Ofzahras - Strange Places

"Oh yeah", she glanced at one of the books towards the top of the bag. "Religious Ethics and Constructivism: A Metaethical Inquiry. Just something fun for bedtime, you know how it is." Her tone was dry but her sharp features had softened the moment she had spotted Birdie. At one moment in time she might have very much considered the title in question just that, fun, but as of late Zahra hadn't exactly found any of her research books or research papers page-turners.

Zahra nodded as Birdie offered to help. Deciding against arguing and claiming she didn't need the help, she bent down to reach for a few hefty titles and handed them over. "Thank you. It was a pain to get them here."

It often felt like there was never enough time in the day to get to all the hobbies she wanted to. There were so many books left unread, movies left unseen, albums left unheard, and knowledge left unknown. It was one of those things that Birdie tried to accept best she could and not dwell on too much. And thankfully she could do just that as she spotted a familiar figure on the steps.

Her eyes immediately landed on the other's bag, her shoulder hurting at the mere thought of carrying it herself. "Just finish some light reading?" Her question was more of a lighthearted jest than anything else. "If you want, you can take some of those out and hand them to me to carry. Might be a little easier than trying to lug that thing inside as is." With her own hands empty, she didn't mind helping out and it was hardly an inconvenience.

"You've got a keen eye, Rosie," she replied, careful not to sound snappy, "but I guess this combines strength training and cardio. Saves me a trip to the gym." Not that she had actually frequented one after moving back to the city, nor was she particularly interested in doing so. Admittedly it might have made her trip to the library just a little less torturous. Zahra tilted her head to the side as Rosie voiced their offer. It was a sweet gesture. "Thank you. I might take you up on that if I ever grow really tired of these pilgrimages." Zahra sighed at their question and shook head slowly as she studied the books in her bag. "I have honestly lost count. Way too many?"

“zahra,  are  you  behind  again?”  rosie  was  not  so  much  asking  as  they  were  just  making  the  assumption.  if  it  was  them,  they  certainly  would  also  be  having  late  fees.  this  was  one  of  the  pluses  of  owning  a  bookstore;  they  could  read  whatever  it  was  they  wished  directly  as  it  came  in.  so  long  as  it  didn't  interfere  with  the  customers  coming  in.  offering  smile  for  sheepish  smile.  “y'know,  if  there's  something  you  want,  you  can  always  ask  me  for  a  favour  to  order  in.  a  copy  you'd  get  to  keep,  and  like,  not  worry  about  returning  and  all.”  nervous  chatter  immediately  boiling  up;  even  though  rosie  could  keep  friendships,  it  often  filled  her  with  doubt  to  be  social.  as  though  she  might  ruin  something  by  accident.  “how  many  do  you  even  have  in  there  this  time?  the  box  is  bigger  than  last  time.”

me trying to comprehend anything anyone says to me

If there was one thing Zahra excelled at, it was listening. Sure, her neutral expression could make her seem indifferent or not all that engaged, but she truly did listen, intently and without the need to interrupt. "You're good. Don't worry about it," she assured. It was clear they were going through something and she didn't want to pry. She would've hated it if she had been in their position. "I hope you find what you're looking for. That feeling of home." She had always been good at adapting to her surroundings and finding little things that made her feel like a part of something bigger than herself but that didn't necessarily mean she knew what made a place feel like a home. Still, New York City had treated her well and now that she was back, she couldn't imagine leaving any time soon.

"We're here," she announced once they reached their destination. "I think it's more of an Irish place, but certainly closer to a British pub than the last place. Good beer, too."

Theo blew smoke away from her after sucking in some from their cig, listening to her carefully, their eyes trained on her as she talked. "Home can be a lot of things. Not necessarily a place. Something or someone you want to come back to. That can be a house, your family, a significant other." They shrugged as they explained. "For me, it would be a person but right now, I don't feel like I have a home to go back to." Theo paused for a moment before they let out a chuckle. "Shit, sorry, that got too deep. Anyway, I'm here for work and yeah, I don't particularly like it, honestly."

They took another drag from their cigarette as they walked next to her, their other hand slipping inside the pocket of their jeans, looking around the city around them that people seem to fall in love with so quickly. They weren't that impressed by it.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT TASK #001

a zahra hamed playlist

"That sounds doable. I guess there's a certain kind of catharsis to reading about someone slightly annoying, especially if they grow out of it." While she didn't seek out irritating book characters, hate-reading could act as a weirdly satisfactory way of distraction. "I think I might have to get it, to check out whether you're right about her being annoying," she admitted with a nod, having made her decision.

