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Post by frithe on Aug 19, 2010 15:53:23 GMT -5
- From the outside, the store front was rather unremarkable in that the sign was half lite and hung from its hinges in manner as dejected as the place in which the store had been living those many decades. There was a thin, almost imperceptible layer of dust upon nearly ever article within the store. The door was an ancient glass relic and the bell had long ago lost its ability to ring. The windows were long since fogged over with exposure to too much cleaning supplies.
- The name of this establishment is Bound to Please and it is a well aged family heirloom that had been within the current proprietor's family for many generations. It currently was into its fifth inheritance. The name of the owner is Adriano Sable Hussar but the moniker on the deed is Maine - he is, quite certainly, the owner of the book store. There is quite a logical reason for this strange change in names but it will not be discussed here nor will the owner give up such information freely. The owner himself is a mysterious fellow who keeps to himself for the most part but is friendly enough to those who wander in off the streets into the well aged aisles of the book emporium.
- Inside, those mythical aisles are piled high with books upon books upon books from ancient tomes written in the obscure anneals of literary history to newer, more modern volumes found for discount prices when compared to the "bargain bins" at the retail, marketed stores. There is a sort of ordered disorder to the place that only the owner and regulars can understand. Try finding something on your own and you are more likely to become lost rather actually find anything.
- As it stood, the current proprietor was sitting behind the only clean surface in the book store and had his legs propped against the edge of the bottom of the desk, lounging with hands lashed together across a flat stomach. He was dozing, ignoring the detailed list of chores that he had written to himself and quietly trying to catch up on the missed hours of sleep. The previous night had been unnaturally late due to a large party having wanted the "Executive Special" and that meant three more hours of dancing and entertaining on top of an already long, six hour shift. That thus resulted in a highly tired, slightly irritable book store owner currently slumbering in the doldrums of store hours - in between two and four when the majority of costumers were either still in school or not gotten off of work yet.
- The book that now resided within the nook of his elbow was forgotten, folded over in the middle with its binding balancing it precariously against the crease in the book keeper's arm. The soft sound of light snores easily identified the deeper than "mid day nap" slumber that had taken over the male's persona. The book, oddly enough, was aged and broken from years of use and it was not a true book proper. The binding was worn and there was the faint outline of an engraving that, at one time, had been gilded with golden leaf but that had long since worn away with age and use. What little could still be seen was only noticeable after careful examination. The title, to those in the inner circle, might have chuckled at the irony, was "Diary of a Shape Shifter." The book could not be found in any library or listed with any categorizing system because, truthfully, it did not exist. It is, essentially, a tome written by his great-great-great grandfather and one that, should his mother found out he had within his possession, flip more than just her lid.
- Adriano stirred in his seat, shifting just slightly enough to knock the book free from its holding and clatter onto the ground noisily. Snapping away at the sound, the male blinked his eyes and glanced around. He yawned, blinked his eyes, and adjusted the glasses that had begun to slip from the crown of his nose. "My, my, this is all kinds of crazy." He chuckled, reaching down to pick up the dropped tome and dust it off carefully before replacing the book on the shelf, hidden behind a few other, nondescript pieces of literature ranging from the mundane to the down right dull even he - a notorious book worm - wouldn't touch them. "There, back where you belong. Sorry about the abuse," he said, patting the books blocking his precious Diary from view and returned to the desk. Picking up a catalog book of sorts, the shape shifter began to move around the shop, listing and checking and double checking on the books on the mayhem shelves.
- The smell of coffee was beginning to waft from the shop across the street and he heard his stomach growl but ignored it.
Word Count: Eight Hundred & Fifty Thread: Open for anyone and everyone! Muse: Great! Notes: This is Adriano. He is nice. Do not be mean to him!
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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Aug 21, 2010 22:00:44 GMT -5
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"Fuck you, fuck you very, very much," Trinell sang softly, a huge grin splitting her face as she made her way through downtown Shelpey. "'Cause we hate what you do, and we hate your whole crew, so please don't stay in touch," Came the rest of the verse, the upbeat music bouncing into Trinell's ears with the awesome quality that normally came with Bose headphones. She was almost dancing her way down the street, what with her random dance moves that she threw out when the urge hit her.
