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Post by tangle on Jun 22, 2012 21:00:03 GMT -6
Michelle dozed in her hammock, the sounds tropical birds echoing in the small annex above the library. "I don't want to get up yet. Quiet down," she drowsily mumbled, and attempted to wave the birds away. "Ough, I guess it's time to open the library already?" She felt like she's just gotten back from her "meeting" the night before. She'd fallen behind on keeping tracks on what books were and weren't still shelved, and making sure they were properly organized.
Reluctantly she roused, and dressed for work- taking note to make sure her room was straightened, and that her hair looked somewhat presentable. Trudging down the stairs, she entered the main area of the library, with two small rooms branching on either side. One was to the sitting room, where citizens read books quietly. The other was composed of the private offices of herself and assistant. Her assistane owned a house down the road and comes on halfway through the day.
She opened the door to the street and looked outside. It was still quiet, as it was still early for most of the others to stir. Closing the door, she walked back to her desk. "Papers, logs, check-ins, over-due books to get back...," she read off her notes she had made the night before. She took the books laid out on on her desk, the "check-ins", and walked over to their pertaining shelves or bookcases.[
"One down, three to go." She sat down in the chair behind the front desk, and said a "Hello" to a group of children who walked in, and, giggling, made their way toward the sitting room. She began to quickly write out what books were over-due and who had them (she takes the name and address upon check-out) on her parchment. There were already a few on the list, she'd send her assistant out later. Her thoughts were soon interrupted by a strange, scraggly man who entered the main entrance. "Hello, may I help you?' She elevated her gaze from her small, neat writing. |
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Post by malachi on Jul 14, 2012 18:34:56 GMT -6
 It had taken a while for Malachi to finally work up the courage to go to the library, but he finally put his mind to it. He'd spent his whole life not knowing how to read. And the few words he could read didn't count, or at least that's what one of the other crew members had told him. So, with that in mind, he had made it his duty to find a library to go to. But it was a lot harder than it seemed. There weren't very many on the islands the ship made stops at, mostly because they were a bit over run with pirates. He couldn't find so much as a book, either. It was difficult, though he had continued to press the navigator until she informed him that there was one on Oléron Island, their next stop. And so, he spent the ride anxious and hoping he would learn quickly.
The same crew member had asked him why he was so hard pressed to learn to read, once he'd figured out that he'd finally found a library. But Malachi wouldn't tell him. How could he tell one of his comrades that he wished to read because he wanted to impress a girl. He'd be seen as soft and that would do nothing for his image. It was bad enough they doubted his reckless behavior and saw him as a potential threat, but he didn't need them to think of him as some soft, lover-boy. Malachi was better than that.
So, he kept his little secret as he walked into the library. A rather small girl was sitting there and she seemed to ask him a question. However, the young man hadn't exactly heard this question because he was taken aback by the many, many books. Finally, he shook his head and approached her slowly, trying to smile a little. "Hi. I was...just...um, looking." He said, a little nervous. This girl probably thought he was some street rat who was lost. Which wouldn't be a complete assumption. As someone who'd grown up on the streets, Malachi had a bit of a roughness to his appearance. He cleared his throat and looked around again. "Do you know where I could find..." his voice trailed off as he looked at her. There was no way he was going to outright ask her. Hell would freeze over first before he came off as an idiot.
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Post by tangle on Jul 14, 2012 19:04:48 GMT -6
The man walked toward her desk, seeming to mumble to himself as if he had something to say. She made out "where" and "find", so she assumed he was looking for something. "Hm, what is it you're looking for?" Michelle could tell he was nervous, and tried to show that she didn't want to intimidate him or make him more so. "It's alright, I don't bite. I can help, whatever it is." She gave her friendliest smile, and walked around the desk to stand beside him.
"Is it a book you're looking for?" "Uh..yeah, sure," he gave her in response. "Do you know the title?" No response. She proceeded to lead him to the far end of the library, and raised her hand to the shelves. "Take a look through here, tell me if you find it." He walked down the aisle and back, eyeing the books as he went. He returned to her, and shook his head "no". She repeated this process down the aisles, one by one. Each yielded the same response. She continued this process until they reached the end. No result. "I'm sorry, sir. We don't appear to have your book, sir, unless you want something else."
Note: Sorry for the really short post. |D |
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Post by malachi on Jul 15, 2012 19:32:33 GMT -6
 After they had searched through the different shelves and stuff, Malachi felt a little bad that he'd lied. What was it with pirates and lying? He sighed and stared down at the young woman for a moment before giving in. His cheeks flushed red as he said, "I'm real sorry about this, miss, but I'm not really looking for a book. I can't...I can't even read." The words were like fire on his tongue as he said them, embarrassment taking over. His chocolate gaze wouldn't meet hers and he just stared up at one of the many shelves of books. "I want to learn how, and I thought the library would be a good place to learn," he went on, his voice a bit distanced now.
For Sarah, he added silently. Malachi had dreamed of reading to her one day, to show how incredibly awesome he'd become. That he wasn't the same kid on the streets who often got into trouble. Zach had straightened him out enough over time, but he still seemed to be drawn to trouble. It wasn't his fault, though. He couldn't help being such a risk-taker. He just wished he didn't have to have so much courage all the time, because he really wanted to settle down with Sarah and get married some day.
Shaking his head, the brunette male smiled faintly at the woman. "I'm real sorry to have bothered you. I shouldn't have come here if I can't read..." He turned toward the door and began making his way there, but something made him stop and turn. "Unless, of course you could- well, I dunno... teach me?" The last few words caught in his throat and it made him cough. Why was he so nervous about this? Malachi Fitzpatrick was never nervous about anything. Much less some scrawny librarian in an enormous library fit for some kind of high lord or something. He swallowed and looked down at her, hoping she wouldn't hurt his ego too much.
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Post by tangle on Aug 24, 2012 21:41:45 GMT -6
"I'm real sorry about this, miss, but I'm not really looking for a book. I can't...I can't even read." Yes, Michelle was a little surprised that someone who couldn't read would be in a library, but decided to hear him out anyway. "I want to learn how, and I thought the library would be a good place to learn.," said the man. He appeared to be quite nervous, so she attempted to be as friendly as possible. "Well, that's no problem, sir. There's always a place to start learning, it's never too late." Unsure about what this situation meant, began to run thoughts through her head: How is he going to learn, even in a library, if he couldn't read? What books would be good places to start? Does he have any basic knowledge about grammar and spelling?
"I'm real sorry to have bothered you. I shouldn't have come here if I can't read... Unless, of course you could- well, I dunno... teach me?" She had never actually taught someone to read before. She wasn't sure how hard the task might be, or how you actually teach them. Do I need to teach grammar too? Pronunciation and spelling? ""Umm, sure. I'd be glad to teach you!" Michelle supposed the "Children's" section was a good place to start. The books were pretty simple, surely he could learn from them? He followed behind her as she led him across the lobby and to the right, where there was a small, colorful room with cushions and small benches in the center, short bookshelves lining the walls. She felt like the conversation was getting a bit awkward, so she decided to somewhat change the subject. "What's your name? Are you from here?" She thought the latter was probably obvious, why would someone travel just to learn to read? She thought it best to ask anyways.
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