Deep End of knowledge [Open]

A young man wearing glasses, with short dark hair made his way up to the local library. He was dressed semi-formal, or at least looked like he was either a college student or a teacher of some kind. He was in reality, not human at all and wasn't even from this world entirely. He was Slymon, a scholar and practicioner of the arcane. Since he had been brought to this world by a very fickle ally, Slymon wasted no time trying to intergrate. He first had to study some of the people that called this "forest of stone and glass" home: which he learned were humans. Mimicking their shape would be easy for a number of reasons but it was the clothing which he felt would be a little trickier.

The people in this day and age didn't wear cloaks, robes, tunics- most of which he was more familiar with. But he was no stranger to trial and error, and after some test runs with his magic, Slymon was pleased with the end result. Now he no longer had to hide like an animal alluding predators. Based on his studies of the spell, he'd still have to be careful though but for the moment he would go out and do some more in depth exploration. One obstacle he'd have to keep in mind though would be his having to still "pretend" like he belonged here. So far nobody gave him much thought, outside some rudimentary "you exist in my spatial awareness" glances. He thought hey may have also seen one or to other looks from women, which made him feel good. But he couldn't let that distract him,.

The local library was a place he felt like he'd be spending much time at in the days to come. One perk of his physiology made the need for shelter a secondary concern, and he wanted to acclimate as quickly as he could to this new world. He would still need to find a place to call his own. Slymon had already been "house hunting" in the poorer districts, and though the thought that HE would have to call such a place home did bother him. But this would all be temporary. He wouldn't be "slumming" it forever, and the more the learned about this place the sooner he could apply that knowledge to finding himself a better place in this new world. Libraries were actually kind of rare back home, excluding the larger cities anyway which this... Jump City definitely counted as.

Soon Slymon would be trying to familiarize himself with the library's layout, and try to find the sections that meant the most to him right now. He mostly had some history books but also had a couple odd books that piqued his interest as he looked around for a table to sit down at and start his studies...

There was a certain... fragrance in the air.

Libraries were usually large, quiet, and most importantly, EMPTY places. With kids these days getting their knowledge from the Internet rather than books and tomes, there was no need to visit these big, burgeoning buildings in the middle of the town. Which was perfect for a kind of reader Lena was. It was one of the few places where she could loosen a few buttons on her tight bodyglove, which covered all of her body. The zipper was pulled down almost to her chest, as an obscene cleavage of some kind, and the gloves were off. It felt so nice to let the body breathe a little, especially after riding a bike here for like 30 minutes straight.

Before Lena there was a book.

A rather old-looking book, with yellow, withered pages, and the hardcover being made of cured leather. It was a one-of-a-kind book that rather belonged in a museum. But the librarian seemed very amicable and offered it to the girl as soon as she asked "something about monsters and mythical creatures and shit." This one contained the first two words of the request.

'Doctors don't tell me shit. They don't know shit. I can tell...' - the girl thought to herself, as she turned the page. She had plenty of mythical folks at school, ones that only existed in legends. Vampires, demons, all sorts of things! Maybe the answer lied there? The girl turned page after page, reading into descriptions and looking at pictures. It's almost as though the book called to her.

It was then when Lena heard strange noises. Books being moved, feet shuffling... Yet, no person?

"Is someone there?" - she called out, and tune in, to feel figments of emotion. Yes, there was a person. Though their emotions felt distinctly... non-human.

Slymon was just picking up one or two more books on his way toward a table, when he suddenly became more aware of a... rather intoxicating scent. Now for a point of clarification, on the surface he looked human enough to fool most simple means of detection. But beneath that he was most certainly not human, much less whatever he had once been before being changed into this. So needless to say that scents normally didn't grab his attention so strongly as this one, and while in the back of his mind told him to be alarmed, it was just too attractive for him to focus on that fact for now. Then he heard a voice call out, feminine from the sounds of it. He rounded the corner with a small stack of books of different subject matters. "Yes, hello- I didn't think anyone else was here," Slymon admitted simply, arching an eyebrow at what he was looking at.

What in the various layers of the underworld and various deities was she wearing? Of all the odd clothing customs he had seen since he had been here, hers was by far the strangest that he had seen. His... confusion and intrigue was evident on his face as for whatever reason, the scent seemed to draw his attention more toward her chest. It was only for a moment but it was long enough to be noticed as he mentally shrugged it off and looked down at the table. "May I sit here?" Slymon asked now aware that the scent seemed to be the strongest here where she was, and was now actively trying to... ignore it. This seemed unusually familiar to him but he couldn't place why right now.

Lena watched the fellow roam out from behind the bookshelf, carrying an enormous stack of books.

