Time for book hunting! [Cassius]

With the school year at the Zela Academy slowly starting, students were already preparing for the loads of schoolwork to do, and while Nea was the carefree guy, he didn’t want to suck in classes from the beginning of his first day. That would not be awesome at all. Therefore, to the library it was! If he picked up some books beforehand, he could study more easily, right? Yes, that made sense. So, it was time for some action. Mission ‘Picking up books‘ initiate! It was surprising that he was so pumped up over such a simple task, but libraries were generally boring, so he had to liven it up a little. Even if by playing a childish game in his head. Not like anyone had to know about that.

...There was a little catch however. He was going to a library, right? He didn’t think libraries allowed them to bring pets inside, but Tsume refused to be left at home by himself. What a dilemma. Thankfully, he came up with a plausible enough solution. Grabbing a big enough bag, he would have the fox sit inside, and carry him around like that. There, problem solved. With that out of the way, he would make his way to the school library, and start looking around after having a short friendly chat with the librarian. Obviously, he had no idea what was he even seeking, therefore after a few minutes of clueless staring at book titles he would grab a random one and sit at the nearest table available. Making a dissapointed face when he noticed it was a physics related book, he would sigh, flipping through the pages without much interest. Meanwhile, Tsume was getting bored, and started poking his head out of his bag, sniffing around the air curiously. Taking notice of that, Nea would chuckle quietly, letting it be as he didn’t see anyone concerning around. He didn’t want to get bitched at for bringing an animal inside after all. ‘‘You could have stayed at home, couldn’t you now?‘‘, he would mutter lightheartedly, tapping the book against his chin in amusement....

Ah, school. A wonderful place. Too bad that Cassius' had high expectations, since they allowed him to go abroad. The school started a week later after his arrival. Between the start and his arrival he had enough time to explore the area, but he was still far from being completely familiar with everything.

Cassius' strategy was pretty much get good marks at the begining and then be set. That meant that he would have to do some more studying than usual. Sure, the plan had some flaws, but nothing that cannot be fixed on the fly.

The day finally ended. Cassius left the class and headed for the school library. Perhaps he could find some interesting books on topics he barely knew about. Well... It's a school library, so it was actually pretty unlikely. Cassius internally sighed as he entered. The librarian eyed him, curiously, as he passed around. Cassius swiftly reached the bookshelves, but realised he had no idea what he's looking for. /"Well, that wasn't really smart, was it?"/ He facepalmed internally.

Luckily, the books he was looking at were about music and musical theory and such. Glacing over the titles, he picked some about pianos and went to look for a place to sit down. He found a comfortable looking table with chairs. However, he noticed somebody else sitting there, with a book he didn't seem to be particularly interested in it. The somebody else was a young man with dark blue hair.

There was only one more chair, right next to him. Cassius didn't think it would be polite just to slam down without asking. Who knew if he was saving the place for somebody else? Or he just wished to be alone? "Hello. Would you mind if I sat next to you?" He would ask with his accent, holding his books in his arms, which kind of tugged on his dark grey short-sleeved shirt and red tie.

Nea was in the middle of deciding whether to keep reading the book, or just throw it away. Physics were important, sure, but he didn’t understand most of the gibberish written in this particular one. He must have grabbed one for older students, as he didn’t consider himself a bad student. If it was on his level, he was sure he would have understood almost everything. Maybe he shouldn’t have just grabbed the nearest book to his hand. Impulsivity was not the best thing in that kind of situation, as it was had been proved. Before he could make the decision to go and switch his reading material, a voice from his side interrupted him, and Nea would turn his head to glance at the person asking whether they could sit next to him.

He would blink a few times, slightly surprised at the sight. It wasn’t everyday he saw a guy with white hair and red eyes, in such nice clothing too. This guy sure stood out a lot. At least Nea assumed so. Realizing that he should answer, he scratched the back of his head with his free hand awkwardly, before responding. ‘’Yeah, sure, go ahead, I don’t mind the company.’’ Something to keep his mind occupied? Hell yes, he’d take that. That book had been boring anyway, a distraction was extremely welcome at the moment. Though Tsume was attempting that too, tugging at the sleeve of his black uniform jacket with his teeth, wanting to get out and see the owner of the new voice, which he couldn’t from his current position on the other side of his owner. Not to mention the bag he was huddled in. ‘’Hush.’’, the blue haired teen would mutter, setting the book down on the table, to flick against the fox’s nose lightly with said hand. ‘’So, yeah, nice to meet you, I guess.’’, he would say cheerfully afterwards, offering his other hand to the white haired teenager, if he wanted a shake.

The young man seemed a little surprised, but quickly recovered and said he didn't mind Cassius' company. He had to admit that he was glad to hear that. The books were actually somewhat heavy and he longed to put them down. However, the young man interrupted him, in a way. He extended his arm, waiting for Cassius to accept it. Even though he didn't say his name, Cassius couldn't just decline a friendly handshake. He put down his books on the table, slightly clumsily, one almost falling down. They shook their hands as Cassius introduced himself. "Pleasure to meet you. I am Cassius."

