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Post by Kodakai on Mar 15, 2020 3:33:05 GMT -6
It not be a surprise to anyone who knew him that Kodakai's first trip into the city began with buying some books. Silver had loaned him some credits which he promptly brought over to a large bookstore with a variety of topics on display. While it might not be surprising to those who knew him, those who didn't would no doubt be at least a little concerned about a dragon in a book shop. The young woman behind the counter kept looking over at him, but since he hadn't done anything too suspicious, she let him browse in peace, perhaps only because she was afraid to kick him out.
The books about magic drew his attention immediately, but he quickly returned them to the shelf and moved on. As it turned out, humans knew nothing about magic. What a shame. He was actually rather curious to hear about their relationship with it, but he discovered quickly that this was not the place to learn such a thing. Those wishing to enrich humanity's relationship with magic and those wishing to sell a book were two different sets of people, it seemed.
Not to be deterred that easily, Kodakai wandered through the bookstore looking for another topic that caught his eye. People were interested in silly things, he noted. There was entirely too much romance and mountains of books on how to better oneself that were utterly devoid of substance. He wondered if people really were so gullible as to buy an empty promise like that. Apparently so, as more than one had a tag that read 'bestseller'.
While it may seem like a strange choice, he found himself most curious about books intended for children. The way that people told stories for children revealed a lot about their culture. He picked up a few little picture books with cheerful rhyming stories. Rhyming was a novel concept to an outsider like himself. He spoke common, of course, and the idea that some words sounded like others did not escape him, but the way that humans obsessively turned this little facet of language into poetry and even stories meant to entertain children fascinated him. He wanted to own a few such pieces for his collection.
So there he was, a large magical dragon, sitting in the middle of the children's section of a bookstore, having a delightful time flipping through a story book meant for toddlers.
[0.2]
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Post by Nadia on Mar 16, 2020 16:06:46 GMT -6
Nadia found solace in bookstores. As a writer herself, she enjoyed being surrounded by literature - books were trees of a different form, with new stories to tell, and she treasured them as greatly as she did the forests around her home. For her, there was no better cure for a troubled mind. A trip would help her to settle and sleep easier.
Let it never be said that she held prejudice, but she was admittedly surprised to see a draconic enjoying a book in the children's section. The city drew many customers of all different races, but she rarely saw a being such as that; perhaps because many places prohibited them, but also because they were unlikely visitors in the first place. It was distracting her browsing.
Not in a negative way, of course! She was content to be in their presence, but couldn't help peering over. There was something... endearing, about observing their enjoyment of the story. While she thumbed through a few paperbacks, searching for a novel with a less predictable outcome, she allowed herself the occasional glance towards them.
Interested as she was, she was too shy to approach. No one liked to be hassled while they were reading, and especially not by a stranger in public! How would she feel if she had been on the receiving end? So, she kept herself to herself, even though her staring was painfully unsubtle.
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Post by Kodakai on Mar 24, 2020 20:34:23 GMT -6
The quality of these stories varied greatly, he noticed. Some of them were such drivel that he could never imagine reading them to his own children, and others were excellent examples of the common language with delicate prose that was somehow simple enough to understand regardless of literacy level. It was hard to tell which sort they were before picking them up and flipping through them, however. Humans had an idiom for this, of course, but he wasn't familiar with it.
Often books like these covered topics that Kodakai was only passingly familiar with. For example, there was an entire display on books relating to Faelot, which he knew was a celebration of some kind, but did not know the meaning of. Much to his frustration, many of the books were written with the assumption that the reader already knew what popular holidays were. Thankfully, at least one of the books was almost too perfect for his particular ignorance, explaining exactly what the holiday was in easy to understand terms.
Kodakai was quickly bored of the repetitive Faelot stories, so he went back to the ones with the silly cartoon illustrations and catchy rhyme schemes. One book he particularly enjoyed, despite not really knowing a lot of the words in it. He was deeply curious about what they meant, but wasn't sure how to find out. Perhaps he should just ask. He looked around for a person who might be willing to help him and awkwardly stuffed the book into his armpit so he could walk over to her.
"Excuse me," Kodakai said with a formal bow in the young woman's direction. She was the only one not actively avoiding him, so she would have to do. "I would like to request your assistance, if you have the time."
[0.4]
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Post by Nadia on Mar 26, 2020 14:34:19 GMT -6
Nadia had gotten sucked into one novel in particular, though not because it was of good quality. It was a terribly stereotypical romance, complete with complex love triangle and brooding teenagers, and she was relishing in its hideous prose. Most notably, 'all of the sudden'. The sudden? A swell of both revulsion and amusement rose in her chest, and she had to bite her lip to stifle a giggle.
"Call me a snob if you'd like, but goodness me..." She murmured to herself as she slid the book back into its home on the shelf. "I have never seen the like..."
It had crossed her mind to try setting up a book club, of sorts. She wasn't sure how fond of literature the population of the city was, but anything would be better than nothing. Though the thought of having strangers in her home was nigh disgusting. It would have to be in a coffee shop, or at a library, or... hm?
"Oh!" The draconic stranger was taller than she'd thought, and Nadia shifted nervously. He wasn't exactly menacing, but she was anxious at the best of times, and she'd never had a conversation with one of his kind before! "Hello! Certainly, i-if I can help. What can I do for you?"
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Post by Kodakai on Apr 17, 2020 6:40:52 GMT -6
As soon as she spoke, Kodakai considered that he might have misread the situation. She seemed like one of the few people in the book store not actively avoiding him, but she also looked so surprised when he approached. He was admittedly not the best at reading people's emotions, so he was cautious about interacting with others. In the end, he decided to go ahead with his plan to ask her a question, and if it didn't go well, he would excuse himself after. If he didn't at least give it a shot, what was the point of even being here in the city?
Should he introduce himself first? People usually did that, he thought. "My name is Kodakai," he bowed his head slightly, "and I am not familiar with some of the words which appear in this book. I was hoping that you could explain them to me."
How could someone so verbose not be able to read a kid's book? He held the book very delicately so he did not damage it and turned it so she could see the large print. "This one, and this one, in particular," he said, indicating the words with an outstretched claw. It said 'squibble' on one page to complete the rhyme scheme, and the other said 'schmee' next to a drawing of a made up creature. They were clearly words that didn't really exist, but were included to make the prose more entertaining when read aloud.
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Post by Nadia on Jun 4, 2020 22:30:18 GMT -6
Nadia was, admittedly, a little confused when she saw the picture book. Kodakai sounded like a well educated, eloquent individual - what could he be looking at in a simple story that could have warranted asking for advice? Still, she would refrain from judging. Instead, she shuffled a little closer and turned so she could take a look at the words he was pointing out.
Ah. It made sense, once she read them herself. It was difficult not to smile, so she allowed herself to; it was not mockery, but rather amusement and understanding, that coaxed the response out of her.
"These are nonsense words," She explained. "It seems rather paradoxical, a word that means nothing, but... they are used to flavour texts like these, for the benefit of a younger audience. It makes them enjoyable. The silly sounds are fun when you read them aloud to children. Also, it undoubtedly makes it easier to uphold a rhyme scheme, when you can invent a new term!"
Having the opportunity to talk about a topic she was passionate about suited her. She was instantly more forthcoming than she had initially been, and spoke earnestly, unafraid to be conversational.
"I would wager that this little creature here is a 'schmee'. It is an interesting sound, isn't it?"
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