The only response she could offer to the girlfriend comment was a smile and shake of the head. "Pleased to make your acquaintance." She took her spot on the bed shaking her head when Alpy said that she hadn't decided what to be. "I've had less than thrilling experiences with heroes. They act all good but they are no better than the villains. I'd say neutral but apparently there is no such thing."
Barb had a nervous, well it wasn't a tick, but it gave away that she felt that what happen to Alphy was her fault. It wouldn't surprise her if Alphy was playing it down, he seemed like the type to do that; he did bandage her ankle the last time she had been here. A grin split across her face when she said he wouldn't be tempted to go free running again, "I think it will take more than that, when I came in earlier he was trying to practice Tai Chi." She refrained from telling her about he was keeled over in pain, she wasn't that mean.
Barb had in interesting mouth, she formed her words like Alphy did, and spoke evenly. In short it wasn't hard to read her lips. Absently she noticed that Barb was doing the same thing Alphy had been. She made sure her face was always turned toward her so that she could see what was being said. "You figured it out too. I'm losing my touch."
Alphy took the package in his hand gently and could tell instantly from the weight that inside was something made of paper. Most people don't think about it on a day to day basis, but paper is pretty heavy due to being made out of wood. When all those thin pieces of wood are put together in the form of a book they can weigh several kilograms! Big books, like the full Oxford English Dictionary can take several volumes and fill whole bookshelves. This though was different. As he untied the twine, which was funny since it was EXACTLY like he would have wrapped it, his eyes lit up. When he saw the title his mouth sort of hung open loosely for a moment while he tried to process what she'd given him. At first unintelligible babbling came out of his mouth, then he began snickering, and then full out laughing like The Shadow. Looking up he smiled and quickly hugged Barbara before she could react, protest, or otherwise stop him, “Thank you thank you thank you thank you. Do you know what these ar- OF COURSE YOU DO you got them for me oh my God quick let's go put this in the library!”
In his excitement he got down from the bed and began hopping on one foot towards the door, “I wouldn't return this for the wor-” Slowly he spun in the doorway as Anne told Barbara about trying to practice. “Ah....er...LET'S GO TO THE LIBRARY!”
Alphy quickly hopped down the hall and got about halfway before tripping on a lego (that's right, his mother is responsible for this, she loves to play the invisible hand at home) and falling to the floor again. “Why does my mom embarrass me in front of my friends? Oh it'll make you a better person Alphy, you're too perfect and never face ridicule. What will you do if the Press gets angry at Penumbra Alphy? Can you take the heat? Lighten up Alphy and get a girlfriend. Blah blah blah.”
“I heard tha-” Came a thought, directed into his head from down the hall, Alphy responded in kind, “I DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING"
"How does she know when I'm going to be in the hallway..."
Last Edit: Feb 28, 2014 20:45:11 GMT -6 by Deleted
Barbara's initial annoyance at hearing that he was trying to practice Tai Chi in his condition was replaced by confusion. Okay, so was that snickering and laughing at her gift? Maybe he didn't appreciate gruesome fairy tales? She watched him warily, wondering briefly if he was going a little on the nutty side, and was surprised by his sudden attack hug. Her eyes widened as she returned the hug, albeit a little less bone-crushing than Alphy's.
She remain a bit stunned as he got up and started hopping out of the room. Regaining her wits, Babs quickly stood up and deposited her bag on the floor, rushing after him, worried that he was going to hurt himself. It appeared, however, that she was just a little late, as Alphy fell face-first into the carpet, the mighty Penumbra once again defeated, this time by a mere plastic lego brick. Her worries for his safety turned into annoyance that he hadn't listened to anyone about staying off of his knee as she reached down and scooped him up in her arms. “Alphonse. If you do that again, I'm going to repo those books.” She smiled despite the threat. The guy didn't weigh much, and she held him easily. Perhaps her nightly endeavors helped in that aspect.
With her new friend in her arms and a smile plastered across her face, she turned back so that Anne could read her lips. “Come on!” She smiled at the girl before looking down to Penumbra in her arms. “Direct me to the library before I decide to deposit you back on that bed and make sure you won't be getting up again.”
Anne followed after the redhead laughing. She made it to the hallway to see Barb helping Alphy up. When she saw what he had tripped on, tears started rolling down her face as she laughed. It took her a moment to get composed. "I-I'm sorry, Barb. Ignore me it's nothing." She picked up the toy as Barb picked up Alphy and pocketed it for later as she followed after them.
