MG roulette (Hakutaku)

Learning strange knowledge is fun. Those were the words Stuart lived by.

Finding out something new the weird and wonderful of the world was always there to brighten Stuart's day. From the discovery of new animals to any odd fact about history that was recently discovered. He enjoyed it all. It as for that reason he worked at the library, he spent as much time reading the encyclopedias and weird books as he did assist the owner.

So when the monsters started appearing in London he was having a field day. Every now and again a new kind of monster would show up and filled him with questions. Seeing the undine on national telly almost made him froth at the mouth.

From what he had gathered, an encyclopedia was received when the e-mail opened. The thought having such a book excited him. Knowledge of a whole new world and its history is right up  his alley.

He made himself a bit sad with the realisation that he was eligible for the e-mail but he was more interested in getting the book then getting a potential girlfriend/wife. Wouldn't it be stupid to be reading about women instead of the natural learning process? Also, it didn't help that he would be able to talk to her. Man, his friends were right, he needed to get out more.

Not that he hadn't tried, mind you, it's just a little hard to do that when the bar is the furthest one would go, or that women saw him as “Too nerdy” at best and “That library weirdo.” at worst.

So when he found the E-mail in his inbox while he was on his laptop in his bedroom. He decided to use the button at once and try (as awkward as he thought it would be) the old fashioned way of finding out how a girl worked, or something like that.

As promised the screen gave him a name.

*HAKUTAKU*

Stuart mentally went through his mind trying to recollect if he had heard of the name and came up empty. He was sure he knew a decent amount of world folklore, so maybe this one was a little too obscure for even him. Maybe he should have waited for that book after all? No matter. He just needed to wait for her to arrive.

And he was just about open up google to get some info and kill some time if he didn't notice the hallway lights flicking on and off again repeatedly.

It put him on edge, there was someone in his house. He had remembered that most of those that had come from the E-mail appear in the user's house but he didn't trust it at all. Still, he was sure he could defend himself if he encountered a thief or something. So he approached his door and opens it slowly to not make a sound. Thankful it didn't make a creak, he crept his way down the stairs, hoping the intruder hadn't heard him.

The Intruder had stopped playing with the hall light and leaving it on had moved to the living room.  Keeping himself to the wall. Stuart peered into the room to see who was inside. And after taking a long look gave a sigh that it was a strange woman. He wondered for a second if it was messed up  that the fact of an inhuman woman in his house was better then some burglar.

The woman in question was quite tall and wearing a blue outfit that looked like it came from an eastern period drama with a hat to go with it. Her hair was snow white with large black strips of it going down the right side of her face. Her hair also reached her thighs and following that is what made him notice the grey-furred legs with black patterns on them, hooved feet and fluffy looking tail.

Her face had Asian features with amber eyes covered by reading glasses but really caught his attention was what looked a third red eye with yellow replacing the white of the other two in her forehead and the horns coming out from above her ears.

He was able to look at her for so long as her attention was solely focused on his TV remote. Constantly turning it in her hands and staring at each button before sighing and closing her normal eyes and holding the remote in front of her face. The forehead eye glowed for a few seconds before she huffed in frustration.

“That didn't help at all. `Point and push buttons to appliances`? Now I have to find what those are.” She said with annoyance.

At this point, Stuart decided to make himself known. “Perhaps I can help with that.”

The Hakutaku's head jolted to look at Stuart while she all but jumped back shocked. “Oh! Um.. sorry! I was so caught up in see what this does that I didn't see you-”

“It's okay,” he said, trying to make her calm down. “Are you from the E-mail?” he asked.

She nodded “I am, though the magician was vague about what that is. Do you know?”

“I do, but I think it's best if we start off with names,” Stuart said. “My name is Stuart.”

She straightened up and bowed. “My name is Xiuying, a pleasure to meet you. I suppose I should have alerted you to my presence first, but this world has so many strange items I couldn't help but get distracted.”

“That reminds me, what was that thing you were doing with the remote?” Stuart asked.

“I wanted to find out what this strange thing was so I used my knowledge search on it.” She said.

“Knowledge search?” Stuart said confused.

“It's part of our gift, ” Xiuying says with a hint of pride. Pointing to her forehead eye she continued. “Our minds are connected to the great records. When we are looking with the search, we gain information about what we see. My mother once described it an instant history lesson.”

Stuart's brain ran wild. The access to knowledge just by looking at things? I didn't sound like there was a limit to the amount of things that could be one with it. “That sounds amazing.”

“So I've been told,” she said with a smile. “Unfortunately it's incomplete.”

“There's more to it?” he asked.

“I am still young so my power has not fully matured, those stronger than I receive visions to assist with the search and those stronger then that like my mother can gain the entire back story of people and items just by touching and grant people knowledge the same way”

Stuart put his hand to his chin in thought “So when you say its incomplete...”

“I need to directly look at it with my mystic eye and I only get `surface knowledge` which is what it does and little else. sometimes I think this power is messing with me at times. Every now again it gives me something I don't understand, so I have to find something that connects to it to fill in the gaps. For example, I now have to see  what this thing works for.” She said raising the remote.

you work the TV with it.”  he said gesturing to his flat-screen.

