quest for knowledge

Saul Stormbringer · 11-15-2010, 06:33 AM

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ooc;; 12.11.10

Saul Stormbringer

Saul had heard of Dalhousie University from a few places, but up until this moment he had not thought to go and find out exactly what it was. He didn't know what a "University" was, let alone what it was for and why if was still standing. He had met the dog hyprid Liliana just two days ago and the buzz was just wearing off from his mind. It had been an exciting meeting and had fueled Saul's need for knowledge, academic and vocational. The word university sounded smart, so the young male had set off early that morning. He had bathed and began his run in Dahlia de Mai. It hadnt taken him long to reach the neutral lands. He recognised these lands straight away from his previous visit here. He wondered briefly if the coyote Aquila was still here. He had been a strange creature, but amiable enough. Maybe Saul would find him and try to teach him some more english. A smile crept over the young male's muzzle at the thought of the coyote and his broken english. Shaking a soft head, Saul moved forward through the lands, green eyes searching for the green building described to him.

It really didnt take long for Saul to find the building. It was huge, with a load of other buildings clustered around it. He stood in front of the building, neck craning to see the sky over the top. Another smile crept over his muzzle as he walked forward, head still faced upward as though he was trying to keep ever detail of this huge structure in his mind. It was easy for Saul to slip into the building, the doors had long since been left open and one was just slightly ajar. He slipped quielty through and was assaulted by the grandeur of the inside. He tried hard not to get distracted and padded through the halls with his head to the floor. He would look at the walls and ceilings later- he was searching. He'd been told of things known as books and Saul was curious as to what these were. He had been told that he would find these books in a room called a 'library' of which Saul was equally curious. All these names and such were confusing the poor boy, but he was determined in his mission.

He pushed his nose into each door he came to, glancing around before exciting again. He had been given a brief description of what a book looked like, and nothing so far had fitted that description. It wasnt until he pushed open the massive double doors at the end of this corridor untl his searching was rewarded. Although plants had tried to inflitrate the room it was still magnificent and wonderous to him. Shelves lined the walls and created ailes throughout the whole room, some with full rows of books and others with the odd cover laying on its side. It was obvious that others took from the library without giving them back, but there was still thousands of books here. He ran forward, shifting easily into his optime form from one step to the next. Although he wasn't entirely comfortable with this form yet, he would have to use it. He picked up a book, sniffing if gently before settling on the floor and opening it somewhere in the middle. Now to learn to read!

word count;; 569

"speech"

Skye Collins · 11-15-2010, 09:24 PM

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ooc: yay!!

Skye loved being in the library - it was nice, it was comfortable, and warmer than the chilly outside that was now bearing winter's mark. And best of all, it had thousands and thousands of books! Skye thought she would be able to live here if there wasn't that mysterious cat that always seemed to slink around and made her slightly nervous.

Of course, she never took books from the library and kept them - to her, it was de rigueur that she didn't, as the books should be open to everyone and all people. She smiled as she scanned the bookshelves, but then froze when she saw a familiar face.

"Hi, Saul!" she exclaimed, happily rushing to the pup who was now in Optime form like herself. Last time she'd met Saul, he'd been in his Lupus form - but that didn't hide the scent and face she knew was his. "What are you doing here? Decided to check out a book?" She chuckled at her own little joke - she didn't know what checking out a book really meant, but she'd read about it in books with libraries in them, and it sounded like a smart thing to say.

She looked at the book he had chosen - to her, it was upside down, so she couldn't read what the title was, and the spine was on the ground. Still, she was sure that it was a good book to read if Saul had picked it out. She wondered why he was in the middle - perhaps he'd read it before, and wanted to check up on one part? Or maybe he had begun to read it but was interrupted, and left the book here. She grinned at him, glad that there was someone else who had an affinity for books like she did.

Saul Stormbringer · 11-17-2010, 03:24 PM

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ooc;; pretty table sunny <3

Saul Stormbringer

Green eyes looked at the squiggles and lines on the page and his brain could make no sense of them. There was no way he could look at these lines as words and he wondered if he would ever get the hang of this reading thing. He couldnt even begin to imagine what writing would be like, trying to hold an impliment in his hands. He had only just learnt the true fine motor skills of picking things up with his hands, making sure his claws didnt randomly shoot out without his say so, being delicate with objects that needed to be held carefully. He understood that a book, and any book he handled, must be held delicately. There would be no more books if they were destroyed- even Saul who knew nothing of humans understood that there was no way to make another book, let alone know what to put it in. But no matter how hard he tried he couldnt get the squiggles and lines to make sense.

