Scene #9341: Illegally Binding Contract

Owner	Pose
Audrey Basque	Audrey inadvertantly tore space around her tower and now it's in six places all at once. She was TRYING to move it, got distracted talking about camper vans, gambling and racing, messed it up and-- then spent a part of the night, and morning, trying to fix it. This did not work, or at least it did not work satisfyingly so far, and the tower is still looking like a mess. Physically it's fine! It's definitely, ABSOLUTELY, occupying a single, continuous region of space, which you can observe using SOME techniques as still in fact being a continuous region of space. Like, on paper. For sure. Don't worry about it. So, she needs a break. So badly. Come back to it refreshed after a day or two. This means Library time! Though, she'd already spent more time than usual at the Library, owing to her brief summer break. Even slept there a night or two! And for once, it had nothing to do with Petra. Okay it had something to do with Petra but not like that at all, so it's okay. Don't worry about this, either. Going up the stairs, rather than taking the elevator, sees Audrey doing her usual round of hellos on her way to General Works, uniform worn clean, hair down rather than drilled up for a change, and not a single bruise or band-aid to be seen, which is definitely novel these days. She even checks on Netzach, for once, rather than presume he is asleep (he is probably asleep). And on Binah! That one's much more daring, but since she's pristine and unbruised, there's no risk of her private life being pried into. Once she's done her round of the Sephirah, she drops by Roland too, unless he's the one to drop in on her again. And then... that leaves Angela! Is she in her own little square of the Library? Doing a full round from bottom to top is a good way to find her, usually.
Angela	Angela is always happy when Audrey and/or Petra visit because it means her lonesome life trapped in a tower becomes less mind numbingly dull. Admittedly, Roland's presence makes it considerably less so as he is also a New Person and he is always present and he seems to get something out of needling her a little which she doesn't like but she does like that he feels the level of comfort to try it. But how exactly does she see him? Is she his ... man owner, as White suggested? Is she going to have to deal with waves of Fixers invading soon? She has a lot on her mind. So naturally when Audrey arrives and it seems like Audrey is intent on visiting General Wroks, Angela makes her way down to visit her down there. In the meantime, heading up to General Works can mean meeting much of the other Sephirah. Hod, Malkuth, Netzach, Tiphereth, Yesod (when'd they wake him up? Don't worry about it) are all happy to see her. Even Binah. "Audrey!" Hod is the most thrilled to meet her. "You're back! Did you have a good breka? I see you're bandage-free! Nice job!" Malkuth and Netzach are more polite. Malkuth, encouraging Audrey in her studies. Netzach, encouraging Audrey to take a break and chill and not worry about next semester and all that. You can't please them both!! But they probably won't mind either dark path Audrey takes. Tiphereth is more restrained but isn't hostile until... "Ah, Audrey... Is everything alright? I'm so accustomed to seeing you wrapped up like a mummy I am worried something terrible has happened now that the bandages have been pried free." And of ocurse, Binah is all too happy to follow her up to General Works where Angela is waiting with Roland. "Audrey. You look well." Angela says. "I made sure your room was cleaned and in proper order."
Audrey Basque	What starts with a smile and nod at Hod, quickly turns into distress around Malkuth and Netzahc pushing different paths (though, Malkuth's is the correct one), Audrey regains a bit of humanity around Tiphereth and then-- "A-Ah, um, n-no," she stammers, losing every bit of poise at Binah's careful blow. They ascend stairs, together, just enough time for Audrey to regret every second that led to this decision, but try to salvage the situation. "Really, nothing happened." Something she actually means, in more way than one, because bandages would be the sure sign something DID happen, and for them to be absent must indeed mean Petra hasn't had a moment to make something happen in a little while. "Though, what about you? Are you still staying here or are you making ventures out now and again? It's hard to imagine someone like you being fine staying here seven days a week." She's obviously refering to Binah's past as an Arbiter there. It just doesn't sound like something you casually retire from. Reaching General Works also means reaching Angela it turns out! And Roland! Seeing them together isn't too much of a surprise, but usually means business was afoot. "Thank you Angela! Hello~. And hi Roland! I hope I'm not interrupting? Since you were already here and all..."
