already found herself quite impressed with everything Marie Gunter had accomplished in such a short amount of time since the war. Establishing a new country, negotiating with the world’s leaders, and having a castle built to house enough people to run a small town, not to mention ensuring enough workers were hired, the logistics of keeping everyone clothed and fed on top of catering to the finicky wealthy that would no doubt be housed here, too…it had been less than a year since the war ended! It was remarkable! It lit a fire in Evelyn’s bones!
Her first day had been spent entirely on moving her things into her new quarters, organizing the rooms to her specifications, and somehow finding the time to eat when she remembered to. Yesterday had been spent familiarizing herself with her classroom, starting lesson plans, and arranging a seating chart based on the students who had confirmed they would be attending.
Now, now she finally got to explore! With a late breakfast done, she asked for directions to, well, where else but the library? Had they already hired a librarian? Did they have enough books? Did they have any she wasn’t familiar with? It was very exciting! Utopia truly felt like such a fresh new start! She was nearly skipping all the way there!
Stepping inside was a delight. The air already had a bit of that old book smell, but the wooden shelves were clearly new and gleaming. At first glance it didn’t appear to be as large as some of Phronese’s more famous libraries, but one couldn’t expect a new country to try to outdo her home so soon, even with as impressively fast as the headmistress had been. Nothing appeared to be labeled yet, and she headed into the rows to start taking notes on titles to get an idea of how everything was organized.
"Hello?"
She paused in the process of starting to take a book down, a little startled to hear a voice ring so loudly in the room. Sir, this was a library!
Oh, right, yes, the academy wasn’t even technically open yet.
Footsteps muffled by the carpeting preceded a towering figure that came into view down the aisle. Evelyn felt her eyes go wide, wide, wide. Oh dear! Was this security? Was she not allowed in here yet? But the servant hadn’t made mention of anything of the sort!
"Is there anything you are looking for?
Oh no, oh no, she was going to be kicked out, wasn’t she!
"Oh, um," she snatched her guilty hand away from the shelf. He was so tall! So broad! He could probably knock her over with his pinky finger! "I’m so sorry, I was just doing a bit of exploring, I can leave if this area is off limits!" ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ location ✎ Library accompanying ✎ Dwayne wearing ✎ dressooc ✎
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Posted: Fri Nov 22, 2024 10:13 pm
  Was she... A student? No, that didn't make sense. The school wasn't open yet. How would a student have gotten access to stay so early? Even if their students would be royalty there were limits to what they could access. Besides, there was a part of him that doubted many of the heirs that were meant to fill these halls wanted to come. Looking past the frilled dress that seemed to make her look younger than she was, he could see this woman was likely closer to his age than that of their students.
"Oh, um, I’m so sorry, I was just doing a bit of exploring, I can leave if this area is off limits!"
Apparently she startled like a mouse. Dwayne could feel the ridge between his brow crease as he tried to figure out what she was talking about. When the realization had dawned on him that this was not, in fact, on the of the future students his next assumption was that she had been sent to speed up the process of documenting the collection. "Off limits? No." The words felt uneasy falling from his mouth, unused to anything like this situation. Apparently it was far easier to be repeatedly punched in the jaw than it was to hold a proper conversation with a woman.
Gods help him.
A muscle in his neck flexed involuntarily as he stood, lumbering and awkward, trying to gauge the situation. "I had assumed you were sent to assist..." Oh drat. Dwayne had no name fore the face in front of him. Nor had he offered his. So much for manners and trying to keep a decent reputation among his peers. Now he could only assume that word of the lumbering oaf from Mars that Marie had let into the library would spread. "Apologies, I didn't catch your name. Or give you mine." His natural instinct was to hold out his hand for a handshake, yet he couldn't seem to find in within himself to do so. So instead he continued clumsily. "Dwayne. Thompson, uh, the librarian."
