The United Kingdom Library of Wizarding History & Literature
In Somerset, England, there is a very old and very famous cathedral, which is home to a very old and very famous library. Less famous, however, is the second library housed on the grounds, deep below the lower levels. Built simultaneously with Wells Library, the United Kingdom Library of Wizarding History and Literature (as it was dubbed in the early 20th century) can only be accessed via the floo network, thanks to a special fireplace enchanted to be invisible to muggles, and hidden rather out of sight besides. There is a small pot of floo powder on the fireplace's mantel, which magical folk may use to whisk themselves down into the magical library.
Like the Wells library above, it houses a large chained collection of books that cannot be removed from the premises. They are, in fact, cursed, so that should one successfully break the chains holding the books, they shall remain rooted in the spot until a library attendant releases them (and replaces the book). However, there is also a large lending library, and the pages most books can be duplicated with a Gemino charm (though the books as a whole cannot be, and any book that contains information on dark magic cannot be duplicated. The library has windows which are enchanted to mimic the view outside the windows of the upper library. It is quite easy to get lost in the library, so it's always recommended that you pay attention to where you're going. Magic is not permitted within the library, except in the form of enchanted note-taking quills.
The library is always in search of librarians and other help, in the form of both employees and volunteers. If you are interested in working for the library, please apply at this thread.
Josh had to stop himself from sighing once again at the teen in front of him. She had to be barely old enough to have graduated from Hogwarts based on her appearance and the fact that school was still in session. It had started off as a rather normal conversation, just some small talk since he was working but now she was walking around the library with him as he was tidying up and making sure everything was in order. Needless to say it was getting rather irritating, especially with the incessant flirty lines that the young woman kept shoehorning into her words. The man thanked whatever deity was out there that he had a wonderful customer service smile "That sounds like a fun party. You'll have to invite me next time, 白痴" Idiot, is what he called her. But of course, she didn't know that. She thought he was saying some cute Chinese term of endearment. It was actually pretty comedic. At least to Joshua it was.
"I really do have to be getting back to work though, I mean..." He trailed off mid sentence as he noticed his boss Anthony walking past "What if my boss sees that I am slacking off?" He questioned, purposely raising his voice to get Anthony's attention. Getting in trouble would be better than listening to this girl any longer.
┏━━━━━━━━━━━━┓ 「OOC」 Here ya go, hope this is alright ┗━━━━━━━━━━━━┛
ANTHONY CLYDE JACOBSON The Librarian 📖📖📖 It was a fairly lazy day at the Library. After a customary sweep around, Anthony figured he had best be back to the interminable task of writing metadata for each book. He picked up a book that had been left by a windowsill--It looked like a Quidditch book by the cover, and a quick flip revealed a bunch of Quidditch terms, but it was marked under novels. Interesting. He was on his way to shelve it when some animated discussion floated over, punctuated by something in another language.
Bai chi... Now that was a familiar set of unfamiliar words. He backtracked a step, intending on a normal shushing and recognized his own employee's voice continue, this time with a raised voice.
In any case, he walked over on silent feet and loomed over the pair. "Slacking off?" he asked quietly. It would hardly do to chastise his own employee about a raised voice in front of patrons. Instead, he settled for a stern look at Joshua that was more for the young girl than the boy himself. Silently, Anthony handed the book in hand to Joshua to shelve appropriately. Perfect. Young people were likely much more interested in Quidditch than he was anyways. He turned to the young patron that Joshua seemed eager enough to get away from--eager enough to raise his voice anyways. "May I help you? 🔖🔖🔖 setting Library || with Joshua and a young lass || status Ah, an extraction is needed.