Anne paused at the door and gaped. "Oh. my. Karmi." She had snuck in through a lot of libraries, but none, not even the one with the dinosaur, was as cool as this. The walls were lined with books, not just any old books, but classics and rare ones. They were all neatly shelved and organized. There was a fire place on the far right wall, flanked by a set of windows. There was a second floor with books as well. The entire room gave off a vibe and it had that wonderful smell; like Alphy's new books. Cat had a personal rule; no libraries or religious places.
Anne could not make herself violate a room like this. Libraries were sacred places to her and it was a crime of a different sort to violate places like this. Anne stood in awe for a few more minutes before stepping in to join the other pair. "This place is amazing."
“I'm fine! See!” He mumbled writhing on the floor, as he was hoisted into Barbara's arms he looked up at her and smiled, mockingly sarcastically saying, “Oh... Barbara... You're so strong...” in a feigned romantic manner similar to the Valentines Day shenanigans.
Upon entering the aforementioned and well described library full of ancient volumes with subjects ranging from history to accounting. There were tax law books from the 1930s to modern day, you didn't think Elliot Ness put Al Capone away without a little help from The Shadow did you? Alphy persuaded Barbara to put him down in one of the several wing back chairs near the fireplace and set the books on the table next to him. Anne's curse made him smile and he started to explain, “This is my family's library. In here my Grandfather and my mother have collected all the knowledge they've ever needed to sol- I mean in their daily lives. There is everything from the classics, to a couple of Playboys that are in a hidden compartment that I wasn't supposed to find in that bookshelf right there.”
“You two, as my friends, are free to borrow books from me and read here whenever you want as long as I know and I give you the clear.” That last statement was VERY important. Gears turned in his mind, "Don't let them touch the button, don't let Barbara look around the chair...." Where Bruce Wayne had the Batcave, The Shadows had the Sanctum. In this room was a way to get there, though there were several ways to enter it, all of them hidden and all of them clever. This room, the armchair where Alphy sat, contained a chute that led a kilometer into the earth to the Sanctum. The chute was disguised as a sewer pipe but it did the job well enough. Either way the system would need turned off if the two of them were there. “So, care to join me for a read and make a book club with me?"
Barbara laughed and rolled her eyes at Alphy's statement. Seemed like they were a little swapped here. He led her to the library, and she stopped in the doorway, her jaw practically on the floor. Well, at least her present to him would fit in here. It took a lot of effort to bring her attention back to the present and set Alphy down in his chair, but as soon as he was out of her arms, she immediately went to the shelves. The books ranged from shiny new covers to who-knew-how-old scrolls at the top, leather-bound classics to books barely held together (probably from frequent use and age).
Alphy's voice kind of faded into the background as she picked one of the books from the shelves and opened it to the first page. Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, 1813. Her mouth dropped once again as she glimpsed Austen's own signature. SIGNED FIRST EDITION? Slowly, she turned back to Alphy, eyes filled in awe. She wanted to live here now. This was her own personal heaven. Carefully, she closed the book, but kept it instead of putting it back on the shelf, and crossed the room. She gingerly set the book down on one of the end tables and picked Alphy back up in a bone-crushing hug. “WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME ABOUT THIS EARLIER?” She was seriously like a kid in a candy shop, on Christmas.
It was rare that Anne appreciated her hearing loss, but this was one of them. The age of the paper had a wonderful soothing. Anne found herself actively ignoring the numbers that flowed across her vision normally.The math swiz found herself gravitating toward the math books, the Greek mathematicians. Euclid, Pythagoras...Archimedes.
Anne's hand shook picked up the scroll and unwinding it, he had an original copy of On the Equilibrium of Planes. She had already read the books, all of them, but original copies of them in person. Her heart started racing when she saw what was on the self. "No way, no way, no way."
He had a replica of the Antikythera mechanism. Her hands were shaking as she touched it. It was widely considered to be the first computer. It had been designed to track the stars. For a long time people had thought it had been a hoax. It wasn't till later 1970 when it was examined with x-rays that it was fully understood. It was so complex as the workmanship of it hadn't been seen till the fourteenth century with maniacal astronomical clock. Anne ran her hand against the cool brass outer casing, letting out squeaking in delight.
The original was currently in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. She had seen replicas of it, well pictures of it. She wanted to see the original, and to make her own. All the replica that she had seen that were for sale were terrible, but this one was... Anne bit her lip grinning before picking up the clock hugging it close to her chest, before heading to the stairs. Without a moments thought she sat down on the banister and slid down before running back to where Barbara was crushing Alphy.
