rogueinladysclothing | Scholarly meeting [Tagging Viatorus]

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Scholarly meeting [Tagging Viatorus]

On the border of the Parklands and the Commercial District of the Nexus stands a grand library. Its tall, arched entry way and high vaulted ceilings remind one of a church rather than a library. Inside, though, the walls of each of the three floors are stacked high with books, their ranks broken only by the large, stained glass windows. Rows upon rows of bookshelves across the floors offer even more volumes to those who set foot inside the library. A true scholar's delight.

For Amelia, though, the rows of books mean little. Without direction of where to start, it would mean little for her to delve into the complexities of new technologies or the rich histories of the many worlds from which the books come. She'll start in on them, someday, when she knows the best place to begin.

In a small alcove off the main entryway, there stands half a dozen polished wooden tables with matching high backed chairs with plush cushions. It is one of several, all of which have varying decor and furniture, but this one inspires the feel of the European Renaissance. Rich tapestries hang on the walls and a suit of armor holding a tall battle axe stands in the corner. The room makes Amelia feel more at ease, especially when she finds Viatorus Durant sitting at one of the tables with several large volumes spread out in front of him.

Although her entrance would cause no great alarm to him, she stops in the doorway and shuffles her feet noisily. No visible weapons hang from her belt, though the discerning eye would notice the two daggers still laced into her boots. She smiles in Viatorus' direction as she leans against the doorway. "Hard at work?"

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The contact makes her smile - and for her cheeks to take on a slightly pink color. She's never comforted anyone like this or been comforted like this before. The sensation of his fingers around hers is... nice. A small smile tugs at her lips in spite of her best efforts to suppress it.

"Because it's my burden to bear," she answers softly. "If they know anything and the people who hold the leash of those first men were to find out, they'd be in terrible danger. I want them to live long, happy lives, to enjoy the freedoms and privileges I worked so hard to get for them. The less they know about how I got it for them, or about the things I do when I'm not working for the family business, the better." Ignorant people can't divulge secrets they don't know and can live in unadulterated bliss.

The smiling is nice. He tries to give her hand a small squeeze of encouragement, but it's weak enough to be nearly unnoticeable.

"Cruel men don't care," he says quietly, reciting a far off memory and then finding it strange to have his sister's cynical words coming from his lips. He looks away, frowning, and then glances back at her, wishing desperately that he didn't feel the need to say what he was about to say. "If cruel men want to hurt them, they won't care what they do or don't know. Maybe... maybe some of your family would want to help protect the family. Family... Family should work together."

It's noticed and appreciated, even if she doesn't appear to react to it.

"As true as that may be, I will not allow my family to know what I have done." She gently takes back her hand and places it on her knee. Her gaze moves to the suit of armor behind him and her face hardens. "All they need to know is that I am looking out for them, that everything I do is for them. My sins are mine alone to bear." Her hands are stained with the best of intentions. "If I return home to find things any other way than how I want, I will find those responsible and take care of them - personally."

Watching her hard stare and careful rendering of her philosophy, Viatorus realises that he's listening to a creed. A cruel, unforgiving creed. It makes him uncomfortable. Since he was young he'd always been kept from the harsh realities of life. He'd only seen them through his sister as she turned into a fierce and cynical woman. To think that Amelia is taking on a similarly dangerous role alone doesn't sit well with him. Where is the system? Where is the back up? The reinforcements to ensure that the family survives, that it thrives, even in the face of terrible things?

He doesn't know what to say, so he pulls his hand close and stays quiet, uncertain and trying not to look disapproving.

It's not an easy topic to handle and she knows it. With a sigh, she stands and begins pacing the room slowly. It takes her a few moments to regain her bearings, to keep from lashing out at him when she has no reason to do so. Viatorus has done nothing wrong and, as upset as she might be, there's no reason to call him out for his naivete about how things work in her world.

After a few minutes of uneasy silence, she speaks softly. "Is there anything else you want to know about my world? Or do you know enough to help me figure out where to begin my research to fill in the missing pieces?"

"I... I think I know enough," he says softly, trying to organise his thoughts again. "Um... Give me a moment."

He gets up and starts making his way back and forth through the shelves, seeking out books he'd seen in passing or that sat in the right section. It's nitpicky work, looking for just the right kind of books that require just the right amount of context. He doesn't want to overload her so there are only a few books in his arms when he returns. He's still flicking through the one at the top when he sets them down.

"Uh, these... these should be helpful." He lifts the book he'd been looking through. "This seems to be someone's account of entering the Nexus and understanding everything. Some things don't make sense, but it might help you a little."

"It seems as good a place to begin as any." She shrugs and gently takes the books from his arms, her hands gently making their way between his and the books before she pulls them away from his grip and into her own. "Do you mind if I read alongside you?" It's not that she doesn't have a place to go to read them, but after speaking about such terrible things in her past, she finds she'd rather be close to someone right now.

The books cover common types of worlds linked to the Nexus (with friendly glossaries at the back), one covers the more practical basics to science, and there's a history book that is more like Viatorus' world.