//OOC: Let me know if you'd rather I edit somewhere? Also didn't know if you'd be down with me puppeteering the NPC so left her in your ballpark for now XD Not going to lie I was cracking up at the 白痴 comment >_<"""
┏━━━━━━━━━━━━┓ 「Location」 Work 「Company」 Anthony and Alyssa 「Mood」 Annoyed ┗━━━━━━━━━━━━┛
Joshua quickly stifled the crooked grin that was attempting to make it's way onto his face. He wasn't usually one to take help from others but he wasn't in the mood to say something and get fired so might as well go for the lesser of the two evils. Swiftly and with practiced ease, Joshua put on a rather guilty face as he took the book. "Sorry boss man. Alison and I were just talking a bit. Didn't think we would get so carried away."
The young woman glanced up at him with a pout. "It's Alyssa." He knew that, he just wanted to make sure she knew how little he cared without being too malicious. "You shouldn't get on to Joshy, we weren't doing anything bad. But I can always come back when he gets off! When do you get off Joshy?" She beamed, turning her gaze from where it had been resting on Anthony, turning back to Joshua. The male had to hold back a groan as he pushed his best smile on his face, she obviously wasn't getting the message. Time for a little more...cut-throat maneuvers. "Never. I work all hours."
┏━━━━━━━━━━━━┓ 「OOC」 biggrin I am glad you liked the comment, i thought it was hilarious. And you can control her if you'd like. Sorry this took so long x.x ┗━━━━━━━━━━━━┛
ANTHONY CLYDE JACOBSON The Librarian 📖📖📖 Joshy pfft Anthony was quite fine with the entire exchange until she asked Joshua when his shift ended and was rejected in reply. He really would rather not be witness to this. Fortunately, he was saved from having to say anything at all by Alyssa's tenacious optimism.
"You're a real joker, Joshy," she replied, the initial confusion on her face lightening up into a bright smile as she misinterpreted his answer. "I'll be back when the library closes then,"
"Very good, but I believe Joshua has duties to see to before closing," Anthony stepped in before this conversation could be derailed further. He turned the poor rejected girl away, allowing Joshua an opportunity to escape if Alyssa indeed didn't excuse herself. "Now, is there something the library can help with you?"
🔖🔖🔖 setting Library || with Joshua and poor little Alyssa || status Ah, an extraction is needed.
//OOC: Sorry, sorry!! for the delay I've been feeling super lethargic since the break started >.<" Also was stuck on how to respond >.<" Hopefully this gives enough for you to work off though? Sorrrrryyyy
📖🔖ANTHONYCLYDEJACOBSON 80 years || Hufflepuff Alumnus Head Librarian United Kingdom Library of Wizarding History & Literature _______________
Even after 50 years, Anthony still felt the same rush of appreciation for the serenity and beauty of a quiet afternoon at the library. Patrons were reading quietly around the halls, there was a small group of students getting an early start on OWLs studying, and a few families reading in another corner. Anthony had a guest coming at 14:00 to give a second opinion on a translation he’d been working on. But for the next few hours, he was free to wander the halls, picking up stray books and helping out any lost souls.
Lost souls, perhaps like the young man he found wandering dreamily down a shelf in jeans and a comfy looking tee. ”Good afternoon,” he intoned gently, not wanting to startle the child if they were just enjoying the atmosphere of the books, but also not wanting to leave a patron alone if they were lost--literally or metaphorically. ”Is there something in particular the library can help you with? Or are you just enjoying the ambiance?”
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settingWizarding Library, Summer 2053 || with A young patron wearing collared shirt and cardigan || status enjoying life _______________ //OOC: For Cici! Let me know if I should correct anything or if I can frame it differently
xx✯Wʜᴇʀᴇ ᴀᴍ I?UK Library of Wizarding History & Literature xxx✯Wʜᴏ ɪs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍᴇ?A nice librarian xxxx✯Wʜᴀᴛ's ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴏɴ?Book searching xxxxx✯Wʜᴀᴛ'ʀᴇ ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs?I wonder if I am even in the right area...
Cicero had spent the day doing up a bit of shopping, and now he was at the library. Lee had been talking about a time paradoxical... thingy, and Cici figured he ought to know more. "Where could you be..." he mumbled to himself as he searched the shelves. This was probably the right section and it would make Lee so proud! Then again, Lee seemed super proud of Cici regardless, even despite the boy's lack of knowledge on what he wanted to do beyond school.
