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edenfallingFor ailavyn_siniyash, in response to the prompt: Enchanted Forest Chronicles, Morwen, "NONE OF THIS NONSENSE, PLEASE". It was already past the closing deadline for the ficathon, so I said to heck with both format restrictions and the boundaries of a single fandom. (...Okay, more accurately I was attacked by a ninja plot bunny with massive teeth, but the effect is the same so who cares? *grin*)
The title is the summary. (625 words) [AO3 crosspost]
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In Which the Librarian of the Unseen University Makes an Unexpected Acquaintance
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The short ginger-haired woman in tidy black robes who marched up to the reference and circulation desk with the Dean's ear pinched firmly between finger and thumb cast a swift and appraising look over the Librarian but made no visible reaction to his species. Instead, she pointed her free hand at the oddly damp and lemon-scented wizard in her grasp and said, "This person -- and I use the term loosely -- claims to be a wizard from the Unseen University in Ankh-Morpork. Have Trouble and I backtracked successfully through L-space or do I need to keep searching for his keepers?"
"Ook," the Librarian confirmed, then gestured toward the stacks and inquired, "Ook ook ook?"
"Morwen, from the Enchanted Forest, and I'd appreciate you keeping your other faculty and students out of my personal library," the ginger-haired woman said. "Your kind of wizard may not steal other people's magic, but if this one's any example, I don't have the time or the patience to deal with their nonsense."
"I resent that insinuation," the Dean said faintly. The battered gray tomcat perched on Morwen's shoulders raised a paw -- claws unsheathed -- and hissed at him.
"Ook," the Librarian said sternly. The cat looked abashed for a moment, then began to groom its whiskers with a nonchalant air.
"I'm sorry; Trouble is excellent at magic but his company manners leave something to be desired," Morwen said.
"Ook," the Librarian said graciously. "Ook ook, ook ook ook?"
"I think it was the copy of Lefevre's Discourse on the Reflections of Truth that was the final straw," Morwen said. "I'd never had problems before. Then again, it could simply be the portal between my library and Telemain's; if they count as a single entity now, that should be more than enough books to compress reality."
"Ook?" asked the Librarian.
Morwen shook her head. "No, he's a magician. Listen, I'd love to chat more, but I was in the middle of repainting my garden fence and I need to apply the protective charms before the paint dries completely. I trust you'll deal appropriately with this person?"
"Ook ook. Ook?"
"Aside from the trespassing issue, he was bending the corners of my first-edition Morgenstern," Morwen said. She glared at the Dean over her gold-rimmed glasses.
"Ook," the Librarian said, rising from behind his desk like a three-hundred pound sack of rubbery tendons wrapped in orange hair and implacable wrath. "Ook ook ook ook." The Dean twitched.
"I'll leave you to it, then," Morwen said, releasing the Dean's ear and dusting her hands. The gray tomcat jumped down from her shoulders and sauntered off into the stacks, crooked tail held like a jaunty banner. Morwen followed at a brisk stride, then paused just before the first turn. "My goodness. Is that the Book of Going Forth Around Elevenish? I didn't know there were any extant copies left."
The Librarian paused in his advance upon the Dean, who took the opportunity to flee the library, his boots squelching slightly with each step.*
"Ook?"
"Only fragments quoted in other works," Morwen said. One hand raised slightly, quivering almost involuntarily with the urge to touch the book in question, but she politely refrained.
The Librarian thought for a long moment. Then he said, "Ook."
Morwen smiled without baring her teeth. "Thank you. Will next Tuesday afternoon be convenient?"
"Ook," the Librarian said, and waved a long, rubbery arm as Morwen and the cat disappeared into the quantum folds of L-space. It was always a pleasure to meet a fellow book-lover.
-----
*The Dean's escape was temporary at best. He was later found under the bench of the University organ whimpering about a private concert. Archchancellor Ridcully took one look at the Librarian, still playing a cheerful tune on the less esoteric keyboards, and decided not to ask.
