2020-01-25 - The Impossible Library

"...this holiday creep is really getting out of control," Isabella Reede mutters quietly as she looks at all the Valentines' Day decorations that are already on sale.

She's dressed warmly for the weather, but thanks to one Lilith Winslow, her movements are unencumbered. With a package from a local bookstore in one hand, she would have passed by the brick facade and white stone steps entirely were it not for her natural predilection to note changes in personal space; these were not there before and curiosity has her pausing to note it, looking towards the stairs leading up.

"This is new," she murmurs, taking a few steps up and opening the door.

Nicole is out and about on this cold day, bundled up in her -actual- winter jacket instead of the leather. It's still black though; one of those slightly puffy ones. She wears a black beanie on her hair, complete with pom, her ever-present black and white skull print scarf, and gloves. With her black jeans and black combat-style boots, she looks as if she might be trying to blend in with the shadows, if it weren't for the cascading waves of summer-blonde hair draping down from under the beanie.

She's doing some shopping today, mostly window shopping though she does have a bag or two in her hand. She stops in front of this library. The building itself has an aesthetic appeal to her, reminding her of some old-style architecture she enjoys, and the doors look inviting. She's curious about the sign, and has been known to enjoy a good book, so heads on in to escape the cold and satiate her inquisitive nature.

Grant wanders on with Isabella as she comments on Valentine's Day holiday creep singing to himself in teh styling of there should be a 2 drink minimum before hand,

"I'll never mark them down though I might sell out
It's only 'cause I need holiday cash, oh
So I creep, yeah, just creepin' on,"

Yes he can groove out to some TLC mocking the abundant commerce vehicle. The skatepunk's wry grin holds amused following and not payting at all attention to where they are headed, "Look the war on Christmas went like this. We said give us back November and they had a pouty and said 'Nnnnnnu!' soooo the other Holidays got together and said fine, we all get leadup for whatever by an extra month too. So nothing is a day anymore and everyone's spazzin but Rosh Hashanah. That one's just chillin out like sup! Enjoy the fasting, bruh. We got couscous , you'll be fine." Seeing Nicole he grins warm, lucid today, "Suuuup Niiiicole. I was just calling you tomorrow. How's living?" Yeah yeah the roots are coming in not-violet. This is getting fixed.

It is probably not very strange to find a lawyer checking out a library -- even if the library is suddenly there and not actually any sort of library that the lawyer who has lived in Gray Harbor all his life knows about. Things are weird here, and it's probably not the weirdest thing to happen today, even. He stops in his tracks, examining the brick wall for anything else, before he looks over at the others who have stopped to look closer well.

"Is this a pop up or something?" he asks, looking from Isabella to Nicole, then Grant as well. He turns back toward it when the former opens the door, craning his neck a little bit to try and see inside.

She laughs at what her (distant) cousin says about Christmas, Isabella's elbow giving him a playful nudge. "Did you ever think about auditioning for Drunk History?" she asks him with a wink. "Because I think you could definitely take over the show." There's another bright expression of greeting when Nicole wanders in. "Hey, you, I haven't seen you since Mount Baker, how's tricks?" And then, a more concerned expression slips over her expressive face. "How's Joey? I heard he got hurt over something weird at the movies?"

Beth exits her car parked in one of the neat little squares next to the street and walks around the backside of her vehicle to step up onto the street. She stops when she notices the out of place library. Her head tilts back a little and her brow raises ever so slightly. She is so engrossed by noticing the library that she doesn't notice Ciprian standing a few feet in front of her. It's only when she tears her eyes away from the storefront that she sees him and crosses the short distance to him. Her hand reaches out to touch his forearm. "...Kinda weird, isn't it?"

Grant preens a bit holding the door for folks and wandering in. "Hook me up and I'll do it. Why not?" Isabella's words grow a frown and he looks to Nicole, "Something happened to J.K. Scowling? Shit, I'm sorry to hear that. You need to reschedule me lemme know. My hours are whatever." Ciprian's question gets a curious look, chiefly from standing on the wrong side of him asking it, and a look to Beth tries to grab some contextual agreement. Weird? Everything's weird. "

Smiling at Grant as he sing songs his way into the library as well, Nicole says, "good thing you didn't call me today, cuz I am not there. I'll be happy to help you though. Same bat time, same bat channel?" She looks to Ciprian, eyes squinting a little as she tries to place where she knows him from. "Oh.. I'm not sure if it is.. I don't remember it being here, for sure."

"Hey Isabella. Yeah... he's a bit banged up, but, it's Joey." Nicole smiles with a shrug. She's used to him being banged up at least a little from time to time. "He was hurt pretty bad, but is doing a lot better right now. Thank you for asking." Eyes shift to Grant and she laughs, covering her mouth. "J. K. Scowling... I love it. So going to call him that sometime." Her eyes then shift to Beth, giving her a nod and a look as if she might have seen her about too.

Ciprian looks away from the interestingly-signed building when he feels a touch on his arm, and when he sees who it is, he smiles, despite the fact that it is, indeed, kind of weird. "Hi. Yeah," he agrees, looking back to it with slightly narrowed eyes. "Maybe it's some secret thing only cool people know about. It will be the first time in my life I'm ever the first to know about something cool." This gets a wider smile, before he turns toward Grant again, then Nicole as she speaks. He nods, turning back to Beth and tipping his head toward it, before he starts inside.