As he pulled one of the books off the shelf to examine further, a polite voice chimed up nearby. Cici turned to look at a very nice seeming man, who asked if there were something he could help find. "Good afternoon to you as well, Sir. I am just looking at books on time paradoxes. My brother works for the Time Chamber studying astronomical connections upon time... fluxuations. I think. Something like that. Would you happen to know a book on the topic? I would really like to learn more, since it is quite important to him." He offered a smile, then straightened his glasses, wondering if the man would have any solid ideas on where to look.
📖🔖ANTHONYCLYDEJACOBSON 80 years || Hufflepuff Alumnus Head Librarian United Kingdom Library of Wizarding History & Literature _______________
Anthony smiled at the young man’s polite tone and interesting subject matter. ”Time paradoxes and astronomical connections, you say? Fascinating. My son works in the Time Chamber as well. Something about human development and perception of time was all he could tell me with the secrecy and all.”
Anthony’s smile grew fond and wistful talking about his son. Cohen was nearly 50, but to Anthony, Cohen was still the little 6 year old that had run around the library, asking why books couldn’t just read themselves and why big words like “theology” and “religion study” were words that worked (“I guess big people need big words. Because big words are too big to fit in a little kid’s brain. But if adults used smaller words, then they would realize kids were too smart, and kids would take over the world.”) Now Cohen was the one working in secret government research, throwing words like “metacognition” around over casual dinner conversation.
”Ah, but time paradoxes. You've definitely found the right section. What level text are you looking for? And...let’s see. I presume you were a Hogwarts student? How did you do with Astronomy? And how comfortable are you with physics?” Anthony pulled a notepad and self-inking quill from his pocket, scribbling a few names down as he took in the young man's answer.
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settingWizarding Library, Summer 2053 || with A young patron wearing collared shirt and cardigan || status enjoying life _______________ //OOC: ----
xx✯Wʜᴇʀᴇ ᴀᴍ I?UK Library of Wizarding History & Literature xxx✯Wʜᴏ ɪs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍᴇ?A nice librarian xxxx✯Wʜᴀᴛ's ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴏɴ?Book searching xxxxx✯Wʜᴀᴛ'ʀᴇ ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs?I wonder if I am even in the right area...
Cici nodded a bit at the man's words, glad he seemed to understand. Apparently his son also worked in the Time Chamber doing something for human development and time perception. Whatever that meant, Cici was just sure he would never be able to hack it in the chambers. "That certainly sounds... interesting. And well above my knowledge on the subject. I am doing alright in Astronomy, but not nearly as well as my big brother did." The man had a nice smile, one that seemed comforting and nostalgic... maybe. Either way, it was nice.
After asking about the books, the man mentioned that he had found the right part of the library. He asked about levels, then said he was probably a former Hogwarts student. Did that mean Cici looked older than he was? If so, that was pretty cool. "I am still a student, actually. This year will be my seventh. I did well at Astronomy, though I think part of that was because my brother helped me study. As for physics... I cannot say I know much about it. I never really took lessons on it, beyond what may have been taught in school." He shrugged, wondering if it would help. He really just wanted to be able to talk to Lee about his passion, and actually understand what he was talking about.
📖🔖ANTHONYCLYDEJACOBSON 80 years || Hufflepuff Alumnus Head Librarian United Kingdom Library of Wizarding History & Literature _______________
Anthony nodded, taking silent note of the young man--younger than he’d guessed at first-- and the admittance that whatever happened in the Time Chamber was about his knowledge. Anthony often felt the same way about the Department of Mysteries, and he had once worked with them! Ah, but he had been in the library so very long, surrounded by more information than a single person could hope to read.
