GoldenCat/HigherEducation
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Higher Education
It does not take too long asking around to know where Iron Tears is in - in the Industrial District, of course!
And as Days and Moon arrive, he is talking to some of the archtects about repairs on the city, accompanied by Exceedingly Sublime Opal...
Child of Wyld Days: Snow Monkey practically prances along, more than eager to get in all friendly-like with Moon, one way or another. And if that involved helping him get the basics of the written language, then so be it. Besides, less of a mess to clean up afterwards.
Unless ale was involved.
She giggled to herself as a rather naughty little memory floating through her mind, but soon composed herself as she drew close to the Iron God. "... hoi! Tears! I need to speak with you!"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She was serene as always, her hands placed in the sleeve of the opposite. She listened quietly to the reconstruction plans... and then she heard Days voice, and she sighed a bit.
It showed that Fate did have a sense of irony that such an antithesis of herself existed. She turned her head a little and glanced in her direction, and frowned faintly as she saw Moon accompaning the Raksha.
Seventh Moon: This was gonna be an interesting day, that was damn sure.
Striding along at the Fair Folks side in his usual stalking gait, Moon cast a look up and split into a broad grin when he caught sight of Opal. He raised a hand up, shouting out nearly over Day's own greeting and certainly over the conversation the city-god was having with the architects. "Hey darlin'! Hows shit goin?"
Iron Tears: The Iron God turns, most.... surprised, by their appearance. "If it is not our monkey and dog saviors. As you can see, I am a little busy trying to organize the celebration, as we only have some hours to it, and the reconstruction, but... what can I do for you?"
Child of Wyld Days: Stopping short of Tears, Days bows quickly and politely... to him and Opal, although she rises from her Opal-aimed bow with a shit-eating grin. "Well. Me and my good hero friend here had ourselves a nice talk about life and all those important things... and he asked a favor of me. So I need permission to hop back into your sanctum so I can start this good fella here on the path to unlocking literature's secrets." She nudges at Moon with her elbow, putting on her best 'pleasepleaseplease' smile quickly after doing so.
Seventh Moon: Still intent on Opal, Moon turned a sharp look to Days as an elbow imposed itself into his side. He hadnt been paying that little attention!
The Lunar shrugged awkwardly and nodded his agreement. "Yeah, what she said man. You're the only one 'round with books 'n shit."
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She frowned all the more deeply at this, and cast her gaze toward Moon, "You should know better than you trade favors with such a creature, Moon." She said, a hint of disappointment in her voice.
She returned her gaze to Days, and gave her a look a-kin to what one gave a smelly bit of ofal that had inadvertantly found its way onto one's shoe.
Iron Tears: The deity looks at the Child... then at Moon... then back at the Child...
"... say what?"
"If you are truly looking for drugs, I have given all my hashish to Kadel for tonight's party. And my cellar is closed. Shut. With an iron door."
Child of Wyld Days: "Nononononoooo! No drugs! Books, actually books! Look, I don't want to be all outright about it, because a man has his pride to maintain. It just came to my attention that you may have a library. I need access to it... we both do. I need to teach him a thing or six thousand."
She takes a moment to glance back at Opal, replying to her baleful glance with a quickly-blown raspberry and a wiggle of her ears. "And I'll have you know, miss Jadeborn, that you are sadly mistaken about me. My intentions are pure, like the driven snow."
Seventh Moon: "We're on the same side for now darlin'." Moon shot back to Opal, tilting his face back towards her with a mild glare. "Ain't like she's gonna eat my face or whateva just showin' me how ta use those piles'a paper ya love so much."
A wicked little gleam flashed in his eyes. "Why don'tcha come long if ya so worried 'bout where my favors get traded."
Iron Tears: "Well, yes, I do." He concedes, still looking incredulous, stroking his chin, "And you say that you and Seventh Moon really do wish just to... read? I do not have to say why this has me suspicious, do I?"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: "The only thing about you thats pure and driven is your libedo," she replied, acidly. She casually flicked a few long locks of her ivory hair from her face, and glowers at the Child.
