Entralling Bloom

5.) Memories

Rosalind

Good grief. I finally made it to work, Rosalind thought after dashing inside the Knights of Favonious Headquarters.

 She let out a heavy sigh and tried to forget her awkward encounter with the blond knight on the stairs.

Uggghhh. And here I was thinking that I was going to be professional today: starting an actual conversation with the guards outside and showing up to work without getting lost. It would have been a great start to the day, but, no, fate decided to screw with me like it always does.

God, has today been embarrassing! It was like all I could hear was those two guards stifling their laughter... And what was with the guy who bumped into me? If he's a knight he should definitely be more coordinated than me, right? It seems like an honest accident, but I can't help but be mad. I really thought my skull was about to get up close and personal with the pavement... 

I SHOULDN'T HAVE ACTED LIKE IT WAS FINE JUST BECAUSE I FELT FLUSTERED, THOUGH!

It was too much. Being held, my face inches away from some starry-eyed stranger...

I really wish I could get a grip on my social anxiety... 

 Ros exhaled again and tried to quiet her rattled brain. Then she quickly walked through a door on her right and further distracted herself by marveling at her favorite view in Mondstadt, the Knights of Favonius Library.

To Rosalind, the KOF library was almost as grandiose a place as the rest of Headquarters itself. Countless freshly-polished, wood bookcases lined the walls and divided the large split-level room into sections.

On the upper floor, there were mostly bookcases with areas for seating in the corners of the room. There were also two balconies for looking out onto the ground floor below.

 One of the balconies was for patrons. From there, they could enjoy the view of the romantic and softly-lit study that lay beneath them.  The other balcony housed the librarian's desk. 

This balcony provided the librarian on duty with the same scenic view as the patrons but also gave them the perfect vantage point from which to scope out troublemakers.

Like the upper floor, the lower floor also had bookcases that lined the walls, but in place of a balcony, the center of the lower floor was dominated by even more bookcases. In the heart of the room, in between a few bookcases on the ground floor,  were four sets of large rectangular tables,  each equipped with six chairs worth of seating.

Directly in front and behind those tables was a smattering of couches and sofas for patrons to relax in.

The intention behind the design of the KOF library was obvious. The upper level was the space strictly dedicated to books, and the lower level was the space dedicated to socializing and comfort.

Rosalind walked across the upper floor's balcony and took her seat behind the librarian's desk. Shortly after, she sighed and rested her chin in her palm. 

The library was practically empty. Clearly, it was going to be another slow day.

There's not much to do here when someone doesn't turn in a book or the library isn't receiving new titles, Rosalind thought. There hasn't been an influx of returns since Lisa's shift so there's nothing for me to tag and sort, and there's no one who needs my help right now.

Ros let her eyes glide across the room languidly. Ros blamed Lisa for her interactions with people, but she couldn't blame her for being tired or unfocused during her shifts. Dozing off just came with the territory of being a Knights of Favonius librarian. The library was empty all too often, so one couldn't be expected to be alert throughout the entire eight-hour workday.