[prp] Between the Lines (Dawson & Zac)

[medigel]

It hadn't occurred to him before, and he wondered if it was really an option, but why not, right? He'd just been introduced to a world where magic was as tangible as a cheeseburger—albeit far less wanted. So Dawson decided maybe booking it to the library wasn't such a bad idea anymore. If the town had always been this crazy, maybe it had been documented some?

Either that, or he'd run into some fictional How To guide that, at the very least, would entertain him for an hour.

It helped that libraries were Safe Places. Air conditioned, open to the public, access to water and a bathroom, quiet...For someone in Dawson's position, it was practically an oasis in an otherwise still unfamiliar city.

"Uh, hi, uh—" The woman he spoke to blinked at the sudden onslaught of an accent. "—hey, I was wonderin' if ya got any books here on, uh...werewolves...? For my kid's project," he added quickly.

endejester

hope this is okay!

 

[endejester]

The nature of the request caught his interest, he’d been searching a book cart for one of the books he needed for a class project. He’d just laid his hand on it, more than luck honestly… and also spotted a second that would be marvelous for an additional reference when he heard the word ‘werewolf’.

He heard the woman start typing into her computer to see what was in the system and decided, why not, and interrupted. Maybe… maybe he could learn if they’d actually experienced the ‘moonwalkers’ – or if it was really for a kid.

“Hey… Um, I can take him to some good ones, that way you can finish your shelving and checking in.” He gave a flash of a smile pure innocence with his hands stuffed into the oversized yellow coat.

“Um… Hi, Zac, if you’re up for it.” He offered his hand.

Did he know this man? He wasn’t sure… so much had happened that familiar didn’t always mean familiar.

medigel

/quote]

 

[medigel]

"Uh." He took Zac's hand and shook without thinking, it was how he was raised. "Dawson. Yeah, uh, so I'm jus' tryna find some stuff on werewolf lore, or somethin'," he explained. "She got curious after the, uh...thing at the school."

Which Daisy shouldn't have known about, but such was the news.

"Fam heard I got stuck with some nut cases there. Makes her feel better f'she can read about weird things." And then, more awkwardly, "She likes dogs."

endejester

playing catch up sorry!!

 

[endejester]

“Oh, um, yeah, yeah…” He said half confirming that yes, this person had been stuck with the ‘Crazy people’ during the events at Blackfriars.

“Yeah, I was um, stuck there too.” He added “Were wolf stuff, right?” He turned to glance sidelong at Dawson.
“And… were-things.” He added almost, but not entirely casually.”
“I’m sure I can help find you something or someone with good information.”

medigel

me culpa! Looks like I borked the quote!

 

[medigel]

"Yeah," he said quickly, hushed, relieved, "yeah. That." (Not crazy himself. Just stuck with crazies. Cool.) "Anything about the weirdness'd be good. I don' even know where t'start."

He was not the type to really...visit the library. Not even back when he had been in school.

endejester

all good u~

 

[endejester]

Zac hesitated, should he risk it, or should he not? He wasn’t sure if this person was a dreamer, or not, though they had said… were wolves.

“What um, what floor did you end up on? I know people were trapped on a few.” He offered, and he did lead the way, legitimately towards the books on were wolves.

“I mean, maybe I can… I don’t know. Answer some questions?”

quote="medigel"]  

[medigel]

"Uh, first," he answered as he followed. "Ground zero, whatever ya wanna call it. I was helpin' out injured peeps while the others did some shouting matches with the popo."

Truly he had learned the healing power of pads that day.

"Met one of 'em weres there too. Uh. Wheelchair...Eve, I think?" Dawson wasn't sure if this guy might somehow know her. Who knew in this town.

endejester

 

[endejester]

"The... Popo?" Zac said arching his eyebrows somewhere between amused and shaking his head at the term.

"Ah, yeah, I ended up down there on the first floor and uh..." He blinked before slowly nodding.
"Yeah, Eve, I know her....she has a nice little shop."

medigel

 

[medigel]

"'Mazin' t'me how big this place is n' erryone still knows one another," Dawson observed with a small smile. "So you was a student there? Or you like me, jus' the wrong place at the wrong time?"

endejester

 

[endejester]

“Yeah, I’m a student there but I was also helping out at the Job fair.” He shook his head.
“I guess you could say both, but I’m pretty terrible about self preservation when I get …ah…curious, when I try and be helpful.”

medigel

 

[medigel]

"Aw, buddy," and here a cultural faux pas might have been made, as Dawson reached out to touch Zac's shoulder, "you saw the sh--tuff out there, yeah? Ain' no good reason t'be throwin' yerself out like bait. Gotta be more careful these days."

endejester

sorry for the requotes im not sure if my system is working...

 

[endejester]

"Rationally I promise I know that i shouldn't... but when it comes down to... me or my friends I can't help that choice." He gave a small shrug with an awkward smile.

medigel

wark! sorry!

 

[medigel]

Dawson grunted in sympathy. Later, he would know exactly what lengths that urge would go to.

"You'd know better than me, then." He let go of Zac's shoulder. "About what m'lookin' for anyway. Anythin' like town black magic or somethin' folksy makin' weres pop up here? Or what 'Other Ashdown' is? 'Cause I heard someone say that too back at Blackfriars..."

endejester

its okay I think I had the name spelled wrong in the quotes all this time ;;

 

[endejester]

"I, don't really know about black magic, I mean, I think that comes down to intent. But um... Other Ashdown is, well it's like the town but, it used to always rain there, it might be doing that again I'm not sure." He frowned thoughtful.

"It's also, mostly empty, all the food tastes like sawdust which is odd. There are um, creatures there too."

medigel

 

[medigel]

"Euch." The noise was involuntary; Dawson's previous walk through the place hadn't been pleasant. "Is it like a dream-slash-nightmare version?" he asked. "Or a different dimension? I think I got caught out there once with a friend, found some weird a** jelly things...But I wasn' lookin' fer it, I was just tryna grocery shop."

endejester