Of Boyfriends And Carpentry

Title: Of Boyfriends and Carpentry
Emitter: -
Characters: Alessandra, Liv, Rioghan
NPCS: -
Place: South Campus - Steranko Institute
Time: Sept 1, 2010 - Afternoon
Summary: Running into Liv, Alessandra has some more questions, and a report on Rioghan's well being. Liv has her own news, and eventually Rioghan himself show up. And Liv is faced with explaining what 'Screw' in the colloquial means.

With the approaching storms, despite how far away they are, there are still gathering clouds which fill the sky. None the less, the sun does it's best to break through, casting it's warmth to mingle with the near-constant winds which gentlly work along their wandering ways. Many a student lingers and tarries between classes, enjoying the sunlight and pleasant weather before the true change in seasons comes.
One such is Alessandra Job - at least that is her name to the majority of students on campus. But to her friends, she is Sandra, or Sandy. Sitting on a bench beneath one of the trees which are strategically placed throughout all of campus, the young blond is reading a book, while nibbling at bits and pieces of what looks to be lunch - some sushi, some fruit, and even a bit of a snack cake which she stole from Reginald, no doubt. Well, borrowed. To herself, the woman is tapping her foot to some tune which plays itself in her head - thankfully the young woman isn't humming it.

Liv meanders out from the direction of the dorms, a hint of bounce in her stride - this more in evidence due to the fact that the canvas bag she carries keeps thumping against her side than anything else. She pauses every few steps to lift her phone up, squint, and either make a face or nod satisfaction. Once she spots Sandra, the young woman becomes the next subject of this activity, before the girl hails her with a lift of the other hand. "Hey, Sandra," she calls. "How you doing?"

Looking up, Sandra offers a bright smile at Liv. "Good day, Liv. I am doing well. Forgive me for not coming back to visit with you and Reg the other evening. I ended up falling asleep in the infirmary. I am surprised that one of the nurses didn't send me back to my dorm, honestly. But I am not complaining."

Sandra rearranges her items, making room for Liv on the bench and inviting her with a motion of her hand. "And how are you doing this day? Are you in good spirits?"

"No, that's all right," Liv says. "I err - didn't stay long, anyhow. Work to get back to." She smiles, a little awkwardly. "That doesn't sound like a comfortable way to sleep. You feeling a little dragged out? He's okay, right?" She moves to perch on the bench, peering at the screen of the phone and making an incoherent nngh-sound. "I've got to get a real one." She slides it closed and puts it away. "I'm good - excited, actually. Landed a part-time job with a place too dumb to care about who I am and I work my first couple hours tomorrow after school."

Sandra blinks and leans forward to try and peer at Liv's phone. "That appears real to me," she notes, before settling back. "Oh? You did not stay long? Why is that?" she asks, curiously. "Surely Reg enjoys your company. And he said your couples outing wasn't a disaster. You should go on another one," she notes with a nod.
Then an eyebrow arches upwards as she peers at Liv. "A job? What is the job? Will you like it?" she queries before waving a hand. "I was feeling … a bit dragged through the ring yesterday," she notes. "But that was because I did not take time to submerge myself. I feel better today," she notes. "And really, any surface sleeping surface is a bit awkward and uncomfortable for me. Just something you get used to."

"No, I mean a real camera," Liv says, turning her phone to reveal a faintly blurred photo of Sandra on the bench. "It's at a photography place - the old school kind, with film and developing chemicals. So I'm trying to learn a little bit about it. Got some books, too. I never realized there was actually an art to it, not just … bam, you've got a factual rendition of what you see, move along." She shrugs, then flushes. "Well, yeah, but I didn't know what to say to him. And he hasn't asked."

She quirks the pierced brow. "Dragged through the ring?" she wonders, but doesn't pursue it. "That sounds unpleasant. Glad you're feeling better today, though. How's Rioghan?"