She studied the woman briefly before moving on to the next shelf to check out its offerings. Zahra was in no hurry to leave and the peaceful bookshop, having realized flipping through the books kept her mocking thoughts at bay. "I take it you read a lot. I mean, you don't work here, do you?"

maddox nearly laughed at the other's question; one she would ask as well. she looked up at the ceiling as she recalled the beginning of the book. "it's not so much that she's annoying in a painful way. she's just annoying in a 'why are you so pessimistic?' type of way. but the more you get to know her and the more she learns and grows throughout the series, the more you let that annoyance fade," she explained, shrugging on shoulder.

"i'm personally not one to go easy on annoying characters. in fact, the only reason i even continued to read the book was because of how perfect the villain was. so if it makes you feel better, there is so many other things to focus on and it'll be over before you know it," she promised.

Zahra was grateful Violet had reached out, mostly because she was evidently excited to see her, but also because it forced her to turn her attention to something less daunting than the pages of subpar writing she had been managed to produce in the last few weeks. Sitting down, she reached for the menu before letting out a sigh. "I guess that's adulthood in a nutshell. Can't imagine how people with big friend groups ever find the time to meet up." The idea of trying to find a day that worked for ten or so people sounded nothing short of hellish. "Anyway, how are you doing? It really has been a while."

Closed Starter for : @ofzahras

Location: Bluebird's

Violet had just taken a sip of water when she spotted her tall friend walk out onto the patio of the restaurant. She raised her arm up in a wave to get their attention. "Zahra darling, it's so good to see you. I feel like I've been so busy lately and I've missed hanging out with you. This place does eggs so perfectly, light and fluffy like you wouldn't believe." She said, catching a waiter's eye that they were ready to order drinks.

"Just a shot of Jack Daniel's. Or with ice if you're feeling real adventurous." She wasn't a whiskey connoisseur by any means but the fact that it was ordered in large quantities by the patrons mean that the same bottle didn't linger behind the bar for too long. She nodded as the other introduced themselves, tempted to roll her eyes at the question but deciding against it at the last moment. "Zahra. Yeah, I guess I do. You don't though. Haven't seen you before."

Theo hummed at the question since they hadn't considered it for a week night but, honestly, they'd take anything at this point to wash down the taste of the piss poor beer. "Fuck it, what's your poison?" They asked and flagged the bartender again. "Two of what... she?" their eyebrow rose in question. "is having," they finished towards the bartender and turned back their new companion. "I'm Theo, come here often?" a playful smirk at the overused line but hey, it was a good conversation starter.

"I don't know, could be both," she pointed out, eyes nailed to the balloon as she thought through her strategy, "plenty of relaxing things are also real dumb. That being said, you could win a record."

who: open (@bhqextras)

where: early after noon, any day, aura music festival

what: doing an activity at one of the vendor tents (making rave sprouts, laying in hammocks, palm reading line, sitting inside the giant parachute, playing balloon darts, making signs, or face painting - pick your muse's favorite!)

Sherri sighed, scrunching her nose at her current task. "I can't tell if this is relaxing, exciting, or just — dumb." She blurted to the person nearest her.

When the other spoke, Zahra couldn't help smiling briefly. "I get that. It's not everyday you see someone carrying forty pounds of books in an Ikea bag. Not even in New York city." She had definitely garnered a few odd looks on her journey to the library, but most New Yorkers seemed to have seen far stranger things and didn't seem to be bothered by the sight.

"I guess you could say that." She regarded the books for a moment as if trying to come up with an excuse for dragging them around the city. "I guess I went a little overboard during my last few library trips. Toting around this haul made me really consider switching to e-books," she admitted, slightly amazed the bag had managed to stay in one piece. "They would probably be far less damaging to my back."

stuck on how to finish the small project she'd started a week earlier, jazzy finally had to admit defeat and do the research on how to best turn her idea into a reality. looking up tutorials online hardly helped because it was too easy to get distracted and go down the cute-kitty rabbit hole, so she typically stuck to how-to craft books.

so informative and full of so many other ideas for potential projects, a trip to the library wasn't really as big of a deal as jazmine was making it out to be. it just made her feel like school was back in session, so when she noticed the woman's large bag, she welcomed the opportunity to postpone her entrance. "sorry," she smiled, "but i have to ask, i do." she peered into the big blue bag, the comical amount of books too amusing a sight to keep her grin from widening. "what's happening here? are you training for some sort of reading marathon?"