[Eliisa and Milayou]
The smell of plastic packaging and floor cleaner wafts through the doorway as Eliisa and Milayou enter the library. Filling the hall, crammed bookshelves stretched from the floor to the ceiling of the library. Some shelves carried a second layer of books in front. Even more books were stored in mechanical stacks in the rear of the library.
“Do you like books, Milayou? I’ve always liked them,” Eliisa comments, looking around in wonder at all the books.
“Mmhm!” Milayou nodded cheerfully. “Reading has been a hobby of mine for a long time. I used to send my favorite books out to my father... when he was away on trips.”
“Same, I always had a special fondness for books. And I wished my family went on more trips.”
“Oh, I see… Hm, what is this?”
The two stopped at a large, solitary bookshelf on top of a grey granite dias. The shelf's acacia frame showed many years of use at the Institute. Its presence in the library was like a warden, standing vigilant against the eventual tide of grubby students.
“This bookshelf looks important. Why is it out here by itself…?”
Eliisa inspects the books carefully, identifying that they were dictionaries, and laughs, “Because our abilities are based on words themselves. What better resource could you have here aside from a dictionary?”
“Ah, that’s true… Why are there so many dictionaries here though…? Are there really that many words?”
Eliisa skims through rows, realizing that the bookshelf was filled with dictionaries, varying in sizes and languages.
“The quantity of words wouldn’t make there be more dictionaries, Milayou. It’s just that there are dictionaries for other languages here.”
“Yeah... that makes sense.” Milayou examined the dictionaries more closely.
Some of these dictionaries in less common languages are still in their packaging wrap…
“Doesn’t really make much sense that they include those, since another requirement for going here was to be able to speak and write in English. Which is the language we’re required to use here,” Eliisa answers while carefully pulling out a dictionary and flipping through it.
Some of these were expected...but others...hmm… Could I teleport then?
Milayou carefully pulls out a dictionary as well.
“Mmh, okay. My word… R… Re-flect.”
Reflect
[ri-flekt]
”To cast back from a surface.”
I… think I did this by accident earlier today. When that boy ripped that monster apart… and the monster’s blood went everywhere... I wonder how he’s doing?
“To give back or show an image of; to mirror.”
Like a mirror… Images… Does that mean that I could make myself look like someone? If I reflected their image back at them?
“To serve to bring or cast on its performer.”
Uhh…. what do I even do with this? I could… make others think about themselves. This doesn’t seem that useful though… especially against things like those monsters.
“To throw or cast back; cause to return or rebound.”
Returning or rebound… Ah, that’s how I was able to remove those monsters earlier! For more dangerous things… I think this could be used like the first definition.
Milayou shook her head dejectedly.
My word… It seems like I can only... react to the things that happen.
Eliisa ponders some more and answers Milayou distractedly, “Not all definitions will be useful or practical. Like for example, change also means small coins. I don’t particularly feel like bombarding people with...What’s the term for it here? Pennies and nickels?”
But this is definitely a very good resource. Hmm… I hate breaking rules but my survival depends on this.
Eliisa holds the dictionary in her hand and pictures it becoming a bracelet. A sterling silver bracelet with a book charm [a book patterned flourish?] falls into her palm and she puts it on.
This should be secure and accessible at the same time.
Looking up from her dictionary, Milayou watches as the dictionary in Eliisa’s hand turn into a small bracelet.
Ah… she’s using her word power again!
“Eliisa, is your word ‘Transform’?”
“Something like that,” replies Eliisa.
“Umm, okay. Can I try something on you? I don’t think it’ll be harmful…”
“Uhh, no thank you. Sounds too risky,” Eliisa declines.
“A-alright… I was thinking… about reflecting your image back at you… Would that still be too risky?”
“Try it on someone else please. I’m not particularly fond of being a guinea pig.”
“Okay…”
Ah, what was I thinking? I guess that really wasn’t fair of me to try something on her… I should be more careful with my word abilities…
Seeing Milayou’s downcast face, Eliisa urges, “I’m sorry about that. I just don’t want anything bad to happen. Why don’t we go eat now though?”
“Mmhm. Okay.” Milayou replied, still faintly distressed.