The old librarian readily plucked A Brief History of Time off a shelf: ”Understood. Time studies features in muggle physics literature, which may be a fine place to start. Consider this--Hawking wrote it for people with no prior knowledge of physics. All you need is an open mind, but that tends to be true of most books. And...” He bent down to look for another text.
“Hyperspace. Michio Kaku has a funny and easy to read style that I quite appreciate and personally recommend. It is...oh, 60 or so years old now, so it might not be the most up to date, but it’s not a bad start. More currently, Arine Yasunari from Mahoutokoro recently wrote a book called Embracing Eternity that’s actually on my desk now. We’ll have it out on shelves in a few days, but you can pick it up at Flourish and Blotts if you’re interested. Be forewarned, Yasunari tends to get quite technical in her writing though and dives into theoretical potions or something of the sort. A name to consider though.”
Speaking of names, Anthony handed over the books along with the note page with names like “Albert Einstein”, “Oskar Klein”, “Stephen Hawking”, “Michio Kaku”, “Arine Yasunari”, “Delia Chance”.
”Other authors to consider, oldest to more contemporary. If you’re more of a fiction person, there are some science fiction that draws on principles of time theories and may help you visualize how the principles interact. Of course, neither of us really knows if these will actually be the work that your brother is referencing and considering in his own work. But it should at least help give you something for conversation. Finally, I'd recommend The Sky in Seven Years as one of the more painless NEWT study guides. ”
Anthony nodded once, always pleased to be talking about books. These would hopefully help the young patron connect to his brother. ”And what of yourself? Is there something we can find for what you would like to pursue after graduation?”
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settingWizarding Library, Summer 2053 || with A young patron wearing collared shirt and cardigan || status enjoying life _______________ //OOC: //gives myself a bonus point for the Mass Effect reference and innuendo.
xx✯Wʜᴇʀᴇ ᴀᴍ I?UK Library of Wizarding History & Literature xxx✯Wʜᴏ ɪs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍᴇ?A nice librarian xxxx✯Wʜᴀᴛ's ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴏɴ?Book searching xxxxx✯Wʜᴀᴛ'ʀᴇ ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs?I wonder if I am even in the right area...
Cici looked over at the man as he pulled out a book from the shelf. The blonde accepted it, noticing the name sounded familiar. Hawking. Lee had definitely mentioned Hawking. This book would go in the check out for sure pile. "I remember Hawking. I mean... not personally, but I remember my brother talking about him. Him and... um... some other guy, I think. Sorry, I am not the best at this stuff." A slight blush tinged his cheeks, turning the normally pale skin pink.
The man mentioned a few other authors, none of whom sounded... quite right. Sure, Lee would probably know them all. Cici always felt his brother was the smarter of the two. "Those all sound quite interesting. I don't think I could do much about technical writing, but if Mr Hawking wrote this for people just learning... I can give it a chance." He grinned brightly, pausing to listen as the man continued, this time about fiction based writing.
"Okay. I will take this one, and The Sky in Seven Years, since I have my NEWTs coming up this year. Maybe it will help out too." A nod, seemingly of finality. He made a mental list to ask Lee about some of the other authors mentioned, since surely it would brighten his brother's day. Lee loved explaining things, anyway. And sure, it took him a while sometimes, but if people just stopped to listen, well... it helped.
The next question was one Cici hadn't been expecting. What did he want to do upon graduation? There were so many options, but nothing felt right. "I... I do not really know. There are all kinds of options, but so far... I have not really found my path. Maybe I will soon, though." He shrugged a bit, dropping his gaze to the floor. Most of the people he knew had had their careers picked out forever now, and he had fallen behind. Then again, he really didn't have many people to talk to, which made it a lot harder. Maybe, just maybe, he'd figure out a plan before graduation.
xx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔢 𝔞𝔪 𝓘?UK Library of Wizarding History and Literature xxx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔬'𝔰 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔪𝔢?Anthony, from a distance xxxx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔞𝔱'𝔰 𝔤𝔬𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔬𝔫?Providing a Translation xxxxx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔪𝑦 𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔲𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔰?I need to get out more...
