towerofanimus | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

Characters:

dualscars and everyone else.
Setting: The second library, very late at night.
Format: Starting with action brackets, but I'll match.
Summary: Dualscar partakes in an activity that does not involve violence!
Warnings: None, yet.

[those transversing the second library later at night may find the orphaner perusing its shelves, though with little to no apparent criteria for his selections. he looks as he has for the last few weeks: not to his standards of vanity. and with the more recent shenanigans involving nightmarish worlds? a touch on the battered side.

more notable, however, is that with every book deemed unsatisfactory, its chucked unceremoniously to the floor. only, that it isn't: to be thrown into a growing pile of them. one that, in fact, looks like quite a few shelves had gone into its creation. by now, several individuals could sit uncomfortably upon its hard-cover summits.

but if this requires any sort of attention at all, it doesn't show. after all, both holding a book and turning the page with one hand requires more effort than he'd care to admit.]

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[Chidori doesn't sleep until late into the night regardless, and wandering the tower is a thing she tends to do until sleep hits. The second library isn't a place she's explored extensively, but she's not the type to let that stop her from going where she pleases. She's a little confounded by the pile of books though, and stops before she catches sight of Dualscar- though she knows there's someone else there simply because of Medea. Aside from her teammates, Chidori doesn't make it a habit of remembering the pattern of their energies- but this one is familiar enough that she's not entirely worried.

She prods at the pile with the toe of a boot, and then bends to pick one of them up, sketchbook tucked carefully under an arm, and reads the title, before looking at the others closest to her, trying to find a correlation. She finds none, however, and finally kneels to look through the pile more carefully. Maybe it will make more sense if she looks harder.]

[he sees her out of the corner of his eye, mid-toss of another book, and for the moment disregards her in favor of a new title. yet another pertaining to human biology, of which he'd unfortunately discovered much about in full through his own misdeeds. there was little unknown about them now: only their sociology. and the abnormal ones not typically documented, the ones with abilities normally unseen -- the mutants.

he looks back to her again, frown already in place. 'mutants' indeed.]

What do you think you're doin'?

Investigating.

[She moves to make herself comfortable, skirt swept and tucked under her legs almost imperiously, and she leans sideways to pick up another book, expression betraying nothing. If Minato were there, he might be able to tell Dualscar that she was reining in inquiries, if only for the sake of politeness. And that she was a little frustrated that her endeavors weren't turning up much that she could understand him being interested in amongst the titles.]

Though I might ask the same.

[There, the first hint of curiosity, her sketchbook balanced on her thighs, seemingly precariously but not wavering from its position as she picked up another book, scoffed at the title, shifted it out of the way on the pile.]

...such a mess you're making, Orphaner.

[dualscar scowls, tossing the biology book to the rest of them. he turns toward her more fully, just a tad intrigued that, upon seeing a mountain of books, her first thought would be to sit on them.

he's quite honestly unsure of what to make of it. she may be able to notice this, simultaneously caught between an incredulous raise of the eyebrows and the almost permanent sneer. the fact that he'd been partaking in such an activity is near laughable in itself.]

It is purposeful, though not so much for anythin'. An' yet another concept foreign to humans.

You say that as if I will not simply ask you to explain.

[Which he should know, by now, is exactly what she intends to do- after she makes some of the books a little more comfortable to perch upon- fewer odd corners, more flat planes. Satisfied, she looks up at him, eyes- as always- somewhat brighter than your average human's.]

So what is its purpose?

An' you, as if I'm required to.

[he picks off one last, random book from the shelf before heading over to stand at the edge of the pile. perhaps its topic would be a pleasant surprise, though he doubts it. is is tucked beneath the arm he has, and he would make to clasp them behind his back if he were so permitted to. otherwise, it is a petulant sort of stance.

and despite his words, he does find himself elaborating, as trivial as he may find the topic to be.]

It is somethin' some trolls feel compelled to do, whether it be to rest in or.. discuss certain matters.

[let's be as vague as hell here.]

I only hope you will enlighten me.

[She follows his movements, eyes alert and sharp- moreso than they'd been before the tower's latest trick. The time she'd spent in her 'home' world had left her edgy, a little angry, and very, very wary of anything and everyone... except Minato, but that was a given.]

How can you possibly rest in this...?