"Oh, yes, Rioghan! Well, he is fine. THough … how he is feeling, I'm not entirely certain. He is taking private lessons from Mister Murphey, the history and weapons teacher. And Mister Murphey is very … mmm … how shall we say this … insistent that Rioghan learn his lessons well," she notes, then smiles. "Much to Rioghan's chagrin, no doubt. Mr. Murphey is just worried about him. He actually asked me to keep an eye on him when he wasn't around, usually off campus. And made Rioghan promise to keep an eye on me, in case any more assassins pop up. A good man, Mister Murphey, if rough around the edges."

Sandra gives an awkward shrug, then hmmms at Liv, offering over some strawberries. "I have not even tried to use one of your surface cameras so I don't even know what film is," she offers in apology. "But I am certain you will enjoy it. Hmmmm, yes, there is an art to any sort of pictorial image. So I do not see why this camera images should be different. As for Reg… you have plenty to say, don't you?" she asks, nibbling on some fruit herself as she blinks at Liv. "And there are times where you don't need to say anything at all. Just being near a person can be enjoyment of itself, no? Or … am I the strange one?"

Liv quirks an eyebrow. "I hope he's not pushing too hard," she says. "Sometimes, I think our teachers don't have a very good pulse on our aptitudes." She has never been that trusting of the instructors here, even after months. "A good injury is worth a couple days of lazing about." She snorts then. "What, like your friends aren't perfectly capable of protecting you as it is?" Pause, grimace. "… on second thought, don't answer that." She chuckles then, an attempt to lighten the mood.

She plucks a strawberry, toying with it. "I just sort of took it because it's a job, I could use the money, and they were actually willing to hire me, but … I'm actually finding it interesting. I'm working the counter to start so I don't have to know much about the technical process to start.

"I'm not arguing you're strange," she continues with a grin, "but it can be good just to be near someone … when you're not driving yourself batty wondering what they're thinking and wondering if it *is* quiet because you just said something idiotic."

Sandra shakes her head and smiles at Liv. "I don't think you say idiotic things, Liv," she notes, nibbling on her strawberry. "Oh, I think it was more to ease Rioghan's pride, really. After all, when someone you have known for years asks a young woman to watch out for you …" notes Sandra with a smile. "Mister Murphey and Rioghan are actually from the same village. Mister Murphey is a friend of Rioghan's mother, or was before she passed away. He's just over-protective. So … we need to devise reasons for luring Rioghan off campus. With my friends there with me, then nothing shall happen to him," Sandra notes with confidence.

The young princess laughs and leans to the side, trying to nudge Liv's shoulder. "You have protected me plenty," she offers, her smile warm and kind. "And a job is not really 'work' then, is it, if you find it interesting. So … you are paid for doing something you find fascinating. I cannot see how this could go wrong. You should get a camera and ask Reg to go take pictures with you."

"Of course I do," Liv says. "Everyone does, at one point or another. It's just a question of how frequently - and just how ridiculous the saying really is." She leans back, finishing her strawberry in a single bite. This silences her for a bit. "Who can understand men? In a place like this, it's silly to be embarrassed just because 'a girl' wants to protect you. Some of the 'girls' are the most intimidating people you'll ever meet." She nods then. "What does he like? Dancing? Books? Surfboarding? I'm sure we can force him to have fun somehow." A wink.

She pffts, pushing Sandra back, gently. "Shyeah, right, I've gotten you into more trouble than I've ever helped you out of." Not joking, but her tone is still light. "No, it's still work. I could hate it when I get in tomorrow, after all." A wry grin. "Well, I suppose it's less cheesy than asking him to take pictures *of* me."

"If you say so," notes Sandra with a doubtful tone, before smiling a bit more. "Well, I know little about men, having been … cloisigne'd you could say," she offers, getting the term wrong. "Mmmm, well, for what he likes, reading. Growing up in rural Ireland, he hasn't even gotten to see the moving pictures, just like I haven't. Archery he does enjoy, and being outside. But he doesn't surf. I haven't asked about dancing or music. It's just never come up," she says with a smile. "Do you think I should ask?" then comes the question with a blink.

