ArchivedLogs:Making Acquaintances

Making Acquaintances
Dramatis Personae Jennifer, Mallory
In Absentia	2013-07-23 Jennifer finally meets Mallory. Furniture assembly is involved.
Location <XS> Library
Xavier's librarian might hope the library is a quiet place to sit and study, but with a school full of teenagers that is not always the case. Nevertheless, it is certainly a treasure trove of knowledge, well-stocked with a wealth of books on its high shelves. Its reference section is vast, though its fiction is as well (much to the delight of many of its students.) The wide octagonal tables and smaller armchairs are often crowded with students, though the whispered conversations that often take place leave some doubt as to how much work is getting done at any given hour. Besides a small number of students who have chosen the library as a refuge from the heat, the library is almost completely empty, rendering it as quiet as one would expect a library to be. The librarian might be missing at the given moment - a small sign on the desk claiming she will be "right with you" a harbinger of her eventual return - but instead Jennifer has taken the initiative to mingle with the books. A couple of open cardboard boxes sit not far from her, while the redhead herself busies herself with a crumpled sheet of paper. Jennifer Walters is dressed casually - jeans rolled up to the knees and a plain white shirt. Barefooted, the teacher looks like she's putting a bookshelf together... or perhaps building a wooden tribute statue to one of the Elder Gods, it's hard to tell. A hefty burdensome sigh escapes her, and she lifts a hand to cup her forehead and brush her fiery locks aside. No, that board does not go there. Lowering the cheat sheet, the powerfully built woman (even if she is not relying on her mutation at the moment) moves to detach the wrongly positioned wooden board. The woman may not be a frequent giver of books, if only because the library's wealth of knowledge is great enough, but now and again she would sneakily order new educational material for staff to pick up and distribute. But today, the library demands expansion. The soft click of cloven hooves against the hardwood flooring of the library precedes Mallory’s appearance near the information desk, originating from within the reference section and growing steadily louder as she approaches. As Jennifer and her attempts at book case construction come into view, the librarian pauses, a bemused smirk on her wine colored lips as she watches the other teacher for a moment before approaching closer. She is dressed professionally, even in the more casual summer term, with a fitted pencil skirt that falls just to the first bend in her digitigrade legs, paired with a shimmering gray silk blouse. A strand of cream colored pearls standing in sharp contrast to her dusky red skin, the only ornamentation she wears to compliment her attire; the curling black rams horns on either side of her head provide more than enough substitutions for earrings or hair accessories. “Hello there,” she says in a hushed, Oxford accented voice, “I am quite sorry that my absence has driven you to carpentry. May I help you with something, or are you content to assemble your project in relative peace?” Mallory leans gently against the information desk, dark eyes looking at Jennifer with amusement, “I’m afraid I’m not exactly the greatest at building things, but I can perhaps lend a hand?” Her tapered tail lashes ever so slightly as she waits for a response, although it seems to be more in amusement than in disapproval. Not much thought is initially given to the approach of another - Jennifer seems more occupied with her clumsy efforts to put together a bookshelf, placing the wooden board she's detached in its final, rightful place. All that's left is to secure it, although that will come somewhat later, because Jenn's attention finally leaves the as of yet unfinished furniture. Catching sight of the librarian, the redhead offers a faint smirk. The quip regarding carpentry broadens it. "Hey! Yeah, I'm... sorry, I didn't think this would take as long as it... is," she admits reluctantly. The redhead moves away from the bookshelf, ensures that the current construction is stable enough that it will not immediately collapse, and steps closer over to the information desk. "Jennifer Walters," she offers, extending a hand for a handshake. "Hothead extraordinaire and probably the first teacher to ever get suspended. I still need to check with Charles for the latter title. You are Mallory... Winthrop, right?" Shooting a quick glance over her shoulder back at the growing shelf, Jennifer murmurs a tentative addendum, "I really wouldn't mind some help, to be honest. Turns out I'm about as good with bookshelves as I am with kids. Maybe our mediocrity combined will bloom into excellence?" Smiling easily, Mallory chuckles, “It has been a bit since I last tried to assemble furniture, but thus far I’ve had a decent track record with it, all things considered.” She accepts the handshake, her skin almost feverishly warm to the touch, “Yes, I’m the new librarian, Mallory Winthrop. It is lovely to meet you, Jennifer.” A slight