Angela	Really. Nothing happened. Binah raises an eyebrow. "Nothing happening is still something happening even if what happened was nothing." Binah taps her cheek with her index finger in deep thought. "Petra busy with college perhaps? Too busy to accompany you as of late?" Oh it's just a guess. She certainly can't say for sure. ''What about you?'' "Ah... Unfortunately I cannot leave this Library without express permission. And I am unlikely to casually receive such permission because if I am seen by the Beholders leaving this place The Head will be even more determined to get involved. After all, Arbiters are not supposed to be 'captured'. I am supposed to be a corpse. And well, the fact that I ''am'' a corpse as well does not mean I should be going around being chatty about it. No, they would be quite determined to retrieve me, that is certain, or even destroy my remains. And myself as well. So far, we have been fortunate they were not aware Angela is a machine, no? ... Or perhaps..." Binah frowns. "Perhaps Angela's goals..." She trails off at that, thinking, before shaking her heads. "Ah, alas, I lost it! My memory is hazy thanks to losing so much important and intruging information. Nevertheless..." Roland smiles at Audrey and says, "hey Audrey. Want to get some practice in today later?" He is naturally thrilled to see that Audrey isn't quite so bandage covered as before. "0]We came down to meet with you." Angela says. "I wanted to see you ... In fact... This may be a good time to set up that ... protection against the worst case scenario. This is not something I can shrimply ask you to consent to first, but I will ask anyway since you've been quite kind to me. I would like to set up a back up plan in the event that you are killed so that you do not remain deceased."
Audrey Basque	"Petra busy with college perhaps?" It's a bit transparent, really, that Audrey gets a bit paler with the pointedness of that query. "Y-yeah, I mean, she's got her own classes now, and lots of important stuff to do with Hydrochoeria, and the Concord, and personal projects and... b-but that has nothing to do with... I mean..." She makes vague gestures at her face. "You know. Injuries. Obviously. T-That's more because of like... getting into fights. Which I've mostly avoided. Unlike her, I don't feel a need to fight that gang that keeps showing up at the Warpgate." Which is true, she usually just teleports past them. It's not her problem! It's not her fight. She's just not looking for any. "Perhaps Angela's goals..." Audrey certainly doesn't know enough about the Head to say. And Angela's goals... she's dimly aware, really, of roughly what she wants to accomplish, but... she also knows Angela already accounts for not being able to hide herself forever. In fact, she's tired of hiding! So... "W-Well, as she would say... hiding forever was never in the cards. So it's best to have contingencies ready. I bet you do, don't you?" "Want to get some practice in today later?" "P-Practice? Wait, are we expecting some intruders today? I guess I did help Petra distribute that new wave of invites last week... ah... I wasn't expecting that today but... sure?" She didn't mind. Which is a terrifying thought to her. "in the event that you are killed" If Audrey was going to remark on Angela saying shrimply, it's washed away by the abruptness of the subject matter. "... o-oh. Right. Um. You're still... NOT planning to put me in a robot body, right? I-I mean, s-sure, I consent, as long as it's not... you know, that, and..." Wait is she just going to agree like that??? She trusts Angela, obviously, but-- "This isn't some... Faustian bargain type thing where my soul belongs to you or something like that, right?"
Angela	Binah drums her fingers against her cheek, studying Audrey thoughtfully. "Is that so..." She says, clearly skeptical but at least unwilling to press harder in the moment. She moves past it, no doubt a relief, and onto something a bit more relevant to Binah. She chuckles. "So true. But of course,there is a time and place for any unveiling, And it I were to be unveiled prematurely, why, it could certainly cause more trouble than we would like before we are at our maximum potential--before we are wholly ready." Does she have CONTINGENCIES though? "Ah," Binah says. "That would be telling." She holds an index finger up to her lips. Among her favorite hobbies is teasing Audrey, apparently. Are they expecting intruders today? Roland clears his throat, "Oh I meant like a sparring session. We dealt with most of those invitations...Not everybody seems to immediately go and launch an assault so fewer showed up than I expected." Is Angela planning on putting Audrey in a robot body? "Of course not." Angela says. "I have better options than Lobcorp did. And frankly Lobcorp had better options than what Lobcorp used even if their bodies and minds needed to be adapted to the Tree we were growing--" But Audrey already agreed so Angela reaches out, takes her hand, and gives it a squeeze. Threads of light pull and twist out of Angela and into Audrey. It doesn't hurt. In fact, it feels warm. Lingeringly warm. Does her soul belong to Angela? "Yes. Of course." Angela explains. "In the event that you are killed you will be temporarily booked and you'll be able to be restored to your human form at the Library. But do not worry." Angela smiles. "The Library is happy to lend you out." She quirks her head and adds, "Ah but this is a last resort. Please do not overly rely on this system. Books are vulnerable to flame after all. So if you do die, please try to do so away from the flame."
