Pluto (One-Shots of Rilaya)

Adventures in Bookstores

Riley looks up at the small building, making sure she is at the right address. The shop is sandwiched between two large stores making it seem tiny in comparison. The exterior of the store is old and worn, but Riley feels like it's more from use than neglect. On the front of the old building is a wooden sign nailed above the glass double doors. The sign reads: "Hart Bookstore. Open since 1967."

The brunette groans. Of course her dad would make her research project an old library. He had given her class a lesson on the history of New York, and at the end of the lecture, Cory had assigned each of them a building to research. The man claimed that it would give them a better insight on the rich history of their city.

With a sigh, Riley climbs up the steps to the entrance. Pushing the doors open, Riley steps inside. A small bell rings, signaling that the door has been opened. The brunette looks around at the small library. At the entrance there is a small, ancient-looking desk with a worn leather chair behind it. A computer sits on top of the desk with large stacks of books surrounding it. Further back in the store, Riley sees multiple shelves of even more books, each crammed so full that the books seem ready to pop out of the shelf. In a small corner of the shop is an old brick fireplace, which the opening is protected by what Riley guesses is glass, and some plush reading chairs. Long wooden tables are placed in the back of the shop, chairs placed around them. Daylight filters through the many windows inside the quaint store.

Stepping deeper into the store, Riley calls out, "Hello?"

Having no answer, Riley shrugs. She begins to wander over to the shelves looking through all the books. Most of them are old classics such as Dracula or Jane Eyre. She picks up one of the books, looking at the worn leather cover of it. She thumbs through the pages, noticing how each page has slowly started to yellow.

"That's one of my favorites, you know."

Riley jumps, quickly shutting the book with a loud thump. She turns towards the voice, seeing a short blonde girl smiling at her. The girl looks to be about her age, possibly older, with light blue eyes and glasses. She is wearing a plaid red flannel over a white shirt with the black silhouette of a reindeer on it and some jeans with fluffy brown boots. Tilting her head to the side, the girl gives Riley a friendly smile.

"What?" Riley asks, too shocked to remember what the girl had said.

She laughs, and Riley swears it is the sweetest sound she has ever heard, "That book in your hand? It's one of my favorites."

Flipping the book to see the cover, Riley glances at the title. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland. Looking back up at the mystery girl, Riley notices that she is rocking on the balls of her feet, waiting for her to say something back. The brunette quickly scrambles for something to say.

Her mind blanks, and the brunette utters in a squeaky voice, "Oh."

The girl smiles, "So what are you doing here? We don't usually have people your age visiting very much."

"Uh... I have a school project. Learn the history of this library," she mumbles.

The blonde girl smiles even wider, "Well, lucky for you I've basically grown up in here. Ask me about anything you need to know."

She then starts walking away, leaving Riley no choice but to trail behind the mysterious stranger. The girl leads them over to the plush chairs next to the fireplace. Jumping onto one, the blonde sighs contently.

"Much better. I've been on my feet all day," she says, stretching her legs over the arm of the chair.

Riley awkwardly stands there, not knowing what to say. The girl looks over at her, motioning to Riley with her hand.

"Sit with me. You got some questions to ask, right?" she says warmly.

Riley nods and sits stiffly in one of the plush chairs. An awkward silence hangs in the air. The blonde waits expectantly for Riley. Shaking her head, Riley realizes that she has to ask the girl questions. Pulling out her history notebook, Riley opens up to the page of questions she had written down to ask.

"So... Who owns this store?" Riley asks, looking up from her notes.

"Katy Hart," the girl answers.

Jotting down the name, Riley continues on to the next question, "How long has this store been in business?"

The blonde scrunched her eyebrows, thinking. 'That's adorable,' Riley thinks to herself. Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Riley waits for the girl to answer. Finally, the blonde seems to come to a decision.

"This store has been open for 49 years... 50 in February."

They continue this way for hours. Riley asks questions and the girls tells her the answers. Finally, Riley finishes. All she has left to do now is get the signature from one of the owners of the store, and she'll be done.

"So... I need a signature from the owner of the store... Any idea where she is?" Riley asks.

The blonde sits up, "Oh, I can do that. Where do you need a signature?"

Riley hands her the notebook and points at the blank spot for the signature. Taking out a pen, the girl swiftly writes her name down. The brunette takes the paper back. She looks at the signature. Maya P. Hart. Her eyes widen with surprise. Maya giggles.

"How else would I know so much about this store?" she says.

Riley blushes, realizing it was pretty obvious that the girl had something to do with the bookstore. Getting out of the plush chair, the brunette heads towards the entrance. She hears the blonde girl follow behind her. Maya taps her shoulder.

"So... It was pretty fun to see a new face today. Maybe come around again sometime?" Maya says, rocking on the balls of her feet again.

Riley nods, smiling at her, "Sure thing, Miss Hart. I'd like to see you more often, too."

Maya smiles, "Here's a parting gift for you."

The blonde takes out a book, handing it over to Riley. Taking it from Maya, she grins. Wrapping Maya up in a hug, Riley says goodbye before exiting the small store. The moon shines brightly on the city as Riley heads home on the subway. Looking down at the book, the girl giggles. Maya had given her a copy of Alice's Adventures In Wonderland. She opens up the first page.

See you soon, Matthews. You really should read this book. It's one of my favorites, and I'm sure it'll be one of yours. Love, Maya Hart.

Riley's eyebrows raise in surprise. She doesn't remember giving Maya her name. Then, the brunette notices some more writing at the bottom of the page. She laughs after reading it, leaving the subway with a smile on her face. She'll definitely visit her friend again. That's for sure.

PS: Don't think I'm some magician. You wrote your name on the top of your notebook. I'm not THAT magical.