Wasted Time [ Solo Job ]

If he could travel back in time, he would. He would reset the clock to before he accepted a job his gut glared daggers at. He would have forced that lazy bastard to find his own obscure books! He would not have already wasted an entire evening crawling through every crook and nanny to find even one book on a topic rarely covered by the researchers of the century. Or any other century dating back before they could even recall for that matter. He actually owned one of these rare books. But no way he trusted it in the hands of anyone besides himself. That, and his ownership of the book was due to rather illegal methods. He stole the book from the library, in other words. But that was his secret. Anyway, nobody had noticed yet so he felt no obligation to bring attention to the book.

verbum comitem [ cxlviii // d ]
word count [ 148 // 500 ]

He turned the corner seeking a quiet spot to read. He cradled a tall stack of books, mostly about the one country he never managed to visit yet, Imuchakk, in his arms. He gazed nervously up to the top of the stack. It swayed frightfully. He lowered his eyes to focus around the stack of books and what laid ahead of his feet. The halls were empty as usual. He could hear chatter from nearby classrooms as students probably were ignoring their professor in favor of their fellow classmates. He glanced outside and for the thousandth time, he wished the rain would stop falling. He gazed out of the window and wistfully watched the courtyard overflow with rain. At this point, he would have normally been relaxing on a warm, spring afternoon under the shade of the tree perhaps reading about the age old question of Death. He sighed and shook his head. Wishing the rain would stop would do nothing. The rain did not care about his opinion..

verbum comitem [ cccxvii // d ]
word count [ 317 // 500 ]

”Ariel?”

He abruptly halted, a voice waking him from his dreamful thoughts. Somewhere, he recalled hearing his name. He carefully moved the books aft and to the side so as not to obscure his view. A quiet redhead stared at the bookworm-ish magician curiously. A new professor, Ariel silently noted. Something akin to recognition struck him, though he could not recall where. The professor obviously recognized him, for a light smile spread across his face.

“I thought I might see you sooner or later,” he happily said.

The black magician regarded him quietly. It was as if this peculiarly familiar professor was waiting for Ariel to react. Moments marked by the ticking of a clock passed undisturbed. Two quiet and usually rather reclusive people stared silently.

verbum comitem [ cdxliii // d ]
word count [ 443 // 500 ]

“You’ve forgotten me. It has been a while.” the redhead finally realized.

“... Care to remind me then?” Ariel asked.

“Eli? Does that name ring a bell?”

Yes, it did, actually. Eli Harel, his oldest brother. But his brother’s expression was so hopeful, Ariel couldn’t resist playing with Eli. He furrowed his brows. After a solid second, he shook his head. He said, “Sorry, nope. Try again.” Eli’s face fell. He smiled shakily as the air turned awkward. Ariel resisted laughing, though a small quirk of the lips managed past his defenses. The redhead immediately caught onto the motion and frowned.

“Still as childish as ever, I see,” he grumbled, rolling his eyes.

verbum comitem [ dlvi // d ]
word count [ 556 // 500 ]

”Whatever. Wonderful catching up with you but these books are getting really heavy,” Ariel said impatiently.

“Maybe I could lighten the burden and carry some of the books?” Eli suggested.

The black magician shook his head. He brought the books closer to him, and he hugged the books protectively. “No!”

“Where are you going with them?”

“I’ll probably just return to my room.”

“You have classes right now…”

“Aren’t you suppose to be working?”

“Not today. I don’t have any classes today. I can’t say the same about you, though.”

“Whatever. It’s not like anyone cares.”

“At least make yourself useful if you won’t go to your classes. Once you’ve deposited your books to your room, I need you to look for some books.”

“How about no?”

"Too bad."

verbum comitem [ dclxxxv // d ]
word count [ 685 // 500 ]