For the most part she was ignored, but even the few who did stop to sneer or stare at her were blatantly ignored or randomly flashed an excited smile and waved at depending on how she was feeling. Some people, few and far between, smiled or waved back to her, and even fewer clapped and encouraged her on. More than once someone contemptuous was given the bird and a smile as the wolf Shifter made her way along.
Absently, she noted the stores that she was nearing. There was the coffee shop near by that she stopped in at every now and then, but that was on the other side of the road and she didn't feel like crossing the street just then.
Head tilted up and back to read the signs above her, Trinell stopped singing and paused her childish dancing to read the title of the old, homey feeling bookstore that was but a few feet away. "Bound to Please, huh? Sounds interesting." Looking around, she blinked friendly emerald eyes and smirked lightly in amusement before walking up to the door. "I'm surprised I never noticed this place before; I've come by here so many times, you'd think I'd have noticed it by now!"
Pulling the door open, Trinell walked into the shop and stopped, looking around and smiling to herself. Although it was quiet and there didn't seem to be anyone around except maybe a worker, the bookstore had an almost calming quality to it that was a bit harder to find in a lot of bookstores. As she walked farther into the store, one hand trailing over bookshelves as her eyes roved the titles, she heard some movement and then a male voice say, "There, back where you belong. Sorry about the abuse," and stopped.
Tilting her head, she followed the sounds of movement until she found the source of the noise; a man, probably the worker, was making his way through the shop with a book. 'He's probably taking stock or something like that,' she thought before stepping fully out of the aisle and smiling at the guy. Absently, she made sure her oddly-colored bangs stayed in place; she didn't want the scar on her cheek to make a sudden appearance in front of someone she didn't know. "Hey, how's it goin'? I like the shop." Grinning in her typically happy and friendly way, Trinell added, "I'm Trinell, by the way." and gave a short, jaunty wave and a wink.
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Post by frithe on Aug 21, 2010 22:41:37 GMT -5
- While the bookstore was normally a quiet, serene place with maybe one or two people lingering around at odd intervals, the occasional interruption of a breathing occupant was both a moment of trepidation and elation for the book store owner. He was not the most outgoing or socially inclined male - this despite being blessed with decent looks - because those, if nothing else, caused in him a certain amount of caution about how and when to interact with other people; especially those of the opposite sex. Something about females both intimidated and frightened him. There was really no word for it except that it might have been a small, relatively minor form of a phobia but there was no crazy fright or strong inclination to run when around the opposite gender. If that had been the case then he could never have been a stripper in the first place.
- When the small bell that signaled someone entering the store didn't ring and, instead, the sound of shuffling feet and feminine voice announced the visitor, the book keeper felt himself jump slightly. The resulting effects was the small consequence of embarrassment and having to readjust the throw back glasses that rested easily upon his nose. After shifting them back into place, Adriano squinted for a moment before easily returning a friendly enough smile. It might not have been genuine - he had been working on cataloging the book shelves and, due to the interruption, had lost count - but there was no point in being mean to a potential new costumer. It had, after all, taken his ancestors a few decades to keep the small, elite clientele that were regulars and they hadn't won those friendships through intimidation and bad service.
- "Welcome to "Bound to Please" and thank you. You are more than welcome to look around, if you want," he said almost instinctively - it was the usual greeting to new faces and, really, it came out without even thinking or before his exhausted brain could really register what - exactly - the woman had said. 'Stupid.'