The inside is even more interesting than the outside, as one might imagine for a library, and his eyes widen when they get inside. "Wow," he murmurs, moving toward one of the shelves to study the books on it.

"If there's anything I can send him to make him feel less irritated with the folks at the hospital, let me know, yeah?" Isabella also grins appreciatively at Grant at his J.K. Scowling remark. "You're almost too witty to be one of ours," she tells him, and if he allows, slings an arm across his shoulders and squeezes. "You sure you're one of ours? Because-- "

The interior of the library leaves the rest of the words fading with the wind, though. Green-gold eyes sweep over the decor, making note of the different touches and styles - most would be familiar to her as she takes a few steps to examine one of the carvings. "Etruscan," she murmurs. "Fourth century at the very latest." This is the kind of place that someone such as her can get lost in forever. Her fingers walk along the spines of the nearby books. She does not touch the tea.

The newcomers are also familiar. "Beth, right?" she asks of the other woman - and the man that she only knows as Minerva's brother.

Beth can only let out a "Mmhmm" at Grant's observation that everything is weird. It's true. It's all weird. She gives Nicole a nod in return. Ciprian's suggestion makes her smile. "I don't think that works with libraries." All the same she follows him inside.

Once they are inside her eyes widen slightly behind her glasses as she takes it all in. When she hears her name she tears her gaze away. "Hi. How are you?" She says for lack of anything else to say. Her gaze drifts over to the bookcases again. Her brow furrows and she tilts her head when she hears that voice. She turns her head quickly before turning in a circle.

Grant turns a shrug up to Isabella, "No idea." He grins, snugged and does a double take, "Wait they have shrimpies here?" Yup, he's looking for crustaceans. The books though are vast and look ridiculously cool. He really is one that appreciates the library aesthetic more than he appreciates the reading part. He does investigate the tea tin though because...food. He looks to Beth and offers consolation, "Weird is much cooler than not-weird. No one ever said," His eyes take on a glossy, moved emotion , "'Oh the banality. I am inspired to do so much with absolutely nothing right now. Yes, I too want to be bored to tears!'" Gasp. Audible gasp. "Soooo yeah, weird good. Weird handle with care." As he opens the tin with 0 care.

Nicole starts noticing the interior of the library after greeting the others who have gone into it. "Oh wow...." she says, admiring the ornate shelves. "Kind of gorgeous woodwork." Isabella brings her back to the present and she says, "oh. He should be going home tonight or tomorrow. But if I think of anything... I will let you know." Pause. "Etruscan? Is it? they really are just beautiful. How have I not noticed this place before?"

Before she can admire anything else, or say anything more, she's looking around again, seeming to be looking for something in the air... or hidden, somehow.

"No? Well, okay," Ciprian agrees with Beth, though it's said quietly. They are in a library. He looks over at Beth then, and the expression on his face is decidedly not cool, but more like a kid in a candy store. Voice? What voice? Did he notice it? Apparently not! He does hear Beth's name, though, and he looks up, seeing Isabella. He nods to her politely, still with the smile, before Grant's words have him letting out a little laugh. "Maybe not," he concedes, "but maybe they should, in this town." It's said jokingly, though it's not totally a joke.

He turns back to the books, peering at the titles, before one catches his eye. He looks more closely, as he says, "Hm." He still doesn't seem to be hearing the voice; either that or he's just relegated it to the background of his mind. He's focused on the books, and more specifically this particular book. Then he reaches for it to take it out -- but before he can, something causes him to look up again, something that wipes the smile from his face. He looks around again, turning to Beth. "Did you hear that?" he asks, and his gaze moves to the others to include them in this question as well.

She wiggles her fingers at Beth, but she largely sticks to Grant and Nicole as they explore the library. "Yeah, some of these are very old," she murmurs to her blonde schoolmate, drawing one of the books out from the shelves and smoothing her fingertips over the cover. "Petrology, huh? Not a branch I'm in any way familiar..." She slips it back in. "Plenty of these seem extraterrestrial, though...and these..."

Her fingers trace, lightly, the names she finds. "I've never heard of any of these guys at all. You don't think..." They've actually been to Mars? Or Venus? How else would any of them be able to write about its mountains?

And then the door closes, but something else slips through her senses. She shuts the book and situates it back on the shelf. "Wait here," she tells the rest, her hand slowly going to the small of her back, to anchor it close to a weapon should she need it. Moving towards the red door, she tries to open it. "It's weird, we can still see the city out from the windows, but I don't think this door actually opens into the downtown. At least...not the place in which we left."

Grant looks to Isabella up from the tea. "Dragon Tears. Aww that's so sad." His cousin's question wins her this incredulous look like duuuuh reasoning, "well if Men are from Mars and women are from Venus like the books aid maybe they're writing about the old country." He sniffs around the tins wondering to himself trying to figure out the actual composition. He's an indiscriminate culinary consumer. He has no idea. It's probably edible to the best of his knowledge. " Were it Saturn we might need to talk and be concerned." The world according to Bax is a very simple thin not to be overthought on too hard apparently.

