Huni had just opened the shop but she wasn't all up to mingling with the customers. Before she headed upstairs, the red head paid a visit to the Study and browsed through the first Tome.
She had noticed a table of content had appeared on the second page. The names of the customers who had entered the Study were written alongside the name of the children they were responsible for. Somehow, Huni sensed the list was only going to grow.
With a sigh, she closed the Tome and locked the Study door. This time adding a padlock for precaution. She sure as heck wasn't going to give the Study an easy time.
Arrikanez meandered into the place, casting his eyes about here and there. It was raining buckets outside, and he - for one - wasn't about to be caught in it. He knew this place, and who ran it. Very well, actually. Knew her in a first-name basis. But the main point was that it was warm - and dry. He sighed, and scanned about for some sort of seat, and spotted a couch, flopping on it after making sure that there was no-one there to object. It was just too much to take. The rain - his depression - getting fired - the rain.... Yes, that deserved to be said twice.
The door to the stationary shop swung open and closed again as Chao entered, a shoulder bag slung across one side and Aido leaning against the opposite hip from her place in her hip bag.
Making a beeline for her customary chair she unhitched Aido, practicly threw off her shoulder bag and crumpled into the chair, her umbrella dropping onto the floor. She didn't even seem to notice Arri sitting in the other chair.
Aido lent against her mother's stomach, bi-colored eyes only half open and hazily surveying the shop. It'd been a rough night and a far too early day for the duo.
"Hey there," Huni greeted, a little somberly. The rain and other events had brought the usually cheerful woman's spirits down. "Make yourselves at home, I've got to see to Linny." she excused herself and headed upstairs.
Once Huni's footsteps faded into silence, the Study door began to tremble on its hinges. A soft, incessant pounding could be heard from behind the door...
"Guess what, Huni? .... I got fired. Again. For the fourth time this month. I think I should just give up. Don't you?"
He sighed, and fiddled with a mechanical pencil he'd plucked from one of the shelves, chewing on it a bit.
"It's raining, it's cold, I'm depressed, and everything's gone South. This month's just turned out WONDERFUL."
"I'm sorry to hear that..." a voice whispered, it was old and tired, and it was coming from the Study. Oddly enough, no one else but Arri would be able to hear it above the pounding.
Arri perked a little, and sat up, looking up the stairs. That wasn't Huni's voice as far as he knew. And what was that pounding. He glanced over towards the Study door, and started to head over to it. He KNEW he shouldn't be going towards that door. The Study was off-limits... but still. He glanced up at the stairs again, before sighing, and walking over to stand about two feet away from the Study door. It sounded like there was something in there.
"Hmmm... This is odd. Should I tell Huni?"
He shook his head, and turned to walk back to the couch, but didn't get one step - something compelled him. He had to find out what that noise was. Ok - just a peek. Just a peek, and he'd tell Huni. He turned again, and walked forward, hand on the knob of the Study door.
"Leeneee..." Aido murmered unhappily, reaching after Huni, she wanted to see her friend....
Chao pat her daughter's head gently, "he'll be here soon love..."
The banging at the study dully caught her attention, she cocked her head at it, was there another child in there?
She glanced over at Arri, her eyes following as he stood and headed for the study. Had it 'picked' him...?
The padlock on the door simply rusted off, as if it had aged a century in the span of a minute. The pounding instantly silenced and upon Arri's touch, the knob turned, seemingly by itself.
Arri hesitated for a moment. That was a little too eerie to just let go unnoticed. But something was pulling him in - making him take the step forward. Alright - just a peek. It was worth it to find out what all that banging was about - then he'd tell Huni, and all would be well. He hadn't been here before - but he knew of the stationary shop. Huni'd never mentioned anything about THIS before... the Study. Just that it was off limits. He gently shoved the door open, and poked his head in - cautiously, as if he were afraid that his head was going to be slammed in the door.
The door opened wider, as if the Study was trying to swallow Arri into its confines. The Tome atop the writing table waited patiently for its latest...
Author to approach.
Arri moved as one in a trance, stepping into the Study as if he had never feared it in the first place. There was an open book that he could see. It looked... ancient - worn. But despite that, it called to him - beckoning him closer. He approached the table and the blank pages of the book, wide-eyed as a child whose first Christmas is right before his eyes. Spellbound, commanded, compelled - Not entirely sure if he was in charge of his own actions, his eyes locked on the blank Tome.
The door creaked to a close, keeping unwanted eyes from spying on the events that were to unfold inside. Blank the Tome had been, but it was blank no more as words began to form upon the page.
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Why do you wait?</center>
An old fountain pen conveniently rolled out from the Tome and stopped just beside an inkwell.
Arri didn't know why, and he didn't know when the answer came to him. He just... it was like something beyond his control was moving his hand to the pen. He paused a moment, and watched the letters on the page - his mind turning over and over the thoughts in his mind - What the heck was he doing this for? Answering a book? It was rediculous!... Or was it? He paused for a moment more, and scribed in neat, clear handwriting below the question.
<center>Because he told me he would come for me...</center>
The sound of dripping could be heard, and it wouldn't take long for one to realize one was in ankle-deep water. But that was not the worst part, the water was rising...
Higher and higher, until it covered the writing table, reaching almost a person's neck, before it quickly receded. The water drained away into nothing, leaving the Study as dry as it was earlier.
But the sound of dripping continued, this time the source was an infant whose brown hair was sopping wet. Small beads of water continued to drip down onto the writing table. In one hand he clutched a lantern, in the other a surprisingly dry Tome.
With forlorn eyes he looked at Arri.
Arri just stared for a moment, then reached down to scoop the child into his arms. He didn't know what had just happened - but somehow, he knew that this child was his - and that he had chosen Arri - not the other way around. He said nothing, simply held him, as the boy whispered his name into Arri's ear, like the cold, soft breath of a dying wind. Arri held him closer after that, and walked out of the study with the child in his arms, silent as ever, never going to let go.
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