She turns her gaze toward Moon, and frowns a bit, "So your assuming that I would taint myself by remaining in this vile creatures preasents through my own volition?" She huffed faintly, and signed, the soft petals of her lips fluttering ever so slightly as she did so. "Perhaps."
Child of Wyld Days: "There's more to me than my loins, dearie, although you are halfway-right." She grins, Just So.
"And it's good to see that you're gradually getting over yourself, Sublime Opal. For a moment there, I was beginning to believe that you were beyond having any concern for us poor, lesser beings." She makes quite a show of looking hurt and pathetic, only to snap back to her normal self a moment later, smirking down at Opal. "Do come! You're a brilliant one, for being so stuffy, and I imagine you could help here and there... " She trails off.
Iron Tears: "You have already helped enough, our Sublime Opal." He says, a hand landing on her shoulder assuringly. "If you wish to go with them, feel free to. And give the Raksha some confidence... she has proved herself many times over."
Seventh Moon: "Think'a it as stickin' 'round ta protect me from her then." He lifted a hand up as if offering the excuse to Opal and grinned at her wolfishly. "Y'know, make sure she don't try ta take advantage'a me"
"without ya." He added in a softer voice.
Child of Wyld Days: Her ears twitches. Her tail flicks. And the Snow Monkey's smile widens, just a little more.
I like you, Moon. I like you alot.
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She quirked an eyebrow at this, and merely shook her head in resignation. This was going to be a long encounter.
"Very well, I shall accompany you. However, if she grabs my rear even once, I shall not be responsable for my actions."
Seventh Moon: Moon chuckled softly, swinging his arm back down to his side. "I hope not."
He didn't bother to expound on just what it was he hoped. Looking back up at Iron Tears, he gave the god an impatient look, head tilted back to jut out his chin. "A'ite, so ya gonna let us in or not man? Burnin' daylight here, y'know?"
Child of Wyld Days: "Hmph! I'll have you know that I have greater control over myself than that, Opal! If anything, I'm worried that I will somehow enrage your passions and you'll grab mine!" She wags her tail to emphasize, then helps herself to a chuckle, letting Opal stew on that. "Tears, my good friend... let's!"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She gave Days another dirty look, and nodded to Tears as she moved to join Moon and Days.
"And just what would the two of you want with a library, mm?"
Iron Tears: "Heh. Alright. But I better not find a mess of my sanctum, I better not."
And the image of his sanctum, of the holy place of the Boil, flled with booze, clothes and opium kept burning on his mind. Oh, he better be wrong in this... "The way there will be open... now."
A gesture. And the iron in the ground, in the air, joins together in a portal... filled with hot iron in the middle, apparently. As Days had seen before... "It leads to my sanctum. To my library, specifically. A pity I could not show it to you as I wished, Opal. I hope you all find what you want there."
Child of Wyld Days: Snow Monkey rubs her hands together, looking very much like a child in a sweetshop. "Thank you so much, Tears. You won't regret this at all!" She promptly snags Moon's hand and drags him along with her, humming some tuneless little ditty all the while. "Oh, I'm going to help Moon here learn how to read. Which is why you coming is quite a boon!"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She frowned a little bit toward Tears, and spoke very gently toward him, "Sometimes the things you want are not found in the covers of books, only the paths to them are. But, I thank you for your concern."
She looked over at Moon, and arched an eyebrow. He didn't know how to read? She never thought Days could hit apon an altruistic goal she agreed with, but it happened.
Seventh Moon: The Lunar stepped back a bit hesitantly from the glowing portal only to let out a soft grunt as Days yanked him along behind her. Rightening himself after a few uncertain steps, he evened his pace to match with Days and tugged his arm free of her grasp, slipping it around her own instead and stuffing his hand into his pocket. Walking arm in arm with the Raksha, he looked back over his shoulder towards Opal only to catch the look she gave him.