With the messy excuse for an introduction out of the way, he looked to see what book she'd been about to pull down. "While I would normally ask you not to remove anything until I'm finished cataloging," he started, pulling the large tome out from under his arm. Taking a glance at the shelf, he flipped through to find the page for this stack. Shelf QQ... The pages of his book Ah, there it was. Raising his gaze back to the woman as he snapped the book closed, Dwayne cracked a small smile. "It would appear I have already completed this shelf. Was there anything specific you were looking for? I'd be happy to help. Or even just explain the logic behind the categories to help you browse."
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Library ⊶ Evelyn Beckett ⊶ Fit
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Posted: Mon Feb 10, 2025 6:07 pm
The very broad man’s forehead gained a severe wrinkle, his frown deepening, and Evelyn intertwined her fingers together to forestall any tremors they may make, polite smile frozen on her face like rigor mortis. Maybe, if she was very, very quiet, and went very, very still, he would forget she existed, and overlook her presence. Like a bear! That’s how one dealt with bear encounters, wasn’t it?
"Off limits? No."
Ha, she knew it! So she could stay after all! Her features involuntarily brightened at the confirmation, then she blinked attentively up at him as he continued to speak.
"I had assumed you were sent to assist..."
For a long moment, she did not realize he was fishing for her name, not until he apologized–which! Oh no!!! She was being incredibly rude, wasn’t she! Then her eyes nearly fell out of her head when he introduced himself as the librarian!!!!
How could she have assumed he was a guard! Certainly, he was a very well muscled man who would fit very neatly into such a profession, but look at the cable knit shirt! Guards didn’t dress so casually while on shift! And–look at that, a book tucked under his arm! Oh, if only she had the same observational skills as Herlock Sholmes, she could have spared herself the embarrassment! The only way this could be worse were if he were a mind reader who could hear impolite thoughts! Okay, deep breath, Evy, turn this around! There were few creatures more dangerous than a librarian, and she would ensure she endeared herself to this one!
"No, no, it’s my poor manners that has me barging in here without even introducing myself!" she hurried to assure him as she dipped into a curtsy. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Sir Thompson! I am Evelyn Beckett, the literature professor."
"While I would normally ask you not to remove anything until I'm finished cataloging…It would appear I have already completed this shelf. Was there anything specific you were looking for? I'd be happy to help. Or even just explain the logic behind the categories to help you browse," he offered as he referred to the large book in his hand.
Oooooh, she had caught him in the middle of cataloguing! How very exciting!
"That’s very kind of you, Sir Thompson! I really am only here to do a bit of exploring; I only recently arrived, and wanted to take a gander at the academy’s library! It really is quite impressive thus far–and you’re still in the middle of cataloguing? I would very much like to hear your process–oh, if it won’t be taking up too much of your time! I wouldn’t want to be a bother if you’re busy! In fact, if you need any help, I would be more than pleased to offer you some!"
She beamed up at him, eyes bright. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ location ✎ Library accompanying ✎ Dwayne wearing ✎ dressooc ✎
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Posted: Mon Mar 03, 2025 6:44 pm
Normally, he bristled at the idea of idle conversation. It was always the same trite nonsense. Always the weather and how do you do's with a polite remark here or there without getting on with much of anything. Or, in the case of his Martian brothers and sisters on the war front it was all about some 'insane move' they had seen in battle and attempting to replicate it. There was very little point to it all. Especially in high society where much of it had thinly veiled insults under the guise of a compliment. Frankly, it seemed like a circle jerk. One that had he had never found much pleasure in.
It had been no surprise the the petite woman was shocked to hear that a man like Dwayne was the librarian. What had been a surprise was the way her fear had melted from shock before almost immediately being replaced with giddy excitement at the prospect of listening to his carefully researched cataloging system.
Was it possible this was a kindred spirits of sorts?
The look on her face, one of excitement and anticipation allowed him to hesitantly clear his throat. "I am a man of my word, I would not offer if I did not have the time." A wave of bashfulness rolled over him. It was as if he felt compelled to remind himself at this very moment that he had only ever seen about a dozen books in one place at a time before now, making any sort of categorization a moot point.