chuckle leaves her lips at the mention of being hot headed, and she grins, her tone light and joking, “Suspended? Oh my, well, at the very least my minor arrest record may not stand out too terrifically, in that case.” She coughs slightly and smirks, showing off her elongated canines, “I can’t guarantee I’ll be much better at it, but it is worth a shot.” Mallory glances at the instruction booklet, and then at the partially assembled shelving unit, “Thus far I haven’t set anything on fire.” There is a pause here, perhaps a bit longer than really necessary as she glances at the remaining pieces and the booklet, then at the currently assembled unit, “And by that I mean students or shelving.” "Hmmnh." It's an absent-minded sort of response. Jennifer's thoughtful eyes are fixated on the booklet, looking at the instructions. In what is hopefully a joking manner, the redhead actually turns the booklet around and upside down, as if that is where the secret was all along. "Sometimes, they legitimately /do/ make you want to set them on fire," she notes. A pause later, her gem-like green eyes lift to regard Mallory in a faux concerned fashion. "The shelves, I mean." The manual is handed to Mallory; if it's not accepted, well, Jennifer keeps it to herself. Either way, the suspended hothead moves to circle the unfinished bookshelf as though a predator. "Yeah, I'm afraid I fall into the stereotypical 'loudmouth' American category, so sorry for that. I think your 'minor arrest record' will pale in comparison to shooting a student with a water pistol, having a simulation shoot at her a few days later and then top off spring with tazing Norman Osborn. Ever see Lethal Weapon? Well, I'm Martin Riggs." A screwdriver is picked up, and Jennifer promptly begins fastening the plank she's positioned moments ago. "Can you fetch the other screwdriver and get it from the other side? Anyway, how have you been getting along with the school? I haven't really involved myself with it that much, been busy with other things. I imagine it's a lot quieter with me absent," she offers with a lopsided grin. Chuckling as she moves around to the other side of the book shelf and begins looking for the screwdriver, Mallory stoops to snag the tool off the flooring, bracing against the bookshelf to start screwing the shelf into place. “Wow. That, ah, sounds like quite a semester, yes,” Mallory says quietly, not entirely sure how to respond to that, “Being arrested for protesting for mutants rights kinda pales compared to that action film of a year.” The librarian chuckles, shaking her head, her completely black eyes crinkling with laughter, “I’d hate to ruin all your hard work on this lovely shelf by setting it on fire, whether it deserves it or not.” Her tongue peeks out from the corner of her mouth as she finishes getting the shelf mounted, bright pink against her otherwise ruddy skin tone. “I am not exactly one to talk to about it being quiet. I’m a librarian - most things around me are quiet, regardless of who my co-workers are,” she says with a laugh, checking the instructions for the next step. “It is a pleasant enough place, and I am quite happy to have the opportunity to work in such a forward thinking institution,” Mallory expounds, although it is with a rather refreshing honesty, not like a rehearsed interview answer. “And the added bonus of being reunited with my twin is nice. That was a pleasant surprise when we arrived,” she adds, picking up the next shelf to be installed and moving it into place. A screwdriver is not Jennifer's preferred choice of weapon, that's for sure. Still, it is a screwdriver and not a quantum screw rotating device, and so ultimately Jennifer manages to secure the shelf, along with Mallory's extended aid. "Your twin? He's also here?" As the question arrives, Jenn actually peeks from behind one of the shelves' sides, to glance at the other teacher. "What does he teach? I don't think I met 'im yet." The next shelf unfortunately is of greater height than the average person, which happens to be at least one of the workers. So, Jennifer wanders off to a nearby table to bring two chairs over. "And you're right, if you set it on fire, I think I'd go crazy, green and wreck the whole damn place," she offers with just the slightest hint of an edge to her voice; otherwise, she is most definitely joking. “Yes. Thomas Winthrop - he is the new chemistry professor,” Mallory explains with a nod, a bit of an exasperated smirk on her lips, “Likely haven’t met him because dragging him out of the new lab he has here is a bit of a challenge at times.” She stretches up to her full height of six and some change, and tries to screw in the shelf before giving up; she eyes the chairs that Jennifer brings over skeptically, taking a step back, “Ah, I can hold the chair for you, and hold the shelf up, but I’m not so good at climbing things. Or standing securely on chairs.” She clicks one cloven hoof against the other as way of explanation, “Balance issues and heights disagree a bit.” Regardless, the librarian goes to stand beside the chair, easily holding it in place in front of the shelf while using the other hand to support the to-be-installed