Author's Note: Pfft, what is with me writing super sappy stuff lately? I honestly did not mean for it turn out so HIDEOUSLY sappy like this at all I swear. XD But even in spite of that, I hope any potential readers will enjoy it anyway. I'm not very experienced with writing for Autor, so I hope that my characterization of him isn't TOO bad (this is also my first time writing for Pique as well.) Feel free to leave feedback!
Disclaimer: Per usual, the characters in the story don't belong to me. Be glad that they don't.
Autor loved the hushed silence that libraries offered. It was a silence unlike any other, one that made him feel entirely at peace. Save for the few occasions when bothersome dorm room students would ruin it with their incessant chatting. He showed very little, almost nonexistent, tolerance for anyone who interrupted his tranquil concentration but then again, he had never really been very tolerant towards his peers anyways. Rather than socialize, Autor had always preferred to spend his time with his nose buried in a good book.
He cherished libraries not only for the quiet atmosphere but also for the countless rows of books. The annual visits Autor made to the library excited him the way a trip to the candy store excited a young child. There was nothing else that interested him as much as books did. He spent a lot of his childhood with mostly books for company, in fact. They were just…so much easier to relate to than other human beings.
Autor could barely stand communicating with his peers because a vast majority of them were so shallow and feeble-minded. He was perfectly content with just being around books.
Autor didn't friends or a romantic interest or anything absurd like that. As far as he was concerned, books were a far more suitable substitute as companions than people ever could be. But he was far from anti-social, Autor just enjoyed books a lot more that was all. They were just so…compelling, that he couldn't tear his eyes away from them.
He'd even tried writing his own tales a few times but it soon became quite evident that he had no talent for it. Only one of his other fellow classmates, Fakir, had an actual talent for writing which Autor secretly envied him for. But even if Autor did not have any creativity abilities, he had the brains to make up for it.
His interest was geared more towards reading instead of writing anyway. Autor had even taken up the occupation of being the librarian's assistant so he could spend even more time around books. He could even go so far as to say he enjoyed his job even more than books themselves.
But that idea was absolutely ludicrous. Imagine an idea like that, Autor loving something more than books! Just the very thought of this possibility tickled his mirth, threatening to cause him to burst with laughter. He kept quiet though.
Autor would not bring himself to break the peaceful silence of the library, he just didn't do things like that unless it was entirely neccessary. He wished that he could get his peers to understand this mindset but that was just simply a lost cause. Then again developing friendships with these aforementioned peers of his was also a lost cause.
He was absolutely certain he could find no person that he could truly relate to or even talk to on his level of intelligence. Of course, he did not factor in the likelihood that in the group of his feeble-minded peers, that he could simply sift through it until he finally found a sparkling gem that would be incredibly hard to stop gazing at out of sheer awe.
The complex, but dazzling gem that would even manage to tear his attention away from the allure of literature, for he did not consider this idea as he had given up hope on it long ago. Though he did not believe he would ever actually be granted the opportunity to discover it, he did often continue his search for it.
Perhaps there was the tiniest flicker of hope that motivated him to keep searching for it or he was just that desperate to experience the feeling that came along with uncovering such a gem. After all, he had experienced it briefly once before when he had first encountered the elegant Lady Rue.
Sometimes he doubted whether or not how true that feeling for her had really been seeing how it had not lasted very long. As Autor had suggested to her during that moment, the infatuation could have very well easily just stemmed from the story they were in.
He had eventually accepted that, as it seemed after the story ended his brief romantic feelings had ended with it as well. Though the researcher had to admit, now that he had no lovely maiden to fantasize over his life did feel a bit bland. The only thing that successfully rescued him from the cruel grasp of boredom were his books.
His tendencies to distance himself from his peers even seemed to worsen during the slow process of healing from his first unrequited romantic experience. These sort of things were never easy for anyone, but it was harder on Autor since it was difficult for him to find someone he felt he truly connected with in the first place.
Despite the fact he had a lack of talent that was required when venturing in the world of writing, every so often he would take a break from reading to try to write out his brief infatuations he'd harbored for Lady Rue. In hopes that he might be able to discern exactly what it was about her that had captivated him so.
