The University Stacks

Aug 11th, 2012 11:44 AM

Research by night was always nice, especially in the summer. August was a time of relative peace at universities; aside from the occasional summer examination, students were not flooding the buildings with their iPods and their backpacks and their books. They were not whispering too loudly and they were not being told to shush by vigilant library staff who the students would then turn around and whisper some more about.

Students not actually in law did not flood the Law Library, where elitist young lawyers protested for their right to 'their space'. Arts kids did not flood the quiet Science library. The law casebooks were put away. Chaucer remained shelved. The annoyances of the April examination period were much muted in August, just before the undergraduate students all came flooding back.

And so Dr. Kingsley found himself, a visiting researcher pulling information regarding criminology and forensic science, sitting in a large and open room without much interference at all from vigilant library staff.

He wore his American Academy of Forensic Science ID card. It tended to stave off inquiring minds about what he was doing there. After all, he didn't look like a kid. He could easily have been a professor. A young one, perhaps. Good God, I'm hitting a birthday I should be dreading soon...

Maybe one day, he would be. The thoughts were a distraction that he shoved away as he focused and read.

**Ashley Cohen** · Aug 11th, 2012 12:57 PM

A petite young woman strolls quietly into the library. Even with her black hoodie up, blond hair is easily seen falling out from it. Large, silvered aviators adorn her face and she rocks some gray acid-washed jeans. She is definitely not the type that you would expect to see in this spot.

Ashley knows exactly what she needs, yet did not know exactly where to find it. Moving over to the desk she asks a simple question. "California Statues?" Her index finger slides the aviators down slightly on her nose as she regards the librarian, who quickly points out their location.

With a smile and a nod, Ashley turns and heads over to scan the section the librarian indicated. She is completely oblivious to Kingsley’s presence as she looks for the most up-to-date release of California Statues.

It did not take more then three minutes before she found what she is looking for. With book in hand she heads over to an empty table, slightly askew of the Doctor. She pulls out a chair and settles down, removing her glasses. Beginning to give the book a cursory examination, she begins to wonder what other useful information she could find here.

Aug 11th, 2012 02:53 PM

Doctor Powell felt quite at home in libraries, and coming to one in the evening always served to remind her of the days when she had willingly spent hours, slaving away to study hard into the wee hours of the early morning. She did not have a choice but to visit once darkness had fallen, these days and it was impossible to step out into daylight at 5am and walk home, books under her arms.

But the point remained: the Haunt enjoyed libraries. She could have travelled that night to the Moore House and spent a long while in the basement library that she had helped create, but for this excursion a university library was more useful. Regardless, there were still many books that she wished to take to the Sanctified library and that, perhaps, was a task for the next night.

This evening, the undead Doctor was not alone in her excursion to the library; and once she and Deputy Grigoriev gained access, she led the way through the shadows of the tall stacks.

Her Beast pushed angrily against another, recognising it with a mere passing familiarity. Josephine nodded to Ashley, and then to the more familiar Neil Kinglsey. From him, the Haunt sensed no Beast but he had been around long enough by now for her to recognise him by sight alone.

"What is... you interest this... evening?" Josephine asked, and turned to peer at the man beside her.

Aug 11th, 2012 03:11 PM

Sidor's fedora was pulled down tightly, covering the shadows of his face. The stacks at least, let him blend, and with Josephine at his side, there was less chance of an inconvenient librarian. He enjoyed libraries, but the Masquerade dictated that there were risks he could not take.

Fortunately, the fedora covered enough, the night was quiet, and there were...

...other Kindred.

The unfamiliar Beast made his own boil suddenly, raging at the ice inside. He slapped it aside, a powerful iron fist clenching around the darkness inside him.

"Interesting. I thought tonight would be quiet," he said, his soft accent clipping at the words.

-1 Vitae for Blush of Life

Aug 11th, 2012 03:33 PM

-1Vit for Blush

The arrival of the new Beast pressed against Neil's mind, rattling his cage as his eyes snapped up for just a moment to assess what it was she was doing. The woman's decision to acquire a book and take a seat removed her from his radar, as much as a Beast of that strength could be removed.

It seemed she was dedicated to disrupting his peace simply by being there. Yet, his eyes returned to his materials, and he was able to continue working.

But then two more familiar Beasts of great strength approached. These, he was more interested in. Deputy Grigoriev was an intelligent man, and with him was a woman he'd not yet had the pleasure of meeting despite having seen her plenty of times before. Looking up from his books, he nodded to the pair by way of greeting and then returned to his work.

After all, they had come to a library. Shouting out across the stacks would just be unprofessional, and then some over-zealous librarian would swoop down upon him like a bat out of hell and go 'ssssshhhhhh!'

And he wasn't a child. He did not enjoy being shushed by an old crone.

**Ashley Cohen** · Aug 11th, 2012 10:46 PM

Ashley gives a nod to Josephine, yet shrieks fearfully in Sidor's presence. While her beast may have fear to it...it is also full of pride, and she would be damn to let another drive her away with just their presence. A curious brow raises with her curiosity. Ashley finds it interesting at how they approach the one who she completely overlooked.

"Just how many kindred does Sacramento contain..." She ponders as she glances back down to her book.

Aug 12th, 2012 03:26 PM

"It is... always busy when you least... expect it," the good Doctor responded, with a mild smile. She glanced once more at the other Kindred, and approached the table to slip off her jacket and rest it over one of the chairs.

It seemed, at least right now that no one was particularly in the mind for a conversation- but then it could be difficult in a library, depending on the librarian. At least no students were around there studying, or a few glares may have been thrown in their direction. Josephine could understand that. As a student of Medicine, she had disliked her tranquil moments of study being interrupted.

"But it... could be worse."

Aug 12th, 2012 03:41 PM

"Indeed it is, Doctor," Sidor replied, pleasantly. His gaze moved over the various medical textbooks, until he withdrew the one he had wanted anyway. An old classic for Doctors, and an old friend to him - Gray's Anatomy. He knew most of it by memory now anyway, but the pleasure of seeing the images recreated was a rare and refined thing for him.

He could so rarely indulge himself in such things, but this was one that he desired in the quieter moments, and could afford. Intelligence did not come under the agreements of his vows of asceticism.

"How could it be worse?" The Haunt replied levelly, walking over to one of the tables. A quick movement flipped the book open to the diagram he wanted.

Sidor was apparently very interested in the lymphatic system today.

Aug 12th, 2012 05:13 PM

Dr. Kingsley continued to take notes and do his work, the presence of the foreign Beast disturbing him more and more.

In the relative quiet of the room, he heard Sidor mention the word 'Doctor'. His proverbial ears perked up. So the woman was some sort of physician, or was it a Ph.D.? This interested him; it was always pleasant to meet others who had devoted their studies to the practical and the academic. However, their conversation was their own. He wouldn't wish to ambush them like some sort of rabid puppy; feed me! pet me! love me! Oh, please, Deputy, love me!

Because the Domain already had plenty of new Daeva running around.

He closed the current book he was reading and returned it to his book cart. Next on the list was a treatise on the differences in the ballistics between the various weapons that fired 5.56mm NATO rounds.

Very interesting stuff.

At least, Neil thought so.

**Ashley Cohen** · Aug 12th, 2012 06:35 PM

Ashley rises from her table and heads out to find another book, though she is thoroughly content with the contents of her current one. She is not sure what else she should pick up, so she meanders about the isles looking for nothing in particular.

There is too many unknown variables when it comes to Sacramento and anything helps add clarity to the big picture...

The University Stacks

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