[/b] Adriano snorted inwardly before turning fully and placing his clip board on the desk casually, dusting off his shirt from imaginary dirt. It was an unconscious habit. A small sign of the true nervousness that the equine shifter honestly felt inside. "Oh sorry about that. Habit really. My name is Ash. Pleasure to meet you Trinell," he said a bit more consciously, stopping himself from the typical nod of the head and, instead, extending his hand for a more formal greeting. It just seemed more proper considering the circumstances and the possibility of gaining that potential friendship. [/li][li] "Now, how can I help you? Are you looking for a certain book? Or just wanting to browse?" Adriano smiled much more pleasantly and honestly this time, once more adjusting his glasses as they slide slightly and suppressed the yawn that, quite suddenly, wanted to escape from his mouth. The night before had been much harder than he intended to give on and, besides, finding out the quiet book keeper was also moonlighting as a stripper usually was the deal breaker in finding new clientele for the book store. Quietly his stomach growled, the scent of the coffee from the shop across the street calling to him - more because it would keep him awake than any real hunger he felt at the moment.[/li][/ul] -------------------
Word Count: Five Hundred & Eighty-Six Playmate: Trinell Muse: Uber Great Notes: Yeah for peoples! [/blockquote]
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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Aug 22, 2010 0:13:06 GMT -5
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Trinell felt somewhat bad as her sudden greeting spooked the book keeper a little, obviously pulling him out of his work. As he turned to her, fixing his glasses beforehand, and offered her a somewhat fake smile, Trinell felt a little worse. Just from his reaction she knew that she had derailed his train of thought horribly and subconsciously her bright smile became apologetic. "Welcome to 'Bound to Please', and thank you. You are more than welcome to look around, if you want," Came an unconscious reply, Trinell just barely able to keep her snort of amusement from sounding. However, when a sudden look of understanding crossed his face Trinell was wholly unable to keep the snickering grin off her face.
She watched him set his clipboard down, turn to face her, and dust nothing off his shirt. 'Nervous?' She snickered inwardly. "Oh sorry about that. Habit really. My name is Ash. Pleasure to meet you Trinell," He said, offering her his hand. She took it with a friendly smile. "Nah, it's no problem. Sorry about knocking you out of whatever you were doing, though. And the pleasure is all mine, Ash. I love meeting new people." She replied easily, her out-going nature making her words sound as real as they were.
"Now, how can I help you? Are you looking for a certain book? Or just wanting to browse?" Said Ash with a genuine smile, fixing his glasses as they slipped. Trinell looked around a little, feeling somewhat fond of the quaint bookstore already. "Actually, I've never been in here before so I wouldn't know where to look to find anything and if you left me to myself, I'd undoubtedly get myself lost." She chuckled slightly, pausing. "Maybe you could show me some of your favorites, though? I don't read all that much but I do know that I like fiction books the most." She added as an afterthought before beginning to look at the titles around her.
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Post by frithe on Aug 22, 2010 0:36:53 GMT -5
- Even as she started speaking once more, his mind already began to wander. It tended to do that and it got the boy in trouble more than Adriano was willing to admit. There was a certain clamminess to his palms and he had to consciously keep from wiping them against the legs of his jeans. That would be the most embarrassing moments of showing the nervousness that he honestly felt when around women - especially around those that were physically considered attractive and seemed strongly secure in that attractiveness.
- She was nice, for one thing, and genuine for another. He felt rather slightly ashamed for so quickly and automatically going into the almost robotic state of book seller with the woman. While he had spent much of his time growing up in the city, living in the confines of the book store and being around those who inhabited the neighborhood had only been a part of his life these past few years. Getting to know the clientele had been easy and, despite all his best efforts, finding more returners had been difficult in the short years that he had been sole proprietor of the establishment. The methods of greeting and handling customers his grandparents had drilled into him where still hard to break - even after so many years.
- "Actually, I've never been in here before so I wouldn't know where to look to find anything and if you left me to myself, I'd undoubtedly get myself lost." She chuckled slightly, pausing. "Maybe you could show me some of your favorites, though? I don't read all that much but I do know that I like fiction books the most."
- Adriano had to chuckle at that, taking a glance around the seemingly endless shelves of books crammed into the relatively small space in the front of the shop. Unconsciously, he wiped his hands against his shirt, silently cursing himself the moment he did it but continued forward none the less. 'So much for not showing how nervous I am.' Putting on another genuine smile, the equine shifter plucked up his clip board, tucked it underneath one arm and turned quickly with a glance back at Trinell and a small motion for her to follow him. "Well, if it is fiction you are wanting then the front of the store is not where you need to look," he said, sailing into seller mode fairly easily but still trying his hardest to not make it seem like he was just another salesmen trying to make a deal then get rid of his customer so as to move onto another one. It wasn't like many people came into the book store these days anyway - the internet and downloadable books had taken care of that.
