savedtheworld | [Appointments] March 2013-

[He walks deeper into the library, towards Aang's voice, until he spots the boy peeking around one of the shelves.]

Yeah, it's me. I was hoping that we could talk. You are one of Wan Shi Tong's negotiators right?

[He nods as he steps out towards Steve.]

That's right... It's kind of an Avatar duty. I was hoping to talk to you too, Steve. [Loki seemed convinced that even Steve would see the reason in his actions.]

Really? I suppose that makes sense. [His face shows surprise at Aang's admission.] Well, that makes this a lot easier then. Do you want to talk here?

Sure. I'm meeting Helios here, so this place makes sense. You know about the... you know, the whole situation, right?

[He nods.] Yes. I've been following it over the journals mostly. Why don't we sit down? [He leads them over to one of the tables and sits down.]

So, what do you think about all of this?

[Aang gives another nod and follows him to the table, a little nervous - what if Steve is upset with him and his approach?

He sits down quietly, glancing towards Steve uncertainly.]

Well... I agree that Wan Shi Tong's methods can be too harsh and that the books here shouldn't be restricted that much. But I also think that Loki's method is wrong, and that it's only gonna make things worse. He doesn't want to negotiate, so this can get dangerous.

All I want is a peaceful resolution.

[Steve keeps his expression carefully thoughtful. It wasn't his intention to come here and argue his point, just to open up a line of communication. See if there's a chance for compromise.]

That's what I would like as well. I have already spoken to Loki about the flaws in his plan. I disagree with the actions he has taken, however, not the reasons behind his actions. Wan Shi Tong might not have meant upset anyone with his actions, but what he is trying to do is essentially claim things that are not his to claim. It's like if I were to walk into your home and claim everything in it as my own. His intentions might be good ones, but you can understand why it's not the best approach, right?

[He doesn't look Steve in the eyes. He just goes on, quietly trying to explain it all.]

I understand that fully. See... Wan Shi Tong is from my world. We've had conflict with him in the past. The difference is that at home, he had a special library that he was entrusted with and added to by himself. Here... he doesn't have the same rights to these books. But at the same time... when he made one of his representatives, he said that he could be open to compromise if we could prove ourselves as trustworthy. I know it's not right and it's not ideal... but if we could have played along with him for just a little while, then he might have relaxed the rules and it'd be almost the way it was before.

Even if Loki's intentions were good... They might have ruined one way we could have solved this peacefully.

[Steve listens without interrupting, absorbing this information. It gives him a clearer idea of the situation and where it stands now.]

I won't try and defend Loki's actions. But Wan Shi Tong arrived here a stranger to most of us. To have a stranger come in and ask the rest of us to prove that we are trustworthy...do you see the problem with that? We have nothing but your word and the word of people from your world that he is worth trusting. Just as he has nothing but our word. Maybe if both sides tried trusting one another, things could de-escalate. But that would mean restoring things to how they were. I don't think anyone would be comfortable with anything less.

I know what you mean. It would be unfair to everyone. [He takes a moment to look around - making sure that neither the owl or his fox is listening in.] And to be fair, I wouldn't say that I completely trust Wan Shi Tong. He can get violent and dangerous when people defy him. That's - that's another reason things can escalate. And why I thought that... playing along would be the safer plan.

I do agree with what you said at the end. The most ideal solution should be starting all over with the library. But the problem is that these two sides are Wan Shi Tong and Loki. How can we get both of them to trust each other, and even more than that, to agree on that plan?

[His lips press together in a grim line as Aang tells him about Wan Shi Tong.] That only makes it more important that we put a stop to this. No one will come out of this looking good if it spirals out of control.

Loki will agree. That's what he wants to happen. It sounds strange for me to be saying this but, his actions aside, I don't believe Loki is the biggest problem right now. Wan Shi Tong is. Someone needs to make him see reason. Possibly someone he already knows and trusts...

You're sure that he'll agree? He didn't seem very agreeable when I tried talking to him. [He looks towards Steve uncertainly. But he can see the point. Loki doesn't seem like the bigger problem right now - Wan Shi Tong is the one feared to retaliate. At the same time, if Loki will act like this whenever any of his freedoms are threatened, what will happen when it's something other than books at stake?]

I... I can try to talk sense into Wan Shi Tong. It'll be hard, because he's an old spirit and he's very set in his ways. And I do think that I might be the closest person here to someone who he trusts, but right now I think I'm still earning that trust back. We did break our trust in him back home, after all.

As long as the library goes back to the way it was, he'll agree. I'm sure of it. [It's the one thing Steve is sure of in this situation.]

Just do the best you can. I think it might be easier to hear from someone he knows. But if it doesn't work, have him talk to me. I think I might be able get him to change his mind if it comes down to that. [This is not something something Steve is sure about. He's getting a better idea of how Wan Shi Tong works, but that's no guarantee that Steve can persuade him. That's why it's a last resort.]

[ Helios has been listening to both of them for a good portion of the conversation. ]

I-I can also try to talk to him as well. I might not know him personally but I have dealt with spirits of his nature before in my world as well. I think the only way to a resolution though is if the two of them stay far away from each other. Their personalities clash far too much and-and in a way it's leading to a rather slippery slope in terms of getting any resolution made. Perhaps one of us can help Wan Shi Tong see reasaon. [ Or at least Helios hopes. ]

[He glances towards Helios.]

You met spirits like him before, too, Helios? [He scrunches up his face in thought.] I agree with a lot of what you said. How much do you think Wan Shi Tong trusts you?

[Steve nods at Helios.]

I think we can all agree that more than one attempt couldn't hurt. And I agree that they should remain separated. I wouldn't trust Loki not to antagonize Wan Shi Tong or the opposite.

I have. Many in fact learn and live at my school through several means of cooperation. I'm n-not sure how much he'll trust a human like myself, but I'm not going to give up and leave him on his own. I was the prior librarian after all. It'd be just terrible if I left the library like that! But I do hope we can do something about this without anyone getting hurt.

I see. [He smiles at Helios.] Between the both of us and maybe Steve, too, maybe we can get Wan Shi Tong to do something reasonable. Katara suggested one really good compromise to me yesterday. We should encourage him to make his own collection of books that are separate from the ones in the library. If he could accept that... then he could still do his duties as the Knowledge Spirit, and we could still read all the books of the library freely.

That sounds like a reasonable idea. If he had his own collection to work with, he wouldn't need to bother with the library books. Do you think he'll agree to it Aang? You would know better than us.

[He closes his eyes in thought.]

Maybe. I... I can't really tell for sure. But I think it's the best compromise we can hope for. It still might be tricky to get him to let go of his attachments to the other books.

Mm I don't know. He might think of it as us trying to push him away by appeasing him while keeping the library open to the public. Something like undermining him as a spirit of knowledge. But there's really no way of knowing how he'll take it.

Whatever his reasons, those books are not his to claim for himself. It's not as if we're insinuating he wouldn't have access to the library should he need it. Just that he can create his own collection if it's really so important he has his own books.

[Appointments] March 2013-

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[April 26th | Action] Heyo I'mma threadjack /ninjas

[April 26th | Action] i for one welcome our ninja librarian

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