"Figured I ought'a learn that shit first if I'm gonna change anything in this place, y'know?" he answered the unspoken question, eyes dropping. "Gotta start learnin ta be a lil more than a punk somewhere, yknow?"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She stepped through the portal, and upon hearing Moon, and scowled a little bit at him, "Sometimes, Moon, I find your humility very unbecoming."
She sighed a bit then, "Knowledge is the only true wealth of the world. Your place, your home, even your loves may be shorn from you... but not what you learn, not what you know.."
Child of Wyld Days: "I had to learn the hard way that getting somewhere does require some hard work, and some painful growing. But you'll be all the better because of it, trust me." She looks down at the arm-weaving, and then at Moon, looking to have not expected that. "But yeah..." She blinks, and looks back at Opal. "... all the knowledge in the world doesn't return what is lost, though. The one true wealth in any world... is life itself."
Iron Tears: The Library itself is... different than the rest of the sanctum, the great forge Days had seen before. The scent of iron is still there, but the sound of the hammers does not reach it, and the scent of musky old tomes mingles with it... it is dark, with ever-burning candlelights, and labyrinthine, but precise and evenly-spaced shelfs, a labyrinth that certainly makes perfect sense if one was to look at its diagram. Tomes found by the spookies and the Eir society and given to him throughout the ears are stocked there... and an automaton appearing like a scrawny woman of tin with glasses is there when they arrive. "Welcome! Is there anything I can do for you?"
Seventh Moon: "Tch," Moon snorted, eyes coming back up quickly to glare a moment at Opal, before turning to the path ahead of him. "Ain't no point ta learnin' shit if ya ain't usin' it ta make sure no one can take that other stuff away from ya. I aint interested in it, just what it can do for me."
Through the portal, Moon disengaged himself from Days and cast back and forth about the room. Not quiet rubber necking, but clearly struggling to take it all in at once. The place reminded him of Shadow Eyes little basement, only a mustier old paper scent was replacing the less pleasant odors there.
Turning his eyes down to the little metal woman, he blinked a few times before he realized she had actually spoken. Damn, Rusty kept some weird shit... Hunching and glaring, he jutted his chin towards the books around them. "Yeah, what 'round here is easy ta read?"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: "Mm. Such is the true doom of this Age. There exists no love for knowledge for its own sake, merely what it can provide one. Wealth. Ease. Comfort." She frowns a little bit, and glanced about. "For you? Something that would hold your interest, perhaps."
She nodded to the automaton, and allowed Days to make the choice. She'd know better, after all.
- "Easy? Erm... why would you ever want to read something easy pray tell? I thought you were looking for something specific... the spooky people that My Lord allows here from time to time always do... but, well.. There are high fantasy books there... and the books in the first row of that shelf are simpler mythological tales..."
Child of Wyld Days: "There's a difference between practical knowledge and arcane things beyond the people who need them most." She walks the aisles, pursing her lips as she scans for something easy to start, preferrably in Skytongue or Riverspeak, seeing as she doesn't want to throw Moon headlong into her native tongue. She quickly moves to those myth-books, though, pulling one out at a time to glance over them. "Thank you."
"Not everyone is a superior genius, Opal. And not all brilliant minds can lead without being condescending dicks. Trust me, I know someone like that." She keeps looking through books, frowning just a little as the thought of the one she was sworn to never speak to seared through her brain.
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She glares a bit at Days. "You know, if you two merely brought me along to insult me and my worldview, I could very well just walk off and allow you to conduct your... teaching alone."
She walks off a little, and begins to glance over the titles held on the shelves.
- "I see you are all very... lively." She says, looking away... "I will be cleaning, if you need anything, shout."
And with that, she begins to walk away, apparently having no patience for their bickerings!
