Post by Shane Matthews on May 21, 2008 17:27:49 GMT -5
Newspapers were a waste of time and effort. Though they feigned similarity to books, for whatever reason, the important information never seemed to make it to the front page. Though the latest issue of the Iberian Augur had yet to come out, there were always plenty of other less well renowned newspapers to choose from.
Still, no matter which newspaper you chose, they were all barely worth reading. What with all this front-page garbage about insignificant matters like some Scorpius guy showing up again and blowing a few things up or some other Azrael dude taking over some town somewhere. All it seemed people cared about was the endless gossip about the darn celebrities.
With a small sigh of disgust he folded the paper and set it down upon his desk. There was absolutely nothing of real interest happening at all this month. Not even a really good book being released. He could always go and write one of his own, yet he hardly thought himself qualified to perform such a sacred act; it was enough now that he was worthy of tending to them. Apparently celebrity gossip would have to suffice for now.
Post by Professor Roeswood on May 21, 2008 20:31:09 GMT -5
As of late, Marina could be found lurking in the library much more frequently than in prior days. Although a good book was usually a decent lure occasionally, she now had a much more enthralling, but at the same time, somewhat silly motivation to be found within these bookshelves again and again: the handsome librarian, of course.
Albeit, most women were more put off by his shy and sometimes curt demeanor, and perhaps somewhat unhealthy obsession with books. Beneath these things, however, Marina saw a man who was ultimately kind and good-hearted, much the polar opposite of her current (arguably past, considering he no longer paid her any mind) lover. It was all in good fortune that so few had known about them in the first place, especially with his current means of making local headlines. To be associated with him would be not only scandelous for her, but for the school as a whole, and of course, she doubted Shane would have any nerve to woo or be wooed if he knew she was technically spoken for.
Though prior meetings had let essentially all sentiments out in the open, Shane was of a somewhat more delicate sort, and a relationship had not been officially declared or consummated. Ultimately, Marina was set with the endlessly amusing, but also touchy task of wooing Mr. Matthews, and at current, she came bearing a gift that she could only hope would find his approval.
Borne underneath her left arm, a giant tome swayed slightly with the motion of her footsteps as she approached Shane's desk. Although a bit dry of reading, the centuries-old volume on occlumency was nonetheless a very rare and useful book, one that she had determined, after hours of perusing and summoning cards from the catalog, could not be found in the Firefox University library. With a somewhat proud and triumphant smile, she dropped the heavy book on his desk with an audible thump, resulting not from her carelessness but from the sheer mass of the thing.
"I know you've had a bit of trouble as of late finding books that you haven't read, so I brought you a bit of light reading," she said with a smile, absentmindingly rubbing the muscles of her left arm with her other hand, clearly somewhat sore from the exertion of carrying the massive book to the room. Regardless, her face was all smiles and healthy lustre as she carefully observed his, hoping that it would not display any signs of disappointment or fear.
Post by Shane Matthews on May 22, 2008 14:00:47 GMT -5
"Eep." The librarian uttered, startled as a loud thump brought his attention back to the here and now, nearly causing him to fall from his chair in the process. "Now, really, I'll not have such racket ruining the pristine peace of my librar-ahhhhh, it's you." All ready and willing to give some rabble-rousing student a good stern lecturing, he was somewhat caught off guard by Marina's sudden appearance.
"Er, hello, ah, how......how are you?" he managed to get out feebly, remembering how thoroughly he embarrassed himself the last couple times they had met. What might have lapsed into a somewhat awkward silence was instead banished by the tome she had presented him with, one he recognized immediately as not belonging to his library.
"What is this?" he asked quizzically, drawing the book closer to himself. After examining and opening the cover and flipping through the first few pages, an excited gleam fired up within his eyes. "This is.......this is wonderful!" he exclaimed, hefting the book into his lap and flipping eagerly to the table of contents to see exactly what it carried. "You truly are the best! Wherever did you find such a thing?"
Last Edit: May 22, 2008 14:02:01 GMT -5 by Shane Matthews
Post by Professor Roeswood on May 22, 2008 18:57:10 GMT -5
Although she was put momentarily ill at ease by Shane's initial surprise at her appearance, her hopes were quickly fulfilled and more as he reacted quite positively to her presense. He of course, did this in his own awkward way, but even that was reassuring somehow; Marina knew that his reaction was genuine, because his manner would certainly become painfully affected if it wasn't.