And interestingly enough, it just so happened to be on one of those days when he was fruitlessly continuing his writings on Rue that he saw the dazzling gem he had been waiting for longer than he could remember. At first Autor was convinced that his eyes must've been playing tricks on him, for there was no possible way that THIS girl could be that gem.
She did not at all match up with any of the standards Autor had unanimously decided in his mind with himself and himself that would determine the identity of his precious dazzling gem. In fact he didn't even know her that well, the most he knew about her was that she was often seen getting into crazy antics with those two other friends of hers, Ahiru and Lillie.
He didn't even know her name but even without that, it was hard to miss her with that bright pink hair of hers standing out like a sore thumb. He couldn't fathom why anyone would want to dye their hair that color anyways, it just looked ridiculous on her. He supposed her friends were too kind to consider to openly point this out to her.
'Well, at least that means she has a good sense of judgment to befriend such decent people even if they ARE weird,' Autor thought to himself, knowing that he wouldn't have had enough self control to refrain himself for berating her for it. Strangely, he found that he had struggle with himself to turn his attention away from her to continue his writing.
This proved to be pointless though, as he presence seemed to keep nudging and nudging at him, the desire to observe her, to study her, to analyze her interrupting him from sorting through the right words to equip for the next paragraph of his writing. Autor was baffled that a person who had once been so insignificant in his life was now suddenly so interesting to him.
He couldn't find any answer that could him an explanation on what triggered this new interest. What had changed? What suddenly made him see her in a new, quite perplexing light that simply hadn't been there before? Feelings like this don't just pop up out of nowhere.
But the same thing occurred when you had encountered Rue that day hadn't it? What makes this girl so different that experiencing this thing with her would instantly mark it as implausible? A tantalizing voice in the corner of his questioned him, leaving Autor completely speechless which did not usually happen for a person like him.
Well for one thing, he mentally reasoned with himself, I don't even know this girl's name or anything else about her. We've hardly even crossed paths before, so there. Though Autor felt he had come out victorious in that argument against his inner voice, he did feel that there was something there.
Maybe his obnoxious conscience was actually onto something this time around. Even if the idea of falling in love with someone was a startling possibility that did not make it magically go away. If just disagreeing with unpleasant notions made them go away, then he'd be the only student dwelling in this boarding school.
Besides, he supposed if he did not know anything about this girl then the only way to solve that would be to simply…talk to her. A person can't hope to get to know someone by just staring at them all day without saying anything.
Stalking was a possible way to make this happen but Autor would never subject himself to such lowly behavior. Not only would it not bode well in the end, the researcher had always felt this to be a repulsively barbaric method of learning about people.
So now that he had agreed that the best way to get this done the HONEST way, all he had to do was take the opportunity while he still had it. He merely needed to get up from his safe sanctuary that was his desk and walk over to the aisle of books she was browsing in and TALK to her.
He knew how to walk and he knew how to talk, these were two things that were an essential part of the process of starting a conversation with people. He knew this since he had read about communicating in a book he had studied between lunch breaks.
Now all that he needed next was…communication skills which was something he unfortunately did NOT have. Communicating with others had never really been Autor's best forte and something in the corners of his mind suggested to him in a sneering way that this was probably why it was so difficult for him to make friends on his own.
While Autor had been waging at war with his inner turmoil the girl had apparently sensed the presence of someone nearby, prompting her to turn around to discover who it is. Suddenly the normally confident Autor was startled by the idea of meeting eye contact with the girl, wasting no time flee from her line of view.
Back in his safe refuge at his desk, Autor then found himself to be the one turning around out of curiosity at the loud noise that now echoed through the library. All of his nervous feelings were forgotten at the sight of his beautiful books sprawled across the floor in a messy heap, and before he knew it he was sprinting over to the fiasco without hesitating.
"OUCH, that really smarts!" The girl hisses in pain as he she tries to lift herself up from the floor only to collapse right back onto her knees, positive that she had fractured something from that great fall. She silently cursed at the book she needed for having been on such a high shelf, "Geez, now I know what it's like for Ahiru when she's falling all over herself everyday."
"What's wrong with you! Do you have any idea what a horrible situation this is!" In any other case, it would've been almost comical to see Autor's face in such an exaggeratedly dark shade of red as he fumed over the girl's reckless behavior. The girl in question looks up at him with a grateful smile, assuming he's reacting in such a way over the concern of her well-being.