Beth doesn't say much in response to Grant. Mostly because she's a bit freaked out that she is hearing a voice whose origin she cannot discern and so is distracted with that. Ciprian's question is met with a resounding, "Yes. Did you?" Her head turns in Isabella's direction at that command and her eyes turn to the red door. "Oh fuck." She says in an almost whisper with some annoyance and worry in her tone.

Turning back to look at the red mahogany doors as they close with that click, Nicole eloquently remarks, "Uh..." Dark eyes glance about and she answers, "We are in..." Unsure of who else hears what she is hearing, she studies each of her companions' faces. Do they think she's talking to herself? Oh good! Others hear it too. Certainly when one hears disembodied voices, it is comforting to know others are experiencing the insanity with you. "I do, yes..."

"Extraterrestrial?" She starts to look at the books on another set of shelves, curious. She eyes Isabella next, wondering about the 'wait here'. "Uh... but, does it open?"

"There's a tea called Dragon tears?" Nicole asks to Grant. "What others are there? Are you going to have tea?" Grinning as he comments about Saturn, she can't seem to immaturely say, "or Uranus...." Clearing her throat, she chuckles, then adds, "sorry."

Ciprian shakes his head, glancing over at Beth again as he starts to say something, but then Isabella is going to open the door. "No," he says, and he leaves the book he'd found, starting that way, "don't..."

But whatever else he'd said is lost, because as soon as she gets the door open he winces, putting one hand to his ear as though there's a sudden loud noise and not at all the murmured singsong of the voice. He closes the rest of the distance between him and the door to grab the edge with his non-occupied hand in an attempt to close it. He doesn't push Isabella out of the way or anything, but he does really want that door closed right now.

The screaming. It's loud. Isabella's eyes widen at the sudden flash of lightning cutting through the yawning darkness outside before she slams the door shut and locks it, backing away. Her heart is in her throat. "What the hell was...?"

And then she hears it. There's a glance towards Grant and Nicole, then Ciprian and Beth. "Did you guys hear...?"

She pivots around to look over the books and the coziness of the library. "What do you mean in flight?!" she calls out to the empty air. "Are we flying right now?! Where are you taking us?!"

Beth squints a little as she strains to hear the voice as her attention is drawn to the further back to wherever the botanical knotwork bordered runner leads to. She takes a step in that direction but the sound the door makes when Isabella opens it causes her head to whip around. She puts both hands over her ears to drown out the loud sharp sound.

When it is closed she lowers her hands. Isabella gets a confused look and a shake of her head. "What?" She asks a little sharply. Then she says, "Whatever it is it wants us to go to the back."

Grant looks to Nicole and just grins, without apology ear to ear. She gets a fistbump for this. There are voices and he is focusing on this and turns his hearing aids down a level to cut out what is... well tinnitus usually sounds like indistinct singing to him and not usually whispering. He holds the tea that says Blood of Uranus. and signs Nope right at it setting it aside. Yes, he's shopping. he does grab the Oliphage, the Whiskerwort, and the Toasted Marshmallow, and the chocolate cherry nut.

He looks up and while he's not always the brightest brick in the drawer on the surface. That sound though assails his ears and too quickly does he shut off his hearing aides to keep the screaming from getting into piercing range. Thank god they are bilaterally linked because boyo does not want to drop his tea either. Gritting his teeth he says "That Deckard Cain mother-fffff" It hurt. He's fine. Everything's... is he off his meds?! A hand checks his pockets to count today. "Nicole, ya broke the door."

Nicole looks towards the runner on the floor, ornate with its design, following the line of it towards... wherever it goes. "Pretender of what?" Tilting her head, she steps one foot on the rug, looking around to the others. She stops though, in order to watch Isabella. When the door is opened, even that little bit, Nicole's eyes go wide and then she is putting her hands over her ears, gloves still on, trying to muffle the ear-piercing noise that threatens to make them bleed. She shivers and says, "close it. Good God, Close it!" She then looks to Grant and says, "what? Blame Isabella!" She's not serious, shaking her head with a small huff that might have been a chuckle... if she hadn't just been in a bit of suffering.

She takes big gulping breaths once the door is closed again, and it takes her a moment to settle, though she is still trembling from the code. "Flying?" she asks to Isabella. "Someone said we were flying? But..." And she looks down along the runner again. "I'm just wondering... Pretender of what?"

Ciprian lets out a little sigh when the door shuts -- though he does look around quickly when the whole place shakes, taking in another breath. Oh good, nothing's broken. Another sigh of relief escapes him as he turns to the others, and he starts to say something -- but it's stopped by those words that ring out. "In transit to where?" he asks, looking around again for the source of the voice, as though this question would be answered by anyone. And who knows, maybe it will! He looks to Beth then, moving toward her again.

"Nope, she's right, it was me, sorry," Isabella says, and to her credit, she does sound apologetic about it. But what can she do? She's an explorer by trade, asking her not to open a door is like telling a fish not to swim. "But yeah, the door was telling me to shut it back up because we're in the middle of flight, so I'm guessing all of that...outside is because we're in dead space and this construct is taking us somewhere."