"Hey Barbra don't kill him!" The teleporter was breathing heavy as she set down the Clock on the table. "How...do...youhaveoneofthese!"She looked at Alphy excitedly, then at Barbra. She hadn't really talked to the other girl much. If she was going to be friends with Alphy, then she might as well make friends with his friends. "What did you find?"
Barbara's reaction would have made Alphy laugh, but he couldn't breath. He writhed in her arms before gently pushing her off. After catching his breath, he turned to answer Anne first, “My family's rich. Sometimes they waste their money on trinkets. I'm just as guilty.” He waved her over and showed her how it worked, “My mother got it years ago, It's priceless, but...” Alphy sat there thinking about how he could use this situation to his advantage. It was obvious that Anne really, really wanted the clock, and he really wanted a certain thief to turn into a vigilante. If I can get Ba-Batgirl to agree to her being my replacement for a month... “I'll let you have it for a favor.”
Turning over towards Barbara, Alphy explained, “I've always had this library, but I never thought it was that special. I love the books in here, the smell, and the atmosphere. But without the books this room is just a room.” Sighing, he sat up in the chair and tilted his head, “I owe you for helping me when I got the knee injury, but not enough for my Pride and Prejudice.” Opening up the book of Fairy Tales he hid his mouth “accidentally” and continued for Barbara, “I need a favor. Can you replace me as a Titan with a friend I know who has powers until I'm healed up?” Taking the book back down from his face, he posed a fake question, “Do you like Jane Austen's other books too, or just Pride and Prejudice?”
Barbara laughed as she let Alphy go, glancing at Anne. “I wouldn't want to kill him. His mother probably wouldn't let me back in here if I did.” Her smile was like a Cheshire cat's as she watched Alphy and Anne with the clock. She had an odd feeling that that particular clock wasn't a replica, and the one in Greece was just a very well-made replica. His admittance that the clock was priceless just made her that more sure.
“No, Alphonse. You don't owe me anything.” Her smile was replaced with a frown. The knee wouldn't have been dislocated in the first place if it wasn't for her. She shook her head, trying to relieve herself of the memory flitting across her eyes of the fight. The book she gave him was up, and Babs recognized the action. He wanted to talk to her without Anne seeing. Pretending to look at the rows of books behind her friend, she spoke, her back turned so that the deaf girl couldn't “hear” her. “I don't know about replacing... however, I can meet this friend and see what I can do. My experience with recruiting, as you know, comes with doubt. I wouldn't want to hurt this friend of yours.”
Turning back with a smile, she gave Alphy a knowing look and answered his phony question. “Sense and Sensibility is my second favorite of hers, but I really like everything.” Her attention went back to Anne as she asked her a question. “An autographed first edition of Pride and Prejudice.” The thousand-watt smile was back as she fangirled over the books. “If I'm in here much longer, you guys won't be able to pull me out.” Letting the others pay their attention back to the clock, Barbara scanned more shelves, seeing many very old books, many of them in Latin. Her hand traced the spine of one that, despite the obvious care taken with it, had the leather curling up at the corners and the lettering faded. Wow.
Anne let him show her the clock despite knowing everything about it. It was more perfect that she had thought. In the back of her mind she wondered if this what the original Antikythera mechanism looked like. The brass casing reflected the light, and seemed to glow, almost. Her musing stopped and when she noticed Alphy talking. He was offering to give it to her...Her mouth was agape a moment before getting her brain to reboot.
It didn't slip past Anne that she suddenly couldn't see their mouths. She hated that she couldn't hear right now, but it was something she had to deal with. While they talked, the rational part of her brain kicked in. This was something she really wanted, and he knew that too. Then there was the fact that he was talking behind her back, the muscles movement on the rest of his face gave it away, to someone who had also taken the time to turn their back to her. There was no such thing as coincidences. Something was going on she was willing to wager that it had to do with that favor and the clock. "What's the favor?"
The older girl smiled sweetly at the other girl, before looking at the book. It was nice to know someone else that was excited about books as she was. The book was in impressive shape, for it's age and well loved if the wear marks that appeared were anything to go by. "Not a bad choice, personally I like it a bit more modern, say Ender's Game? If you need an excuse to leave, we could always drag Alphy back to his room, to rest up his knee." The smaller girl suddenly got giddy again at the thought of original copy of one of her favorite books being in here. She shook of the excitement thinking back to the favor and behind the back discussion that was just held.