Movement from behind him made him stiff, but he remained on the floor. Saul was a peaceful creature and he had no reason to be afraid in this fortress like building. He didnt think that a creature with malicious intent would come to a library to cause their harm. Green eyes looked up in surprise as his name was called out and he recognised the light tones to belong to Skye, whom he had met a while ago. He glanced around, catching the pale optime form of the wolf who had been so excited about creating her pack. Saul had heard about the new neighboring pack that practically sat on Dahlia's doorstep. He liked the idea that this new pack was close to them- if Skye was part of it he could see her whenever he felt like it. He allowed a stunning smile to break out on his lips and it seemed to propel him further than his age allowed. Although he would be eight months in a few days, that smile was something older than himself.

"Skye! Its great to see you! How are you?"

He exclaimed, placing the upside-down book on the floor and standing. He felt like he should have hugged her or shaken her hand or something, but then he realised that they had only met once before and that meeting had been rather awkward. Instead, he rested his right hand on his left elbow and allowed his head to twist to the side. Floppy brunette hair shifted over his eyes and he flicked it away impatiently. She carried on speaking and although Saul didnt understand the saying she came out with, he understood her intent and purpose. He nodded softly, head inclining towards the book he had left on the floor. He didnt know what he was doing and a wave of embarrassment washed over him.

"I.. uh.. I was trying to learn to read actually... I'm afraid I'm doing a bad job of it!"

He admitted with a soft chuckle. He returned to the floor, picking the book up and gazing at the squiggles with increased frustration. Maybe Skye could help him, but the young adolescent was too proud to ask for her help. Instead, he tried to figure it out on his own, but to no avail.

word count;; 555

"speech"

Skye Collins · 11-21-2010, 01:29 PM

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ooc: thanks! : D

"Skye! Its great to see you! How are you?"

Skye grinned, glad that Saul had put their strange and awkward last meeting behind him and wasn't angry at her or not happy to see her. "I'm doing great! Hufflepuff - my new pack! - is also thriving!" she exclaimed, very proud of her little pack. It was small, true, but also growing, and she was very proud of it. Saul in his Optime form had floppy brunette hair, not unlike Skye's own dark auburn hair, and he nodded towards the upside-down book on the ground.

"I.. uh.. I was trying to learn to read actually... I'm afraid I'm doing a bad job of it!"

Then, seemingly embarrassed, Saul went back to trying to decipher the squiggles on the page. Skye smiled and knelt down by Saul. "Don't worry!" she exclaimed. "I can help you learn to read if you like." It seemed that she was giving lots of reading lessons in Hogwarts, and was happy because of it. If she could help one person learn to read and unlock the wonders and mysteries of books, she was a happy wolf. Besides, it was easy to teach how to read - it seemed that since the humans died out of the virus, that same virus helped Luperci have the same intelligence as humans - and the same capacity to do what they did. Reading was just one of the great things humans could do.

Skye glanced down at the book - it seemed rather thick, and the words looked small and squished together. It seemed that this was a harder book, and those weren't very good for learning to read. However, she waited for a reply from Saul - she didn't want to launch into teaching him if he didn't want her help. Besides, if she taught with a book that large, she was sure to bamboozle the poor wolf. Instead, she just breathed in deeply, loving the smell of old, worn pages and the letters that came with them.

Saul Stormbringer · 11-21-2010, 04:56 PM

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ooc;; pretty table sunny <3

Saul Stormbringer

As he settled back down to read, it seemed a wave of frustration and helplessness had settled in the young mas stomach. His eyes were looking at the page and his brain could just about understand that they were words on the page, but there was no way on earth that he was understanding what any of these words were. He had only just grasped most of the spoken words in his every day use, let alone learning to read all of the too. His stomach flipped at the enormity of this task and not for the first time in the last ten minutes the thought of giving up and not even trying to learn washed over him. But Skye had whispered seductively to his question on her wellbeing and he smiled softly at her reply.

"I'm glad everything went well for you Skye! Maybe I'll come over and see you some time... you're not too far from home!"

He said with a grin. It was true that C.ercatori was very close to Dahlia, just across Ethereal Eclipse that the two had met first time. Maybe he would come across the land and see his pale esteemed colleague when they parted again today. He set the book down once more, it was giving him a small headache to look at the words once more. However, her sweet voice invaded him once more and he looked up with a small amount of shock in his eyes. She would teach him? A small spark of hope ignited in his chest and he gave a large grin towards the slightly older female. She wasnt all that much older than he was he knew, but it appeared she had mastered reading as well as becoming a leader of a pack. She was truely someone to aspire to. He allowed a nod to drag his head up and down before he cleared his throat.