Audrey Basque	"That would be telling." "You seem like the type to either have plans nestled within plans, or to be so good at improvising a new plan that you may as well have had one all along. So I guess I'm not worried, just curious," Audrey responds, trying to move past being questioned about Petra. "Come to think of it, do you help out when intruders show up? I don't thin I've gotten to see you fight. I mean... you were... so... aren't you probably like... the second best at fighting, after Gebura?" Petra and Angela had both stressed the combat worthiness of Arbiters. So if there's someone she'd like to lay eyes on while they're in the BATTLEDOME, it's Binah for sure. "Oh I meant like a sparring session." "Oh! That feels much nicer than a fight out of the blue, actually, yes. It's... well, it's very important that I stay sharp. Since I don't have formal combat training, and all that..." Which was obvious, really. She had talent, and power, but not skill, and certainly not experience. Though, slowly, but surely, she's getting some. "Yes. Of course." Relief, at robot bodies not being on the table, is quickly replaced by perhaps taking Angela's ribbing a little bit too seriously. "E-Eh?" It didn't hurt, at least. In fact it felt nice. As glad as she is that it was painless, now she's looking a bit stressed about what she might have just bumbled into on a whim. "W-Wait, hang on... y-you're kidding, right? About the-- the soul thing, I mean, it's--" She should have asked all the questions she has now BEFORE, shouldn't she? Oh this is terrible. Thank heavens Angela is trustworthy. "Am I... am I going to remember what happened? I mean, if I... die, like... that's still going to be really painful, right? And I'll--" There are so many horrifying stories about remembering your death! Now they're on her mind. Deep breath. "Ah... thank you. Sorry, this is... sudden, is all. I'm happy there's a little safety net under me, I'm just... surprised." Though now she wonders. "Is it like this for all the Sephirah too? ... and Roland? Is that how you gave him his limbs back?"
Angela	''Do you help out when intruders show up?'' "Not yet." Binah smiles. "None have made it to my floor. But I imaaaagine that Angela wishes to make sure the people on the lower levels of the tower--and you and Mister Roland, of course--are prepared for when more dangerous Fixers and Syndicates come knocking on our door. Perhaps even the Head itself one day, wouldn't that be fun?" Binah offers a small smile. "Sending everyone to Gebura--who isn't even awake yet--or myself. So I don't imagine many to be sent to our floors unless they are ... ''for'' us." But she grimaces at the idea of being 'second best at fighting'. "Mm... I suppose I am not quite the duelist as Gebura, but I feel I am far superior in tactics. And even she can't slice through a proper strategy on her own. There is more to battle than how powerfully one can swing a sword around." "True, but even with all the help you had from the Head and the Abnormalities of the facility, it was still--essentially--a draw." Binah exhales but doesn't stpo smiling. "You seem really powerful to me," Roland admits to Audrey. "Once you can apply that efficiently and effectively to combat fluidly--you might end up one of the toughest fighters here." Meanwhile, Angela notices audrey's stress and frowns faintly. Audrey PROBABLY should have asked questions first, truly, and it's a good lesson to learn but Angela isn't willing to torment Audrey overlong about this. "You should, unless they rip the pages out or something." Angela says. "Then I'm not sure? I'd have to experiment and that would be terrible." She shakes her head. "But please do not worry. Naturally I have no control over your will or anything, but in the sense that I am ensuring the survival of your soul by binding you, in a small way, to the Library... I am certain it is not quite like you are imagining. I do not own ''you''." ''Is it like this for all the Sephirah too?'' "All Librarians except for Petra." Angela says. "Naturally, I will provide you with EGO as well once you are ready. Something suitable for you. I'll make sure it's a nice one."
