Intermediate Library Science

[theworst]

[So Jeff and Britta are in a library, in a study room, with books spread across the table. It's oddly nostalgic, except there are five other people missing. Britta's face is scrunched up as she reads over one trying to find something in there to quiz Jeff about to help him in his studying]

How many laws do you really need to know to be a lawyer? Can't you just sing Witchy Woman and win the jury over or whatever it is that you do?

[they seriously need Annie, because this thing called studying is hard]

Comments

[theworst]

[she's about to respond, when she gets distracted by his commands. She grabs the book and shoves it to him quickly]

Here, here! Did you come up with a super scheme to wiggle your way back into lawyering?

[bedheaded]

No, because that is child's play. [He flips open the book and starts flicking through it.] When you take a case, you can argue about whether or not your client did it, or you can argue about what was actually done. Did that woman maliciously murder her husband, or did a victim of relentless abuse finally free herself from a life of violence the only way she knows how? Either way, Mrs Allery's got a shotgun and her peace of mind while Mr Allery is on the floor, but in the second case, the Appeals court lets her walk free instead of slapping her with second degree murder. Would that work now? Of course not. The culture wouldn't recognize it. But they would recognize this.

[He shows her a page covering the insanity plea.] Everyone is crazy here, and almost no one can control when it happens. It's defence gold. In the US, almost every state shoves the burden of proof for insanity onto the defence after that reform act, but not here. Here the prosecution has to prove sanity beyond a reasonable doubt, and a successful plea of temporary insanity has little to no consequences because it happens to everyone, and it's just unlucky that it happened when you were holding a shotgun or driving a carriage. It's a hundred times easier than proving self-defence, because all I would ever have to do is show that they are capable of displaying insanity in this way. And that's a breeze when half of everyone here is out of their minds. Throw in a few words about the insignificance of this crime against the greater backdrop of the horror of the universe and I can wing anything.

[He is smiling really fondly at those pages now.] This place is amazing.

[theworst]

Wow. You really can take advantage of almost anything, can't you? On the plus side, at least I know I'm covered whenever I finally do end up smothering you with a pillow.

[bedheaded]

Nice try, but I won't be defending you if you kill me. You'll probably have some crackpot lawyer who would botch the defence and have you sent to one of the Bedlams they have running here.

[theworst]

[she's about to retort, when something dawns on her]

Oh, I don't think I told you, but another thing they have going on here is bringing people back from the dead.

[bedheaded]

[He opens his mouth to reply, and then he closes his mouth, and then he stares at her.]

They what?

[theworst]

Some of the cults have the ability to bring people back from the dead with ceremonies and stuff. There are side effects, but they're usually case by case, just like when you take medication.

[bedheaded]

Like, zombies and... and whatever else there is other than zombies?

What is that, ghosts? Walking skeletons? I really don't watch enough horror for this.

[theworst]

No, not like zombies. They usually look just like a person who didn't die except they might be a little crazier or they made some deal with the churches so they could come back to life.

[bedheaded]

And it's that easy? Why can't we have that?

[theworst]

I wouldn't say it's easy, considering insanity and whatever other cost there might be that goes along with it.

[bedheaded]

Because being insane is so much worse than ceasing to exist.

[theworst]

Yeah, because it's so easy to exist without your mind or sanity.

[bedheaded]

It's easier than existing without your body.

[theworst]

Well, if I were to die, I wouldn't want you to bring me back. Life is worth living because it's short.

[as she says it she's less convinced though, because dying is scary]

[bedheaded]

Really, Britta? Because if I were to die, I'd want you to bring me back. I'd want you to save me from that. You're an atheist, right? Then you know. It's not heaven or hell. It's not reincarnation or getting a second chance. It's not like being asleep or somewhere without light or noise. It's just ending. It's not nothing; you are. You stop. I don't know about you, but I don't want any part of that if there is anything I can do to get away from it. I want to live. Choosing anything else when I still have the option is tantamount to pointing a gun at my own head and firing.

[theworst]

If it's that important to you, I'll promise to bring you back! But if the situations are reversed I don't want to be brought back, nothingness or not.

[she is feeling less convinced of that after his speech, but her stubbornness is winning out right now. She focuses her attention back on the book, flipping the page, even though she's not really processing anything on the page]

[bedheaded]

[He puts the hand over the page and looks right at her.]

Really, Britta? I'll agree to that. If you can look me in the eye and tell me that you want to die, I won't try to bring you back.

[theworst]

[she looks up at him]

It's not the same as wanting to die. I just don't want to give my life up to whatever these things are that are in charge. I'd rather have my freedom and know I went out completely as myself than be put back together by these cults.

[bedheaded]

[He draws his hand away and shakes his head.] No one's going to care when you're dead. [He continues to pursue the law + history books for more awesome cultural nuances for him to abuse the shit out of.]

[theworst]

[she's quiet for a few minutes, trying to focus on reading, but fails. She closes the book and gets up]

You seem to have it all figured out, so I'll leave you to it. I'm out of here.

[she grabs her coat and bag so she can get away from Jeff and this stupid conversation]

[bedheaded]

[He rolls his eyes and goes back to his books.

For about five seconds as he waits for her to not leave.

And then he chases after her.]

Wait, Britta. Look. I lied. Someone would care. If you died and I lived forever, which, let's be honest I deserve to, because the world is a sadder place without me... I'd care. I'd really care. So please come back and help me learn to pervert the course of justice in this ridiculous horror story of Victorian London.

[theworst]

[she doesn't say anything, but after a few seconds she moves past him back to the table, opening the book and focusing on it in silence]

[bedheaded]

[He sits down across from her, and he reads without speaking, though he does steal a few glances to see if she's okay. And he thought he learned his lessons about projecting his fear of deaths onto others to force them to face the mortality he doesn't want to.]

[theworst]

[after a while she finally breaks the silence, although she still doesn't look up from the book]

What kind of stuff do you need to know from these books?