Windows & Books Who: Desdemona and Alarie When: Anesus 1, 7:00PM Where: 2nd Floor, Sitting Room
The day passed quickly, as it usually did for someone who slept through the daylight. Desdemona had been exhausted from her journey, and if that wasn't enough, there was the emotional baggage that came with being locked inside a compound for six years. She woke slowly, not particularly eager to explore her new home, but eventually deciding she didn't want to stay locked in her room. After pulling on a crimson silk gown and fixing her hair, Desdemona departed from her room, locking the door behind her.
Moving through the castle, one room after another, Desdemona investigated her new home. She preferred the upstairs rooms with windows, the cool breeze that blew softly over her skin, yet she knew it was far safer down in the depths of the basement. Besides, the second floor rooms were prized above all others, at least for the humans and the lykos. No one wanted a windowless box. At least she could come up in the evenings and relax in the sitting room. The collection of books there was to die for and she intended to read each and every one before leaving the compound. Her fingers brushed over the bindings as her eyes scanned the titles, occasionally pulling a book out for a better look. It was hard to decide where to start. She'd never had so many books to choose from.
Alarie had taken pity on Harlan after the tour of the compound and let him return to bed without another hundred or so questions that were desperate to get off her tongue. She slept herself, though it was restless. Being in a new place, and so close to her brother... she simply couldn't find it in her to sleep for more than a couple hours. The day passed quickly, most of it she spent with her brother, being introduced to people he knew. Introducing herself to people she decided she wanted to meet. It intrigued her, rather than frightened her, and honestly she was looking forward to seeing how people reacted and responded to one another. She passed the second floor sitting room and paused, stepping back into the doorway to look inside. She hadn't had a chance to fully examine all of the books it had, and curious, Alarie walked inside and began to skim the titles, wondering if there was anything she could nick and take back to her room to read before bed.
She noted the girl on the other side of the room and studied her clothing and face. She wondered if she was like Alarie, though something told her she wasn't. "Hi," she greeted easily, smiling in the girl's direction. "Did you find anything worth reading yet?" Lame, sure, but it was something.
With the sound of heartbeats everywhere, Desdemona had been working to try and filter them out. She'd not expected the person possessing the steady beat would stop and talk to her, as she'd rarely conversed with humans when not hunting for them. This was something she would have to learn, though they should have a fair amount in common, she supposed. At least they could read, putting them at an intelligence level Desdemona respected. Maybe sharing a common interest would help bridge the gap.
"There's so many," she said. "I don't really know where to start. I've always been fond of poetry, but there's a good collection of legends and lore as well. While I don't expect to spend hours reading, it would be nice to have something for the wee hours of the morning." Slightly caught up in answering the question, Desdemona realized she'd forgotten to introduce herself properly. She set the book down, turning full to face Alarie, her gloved hands clasped lightly at her waist. "I'm Desdemona Dox," she said. "I just got here last night." Hopefully that would be enough to excuse her behavior.
Alarie's eyes drifted to the woman's gloved hands before she lifted her gaze back to her face and smiled. "Alarie Porscolin. I've just arrived too." And look, something they had in common already. She moved toward one of the shelves and pulled a book out, skimming the back cover. "I'm sort of of the same mind. Having something to read when I should probably be sleeping. I'm not overly big on poetry. Probably because I'm too dense to understand it," she said with a grin. "I'm more of a mystery kind of girl. I like trying to figure out whodunit and all of that. Have you found anything yet?"
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Alarie," Desdemona said, all perfect in her politeness. She continued to ignore the thumping of Alarie's heart, attempting to blend in with the humans while she could. "I see myself as having enough time to read everything eventually, so it doesn't matter where I start. I found a book on Lenhakriron that seemed interesting, though if I'm going to go with the moon gods, maybe I should start with Anesiel." What she'd really wanted was a book on Humans or Lykos and their customs, but considering most of the authors of the books were Vrykolas, that seemed to be in short supply. "Have you met many people yet?" she asked, trying to keep up casual conversation, but not sure where to start when she knew so little about the humans.
"A few, yes. My brother... he's already been here a couple of years, so he showed me around and introduced me to some people." Which she felt having Harlan around was an advantage. She wasn't coming into the compound completely blind like so many. Alarie glanced at the book in Desdemona's hand. "You're really going to read everything in here?" Even if they were there for an extended amount of time... the way Harlan spoke, it was like there was almost always something happening.