"I'm quite well, thank you," Nina responded with a glowing smile to his somewhat strained inquiry after her state. Perhaps he was trying to glean a bit about her sentiments as well? Regardless, she was content to watch his excited reaction.
"It's an old book on occlumency, rather lengthy for such a specific topic, I thought, but a very useful and enlightening read," she explained, though the words "useful" and "enlightening" had a somewhat wry edge to them. In fact, the book was incredibly dull, but considering she felt the same of the majority of the volumes in the library, she was sure that at the very least it would occupy Shane's time, something which he seemed to be itching for.
Marina flushed scarlet at his compliment, taken aback by its veracity. She had never known Shane to react so vehemently to anything, but then again, she'd never met a man so inclined to read either. Either way, his kid-in-a-candy shop response was exactly what she had been going for. This was turning out far better than she had hoped.
"Oh, I was perusing a rare books store when I happened upon it. I'd never seen it before and I figured it could be of use, so I thought I'd buy it." The story was more or less true, but she had been specifically looking for a book on that particular subject, and this had been the only one of note that she could locate in her searches. With this delicate situation with Azrael, a former professor of Divinations, Marina got the distinct impression that having a bit of talent with blocking her thoughts would come highly in handy.
"I've gotten as much as possible out of it," without driving myself completely bonkers, she added mentally, "so I figured I would pass it on to you, as long as you promise not to drop it on my head." Nina smiled gently, hoping to impart through her expression that the small joke was not meant to insult his character or to embarrass him, but nearly a reflection of their familiarity, one that Marina hoped to soon increase.
Post by Shane Matthews on May 24, 2008 16:06:10 GMT -5
“I’m glad you did buy this, it is a wonderful addition to the library,” Shane replied with a genuine smile, though, blushing a moment later and lowering his head slightly in embarrassment, added; “And I promise I won’t drop this one on your head….”
Uncertain what else to say and not wanting their conversation to lapse into any very awkward silences, he quickly tried to make some sort of conversation, using whatever first popped into his mind. “So……..what does bring you to the library? Can I, uhh, help you in some way?” He said, rather lamely. After all, it was the product of one talking for the sole sake of talking.
“Err,” he continued, realizing his own lameness, “What I means is, do you have any interest in occlumency yourself? I mean, I know much about it, yet knowing of something and actual knowledge of how to implement something are both totally different. I‘m afraid I don‘t use half the spells I know of.”
Post by Professor Roeswood on May 24, 2008 21:06:07 GMT -5
Marina, usually a very level-headed woman, found herself, for a long moment, utterly stunned still by Shane's smile. It was true that its true perfection was arguable; handsome as he was, the Librarian wasn't exactly the pinacle of masculinity or fitness, and the curvature of his smile was not one of perfect symmetry. However, the woman found herself utterly captivated, and when her own joke diminished that smile, her stomach sank cruelly, causing her to visibly wince.
As the conversation began to falter, Nina grew anxious, though she carefully disguised it behind a warm smile, one that she fueled by her deep pleasure in finding a suitable gift for her reluctant, would-be beau. "Well, you're welcome," she began, "but I didn't mean to imply that it was necessarily for the library..." Her voice trailed off for a moment, her brow furrowing. "It was for you."
As she spoke these words, her stomach fluttered uncontrollably, and she found herself quite glad that Shane had made further statements which she could respond to, even if their nature would have unsettled her in other circumstances. She did not want to have to be dishonest with Shane, but she fortunately had a means of being honest and discrete in her arsenal, in the form of a more generalized answer.
"I guess, in this day and age, with all that is going on..." Marina looked momentarily troubled, pausing to find the right words. "I really want to be prepared to protect myself and this school, and if I can keep my knowledge and thoughts of the hands of the enemy, then we're all better off." At this moment, Marina glanced down at the newspaper that Shane had been reading before her arrival, and her face blanched slightly as she saw Azrael's name in print. With her hand trembling, she turned the page of the newspaper, deliberately finding Scorpius' name and placing her finger on a convenient excuse.