But with everyone else saying that they should all go to the back, she sighs. "Okay," she murmurs. "Only way out is through, I guess." And with that and with a smile to the rest, she moves on to the floor-rug runner and follows it to where it leads, towards the back of the library where answers are hopefully waiting for them. She tries not to let it show that her skin is crawling at the idea of a building kidnapping its present inhabitants and taking them...somewhere. Maybe to Mars, or Venus.

When Ciprian comes towards her she reasons, "If this is a library there has to be a librarian, right?" It seems logical to her at least. She looks towards where the runner leads before she lets out the smallest of sighs. Then she turns to start in that direction. After all it's not like they have much of a choice.

Grant watches the ice curiously; its crystalline formations curious and trapping color with spectrum precision. He's lost to the tea frost for a moment to study it before letting go of the counter and pocketing his find. His face watches, now with a more serious expression. Ciprian to Beth, and then his cousin gets the flicker of a grin, he looks to Nicole, and then back oto her. There's a gesture of him pointing to himself and two fingers around his eye and off he goes. Apparently he's going to go look for the librarian or have a look around. The tea...comes with.

She had already been about to head down the runner, but was distracted from doing so before. So now... now Nicole turns to walk down that way again. At least she's not in front. Never be in front, or last, right? Oh God, is she last? She hurries her steps to almost catch up to Isabella. "If not out... well, I suppose we'll see what awaits us there."

Ciprian steps onto the runner quickly, nodding when Beth speaks, and he replies, "Yeah...you'd think so, wouldn't you?" Of course, who knows around here, right? He looks from Isabella to Grant, and then Nicole, before he starts to look for...well, the librarian. Probably.

Or, assistant librarian. That would work, too.

Eventually, they find someone -- and when they do, he looks that way, his eyes settling on the man who has suddenly appeared. He blinks, staring at him for several seconds, and a light frown touches his face, but he does answer. "Ah...well. We didn't mean to disturb anything. Would you be able to tell us when we might be reaching our destination?"

"And on that vein, what is our destination?" Isabella appends, somewhere next to cousin Grant. There's also a curious peek from her to him at the packet of tea he's carrying, and flashes him an inquisitive look. "You're...not going to drink that are you?" she whispers to him.

Grant reaches up to clickclickclick his appliances back on to he can make proper heads and tails of this. Well.. Heads and tales. It is a library. Of sorts. He says with a slow, drawl, "I'd like to make a purchase because I do not think you want me renting your tea." Only he can try to make that sound very professional. Sigh. "When you have a moment please."

"...It's so pretty here. Like there was thought put into it, you know?" Beth murmurs to Ciprian as they walk down the runner through the library towards their destination, her eyes drinking it all in, and as they near the main desk she can't help but smile. That smile fades as they approach the desk. The others ask all of the questions she has asked so she doesn't speak. She does give Ciprian an askance look when he looks at the Assistant Librarian in that fashion.

Nicole is a little too wary now to be as much in awe with the design of the runner changing, the desk, the mosaic behind it, as she was earlier. Her eyes mainly focus on the man behind that desk. IF HE IS INDEED A MAN. Looking rather blankfaced, save for her wide eyes that give away a lot of her inner thoughts on the matters around them, she tilts her head a little.

Can I help you?

Hmm.... can he? "What do you think we're pretending at?" she wants to know.

Ciprian is still staring at the man, and despite the fact that his question gets answered, he doesn't really lose that slightly strange look on his face. Of course, it could have something to do with the fact that he has no idea what the Sakthorn Peninsula is. "Thank you," he says, politely despite his uneasiness, though when the libra- ahem, assistant librarian looks away to answer someone else's question, he murmurs something very low to Beth.

"And why are we headed there?" Isabella asks. "When are we due back to Gray Harbor, Washington?" She also can't help but take note of the gorgeous timepiece in the man's grip and admire it.

Grant considers this and just in case complimentary tea means pay with a compliment he says, "Well they look very lovely." High society is not his forte... in the slightest. He eyes the door. Does he go back for moooore, ooooor... His weight shifts from one sneaker to the other and he clarifies, "That in the Sol system or that Andromeda, or the Ursa Minor constellation? I don't get out much. Bummer. I know."

Whatever Ciprian has murmured into her ear causes her to give the Assistant Librarian another glance. Her gaze lingers briefly before she smiles in an apologetic manner. "And where exactly is that?" She nods her head in agreement with Isabella. "We really need to get back to Gray Harbor. It was never our intention to take a trip." She continues to smile. And even as she smiles she broadcasts her thoughts to the others: Be careful. He's up to something. Feels like we caught him doing something bad.

Nicole eyes the watch, perhaps admiring it, but not as much as Isabella. She is more focused on his words. Brow creasing, she makes a bit of a face as she wonders where this Peninsula is. She was never great at Geography. She's a Hairdresser, dammit, not a geophysicist. When the long man answers her own question, she give him a bland look, as if she does not find him amusing. She knows what she heard!

Or she knows what she thought she heard....

Ciprian stays quiet after whatever it is he's whispered to Beth, his expression rather stoic now as he listens to the various answers. He's seemingly calm -- outwardly, anyway -- but he does reach for Beth's arm, laying his fingers on it gently. Her thought does not make him turn toward her, but the assistant librarian's words do -- he looks over to her briefly, his hand grasping her arm now as though he might pull her somewhere at any moment. Somewhere away, probably.

