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The Nobles Library (PuzzlePieces & I)

She smiled at him. "Thank you very much. I will try not to make a mess of your study either. I've never seen so many books before outside of the elf city, but I couldn't so much as get near them there," she said with a sigh. She looked a little excited and a little more awake now.
 
He chuckled as he shuffled to the door in his slippers."Make yourself at home, I'll be back in about an hour" he stated, leaving her in the silence of his home after the doors shut.He didn't expect her to steal anything, perhaps he was a fool for that but he didn't have anything he truly valued, even his books we're just material objects easily replaced.His philosophy was "It's just stuff" and it had worked for him well.He hummed as he strode down the street to market to refresh his food stores and browse around the book dealers, he was itching to pick up that tome on Bloodmancy he'd ordered.It was supposedly a means to power for the common man to harness and while he had no interest in dabbling with primal forces he found them fascinating to study none the less.

He paused around the book dealer's as he spotted a book on the arcane entitled "Magic For Practicality And Practice".He picked up the cover and glanced the binding and author, able to tell instantly it was a genuine Mage-school curriculum book.A smile slid upon his face as he purchased it, having it bundled along with is Bloodmancy tome before heading home.He figured she'd likely be in the study reading or something, so he let himself in quietly and headed for his study, wanting to surprise her with the new book.
 
Sure enough, someone was in the study, though it didn't look like the girl who had broken into his house the night prior. She was thin, her skin a ghostly white and her hair short and silvery, leaning over about three books with her back to him on the floor by the fireplace. She would turn a page and read it quickly, a pen and paper beside her taking notes. She didn't even hear him, she was completely enveloped in her studies.
 
He froze silently as he glared at the woman in his study.To the average street-fool she'd be extremely alien and frightening but to a scholar like him it was rather different.A changeling, no wonder she seemed so uncomfortable around me, I mean they aren't exactly treated right.He observed her for a little while before he stepped into the Study with a smile."Enjoying my collection already I see, good" he stated, setting his coat over the back of the chair as he strode in.He acted completely natural as if she we're still that little girl sitting before him, though why wouldn't he act natural?.Just because she was a changeling was no reason to fear her, sure Changelings were known to be deceptive, but It was plain to any smart man to see they had to be get by.
 
She froze, the pen that had been taking notes for her falling to the paper, the page in her hand stopped in mid turn as she slowly turned to look at him, her black and white eyes staring at him in shock. Despite being to ghostly looking, she had color in her lips and her cheeks, the softest of pinks which almost looked purple against her skin tone. She still had the pointed ears, being a fey creature they were natural to her. She stared at him, actually looking scared as she bit her lower lip.
 
He raised his hand softly."Don't be afraid...you know no animosity here in my home" he stated, slowly sitting down across from her."My offer of being welcome here is open to you and always will be" he stated."I assure you I will not harm you, nor will I speak of you're true nature to others" he stated, folding his hands calmly."Please...sit, I brought you a gift" he stated with a smile.He wanted her to be comfortable with her natural form, it was likely a lot easier to study when not maintaining a form.
 
She calmed back down a little and let out a slow sigh, though it still looked as if she was a little nervous. She raised an eyebrow when he mentioned a present however. "Why would you get a present for me?" she asked, she seemed confused to the concept of receiving gifts altogether, used to having to work for things that she wanted or needed. "What would get for some young woman who has wandered into your house?"
 
He slid the well bound book out of his bag and set it on the table in front of her."Well, It's not often random young women wander into my home, so I'm rather reluctant to shoo them away" he stated with a laugh."I thought since you were gifted with magic you might want to explore It's potential, personally I think you'd be silly not to" he finished."There are a vast many tomes in my collection but not many deal with magic, so I figured I'd best pick something up you can really learn from rather than filling your head with enough boring facts and figures to sink a ship" he grinned coyly at the statement.
 
She looked at the book, eyes wide with excitement. "W.....Where did you get this?" she asked, stammering as she opened the book, going through the pages. "This is one of the course books from the Mage College in Arilath, how did you get a hold of it?" It seemed that she was extremely pleased with his gift. "Oh thank you so much. I wanted to go to this college since I was five, but I would never be able to afford to go. This book will make a huge difference in my learning."
 
A bright smile beamed across his face as he sat down and unraveled the book he'd bought for himself."Ahh, I've been looking for you forever and a day" he stated, running his fingers over the cover and the binding.Even the coldness of the dark black leather bindings made him twinge with excitement.He placed his spectacles upon his face and slid the book open, running his fingers over the pages.Pages upon paces of eldritch runes and demonic diagrams filled his eyes, enthralling him to study deeper."I don't know what it's printed with...thick but certainly not paper" he mused, running his fingers over the dry coarse feeling pages.

For hours he studied the book, delving into it's secrets for scholastic purposes.More and more he read, ritual upon ritual that granted different powers or manifested different things.What really kept him so involved in the book was how easy all of it looked, the only requirement was willingness and veins full of blood."Ah, you!. You're a trickster I can tell" he stated, closing the book and rubbing his eyes as he muttered to himself."Take a break...don't want to become too interested" he affirmed to himself before he gazed around, having forgotten all about his Changeling friend.
 