She quickly looked him over. Tall, shaggy hair, thick glasses, weird choice of clothes... Lots of books... Everything about him screamed "giant nerd". But he was a cute-looking giant nerd. With her eyes shielded from view by the dark plexiglass of her helmet, she was capable of staring at people all she wanted, and they'd be none the wiser as to where her eyes went. Lena did that, often. But as she stopped, she suddenly realized what was going on. Her head quickly inclined to look at her own opened leather suit.

Oh no, not again... Shit shit shit.

Her hand darted towards the zipper and pulled it up as fast as she could. The movement was forceful and somewhat sloppy, and she caught a bit of her skin in the mechanism, letting out a pained yelp, as it jammed on her somewhere around the neckline.

"Ack! Oh, um..." - the girl realized she was making the strange boy wait for an answer for a prolonged period of time. Her head darted back and forth, trying to find somewhere to send him. "There's uhh... a whole library available to you! You can sit anywhere you wish! Goddammit..." - the girl cursed and returned to fiddle with the zipper, which refused to let go of the skin and flesh. Her distress was almost tangible, as waves of worry and frustration, mixed with embarrassment came off of her, slamming against the minds of everyone within the radius.

Lena just could not help it. And having her skin exposed did not help things either. The fragrance was stronger the closer one got to her.

To say that this had not quite been the... sudden reaction Slymon had been expecting would be an understatement. Apparently she had been so convinced that she had been the only one to be here, that she had decided to... well, basically leave herself more exposed. After she realized that she wasn't the only on here she seemed to suddenly panic and apparently freak out, trying to cover herself back up hastily- sounded like she caught something in the process too as she said he could sit any where. He was already having trouble concentrating, her display and this sudden overwhelming sense of worry, frustation and embarrassment assailed him. Slymon set his books down with slightly more agitation than he meant to, but she was making it very hard for him to focus as he brought up his shirt over his face. That didn't help very much but if his hunch was correct (he saw no evidence to the contrary) than it was better than nothing. "You're being too loud... calm down and I'll help you," Slymon offered sincerely, noticing the gloves on the table.

This implied that he would need to touch her, and though he hadn't been paying too much attention at first, he realized that part of the scent must have been because of sweat- at least partially, if he had to guess. A fact which made it very hard to focus further due to his form's natural instincts. But his mind was telling him that was a very bad idea. So he'd look down and point at her gloves as if to just get her consent. If she allowed it, he'd put them on- a feat that should've been strange to anyone really paying attention. If he had been allowed to at this point, Slymon would then delicately try to help her get her skin out of the zipper's teeth- what a strange manner of clothing this was.

Lena's eyes widened under the helmet, as her mind was quickly entering panic mode. She could feel the fellow was being affected, and the closer he got, the worse it was gonna go! And if he'd get to touch her bare skin... Chances were she'd have to fight him off with the very book she was reading. As the guy tentatively reached forward, she grabbed one of the gloves and swatted his hand away.

"It's fine! Just... keep the hands away!" - she turned around, to hide her front from him, pulled the zipper back, and then up. It finally let go of the skin and managed to zip up all the way to her chin. Lena remained panting for a few moments, putting one hand to her chest, as if the worst crisis was averted. Then, she slowly turned to face the boy, and reached for her gloves, picking it up.

"Sorry..." - the girl muttered an apology. What a pity. A book-warmish kind of a cute nerd was rare these days... And their first interaction had to present herself like some sort of a crazy person that forgot to drink her pills this morning. Dragging the gloves over her hands, she walked back a bit and reached for the window, opening it wide enough to allow fresh air to circulate through the large library hall.

"Phew... that's better... Now, did ya want something, big guy?" - her head tilted up a bit, to look at his face. The girl was getting strange vibes from the fellow, one she did not sense from anyone else she had met. Putting a hand to her chin and cupping it, Lena seemed in thought, for a moment.

"You're not from around here are you?"

Unlike Lena who could sense what he was feeling, Slymon only had his own limited interpretations of what was going on. He was displeased when she didn't let him help, for more reason than just simply the fact that someone dared turn down his generosity. He'd probably be more insulted if not for the obvious intoxication that seemed to be swirling around this girl. Once she seemed to be all covered up again and with a window open though, the air seemed to clear alittle and made it easier to think more clearly. "I wanted to sit here after you brought attention to yourself," Slymon said matter of factly, very stoic faced as he did just that. She did say he could sit where he wanted, plus the "dire" situation had resolved itself. But he was still very agitated as he massaged his temples. The sensation from a moment ago was still slowly clearing up.