"It's just sometimes, since the War..." She trailed off again, looking around the library where, at the age of 17, she had once battled for her very life against a horde of undead foes. "Sometimes I get scared, and I learned then that being prepared can save lives. I want to be ready for anything." She seemed to grow consumed with a melancholy for a moment, haunted by her memories, her lies, and an intense longing that she could not satisfy without putting Shane in danger. His statement about not applying what he knew only put her more ill at ease; he probably wouldn't stand a chance against Azrael if they were discovered.
Nina paused for a long moment, bracing herself with her hands on his desk, and looked into Shane's face, her eyes glassy and vacant. She peered, as though peering over the edge of a cliff into the great chasm below. Should she jump, or should she stay at the top, alone, in safety? As the first tear slipped from the corner of her eye, Marina took, a deep, shuddering breath, and leapt.
"Shane, I can't take this anymore!" Her voice was choked and hushed, but vehement, and she restlessly paced in front of his desk, lifting her fist to her mouth and pressing her white knuckles nervously to her teeth. Finally, she stopped and turned, facing him with a tearful intensity, her green eyes boring into his visage, trying to guage his reaction.
"Shane, I love you, and I have loved you since the day that I met you. I know that this is... is... insane, but I can't stop thinking about you." She paused only for a moment for breath, and then, in seeming impulse, she all but lunged over the desk, seizing Shane by the shoulders.
"I want... I need you to tell me if this is real. Please, Shane, just tell me that you love me too, kiss me, something! Or tell me to leave, because I can't live in limbo anymore." She hovered, her tear-stained face inches from his, wanting so badly for their lips to meet, and for her heart, body, and soul to feel true joy again.
Post by Shane Matthews on May 25, 2008 10:34:42 GMT -5
For him? That was such an odd concept, really. I mean, if he was the librarian, didn’t that mean that basically all the books in the library were his too? I mean, if that wasn’t the way it worked, what was the point of becoming a librarian when he could have opened a bookstore instead? Still, regardless of such thoughts as these it was perhaps the most thoughtful thing anyone had done for him in years, save when she had saved the library during the war.
Still, her excuse of needing protection did seem a bit feeble to Shane. After all, she had rather effortlessly thwarted that band of crazy shadow people who had attempted to destroy the library, which was before she was even a professor. Clearly, she already had more than what it took to defend herself if necessary and Shane believed, personally, that one such as her would be prepared for anything. I mean, I guess it never hurt to be a bit over prepared, such as reading a library’s worth of books for a class when a single text would suffice, yet there were probably better things to do with one’s time.
Yet then, without any real warning, she was….crying? “I’m sorry?” Shane said tentatively, not really sure how to react. Ghah, women were always so damn bipolar. They could be cheerfully enough bringing you presents, then on with the waterworks a moment later. Though Shane couldn’t honestly know what to expect, mentally he braced himself for some sort of outburst, for which he was not disappointed.
And so the outburst came, with which he could only reply with a small “Eep”, initially. From that point on, for about the entire duration of her speaking, he debated his few options. He could always run, yet he would have to get out from behind his desk, which meant he would have to go through her. He could also hide under his desk, of course, yet that would be a temporary fix if anything, unless he thought up a better escape plan from there.
“Ack!” he exclaimed as she grabbed him by the shoulders. Nowhere to run now. His escape plans all being foiled in that little instant. Though he saw her as a great hero and fellow war veteran, she was currently acting downright nutters, to an extent that he never would imagine being able to understand, yet he really did have to do something. Finally deciding upon a course of action, he threw his arms around her and…gave her a big hug. It may not have been quite what she was expecting, yet Shane was hardly the sort of guy to look to for dramatic conclusions. If this, coming from someone like Shane, couldn’t get his message of affection across, there probably wasn’t a lot of hope for anything more. At least a hug was always comforting to someone in clear emotional distress.