After the formalities, Cassius would go around the table, grabbing the books before sitting in the chair next to him. He put his shoulder-bag on the ground, next to his chair. Cassius did notice, however, how the young man was getting... Sort of tugged by someone or something to side. Quite strange, to say the least. Cassius remained silent, but looked at him with a questioning look, while he opened the first book.

Nea would nod happily when Cassius accepted the handshake and introduced himself. Only thereafter realizing he hadn’t given his own name yet. Oops. It totally escaped his mind back then. ‘’Right, my name’s Nea.’’, he would say then, as Cassius gathered his books, even though he was a little late to the party. That sucked, but he honestly just forgot. He had nothing against giving his name. ‘It must be the physics making me lose attention…’ He knew that book would be only trouble, if he didn’t understand it from the start. It may as well have incapacitated a few of his brain cells already.

Not even bothering to pick up the book in question again, he would look back at Cassius, just in time to catch him giving an inquisitive stare. Uh, what? Nea wasn’t really sure what it was about, but Tsume decided to solve it for him. Not finding the tugging fun anymore, he would climb up onto Nea’s lap, staring at Cassius curiously, as his tail wagged happily. The blue haired teen would give the fox a deadpan look, before smiling at Cassius lightly. ‘’Uh, it looks like he wants to say hi.’’, he would chuckle not knowing what to say at the moment.

It seemed like the other young man's name was Nea. Apparently he just sort of forgot to say his own name. It happens sometimes and Cassius didn't mind. However, when Nea saw his somewhat of a stare, he looked a little dumbfounded. That's when he noticed something. That certain something appeared on Nea's lap. Furry, white, looking at Cassius with curiosity in its eyes. He wasn't sure what it was. It looked like a fox, perhaps? There's no way it was a cat or dog, but it seemed quite docile.

Cassius left his book open as he turned to completely face Nea and the furry-thingy. So according to Nea it wanted to say "hi". Cassius was sure that animals weren't really allowed to libraries, in general. He couldn't help but wonder for a second, how he managed to smuggle it in. He knew that he couldn't speak too loudly. Both for being in library and Nea's sake. "Umm, hi, white furball." Cassius would give a little wave towards the furball. He hoped that nobody was in near vicinity to see him talking to an other bloke's crotch. Now that would be wierd.

Nea would smile lightly, seeing that Cassius wasn't bothered by the fox, nor was making a fuss about it. It would have sucked a lot if the white haired guy freaked out when seeing Tsume. Outside, it could be handled in some way, but here in a library that would have been trouble. Tsume would cock his head when Cassius gave him a wave, his ears twitching. Apparently he found the young man interesting. Nea would grin in amusement at Cassius calling his pet a white furball. That was actually kinda cute. Maybe he should remember that as a nickname.

''So, yeah. This is Tsume. He likes being persistent. Don't let him distract you.'', he would mumble, casting a glance at the book the other had been reading a while ago. ''Anyway, what are you reading, if I can ask? I'm pretty sure it's better than what I have. It's never good to just pick a random book even if you don't know what to start with, apparently.'', he would say, to change the awkward topic, in a quiet tone, of course. They were in a library after all. He wouldn't even bother with his own book for the time being, now that he had a distraction to focus on. Maybe Cassius could recommend him something more engaging to start with?

Cassius had yet another name added to his collection of new acquaintances. But this time it was the white furball, whose name he now knew - Tsume. Cassius couldn't help but think that Tsume was really cute. Perhaps he could take a photo of him Nea and Tsume all together for his sister - Krystal? That would be really great, but it had to wait until they're outside the library. Then Nea asked him about the book he was reading. If he had to be honest, Cassius opened it and glaced at it before Tsume got his attention. That was pretty much it.

He replied in equally quiet voice: "Well, this book right here-" Cassius pointed at the open book before him "- is about pianos. The other ones are music and musical theory. You see, I play piano, even though I haven't done that yet even since I came here." He finished his reply. But it was true. Cassius hadn't found time yet to play, nor had he found an actual piano to begin with. These facts instilled a bit of anxiety into his heart. /"Let's hope I can find a piano soon enough, so I don't lose my knowledge."/

After his explanation he would in turn ask Nea: "What are you reading? Or at least were reading."

'Oooh, so cool.' Nea would instantly perk up when Cassius explained what he was reading. Well, not really because of the contents of his book, but rather the fact that the whitehaired teen could play a piano himself. Nea was an animals expert, and knew next to nothing about anything musical related, but that didn't mean it wasn't going to fascinate him. He could picture Cassius behind a piano, and the mental image looked awesome. His hair would even go along with the piano keys. That was another important fact. And Tsume could join the color match too.