Zavier was spending more time working, now that Gus had moved out. It was still weird that the boy was all grown up and out on his own. Moreso that Zavi had converted Gus' old bedroom into his, finally moving off the couch in the cramped living room. After having been issued a mission my the Head Librarian at the UK Library of Wizarding History and Literature, Zavi spent several hours converting old runes into English. His small, square handwriting littered the page with notes, explanations on certain runes that didn't have an exact translation.
Wandering the library for a few minutes, Zavi found the man talking to a kid, maybe 16 or so. He offered a small wave to the man, though he stood back a bit, not wanting to interrupt what appeared to be a riveting conversation. Honestly, Zavi wished he'd be pulled into a conversation for more than a minute or two, and about something other than a random translation. Maybe he just needed to get out and try to make some grown up friends. He'd dedicated so much of his adult life to caring for his son that he'd never really bothered... but now that he only saw Gus once a week or so... well... it got lonely.
❦❧ROBINNOVAWINCHESTER 9 years || Homeschooled || pureblood ”You will need to rebuild” _______________
Per the usual routine when xe were home, Robin was spending the afternoon with xer grandfather at the library. Xe had spent the morning doing writing and grammar exercises in different languages, clearing out when a group of teenagers took over the table nearby to study. Xe had retired to a bean bag to read a biography of xer great-grandfather for the last three hours, but honestly half of the book went over xer head. Finally, xe got up. Grandpa Anthony wasn’t in his office, so Robin padded along the shelves, justifying the break by saying xe needed sunshine and a stretch. Maybe xe could go home early and help with dinner.
Finally, just when Robin was about to give up and return to reading until Grandpa Anthony returned to his office, xe found the old librarian talking to a young person-- around Wren’s age maybe? Behind them was someone that seemed to be waiting for grandpa. ”Good afternoon,” xe greeted at library volume. Xe...weren’t really the best at this, but since Grandpa seemed to be deep in conversation, xe wanted to help out. Xe repeated the words xe heard so very often: Is there something the library can help you with?”
It took a moment before Robin realized the person wasn’t waiting for a librarian, but for the Head Librarian in particular. Oh! The translation appointment! ”OH! You’re Mr. Moore, aren’t you? Sorry about that. I’m Robin.”
Xe listened in, not quite sure when or how to interrupt. Luckily it didn’t take long for Anthony to acknowledge them.
”No need to apologize,” Anthony had reassured the young man. He nodded approvingly when the man decided on the two books to start. ”Excellent.”
Anthony was about to propose talking more in his office when he noticed Zavier arrive. Anthony returned the wave with a raised hand and nod. Not a moment later, his grandchild showed up and whispered a greeting. ”You don’t always need to know the path to walk it,” he mentioned cryptically in regards to the young patron's downtrodden expression when asked about his own plans.
Before there was much time to ponder or even question the cryptic message, Anthony waved Robin over. ”Robin, can you show this young gentleman where the study shelves are? We are looking for The Sky in Seven Years under the Astronomy NEWT study guides. I’ll leave you here. Ah. But if an old man may offer some reassurance: There is no too-late in life, and I hope you will find it is never too late to change to another path of life.”
With that, Robin took xer cue. Robin nodded, gesturing for the blonde to follow xem. They were just out of earshot of the two friends catching up when xe spoke up quietly. ”Um. Hello. I’m Robin….I know my grandpa has a funny way of helping. I...don’t get it all the time. But...is there anything I can do to help you figure out...whatever you want to figure out?” xe looked up at the taller person earnestly. ”I know I’m just a kid. But I can listen?”
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settingLibrary, Summer 2053 || with Grandpa Anthongy, Mr. Moore, ....a person. appearance 4’1” spindly || wearingflower shirt and jeans status Can I help? _______________ //OOC: ---
Cinnabun Gryffie
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Now I'll try, I just want time Wait again, I will be much better then Holding on, I said: “I will be much better, then” ❧❦ ~"Look at the Sky” by Porter Robinson.
Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2022 3:19 am
ʚĭɞ🏛FIANAARLINBYRNES 41 years || Cultural Heritage (MA, MPhil) alumna || muggle Shop Assistant at Synister Studios _______________
While her children were at Hogwarts, Fiana had been doing some studying as well. The week after Torin and Skyla had taken their first year finals, Fiana had finally sat and passed the Wizards’ Ordinary Magic and Basic Aptitude Test– Well. Grade 1 of 3 of the WOMBAT anyways. There were two more. But given she’d been working at a wizarding art shop and continuing her secretarial work for her husband’s company, Fiana was taking that as a win.
Today, despite being summer vacation, was a rare day off. Usually she’d be spending it with Torin and Skyla. But this weekend Aldis and the kids were off at a gaming convention–and since he conveniently only had 3 tickets…they had argued about that as well.
Fiana sighed as she walked out of the wizarding library’s floo and dropped her books off in the return. She went immediately to the study guides section to grab the text she had been studying from, but found it missing-–someone else must have had it then. So instead, Fiana wandered the shelves, stopping every so often to pick something out and skim through it. If it looked about her level, she’d set it in her arm and continue along.
Before long she had built up a decent stack and found a table to camp out at. Fiana set the books down and tapped the table space to get the man sitting across from her’s attention. ”Excuse me sir, would you mind watching these for me for a bit?”
Fiana couldn’t help but notice abruptly that the text lying open in front of him wasn’t written in any script she had ever seen. There were pages of parchment around, some kind of strange runic text, ”Pardon my curiosity, what…language is that?”
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settingWizarding Library, Summer 2055 || with Someone appearance 5’5” well built || wearing Comfy button top and jeans status Study mode _______________ //OOC: //yeets belatedly but we can make it work! XDXD
Cinnabun Gryffie
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There's a grace in the depths of self-destruction I had to face before I held you in my arms All the demons I have taken just to shelter you from harm I'd do it all again for you my pearl 🏛ʚĭɞ "Pearl" by SOBI
xx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔢 𝔞𝔪 𝓘?Wizarding & History Library xxx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔬'𝔰 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔪𝔢?Runes, Notes, and... a Stranger? xxxx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔞𝔱'𝔰 𝔤𝔬𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔬𝔫?Work Distractions xxxxx⤑ 𝔚𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔪𝑦 𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔲𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔰?This is a refreshing change
Zavier was at the library again, as he was wont to be on a warm summer afternoon. His little Gus was all grown up, so they couldn't exactly just hang out at home anymore. Maybe he'd go get some italian food for lunch... He grabbed a few books for reference, plus the heavy runic tome he was in the midst of translating. Luckily, he knew the library staff pretty well, so he never felt like he fit out. Going to his usual table, Zavi set up, using his reference books to prop up the runic tome. So much for "reference". Grabbing out his book of notes, Zavi set to work, slowly and methodically translating the page.
For a while, the library was pretty quite (heh), but he did notice a woman walking around, amassing an ever larger collection of books. She sat them down at the end of the table he was at, then tapped at the table. Zavi looked up, eyebrows lifted slightly in surprise. She asked if he'd watch them, her books, for a bit. How long was a bit? Was she getting more? There were at least ten books there, and they weren't exactly light reading. Maybe she was a speed reader? Maybe she was a vampire and her super trait thing was absorbing the words through osmosis... He then realized he'd never actually responded. After clearing his throat, Zavi spoke up. "Uh, yea. That... that's fine. I'll watch them for you." He nodded once, then turned back to his own work.
It wasn't but a second later, he realized she hadn't moved. She spoke up once more, asking in which language the tome was written. "Oh, it's an ancient runic language. I translate these old books. It's... my job. I just... translate a bunch of old books. But, I have quite a few dead languages learned, which isn't exactly super helpful for daily life." He chuckled softly, lifting the book to show the woman the old symbols. It wasn't something he did often - let someone see his old books - but she seemed... nice.