"....really?" Curiosity lights up Isabella's eyes, and she's almost on the verge of asking whether there was a way to leave the Library and explore it. After all, it's not every day that one is handed the opportunity to explore the other side of the universe. The prospect of new discoveries almost leaves her giddy, until the Assistant Librarian tells her that it will take twenty-two years until they can all return home.

"Oh. I see." There's a hint of a smile, because that is entirely unacceptable - her viva voce is in two months. She's not going to wait twenty-two years to obtain her doctorate. So once the librarian has turned his attention to Beth, she attempts to sidestep and slip away, to see if there's a way to turn this thing back around to where they came. She tries to signal her cousin with the gestures of her chin and face. They might need to distract this guy until she figures out how to pilot this thing.

Pilot a library.

Oh, Jesus Christ.

Oh, it is time to play EVERY Baxter's favourite party game: PRESS. YOUR. LUCK!!!
(Yeah, Izzy, G-Bax is picking up what your'e putting down.)

Shifting his weight Grant folds his arms to lean on the counter and says casually, "Well Polar-ring galaxies run into these problems from time to time." He knows about ring galaxies now??! Whyyyyyy??? An eyebrow arches though and he says, "Is it being caused by a shift in the gravitational pull of the core or something in outside orbit or is this a problem with the flare engine of the pulse star?" Look someone significant to him is a chemist and he reads a lot of Battletech. A lot of it. He casually drops, "I know I'm a grubby human, but I'm also an engineer. If you can define, like... the technical problem man, maybe we cna give you an assist and be useful when we arrive, oooo?"

For her part Beth manages not to startle when she receives that glare. "Oh, is that against the rules?" She asks as if she didn't know. And to be fair she doesn't know the rules at all. She follows it up with a little smug twitch of her lips. "Are you hiding something? You seem awfully suspicious." She reaches down to grab Ciprian's suit jacket with the hand attached to the arm he is now grasping, as is also anticipating they will be going somewhere and she wants to be extra sure they aren't separated. She sees Isabella slip away out of the corner of her eye but she doesn't turn her head. Instead she decides to be as distracting and annoying as possible. Her other hand smacks down on the front of the desk hard and then demands in her best let-me-speak-to-the-manager voice, "Where is the librarian? I want to speak to them now!"

Her demands combined with whatever it is Grant is talking about must provide a distraction if nothing else.

The fact that it is said they will not return for more than 22 years doesn't register fully with Nicole just yet. What does is that they are going to a planet.

"So... we are going through space, to another planet, because we walked into the library just as its time in Gray Harbor was complete? Or... were we meant to go there for a reason?" she asks. There are other questions she could ask, like, how they are able to travel through space without spacesuits? Will they be able to breathe or die instantly on this planet? But the why is what she wonders about. Not the how.

But when Grant talks, she turns to look at him, a bit dumbfounded. She doesn't catch Isabella's gestures to her relative, but, she does hear Beth make demands. She side-eyes the woman then takes a couple side-steps away from her.

When Nicole backs Grant up and engages the librarian, Isabella flashes her an encouraging look and attempts to gesture with her fingers. Keep going. She then makes a gesture that she will point to the side. And the first thing she does is read. Not in the way Mentalists do, but the physical world has always been her domain and she listens and shifts her fingers, letting her palm tilt.

After her analysis, she turns her attention to the rest, she observes her cousin and Nicole, and then Beth and Ciprian. She proceeds to move in the latter two's direction while leaving Grant and Nicole to engage the assistant librarian.

"We need to get back to Gray Harbor," she tells Beth and Ciprian quietly, for their ears only. "But I'm going to need your help. This entire construct responds to abilities, but I need a reader to navigate and another mover to pilot the construct off its current course and back to the way we came. It's the only way we're going to be able to get back home."

Ciprian visibly winces when Beth says that, and in that tone -- and he looks like he might be about to draw her back by the hand gripping her arm, though he manages to curb that impulse, even though there's clear concern on his face.

He might have said something, too, but Isabella is then speaking to him in low tones, and he tips his head that way, not quite looking at her, except in periphery. He nods once, however, to indicate that he's heard, and he murmurs back, "Okay. I can try."

Beth hears Isabella over her own fussing. She also hears...something else. She purposely keeps her gaze on the assistant librarian. Oh no she's totally not paying attention to anything else even though she is currently very distracted for a supposedly angry person. She doesn't even notice poor Ciprian wincing at her beautiful use of the let-me-speak-to-your-manager voice. She doesn't respond to Isabella, mostly because that would seem weird.

However, when the assistant librarian asserts he is the librarian her expression falls a bit. "Oh. I see. I apologize. I didn't know. We'll just go have some tea and stay out of your hair then. Won't we?" A very pointed look is thrown Nicole and Grant's way. She then pulls lightly on Ciprian's suit jacket to lead him back towards where the tea kettle and magic tea bags are.

Right, so there's a problem back there. He and presumably Nicole will be playing 20,000 questions. The good news for Beth is this is usually Grant's job playing lookout for Greg which means he doesn't look at her and activly works to make everyone forget she's there so they can do a thing.

