[University - Wright Library] Professor Stonemiller

[Azilis Theroulde]

Timestamp: 35th Summer, 510 A.V. The slap of Azilis' shoes on the floor of the library seemed unnecessarily loud as she approached the librarian's desk. She cast her eye around the room, soaking in the rows upon rows of shelves and the sound of someone flipping through a book. The gentle wshh of each page turning over seemed louder than normal in the hushed quiet. Books were a luxury in Syliras, and although they were, of course, more common than normal in the University, she still found herself awed at the sheer amount of information one could pack between its two covers. “Did you need something, miss?” The librarian, a young woman several years older than herself, broke into her reverie. “Were you looking to find a specific book, maybe?” Her fingers crept prematurely to the cabinet that held the card catalogue. “No, actually, a specific professor.” She glanced at the desks and chairs scattered about the library. Azilis had never actually met Professor Stonemiller; her father had, and had mentioned him on several occasions, but she had never come face-to-face with the man. “I'm looking for a Professor Stonemiller? Is he here?” “Oh, he's always in here somewhere.” The librarian pointed to a section of the stacks towards the back. “Think I saw him at one of the desks back there. Why don't you check there first?” She nodded her appreciation. “Thank you. I'll try my luck.” Trying to silence her footsteps, she made her way across the library to the stacks holding the largest, most ancient tomes. The smell of must and decaying pages filled the air. Nestled between the shelves was a small study area, at which an older man sat studying and making notations. Azilis took several steps toward him, hoping she'd gotten the right man. “Excuse me, sir? Are you – are you Professor Stonemiller?” Her fingers began to intertwine nervously, afraid that he would either be the wrong man or reject her request. “I'm Azilis Theroulde, sir. Looking to study Auristics?” She swallowed, trying not to make every sentence sound like a question. “My father trained me some, Professor, so I know a bit already. He was a skilled Aurist. And...I wanted to follow in his footsteps, you see.” She locked eyes with him, awaiting a reply.

[Liminal]

Professor Stonemiller did not stir until the young woman spoke. Then the man looked up, his eyes tired, as if he had been there for a long, long time. He listened as Azilis gave her explanation -- and then didn't immediately say anything at all. The silence, made even more pronounced by the library's vast stillness, might have been awkward, though the Professor seemed not to find it so.

"You are Professor Theroulde's daugher? I knew him, though not well." He placed a velvet bookmark in the volume he had been reading, and then closed it. Like the others in the university, he seemed perpetually unfazed.

"Before I make any decisions, I must ask you a question, my friend. Magic is a powerful, powerful thing, and auristics is a powerful manifestations of it. Something, intense indeed must have pushed you to study and practice it. Do you know what will be required if you continue?"

[Azilis Theroulde]

The silence lengthened and stretched as the professor sized her up, and her fingers began to tug anxiously as the frayed edges of her sleeves. Professor Stonemiller might not have found the silence awkward, but Azilis certainly did. What was he ruminating over? Did he think her presumptuous for mentioning her father? When he at last spoke, a wave of relief washed over her. “Yes, I'm his daughter. But – but I don't want to make you think that just because I am, I expect to get by without any work. I know what'll be required of me, Professor. And I understand that magic can be risky business.” She paused, considering his last question. It wouldn't do to go spouting off without a thought; that would make her sound headstrong and foolhardy. “To be a successful mage, one needs determination, first and foremost. Which I have, Professor. To be able to transform one's essence takes a type of dedication which I think I've got.” She began to feel a bit more confident, although she hoped the man thought her words weren't trite. “In the end, though, that's up to you to decide, sir, not me.”

[Liminal]

The Professor listened, tapping one finger on the cover of his book. When Azilis had finished, he stood, and motioned with his left hand. "Follow me."

Silently, he walked further into the building. There was a door in one wall; he pulled it open, revealing a staircase leading down. It was dimly lit by strange blue lights that didn't appear to be burning anything.

He walked down at least two floors before pulling another door open. This one revealed a long corridor, lit by the same blue globes. Into this hallway he went, going perhaps twenty feet before he reached a door on his left, which he also opened.