She took one look at the TV and almost instantly she was moving around it trying to observe from every angle. He caught a glimpse of her mystic eye flashing while she was off in her own world again. “TV? ...Ah! This was mentioned as the remote purpose. Now how to operate it.” She said to herself. She looked at remote before handing it to Stuart. “Could you show me how it works?”

Stuart almost laughed at the eagerness in here eyes. Turing the TV on she stood staring at the screen amazed as an animal documentary when on. “You use the buttons to switch channels, and then can watch various stuff depending if it's on,” he explained.

“Fascinating.” she whispered with here eyes still glued to the screen “The amount of knowledge in this thing is astounding, the amount things you can learn from this!” She then looked at Stuart with almost childlike excitement. “Are there more ways to gain knowledge like this? I must know!” he said as she edged towards him.

“Well, there's newspapers, the internet, computers and things like that.” He said taking a step back.

She eyes had glazed over now and her tail was waving frantically. “So much variety! To have access to knowledge beyond scrolls and tomes! This would is as wonderful as I thought, I could my take my time and find all sorts of....”

Stuart was amazed at the speed of her mutterings he almost didn't want to snap her out of it, decided it was best that he waved his hand in her face to grab her attention. She stopped and blinked before her face reddened in embarrassment. “Oh!... sorry.”

“Don't worry about it, I know how exciting learning new things can be.” Stuart said before a thought came him “Say, why don't you try that search thing on me?”

“On you?” Xiuying asked surprised.

“You said only get basic info right?  Well, you told me about your powers so its only fine that you get to know about me.”  He said with a shrug. “Besides. You told be about your powers, wouldn't you like to learn something about me?”

“I want to learn quite a-.” She cut herself off  but didn't give Stuart time to question it. “I mean I haven't actually tried it on a human before,” she said with concern. “What if I come across something personal?”

“I don't really think I have anything to hide,” Stuart said with a smile. “Besides, there's a first time for everything right?”

“I suppose our you're right,” she said before nodding to herself. “Very well. I guess we could try it.”

“Anything you need me to do?” He said while she put the remote on the table and took his hand.

“Just stand still, remain calm and look into the eye, for the eyes are the window to the soul.” She said in a tone out of a mediation CD. As she spoke she slowly closed her regular eyes while the mystic one widened and glowed. Stuart could not do anything but gaze into the eye. He felt a light pulling sensation but tell the direction even if he knew where it was coming from.

What may have been seconds felt like an eternity before the eye returned to its normal started and the Hakutaku open her others. Her smile was so great it worried him a little.

“You're a librarian seeking abnormal knowledge? How wonderful!” She was almost hopping with excitement, making an odd clopping noise that reminded him of her legs. “To be searching for things that are strange in this world. There must be so much you have learnt! Why if I were too...” The glazed look had returned and Xiuying's words had devolved into mutterings again until Stuart tapped her on the shoulder, startling her. “It happened again didn't it? I'm sorry, I tend to over focus sometimes.”

“I noticed.” Stuart chuckled.

“Well seeing as I learned something from you, it's fair that you get the same, “ she said clapping her hand together. “Tell me, what would you like to know?”

Stuart was a little confused.“What do you mean?”

“My kind have gained quite a lot of information about my world and what it contains. And my information on other monsters is somewhat vast. I'm pretty sure you would like to know what goes on.” She said.

Stuart scratched his chin as questions flooded his mind. The knowledge of a whole new world at his fingertips. That combined with her powers almost made him drool at the idea do going learning things with her. With her... that gave him an Idea.

“I want to hear about you,” Stuart said.

Xiuying smiled. “Well, I already told you about our powers, we live in the-”

He cut her of with a raised hand. “I said you, Xiuying. I want to know about you.”

The Hakutaku looked baffled like the concept was completely alien to her. “What do mean me? You know what I am.”

“I agree. I know what you are but not who you are. What do you like to do outside of seeking knowledge? What do you like to eat? Interest and things like that.” he explained.”

Her face heated up as she started to laugh nervously “Oh, I see... its just nobody asks me for that kind of information.”

“That wizard guy in the made it sounds like a matchmaking service, I would like to find out about the woman I might out with. Hell, I could tell you more about myself as well. Or you could just scan me again.”

She shook her head “I won't do that, there's more pleasure to reading a book than just using the search on it and I feel you'll be better than any book.” She said absentmindedly. The awkward silence and Stuart's reddened and confused expression made her eyes widen in horror. “I said that out loud...didn't I?”

“Yes, you did,” Stuart said. The Hakutaku started to label in panic before he tapped her again. Gaining her attention. He continued “Well then Xiu, I hope we both like what we learn from each other.”

Xiuying smiled with relief and nodded. “I hope so too.”

“Well pull up a chair, and I'll grab us some juice,” he said as he walked out the living room and she took a seat on his couch. Coming back he sat next to her and  gave her a glass.

“To learning!” Stuart said as he toasted.

Xiuying laughed and joined in. “To learning.”

They spent the time well into night trading stories. Stuart saying as he was going to show her the library is what got her excited  keep him awake. He had the afternoon shift so he didn't mind  sleeping in.

He strangely didn't mind waking up on the couch and finding out he was being cuddled by her either.