Audrey Basque	"it was still--essentially--a draw." Audrey perks up, momentarily distracted from her existential crisis about souls and ownership. "O-Oh-- you fought Gebura before?" No, in retrospect, it seems like everyone got to fight everyone else at some point here, during that war and all the betrayals and... it'd probably be odder if Binah HADN'T gotten to tussle up with the Color. For work, or pleasure, really. Perhaps both, given Binah's expression. ... does that mean even Hod knows how to fight? "You seem really powerful to me," "M-Maybe, I mean... I'd like to think I am. I can brag about having some of the highest potential the school has ever seen, but they don't train us to fight. S-So... I'm in your hands," she smiles at Roland, for better or worse. Mercifully, not just his hands, because she's not suited to his style of combat. "I do not own ''you''." "Oh! Oh... t-that's a relief. And... yeah I'm not too eager to um... d-die, so you can then experiment with... my book." She double-takes a bit, about the absurdity of that statement out of its context. Maybe, even, in its context. "I'll um. I'll be sure not to rely on it except as an absolute last resort. So I'll keep acting like I only have one life." So far it's worked great for her to just panic and be really careful! "All Librarians except for Petra." "Not Petra?" Blink. "Of all the people to take you up on this, she would've been the first I'd have guessed. That's surprising, actually. Did she mention why not? Or is it just that you haven't offered?" She can GUESS, with how often Petra talks about... well. Dying, broadly. But surely things have changed enough that she'd also want this, at this point, right...? "Something suitable for you." "You mean like Petra's sword? That's an EGO, isn't it?" And probably immediately more applicable to what Angela means than the Library itself would be.
Angela	''Does that mean even Hod knows how to fight?'' Nobody present can hear these thoughts but Angela has stated EGO Gear doesn't require any combat skill to use... Maybe Hod doesn't NEED to know how to fight in order to. Certainly, anybody can pick up a sharpened stick and then stab someone with it but does EGO Gear go a bit beyond that? "Oh we killed each other before. And fought one another after that. I hate to admit it, but I really have to give her the win for our last match but as I won the 'war', I still consider it a victory, all told. ... If only it was as victorious for my ''hide''. I was fortunate Xion was there or I might not have had the pleasure of your company today." By virtue of being deader than dead. She had to be present tense long enough for Angela to 'book' her. ''They don't train us to fight.'' "I suppose they probably don't really think you gotta learn. But ... If I were to think about it another way... If people did know about war and could research their powers, ... I don't even mean, um, ''the school'' or anything but isn't it a little dangerous to completely abandon learning how to fight in The Circle?" Roland asks. Angela nods appreciatively, ignoring Roland. "Yes. Please pretend it isn't even there and you'll continue to not need it. It is a precaution, not an empowerment." ''Of all the people to take you up on this...'' Angela hesitates and then looks down at her hands. "I did not think she would want it. More to the point ... Lobotomy Corp was--L Corp was her home. To save me, she destroyed it. She fought against most of the Librarians here. ... Her apartment was wrecked." Angela shakes her head. "She was supposed to take time off. And I suppose she did. But I expected her to be gone longer, I didn't expect her to keep working here even if I expected her to visit." She doesn't mention Cinder. She pushes Cinder out of her mind real quick. But she smiles. "So I never even really discussed it with her. But I am uncertain how she would feel about it. Nevertheless, she met you and it feels like you helped her during a critical moment and now she seems to be fine with the Library now. But I don't think she'd ever want to return to living here. ... After all, she has experienced my memories as if they were her own. And I--too--wish to depart, no matter how comforting I can make it." ''You mean like Petra's sword?'' "Correct. That is also an EGO." Angela does not call it by its name.