"Soooooooo these People of Vequesia , they got a book around here on them? I mean we got books on everything else and if we're going there, and you're the Librarian and librarians know, like.... everything. How'd you get this job? What are they like? You like going there? Whathappens when people don't return their books in a timely fashion when you have to Buckaroo Bonzai it between systems on a schedule? What kinda currency is owed..." There's a pause and his head tilts wondering, "You hiring?" Nicole halp me out here!

"Did you lose your nametag then?" Nicole asks the (Assistant) Librarian. "Because... it does clearly say you are the assistant to the librarian." She shrugs, then and says, "oh, I don't think we'll need stasis. I was just curious." It is her nature. But when he talks about why artifice is prohibited, she asks, "what does the rare collection consist of?" And then, "it's a shame you only visit Gray Harbor every 22 years ish. I enjoy browsing and reading interesting books."

She misses Beth's look, apparently... continuing to ask questions. "Oh, a job! Yeah, do you have like, library aids? You have a lot of interesting books here I'd love to get to know them. And the decor, oh my god. Gorgeous."

She looks at him, waiting for him to answer not only Grant, but her as well, and as she stares, unblinking and unmoving, the sound of something heavy dropping in the return bin can be heard. Loud. BANG!

"Go, go," Isabella whispers encouragingly to Ciprian and Beth - with a powerful mover and reader already conspiring to return them home, she moves to try and back up her schoolmate and her cousin. She keeps a careful eye on them as they move towards the tea.

Moving towards the assistant librarian, she attempts to form a wall with the skater and the blonde in hopes to block the man's view of Ciprian and Beth. "You mentioned a rare collection?" she asks. "What's in that? And where is it? Can a visitor access it? I mean, since we're here for twenty-something years."

Grant and Nicole, despite not being successful in any one single attempt to distract the Assistant Librarian, certainly keep him busy and slow him down. He starts to tell Grant where the anthropology and ethnic culture stacks are (God, Grant, it's the Dewey Decimal system, just look it up!!!), pauses to peer about for the bang but shakes it off a second later, then gives Nicole a look for calling him the assistant to the librarian. He's warming up to a good 'HOW DARE YOU LADY' speech for her when he sees Isabella encouraging Beth and Ciprian to depart, which Beth indicated she was going to do anyways.

He seems about to follow her when Isabella asks...that. He stops and goes rigid, one hand forming a fist. His knuckles go white, like he's fighting something. Then, "Yes. Of course. Though you'll need a library card with us to handle or check anything out." He forces out the words, biting off each one like he doesn't want to say it. He wants to follow Beth and Ciprian. Wants to so bad, but he seems rooted to the spot.

Ciprian doesn't waste any distraction time -- instead, he goes quickly toward the reading nook with Beth, looking around for the controls to fly...a library. That is not something he thought he'd be doing this evening, or indeed ever.

He hesitates another moment or two, but then steels himself, and takes another step inside.

"Shit!"

It's not really like him, but to be fair, how often does he find himself suddenly flying a library? Because that is what he's doing right now. He has started it up what seems to be automatically, and it swings a little bit to one side as he gets his bearings. "No, no!" he exclaims, swinging it back, and he stabilizes it, though he doesn't yet know which direction to send it. Here's hoping Beth does.

As Beth and Ciprian head towards the reading nook she broadcasts a message to the others: The real librarian is in the Returns Bin. There is a wall there but it could be destroyed with the right glow. Clearly someone doesn't want him getting out

When they reach the reading nook Beth lets out a exhale. She closes her eyes and focuses on navigation. When she opens them she is in the GPS for the library. It is disorienting. The universe is huge, after all, and they are a far way away from home. She sees the wheel symbol representing Ciprian but she doesn't see Earth. "No! No I don't need this!" She says a little impatiently as she sort of mentally just coasts amongst all of the places they could go. Finally she says, "I need Gray Harbor Washington United States Milky Way Galavy Planet Earth.

This works. The navagation zooms across her eyes with disorienting colors until she can see the symbol for what she wants. "Oh. Lovely. Yes this is exactly what I want. Send to the pilot, please!" And then the instructions for how to get to where they need to go are sent to Ciprian.

Dewey...what?! Look if it's not in Google hes dead int eh water. Grant is presently way way way off his 4G network, okay? The message in from Beth is met with... a blink. His eyes squint and there's suddenly a feeling, a singular, unimpressed, derisive feeling broadcast from him: We can go, literally anywhere... and you pick Gray Harbor??! Whyyyyyy???

His focus is still on the librarian, amused at him being stuck. "Well can we have a form and something to fill it out with, please?" He glances to Nicole with a waggle of his eyebrows ... and goes back for more free tea because and also since the Dragon Tears were warm they can double as glove warmers if hey have to walk back from somewhere since we are not seeing Andromeda today.

Someone may have some feelings on not abusing this opportunity for free travel.

Someone with the right glow. Green-gold eyes glance to the wall in which the actual Librarian is trapped.