"Have I complained about anything you have done, or even been tangently involved in, Liv?" she asks warmly. "I have not, so think nothing about it. They have been opprotunities for me in ways you have not yet thought of. And yes. So … I have another question … there are rumors talking about couples, and boyfriends and girlfriends … what does one do with a boyfriend?"

"Cloistered," Liv corrects, somewhat absently. "Unless you mean you're some kind of porcelain - which I suppose might be accurate, but not quite what you met." She arches the eyebrow again. "He's been here for a couple years and still hasn't been to the theatre? You both need to go. And you don't need us to do it," this with a wry little smile. She shrugs then. "I can't hurt to know what he's interested in. Though a midnight waffle run also holds promise." Once was not enough.

She makes a face again. "Easier said than done," is all she says to that. Then she blinks, her head pulling back, and she stares at Sandra. "Why are you asking *me*?" she counters. "It would be pretty hard to find someone less knowledgeable about the subject."

Scattered clouds float through the sky, alternating between shade and sun throughout the campus. On a bench near the dorms, Sandra sits with Sullivan Prieto, the pair seeming to talk companionly.
Sandra holds forth the strawberries again, plucking another of her own to nibble a bit. "Oh, Kelly is taking him," notes Sandra in answer to Liv. "While I would like to go, Jonathan suggested that would not be a good idea," she continues, before blinking. "Waffles have races at midnight?"

An eyebrow is arched towards Liv. "I don't know, I do look in the mirror every day," she says in tease. "Really, I do not understand some of this talk, and you have lived in this world all your life, you -have- to know and understand more than I."

"Thanks." Liv takes another strawberry, again fiddling with it before she bites in. "Wouldn't be a good idea? Why … no, never mind, I don't want to know," she decides, shaking her head. A chuckle escapes. "No, you run to the waffles. Off campus. There's a place within radius - all right, it's just an IHOP -" beat, pause, and she decides to illuminate "- International House of Pancakes … but it's open late.

"I do?" she continues, shaking her head. "I wasn't even allowed to think about contemplating dating until I left home. I was supposed to be a mature spinster." She smiles weakly. "And now my head just hurts. Boyfriend is someone you date. Moon over. Kiss. Uh … other stuff, sometimes."

"Well, Jonathan explained that Kelly might have thought of it as a 'date' so … Rioghan inviting others along might not have been a good idea," states Sandra before blinking. The strawberry is paused and Sandra just watches Liv for a moment. "Oh," is all she says with a thoughtfully absent tone. Then she blinks again. "Other stuff? Moon over? What does the moon have to … Artemis has no rule over Lovers. That is Aphrodite and they do /not/ get along," she says. Finally Sandra just finishes her strawberry and considers for a moment again.

"I think I would like to attempt this running to the waffles thing, Liv. When would you like to attempt it?"

"Oh, I see. Isn't Kelly a little young for him …?" Liv trails off. "I mean, moon over as in mope, think about all the time, say ridiculously over-inflated praise that can't possibly be true …" Just a bit of cynic there. "I could tell you about my mother's boyfriends, but I don't think that'd be appropriate. They probably all went off and scrubbed themselves frantically. 'I slept with a murdereress, augh!' … or they went out and had congratulatory drinks, either." Liv has a master's degree in coping mechanism by black humor.

She clears her throat, finishing her strawberry. "Well, at midnight, of course," she deadpans. "How about sometime this weekend? We get an extra vacation day, so more opportunities to do it."

"Hmmmm," notes Sandra. "Well, I do not know what an acceptable age difference is in surface society. There are twenty years between my parents. But then, my father is just past his one and a half century mark," she notes with a hint of her awkward shrug. Then Sandra peers at Liv a moment, "I … do not offer over-inflated praise that cannot possibly be true of anyone … do I? That would be … mmmm … I would not like to do that. There is a certain modesty and grace about truth," she offers, before blinking again. "I … poke me if I ever mope. You know my situation," Sandra offers with a sigh. "It would be a waste of my efforts, and an unfortunate tease for any young man if I started behaving as such."