"My brother's here too," Desdemona said, feeling an odd sense of comradery in that shared trait. "He's only older by a couple of minutes, but you'd think it was years. Does yours look after you?" She wondered if all little sisters were alike, though she'd never encountered the same relationship with her own kind. It was different when a second child was a Scion, rather than a pureblood, unless the child had been taken as an infant. These days, that rarely happened, and thus the bond just wasn't the same. "I don't know what kind of time we'll have," she answered, her lips turning up in slight amusement. "If I'm bored, yes, though from what I've heard, I won't be bored."
"That's what I've been told," Alarie said with another grin. The girl was beautiful, which in Alarie's book, instantly would have made her intimidating, but she seemed pretty friendly thus far. "Harlan? He's a couple years ahead of me too... but I think I kind of take care of him. Don't tell him I said that though." Alarie chuckled a bit and put the book back on the shelf. "I suppose I'm a bit more protective of him than I should be." Harlan tried to look after her, but Alarie was firm in her belief that she could take care of herself. "What about yours? What's your brother like?"
"I won't tell him," Desdemona smiled, wondering how her brother would react if she ever said the same sort of thing about him. Then again, she really couldn't say such a thing, as she didn't have to take care of him. It was the other way around. "He's fiercely protective," she laughed softly. "But then, so was my father. My mother died in childbirth and I don't think either one of them knew what to do with a girl besides protect her. But I think they've done a decent job. I'm just not used to so many people around. I hear I'll grow used to it." At least, she hoped that would be the case. She'd know better in a week or so, after she'd figured out how she was going to get by.
Alarie frowned a bit, hearing the girl's mother had died. She tried to imagine living without her mother and couldn't quite fathom it. It was too upsetting. "I think it'll be fine. Everyone I've met so far seemed pretty laid back... most of them anyway. How long as your brother been here?"
"He arrived with me," Desdemona explained. "It's his first year as well, so we're both trying to figure things out." And she really needed to catch up with him sometime soon. She wondered if he'd found someone to feed on, or if he was willing to go for the animals. It only took a few minutes of speaking with Alarie for Desdemona to see her as a friend, rather than available prey. Would that change if she waited to long? She hoped she wouldn't have to find out.
"Oh!" She felt Desdemona was pretty lucky then, because if her brother was there... well, they were learning together. Alarie still felt it was nice to have Harlan experienced at the compound, but she still felt oddly like she was going to be experiencing this stuff alone. "Well, that's nice for you... having him here to go through the same things. I'd like to meet him," she added with another grin. "I'm thinking if I introduce myself to as many newbies as I can, this'll be a bit easier."
"He's around," Desdemona said, laughing easily. "I'm sure you'll meet him eventually. And that's kind of been my goal, to meet as many people as I can while things are skill easy. That way, when the tests really start coming around, I won't be alone in facing them." It seemed like a good plan, but she was finding her social skills to be somewhat lacking, at least in the beginning of a new association. Alarie, on the other hand, put her almost immediately at ease. Maybe it was due to the fact that they had quite a bit in common, or so it seemed. "Did you find yourself a room then? And meet those around you?" she asked. "I haven't quite figured out where everyone's located. I run into people and then hope that I might run into them again later."
Alarie couldn't help but giggle a bit. "I'm actually on this floor... block 5, room 2? My brother is right next to me," she admitted. She was glad she'd met Desdemona. She wasn't overly intimidating, or mean, nor was she sneering at her like Alarie was some bug. "So, pretty easy for you to run into me again, if you want. I think it's always nice to have a few familiar, friendly faces around in this kind of environment."
"I'm down in the basement, block 18, room 3. My brother's taken up close by as well," she smiled. "I'm sure I'll be able to find you again, now that I have your room. Plus, there's not as many up here, so it's a little less maze-like." During the day, she was sure it was also a little less dark. That was one thing about the basement rooms-- they were never going to be bright, shiny places. Of course, Desdemona had to prefer them that way. "I don't think everyone's quite settled in yet. Maybe after that, people will be a bit more willing to meet new people."
"Definitely..." And hey, she'd met someone she could definitely see herself becoming friends with. "Maybe I'll come down and see what the basement is like sometime too. It'd be nice to have someone I know around here." Alarie glanced behind her. "When you and your brother get settled, bring him up! I definitely want to meet him... and if I can track down Harlan, I'm sure he'd like to meet you too. That way if you have any questions about people who've been here for awhile, I'm sure he could answer them for you."
"Definitely..." And hey, she'd met someone she could definitely see herself becoming friends with. "Maybe I'll come down and see what the basement is like sometime too. It'd be nice to have someone I know around here." Alarie glanced behind her. "When you and your brother get settled, bring him up! I definitely want to meet him... and if I can track down Harlan, I'm sure he'd like to meet you too. That way if you have any questions about people who've been here for awhile, I'm sure he could answer them for you."