Child of Wyld Days: Monkey suddenly grabs a book, giving it an in-depth look. "Heh... wonder how this one got in here. Probably the age... it's a good place to start, though." She closes it and walks over to Seventh Moon, book under her arm. "Now then, since you live here, we'll start with your native tongue. It'll come to you quickly... you're a sharp fellow whether you know it or not."
Seventh Moon: "There ain't enough time in the world ta learn shit ya can't do anythin' with darlin'." Moon answered, half-following a few steps after Opal but not exactly intent on hounding her. More drifting in the same direction she moved, running his finger tips along the spines of the books as if just touching them could unlock their secrets to him. "Not for some of us. I aint got time or inclination ta sit round diggin through shit that aint gonna help me do good by what matters to me."
Moon turned his eyes up at her, cold blue piercing in the darkness. Irriated by her proclamation, if not showing it till that moment. "You gonna tell me that make me wrong?"
Days was at his side before Opal could answer and he held his look towards Opal only a moment longer before looking away. He half-grinned at Days and nodded. "Yeah, whateva' ya thinks best darlin'. Fuck all if any'a it makes sense ta me anyway."
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: "What I find infinately amusing is that you, who have accomplished so much, so devalue yourself," she said, glancing over her shoulder. "But, it is not my place to sit in judgement of such things. And if Days is about to make you read erotica, I would suggest a less... arousing persuit of your study."
Child of Wyld Days: "... it's a fairytale, Opal. Have some faith in me, girl." She rolls her eyes, trying her best to not look annoyed and mostly succeeding. Nonetheless, she looks around for a place to place the book... then sets it down. "... hm. Custodian. I need a large sheet of parchment and a writing utensil, if you could find one for me."
- "But of course." She returns soon after with many sheets of parchment and ink and feathers. "I do prefer you note down what you need. No books should leave, and better not to come here to check them back often! It is a bother to have to order them all the time!"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She frowned a little bit, and allowed Days and Moon to attend to their letting project. She'd never admit, of course, that she was an insanely lonely being, but... such thoughts were painful. She turned them instead to something else. Anything else.
She removed one of her hands from her voluminous sleeves, and produced a pair of specticals. These, she put on, and upon gaining her own parchment and pen form the automaton, cleared her thoughts and idly tapped her chin.
She envisioned it as an amulet. Silver, with an adamant center, holding a bit of liquid moonsilver to forever sway and shift with the attuned users desire.
She calmly begin drawing. Little notes scrawled in Rocktongue along one of the edges, with diagrams pointing to this ingrediant or this conceivable problem. Her hands move with her superhuman deftness, and soon an elegant design is completed upon the parchment.
- Exceedingly Sublime Opal continues going over the arcane and maticulous process of placing to paper the artifact design in her head, allowing Moon and Days to do... whatever it is they do when together.
Seventh Moon: Claiming a chair, Moon swung his legs up onto a table near by and folded his fingers over his chest. He actually might have preferred erotica, but he wouldn't give Opal the satisfaction of saying that out loud. Instead he waited with uncharacteristic patience for Days to turn away from the stoney woman, watching her expectantly. "A'ite darlin'. How do we start this shit?"
Child of Wyld Days: "Hm. No, no. We can't do just reading. You need to understand the alphabet first. Thankfully, this shouldn't take too long." She unfurls a sheet of parchment across the closest table with a flick of her tail, while looking in the opposite direction and inking a quill. "You understand the words, but you can't read them; the biggest bridge to gap is getting you to recognize which symbols stand for what sounds. Once you have that down, the rest'll open up to you with surprising speed." She pulls the pen out, and idly dabs a drop of ink on her nose, grinning wide. "Anyway, we'll start with your native tongue, and then we'll work over into Riverspeak, which is good to know if you ever decide to travel outside of the Boil. Now...." She inks two more quills, humming some tune to herself before she finishes.