Then that warm smile is back and Sandra nods firmly. "Very well, this weekend, at midnight. We will run to the waffles!" she offers, tossing a strawberry into the air, intending to catch it in her mouth.

Rioghan is on his way back towards the dorms from the school library. He's dressed in his 'blending in' attire, which translates to a a witty t-shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and his hiking boots. He's still favoring his left arm a bit, but the sling that the nurse gave him got tossed in a corner of the Chord Hall common room last night and has not been retrieved. Under his other arm he has a relatively thick book. The approach to the dorms has him slowing when he sees a certain water-world princess tossing strawberries into the air. "If'n I had my bow handy, it might have been good practice to try to shoot that out of the air," he calls out in a lilting tone as he approaches, "Good afternoon to you Sandra and…" Impossibly blue eyes settle on Liv and he offers her a smile, "…friend of Sandra's whose name I do not yet know."

"It depends on the age of the people involved," Liv says. "It's a lot smaller for teenagers than it is for adults - and for some reason, it seems to be all right if the guy is older, not so much if the girl is." A slight roll of her eyes, and then another chuckle. "No, you don't, no worries," she says. "I promise I'll let you know if you're ever warbling someone's praises." She shakes her head. "I still think you have a right to have fun while you're in school. It's not like this is the place for promises and forevers."

Liv mocks covering her eyes, as if afraid to watch the strawberry's descent. "Maybe we'd better trot to the waffles, just in case …" She lowers her hand at the sound of an unfamiliar voice. "Hi," she says. "Sullivan, Liv for short."

At the jest from Rioghan, Sandra blinks and looks up, just in time to get smacked in the forhead by the strawberry. Reaching out, she bobbles it a bit before getting a firm grasp on it. Eyes narrow playfully, and Sandra tosses the piece of fruit in Rioghan's direction. "You would know her name, if we could ever steal you away from Mister Murphey," she notes warmly.

Then Sandra rises, moving her things completely off the bench, before motioning to Liv. "Sullivan Prieto, may I introduce Rioghan Mac Cainoiath. Call her Liv, Rioghan, it is something she insists on. Rioghan, this is Sullivan Prieto, one of, if not, the closest friend I have here at school. And most certainly the first I had really made."
Then Sandra motions to the bench again as she slides in next to Liv, grabbing the package with what few strawberries she has left, holding it out towards Rioghan. "Join us?"

Then she smiles at Liv, "Very well, trotting to the waffles," she intones before considering. "I don't know. A friendship is a sort of promise, is it not?"

Rioghan's left hand flashes out to snatch the strawberry out of the air and he promptly pops it into his mouth with a grin. "Mister Murphey has granted me the evening off, so long as I don't leave campus," the young man says cheerfully once he's swallowed the piece of fruit. "So, if you're wishing to steal me, tonight would be the night to do so." He moves over to join the pair, extending his hand towards Liv, should she give it, he'll bow over it with a quick kiss. It's more a formal courtly gesture than trying to impress anyone. "A pleasure to meet you Liv. Sandra has mentioned you to me before, it is nice to put the name to a face."

"Aye, if you don't mind, I'd be happy to join you," Rioghan says. He takes the empty spot next to Sandra, setting his book on his lap. He holds up the book. "Have either of you read this? Maggie Kirkaldy suggested that I should after she called me 'Legolas' the other day."

"Not having people recognize me on sight is refreshing, no worries," Liv says with a hint of dryness. She does surrender her hand and blinks in surprise, a smile quirking her lips at the courtly gesture. "I could put another face to the name, if you wanted," she quips, then adds, "Good to meet you, Rioghan. I've heard about you, too.

"I suppose it is, in a way," she continues to Sandra, "but I don't think most people here take it that seriously. We all know the future could sweep us away, maybe even in opposite directions." A shrug. "You've never read Lord of the Rings? That's a classic. The writing style is kind of archaic, but I think it holds up."