Turning toward the entrance of the room, he gestured with the pen in his hand toward the first stacks. "Each of the shelves is labeled. Starting at A and going through the alphabet twice before shifting to a letter and a number. So A, B, C, followed by AA, BB, CC, then A1 and so on. I have started the lowest number shelves by the entryway with the idea that it would be easier for students to, ideally, find what they are looking for by having a starting point and going from there. Books are in the front, with music being held further in the back away from the windows."
As he spoke he gestured with his pen, pointing out the lowest number stacks and making a sweeping gesture back into the great library. All the while, his expression never seemed to soften. Despite his perpetual stony glare, the tone of Dwayne's voice softened as he explained the system his weeks of research had lead him to.
"I have sorted the collection into categories, with each book being labeled into those categories as best we were able to determine. Some never fit quite right into one or the other." It had been a nightmare. He'd enlisted any servant he could fine who could read to assist with skimming or reading books to the best of their abilities to determine the genre of each book. And there many that seemed to fit into several genres if Dwayne squinted his eyes and thought about it. But he wasn't going to dwell on the possible mistakes now, only fix them as they were pointed out to him later.
"Things such as Historical, Philosophy, Fiction. I would be happy to walk you through each category." Nervously, he twirled the pen he'd been using to point in his fingers. There was always the possibility that she was not nearly as interested in this as him. Or worse, she saw a million different flaws that he had simply missed while he was attempting to learn how to manage so many books at once. Somehow he was still able to command his body to make a sweeping gesture, motioning as if it say 'after you'.
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Library ⊶ Evelyn Beckett ⊶ Fit
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2025 8:33 pm
"I am a man of my word, I would not offer if I did not have the time."
His facial expression remained as severe as ever, and yet his tone was…well, it simply wasn’t! Oh, she had completely misjudged this man, hadn’t she? She pressed her palms together to clap her fingers as he began to explain his process, and she inched closer, turning when he did, following the direction of his pen as he pointed to and fro.
"Very modern!" she complimented the system he described, fingers clapping some more.
"Books are in the front, with music being held further in the back away from the windows."
"You even have music?" she gasped, head snapping toward him with all the delight of a dog promised a treat. "This is all so much more than I was expecting in such a short amount of time!"
"I have sorted the collection into categories, with each book being labeled into those categories as best we were able to determine. Some never fit quite right into one or the other."
"A classic conundrum," she nodded sagely, "I struggle even with my little collection sometimes. Do I put Combat and Repose with the classics, or with historical fiction? Or The Infernal Comedy! Poetry? Philosophy? Or fantasy? Do I just make up a new category? I applaud your efforts, sir!"
"Things such as Historical, Philosophy, Fiction. I would be happy to walk you through each category."
Would he! Would she! Oh, she was going to make great friends with this man, she swore it!
"I would be delighted to be walked, sir!" she insisted, so spirited that she bore little thought to hooking her arm under his elbow opposite the book he carried so that he may, indeed, walk her about. "Do tell me, what may be your favorite genre, if you had to pick!" ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ location ✎ Library accompanying ✎ Dwayne wearing ✎ dressooc ✎
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Posted: Tue May 13, 2025 7:28 pm
She had originally seemed scared of him. Looking at his hulking form like it was an oddity among the shelves. In some way, maybe Dwayne was an oddity. It was not particularly usual for a Martian to appreciate the written word quite the way he did. Especially not one that had grown up so poor, where it was pure coincidence that he even knew how to read at all.
Yet her dainty little hands came together in a clap as he explained herself. He petite body inching ever closer to his with each gesture to direct her attention to some part of the library.
It was unusual.
Not in the way that he had never been close to a woman. But in a way that a woman had ever found him inviting for the intellect he had spent so many years attempting to - and succeeding in - hiding from the general public. Normally women sought him out for his persona. The hand crafted thing that his managers had put together for him back in Mars when he was desperate to find a way to survive. And if not that, then the money he had made during that time.
Yet here she was, cooing out compliments and remarks on the research he had put in on modernizing the cataloging and organization of the most books he had ever seen in his life.
