Ashland: Cover Story
Aug. 28th, 2013 10:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
measured_wordsA fic I did as part of a character background for the highschool horror game I'm playing in now :) Written and posted first at fan-flashworks.
Challege: Not What It Looks Like
Title: Cover Story
Fandom: Highschool Horror (Game)
Rating: G
Length: 542
Notes: For an RPG fandom, of sorts >.>
Summary: That book wasn't really supposed to be for sale...
Cover Story
Rowan smiled at the teenage girl who'd come up to the counter, but nearly did a double take when she pulled Spiva's Natural Philosophy and the Unknown Realms out of her basket, along with some used CDs. Carefully, she picked the book up, as if examining it for a price tag.
"It was in with the paperbacks," the girl provided. "So it should just be a buck."
In fact, the book was leather-bound tome from 1913 – the first English translation of one of the premiere works on the worlds of the spirits, though it was considered to be somewhat dated. Rowan knew this, as she'd place the book on the shelf the morning before.
"That's some interesting reading material," she said, giving the book her best dubious look. "You don't believe that junk do you?"
The girl shrugged, setting her jaw stubbornly. "What's it to you?"
Rowan shrugged in return, flipping through the pages. She was sure she'd remembered to put on the warding spell that was meant to keep casual browsers from paying the book much attention. The energy was still palpable, at least. Rowan didn't think she'd done the spell wrong – other people had been browsing the section earlier and had passed it by – but the magic didn't always work well against the strong-willed. "Sometimes people snap up old-looking books to try and re-sell them. I don't know what this one would be worth, though – it's all stained."
"Well, I'm not selling it."
Drat. That would have made it easier. Still it might be worth a shot. "Oh, well, that's a shame. I know a guy up in Medford who collects this kind of junk, he'd probably have given you something decent for it." In fact, the book had been left there for the collector in question to pick up, as part of an informal circulation system. Usually, the minor warding spells were enough to keep away mundanes, and other occultists respected the need for a neutral way of exchanging information and reference texts.
The girl blinked, and for a moment Rowan thought she might be tempted. "Wait, you get a lot of books like this through here?"
Rowan forced a laugh, hoping she sounded casual. Everyone knew the risks that came with the system, but she wasn't looking forward to explaining to Mr. Vance why his book had gone missing, or to Mrs. Andrews why it wasn't waiting for her when she came by. "We get a lot of random everything through here eventually. You never know." Grudgingly, she rang up the book along with the cds – the name on the card the girl forked over was Lilith Court, and Rowan filed that away in case she needed to remember it later. "I'm guessing you’re a collector yourself then?"
Lilith narrowed her eyes, suspicious again. "So?"
"So, nothing – I'll just have to tell my friend he's got a little competition." Rowan grinned as Lilith picked up her bag. She would do that, and try and be more careful in the future. "Have a nice day!" She would also try and keep an eye out to see if Lilith came back – she was young, and if her interest in the occult was serious, she was going to need some guidance...
Challege: Not What It Looks Like
Title: Cover Story
Fandom: Highschool Horror (Game)
Rating: G
Length: 542
Notes: For an RPG fandom, of sorts >.>
Summary: That book wasn't really supposed to be for sale...
Cover Story
Rowan smiled at the teenage girl who'd come up to the counter, but nearly did a double take when she pulled Spiva's Natural Philosophy and the Unknown Realms out of her basket, along with some used CDs. Carefully, she picked the book up, as if examining it for a price tag.
"It was in with the paperbacks," the girl provided. "So it should just be a buck."
In fact, the book was leather-bound tome from 1913 – the first English translation of one of the premiere works on the worlds of the spirits, though it was considered to be somewhat dated. Rowan knew this, as she'd place the book on the shelf the morning before.
"That's some interesting reading material," she said, giving the book her best dubious look. "You don't believe that junk do you?"
The girl shrugged, setting her jaw stubbornly. "What's it to you?"
Rowan shrugged in return, flipping through the pages. She was sure she'd remembered to put on the warding spell that was meant to keep casual browsers from paying the book much attention. The energy was still palpable, at least. Rowan didn't think she'd done the spell wrong – other people had been browsing the section earlier and had passed it by – but the magic didn't always work well against the strong-willed. "Sometimes people snap up old-looking books to try and re-sell them. I don't know what this one would be worth, though – it's all stained."
"Well, I'm not selling it."
Drat. That would have made it easier. Still it might be worth a shot. "Oh, well, that's a shame. I know a guy up in Medford who collects this kind of junk, he'd probably have given you something decent for it." In fact, the book had been left there for the collector in question to pick up, as part of an informal circulation system. Usually, the minor warding spells were enough to keep away mundanes, and other occultists respected the need for a neutral way of exchanging information and reference texts.
The girl blinked, and for a moment Rowan thought she might be tempted. "Wait, you get a lot of books like this through here?"
Rowan forced a laugh, hoping she sounded casual. Everyone knew the risks that came with the system, but she wasn't looking forward to explaining to Mr. Vance why his book had gone missing, or to Mrs. Andrews why it wasn't waiting for her when she came by. "We get a lot of random everything through here eventually. You never know." Grudgingly, she rang up the book along with the cds – the name on the card the girl forked over was Lilith Court, and Rowan filed that away in case she needed to remember it later. "I'm guessing you’re a collector yourself then?"
Lilith narrowed her eyes, suspicious again. "So?"
"So, nothing – I'll just have to tell my friend he's got a little competition." Rowan grinned as Lilith picked up her bag. She would do that, and try and be more careful in the future. "Have a nice day!" She would also try and keep an eye out to see if Lilith came back – she was young, and if her interest in the occult was serious, she was going to need some guidance...
