Back to Basics

[Arle Nadja]

Arle flinched at the display of carelessness as the books Millie had just sent falling to the ground  with a series of dull thuds. Man--Her teacher back home would've scolded her for pulling a stunt like that! ...Was that just proper behavior here, or was the library just a very lax area? For a moment she was worried a librarian might think they were up to trouble, but no one came to so much as ask what the noise was. Perhaps more concerning, however, was the very excitable lady questioning her.  How--....How had Millie figured her out? Arle swore there was something weird going on. Was it her comment about being new here? Did only primes arrive here from other worlds and this was one of the natives? That made a little bit more sense to her,  but she still felt compelled to learn more. The way she saw it, the more she knew for certain the more comfortable she'd become.

"Hehe, thanks..." Arle would rather casually reply, though her tone was tainted with her overall anxiety. She would have been considered to have a striking natural beauty in her home world so the idea that Millie was complimenting her wasn't exactly foreign. Arle personally found herself admiring some of the more refined beauties in her area, but she had no clue how to pretty herself up like them. Having grown up in a somewhat lower class family and having had to raise herself during her teenage years for the most part, she'd never been taught how to pretty herself up. From what little experience she did have, Arle firmly believed she was pretty terrible at it--probably with good reason. To that end, she'd chosen to take some pride in her looks so that she wouldn't feel insecure around her friends.

Arle was soon presented with some books and... A shiver ran down her spine. Unlike the chairs, the books had not moved in a way that suggested they were aware of her presence to Arle.  They'd moved in such a way that she was expecting to see a pair of hands retracting from them, but when she looked up she was met only by thin air. ...Was this library haunted or something?! The flustered mage had to stop herself and reason that if it was, the ghost had just brought her books. As eerie a thought as there being someone watching her that she couldn't see was, she couldn't complain about books. That was just silly! ...Swallowing her anxiety, she glossed over the titles. Luckily she didn't need help with casting a fireball; she wasn't quite set back far enough for that. She also didn't need a robe; her current clothes were quite comfy. Arcane theory sounded a little abstract for what she was looking for, and...  Arle did a double take at the last book. What the hell was an edgelord?  Was it something like... a swordmaster, perhaps? Master of bladed weapons? Perhaps that was a book Schezo would appreciate if he were here, but she was more a fan of staves. She couldn't help but feel that someone had fun writing that title though.  ...Perhaps arcane theory was her best bet? It didn't sound promising, but it might surprise her. She set the book aside before taking notice of Mr. Jingles' vocalizations.

...Oh my goodness, that was precious. It also raised questions. Was there a school of magic just for cats out there that taught cat specific vocalizations? Was Mr. Jingles self-taught, a pioneer of cat magic? Was he the product of magic himself? ...All Arle knew was that she wanted to give him some love. The way he was brushing up against those books moments ago made it seem like he might appreciate it. Before she could properly offer her hand, however, it was snatched from the air by Millie. Her stranger danger senses spiked for a moment, but to her surprise she found her hand being shaken rather roughly. ...This was a weirdly intense way to hold hands from Arle's perspective, but she got the impression that it wasn't being done with ill intent. She had felt ill intent a great many times and this wasn't... quite it.

Arle awkwardly clung to Millie's hand with both of hers in response, bowing her head apologetically for a moment in acknowledgement. Her grip could only be described as modest in both strength and texture.  She didn't exactly pamper her skin, but it seemed like she probably preferred not to do any heavy lifting either. She likely had slightly more muscle strength than the average girl of her age simply because of Arle's very active lifestyle, however it almost certainly paled in comparison to anyone who used their hands for a living. They were very distinct from her legs which had a much more athletic build that hinted at a lifestyle of very frequent travel by foot.

"Yeah--I guess I am. I'm still not sure how everyone can tell, though. I don't really feel special. Hehe... it's nice to meet you properly, Leviathian. I met a dragon with that name once." Arle replied before going on to muse aloud. That had been a long time ago, during her kindergarten final exam. "It didn't appreciate visitors." Arle went on, a hint of a goofy smile creeping into her expression for a brief moment.