Viatorus hesitates, looking at the mess he's created that overlaps other desks, and then quickly sets about tidying it up. "No. Here, let me just... tidy this a little."

She lets him finish clearing off the table before she takes a seat opposite him at the table. She begins with the book on common types of worlds linked to the Nexus, figuring it might give her more ideas as to where to go next in her research. Silence falls on the room as she begins reading at a surprisingly quick speed. It's not obvious if she's skimming or just a fast reader, but she is all but flying through the pages.

After a while, she looks up across the table at Viatorus, frowning a bit. "I'm sorry, if I came across too harshly earlier. It wasn't my intention to do so."

Reading takes him to a place of comfort. Surrounding himself with books and texts to consume grounds him. Her apology comes as a bit of a surprise, and is a little disorienting when he's midway through a detailed paragraph.

Viatorus blinks at her. How to say that what she say worries him. That it needs to be fixed, sorted, so that it's safer for her... He opts to not interfere. "Oh. It's... No. It's fine. That... That wasn't easy for you to talk about."

Despite the fact that he has a natural tendency to hesitate when he speaks, the fact that he'd holding back is not lost on her. She frowns. "No, it wasn't." She pauses, taking a moment to come up with the right words before continuing. "You were upset by something before, are still upset by it now. Don't bother denying it - the way you sit, that look in your eyes, they tell me I'm right. What is it?"

It's unusual for her to be so pushy about a topic like this when she's speaking to someone she's still getting to know, but circumstances aren't what they usually are. She's in the Nexus now, for whatever reason, and she's promised to protect him. It's best if there aren't any secrets between them.

"No," he says hastily, eyes going wide. Getting called out always throws him and he stutters over protesting and reassuring. "I-I'm not! I-I'm just reading! I'm not upset. There's dust in here, and I'm distracted!"

Terrible a liar as he is, he is not falling into the trap of telling a woman she's wrong about something when she's distressed and sad.

Surprisingly, he'd be better off doing just that. Amelia is not one who likes to be shut out - or to have something not done or said to her because she's a woman. Even if the opinion is completely opposite of hers, she wants the chance to defend herself against it. On top of that, being lied to is one of the things that pisses her off most. Poor Viatorus, he has no idea what he's gotten himself into with this one.

"You're not the worst liar I've ever met, but you're one of them." Her eyes narrow at him and her lips draw into a thin line, obvious signs of her frustration. "Why do insist on lying to me? I'm here to protect you, to keep you safe while you're in the Nexus, and if you insist on lying to me, I'm going to be worse at my job. I can't focus when I'm trying to think of all of the things you could possibly be holding back from me."

Being around strong women figures has meant that he's been trained rather specifically on what to do and what not to. It just so happens that this time his sister's rules clash with the woman in front of him.

"I... I, uh... I... It... I..." He has no idea what to do so he tries sinking into his chair, as if that will help. "I-I-It doesn't matter."

They'll have to work that out, if they're going to continue to work together. Especially if she's supposed to be protecting him.

She sighs and runs a hand over her face slowly. She's unsure what's worse - dealing with her inventor friend taking everything she says out of context or Viatorus not saying anything, or at least not saying what he means. Both are not great options.

"Look, whatever it is, it's not going to stop bothering you if you ignore it. The sooner you get it out there, the sooner we can work through it and move on." She slowly looks up at him, leaning her elbow onto the table and then placing that hand under her chin, an exasperated look on her face. "Would it make it easier to tell me if you wrote it down? If I had someone hold onto the daggers laced into my boots?" ~~Stop being so oddly specific about that, Amelia, or he might ask why you're being specific.~~ "Or is there something else about me that makes you so unable to speak your mind?"

The more she pushes, the more he twitches and stammers. Pressure is not something he copes well with. Trying to figure out what the 'right' answer is begins to make his chest tighten and his stomach knot. "I-I don't know. No. I... I... It doesn't matter. It's not important. I didn't mean to make a face, I promise I'll stop."

"C-Can we go back to reading? Please?" It's a hopeful request. He likes reading. Reading is nice, calm.

She heaves a deep sigh. This isn't how she wanted this conversation to go and his reactions are only getting worse. If only she'd gone with subtlety instead of addressing the issue head on. Mental notes are made for the next time something like this comes up.

"Fine." She doesn't quite spit it out, but her frustration is obvious. She turns her attention back to the book in front of her and begins reading again at that same quick speed.

It doesn't take her long to finish the first book and move on to the second, the one covering the basics of science. This one gets a much slower read, due to the subject matter. After a short while, she stops altogether, her hands going to her temples. There's a lot to take in and the headache is beginning to set in.

Though she's clearly frustrated and it leaves some tension between them, Viatorus is happy to latch onto the small escape he's offered. It's much easier for him to dive into studying than to sort out his feelings and form them into coherent sentences.

It takes him a moment to spot her pause, however, but when he does, he hesitates. Aware that she's probably still annoyed at him, he's quiet when he suggests, "You should get some tea and go for a walk. It helps."