Heat crept over Dwayne’s skin, a nervous energy crackling under his dark skin as Evelyn’s small hand came up to grasp the crook of his elbow. Oh gods. Did he even know the first thing about escorting a woman properly?
No.
He was a fool to have offered, but delighted to make a clumsy attempt. ”While it would be a lie to say your compliment does not please me, it would also be one to act like this was all my own doing.” Embarrassment was edging into his tone. A new worry creeped over him as he realized that if she was so pleased with his efforts so far, it would only be that much easier to fall flat on his tour. ”I must humbly confess to be Martian. This sort of unfettered access to books is a new, extremely welcome change. I had to put in a great deal of research to attempt to find an effective method of book sorting, then attempt to adjust it for the largest collection I’ve ever gotten the chance to see.”
Everything about him was stiff as he led Evelyn towards the librarian’s desk that was rooted just a handful of stacks in from the door. Before the tour could properly begin, he needed to deposit the massive log book he’d been toting around. ”I could not have completed such a grand sorting scheme on my own. I think I borrowed every available member of staff who was available and could read to assist.” The statement was said with a small chuckle as he stowed away the large tome.
Once his other arm was free, he brought his hand up and patted the hand of Evelyn’s that was still holding the crook of his arm before awkwardly making a fist and ultimately gesturing them forward. ”That all being said, the most access I’ve had to books are a handful of scattered war tomes, martial arts fantasies, and rather graphic wartime historical fiction I did not find myself a fan of. If you have any recommendations from your own favorites, I will happily accept them. I am looking to expand my horizons.”
He’d guided them back to the front doors, wanting to start from the very beginning to explain the logic that this delightful little creature seemed to enjoy. ”Starting from the very top: as I mentioned before, the lowest numbered stacks begin at the front doors for ease of use by the students. I plan to use this section to highlight popular books or anything that is relevant to current lesson plans. I did have to take a poll of those who assisted with organization to determine what books would be displayed here first. I was hoping it would… Encourage more reading.”
Once again embarrassment licked at his cheeks, making Dwayne feel all too warm. What would she think of his attempt at baiting nobility into reading? The more he thought about it, the more it felt like he was a small, fragile boy trying to convince a giant that reading was really not so bad once more.
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Library ⊶ Evelyn Beckett ⊶ Fit
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Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2025 6:49 pm
”While it would be a lie to say your compliment does not please me, it would also be one to act like this was all my own doing,” the large man told her modestly, gaze not quite meeting hers. ”I must humbly confess to be Martian.”
As the youth liked to say, the gasp she gusped! Quite embarrassed with herself, she covered her mouth with her other hand, wide eyes gaining more and more sparkle to them as he went on to describe some of the work he had done to prepare for his new career, never failing to mention those who he had gotten to help him in the process. The poor dear didn’t seem to understand that all this only made his efforts all the more impressive!
"I must say, Sir Thompson," she began delicately as he set his book down on what was presumably the librarian’s desk, "that your modesty is quite humbling. It sounds to me that a man moved against all odds to see out his passion, and succeeded. A library of this size isn’t something that can be made by anyone’s lonesome, but that you were able to organize and get the help you needed speaks well to your management skills!"
Evelyn would have gone on, but the man had gained a peculiar look to his face that she finally, belatedly, realized may be embarrassment. Right, she may have been too enthusiastic…for most of this conversation! Time to change course, lower the sails a little, or somesuch.
He was quite willing to speak of what books he had typically read up to this point, and not to be prejudiced about it, but they were, quite frankly, probably the most Martian writing she’d heard of to date! Not that she knew much of Martian literature, but the stereotypes she was aware of seemed very prevalent! It had her stifling a giggle behind her hand. Still, the martial arts fantasies sounded interesting...maybe she could borrow one off him to see what they looked like.
”If you have any recommendations from your own favorites, I will happily accept them. I am looking to expand my horizons.”