Isabella looks at herself, and then at Nicole. She gives her a nudge. "That's your cue, I think," she whispers to the blonde. "You're better than me in that Talent. Ideas are all I'm good for." She winks at her. "And let's have us Baxters do what we do best." Be an absolute nuisance to everyone and everything. There's a grin to Grant at that, before dropping a whisper towards her cousin. "He's very dedicated to his job," she tells him softly....and clearly she pins a lot of hopes to her cousin's unique brand of cleverness to parse out what she means.

"Excellent, then! Could you lead me to the rare collection?" the archaeologist wonders - and then maybe Grant and Nicole can deal with the trapped librarian. "I mean, all that knowledge! And since we're in a very unfamiliar library, we'd probably need plenty of help navigating through the catalogues, but you should probably show it to me first so you can answer all my questions." She is already reaching out with a hand to the man's elbow, to helpfully steer him away from the group and towards where this collection might be.

"I would also like the form, please. To get a library card. And a pen, or whatever fancy thing you have to fill it out." Nicole looks towards the return bin again. "How did someone drop off a book while we are in transit? Oh, if you can hire us as aides while we are traveling with you, I can start by checking it in. I'll just go get it and you can show me how?" She begins to walk slowly towards that, holding her hand out towards it, not in a reach, but in a fist. She looks almost angry as she walks, her jaw clenched as tight as her fist.

After the slightly rough start, Ciprian manages to figure it out, and he lets out a little sigh of relief just as the navigation gets to him from Beth. He doesn't understand precisely how it happened, but he doesn't question it. He can feel it -- she's sent him the exact way to go home.

And away they go! Ciprian is now much more comfortable with it, and he even grins as they start their rapid descent. His eyes are wide as he hurtles them through the cosmos -- feeling the power of the possibilities of this place he may, for a moment, understand Grant's reluctance to actually go home.

Beth tears up a little at the sight of the universe as it whizzes past. "This is kind of great." She says, probably to Ciprian, even if she doesn't actually know if he can hear her where she is. She lifts a hand to wipe some tears from her cheek as the milky way comes into focus. The struggle near the check out desk is unknown to her. She is on what feels like the best Disney ride ever.

Oh the dangers of coming within touching range of the things you want, and all without a wicked LSD trip. Well if he wanted to find inspiration and get closer to it? This is a banner week. He fills out the form and says, "Can I check a book out then?" The answer is yes and off he goes to either have the guy give him what he wants or he's going to rearrange the 600's into the 200, 450's, and 800's with reckless abandon. He does go to look and find what he can find in the how-to section which is...somewhere. in here. Presumably.

The jig is up. And as Nicole breaks through the wall and frees the captive librarian, the exclamation from the assistant librarian spurs Isabella to act. Before the man even thinks of trying something to impede them, or call the guard dogs on them, or attempts to get in their way home in any way by sounding whatever alarms might be in this place, the archaeologist leaps into action. She reaches out and attempts to get the tall, spindly man into a full on tackle while Grant asks about the form.

They land on the floor, but the young woman is a consummate academic - she is not the best fighter in the world and the man has a longer reach and outweighs her by quite a few. Still, she attempts to keep him down by locking his limbs with her own...and perhaps gives her cousin leave to take and touch what he wants. "I...don't know....what the story is here...just yet..." she pants through gritted teeth. "But at this moment...you're...officially....checked out!"

Nicole doesn't get to see the stars and galaxies and what not whizzing by. Perhaps not knowing is better, so she won't know how pitifully the view from their own polluted planet compares. She is busy at the return bin. As the books and woman tumble out, Nicole runs over. "Oh my god!" She glares at the ASSistant Librarian then tries to take off the gag from the woman, pausing for half a quarter of a third of a second to blink at her appearance. She smiles. Everything is fine, goat woman. I gotchoo. "Did he do this to you?" she whispers, working to unbind the woman's wrist then help with her ankles next.

There's a tear on Ciprian's cheek as well when he gets kicked from the command center, and he stands up slowly in somewhat of a daze as he reaches up to wipe a hand over his face, getting his bearings. It's overwhelming to be rushing through space in a magical library, okay?! But once he's settled a little bit, his eyes widen. "Beth?" he says quickly as he looks around, and he doesn't seem to relax until he's set eyes on her. Once he has, though, his shoulders relax just a bit, and it's then that he calls, "Is everyone okay?"

Beth lets out a little 'oof' as she lands in a wingback chair in the reading nook soon after Ciprian calls her name. She sniffs and rubs her eyes as well. She isn't crying it clearly is just very oniony in space! "Hi." She says to Ciprian and then she hears Isabella's iconic line about the assistant librarian checking out and something about fucking humans. "Come on!" She says to Ciprian as she stands up from the chair and reaches for his hand to pull him towards the check out desk.

Grant eyes that form... he looks for the bare minimum and where to sign his name. There's a looooooot of fine print he cannot be bothered with. Somewhere, in the distance it sounds like dub-step. It is really the sound of his father who has passed the bar in contract-law banging his head repeatedly onto the surface of his desk. Grant holds his card and grins at it. Maaaaybe he can take a ride on the library express again. "Soooo, " he says moving the books back since the chaos is over, "Soooo there like a job opening oooor something Caaaaause flying through space is a lot more badass than Gray Harbor Washington United States Planet Earth Sol System Milkyway Galaxy, 98552."