The smell of plastic packaging and floor cleaner wafts through the doorway as Eliisa and Milayou enter the library. Filling the hall, crammed bookshelves stretched from the floor to the ceiling of the library. Some shelves carried a second layer of books in front. Even more books were stored in mechanical stacks in the rear of the library.
“Do you like books, Milayou? I’ve always liked them,” Eliisa comments, looking around in wonder at all the books.
“Mmhm!” Milayou nodded cheerfully. “Reading has been a hobby of mine for a long time. I used to send my favorite books out to my father... when he was away on trips.”
“Same, I always had a special fondness for books. And I wished my family went on more trips.”
“Oh, I see… Hm, what is this?”
The two stopped at a large, solitary bookshelf on top of a grey granite dias. The shelf's acacia frame showed many years of use at the Institute. Its presence in the library was like a warden, standing vigilant against the eventual tide of grubby students.
“This bookshelf looks important. Why is it out here by itself…?”
Eliisa inspects the books carefully, identifying that they were dictionaries, and laughs, “Because our abilities are based on words themselves. What better resource could you have here aside from a dictionary?”
“Ah, that’s true… Why are there so many dictionaries here though…? Are there really that many words?”
Eliisa skims through rows, realizing that the bookshelf was filled with dictionaries, varying in sizes and languages.
“The quantity of words wouldn’t make there be more dictionaries, Milayou. It’s just that there are dictionaries for other languages here.”
“Yeah... that makes sense.” Milayou examined the dictionaries more closely.
Some of these dictionaries in less common languages are still in their packaging wrap…
“Doesn’t really make much sense that they include those, since another requirement for going here was to be able to speak and write in English. Which is the language we’re required to use here,” Eliisa answers while carefully pulling out a dictionary and flipping through it.
Some of these were expected...but others...hmm… Could I teleport then?
Milayou carefully pulls out a dictionary as well.
“Mmh, okay. My word… R… Re-flect.”
Reflect
[ri-flekt]
”To cast back from a surface.”
I… think I did this by accident earlier today. When that boy ripped that monster apart… and the monster’s blood went everywhere... I wonder how he’s doing?
“To give back or show an image of; to mirror.”
Like a mirror… Images… Does that mean that I could make myself look like someone? If I reflected their image back at them?
“To serve to bring or cast on its performer.”
Uhh…. what do I even do with this? I could… make others think about themselves. This doesn’t seem that useful though… especially against things like those monsters.
“To throw or cast back; cause to return or rebound.”
Returning or rebound… Ah, that’s how I was able to remove those monsters earlier! For more dangerous things… I think this could be used like the first definition.
Milayou shook her head dejectedly.
My word… It seems like I can only... react to the things that happen.
Eliisa ponders some more and answers Milayou distractedly, “Not all definitions will be useful or practical. Like for example, change also means small coins. I don’t particularly feel like bombarding people with...What’s the term for it here? Pennies and nickels?”
But this is definitely a very good resource. Hmm… I hate breaking rules but my survival depends on this.
Eliisa holds the dictionary in her hand and pictures it becoming a bracelet. A sterling silver bracelet with a book charm [a book patterned flourish?] falls into her palm and she puts it on.
This should be secure and accessible at the same time.
Looking up from her dictionary, Milayou watches as the dictionary in Eliisa’s hand turn into a small bracelet.
Ah… she’s using her word power again!
“Eliisa, is your word ‘Transform’?”
“Something like that,” replies Eliisa.
“Umm, okay. Can I try something on you? I don’t think it’ll be harmful…”
“Uhh, no thank you. Sounds too risky,” Eliisa declines.
“A-alright… I was thinking… about reflecting your image back at you… Would that still be too risky?”
“Try it on someone else please. I’m not particularly fond of being a guinea pig.”
“Okay…”
Ah, what was I thinking? I guess that really wasn’t fair of me to try something on her… I should be more careful with my word abilities…
Seeing Milayou’s downcast face, Eliisa urges, “I’m sorry about that. I just don’t want anything bad to happen. Why don’t we go eat now though?”
“Mmhm. Okay.” Milayou replied, still faintly distressed.