shelf. There’s a dry laugh at the threat to the library, and Mallory glances over at Jennifer, her dark eyes glittering with an inner fire, a sinister grin on her lips. Her tone still fairly light and cheery as she speaks, “Do that to my library, and I will set /you/ on fire.” There is a short chortle on Jennifer's part; as the redhead positions the chairs, she also takes the time to admire the work done so far. "I know exactly how he feels. Granted, I think you probably do, too. He has the lab, you have the library, I have the gym-- Xavier sure knows how to tempt us." When the assistance of the chairs doesn't turn out to be as good of an idea as she'd hoped, Jennifer finally fully acknowledges the hooves. "Oh. Sorry, I... didn't notice." Although one of the chairs becomes abandoned, the other is brought to Jennifer's side. "Can you reach the shelf and help hold it in place?" she asks, reaching for a few screws and the appropriate instrument. The jest regarding combustion coaxes another chuckle out of the redhead. "I think I'm starting to like you already. If you don't mind me asking, what was it that brought you here? And by 'here', I mean both the States and the school." "Oh, yes. The opportunity to actually work at a place like this is just amazing. I would have done it for the library, alone, but the chance to teach as well. And the perks are lovely - the teacher's lounge is impressive, and the gym is marvelous," Mallory chuckles, moving to brace the chair with one arm and a leg, stretching to hold the shelf in place with the other hand, though it isn't necessarily the most stable position. "That work well enough? Let me know if you need me to adjust how I'm holding the shelf." A wry grin crosses her lips as the hooves are noticed, "It's ok - most people assume that I'm just wearing high heels until they actually look closer or it gets mentioned. I can do ladders decently, but standing on chairs in the past has resulted in broken limbs." To the question of purpose, Mallory coughs slightly, "It's a bit of an odd series of coincidences. I had just finished my masters degree, and was shopping around for a university to complete my doctoral thesis. Bit of post-graduation revelry among classmates ended up convincing us it was a good idea to participate in a march on Parliament for mutant's rights." Her voice trails off for a moment, "That didn't end well, a riot broke out, and I was arrested. Not charged with anything, mind, but it was "'or the protection of the citizenry and greater good,'" she says, mimicking a haughty, stuffed shirt voice and rolling her eyes. "School prospects dried up, job prospects vanished, and my family disowned me as soon as my name hit the papers," the librarian says with some exasperation, tail lashing as she tells the tale. "Apparently, though, Thomas had been applying for positions, including here. Not sure the exact circumstances to it, but I was contacted for an interview, as my thesis application and resume had somehow made its way stateside," she continues, her voice more than a little dubious. Dark eyes watch the shelf to make sure she is holding it level, "I had nothing left to lose back in England, so, I rather thought a fresh start would be a pleasant change. And here I am." A grin crosses her lips and she chuckles, "Sorry for the book report on my educational woes. What brought you to the school, other than the spectacular athletic facilities?" "Yeah, this is /perfect/, thanks!" While the shelf is held stable, Jennifer busies with fastening it to the rest of the construction, listening to Mallory's story at the same time. The mention of riots begets a quick little, "Uh-oh." Otherwise, the redhead quietly listens to the librarian, working on completing the furniture. It's not long before Jennifer requests to switch positions, so that she could attach the shelf from the other side, too. Not much longer still before the next shelf is picked up and put above its siblings. "Well," Jenn begins, adding a brief pause for dramatic measure, "I think everyone here has a fair share of their woes here. In fact, I think that's what unites us, /and/ what helps us understand the children a little bit better. So long as we don't..." Here, Jennifer stumbles a little, quirking her lips and seemingly hesitating to move forward with the sentence. Ultimately she indeed decides to continue: "So long as we don't focus on them or believe the different nature of our troubles makes us better /or/ worse than the rest. Because that's the sort of mentality that separates us from ordinary humans to begin with." Taking a short-lived break from the assembly of furniture, the redhead merely lays both hands on the bookshelf for vague support. "I... came here because I felt like I did not make much of a difference. I'm a lawyer and, y'know-- Hollywood might make you think it's all courtrooms, fancy speeches and happy endings, but a lot of the work you do is at a desk and with a fat stack of papers, staying up halfway into the night until words no longer make much sense to you. Here, I am /inspiring/ lives, instead of trying to repair broken ones." A single digit taps against the wood as she silently