The girl was at a loss of words for a brief moment, trying to pick out the right thing to say that wouldn't infuriate the boy further. "I-I'm sorry, it's really no big deal. It's probably nothing more than a small bruise, nothing that a trip to the school nurse can't handle," She didn't understand why she was stuttering all of the sudden- normally she was never this nervous.
Autor scoffs distastefully as he realizes that she had assumed such a thing, as if the mere idea disgusted him. "How could you so unbelievably self-centered to immediately only think about yourself? It's people like you that make the world a difficult place to tolerate."
"Huh? What are you talking about?" The girl blinked her lavender eyes in confusion, too taken aback at the moment to be offended by the researcher's insult.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about! In fact, you can SEE it!" Autor gestured around to the disarray of books that had previously been so perfectly organized and stacked together. The girl looks around the mess he's gesturing to with a disinterested gaze. "You can't possibly tell me that you don't see any of the mess YOU made!"
The girl shrugs nonchalantly, seeming to be unaffected by the sight which only frustrates Autor even more. "Well of course I can SEE it, it's not like I'm blind or anything. Besides, it's only a couple of books yet you're making it seem I did something seriously unforgivable, like blowing up the school!" She didn't understand what this guy's deal was but she could tell he seriously needed to get fresh air more often.
"ONLY some books? ONLY. SOME. BOOKS? I can't believe that you're actually SAYING that!" Autor's voice seemed to rise louder and louder when he repeated the first part of his sentence, which hurt the girl's ears. She covered one ear, preparing for him to go off on a tangent about how books should be respected and blah blah blah. She'd heard about his book obsession from other students but she didn't think it was THIS bad. "Books are an integral part of our daily lives! Without them we're no different from our cavemen ancestors! Without we couldn't learn about essential skills that have influenced the advancement of society for centuries! Without-!"
The girl interrupts him with a loud yawn, which was purposefully done in such a way to prevent him from continuing his rant. She crosses her arms with an air of attitude, her patience clearly having worn out. "Are you done yet? You really talk WAY too much you know, you need to do something about that problem."
Autor huffs indignantly, offended by her blatant disrespect for literature and for him. It figures that she would be that sort of superficial type of girl, she probably does nothing but spread mindless gossip and shop for clothes she doesn't need in her spare time; a disappointment really, "Well get up, now we're going to have to reorganize all these books they were before YOU ruined them."
The girl grumbles indignantly at Autor's accusing tone but complies with him anyways. If they didn't clean all this up soon, she'd never be able to find the book she needed for class before it got too late. With this in mind, she hastily began shoving the books back in the shelves without a second thought, "Geez, how many books is one shelf even supposed to fit?"
Autor looked up from the pile of books he was organizing at the sound of her remark, instantly regretting it. He nearly went pale from horror at the sight his eyes were welcomed to. He didn't want to believe that what he was seeing was true, "Wh-what are you doing? You can't just put away the books like that, that's inhumane! Stop that this instant!"
The girl heaves a frustrated sigh at Autor's reaction, setting down the book that was in her hands. This guy was seriously getting on her last nerve with his snotty attitude. It was no wonder other students generally avoided him, "Oh, what am I supposedly doing wrong NOW? I swear there's no pleasing you! It's like you enjoy having something to complain about!"
Autor pulls out a handkerchief from his pocket, scrubbing the book the girl set down as if were now suddenly covered in grime from the few minutes it was on the floor. He's scrubbing the book so hard that the girl's surprised the cover isn't ripping off, "If you understood anything about this job you'd know you can't just stack books anyway you please. They have to be organized alphabetically with the spine of the book facing in the front."
"Tch, I don't have time for all that. I need to get back to the girl's dorm before it starts getting dark. Some people actually have LIVES to keep up with you know," The girl informed him in a harsh tone, her patience clearly having met its end. He must've detected this as he looks up from the book he's cleaning to send her a brief glare.
Then he surprises her with a question, but question itself isn't what surprises her. What surprises her is the tone of his voice when he asks it. He probably wasn't intending it but now he sounded...kinder as if he felt a little bad for acting impatient with her earlier, "Well fine then, what book is it that you need? I can find it for you so it isn't too late when you head back."