Post by Professor Roeswood on May 25, 2008 13:01:29 GMT -5
It was fortunate that it was early morning and the library was abandoned, save for the pair at the desk, because otherwise, Marina would have been even more shamed by the eyes of curious onlookers. As it were, in watching Shane's reaction, her face burned with humiliation, turning a vibrant shade of crimson. He, not exactly the picture of perfect functionality in society, either, seemed to think that she was being insane, and he was right. She had known it too, before even stepping foot in here, but she had grown so weary of feeling poorly all the time that the only way she could find to vent her problems was to release them all explosively.
But even with this effort, her motivation to determine Shane's emotions were still somewhat thwarted. After all, a hug was by most definitions a relatively lukewarm reception, and for a moment Marina tensed with anger and vexation. Still, she clung to him tightly, and as she began to think more clearly, she realized all at once that a response such as this, from a man as shy and reclusive as the librarian, was all of the answer that she needed. At once, she pulled away and stilled her tears, stopping for a moment to wipe her cheeks with her sleeve, which had grown too large on her ever-shrinking frame.
"I'm sorry, Shane, you must think I'm bonkers," she said, her somewhat enflamed and red eyes growing level, and the slightest traces of a rueful smile gracing her visage. The librarian was a man of reason, and she would have to approach him with that same reason in order to get him to respond in the ways that she wanted him to. Her acting like a maniac might not turn his admiration of her, but it probably wouldn't do her a hell of a lot of good either. Collecting herself, she stepped up onto the desk and touched down lightly on the ground beside him, very careful not to disturb any of his papers, and most certainly not to damage any of his precious books.
Instead of seizing him, this time, Nina very gently placed her palms on his wrists, sliding them delicately to his shoulders, where she very carefully wrapped her fingertips to brush his back. Again, she brought herself eye level to him, not with force, but with gentle, unassuming affection and reason.
"Shane, may I kiss you?" Marina asked softly, her expression imploring, but not consumed with the same frenzy that had characterized it moments earlier.
Post by Shane Matthews on May 25, 2008 16:06:32 GMT -5
"No, no, not bonkers, not at all." He said, trying to think of some way to phrase the truth that wouldn't sound insulting at the same time. "I guess you just seem a bit....confused? Maybe. I mean, perhaps." Wasn't exactly the most comforting of things he could have said, yet it seemed mediocrity was one of his stronger attributes, ironic as that might sound.
Then, not more than a moment after releasing him, she was over the desk and beside him. He averted his gaze for a moment, social awkwardness threatening to kick back in full-throttle now that his one barrier between them. Once again, she had him in her grasp. Given, this time she was a lot calmer than before, the social contact still unsettled him a bit.
“Women scare me, it’s my one major weakness. Well, other than having social skills of a dying badger, lack of practical magical ability or knowledge of anything not found in a book.” he said instead of directly answering her question, giving her the smallest of sheepish grins.
Post by Professor Roeswood on May 25, 2008 17:38:29 GMT -5
Nina was a smart woman, and she recognized immediately that Shane was trying to be tactful in his response. However, she knew he was right, regardless, and was not offended by his explanation. In fact, when she thought about it a bit more, he seemed to have hit the reality of the matter on the head, and she affirmed her agreement with a simple nod.
"Yes, confused would probably describe it," she said, quirking the corner of her lip as she nibbled delicately on the inside of her cheek, looking thoughtful. As she did this, she observed his reaction to the physical contact carefully, noticing his discomfort, but nonetheless feeling reassured. He seemed a lot more comfortable than he had in response to her previous approaches, though nonetheless still a little ill at ease.
Marina could not help but exhale a sigh at his response to her question, though it wasn't so much frustrated or disappointed as it was exasperated, and it was accompanied by her own wry smile. "So have you socialized with many dying badgers, or are you just making unfair assumptions about them? For all you know they could be impressive socialites." Nina managed to make this assertion with a straight face, and punctuated it with an emphatic nod. Though she toyed with him for a moment, she grew quickly serious, and caught his gaze very directly with her own emerald green eyes.
"But regardless, I find those things about you very charming and refreshing, even if your refusal to answer my question vexes me beyond explanation." She affectionately slid her hand up his shoulder and to the line of his jaw, where she gently lifted his head to look at him better.