mulls something over. "Things got a little bit more complicated since then. I've been to Europe, I came back to get suspended, and now I am doing lawyer work again. The circle of life, huh?" The last question is offered with a bittersweet tone and a faint lopsided grin; clearly, it's a sensitive subject for the woman, but she tries not to show it. A deflection comes in due time: "We're almost done with the damn thing." “Sounds remarkably like what being a librarian is. But, well, most people assume that it is all sitting behind desks and dealing with paperwork,” Mallory says with a chuckle, “But there’s also the Scary Librarian stare. Such a wonderfully useful skill.” The smile falters slightly, her voice hushed, “Hollywood seems rather intent on distorting the idea of a good number of things. I’m starting to notice that most things in life are far from the sunshine, rainbows, and happy endings that were promised in films. But, at the very least, there are differences to be made here, in theory.” Her features soften sympathetically as Jennifer explains the complications, and she nods slowly, but doesn’t say anything, just listening. Eyeing the bookshelf cautiously, Mallory steps back a bit to examine the work, “Just the one, right? We’re not planning to assemble a whole army of shelves, today, are we?” She glances cautiously toward the other cardboard boxes, letting the deflection take its course and change the subject. “Thank you for doing this - it’s quite appreciated,” the librarian says with a grin, eyeing the nearly completed shelf. With feline grace, Jennifer hops off the chair and retreats some distance to admire their cooperative creation together with Mallory. "Yeah, it's just this one," she quickly assuages the librarian, moving towards the timidly open boxes. Crouching down before one of them, she opens it up to reveal a plethora of freshly printed books. "And you're very much welcome. Charles really did a number with this library, but I try to help improve it in whatever way I can." She adds, "At no expense of the school, too." The tone is a touch assertive, but when it comes to wallets, can she really be to blame? All it takes is a glance at the spines of the packaged books before it becomes clear Jenn does not regret a single penny spent. All that remains is for her to stroke them and say the word 'precious'. Instead, however, the redhead rises, picking up the last plank, her eyes set on Mallory again. For a brief instant, her eyes flick the gaze upward, to the woman's devilish horns. "Those are really cool horns, by the way. Did any children think you're related to Mephistopheles, yet? You should come up with something, y'know? You have the British accent to pull it off, too." The idea seems to entertain Jennifer greatly. “Oh, my,” Mallory says quietly as the contents of the boxes are revealed, “That, ah, that is a decidedly generous gift to the school. /Thank you/.” She blinks in surprise for several long moments, before carefully stooping to look at the titles in the box, gently stroking a well manicured hand along the spines in stunned silence. “This is wonderful, Jenn. I had been hoping to order new books, to bring us up to date on some of the newer authors and replace some well loved copies, but, well. Wow,” her voice is hushed in reverence as she quickly scans over the titles in the box, a smile spreading over her features. The mention of her horns, however, brings her out of the book induced trance, and she looks at Jennifer quizzically; her large, dark eyes are rather unnerving when their gaze is fixed pointedly on an individual. Self consciously, she trails a hand over her left horn, and grins sheepishly, idly tracing the spiral with a single fingertip, “Ah, no. Not here, at least, for which I am somewhat thankful. So far there have been delightfully few cries of ‘Oh God help me, Satan ate the librarian,’ or ‘Aaaaaargh! Demon.’” Her delivery is deadpan, but she smirks ever so slightly, displaying one pointed canine as she does, “Some friends at University brought it up a few times, though, in jest. They would take me to conventions and see how many people complimented me on my wicked costume skills.” She laughs lightly at the memory, still idly fidgeting with the horn as she talks, as though she had just been made aware of their presence again. Jennifer looks nothing if not encouraging when she is subject to Mallory's quizzical gaze. The redhead's smile broadens when her eyes follow the movement of the librarian's hands gliding along the left horn's curve. "Hmh," she wistfully coos, "I like them. I think you should keep them." As if there was a choice involved. Still, that may very well be the joke. The chair is valiantly climbed onto soon enough, and the final plank is positioned into place. A swift gesture along with a, "Can you... ?" indicates that Jennifer needs Mallory's help again with keeping the shelf stable. "And think nothing of the books. /Honestly/! I know we always ran on short supply of kindness, and supplies of it never ran as thin as nowadays, but-- Y'know. Here, we're all in this together." Lining up the screwdriver against a screw, she adds ponderously, "Or maybe I'm