''That's really awesome. I've never tried any instrument, but it must be cool to know how to play. I wish I could see ya sometime, that'd be great.'', he'd say, smiling happily. Even if he didn't understand how pianos worked, he could still watch, right? ''Nah, nothing really important. I wanted to try and study something ahead of time, to get good marks from the start. Couldn't pick anything to begin with, so I grabbed a random book. Ended up with physics that are apparently for a higher level, cause I can't understand half of the stuff.'', he would answer when Cassius inquired about his book, a little dejected at his stupid pick. He could gave grabbed something nicer. Guess Lady luck wasn't on his side at that moment. Meanwhile, Tsume would lazily lie around in his lap, wagging his tail from side to side.

Cassius couldn't help but feel a little bit proud, when Nea exclaimed that he'd like to see Cass play the piano. It seemed like he has already gained a fan, without doing anything at all. Then Nea answered his earlier question. Both young men apparently had the same idea about the start of the school year. Quite the coincidence, when Cass thought about it.

Unfortunatelly, Nea seemed to have an unlucky hand today, according to what he had said. Cassius would be severely disappointed if he had such luck. "Perhaps you should try to find a better subject on appropriate level? Or just simply poop on it altogether." He said, rubbing his chin. As he said that, he recalled that Nea mentioned that he had never tried playing a musical instrument before. Cass swiftly took a bit better look at his newfound friend. A moment after he added to what he previously said: "You mentioned you have never tried playing a musical instrument... Maybe you could try Pan's flute. I think it would suit you." He motioned towards the white furball Tsume. "Tsume would enjoy it aswell, I bet."

...Yeah, maybe he should try to find something more appropriate. Though, he did have a bit of a late realization that he didn't even know what that was supposed to be. Nea only came to Azores recently, and it wasn't like he really checked his study plan or anything. Yep, lame alright, but he never learned to think before acting even if it made him mess up every so often. ''Right, maybe...not that I know what exactly should I be studying anyway, so I might just leave it for later...'', he would shrug, a little dissapointed that his awesome plan just epically fell through with the help of a single thought. Meh, he'll still have some time to study up later, at least he hoped so.

Cassius then went on to suggest that he play an instrument himself, some sort of flute. Well, he wasn't exactly sure if he knew which kind it was, with him not being too knowledgeable about music and such, but it did sound cool. ''I'm sure he would.'', Nea would mumble cheerfully as he petted Tsume thoughtfully. ''Can't say if I'll manage to learn though...these things usually aren't easy. But, I'm never against trying. Everything can be done if you wnat to, right?'' Honestly, he didn't think he'd do too well, but that wouldn't make him give up on the idea. Hey, you never knew, and it isn't like you pay for a try...only for the instrument itself. It couldn't be too much though...hopefully. ''Do you know how to play a flute?'', he would ask after a moment of thought. If he was ever to try, it would be better to know someone who could at least teach him basics. And since Cassius knew how to play the piano, maybe he knew something about this too? And he did suggest it after all.

Leave it for later... A really pleasant idea. Cassius was well-aware of the fact that the reason he came to the school library in the first place was to study ahead, but when Nea put it that way... He couldn't help but to agree with him. Cass was glad to hear that his friend wasn't against idea of learning to play an instrument. However, Nea did the right thing and question Cass' ability to play the said flute. Calmly as ever, he replied: "Not exactly. But I do indeed have knowledge of musical theory, which gives me a heads up. I wouldn't mind teaching it to you while learning how to play the flute. If that's alright with you, of course." Cassius gave a slight ned in Nea's direction.

Teaching and sharing his knowledge with somebody else seemed like an interesting idea. However, Cass has never really taught anybody, gave lessons. He learned and studied on his own, but keeping everything to himself. Probably because people aren't quite fond of his straight face and somewhat unnatural formality for a bloke his age. Nea, on the ohter hand, didn't seem to care. So far, at least. Regardless, he quickly decided to continue his thought. "I know a really good store where I got my piano components, scores and stuff like that. I'm not quite sure if they have one here, on these islands, but it never hurts to try finding one, right? Perhaps we could meet up sometime."

Luckily for Cassius, Nea didn't have anything against the idea of searching for the store. /"I really hope that we'll be able to find it."/ Cassius worried a little bit. However, he recalled that he was supposed to go to a nearby grocery store to get something to eat. Well, not really supposed to, but Cass wasn't in the mood to go without a dinner. Cassius nodded at his new friend after his agreement to the plan. "Sure, I'll keep that in mind. You can find me around the school dorm, usually." He then would gather his books and stand up.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I must take my leave. I remembered I have other business to attend to. I need to go shopping for food. I'll see you two around." Cassius would bid his goodbye, grab the rest of his things and leave in order to borrow the books he chose and get something to eat.

[Exit]