003. (v2) [video]
[At first, there is no sound; there is only the image of Xanth's forearm. Lines of letters curl around his fingers, twist around his hand, and spiral onto his arm. The ink, jet black, is stark against his pale skin.]
Th-this-- it means I-I've been-- t-too quiet, right? I-It... it wants me to-- t-to say... s-something.
[It's been a while since he' ( Read more... )
Th-this-- it means I-I've been-- t-too quiet, right? I-It... it wants me to-- t-to say... s-something.
[It's been a while since he' ( Read more... )
Look I've seen this before, and I can get rid of it. Have you touched Edger Allen Poe's book or quill? I need to find it now before [She trails off ominously.]
Well, I just need to find it. Then you'll be OK.
[She thinks.]
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Um. N-No, I... I-I haven't? The-- th-the only quill I've t-touched recently is-- the-- th-the one that... c-came with my j--journal.
[The last book he touched, aside from his journal, was Common Fauna of the Tropical Rainforest.
The Keep is lacking fascinating reading material, unfortunately.]
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Maybe it got switched when you weren't looking. Do you have any enemies?
I can fix this, I just need your pen. And don't write anything violent or painful!
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[All this confusion is actually nice for a change. It gives him a little something to focus on.]
I-I think-- I think you've-- g-got it wrong, um-- this d-didn't just happen to-- to me, it, the, the ink thing-- i-it happens i-if you don't-- m-make entries in your j-journal thing.
I mean. I. I-I think.
[He's seen other journal posts about it. Not for a while, but in passing, in the past. Unless he was misremembering...]
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[OK something is wrong with people here, cause she'd be worried if ink started crawling on her.]
If I'm wrong no big whop, if you're wrong [She trails off.]
Did you touch any other books? Besides your journal?
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But perhaps this woman is right.
The video comes on and sweeps over Xanth's Pile O' Books. Some titles are visible and some are not; those that are visible are only research books.]
U-Um. Yeah. Just... th-these from the-- the library...
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I'm gonna need all of those.
And the quill.
[She pauses a moment]
Are you. Feeling OK?
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[There are some sounds of shuffling and ruffling. He's cleaning up his room a little bit - by, oh no! Touching the books!]
I'm-- f-fine. M-My room's-- um-- o-one-- z-zero zero o-one.
[First floor, first door. Quite simple to remember, actually.]
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[Any other time she make a joke about his number being in binary, but she thinks he's about to keel over. Maybe another time.]
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These are all things he intends to explain to...
To...
It's now he realizes that he never got her name.
Oh, dear.
But, room in a little better of a state, Xanth waits for the knock on his door.]
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She slides up to his door, and gives the door a quick rapid knock. She waits bouncing on the balls of her feet.]
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But he offers her a smile all the same.]
H-- uh, hi. Y-You, um. You're here for the the-- the quill? A-And-- the books?
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Maybe you should sit down?
[She walks into his room. It's not hard to spot the books in the tiny room.]
Are those all of them?
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I--I'm okay.
[Then, he follows her gaze to the books that are now stacked on his bed. There are three stacks - two of them holding four books, one of them holding three. At the end sits his journal, the quill laying atop it.]
Y--yeah. That's... th-that's all.
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She picks up his journal and quill, and holds them both above the open bag.]
You might want to stand back.
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W-What, no, what-- w-what're you d--doing?
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