just rationalizing my restlessness." The tool stops spinning halfway through its mission when an idea seems to freeze Jenn. "/Hey/, I'm curious-- What do you think of the States so far? Anyone give you a /proper/ tour yet? And by proper, I don't mean showing you the Statue of Liberty, Mallory." Mallory laughs at the other woman’s statement of approval, “Well, I’m quite glad that you approve. Although, to be fair, there was never a question of keeping them in my mind. Or the minds of the family doctors after I broke the first one’s shins.” There’s a sense of pride in her voice as she says this, though she scuffs one hoof gently against the hardwood floor in a slightly sheepish movement. She then moves to hold and stabilize the shelf in place when asked, smiling genially, “Perhaps my twin can speak to the family back home to arrange some kindness towards the institute. He is, at least, still on speaking terms with them.” Quietly holding the shelf in place, Mallory just offers an understanding nod to Jennifer’s last statement. When asked about a proper tour, the librarian blinks in confusion, looking at her colleague with curiosity. “Does going for a pint at the pub in town count as a tour?” she asks, not entirely jokingly. “My brother and I, to my knowledge, were both conveyed directly from the airport to the school - all I saw of New York was out the tinted windows of a sedan,” Mallory offers with a sheepish grin, shrugging as she continues, “So, well, I suppose not. I can’t really form an opinion of the States, since I haven’t seen much.” There’s a slightly exasperated sigh at this though and she frowns, “I suppose I’m also a bit hesitant to leave the safety of campus - I rather stand out in public, and my understanding is that New York is not the safest place to be visibly mutated now-a-days.” The image of a doctor being kicked in the shins by a young hooved Mallory is very entertaining to Jennifer; it is without a doubt schadenfreude at the expense of the doctor, but that just barely reins in the steady growth of a grin. "Shinbones are a good inbox for important messages," she muses wistfully. Her jestful demeanour is momentarily withdrawn then, and a polite nod foreshadows her next words: "If you and Thomas can help the school in any way you can, please do. I think we have a scary amount of responsibility for the future of the children here." An errant wave of the hand seems to hastily dismiss that particular pearl of wisdom. "There I go, sounding like Charles again. Don't mind me." Once the finishing touches are applied to the bookshelf, it is finally complete. It didn't take all that much effort, although it looks like Mallory's input is all Jenn needed. Hopping down from the chair, the redhead brings up a hand to swiftly brush her stubborn fiery locks aside and examine the construction again. "You don't get fined if you can't make yourself look human. The only problem would be the bigots, and those run a little bit more rampant nowadays than before." An elbow nudge is promptly administered to Mallory's side. "Don't worry, I'd protect you. And I didn't mean just 'pints' and 'pubs'-- Even if I'd beat you in a game of darts any day of the week." Turning her eyes away from the shelf and to her colleague beside her, Jennifer grins broadly. "I meant museums, art galleries, libraries... Plenty of stuff to see. How about it?" Mallory nods quietly, taking a few steps back to examine the completed shelving unit, a cheery smile on her lips as she looks it over. "I'll talk to him about it the next time I see him. I'm sure the family will be willing to support his endevours, as long as they are not aware I work here too," she says wryly, running a hand along one horn in a nervous habit. A curious head tilt at the mention of looking human, but she nods, "Understood. I, ah, well, have spent a majority of my life hiding. While I am quite accustomed to shocked stares, they have always come with a British tradition of reserved disdain while in public." However, the offer of seeing libraries and other such cultural things brings a smile, "Deal. Well, help me get Thomas out of the lab and into the city, and we've got a deal. I got some freedom in University, he's only just out from under the thumb of our parents." She wrinkles her nose a bit, "I'm lousy at darts, passable at billiards, however. I rather liked the pub in the local town - barkeep didn't even bat an eye at Isra and myself grabbing some ale after work." "Ha, get your brother out of the lab, you say? I'll give it my best shot. I'll bring my trusty water pistol." It's hard to tell whether Jenn is joking, at this point. "I'd love to show you guys around town, and hit a bar or two at the end of the tour." Lifting a single finger to tut at Mallory, Jennifer broadly grins once again. "Also, if you want to merge into the local crowd-- It's called /pool/." Ah, the ages old linguistic battle carries on even when new ones arise. Promptly crouching down before one of the boxes again, Jennifer starts unpacking the books from it. The other is open as well, although left unattended nearby. "Work before play, though-- Mind helping me christening this new shelf with new books?"