"Even so, I could teach you to overcome that fear, if you would let me. I could teach you things about life and love that aren't in the pages of any book, not one in this library, anyway, if you would give me the chance." She was calm and collected, but her expression burned with passion, her breaths slightly quick and shallow as she took in his scent, so tantalizingly close, not one of fancy cologne or soap, but of his own skin and flesh and the delicate musty odor of old leather-bound books. Her eyes looked into his, then travelled to the line of his jaw, the curvature of his lips, and the gentle slopes of his cheeks, until, unwittingly, she found herself only inches from him. With a force almost like magnetism, she found her lips brought into his, although her mind screamed No! You'll hurt him!
Even so, she found herself, in that moment, jolted by a shock of electric joy that slithered from the corners of her mouth, down her spine, and through her toes, followed by a deep, resonating guilt. She pulled herself from him in shame, having lost control again, knowing that she had probably undone any budding trust and violated his boundaries again.
"Shane, I'm so sorry," she said, standing away from him as far as the confined space behind the desk allowed, burying her face in her hand in shame and horror at her own actions.
Post by Shane Matthews on May 26, 2008 10:45:13 GMT -5
“Well,” Shane replied, thinking about it logically. Which wasn’t always synonymous with reasonably, “I’m just saying, it can be assumed that, as badgers don’t talk, one could hardly expect and sort of proper socialization. Though admittedly, I can’t speak from experience on the matter, as I don’t go around talking to badgers. I imagine if I did, I’d end up locked away somewhere.”
Clearly, Marina wasn’t about to consume his soul, so ultimately, why were women so damn scary? Perhaps he wasn’t as under prepared to deal with one as he had at first assumed. Hell, perhaps even he could give that whole ’romance’ thing a try.
It might be best, in all actuality, if he could later ask someone knowledgeable on the topic of romance, such as Talon, for advice. He, of course, was the type to read such trashy romance novels as “My Veela Will Go On” (This is true.) Honestly, Headmaster or no, who reads that sort of garbage? Yet, there is the fact that if he had taken time to read that sort of garbage, he might have a really witty or otherwise romantic remark to make at this point in time. Though, as far as romance novellas went reputation-wise, perhaps he was best not knowing what their take on this sort of matter might be.
And then, before he could think more on the subject…..she struck! Wide eyed, he was frozen like a deer in headlights (a rather ironic simile, considering magical folk generally weren't accustomed to muggle vehicles.) as she lunged foreword to steal a kiss. Amazingly, it didn’t burn him or otherwise cause Shane injury. In fact, it was…..good. Hell, it was wonderful! Too shocked to even stammer out random gibberish as normal, he once against stepped up to her as she drew back, apparently ashamed of what she had done, to pull her into another embrace. “It’s okay,” he muttered, “I want to learn.”
Post by Professor Roeswood on May 26, 2008 11:40:12 GMT -5
Marina could have cried of vexation in the moment after her unwitting attack on Shane, as she found herself confined behind the desk and unable to make a graceful escape. However, the situation, surprisingly, wound up working to her advantage, and she gasped audibly as Shane held her, her crumpled, frustrated expression melting into a pleased smile. Instead of being offended or frightened, it seemed instead that Shane enjoyed the kiss this time around. At least, Nina hadn't been clocked in the head with any giant books as of yet, and when she stole a glance in its direction, she noticed that her own gift to the librarian was still safely in its place.
With a sly grin, Marina turned to face Shane, noticing, when they were standing, a stark height differential, sometimes annoying, but nonetheless something she had long since grown used to. Being careful to avoid entangling him in a crushing embrace, she entwined her own arms about him, which had grown strong with constant exercise (as ironically, the consummate nerd had become the wizarding equivalent of a muggle gym teacher).
"I'm very glad you feel that way, Shane," she asserted softly, resting her cheek against his chest for a moment, feeling more comfortable than she ever had before nestled in his safe embrace. Pulling just a half a foot away, she craned her neck to look at him, and with a smile she added, "Well, I guess I'll just have to teach you then. Just do as I do, and it will come naturally."
Tugging gently on the collar of his robe, and herself standing on the balls of her feet, she brought her lips to his again, slowly and carefully as not to startle him, and gently caressed his upper and lower lips with her own.
