...It's much larger on the inside...
Violence and magic neutralizing equipment are nothing new to the Athenaeum, and the very nature of its existence makes commandeering arcane texts through force rather difficult if not impossible. As nothing more than a physical projection maintained by magic; hostility has shown to always lead to the same result. Before an offender’s eyes, the Athenaeum fades into little more than the same old ruins over which it had originally materialized.
Dubois Athenaeum Library Cards (DALCs) vary in price depending on the “level” of the texts that a customer wishes to study. Customers wishing to practice specific spells are more than welcome to speak with the librarian at the front desk to discover what “level” of text would contain their desired magic. Much like the facility’s security response, thievery is dealt with through magical means as well. A book that is removed from the Athenaeum without a library card that has had said book registered to it fades away and return to the shelves from which it came.
DALCs are no more durable than what one might obtain from an ordinary library. It is the owner’s responsibility to see that their card isn’t destroyed, but new cards can be made and replaced to their owners assuming that payment has already been received for that current month. If a DALC is destroyed, all books in the owner’s possession with vanish and return to the Athenaeum.
Despite many of the texts offered in the library originating from ancient sources, customers will find that every book on the shelves is vibrantly colored with words sown into pages in the sharpest, darkest in and in pristine condition. The reason behind this phenomenon is the fact that every book on the library’s shelves is merely a copy of an original or an older copy.
The Athenaeum’s books are no more durable than an average book that a person might find. Readers are encouraged to mark and fold pages, underline important passages in text and otherwise do what they must to enrich their learning experience. Do note that all texts found within the Athenaeum are replaceable and that books will naturally be repaired after returning to their bookshelves.
We regret to inform our customers that our texts are only available in English or Latin. Our company would eagerly hire translators to assist in translating our texts and expanding our franchise!
The stone guardians of the library are often seen returning books that have been left at desks, sweeping floors, rearranging shelves when necessary, leading customers to requested texts and generally spending their time working for the betterment of the facility.
-Given that the owner of the business pays no taxes, has no permits, distributes arguably dangerous information and can be found on any abandoned property on Earth by people seeking knowledge… it wouldn’t be unwise to assume that the library isn’t exactly legal.
-Any injuries, casualties, curses, monsters, plagues and/or other disastrous phenomena caused by improper use of magical knowledge obtained from The Dubois Athenaeum is not the responsibility of this institution or its owner(s).
Regardless of the point of entry, all front doors leading into the Athenaeum lead to the same location. Beatrice can be found at the front desk during opening hours and the library ceases to exist after it closes.
Have fun and embrace the magic!