Idle Minds [Heleen]

[Deleted]

March 30, 2026
@seph

Sacha was bored, a constant state of being whenever he wasn't practicing. Few things truly held his interest, and he had even less interest with developing new interests. So, he found himself at the book store, search for something new to reach. Perhaps he'd find something actually worth his time today. Or he'd just have to go reread Moby Dick. When it came to his hobbies, the only one that came close to music was classical literature. 

He lazily browsed the shelves, gaze rolling over each book binding. He was in no hurry, as if he had all the time in the world. Row after row, he searched for something, anything, of interest. Finally his gaze fell upon a copy of "The Art of War". Not exactly what one might consider classical, but honestly, Sacha considered anything not from this century as classical. So, he reached out to pluck the book from the shelf and eyed it, his dark eyes scrutinizing. He wouldn't buy just any copy for his collection. After a thorough look over though, he seemed satisfied with the book and turned to head towards the check out. HE stopped though as he found himself right in the path of a woman. Immediately he raised an eyebrow, as if silently asking why she was in his path (as if it was somehow intentional.). "Excuse me," he stated in a tone that seemed to exude his absolute boredom. 

[Deleted]

Heleen wasn't a confident person. She hadn't been while she was young and very little had changed her mind over the years that she was wrong to be insecure or thinking of herself as less to others. It was one of those flaws that she suspected she needed to work out, but well, she never had the time. For a while things had been better, as Dmitri had made her feel confident and smart. He'd been there for her, but life had driven them apart. With very little to occupy her spare time without a decent amount of frustration and ice cream, Heleen had eventually decided that was she really needed was a few good books. For a while she'd considered some of the romance novels, but those stories were not just unrealistic, they also made her a bit sad. So eventually she'd ended up randomly walking around Flourish and Blotts until she'd found a book that caught her attention. The isles of the shop were narrow so as she stood reading the back of the book that had captured her attention, she was well and truly in the way.

At first, the fact he was speaking didn't really register. One of those ADHD side effects. Hyperfocus. Not the best moment in the middle of a store, even though she was in a more quiet section. Fiction, primarily horror. She'd never intended to go here, but then a brightly coloured tome with a very intriguing title had caught her attention and well, she'd followed her impulses and read the back of the book. So as she looked up after a moment and noticed a man with a nearly dead to the world kind of bored expression on his face she got a little spooked and dropped the book. "I'm so sorry, you startled me..." She muttered as she went to pick the book up and brushed off some of the paper spiders that had crawled out of it. She seriously hated spiders, but it was just a book. Besides, the title ought to have warned her that it could easily have been inchanted in such a matter. Actually, she'd known it was enchanted and she still had picked it up. Maybe partially because of the enchantment. After picking up the book she hugged it to her chest, shivering slightly as she pressed herself against the bookcase, presuming the man wanted to pass. Then she noticed one of the paper spiders crawling up his sleeve and she motioned a little awkwardly towards it. "You have a piece of the book crawling on your arm...." She said in a shy and slightly awkward tone. Well this was brilliant.

@sacha
OOC: you had to make me think up a reason why he wouldn't just walk by.. well... I TRIED, OKAY!!!
book (but wizarding version ofc): images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91bWs5Vtd6L.jpg

[Deleted]

March 30, 2026
@seph

The woman in his way reminded Sacha of a mouse. Boring, unassuming, skittish. She dropped the book she'd been skimming and he noticed it must have been enchanted as a few paper spiders scattered about. He glanced up at the top of the bookshelf to see which section this was. Ah, Horror. Made sense why they'd enchant the book that sort of way. Probably a jump scare for when you got to a certain scene. His gaze slowly lowered back down as she apologized and scrambled to retrieve the book. Well, the most interesting part of this exchanged seemed to be over as she pressed herself against the aisle to give himself enough room to pass. He took a step forward to take the opportunity when she spoke again, motioning to his arm. Immediately he looked down to find a paper spider trying to hitch a ride. He scoffed, tucked the book he'd selected under his arm, and used his now free hand to flick the paper spider away. He might have been more concerned if he hadn't seen them a moment before and if they weren't paper. But they were likely harmless.