"I'm fine." It's an automatic response given without much thought. She quickly reaches into one of her pouches and pulls out a vial with what Viatorus will recognize as peppermint leaves in it, if he knows them by sight. When she opens the vial, the scent that fills the air will confirm that is, indeed, peppermint. She quickly removes a few leaves and begins to chew on them before putting the vial away. She realizes the oil would be better suited for the task, but with nothing to put it in, this is the next best option. Self-medication is often what Amelia runs on.

After the vial is securely back in her pouch, she focuses back on the book in front of her. Her eyes are strained as she pushes through the headache, but her stubborn nature won't let her stop halfway through something when there's a way to ignore whatever would keep her from continuing.

As someone who has spent the vast majority of his young life in dim rooms with his nose pressed against the pages of a book, Viatorus knows that this is not how a person should read. The peppermint is nice, refreshing, but it won't stop her eyes from aching.

He doesn't leave it too long before he speaks up again, albeit still quietly. "You really should go for a walk. You'll take in information better if you take breaks."

"Says the man who's been sitting in his room reading since long before I arrived," she retorts. She does take pause, covering her eyes with one hand and sighing. It was getting more and more difficult to read and a walk does sound nice...

"I'll go if you promise me two things: One, that our books won't be disturbed and two, that you'll come with me." As her hand slowly slips from her face, her gaze settles on him. If she's going to take a break, then so is he.

"I don't think you're as used to studying books as I am." It's not meant to be offensive. It's just that he spends the majority of his time researching and Amelia... Amelia had well worn boots and knives.

"I... I should keep reading." Viatorus looks around at the pile he's gathered together. "I haven't gotten through as much as I was planning..." Then he looks to her encouragingly. "But you should go. Get some fresh air and a drink."

Well worn metaphorically, perhaps, but everything Amelia owns - at least so far as she's currently wearing - is kept in immaculate condition. Someone knows it's better to keep everything sharp rather than let it fall into disrepair.

"You are impossible." With a sigh she stands and walks out, leaving Viatorus to wonder if he's said something terribly offensive or if she's just in a bad mood. Either assumption is not a bad one at this point, given how little she seems to be willing to open up to him.

The length of Amelia's absence is likely to go unnoticed by Viatorus, given his pension for losing himself in his books. If he should take note, he'll discover that she's gone for almost two hours before she returns, her face flushed and a basket over one of her arms. It seems she's been rather busy while she was out on her stroll.

Before he can say anything, she reaches into the basket and begins pulling out a precariously arranged array of snacks, arranging them on the cloth that she'd had covering the basket. There's a loaf of fresh bread, a block of cheese, two apples, two peaches, two plums, a couple of pastries she was told are called 'donuts' topped with various icings and sugars, some dried meats, and two paper cups with ~~odd~~ plastic lids on them. Once it's all arranged, she pushes one of the cups toward him.

"I didn't trust any of the names of the teas that I could find, but I bought a couple of strainers and have a variety of fresh herbs and spices with me." Carefully, she opens her own cup, revealing it's only hot water inside. "Anything you might like, I have." To prove her point, she removes a large number of vials from two of her pouches, each one containing a different type of leaves, petals, or spices. Lavender, jasmine, chamomile, peppermint, ginger, rosemary, cardamom, blackberry... For herself, Amelia mixes together peppermint, chamomile, and rosehips into her strainer before placing it into her cup of hot water. If he's intent on holing himself up in here for a long time, then she's going to make sure he takes care of himself.

It's always a safe bet that he's done something wrong, in his opinion. Try as he might to do the right thing. It's usually a pretty good bet that staying with books and working is what people approve of. Not this time, it seems. Luckily, as Amelia has noticed, Viatorus is fairly easily sucked back into consuming as much information as he can. He doesn't notice how comfortable he's getting. Or how his usually impeccable posture has morphed into that of a student craning horribly over papers.

Perhaps, then, it's for the best that Amelia comes in and starts setting up her little picnic. It seems so bizarre to Viatorus that he sits up and stares in surprise... Then dread. There's a lot of food there. He's not much of an eater. That's probably going to insult her somehow. Gods help him.

He swallows down his concerns and tries to take in the large array of tea things and food in front of him. "Uh... Th-Thank you." He watches Amelia start to sort out her own tea before hesitantly starting to choose his own.

"You're welcome." She's nothing if not helpful. He's not required to eat all of the food she brought, which should be obvious when she cuts herself a piece of the bread and begins munching on it. No, he's only required to eat something to fulfill his obligation to her. Rather unceremoniously, she takes a seat on the edge of the table. Is she trying to get a height advantage? (Yes. Yes she is.)

"Did the time help you get somewhere in your research?" she asks between bites. There appear to be more notes on all of the papers than when she left and he's quite a few pages further into the rather large book he had his nose in. She grabs one of the plums and begins to eat it as soon as the bread is finished. He may not be that hungry, but after a two hour walk about, she most certainly is.

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