Marlene stretched and turned on her camp bed. Slowly her eyes focused to the dim interior of the tent; it was still decently dark but she knew morning was quickly approaching. She propped herself up on her elbows, noticing that Sirius wasn't in his bed across the tent. A quiet smile crept across her face as she thought back on how excited he'd been for their first assignment for the Order. She wasn't a fool. Marlene knew that she was far down on the list of partners Sirius would have liked to be paired with, if she'd made the list at all. As it was, after two days in Dublin he was only now remembering that her name was Marlene, not Mary.
She was determined to show him that there was more to her than the swotty bookworm everyone took her for. Marlene was the one who suggested they set up camp in the so aptly named Phoenix Park. Dumbledore had been certain that Voldemort would have his followers after the manuscript as well, so avoiding the Wizarding areas of Dublin would be prudent. Sirius, all too eager to prove himself, wanted to be extra cautious and avoid common Muggle areas as well. When Marlene told him of the park, which was just Northwest of Trinity College, and suggested that they camp there under concealment charms, all Sirius could do was stare at her in wonder.
Perhaps she was a fool after all, because she felt herself flush at the thought of him. She couldn't possibly allow herself to fancy Sirius Black; he was much too far out of her league. Still, it had been nice getting to know him and letting him get to know her.
The flap to the tent opened and Sirius ducked inside, the fresh scent of early morning dew swept in with him. He looked over at Marlene as she inhaled deeply.
"Oh, good, you're awake."
She scrambled to make room for him as he crossed to her bed and unceremoniously sat down. He had a map in his hand and she peeked up at him when a moment passed without him saying anything. Heat crept into her cheeks as she realised he was staring at her strangely. For Merlin's sake! She'd just woken and most likely looked as if she'd been wrestling a Banshee in her sleep. Quickly she raked her fingers through her hair and brushed the sleep from her eyes before putting her glasses on. This seemed to break the spell; Sirius blinked and turned back to the map.
"Well, we walked to the college yesterday so we know how far it is from here; however, I hadn't seen any place that was good for Apparating, had you?" he asked, studying the fine lines hatched across the chart. Marlene shook her head. "I'm not keen on possibly being seen, so we'll just have to walk back today. I think if we take this way it might be a bit shorter..."
Marlene leaned into him, careful to leave space between them. The last thing she wanted was for Sirius to feel her heart banging against her ribs the way it did whenever he was near. She followed his finger as it traced their path to the college.
"Yes, I think that will work well. The college has four libraries and, thankfully, they are all located in the Southwest corner of the campus. We just have to figure out which library we need."
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Sirius and Marlene stood at the Front Gate Entrance to Trinity College wondering if they should make such a public entrance. They were both dressed inconspicuously enough: Marlene, being Muggleborn, had loads of Muggle clothing and Sirius, being on his own for the last two years, picked up many Muggle things, clothes being his favourite next to his motorbike. They decided to take the South entrance off Nassau Street which led into the Arts Building and the cluster of libraries off to the right.
"Alright, I'm fairly certain we will need to go to the Old Library, but the Ussher Library holds materials on history, arts, theology and language. Maybe we should stop in there first just to rule it out," Marlene offered as they made their way onto the campus.
"Very thorough, McKinnon. I'm very impressed and glad I picked you to help me!" Sirius grinned brightly at her. Marlene flushed crimson.
"You didn't pick me," Marlene chided, "I was the only one who could help you!"
Sirius waved vaguely. "Technicalities." He smirked. "Anyway, you're here now and I'm happy to have learned you have a sense of humour! I was afraid I was going to be stuck with a boring old - " He stopped in mid thought, realising what he was saying.
Marlene smiled weakly, her heart in her throat. Sirius grimaced and began to apologise when she cut him off. "Ussher - we're here."
"Right, let's get straight to it. I think we should just find the librarian or..." Sirius' words died off. The library was teaming with students and docents. Books were tucked neatly in the stacks as well as strewn along the many work tables and loaded onto rolling carts that people were re-shelving. It was nothing like Hogwarts' library, with the books magically shelving themselves, and its sole librarian. "Definitely, we should ask for help."
They found the information desk and Marlene spoke to the severe looking woman there, who was not unlike Madame Pince.
"What you are looking for is not to be found here. You will need to go to the Old Library. In the West end, you will find the Manuscripts Department. You will find what you need in the reading room there," she said tonelessly.
"Thank you!" Marlene chirped and Sirius winked at the librarian as they turned to leave.
"Excuse me!" They turned back to find the woman's face drawn into a stern pucker. "You have made an appointment, have you not?"
Sirius cut his eyes to Marlene questioningly; she shook her head infinitesimally. "I'm sorry, appointment?" Marlene inquired.
"Yes," the woman drawled gravely. "You see, in order to view such an antiquity from our collections, you must submit a proper request in writing, in advance."
"Oh, well thank you again." They stopped walking once outside the library to get their bearings and head for the Old Library.
"I wonder how long the request will take," Sirius mumbled. Marlene couldn't help feeling she should have known about the request. If she'd just put a bit more into her research... after all, Professor Sprout had always maintained that you couldn't sow weeds in the spring and expect a valuable harvest come autumn. She walked quietly behind Sirius the rest of the way to the Admissions Desk of the Old Library.
A pleasant looking woman with fading red hair piled neatly atop her head greeted them, smiling appreciatively at Sirius. "Can I help you with something, young man?"
Sirius explained the manuscript they were looking for and asked if they could make a request for viewing.
"My, yes, we have Lebor Laignech here! And you may certainly request a private reading session," the woman leaned her plump body over the desk towards Sirius at her last words. He gave her a roguish grin. No harm in giving the woman a little something to dream about. She sat back flustered, but continued to watch him longingly. "You only have to go to the Admissions Desk in the front hall of the Berkely Library where you will be given a reader's ticket and instructions. Be sure to have your student identification and your letter of introduction from your professor."
"We're not students here. Will that be a problem?" Marlene asked.
"Oh, no. You will only need a photo ID." Marlene and Sirius shared a look that said they were thinking the same thing. What to do about the IDs?
"Thank you for your help." Marlene turned to leave when a thought occurred to her. "It would be the original manuscript, correct?"
The woman smiled sweetly. "We have the entire works by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies that was published in 1954. It is a complete reproduction of the manuscript," she finished proudly.
Sirius' brow creased then he loped back over to the desk. He leaned casually across and in his most charming voice asked, "If one wanted to view the original manuscript, how would he do that?"
Marlene sucked in a deep breath at the sight of him. She didn't know how the librarian was still conscious as she was getting the full taste of his smouldering grey eyes.
The woman's hair threatened to topple over as she began to tremble visibly. She swallowed hard, "The original manuscript is housed in the Santry Book Repository just north of here. Readers are not normally permitted except by special arrangement."
"Thanks, again," Sirius crooned.
"Well, we know where it is," Marlene offered encouragingly afterwards, as they stood outside on the steps.
"Yeah, we just have to figure out how to get to it."