Without a word he seemed satisfied with the paper spider's current flying lesson onto the bookshelf and started to pass, sneaking a glance at the book she was so desperately clinging to. He passed and almost seemed like he might continue on his way, but he stopped and plucked a book from higher up on the shelf and held it out to her. "That author is shit. This is better." By the cover it was clearly similar in nature from the spiders on the cover.

[Deleted]

For a moment it seemed as though the encounter would end right there, but he grabbed a book from higher up the shelf and handed it over to her, claiming the book she'd been planning to purchase was by a shit author and that the one he'd handed her was better. Well, maybe a shit author was better to start off with for somebody that had never read a horror book before, but what did she know? She'd never actually read a horror book before. She accepted the book and glanced over the cover. Positively a lot more creepy by far. "Thanks for the recommendation. I think I'll get both, see if it's quite as shit so I can appreciate the better work more when I get to it." She mused as she added the book he'd given her to the one she'd picked out herself. There was no way in hell she'd admit to this stranger that she'd never actually read a horror book before and wanted to start on something a little easier to digest.

She wasn't sure if he wanted to keep a conversation going, mostly because he didn't really seem the type. She found that naturally interesting, as she was by nature far too curious for her own good. She hesitated for a moment. "Do you... read a lot of horror books?" She asked him curiously. Her eyes had long since passed over his long hair in appreciation as she'd noticed the spider. She'd always been somewhat fascinated by men with long hair, mostly because it was uncommon and said something about them being willing to stand out in a crowd. She admired that, since she didn't exactly have the confidence she wished she had to even dress in the style she was most interested in. Though she'd been considering trying it she just hadn't. She kept putting it off, always telling herself to do something or another first. Get settled in at work, get used to the new country, make friends, worry about her (by now failed) relationship. She was running out of excuses, so naturally she was currently pinning it all on finances. The clothes she liked? They were a lot more expensive than the standard wear because they weren't as popular. One day, or so she kept telling herself.

@sacha

[Deleted]

March 30, 2026
@seph

Sacha didn't care for much, but he did enjoy reading. IT was one of the few past times that he'd willingly do. Not only that, reading was a solo activity, so he didn't have to deal with the idiocy of people. Not only that he could easily just close the book adn toss it if it didn't hold his interest. It was one of the reason he liked it. He'd never run out of books to read. Though, modern horror really his forte. The book he'd suggested was a classic, hence his familiarity. Sacha raised an eyebrow at her words though. Get both so she could appreciate the better work? He was tempted to comment, to tell her how stupid it was to read something that you didn't enjoy just for the sake of making something else seem better. But he decided in that moment it wasn't worth commenting on. He just shrugged and plucked the book he'd tucked under his arm back into his hand.

The conversation should have ended then, but instead, she spoke. Asking him a question. He paused, having been midstep to leave, and stared at her. "No," he answered honestly. He would have left it at that but it seemed a bit... off. "I prefer classics. Of any genre." That might better explain it. Genre didn't much matter as long as it wasn't from this century.

[Deleted]

He said not to have a preference for any specific genre but more for the classics of any one genre. While it made sense up to some point she found it to be far too restricting. What was the risk that he'd miss some of the best books out there simply by not wanting to give give new works a chance? She considered it for a brief moment. "Doesn't that mean you risk missing out on books you'd potentially love for only sticking to what you already know?" She asked him curiously. If a book wasn't worth her time, she simply opted not to finish it. If a book was worth her time it hardly mattered to her if it was to be deemed a classic or not. She read for her enjoyment, not for status or some other motivator. Perhaps if she were a literary agent that might have been a different matter, but as it stood it simply wasn't. She enjoyed discovering new books, no matter what time period they were from. They were without a doubt not all high quality, but she found them entertaining enough so that didn't matter.

@sacha