She had fallen asleep atop her book, pen leaving a small blot of ink on the paper she had it taking notes on. There was several pages in a stack next to her in the same neat scrawl, all notes from the first couple chapters of the book, falling asleep on a page with different runes and pictures drawn on it, no title on the page for what it was for. It seemed that she got too excited and just wore herself out with studying. She was pretty in a way, like a statue carved from snow white marble, but so much softer.
 
He smiled and stood up, reaching out and gently stroking her hair and flesh, admiring the perfection of it.He slid his robe off and draped it over her before turning to leave her in peace.He stretched a tad and strode off, peeling his clothes off before sliding into his bed to rest.
 
She woke a few hours later and looked out one of the windows, noticing the robe as it slipped from her shoulders, before nearly going into a panic. She had been gone for too long. The elderly man she had been living with would most likely be upset with her. She ran up to the guest room and grabbed her things before going back downstairs and rushing out the door, not bothering to be quiet and nearly slamming the door behind her.

It was dark before she returned, guided by a lamp and a guardsman who pulled a small cart of her belongings behind him, a tattered chest, a couple of bags and a few old beat up books that were written in elven. They stopped about 10 feet from the door as the guard let the cart go and gave her a pat on the back, she appeared to be crying. He gave her a piece of parchment and walked off lamp in hand as she kept standing there, shaking.
 
He rubbed his eyes and opened the door having heard a loud clang that had woken him up.He gazed out into the street and fixed his eyes on her."Oh...you're back....I'd wondered where you'd gone" he stated with a yawn."I figured you went home to that elderly fellow" he stated, not yet noticing the cart she had with her.
 
"I did," she said solemnly, looking over her shoulder to make sure that the guardsman was gone and she let her appearance change back to her natural form, pulling down her hood. Her cheeks were a little read and tear-stricken. "However...he wasn't ...He was dead...when I got there," she said trying to keep calm, a look of guilt on her face. "It's my fault...I should have just stayed home. The doctor said he fell and broke his ribs, he wasn't able to get back up and they pierced through his lung.If I had just stayed home, he'd probably still be alive if i just stayed home."
 
His face took on a surprised look."I'm....I'm so sorry to hear" he stated, gazing about the street quickly."Well...come on in then...I'll bring your things in" he stated, stepping out into the street and hoisting the chest up to take inside.
 
"Thank you," she said as she went inside after grabbing her two bags. The chest was surprisingly light, and nothing seemed to actually sound like it was shifting around inside. She took off her cloak once inside. "I'd really hate to impose....it's just that....I have nowhere else to go."
 
He beamed brightly and set the trunk down, following suit with the rest of her belongings."Don't worry about it, It'd love to have you stay" he stated softly."If you'd like I could crack open a bottle of rum to help dull your ache" he offered, shutting the door and sliding his slippers off.
 
She pulled off her boots and nodded slowly. "As much as I normally hate drinking...that actually sounds quite good right now." she said with a sigh, still trying to calm herself down a bit. "Thank you very much. You have no idea what these means to me."
 
He smiled softly and strode inside, removing a bottle from the liquor cabinet and uncorking it.He poured two large glasses and placed them at the table in the study."Come, relax" he offered, moving his Bloodmancy book aside and sitting down.
 
She sat down at the table across from him, putting both of her pale hands on the glass as she looked down at it, just staring into it for a moment distantly. "I'll have to repay you for letting me stay here," she said as she looked up at him. " I can run errands for you, and I can clean and cook." she added before looking back down into the glass. Slowly she raised it to her lips, taking a sip. She was used to wine, having grown up having it with dinner almost every night. Rum was something different, it wasn't a taste she could describe really but she took small sips, letting the alcohol soothe her.
 
He smiled as he swigged his own rum, setting it down before he stood up."Well, to tell you the truth, the cooking part doesn't sound too bad at all" he stated with a chuckle, moving over to the fireplace near the sitting chairs.He rubbed his cold fingers together for a moment before he placed some tinder atop the semi-burnt logs.He took the lit candle from the small side table by his favourite chair, leaning down and lighting a blaze in the fireplace to heat the room.

"Just as long as you promise to give magic your utmost effort, you're more than welcome to stay" he stated as he stood up."I was considering perhaps learning a bit myself, though on a more primal level" he stated quietly.He knew Bloodmancy had darker connotations to it, but he figured his good nature would allow him to harness it's powers for good things.
 
"I would never give up on my magic and I always try my hardest with it. One day I will have to leave though, I will have to go and get certified at one of the colleges, so that they don't think me a rogue mage and send someone to assassinate me." She shuddered at the thought. "I've heard tales that they hunt down those who learn without a proper teacher and in fear of their power taking hold and overtaking their minds, will kill the person. "
 
He laughed a bit and simply smiled."I'd not stop you from going to college, and I know Bloodmancy isn't exactly legal in the kingdom but, I don't fear assassins" he stated quietly."I'm just a quiet scholar, even if I am discovered and they do send an assailant I'm sure I'll survive it" he stated quietly."Now, you drink up and I'll put something on to eat" he stated, striding out of the study.
 
She drank the last of the rum in her glass as he left and her eyes fell upon his book. She had heard of it, and the evils that it had caused and she started to worry a bit. Hopefully he would not be turned to the darkness of it as well. He was kind to her and she'd hate to see an evil side of him. She got up after a while, feeling a little woozy, her body not used to rum, her cheeks a little pink, and she strode towards the kitchen, stopping in the doorway.
 
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