Post by Shane Matthews on May 27, 2008 14:57:55 GMT -5
Though he let her kiss him a second time, enjoying it fully, of course, it was then that reason actually started to function again. Drawing back from her, he cleared his throat softly. “You know, as much as I’m wholeheartedly enjoying myself, you do realize that we’re kind of in a library still. I mean, since I started working here, I’ve made it my duty to chase off all the young couples who hide here thinking it to be some sort of superior make-out spot, when they should be studying. Now it looks like we‘re one of them. It probably wouldn‘t look very good for either of us, especially since I’m fairly certain we‘re the ones who are supposed to be role models.”
In all honestly, though it was still early in the day, he already felt worn and exhausted, though not at all unsatisfied. After all, even if he really liked the whole ‘romance’ idea, it was still a taxing experience for a social recluse to be cast abruptly into.
“So…..are you still confused?” Shane asked, earnestly hoping that it really was that simple to keep errant emotions in line, even if this time it had turned out for the better. After all, wild, unpredictable emotions were, well, wild and unpredictable, so it would be a great comfort for Shane is they could now get to reasonable discussion. After all, he reasoned, the pair of them could only ultimately work out if they were able to talk reasonably with one another and uphold intellectual discourse. “I mean, you know, occlumency and all that.”
Post by Professor Roeswood on Jul 22, 2008 23:13:29 GMT -5
As much as she was loathe to admit, Shane was probably right. She herself had busted numerous snogging couples as Prefect, Head Girl, and then a professor. Fortunately, the library was deserted at the moment, but it might not be in a minute or two, and Marina did not even want to imagine the scandal and gossip that would circulate if they were discovered. She would never be taken seriously again.
"You're right, Shane," she affirmed with a small nod and a rueful grin, displaying two straight rows of perhaps slightly yellowed teeth. She pulled away from him and perched herself delicately on the edge of his desk, careful to gently shift aside papers to make room for her to sit. "I already caused enough of a scene at the dance earlier this year."
She was decidedly cheerful at that moment, and responded to Shane with a small laugh. "No worries Shane, I'm quite fine and clear-headed now." Her face fell slightly, and she seemed to grow momentarily concerned. Biting her bottom lip thoughtfully, she paused for a long moment, looking decidedly comtemplative.
"I apologize for the way that I was acting. It's really rather odd, but for some reason I've just been out of control lately and I don't know why. It seems some time this past fall I just remember waking up in the dungeon in an awful funk and just never really crawling out of it." When she thought about it, actually, Marina really had no recollection of how she had even gotten there in the first place, a rather distressing revelation. Pursing her lips, she shook her head quickly, seeming to attempt to shake out any thoughts too bothersome to confront at the moment.
However, as he revisited the subject she had quickly tried to avoid, she grew visibly more perturbed, even agitated. She hated to lie to Shane, really, but simply didn't seem to have any other choice. Otherwise, he would find out about her and Azrael and likely never speak to her again. It was selfish, she recognized, but what Shane didn't know couldn't hurt him. If she confronted her former lover (arguably, still her significant other due to her own failure to officially cut ties), however, he just might.
"No, I'm not confused about occlumency at all," she said with a coy smile. She wasn't lying of course. In fact, she was employing the skill at that very moment in case Shane happened to have a gift for divinations, either one through practice or through reading. She wondered for a moment if she could trust him not to enter her mind uninvited, but realized within a moment that he could not trust her either. Their budding relationship was built on a foundation of her own lies.
Teagan Offline: This board is full of nostalgia.
Aug 22, 2020 8:39:09 GMT -5
Missing the old MH: gotta say missing when MH and all that was around.
Nov 6, 2019 0:02:30 GMT -5
Willow_lazy: why tf are there 400 posts about adidas
Sept 6, 2018 17:35:57 GMT -5
Azrael: I'm not hard to find, since I'm the only one there who goes by "Azzy", I'm pretty sure. XD
Feb 10, 2018 16:44:41 GMT -5
Azrael: Dunno if anyone still pops by here from time to time, but if any of you mofos do and still feel like gettin' yo nerd on, I've been hanging around this here place a bunch recently: www.roleplayerguild.com/
Feb 10, 2018 16:44:10 GMT -5
Azrael: hold onto your pantaloons
Jul 25, 2016 5:16:43 GMT -5