- "Now, when you say fiction to mean Science Fiction or Historical or Romantic or some other version?" Depending on the answer, he would need to move to a different part of the room. They moved, as it was, through a small curtain that hung limply from a rusted hanger and into a back room with, quite literally, hundreds upon hundreds upon hundreds of books stacked on top of one another. The shelves back here had not been replaced in a while but the process of slowly moving books from the floor or makeshift bins to new shelves was obvious enough. "I do apologize about the mess but another book store just gave me half their stock and I haven't quite had time to catalog it all. Still, I think we can find you something you'll like," he smiled, picking up an older book at his feet and wiping off the dust with a careful, almost loving hand. The binding was slightly frayed but the gilded lettering was unmistakable and the title might have been all too familiar to a true book enthusiast -Bram Stoker's Dracula.
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Word Count: Six Hundred & Three Playmate: Trinell Muse: Great! Notes: Nothin'.
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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Aug 30, 2010 2:49:32 GMT -5
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Trinell's friendly smile didn't fall as she watched the guy in front of her chuckle and nervously wipe his hands on his shirt, although it did quirk up a bit more into a mildly amused grin.
After tucking his clipboard under one arm and giving Trinell a true smile, Ash turned around and motioned for her to follow. "Well, if it is fiction you are wanting then the front of the store is not where you need to look," he said. "Now, when you say fiction to mean Science Fiction or Historical or Romantic or some other version?" He lead her to the back of the store and behind a curtain, where books upon books upon books were stacked, obviously waiting to be placed within the store somewhere. Trinell's eyes lit up a little, the young woman looking excited. She turned to Ash as he spoke again. "I do apologize about the mess but another book store just gave me half their stock and I haven't quite had time to catalog it all. Still, I think we can find you something you'll like,"
Trinell smiled brightly at him, watching as he gently picked up and cleaned off a book while happily gazing at it. As she read the title, Trinell made a small 'O' with her mouth before bursting into a grin. "Is that the original Dracula? I've always wanted to read that!" She said, looking for all the world like a kid in a candy store. "And I like science fiction best out of all the different fiction types. Although I am really fond of books with a lot of fighting in them, too, so anything like that would make me happy too." She added as an afterthought, suddenly remembering his question. Offhandedly, she murmured a quiet, "I am so gonna have to tell DJ and Chase and everyone about this place. So many books!"
OOC//: Sorry about how late it is and how short it is Frithe! DDDD'8 I'm working on trying to keep up with my threads so I should start posting more regularly. Definitely won't be making you wait so long again!
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Post by frithe on Aug 31, 2010 22:47:33 GMT -5
- He smiled, adjusting his slipping eye glasses once more unconsciously and turning away for a moment, placing the clip board on a nearby book shelf. Even though the equine shape shifter made a mental note to remember where he placed the board, he had a idea that - by the end of the day - Adriano would probably forget where he had placed the clip board come the end of the evening. It was quite interesting and rather humorous how those things worked sometimes. Interesting indeed. Turning back from the preoccupation, the equine shape shifter produced three more books each of a similar genre but with varying titles - all quaint possibilities of what Trinell might enjoy if her exuberance at Dracula was anything to go off of.
- "It is actually and a rather old copy. Something that I found at a garage sale and just could not allow it to be taken in by someone who would not care for it as it should be cared for," Adriano replied, somewhat sheepishly and quickly turned his head to the side with an annoying yet somewhat insufferable chuckle of nervous tension. His hands moved across the shelves quickly after that, searching for other novels that fit into the description that Trinell had provided him most generously.
- "You enjoy quite the large variety. Perhaps you can my job a slightly bit easier by narrowing it down to a smaller number or more specific genre?" The equine shape shifter chuckled with a small and moved further down the isles with an cautious hand, silently ticking off books that did not immediately fit into the criteria and, instead, slightly tugging on the ones that did - allowing them to lean outwards by their binders to be marked for the time being. "You can take that one with you if you would like and, if you like it, I trust that it will be in good hands so you can keep it." Adriano finished with a genuine smile.
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Word Count: Three Hundred & Twenty-Nine Playmate: Trinell Muse: Good Notes: Don't worry about it. I understand. :)
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