"Oh uh, well it's a book about the study of ballet or something like that, I can't remember the title very well. But it describes different types of dancing techniques," The words come out in an awkward rush as she tries to adapt to the lack of tension between them that had previously been there. She'd actually almost gotten used to it, as crazy as that sounds.
"Ah, I believe I know what book you're referring to, it's actually somewhere on this shelf. I'll go fetch it for you," Autor didn't understand why, but somehow he felt a bit calmer near this girl now. He supposed it had something to do with the fact he had a book related mission as he found them to be a source of comfort, but either way he liked this. He didn't want to jynx it.
"No no, you don't really have to do that. I saw it where it fell when I knocked all the books over, so I can get it-!" The girl is suddenly interrupted as they both reach for the same book but that's not what brings her into a silent stupor. No, what does that job is the moment she feels his hand brush against hers as they both grab the same book, looking to each other in surprise as a blush colors their cheeks simultaneously.
Both are at a loss for words as they meet each other's eyes, the silence overwhelming them. Yet somehow…coupled with the sound of their beating hearts, the silence is calming to them. They take their time to savor this sweet moment before they eventually come to their senses.
Neither of them wants to lose this moment. The only thing they want to lose is to lose themselves in each other's eyes. That was certainly what was on Autor's mind.
With all the fighting they were doing, Autor realizes he never really got the chance to look at her eyes. But now that he did, he couldn't seem to tear his gaze away from them. They were just so…beautiful, exactly matching the description of the proverbial sparkling gem he had been previously seeking.
Autor had always inwardly hoped for a moment like this, but now that he got it he didn't know how to react or what to do or what to say. How could he be expected to respond when this girl left him so breathless all of the sudden?
So he solved that problem with an obvious response, one that he realized he forgot to ask when he first saw her.
"U-um, your name? Do you have one? I mean, what's your, uh...name?" Autor mentally berated himself for how foolish he sounded, tripping all over his words as they all frantically scrambled about to find their place. He could only hope she didn't notice the uncharacteristically abundant amount of stuttering in his words.
"Heh, that's right. We never really did get to know each other's names before we started biting each other's heads off," She gave him a pleasant smile that really seemed to bring out a sparkle in her stunningly lavender eyes causing his breath to hitch slightly, "The name's Pique. Don't wear it out."
"Pique, hm?" A rare smile curls up at the corners of Autor's mouth as he repeats her name in his head. Yes, he liked that name, it was a bit peculiar but it suited her somehow, "That's a nice name. You may address me by the name Autor."
Pique rolls her eyes over his overly formal introduction, thinking that he easily gone for something more simple. But she smiles nonetheless, especially when she realizes that he complimented her first name. The two are standing up now as Pique is heading towards the exit, "Thanks. Yours is too. So, thanks for helping me find the book I needed, I don't know if I would've ever found it again if you hadn't."
Autor nods in agreement, still smiling as Pique starts chatting with him right away as if they've been good friends for years. If it hadn't been for the fact Autor'd barely met her, he would've thought she was a good friend of his. She was so straightforward, she didn't let any potential awkwardness of talking to a stranger bother her even slightly. He actually didn't mind it though. Until now that he had met Pique, Autor didn't know that he liked girls that were the straightforward type.
Then again, he also didn't know that he'd ever meet a girl who would willingly chat with him, either. He'd never really gotten the opportunity to just talk with a girl like this. Well that is, to talk with a girl of his own accord, not an interaction planned by a story. Aside from their mixed feelings about literature, Autor discovered they shared quite a few common interests. He didn't think there was anyone in this town that he could ever truly relate to. All his life, Autor thought he would only ever be interested in books.
And for once, he was happy to be proven wrong.
"You know," Pique started as she was about to leave the library, halfway turning around to face him, "Once you let yourself loosen up, you're a pretty nice guy, Autor. We should talk with each other like this again sometime. Meet me tomorrow after school, okay?"
"Yes. That sounds fine to me as well," Autor agreed, when he suddenly remembered that he had some work to do at the library at that time and day. He was about to tell her that just as she left, but reconsidered it. He'd never had to think about something like this before, but he was pretty sure that he could work out the decision. Autor looks out at the direction Pique had left in, then back to the library room.
Eh, the library could be left alone unattended every once in awhile. Right now, he had a treasure hunting mission to accomplish.