This one showed only a bare room, empty except for a single chair. The Professor sat down in it, then turned his head toward Azilis. "All right then, Azilis Theroulde. Please give me a basic demonstration of your skills thus far in Auristics. Recognizing that it's not the easiest discipline to demonstrate, you may use me as your test subject if you wish."

[Azilis Theroulde]

Azilis' throat grew dry. “Al – alright, Professor. I'll do my best.” She crossed the room and turned, so that she stood directly facing the man. She closed her eyes and began to breathe deeply and rhythmically, calming her body so that her mind would be unimpeded. In, one, two, three, four, hold, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, and...out... As she did this, she imagined the tension and nervousness that she felt ooze down through her body and diffuse out the soles of her feet. When she felt that her body was completely under her control, she concentrated on the currents of Djed that she knew ran through her body, trying to feel the astral body that would be doing this otherwordly seeing for her. By concentrating on the beating of her heart and the rush of blood through her limbs, it grew easier for her to draw on her sense of inner essence, which she would need to accomplish this feat of personal magic. After five or so minutes had passed, she began to tug on the flow of Djed, willing it up mostly into her eyes, but also drawing it to her ears and nose so that she could use each sense to read Professor Stonemiller accurately. She waited several more minutes after doing this, until she felt that her mind and body were perfectly harmonized and understood the functions that she wanted each to perform. Then, with one more meditative breath, she opened her eyes and gazed upon the professor. His aura, a mosaic of infintesimal color and texture, bloomed around his body, and for a few moments Azilis let herself be immersed in the beauty of it. Then she got to work, focusing her mind on harvesting details from the aura and bringing it into perfect focus. The man's aura seemed to her to be filled with mostly cool, calm colors: shades of green, blue, and deep purples. However, when she focused further upon it, she could see small spackles of fire-tinged orange among the cooler shades, and heard the distinctive sound of a quill scratching on vellum, accompanied by the acidic smell of ink. “If I'm putting together the information I've gathered correctly...then, sir, you seem slightly bothered. As though I interrupted you from studies that were proving particularly illuminating, when I came up to you in the library before.” She didn't wait for his answer, but continued to concentrate. There seemed to be a strange tint of yellow around his throat that, had she looked there before, would have been obvious: sickness. “Oh, I don't know why I didn't see this before. Are you feeling a bit under the weather, Professor? A sore throat, or a cold, maybe?” Just then, a headache began to pound at her temples, and she closed her eyes before the pain could grow. “That's all I can See for right now, Professor Stonemiller.” She waited for his evaluation of her endeavors.

[Liminal]

Stonemiller waited without speaking or moving until Azilis had finally concluded. Then, the barest trace of a smile crossed his weathered face.

"It was a particularly interesting passage I was reading when you arrived, Miss Theroulde, yes," he said. "And I'm afraid that the summer flowers always disturb my sinuses, so you may consider yourself correct on that count as well."

Then he nodded to himself. "Professor Theroulde, I believe, had every right to had high hopes for you. Consider yourself accepted into the program of study. I don't believe I'll be able to start your courses until the fall, but take the rest of the time until then to prepare."

[Azilis Theroulde]

A red flush warmed her cheeks as Azilis listened to Stonemiller's judgments of her efforts. Her passion for magic was not one that she shared with many people outside of her family, and so it lifted her spirits to hear a validation of her abilities from a man who knew his way around the subject. Perhaps, if she worked hard enough under this man's tutelage, her fantasies of becoming a renowned mage would become something more than just daydreams spun out in her mind when she was woolgathering...? Well, one could hope, at least. “Oh, thank you, Professor Stonemiller! My father, he'll be so happy when he hears, it's an honor -” She was babbling again. Quickly, she pressed her lips together before any more errant words could fall out the corners of her mouth. She did not want to seem like one of those jejune first-years who divulged every thought they had. “I won't take up any more of your time, then, Professor.” As she made her way to the door of the spartan room, a foolish grin tugged at her lips. Come fall, she would truly be part of the University.

OOC :

...the end, then?

Should I make a new fall-dated thread for the actual auristics course?

[Liminal]

+1 XP Auristics. And yes, go ahead and start a new thread -- PM me the link and we'll take it from there.