"And I don't feel like wasting time, so." Taking a pen in her right, and two in her left, she turns to the parchment---and drops the spare, which falls into the grasp of her tail as it curls around between her thighs. A stray droplet of ink almost hits the sheet, but she catches it on the tip of her right-hand quill after a moment's panic. "Behold!" Thus both hands and tail go to work, writing out the Skytongue alphabet both in its formal and informal shapes, carefully and properly so that Moon'll be sure to at least recognize some of the shapes that he's seen alot. Tongue out, brow knitted, Snow Monkey keeps humming, re-inking the quills as needed without missing a beat--one pin moves to take over where the other stops. "Heh, this is kinda fun..."
- Exceedingly Sublime Opal continues her calculations and her estimations. Compiling lists of ingrediants and tools that would expidite the work.
Child of Wyld Days: "Now, once I have all these down, I'll go over the sounds with you. You and me are gonna practice them for a bit so that you get them memorized as soon as possible. Once that's done..." She pauses to reink. "... we'll work on getting you to comprehend the basics of reading. The hard part's going to be just the link between sounds and symbols."
Snow Monkey turns momentarilly to wink, stuffing the three quills into the inkwell before stepping aside to let Moon have a look. "This... is the skytongue alphabet, Seventh Moon. Anything look familiar?"
Seventh Moon: The Lunar watches, intent and curious. He'd asked for this after all. The smirk that rises as she uses her tail to write fades out quickly as Day's turns blank paper into a mess of arcane scrawl. He felt almost mystified by what he beheld, the characters springing up from under the tips of the pens, and it make him shift somewhat awkwardly in his seat. But there was still a thrill racing up his spine. Characters, someone was actually teaching him characters. The realm of Rustys loud-mouthed priests and the rich fucks on the hill alone.
As she finished, Moon swung his legs down off the table and leaned towards the paper, eyes squinting. "Yeah... kinda."
Surprisingly, most of them. He could recognize them from the peeks he had once taken over the shoulder of one of the Heaven House girls; the same he had defended the good name of against Opal days before. "Seen um before, least."
Child of Wyld Days: "Excellence!" Bowing to no one in particular, the Child waves Moon over, looking at his expression with a most pleased look of her own. Yes! YES! Yesyesyesyesyes I didn't fuck up! "Like I said... it's a surprisingly simple system, once you break is down to the basics. Sounds make words; characters have sounds. Once you cross that bridge, there's nowhere to go but up. Thankfully most tongues are based off of the Realm family, so..." She points out four symbols, one at a time, while intoning what she is---"Ra-ku-sh-a."
"Four symbols. Four sounds. Put together... meaning. Getting me?"
Seventh Moon: Coming with her beckon, he carefully touched the characters she had indicated, smearing the damp ink slightly.
"Ra-ku-sh-a..." Moon repeated slowly as he touched each in turn, mouth working around each syllable with dramatic effort. Glaring in concentration, he repeated it several more times as he touched the sheet. Finally his face cleared and he nodded, casually wiping the ink from his fingers onto his pant leg. "Gettin ya, yeah. Aint ya called Fair Folk though? Or wyld spawn? Or shit like that? Ra-ku-sh-a aint one I heard before."
Child of Wyld Days: "Raksha is what we usually call ourselves. Although we're called everything else under the sun... fae, faeries, trouble, get-the-cold-iron-dear, things like that." She giggles softly, and somewhat girlishly, considering her appearance. "It's something of a... I guess a name we use to set ourselves apart. We were what happened when the Crusade almost succeeded; still Wyld, but bound by shape. Different breed of fair folk altogether."
Seventh Moon: "Name ta set yaself apart, huh?" Moon echoed thoughtfully, fingers hovering over the four characters again. He didn't ask what 'Crusade' she was talking about. Maybe he would later, if he thought about it. Ra-ku-sh-a. Different breed from the rest. Changed by... something and set apart.