"I would love to provide them! In exchange, you should let me crack open one of those martial arts fantasies–adventurous stories are among my favorites, and just the genre name alone sounds fun!" she insisted, leaning in with renewed enthusiasm. "Now, I don’t have access to all of my personal collection right now, but I did bring with me an absurd amount of romance and adventure novels that I had been meaning to catch up on, if you may like to start with one of those!"
When he showed her the shelves near the front door and explained his intentions for them, she made an excited noise in the back of her throat, patting his arm with the speed of a hummingbird wing. "Ohhh, that’s so clever, and so helpful! Would you mind if I brought you a list of what books I intend to go over this school year? It was already on my list of things to do to speak with the headmistress to collaborate with the academy’s librarian, but breezing past the middleman seems much more efficient of everyone’s time, don’t you agree?"
Looking up at him expectantly, she waited patiently for only a beat before it occurred to her to add: "Oh, and even better, if there’s any on the list you haven’t read yet, it can give you an excellent headstart on some Phronesian classics!" ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ location ✎ Library accompanying ✎ Dwayne wearing ✎ dressooc ✎
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Posted: Wed Aug 13, 2025 7:03 pm
There was a string that came with the sharp gasp that escaped her at his confession of his nationality. One that settled under his skin and had the shame of Mars’ actions during the war bubbling to the surface. Of course she would be shocked. Anyone would. He’d spent years being berated by his countrymen for his bookish interests. Why would someone who had watched those horrors from the other side react in any other way?
Maybe that was what made her small speech about his accomplishments all that much more surprising. A large hand came up, covering his mouth thoughtfully as he attempted to digest what she was saying. Admitting that a Phronesian would also need the assistance? It settled something he didn’t know was needling under his skin.
”Lady Beckett,” His voice was gentle as his hand dropped away from his face. ’I simply don’t wish to… Well, I suppose I am trying to be realistic in my abilities. I have spent much of my life being shamed for the joys books brought me. This is outside of my normal skill set and I don’t wish to make it seem like I know more about what I am doing than is true. If that is humble, it’s not entirely intended.”
What he was intending was actually that she didn’t look at him and think he was a stupid barbarian play-acting at library management. Dwayne had put a significant amount of research and effort into the way he had organized the library, and to have the first teacher come in to look over his work was intimidating. The fact that she was impressed was incredibly flattering.
Almost as much as her willingness to try some of the books he had spent most of his life reading. A small smile cracked through his perpetually stony exterior. ”I would be happy to lend you a copy of The Illeiad by Omar. It was a childhood favorite of mine, though I fear it’s possible you may have read it before.” It was fairly common knowledge that Omar was not a full Martian, something that explained his willingness to pen epic tales. At least when he was a child, most commoners of his homeland were not taught to read. Tales were often passed along orally.
A small fact that made his old, beaten copy of the tale worth all the more to him. ”If you are still interested, I would be happy to exchange books and read something of your choice while you read it. I don’t happen to have my copy on my person at this time, but I would be happy to bring it with me tomorrow.” He was fishing to be able to see the excitable little thing on his arm again. She’d charmed him so thoroughly in the handful of minutes they had spent together that he knew he wanted to see her again given the chance.
Once again her enthusiasm for his ideas had his face warming and his heart skipping. It had seemed like such a minor thing when he had thought about it. Surely royalty would be taught something in a book. They felt like such a luxury it made sense. But the fact that she’d made such a cute noise before excitedly patting his arm had him feeling smug.
”I was only trying to follow what I thought would be logical. I am pleased that you would judge my efforts so highly.” Once again in this conversation, he found himself thankful that his skin was so dark as it hid the way his face felt like it was heating under her praise. Would anyone else find his attempt to assist without asking as helpful? Or be half as charming about it?
Unfortunately, that didn’t mean he knew how to navigate how charmed he was by her.
”Now, if you would like, I can show you the section where we keep the records.” He made a sweeping gesture towards an area in the back of the library away from the windows. After all, they were meant to be on a tour.
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Library ⊶ Evelyn Beckett ⊶ Fit
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