"Thank you so much Skye... I would be lost without you right now..."

He admitted with a sheepish grin on his face. He shuffled over as if to make room for her, despite the fact that they had the whole floor and a few chairs to chose from if she really were to teach him to read. He waited for her to join him before opening the book once more, green eyes shining softly once again.

word count;; 396

"speech"

Skye Collins · 12-10-2010, 10:00 PM

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ooc: sorry for the wait!! also, i have no idea what this book should be... xD

Skye smiled in reference to Saul's mention of the closeness of her own pack and his. It was true that they weren't too far away at all; in fact, they were only about forty-five minute's away from each other, on foot. She was sure she'd be able to travel quite fast between the two packs on horseback. It would be easy to teach Saul to read under those conditions.

"Thank you so much Skye... I would be lost without you right now..."

Skye grinned and scooted next to Saul to look at the book he was trying to read. It seemed very difficult; the words were tiny and scrunched together as well as faded and torn in some parts. She shook her head. "This book isn't a very good one to start to learn to read," she said, taking it in her hands and shelving it. She scanned the books until she found a thinner one and took it out. It had a picture of a horse on it with a human on the front. Shrugging and knowing that there were plenty of books like this, she opened it up.

"This seems like a good place to start," she said, and began to read, pointing out the letters and words to Saul and explaining the concept of written language.

Saul Stormbringer · 12-12-2010, 09:24 AM

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ooc;; maybe a childrens book?

Saul Stormbringer

He watched as she came and sat next to him as he had indicated for her to do so. She was bigger than him, but not by much. It was obvious that he was going to be big when he was fully grown and he knew that that day was not far away. Still, her ears were taller than his and he remained smaller than her. Ears caught the words as she took the book from his hands and quickly returned it to the shelf. He had picked the wrong book, it appeared. A small smile graced his lips as she brought another book down from the shelf. This one seemed a lot simpler and easier to read, even if he didnt know what it was saying.

She began to teach him the alphabet, making sure he knew what each letter looked like before moving on to the next. He was a quick learner and after a few times around those he had pretty much nailed the alphabet. It was easier, he found, if he put a little rhyme to the letters and within no time at all he was singing along in his head, repeating the letters over and over until he could also do them backwards. He repeated them aloud to Skye, making sure everything was okay with her before he turned to the book.

"Okay... so what does the 'th' sound make?"

He asked, trying to figure out how to say 'the'. Or at least read it. A small smile had begun to etch itself on his face. It was clearly evident that he loved learning and reading was another endevour he was determined to conquer. Waiting for Skye's answer, Saul tried to figure out how to say it in his mind, but it just wouldnt fit. He would have to wait for instructions from the pale woman.

word count;; 311

"speech"

Skye Collins · 12-23-2010, 12:00 PM

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im sorry, im such an awful poster Dx Dx Dx

"Okay... so what does the 'th' sound make?" came the inquiry from Skye's newest student. Saul was a quick and able learner, and she was glad he wanted to know how to read. She saw that he was pointing to the 'the' on the page, and she smiled. "Some words together like that make new sounds. T and H together make 'th'; followed by the 'e', it makes the word 'the'." he was sure he would get it, like he always did on his first try.

Reading English had been hard for Skye to learn; it had taken her much longer than some others she'd taught, but in the end, it was definitely worth it. Reading was one of the greatest joys in Skye's life, other than gardening and being part of Cercatori d'Arte. And what was good about this was that you could get whatever knowledge you wanted; the humans had plenty of ways they survived through the seasons, evolving to encompass their world, and the Luperci could take that knowledge and use it. After all, her parents had learned about farming and gardening through books, which helped them.

I know; right now you "Don't care".

Saul Stormbringer · 12-30-2010, 09:04 AM

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ooc;; maybe a childrens book?

Saul Stormbringer

Cinnamon backed ears perked forward as she began to explain what the t and h made together. Once she said the word it was easier to see where his mistake hade come from- he had read each letter consecutively and had not taken into account the whole word when trying to pronounce it. He glanced back at the 'ch' that he had seen earlier, trying to apply what she had told him about the 'th' sound. In a round about manner Saul managed to make out what the word was- 'church'. A smile escaped him as he triumphed over the sound. Though he felt very much like a little child right now he was glad he was learning. Glancing back up to the pale woman he nodded.

"Thank you Skye"

He murmered before carrying on with the rest of the book. It took him a while and every now and then he would look up from reading aloud and ask Skye how a certain word was pronounced. She was a good teacher and made sure she explained everything fully so that he would understand before allowing him to continue. Before long he had masted the 'st' sound the 'sch' sound and many more. Though he was not a pro at reading by the time he closed the book he was certainly better adept at making his way around one. Green eyes sparkled softly as he looked up at the pale female.