Then she asked him a rather odd question for a complete stranger to ask another one. "No, I'm new around here," he replied flatly, watching her a little too intently for a moment. They were strangers, so the fact she asked that specific question raised an alarm in the back of his head. It was a big city, so the odds of someone knowing everyone who lived here were very improbable. But the fact she asked that of all things was... interesting. Slymon then actually took notice of the book that she had been reading, which stuck out as being very unique. The books he had found for the most part were of more "modern" build. Hers looked... old and more familiar looking to him. He arched an eyebrow at it but instea picked up one of his, a history book based on the title. "Is there any particular reason you freak out over meeting someone for the first time?" Slymon asked to change the subject as he started reading, but he was still paying attention to her.

'Oh great, a hardcase getting on my case for yelling in the library...'

Lena's thoughts were all over the place, as she looked back at those hard, judging eyes. Still, she felt her words managed to strike a chord. She was good at telling lies. And truths. Uncannily good at it, actually. And she knew, from the reaction she'd gotten, and that intent 'how dare you' stare, that what she heard was a half-truth. Her mind quickly raised through the images of all the people she remembered from school, none of it matched.

"No, I meant... You're a meta of some kind, aren't you? You don't fit the same way others do." - she managed to form her feelings and hunches into a correct set of words. Lena's eyes briefly fell on the set of books he'd been holding. One of them was peculiar. The title was kinda similar to what she had been reading, only more... recent? And printed on better paper. That sealed the deal. Chances were ... the guy was here for the same reason she was. That put the girl at ease, if only for a bit.

"And uh, no... I don't freak out over people meeting me for the first time. I freak out over people trying to touch me, that's all." - the girl huffed, and crossed her arms on her chest.

"Anyway, name's Lena. I don't remember seeing you at school. Have you been registered?"

Despite the DOMA initiative failing a short while ago, registration was still underway. That's how she got into the school. And why detective Barlowe visited her once a week. This guy looked no older than her. Was he the one living 'off the grid'? Curious.

Slymon didn't look from his book but still somehow gave off the impression that he was actually listening, and he was simply multitasking. As he started to lose himself in what he was reading, that overwhelming "intoxication" from earlier sank further and further into the back of his mind- if not for "Lena" speaking, which still seemed to be keeping it alive. A word she said did remind him of the very brief interaction he had with that masked weirdo that brought him here- Meta, or a person with unique powers. This caused him to look up at her again as she continued and introduced herself. "Simon," he gave her a name simply, it was more a moniker but it again was derived from his interaction with that masked weirdo who gave him a different sounding play on the same name. Registered? What?

"As I said, I'm new around here," Slymon repeated himself simply, his eyes drifting down her body shape once before returning to his book. Come to think of it, she must be hot in that thing. "In any case, I try not to make it known what I am- but I am curious as to how you came to that conclusion upon meeting me," Slymon added curiously, and warily. It would not do him good to try blending in if there were more people like this that just somehow... knew he was different. But based on the fact she was calling him a meta, led him to believe that was all the info she got from whatever means she used.

'He doesn't wanna make it obvious huh?'

Lena could understand the sentiment. Back when she first discovered her own 'abilities', the first instinct was to not tell anyone. Even back at school, the very select few knew exactly of what she was truly capable of doing. The rest remained in blissful ignorance, thinking of her just as of a weird girl in a helmet and a suit. Which was fine by her, much better than what things could have been.

Still, she could catch the waves of wariness from the guy.

He did not want to talk much, and he kept looking into his book rather than at her, when talking. The girl could catch the social cues of not being wanted around. And, being a girl, she did not want to be the one pestering a random bloke about stuff. It was supposed to be the other way around! So, Lena decided to stop bothering with this Simon, even if he was was kinda cute, and kinda mysterious. She wrapped her arms around her book and picked it up.

"That's a mystery for me to know, and for you to find out!" - the girl teased, but did not give an answer to his quarry. "Have fun reading your book about vampires and demons and zombies and stuff! See you around Simon!" - the girl said, before making her way away from the guy, and towards the librarian's stand, to ask to save the book for her the next time. The light perfume-like substance the only thing left in her wake, like a subtle call.

But whether one wanted to follow it or not was up to them.

Slymon spent much of his time... well doing this, or mixing stuff together and discovering how the universe worked. Needless to say his social skills were severely lacking to the point he didn't once think what he was doing was rude, or giving off any indication he didn't want her around. It was simply that he wasindifferent to it. If she chose to stay and talk to him that was fine, so long as she didn't do anything too distracting again. But he didn't like it when she didn't answer his question, bringing his up from the book again as she made ready to leave. Well, that wouldn't do... he felt like he needed to know just in case; this was... irritating. These books would still be here, this information may not be- or at least it would be harder to find compared to these books.

So he would get up with an irritated sigh and follow after her. There was that fragrance again, and it made him wonder if she was doing this intentionally. But that was a question for later as he tried to catch up with her and get her attention. "Do you have somewhere you need to be? Or did I offend you?" He asked simply, at least he was partially aware of his lack of social graces.