Audrey Basque	"Oh we killed each other before." As usual, Binah's casualness disarms Audrey in a way very few can manage. Not that she's hard to disarm, but to do it as elegantly as Binah does by simply stating facts is a feat she gets to share with Lilian. And Petra, a bit, but that's something else altogether. "Ah... maybe I was a bit hasty to call you second best. Everyone is always hyping Gebura up, so I'd presumed..." She clears her throat, a bit awkwardly. "Sorry, Binah. Tied for first is a much nicer place to be than second place. I'd know." Just a bit. "I look forward to seeing it firsthand. I remember you mentioned how what you do is comparable to magic. It must stand apart from how most people here fight." Weapons, mostly, she's noticed! "I suppose they probably don't really think you gotta learn." "Fighting is beneath us. Or, that's what the average Enlightened would say. We didn't toil for centuries to master our crafts so we could throw it away in pointless battles. There are rare Enlightened who want to fight, for one reason or another, and those tend to join the Immune Corps. Like Miss Rook. They defend us if something happens, so we can focus on what really matters." Her posture shifts, at that last part, like her shoulders lower and she visibly drops the act to agree with Roland. "It's narrow-minded, isn't it? But it's what's expected of us. And here I am, selling my soul to Angela so I can step into the battledome just a bit more safely." The smile she gives Angela is sincere, though. "She was supposed to take time off." "She did, but... I mean... proportionally she fought a several thousands year war and took a day off? It's not like we can force her to take more. And..." "Nevertheless, she met you and it feels like you helped her during a critical moment and now she seems to be fine with the Library now." Audrey deflates. "It's kind of my fault, yeah. I didn't... mean to deprive her of that time off. If anything I just dumped a whole lot more work in her lap, and she scooped it up like she doesn't know how not to." One of the rare things someone could say Audrey, Petra and Lilian all have in common, somehow. "S-Still. I get it. The longer I spend sleeping away from home the less I want to go back. I'm not saying the Library is a five star hotel or anything, but there's an energy to staying here, once in a while, that I can't get home. Even though I'm infinitely better suited to home than here, or anywhere else. So... anything I can do to help you find somewhere else you want to be at, I'll be happy to do."
Angela	''A bit hasty to call you second best.'' "Oh don't worry about it, Audrey. I am not one to nurse old grudges quite so stringently. Or to muddle about these sorts of... endless 'who would win?' fight sophistry.#-1 INVALID ANSI DEFINITION: 2433 " ''Fighting is beneath us.'' "Nobody is above fighting. Just some people don't need to." Roland says before making an effort to restrain himself. He shouldn't throw his opinions on The City onto his opinions on the Circle. He really shouldn't. Especially not at Audrey. She's the one going out here making the effort after all. "Sorry. I shouldn't be throwing opinions you didn't ask for at you." Roland says. "Even my partner says I'm way too opinionated that it gets me in trouble. I'll try and rein it in." Angela doesn't really seem to mind though, Audrey might even catch the glimmer of a smile. She has pretty dark opinions about The City herself, of course. ''Here I am selling my soul to Angela--'' "I'll take good care of it." Angela's smiling as well, even if it's subdued. ''It's not like we can force her to take more.'' "I could. But I won't." In the sense that she could stop her from coming to the Library. ''It's kind of my fault, yeah.'' "Why do you look so unhappy about it?" Angela asks. "...You helped her more than you hurt her I'm sure." She exhales slowly then remembers Roland's actively listening to all this. "Ah--" Roland startles. "Ah, sorry, sorry. I just can't help but be curious, you know? I'm still trying to learn more about what's going on you know? I'm not living an Elite life and everybody's real cagey about everything so... I get curious." Angela exhales. She supposes that she can't blame Roland for that and shakes her head at him to assure him not to worry baout it. "...That is not a good sign about your home that you prefer sleeping at the Library. As happy as it makes me to hear that--and you are always welcome here--I hope you find surety in your desires, no matter to which impropriety it leads you. ... Well to a point of course." Angela sadly isn't the type to say 'go hog wild with your disaster whomever it runs over'. "...If I get tired of libraries... The Hotel..." Angela murmurs. "No I shall not become ridiculous." She decides. "Nor will I tire of Libraries anytime soon." It'd be strange, of course, especially since this Library is her very soul put forth. It HAS to be more than a passing fancy. "Challenges can be good for you. Especially if you fail and learn from the failures." Angela settles. "You have already been invaluable to me, Audrey. I scarcely know what I could even ask for besides for your own best effort in life."