[A shift, and while it is not entirely uncomfortable, she cannot imagine it being particularly good to settle among the books for too long.]

Discuss...? What, exactly?

The same way you sleep on those awful an' excessively squishy horizontal slabs you call "beds".

[he crouches to move a few books aside, the better to sit upon. whether or not he wants to sit in an already occupied pile, even if it's his, is something he could easily mull over for the next few minutes. it'd been sweeps since something like that, or this, had occurred.

he decides to anyway, keeping as far away from her as possible whilst still remaining in it.]

Their... emotions. Problems. Or anythin' relatin' to them.

How curious.

[So it is a sort of nest, then? She doesn't say as much, but the suspicion is there, and she half-smiles because of it, more than she normally allows herself to show. It is just that amusing a though, really.]

So you make piles of books and discuss your problems? That is... quite interesting.

[Though if it was meant for discussion, that would mean it was also meant for more than one troll... and Chidori couldn't really picture Dualscar being that kind of troll. Still, if there should have been someone else here, was he waiting for someone?]

...I'm not intruding, am I?

[Best to ask and not make a nuisance of herself- Dualscar was her best source of information when it came to troll behaviors. Mostly because she'd seen how some of the younger ones spoke, and she didn't think she'd be able to handle such terrible attitudes.]

[dualscar bites back a retort at that, half of it being that it was true in the first place. the other half? apathy, he supposes. he shouldn't give a fuck what aliens think of their practices, obviously.

he leans back on the pile-- not quite getting comfortable (although he most certainly could!), as he'd rather remain vigilant, but in a position to better read with one hand. the book is laid out on his lap.]

If you were, I would've made you leave already.

That is good to know.

[As he settles, Chidori's fingers unthinkingly open her sketchbook, and she finds the pencil in her hands, guide lines drawn before she can doubt herself. He really does have a certain elegance about him sometimes, and the current position makes for quite the sketch. Or it will, once she gets going.]

In that case, if I may stay?

[Her hand is already moving, shapes taking form- the breadth of a shoulder, the lightning-bolt shape of a horn- and she's not too keen on moving when she's got inspiration.]

...and should you be inclined to speak, I will be inclined to listen.

[If only to keep him from moving so that she can finish her sketch.]

[dualscar glances to her, and is immediately able to discern just what she's doing. but he'd said that would be all right, as long as she didn't disturb him while doing so-- and so she fulfilled those requirements. and even if she were anyway, the disturbances weren't as irritating as he'd always predicted them to be.

he nods shortly, focusing his attention back to the book he'd selected. yet another reference book. but that was as thrilling as it got for him-- had it been fiction, he'd have tossed it away immediately. there's the slightest raise of the eyebrows at her final words.]

Say that to any other troll, an' I dare say they may think that as a come-on.

[except probably not. this is dualscar, after all.]

[Chidori, for all that her coloration and manner of dress make her stick out like a sore thumb, has a talent for being rather unobtrusive. Combined with Medea's ability to cloak her presence, and she doesn't even show up on your radar unless she wants you to know she's there. She doesn't usually employ Medea when dealing with Dualscar though- unless she's speaking or he's speaking to her, he seems perfectly capable of disregarding her presence by himself. Her hands don't pause at his words, though her own eyebrows do rise in curiosity. She goes over her words carefully in her mind, trying to find anything in them that could have been misconstrued- and upon finding nothing, changes the angle of her drawing, short, careful strokes articulating the shape of his armor.]

...a come-on? I do not understand.

[He has to be joking... right? There is very literally no way- unless this is some strange troll context she is unaware of- that she could have been coming on to him.]

[indeed. and he's both over-analyzing and overdoing things, as he's often prone to do, but she doesn't need to know that. besides, it was more subjective than anything-- another thing she didn't need to know. and he still felt that he was doing her a generous favor with even telling any of this in the first place. the page is flipped, his eyes skimming through the dense paragraphs easily.]

Moirallegiance. [goodness, he hasn't even said the word in sweeps. it almost feels strange to roll off his tongue.] Its purpose is mostly conciliatory, though it is still considered a type of romance.

[as by now, he's aware that humans wouldn't consider the pale quadrant to have any sort of romantic insinuation to it. he clears his throat.] Of course, that doesn't take into account your intentions. [and thus why he didn't: he knew her intentions weren't of a pale nature. it was only small-talk.]

