Beach Reads Anonymous [OTA]

[welcome_summer]

WHO: Mayuko and other visitors to the library
WHEN: July, pre-mission
WHERE: The Library
WHAT: Book Club and general library things
NOTES\WARNINGS: None


[It’s the Monday after Aurora’s mission announcement. You know what that means!

It’s a good day for Book Club!

Unlike the previous meet-up (meticulously planned out, well-provisioned, advertised), this one is more of a “bumped into people at the library and figured there’s a few hours to kill, why not talk books” get-together. (Not too loudly, it IS a library.) What can be said? It’s been a busy downtime-month.

But maybe you’re looking for the audiovisual section to find a series to binge before the mission. Or ducking out of the hot summer sun for a spell. That’s all good! Just watch out for those starry-eyed bibliophiles in their figurative candy store. They might sell you on the next big summer read.]

Comments

[her_own_rules]

"I hope you don't mind some donations."

This is Barbara appearing in the direction of where the Book Club people are beginning to gather, carrying a just-boiled pot of tea in one hand, a stack of paper cups tied up in a bag under an arm, and on her other hand, balanced, a platter of cookies and snack bars scrounged from the breakroom. Some of them were hers, and some of them were just there. She's sure Harold wouldn't mind the imposition, and she left a note in the two places she took things from, saying she'd have them replaced by tomorrow morning.

"Jason said I should come, and I couldn't help thinking people might like these."

[welcome_summer]

Slightly apart from the group herself, Mayuko is sorting through a stack of books to potentially borrow. Coffee-table art books, photography collections. Texts with visuals to admire, rather than weighty subject matter.

"Donations?" She looks up to see Barbara bringing refreshments. "Oh! That's-- if you're quite all right with it, they'd be a welcome addition."

She leaves the books and clears the way to a nearby table, checking that the surface is unoccupied and chairs are not sticking out.

"I don't know how many people will stop by, but I'm delighted you could join us."

[her_own_rules]

"Absolutely. I'm sure Harold will be, too."

She for the most part is. She'll find out later today possibly. He doesn't always stick his head out ad say hello, but she's already debating asking if they can stock some things in the breakroom specifically for having these types of things ready whenever the book club—or any other groups who decide it's a good place to meet—are holding their meetings.

"What are you looking at today? Easy summer enjoyments?"

[welcome_summer]

"Oh, something along that line," Mayuko replies. "It seems like we'll be engaged in heavy matters this upcoming trip. Rather than grapple in ethics debates beforehand, I'll enjoy the remainder of my summer vacation."

She shuffles one photography book to the top of the pile--something with the vibe of "national parks in all seasons." Heavy on the landscapes, but with select wildlife shots.

"Depending on where we end up, some of these treasures might be nearby as well. It's been so long since I've been able to travel."

[leastdramatic]

Jason sees Barbara coming out with snacks. He had no doubts that she was going to come out to enjoy their company. He walks by and takes a snack bar with nearly the same level of casualness as if he was back at the manor's kitchen and Alfred offered one of his famous baked goods.

"Not a bad entry fee so far," he jokes.

[her_own_rules]

"A girl has to make herself indispensable somehow, doesn't she?"

It's a light, quick quip—all joke, as though Barbara had no skills or talents to speak of in the realm that might make people want to keep her around. Though, perhaps, Librarian!Barbara was still integrating herself into this place, even though it had been a good number of weeks since she had been showing up and doing all of this.

[leastdramatic]

Jason keeps up with the ruse with ease and little thought. It's as easy as slipping into some well-loved shoes.

"Your service will be well-noted," he quips back before taking a bite out of his snack. "We'll even clean up after ourselves."

[her_own_rules]

"How kind of you," she says, smiling and shaking her head.

"Then, maybe after it's all over, I'll just get back to sitting at my desk."



Beat. "Or maybe I'll use the time to pick my own new summer read."

[leastdramatic]

"You mean you haven't already?" Jason says in a purposely exaggerated scandalous tone. "You're behind."

[her_own_rules]

"My newest one, genius."

Obviously, with the summer this far in, and her constancy for being in the building—and not as busy now that she's done building Harold's library computer system—there's all the books around her to pay even more attention to.

"Now it's more about finding something both interesting and that I don't already have memorized."

[leastdramatic]

Jason can't help but snicker. As far as he's aware of, Barbara's memory could almost be a metahuman ability.

"Now there's a challenge," he muses.

Jason Todd | Batman: Wayne Family Adventures | OTA

[leastdramatic]

Once again, Jason is in his happy place. A library has always been a good place for him to simply get lost in the search for a good story or revisit a favorite. Multi-universal hub or not, Etraya's library is no different in that sense.

Jason can be seen perusing the stacks. He's already gone through the fiction and adventure sections and has tucked under his arm copies of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas and Dandelion Wine. Now he's wandered off to the plays and pulls out a copy of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

"Maybe a little too on the nose," he mumbles to himself.

He doesn't look all that bothered though.

[welcome_summer]

Mayuko, in turn, is looking at the subject listings at the end of the shelves as she walks the stacks. She has a few selections picked out but there's always room for one more. She just needs some inspiration.

She almost passes by Jason until she hears part of his comment; backing up, she peers down the row to find her friend.

"What did you find?"

[leastdramatic]

Jason holds up a copy of the play to show Mayuko.

“Some summer reading. Too obvious?” He says lightly.

[welcome_summer]

As she steps up and reads the title, she snickers. "About as subtle as a kick in the shins. Is that the one with the fairy folk in it?"

[leastdramatic]

“Yup. A classic Elizabethan romcom when you think about it,” Jason replies, pleased.

For all of Etraya’s problems, he’s glad he’s made friends with other bookworms at least.

[welcome_summer]

There's nothing like finding a kindred spark where one expects full dark.

"Comedy is part of the classification right there, and of course everyone of note falls in love and gets married by the end. In contrast to the tragedies where everyone dies. Unfortunately, I'm more familiar with that category."

[leastdramatic]

"You should poke more into the comedies," Jason says. "Twelfth Night is a good one and there's a surprising amount you can analyze in there when it comes to gender. Plus, not a lot of people realize Shakespeare sometimes had a raunchy sense of humor."

[welcome_summer]

"I'll think about it... Maybe there are DVDs of performances, or tapes; libraries usually get a good deal on sets and collections from the broadcasters, and Shakespeare is in high demand."

She might be decent at English, but there's only so much help parsing written details from Elizabethan England that the translator can provide. If there's not an audiovisual-equipment section in the library, Mayuko will gladly... put it on her never-ending list of purchases.

She scans the other titles on the shelf, then points at Much Ado About Nothing. Case in point: "... I remember seeing that one when it came out! I liked the female lead."