Audrey Basque	"I am not one to nurse old grudges quite so stringently." Phew, safe. Probably. It is Binah, after all. "Nobody is above fighting. Just some people don't need to." "Well, I'm not disagreeing," Audrey corrects Roland, when he seems to want to retract his statement. "After only a few months here I'm getting a pretty good idea for the fact that... you don't know what'll happen tomorrow. I'm not saying everyone should be getting into street fights, but this... "trust others to fight for you" attitude. I'm so tired of being told I should just go home and focus on school. Even though it's probably objectively the thing I should be doing." She huffs, without going out of her way to fume about Lilian. Even though, people who listen to them talk, know well that's what Lilian keeps telling her to do. "...You helped her more than you hurt her I'm sure." "I mean, I--" Angela pauses. Roland startles. Audrey realizes she was about to open her mouth while Binah and Roland are listening. She stammers a bit, not resuming her thought so much as dancing with a few half-words before looking back at Angela and changing the subject. "...That is not a good sign about your home that you prefer sleeping at the Library." "It's a bit more complicated than it being something against the Hidden Continent. Or my school. Or my family estates. Or--" She scratches the back of her neck, nervously. "O-Okay, I know how that sounds. It's just... those places don't feel really good to me, right now. If I'm at school I'm avoiding stares or questions about this part of my life, or some... flavorful rumors. If I'm home I get the questions, without the rumors, but double the intensity of the gazes. But if I'm here? I'm just..." She does a twirl, to show the uniform off. "Me, right? Or if I'm in Hydrochoeria. Same thing. The Concord. Same thing. It's a different... vibe. Mood. Ambience?" "...If I get tired of libraries... The Hotel..." "If this became a hotel I'd give it a good rating." "I scarcely know what I could even ask for besides for your own best effort in life." She seems to shrink a bit. "I think I am. But I'm not totally sure. Petra doesn't seem to think so, but that's a... really, different, conversation." And how. "I'll keep trying, though."
Angela	Roland relaxes a little. "...Yeah. Even a peaceful area, a place you thought that you could live in forever. It could become a living hell any moment. So you have to be ready to protect your home. Or at least--the places important to you. Can't calm down just because it seems adequately protected or because powerful people are present." He then smiles. "I'll be the last to tell you to shut up and go home. I mean, I get the impulse, but... You should at least be prepared. You should get experience. You can't live in a circle forever--otherwise you'll never learn or grow." He sighs. "But ... I'm a washed up guy so.. you know. Do what you want." He awkwardly mumbles. Angela gives a small nod. She can only imagine how much worse Lilian must have had it by comparision. No wonder she looks down on Audrey following the trail and struggling. That makes sense to her. "He isn't wwrong that one's fortunes can change in an instant, and when one lives for hundreds of years I can only imagine such an instant would come all the more quickly. For me, of course, it'd be an agonizingly long moment." She wonders what it'd be like for Audrey if she had to deal with slow time. But she dismisses the thought. She wouldn't wish that on her worst enemy, certainly not one of her dearest friends. ...She understands what Petra is saying about Audrey, of course. She doesn't even disagree. But the idea of using suffering to teach a lesson--is something she wishes to stay far away from, frankly. "A full five stars or you'll never get your soul back." Angela jokes. "....Anyway, mm.... I think you are giving the full of your effort in total, but perhaps half of your effort towards each you are giving your effort to? ... Mm... No, I wouldn't say it quite like that..." She taps her own cheek thoughtfully, as if trying to solve a puzzle. "Mm....How to put it. How could one really put their 'all' into something when they seem so unsure as to what they desire? I think it feels that you are putting forth your max effort. And you are putting in a great deal..." She exhales. "I am not quite sure how to put it. But you seem to be swaying in the wind. If that makes sense."
Audrey Basque	"You can't live in a circle forever--otherwise you'll never learn or grow." "No, you're right. I guess I'm just--" Audrey crosses her arms, looking up at the ceiling rather than anyone else. "Still trying to piece every way I feel together. This wasn't what I had in mind when I decided I'd try this Elite thing out, but it's certainly become interesting. And changed some of my views. For the better, I hope, but..." It's always hard to decide for yourself. "and when one lives for hundreds of years I can only imagine such an instant would come all the more quickly." "Sure, but... you also have a lot more time to fix things. And a lot more time to fester if you can't, I suppose. Like... if something bad happened to me tomorrow, I'd have what, three, four hundred years to find a solution? At least? It wouldn't be pleasant, I'm sure, but it's a silver lining." Though, the fact it'd be agonizingly long for Angela... she's got nothing. She can't relate, really, so much as feel sorry for how Angela described it before. "I am not quite sure how to put it." "No, I get it, I think. You're not the first to say it. You won't be the last. I'm giving it my all but I'm splitting my attention between--" She doesn't finish the thought, because the answer is so obvious. "But it's not like there's an ideal solution either. Just... another half a year of this. And then I won't have to split my attention." Her gaze settles back down, and she adjusts her hair, flicking the lot of it backward to air it up and get her loose hair behind her fully. "Sorry. I've got the bad vibes out now. Is it alright if I go practice with Roland before I get to work? Unless there's a pressing book stack that might kill someone if it topples over, it might do me a bit of good right now."