Alphy nodded in agreement. He knew Anne had potential, but he wasn't sure if he was a good judge of personality. What made matters worse was the fact he liked Anne. She was a great person with a fantastic personality if you could claw your way in. It's not like he had a crush on her... To be fair, that isn't exactly true. Alphy has a slight “crush” rooted in admiration for all of his friends. That wouldn't cloud his judgment... this time. It was up to Batgirl.
As Barbara walked over to the shelves for a moment, Alphy mouthed words silently to Anne, “Silent, okay? A friend of mine got hurt, I was helping finance his nightly escapades. He was going to be a Teen Titan.” Inwardly Alphy was laughing at the situation, but managed to keep a straight face while lying, "Ironically this happened roughly the same time I hit a building. and he's out for a while." Looking over at Barbara cautiously he continued mouthing, "The favor is you meet Batgirl on top of this building tonight and if you can be a Titan for one month you get the clock.”
Alphy grinned to himself. All he needed to do now is tell Barbara without Anne seeing him. Either way he turned around in his chair and pointed to a shelf, “Sci-fi.” For a moment he sat there, happily watching his friends in heaven, “My two favorite things in the world: books and friends.” Barbara needed to be alone with him for about five seconds, but that wasn't going to happen.
"Finding anything interesting?"silently Alphy prayed, Don't let them find the Poe, don't let them find the Poe...I like the Poe...
Barbara laughed and turned her head over her shoulder so that Anne could still read her lips as she spoke. “The modern ones are alright, but the classics are my passion.” Still grinning ear-to-ear, she turned her attention back to the shelves. One large volume caught her eye, and she gently pulled it out of its space. It was covered in leather, obviously quite old. She gently brushed the front cover, revealing the words “The Odyssey” embossed in large letters. “Oh my god.” Her breath caught in her throat as she opened it to the first page. It was not in greek, thank goodness, but an early translation to English.
Babs sunk to the ground, leaning against the bookshelf at her back as she flipped the pages. She looked up briefly to Anne, her smile back. “Only if I can bring this library with me. I think he can suffer for a little while, putting his leg up down here.” She let out a very uncharacteristic giggle. “Alphy, I believe you have just earned the title of my best friend. Also perhaps my new landlord.” Her attention was brought back to the book as she started reading, gently turning the pages as if they were about to crumble. Who knew, though? They certainly could.
The mind that allowed Annette Cole to become Catastor was already racing with questions and concerns over Alphy's deal as she walked over to the self and that Alphy had pointed to and closed her eyes. "Was his angle..." He had said she was good and wanted her on the side of good that much was clear. "Was it a trap?" That made her hand paused over a random book. It could very well be a trap, but thus far Alphy hadn't given Anne any reason to suspect that he had given Cat away aside from lying over a leg injury.
"Well to each her own Barbra, I find the old books a bit dry, but then I can't really talk though. I like to read thousand year old math texts." Anne laughed a little, not really paying attention to Barbra or Alphy.
That gave Cat pause. Nether Anne or Cat believed in coincidences and it was very interesting that a hero being financed being sponsored by Alphy was suddenly unfit for duty and around the same time that his sponsor had gotten his injury. The odds of that were low...very low, now that on the other hand was something. Could Alphy be a cape...a hero?
The muscles in her body tensed at the thought before relaxing away. No, that couldn't be it, if he were then she would already be in Belle Reve not here in his library looking at books. He would tell her if he was one...right? Then there was the fact that they were having hidden conversations, in front of her. Anne frowned as the small little doubt in the back of her mind formed. There was no such thing as coincidence; something wasn't adding up...yet. She didn't like it when the numbers didn't make sense.
The small girl let out a sigh and opened her eyes again as she started browsing the books, he was hiding something, and plotting, but she didn't know what and had no proof. While normally her gut instinct was good enough for her, it wouldn't be enough to corner Alphy, an already proven smart fast talker. She'd just have to bide her time, there wasn't anything she could do for now, and maybe Alphy wasn't up to anything bad. Maybe she was just paranoid. A small smile formed on her lips seeing the title of one of her favorite books, and all the rest of the series.
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Alviss: Darn doesn't show the pic
Apr 18, 2019 7:10:17 GMT -6
force: miss this place. if anyone comes back and sees this, i'm force, i was kid flash here once. you can find me on discord at rook#9485
Jan 12, 2023 13:11:35 GMT -6
The roleplay takes place after the series end of the original Teen Titans animated show, but does not include the movie Trouble in Tokyo. Since then Robin has been on something of a recruiting spree, and many new young heroes have found themselves a home in Jump City as well as Titan Tower.
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