They sail and he finds something that interests him between 'How to Win at Parpajora' which might be some sort of game, and 'Hyperdrive engine Care and Maintenance & Motorcycle Repair'. Seems useful! He decides to hold onto two volumes eyeing the window as they are plumbed back to the life sentence of being human. Resigned he goes to check the book out because she'll probably want to know which.

She pushes away from the assistant librarian as the Librarian looms over him. "He's all yours," Isabella breathes, standing up and thanking her stars that Lilith had managed to heal her ribs before this excursion even began. She dusts her clothes off and gives the intimidating woman a wide berth. There's also a very envious glance at Grant's shiny new library card. "Can I have one of those?" she wonders, peering at it.

Because she still really wants a chance to visit that rare collection.

"Go get him," Nicole quietly cheers on Goat Woman Librarian. She then starts to look through some of the returned books that are strewn about. "Shame they don't come by more often, you know? I bet there are some phenomenal books here we just can't find in Gray Harbor's library." She kind of wants a library card too, but that looked like a very long form.

"Thank you, I'll review this," Isabella says - because the form will probably tell her plenty about the construct also, and she's not opposed to reading in the least. She rolls it up, and sticks it in the inner pocket of her coat. "So what happened, exactly? He got denied a promotion and he decided if he can't have it, nobody will? Academia in any universe is vicious, it looks like."

There's a glance at the rest, and relief when Ciprian and Beth return to the rest of the group. "How was it?" she asks; there's a certain hint of envy there - after all, it isn't every day that anyone gets to pilot a flying library from another dimension and perhaps one day, she will kick herself at denying herself the opportunity. But she simply couldn't risk not returning home and that required the best people for the job.

Ciprian goes toward the desk with Beth, but he can't help looking around the place one last time, despite the somewhat harrowing experience they've all just had. They came out of it fine, and that's what counts! He stops short when he sees the librarian, though, just as she's scanning Grant's books. He opens his mouth, as though he's going to question the wisdom of checking books out from this place -- or maybe he's going to say something completely different, like, 'Excellent choice, Grant!' It will never be known, because he just closes it again, and shakes his head.

He looks to Isabella instead, and when he speaks this time, it's just to say, "Amazing."

Nicole raises her hand and asks towards the Librarian, "could I have a form too? I'll bring it back in ten months when Grant's books are due." She is a bit more careful about what she puts her name to, after all. Looking to Beth and Ciprian, she asks, "so are we safely back home now? I have a... Joey.. to check on in the hospital." Would she have liked spending more time in the stars? Yes. But spending time with someone who shows her the stars, and that she is one of them, is pretty special too.

Beth nods her head in wordless agreement with Ciprian. A look is given to the librarian, apologetic and a little sheepish. "Uh...sorry we stole your library and brought it back, but we needed to go home." She jerks a thumb at Ciprian, "He needs to pick up his kid from after-school care at five." Clearly it's all Ciprian's fault that they couldn't go on space adventures in a sweet space library. She looks around for the assistant librarian before finally asking, "What happened to Draco Malfoy?"

"We're back." She says with a nod of confirmation in Nicole's direction.

Grant cracks the cover on the book and smiles to himself. Tea in pocket. Cool. He pulls out his phone to set a reminder because he won't fucking remember. The rest is Future Bax's problem. "Thank you. I'll take good care of them."

The mention of his daughter has Ciprian nodding, and he looks quickly at his watch, letting out a little sigh of relief when he sees that this little excursion hasn't made him late. Not to worry, Ashira, he hasn't forgotten you. "Thank you," he says, inclining his head to the Librarian. The real librarian. "That was something I don't think I'll forget for the rest of my life." He smiles, and he reaches for Beth's hand as he looks from Isabella, to Nicole, to Grant, just to make sure they're doing fine. Reassured, he starts for the exit.

Grant really... wants... to stay. When the Librarian addresses him his attention snaps back. When it's further pointed out that taking care of the books borrowed is in the contract he blinks and says, "Yeah, that's why I said that." Total agreement there see? It's only when his cousin makes sure he's in tow does the graffiti artist budge and (reluctantly!) heads back to NOT Andromeda, and back outside into the cold.

Nicole takes her scroll and waves it towards the Librarian. "Safe travels... and if you know anyone who needs a haircut, bring them by on your next trip." As much as she wants to take her time walking through the library to admire all the intricate work on the shelves and decor within, she knows there is a schedule it has to keep, so she heads out into the cold and gets on with the rest of her day.

Beth looks a little reassured when the librarian tells her it's all good. Grasping Ciprian's hand she raises her free one to wave as she says in a chipper voice. "See you all around. Hopefully next time not when we're kidnapped by a deranged Assistant Librarian!" And then off they go getting out of the library so it can maintain it's schedule.

As soon as the last person shuts the door behind them, Ciprian and Isabella feel it again, that sensation of something. Should they turn and regard the facade again, they'll find it a similar-looking but different shop-front. Less well kept, with a rusting door handle and knocker and broken windows; no welcoming sign, no red-painted door. Should anyone open the door--it won't be locked--they'll find just an empty, derelict shop interior.