December Library Catch-All [ OPEN ]

[aimsforknees]

WHO: John, Harold, and anyone who might find themselves at the Library
WHEN: December
WHERE: The Library!
WHAT: The Library is here and open to all! Come borrow books, find a comfy chair to relax in, or snoop around.
NOTES\WARNINGS: Will be added as they come up

The Library is a five-story neoclassical building of terra cotta, brick, and stone. And the inside is, in fact, a library! And rather clean and organized too. There's no dust, no muddy footprints (apart from your own), and all the shelves are organized by Dewey Decimal, subject, and author. All literature is something you might find in a 2010 New York City library: various forms of fiction, children's and teens' sections, history, science, cooking, gardening, the list goes on. There's even small sections of audiobooks on compact disks and of DVDs ranging from old classics to history shows. The first floor has a reading/study room, a comfortable space with deep armchairs and tables with chairs; the fifth floor has some smaller tables clustered under a skylight. Part of the second floor is abruptly closed off by a door with a biometric scanner that denies entry to anyone who isn't John Reese or Harold Finch; the walls surrounding this section are soundproofed, so even a keen listener won't hear anything from inside. Otherwise, it's a perfectly normal library!

Comments

[nobraincell]

[Vincent, Vincent......]

Oh, you're the one who can't throw snowballs.

[A pause.]

Sorry, I'm not good with faces. [And then he hefts the book stack.] Are these yours?

[banworthy]

I guess that is one way to remember me.

[ He nods along - got it.

Rather than not being memorable, the man can't remember faces. Okay. ]

I threw them, but I didn't want them... so, I guess I don't know the answer.

[nobraincell]

[Oh, so he tossed them...Chu Wenshan makes a face almost resembling disapproval. It's a little hard to tell.]

You shouldn't toss books around. Especially if they aren't yours.

[banworthy]

What if these are everyone's books?

[ He holds his arms out to the whole library. ]

I can't claim ownership when you technically also have ownership, right?

[ He's ... testing... something. ]

1/2

[nobraincell]

[He pauses at that. Like actually physically stops moving.

...They're everyone's books...so they're also his books?]

2/3

[nobraincell]

[But if they're his books, shouldn't he know what they are? But if they're everyone's books also, then it'd be more like sharing? But--]

[nobraincell]

..........I don't remember owning any of these.

[His head's practically steaming...]

1/2

[banworthy]

[ Ok.

That had about as much success as he believed it should. ]

[banworthy]

Anyway, let's forget about that --

[ He waves his hand. Look - the topic's gone. ]

-- I'm rethinking my choice of not having you train me.

[nobraincell]

[--Oh! A subject he actually understands!]

You changed your mind? I'm always open for that, if that's the case.

[It's not like he has a schedule! Or a job?]

[banworthy]

Yes, I realized I might need to run in my life.

[ Spoken plainly. ]

I get the feeling if I work with you that I won't suffer if I have to run, again.

[nobraincell]

So you need to build up your legs.

[A nod.]

The best way to improve your running is to run more often. We can start right now if you want.

[Right here! In the library!]

[banworthy]

Somehow, I knew that'd be the answer, but I still hate --

[ Wait. ]

-- here?

[nobraincell]

Yes.

[Wait.]

...Around the outside?

[He is learning!]

[banworthy]

Guess we should do that --

[ He crosses his arms. ]

-- but it's cold and what if we slip?

Or do you have some manner in which to avoid that?

[ Maybe they SHOULD run around inside. ]

[nobraincell]

It won't be cold once you've done enough running.

[Logic!]

As for slipping...just avoid anything slippery. Or get back up and keep running.

[Or run inside?]

[banworthy]

I can't refute that because I don't run that much.

[ LOGIC?! ]

Or we could run inside.

[nobraincell]

[Give him a moment to look around...there's probably enough room to run around the inner perimeter of the library, right? They might have to dodge the occasional chair or desk, but that's better than messing up the bookshelves (he'd have no idea how to clean them up).]

That could work. Alright then, let's do ten laps around the building. [He'll even be polite and keep pace with you!]

[banworthy]

[ Great. They got their track and - hm - he has to figure out a way to make this transaction a little more even. Covering his mouth, he thinks about it sincerely.

Is he gaining anything? Kind of. Does he want to be gaining this? Not really. If he were in any other situation, would he be humoring this idea? No.

So, it's a high-risk, low-return investment. ]

Okay. [ Hm! ] We figured out the track but my ankle's a little... sprained. Are you able to do anything about that? Or is this going to be a slow run for ten laps? [ Because if someone's training him, he should ask them to help him in this manner. It's all part of the high-risk, low-return investment that he's putting himself in. If it were any other situation, he might bite someone who tries to help him with his sprained ankle. ]

[nobraincell]

[...

......

.........]

...How well can you walk on it?

[tinflower]

[ Hello, pair. Did you know you're in a public library?

There wasn't a person when Wenshan looked around, but now there is, coming from around one of the bookshelves at the end of the aisle that brings them into theirs. It's a 6'6" half-orc, for whatever that might mean for either of them: green-skinned, eyes black with yellow pupils and a stub nose, and build lanky underneath modern clothing. He has a book in his hand that hangs at his side, and he stops. Stares at the pair.

Looks at Wenshan specifically, but isn't ignoring Vincent as he swaps the hand his book is in, and slowly begins to raise that empty hand in mid-air... ]

...Is this a bad time?

[ That is the voice of a young man. A teen.

hello. ]

[banworthy]

I got here, didn't I?

[ Which is a mixture of determination and his refusal to accept any help? Could he go to the hospital and maybe get assisted? Yes. Will he? No. He'll limp on it until it becomes a permanent feature of his gait or it will heal itself. ]

Huh?

[ Well, it isn't like the half-orc is easy to ignore or not notice. Although he thinks it would be very funny to pretend not to, he's already acknowledged him by shifting slightly and looking in his direction. So, point to the stranger. ]

Do you need some help? Possibly with finances? I have oodles of knowledge about it.

[nobraincell]

[Chu Wenshan was just about to approve of Vincent's determination when...oh! Green friend!

Without bothering to confirm it's the correct green friend or explain anything to Vincent, he simply says,]

I'm ready if you are.

[tinflower]

[ The question of finances perplexes Gorgug, in a way that might be initially visible, even though he's already wearing a somewhat curious expression that only shifts slightly. And it does so again, when he regards Wenshan with his answer.

He nods, and puts a hand on the goggles atop his head, but looks back at the other human-looking guy as he requests, ] Please duck.

[ Gorgug gives Vincent a second or two, before the goggles come down over his eyes. And in the same instance, Gorgug flicks out his hand out towards Chu Wenshan to send a bolt of electricity straight for the man with the same speed that one expects lightning to drop.

A baby lightning bolt. For whatever that's worth.

(rip the books behind Wenshan if it hits them.) ]

[banworthy]

What? [ Shifting, he looks towards Chu Wenshan. ] What? [ His eyes snap back to the half-orc. The perplexed expression stays just long enough to process what is being said to him.

And he ducks immediately.

To his credit, or rather he says to his credit, he doesn't throw his arms over his head. There's only so much that he'll allow, really, in a situation that he barely understands what is happening. ]