Moon's expression changed again as he looked back up at Days, grinning cheerfully at his comprehension. "A'ite. Thats one then. Show me more. I ain't gonna get through one'a those piles of paper with just 'Ra-ku-sh-a."
Child of Wyld Days: "Damn right you're not. But instead of just telling you words, let's get right to the sounds. Lucky for you, there's only seventy-five you have to memorize. So... we'll get right to that. And yeah, I'm going to be drilling you every day on these until you recite the damn things in your sleep." She wraps an arm around Moon's shoulder and more-or-less gives him a single-arm hug; oddly, there's no real tangible lust to be found at the moment. Instead, Snow Monkey just seems... happy. Maybe she's just enjoying doing something good for someone, or she's merely plotting future evils. Either way, the Cup gives off the spiritual taste of comfort, contentment. Snow Monkey, brass eyes glittering, gets right to work; pointing to a symbol, she states the sound, waiting for Moon to follow her lead before moving to the next. She does pause once, to look back at Opal, ears perking.
"You're pretty quiet over there, Sublime Opal. Is something the matter, or did you find a good tome on your end?"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: She looks up from the small mountain of notes, discarded lists, and schematics she has been formulizing. She frowns at the Raksha. "It is none of your concern."
Child of Wyld Days: "Vvvvvverywellthen!" Shrugging off Opal's terse reply, she gets right back to helping out Moon. "I guess she's at home... next up..."
Seventh Moon: Moon follows her instructions carefully and with far more ease than the first. This whole reading thing wasn't half as complicated as everyone always made it sound. He did stop when Days did, throwing a look over at the busy Opal and frowning slightly at her reply.
"I wanna read whateva the fuck it is ya doin over there darlin." He said, turning away from his lesson and his furred teacher for a moment to give Opal a wane grin. "Soon as I know how, yknow?"
Exceedingly Sublime Opal: "Your more than welcome to try, Moon... but I would be very, very frightened if Days enabled you to read the script I'm writing it. Its pratically a forgotten language on the surface."
She goes back to her arcane scribblings.
Seventh Moon: He shrugged nonchalantly and waved off her terse reply with a flick of his wrist as he turned his back towards her again. "Find someone else ta teach me it. Fuck all if its gotta be any harder than this. Ill learn that one too then. "
And he would too. Just to show her up. "One atta time though, yknow?" he grinned at Days, the more friendly of the two strange women in the room with him, and tilted his head towards the paper. "So lets get through this shit fast darlin. Got another one I gotta learn later."
Child of Wyld Days: "Never hurts to try and shatter your expectations!" Days... continues, focused on the task at hand. Even her half-hearted jab at Opal lacked its usual edge; she's feeling serious for once. Well, as serious as she gets, anyway. "Now... you still with me, Moon?" She looks to him...
... and for a moment, she imagined, in her Heart's eye, the innermost wolf-beast that she saw. Terrible, commanding, awesome.
She imagined the massive monster holding its paw onto a tiny-for-its-size book and reading it.
Days couldn't help but giggle.
Seventh Moon: Moon cast the fae a side long glance as she suddenly broke into a laugh, smiling hesitantly in the nature of someone waiting to get in on the joke too. Then again, maybe there was no joke at all and she was just laughing. Hed known people like that, bunch of head-jobs every last one. And they werent even ra-ku-sh-a.
"Still with ya darlin. Ain't got nowhere else ta go." He answered when her mirth had finally passed and rubbed his shoulders. Warming them up, as if he getting ready to brawl the characters into submission and beat them into his mind. Which was basically what he intended to do. "Lets do this shit."
Child of Wyld Days: "I like a man with enthusiasm!" Nodding in agreeance, the Child of Wyld Days returned to the seemingly-dull act of reciting sounds and connecting them with pictographs. For her, this was work, albeit enjoyable, fulfilling work. For Moon, she could easily tell... this was a little miracle in and of itself.
She was not going to let him down, no way no how.
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