"Where did you learn to read Skye?"

He asked, curiosity piqued now. He was sure that when he had children of his own he would start early with teaching them how to read. It was obviously a good life skill and he imagined it would be easier to teach smaller ones with more pliable minds than it was to teach an older person, as Skye was doing.

word count;; 308

"speech"

Skye Collins · 01-01-2011, 10:38 AM

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wc: 284

"You're welcome," Skye said, grinning at Saul. He was a very good student, learning these things in a short amount of time, and he even got the 'ch' of 'church' right, right after she had told him about the uses of 't' and 'h' put together. He had the right mind for reading, so it was easier at the end of the day for him to say that it would be a lot easier knowing what a book was about and being able to read and perhaps gleam knowledge from the yellowed but valuable pages.

Suddenly, the question came - where did Skye learn to read? "Well," she said, "I wasn't born into my pack, as I think you know." Of course he did - he had met her when she was a loner! She laughed and moved on. "I was born in a cabin with my parents, in the Halcyon mountains. They were very smart; my mother and father both knew how to read, and taught me." She looked at the book in Saul's hands, remembering the days when her father or mother would pull out a nursery rhyme book, maybe, or a fairy tale, and sit Skye down on one of their laps and begin to read with her. Skye would trace over the words with her finger, trying to sound them out, exploring the world of the written language and trying to follow the words her parents were saying. It took a long time for Skye to get the hang of it, but she did, and she always loved passing on the skill to others, as it brought back those memories and helped someone else discover the wonders of reading.

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Saul Stormbringer · 01-03-2011, 11:09 AM

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ooc;; <333

Saul Stormbringer

She accepted his thanks and the young man smiled. He remembered the first time he'd met her and the laugh that had offended him so much. It didnt offend him now because he knew she was not laughing at him. There was a gentleness about Skye that Saul liked a lot and he could feel that she was a calm spirit about her that he could relate with. Saul was not a boy with a wide range of emotions and preferred to stick to just a few- excitement, happiness, calm reservedness and sometimes a hint of sadness. He almost never got angry but frustration sometimes showed in those green depths. He imagined he and Skye were similar in this- he didnt imagine she would get angry or mad very easily. She was a peaceful and calm soul and it appealed to Saul's better nature.

Cinnamon ears cupped forward to catch her words and he smiled softly. She had stated the obvious that she had not been born in the pack she was now in, but Saul didnt feel as though he needed to correct her. She gave a soft laugh and he gave a chuckle back, green eyes catching her own. She spoke of her mother and father in the Halycon mountains and a confused expression crossed his face. So they were close, but they weren't here. Saul wondered if she visited them often, whether she saw her parents now that she was part of a pack that appealed to her nature once more.

Saul wished that his parents were as close to home as hers were. Of course, it was impossible for him to be close to his mother- she was dead. But his father had the choice to be near his four children and he chose not to. It was disheartening to know that his father had no real ties to anything other than his children and he chose to stay away. A scowl threatened to pout his lips but he curved his lips up instead to a smile. He didnt want to be in a bad mood and thinking about his father was beginning to get him down.

"It must be nice to have them close. Do you visit them often?"

He asked, aware they were moving away from reading and into more personal issues. Still, she could refuse to reply if she wanted to.

word count;; 398

"speech"

Skye Collins · 01-08-2011, 01:07 PM

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cha cha cha!

After Skye told her relatively short tale, she watched as Saul's face morphed into confusion, then what seemed to be...sadness? She wasn't sure; Skye was bad at reading faces. But she could tell that Saul was sad for some reason - perhaps his parents had died, or weren't with him anymore. She wanted to comfort him, but she also didn't want to intrude on his private life or bring up any bad memories that he may not want to share. Instead, she listened as he asked a question.

"Well, not really," she said. "It's a long journey, and the pack is so fragile..I don't want to be gone if someone needs me. But I will some time," she said, amending her lack of visiting with her parents. Saul was right - she should visit. If her suspicions were right, and Saul's parents were inaccesable, she should be grateful for hers. And she was. They had made her everything she was today.

"Do you have family nearby?" she asked gently. It didn't include his parents, necessarily, but the question she asked was open for aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, cousins, and any other family member she could think of. She didn't want to intrude on Saul's private life, and if he didn't want to answer, she wouldn't pry. Skye was a more private person like that; she didn't like asking personal questions if the person wasn't very close, but the conversation was slowly going that way, and she didn't want to avoid any questions if Saul did want to talk about these things.

wc: 279

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