(Untitled)

[ps_you_look_hot]

There's a man on a couch by the fire, feet up, two books open in his lap. One is an ancient, dusty-looking thing, the other an English-Sanskrit dictionary.

Someone's researching.

[ooc: Recycled post is recycled! Open until his next EP.]

Comments

[tragic_mask]

If there's one thing Melpomene can never resist (besides a light, of course), it's really old, really dusty books.

Consequently, there's a curious muse in a nearby chair by the fire.

[ps_you_look_hot]

Nikola is rather engrossed in his attempted translations, so he doesn't notice he's being watched.

Periodically, there's a whispered (and completely inaccurately pronounced) bit of Sanskrit.

[tragic_mask]

Melpomene winces, but doesn't comment.

After about fifteen words like this, she finally leans over and says, quite helpfully, "You know, most people don't speak Sanskrit any more, so you're probably better off not trying to speak it aloud."

[ps_you_look_hot]

He finally glances up. "If no one speaks it, then I'm hardly doing any harm by muddling my way through, am I?"

[tragic_mask]

She makes a pained face.

"That's pretty logical. But if you wanted to speak it, wouldn't you want to know you were speaking it correctly?"

Melpomene always pushes for good pronunciation.

[ps_you_look_hot]

"I would, if I were trying to speak it. Really, I'm just trying to make sense of it, and saying it out loud sometimes helps with that."

Languages are not his strong suit, though he does quite well with them.

[tragic_mask]

She finds a better angle--in this case over his shoulder-- and reads a few lines, murmuring.

"Looks like interesting stuff," she concludes, a bit wry.

[ps_you_look_hot]

"Well, theoretically, yes," Nikola says, flipping to the next page. "It loses a lot of points for being vague and metaphorical."

[tragic_mask]

"About what?" she asks. "And, more to the point, what are you going to be using the information here for? My apologies if you're in the small minority of people who do this sort of thing for fun."

[ps_you_look_hot]

"About safeguards and ways around them," Nikola says. "The problem is, most of the practical information about Bhalasaam has been destroyed, and what we're left with, mostly, is legend, which tends to be much less specific."

[tragic_mask]

"And you're looking for more... factual information?"

[ps_you_look_hot]

"Mmhm. Technical specifications would be nice, of course, but I think that would be expecting too much."

[tragic_mask]

"What do you need those for?" she asks, head tilted.

[ps_you_look_hot]

"I have my reasons." And he's not eager to share them.

[tragic_mask]

She smiles, quietly.

"Fair enough."

Though she admits to herself that, yes, it is a little unsettling not to even be able to read his thoughts even a little.

[ps_you_look_hot]

Nikola smiles back and asks, "Where did you learn Sanskrit, if I might ask? It's not exactly common."