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End of Story
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Particularly attentive readers are requested to ignore the minor problem that the Discworld runs on eight-day weeks anddoesn't have Tuesdays apparently has Tuesdays despite that, given the existence of the Soul Cake Tuesday Duck, whoops. But anyway, shhhh! :-)
ailavyn_siniyash, in response to the prompt: Enchanted Forest Chronicles, Morwen, "NONE OF THIS NONSENSE, PLEASE". It was already past the closing deadline for the ficathon, so I said to heck with both format restrictions and the boundaries of a single fandom. (...Okay, more accurately I was attacked by a ninja plot bunny with massive teeth, but the effect is the same so who cares? *grin*)The title is the summary. (625 words) [AO3 crosspost]
---------------------------------------------
In Which the Librarian of the Unseen University Makes an Unexpected Acquaintance
---------------------------------------------
The short ginger-haired woman in tidy black robes who marched up to the reference and circulation desk with the Dean's ear pinched firmly between finger and thumb cast a swift and appraising look over the Librarian but made no visible reaction to his species. Instead, she pointed her free hand at the oddly damp and lemon-scented wizard in her grasp and said, "This person -- and I use the term loosely -- claims to be a wizard from the Unseen University in Ankh-Morpork. Have Trouble and I backtracked successfully through L-space or do I need to keep searching for his keepers?"
"Ook," the Librarian confirmed, then gestured toward the stacks and inquired, "Ook ook ook?"
"Morwen, from the Enchanted Forest, and I'd appreciate you keeping your other faculty and students out of my personal library," the ginger-haired woman said. "Your kind of wizard may not steal other people's magic, but if this one's any example, I don't have the time or the patience to deal with their nonsense."
"I resent that insinuation," the Dean said faintly. The battered gray tomcat perched on Morwen's shoulders raised a paw -- claws unsheathed -- and hissed at him.
"Ook," the Librarian said sternly. The cat looked abashed for a moment, then began to groom its whiskers with a nonchalant air.
"I'm sorry; Trouble is excellent at magic but his company manners leave something to be desired," Morwen said.
"Ook," the Librarian said graciously. "Ook ook, ook ook ook?"
"I think it was the copy of Lefevre's Discourse on the Reflections of Truth that was the final straw," Morwen said. "I'd never had problems before. Then again, it could simply be the portal between my library and Telemain's; if they count as a single entity now, that should be more than enough books to compress reality."
"Ook?" asked the Librarian.
Morwen shook her head. "No, he's a magician. Listen, I'd love to chat more, but I was in the middle of repainting my garden fence and I need to apply the protective charms before the paint dries completely. I trust you'll deal appropriately with this person?"
"Ook ook. Ook?"
"Aside from the trespassing issue, he was bending the corners of my first-edition Morgenstern," Morwen said. She glared at the Dean over her gold-rimmed glasses.
"Ook," the Librarian said, rising from behind his desk like a three-hundred pound sack of rubbery tendons wrapped in orange hair and implacable wrath. "Ook ook ook ook." The Dean twitched.
"I'll leave you to it, then," Morwen said, releasing the Dean's ear and dusting her hands. The gray tomcat jumped down from her shoulders and sauntered off into the stacks, crooked tail held like a jaunty banner. Morwen followed at a brisk stride, then paused just before the first turn. "My goodness. Is that the Book of Going Forth Around Elevenish? I didn't know there were any extant copies left."
The Librarian paused in his advance upon the Dean, who took the opportunity to flee the library, his boots squelching slightly with each step.*
"Ook?"
"Only fragments quoted in other works," Morwen said. One hand raised slightly, quivering almost involuntarily with the urge to touch the book in question, but she politely refrained.
The Librarian thought for a long moment. Then he said, "Ook."
Morwen smiled without baring her teeth. "Thank you. Will next Tuesday afternoon be convenient?"
"Ook," the Librarian said, and waved a long, rubbery arm as Morwen and the cat disappeared into the quantum folds of L-space. It was always a pleasure to meet a fellow book-lover.
-----
*The Dean's escape was temporary at best. He was later found under the bench of the University organ whimpering about a private concert. Archchancellor Ridcully took one look at the Librarian, still playing a cheerful tune on the less esoteric keyboards, and decided not to ask.
---------------------------------------------
End of Story
---------------------------------------------
Particularly attentive readers are requested to ignore the minor problem that the Discworld runs on eight-day weeks and
