11-02-2022, 07:36 PM
At another time, Maximus would have likely smiled to have such a warm welcome from a pretty woman such as this but unfortunately, he was no longer a young and carefree youth with a sword. He was a grizzled and battle-weary knight who had seen far too much in his relatively short life. "Well met, Lady 'ufflepuff," he said with another gracious bow to her which hid his surprise to have not only come across one of the Founders of the school but the fact it was a woman. He had incorrectly assumed that the Founders were all male, something Merrick had left out of his letters home. While their mother would be impressed by this, their father likely wouldn't.
Maximus had been about to say something else when the woman suddenly took his hand and began dragging him into the castle with some explanation about showing him the library. While his brother had assured him that they would expect his arrival, this had not been what he, himself, had expected. He had never been received like this anywhere in his travels. And had she said 'O'Connell'? That wasn't his name.
The knight was certainly in a hard place here. It would be rude to extract himself suddenly from her grasp, especially since he wanted to make a good impression if only for his brother's sake. He didn't want to negatively impact his brother's future here. As he was the second son, his options were limited even as a knight in his own right. He would be considered as little more than a sellsword in most parts of the isles. That was no life for him to live. No, Maximus had to be careful to not offend the woman. Hells, how was he going to get out of this situation?
As she pulled him down yet another hallway, his usually witty mind was terribly unhelpful in coming up with a solution. It was simply too exhausted from the journey here and as the woman finally released him and pushed open the doors to the room, he almost audibly gasped at what he saw. It was a large, expansive room filled floor to ceiling with books of every size and color he could imagine. Ringed with large window cutouts all around the room letting the light in, it was the most incredible thing he had ever seen in all his years.
Maximus practically stumbled into the room dumbfounded as he craned his neck to take a good look around. His tired blue eyes were a little wider than normal as he took in the sight and his chest expanded with the deep breath full of the smell of parchment, ink, and freshly tanned leather. To be in this room, to have the chance to study from these assorted tomes, was surely the chance of a lifetime. It was this alone that convinced him that it was worth Moira coming here if only to have access to so many diverse topics in her free time. Surely her voracious appetite for reading and learning would thrive in this sort of environment.
As he drew his gaze level at the grand bookcase in front of him, Maximus suddenly frowned. He stepped forward and reached up to touch the spines of the leatherbound texts on the shelf. The titles suggested their topics easily and yet he was dissatisfied. There was no order here, no logical reasoning for their placement. How was someone supposed to find what they were seeking when there was no sense of organization?
"Pardon me forwar'ness, Lady 'ufflepuff," he said carefully, not wanting to insult the kind and beautiful woman. "This jus' will nay do. Tis a disaster in 'ere."
Maximus had been about to say something else when the woman suddenly took his hand and began dragging him into the castle with some explanation about showing him the library. While his brother had assured him that they would expect his arrival, this had not been what he, himself, had expected. He had never been received like this anywhere in his travels. And had she said 'O'Connell'? That wasn't his name.
The knight was certainly in a hard place here. It would be rude to extract himself suddenly from her grasp, especially since he wanted to make a good impression if only for his brother's sake. He didn't want to negatively impact his brother's future here. As he was the second son, his options were limited even as a knight in his own right. He would be considered as little more than a sellsword in most parts of the isles. That was no life for him to live. No, Maximus had to be careful to not offend the woman. Hells, how was he going to get out of this situation?
As she pulled him down yet another hallway, his usually witty mind was terribly unhelpful in coming up with a solution. It was simply too exhausted from the journey here and as the woman finally released him and pushed open the doors to the room, he almost audibly gasped at what he saw. It was a large, expansive room filled floor to ceiling with books of every size and color he could imagine. Ringed with large window cutouts all around the room letting the light in, it was the most incredible thing he had ever seen in all his years.
Maximus practically stumbled into the room dumbfounded as he craned his neck to take a good look around. His tired blue eyes were a little wider than normal as he took in the sight and his chest expanded with the deep breath full of the smell of parchment, ink, and freshly tanned leather. To be in this room, to have the chance to study from these assorted tomes, was surely the chance of a lifetime. It was this alone that convinced him that it was worth Moira coming here if only to have access to so many diverse topics in her free time. Surely her voracious appetite for reading and learning would thrive in this sort of environment.
As he drew his gaze level at the grand bookcase in front of him, Maximus suddenly frowned. He stepped forward and reached up to touch the spines of the leatherbound texts on the shelf. The titles suggested their topics easily and yet he was dissatisfied. There was no order here, no logical reasoning for their placement. How was someone supposed to find what they were seeking when there was no sense of organization?
"Pardon me forwar'ness, Lady 'ufflepuff," he said carefully, not wanting to insult the kind and beautiful woman. "This jus' will nay do. Tis a disaster in 'ere."