Sandra shakes her head, then smiles at Liv when she sounds surprised that Rioghan hasn't. "I've never read it," she notes to Liv, her smile growing wider. "Besides, all the writing of my people is archaic compared to what is found here on the surface." Pause. "Except arithmetic texts. Those are positively arcane," she notes.

Then she nudges Liv with her shoulder. "Confuse him, why don't you?" she asks with a tease and a wink, before picking up a strawberry of her own, and offering the last to Liv. "OH, well then, we shall definitely have to steal you. But to what end, that is the question," she muses before taking another nibble. "Sundaes. Yes. The ice cream with sugary substances of all sorts piled on top … Yes. That we must do."

"Well, you both should, then," Liv says. "Tolkien is one of the modern founders of the genre, which … I suppose some of us might be living, but that's why I don't read urban fantasy." Her expression turns wry. "It's about an epic quest, the clash between good and evil, kingdoms, politics … and one unassuming little man with a ring. And hey, don't insult arithmetic. I like math. It's orderly."

She grins, unapologetic. "Just trying to make people as bewildered as I am. It's only fair, I think. And not exactly a glamour, Rioghan …" There's a pause, and her expression blurs, the features sinking into shadow and resurfacing. There are now two Sandras sitting on the bench. She holds it a few seconds, then shifts back. "Chocolate sauce?"

"Yes, Chocolate Sauce," says Sandra with a nod, before giggling faintly. "Liv, you'll confuse him," she states, before turning to Rioghan. "An illusion," she notes. "Same thing, different word."

Wait, Sandra just corrected someone else on wrong phrasing?

The world is surely ending.

"Epic quest… clash… So it is the modern society's Mythology?" she asks.

"It was in the fiction section," Rioghan says, flipping open the book on his lap to look at the cartography in the front of it. "Middle Earth? Does that mean there is a top and a bottom earth?" he asks wryly. He's not serious about that question by the sparkle in his eyes. "It does sound interesting. And this Legolas, who is he in the book?" He's wondering if he should be complimented or insulted that Maggie called him such.

Rioghan blinks as Liv changes her face, "Or is it more like shapeshifting? One of the girls that lives in my dorm is a shapeshifter."

"Yes, it's more like shapechanging, really," Liv says. "Just a surface alteration, but if I grew a long nose, you could tweak it." She cocks her head, considering Sandra's words. "Sort of," she mulls, "but it's not meant to explain the state of the world or the human condition in any way - though literary analysis suggests that it involves Christian allegory or a condemnation of industrialism, or both." Beat. "Screw literary analysis.

"Actually, yeah, I think so," she says. "It's based on Norse concepts, where there's … something like that." She smirks a bit. "Elven archer, one of the main companions in the book. You don't have a dwarf for a friend, do you?"

Sandra blinks and Liv, drinking up everything she says as her brow increasingly furrows with thought. Then she blinks again, and her head tilts to the side as one almost could see Sandra mentally trying to picture a person turning into a screw, or taking a screwdriver to a person.

After a momentary bout of brain breaking, Sandra blinks and shakes her head, looking at Liv then back to Rioghan, arching an eyebrow upwards. "You are an archer of great skill," she notes. "Though I doubt Mister Murphey would be appreciative of being compared to someone of miniature status."

Sandra may not ask it, but Rioghan does, "What does carpentry have to do with analyzing books?" Rioghan ruffles a hand through his hair and shrugs his shoulders, glancing at Sandra and then back to Liv. "No, I don't have a dwarf for a friend," he says, though he's now smiling and figuring that perhaps Maggie meant this as a compliment. If this Legolas is one of the main characters of the story, he must be okay. That and he can guess why she chose to call him that. An elven archer. Clever little witch. "I shall have to see what I make of this book then. In any case, were you just taunting me with the prospect of ice cream, or should we go?"

Liv peers at Sandra with eyes faintly narrowed. One can just see her wondering what, exactly, her friend is misinterpreting now. She clears her throat. "He's overblown and girly in the movies," she says, "so I hope Maggie wasn't thinking of *that* version."