I see. I believe Minato covered that briefly, in the information he and that girl put out...

[She pauses there, and this time her pencil does stop as she considers him carefully. She's not sure if he's messing with her just then, to be honest- she does not know if trolls even take anyone outside of their species for these 'quadrants' of theirs. But it's an interesting concept, to say the least. Still...]

My intentions...?

[She does not have any, so far as she knows, aside from conversing with him and, as her pencil begins to move again, using him as a model. She doesn't look up properly, but her eyes skim his face curiously as she asks-]

You believe I have some, then?

[he swallows, though his lip just begins to curl into the faintest of sneers. it's gone quickly, however, to be replaced by an expression more neutral. perhaps this had been a poor topic of conversation on his part after all-- stupid. and he had to remind himself again that he was just repaying debts.

nevermind the fact that he's remaining a touch more still that he thought comfortable.]

Not in the least. But as said, others may.

[it's almost kind of painful how lacking this place is in.. everything. nevermind the inner lamentation of the decrepit state of his quadrants, this place was awful in it's lack of anything to drink. who would have thought a sensible (peaceful) conversation with an alien would get him started so.]

I see.

[She catches the sneer- though just barely- and her lips give the faintest twitch upward. She shifted, rearranged her book on her lap, having turned to face him a little more properly.]

Do your kind consider other species suitable for such?

[Conciliatory interactions as a type of romance was a concept that was strange, in theory, but in acting practice, she could see how some humans might do it without even realizing. She busied herself a few moments with the details of his chestplate, hand moving slowly to get the lines just so, and then considered her sketchbook before raising her gaze to his face, eyebrows tilted upward in what was probably the most blatant display of curiosity she could muster.]

Though I have to wonder how one goes about pursuing something like that.

[still uncomfortable. yes, the great orphaner dualscar made uncomfortable by merely chatting up a human in a book pile. to be honest, he couldn't think of much worse-- the idea itself isn't necessarily the perpetrator, but what other trolls of his status would think. but would they even consider it as he has?

yet another thing she may be able to discern: just how utterly troubled he looks at the moment. but he'd always had that look perfected, whether he was aware of it or not: perhaps the situation just managed to eccentuate it.]

I've never heard 'a it bein' so.

[then again, it wasn't often his species were in situations as such. mostly towards others: it was conquer, enslave, leave. there was little social mingling between. and yes, inwardly to her final words: he wonders it too.]

[She restrains the urge to smirk a little- though only barely- and gives her head the barest of shakes, if only to keep her hair from spilling over her shoulders.]

Then it should not be an issue unless it is made one.

[Except she is fairly certain it could be, if they were really so inclined. But she doesn't say that out loud- knows better than to do so, considering the sort of personality Dualscar has. Sh does take note of that troubled look, however, etches the lines into her memory for future reference, and then continues her sketching once it's smoothed out again. She can't really say much about it on her part- she's not sure about the intricacies of such things are, and she's sure there are many, so not saying anything further in that regard seems to be in her best interests.

She will keep it in mind, however, for if she has a chance to ask someone else to explain the nuances of this moirailleigance to her. It does, at the very least, sound like quite the interesting concept.]

[dualscar makes a noise somewhat close to a 'hmph', though he'd like to think it not nearly as childish. he flips another page in the book, practiced gaze skimming through its wordy paragraphs with ease. normally this would be an effective method of study for him, but he found that not nearly as much as he liked was being absorbed.

he considers chucking the book across the room in a juvenile bout of frustration, and would probably do so if he were alone-- but that has little to do with how much information can successfully be recalled. after a few moments:]

Besides, I wouldn't think you fit for any quadrant.

[oh, even he knows that was pretty fat lie, albeit a necessary one.]

[She honestly has to wonder if he even realizes how very transparent his reactions to things can be sometimes. Considering how he continues on without so much as hesitating, she really doesn't think so. That's alright- she'll let him keep up whatever pretenses he likes.]

Is that right?

[That he even has to say anything about it makes her inherently suspicious of his words, though she realizes better than to make her suspicions audible. She can't resist the teasing it opens him up for, however, and presses the back of her pencil to her lips, pretending thoughtfulness.]

A shame. It would be interesting, I think.

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