She blinks at Rioghan's words, faintly taken aback. She looks from him to Sandra and back again. "No. Screw in the colloquial sense. And I am not explaining that. Google it." Her cheeks flush faintly. "I don't think she was teasing, but maybe I'd better bow out. I'd like to get a few more shots - that's photographs -" great, more people she has to watch her phrasing around "- before it gets dark out, and I err … pocket change, not so much."

Sandra blinks at Liv, then looks at Rioghan, then looks at Liv, before looking back at Rioghan. "You get to. You saw what happened Monday in computers class. I'd rather not have another computer sparking and swearing at me in beeps and whistles, thank you," she notes.

Sandra then turns back to Liv and peers. "What? Why would you need to bow … and out? Call Reg. We sh… " she starts, purses her lips at Liv, the nods. "Well, I am not willing to take you from your creative blossoming, and learning about your future job which starts tomorrow. But mark my words … we will do the Floating Beers of Root sometime, the four of us, if not more!"

Movies again. Rioghan's lips quirk upwards, "They must make movies out of everything. Do people not enjoy reading and imagining what things might look like on their own here?" By 'people' he must mean Americans not humans in the general sense, and by 'here' he must mean America rather than earth. "Rather than letting someone else project the story onto a screen and show them what the characters look and sound like." Though his eyes narrow slightly at Liv's suggestion that there's a version of this character that may be less respectable.

"Google…" he starts to ask and then glances at Sandra. Oh, computers. Right. The young man grins wryly. "That's quite alright. I will take your word for it. I'm not much for technology." He looks at Sandra, "We're likely to start a few more rumors around campus. The latest that I overheard someone saying was that Kelly punched me through a brick wall because I apparently told her that you and I were 'dating'." He shakes his head, "I'll say again that some of our peers need better things with which to occupy their time."

"Computers don't swear, though I'm sure they learn a lot of foul language from us," Liv notes. "Uh …" She thinks about explaining, she does. Then she lifts a shoulder in a shrug. "I'd like that. I think Reg said he had a test to study for. And … uh." She gets flittery when the subject comes up. "I don't know. That's why I love books - the opportunity to shape my own impression of events - but that seems to be a minority opinion." She laughs then. "Better you two than me," she says cheerfully. "See you two around." She swings off the bench and flips out her phone, a woman on a mission. It's the only camera she has right now.

Sandra wrinkles her nose faintly. "Would you rather -not- get the Sundaes?" she asks. "Or, I suppose, I could throw you over my shoulder and let rumors say I 'kidnapped' you," she offers, grinning at the last.

Then Sandra nods her head emphatically, rolling her eyes a bit. "Considering some of the things printed by these newspapers and magazines you see around … I do not think it is just our -peers-," she notes.

A smile is then offered to Liv, and Sandra lifts a finger to her chin. "Then … perhaps this, we shall kidnap both young men for this twilight waffle trot. Reg is too serious sometimes given his … background. It shall be enjoyable, I think."

Then the young woman rises, offering a Liv a wave as she pulls out her phone, before looking at Rioghan. "Would you like to take your book back to your dorm? I should take my backpack to mine," she notes.

Rioghan pushes up to his feet, "I think that sounds like fun. A twilight waffle trot? I wonder if this is anything like the midnight Denny's run that Jerry has invited me on. Enjoy your taking of pictures Liv. Again it was a pleasure making your acquaintance." He tucks the book under his arm again and smiles at Sandra. "Aye, I'll put the book in my room and meet you back here?"

Sandra bobs her head in a nod. "That sounds delightful," she offers, turning to quickly gather up her own book and backpack which had been moved aside to make room from Rioghan. The young woman looks after the route Liv took, then turns back to Rioghan with a smile. "She is excited about a job she will be starting. At a place for pictorial art, and it's development. Cameras, I believe she said is what is used," she notes, before slinging the pack over her shoulder. "Back soon, don't get kidnapped while I am gone!"

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