“It's not dangerous or anything.”
“It braided my hair.”
“It certainly has its uses.” He regards me with interest. “It will be especially useful for you since you do not have magic of your own.”
“Why was it covered?”
“It can be…annoying.”
“Annoying,” I repeat.
“It has quirks. You’ll see. I don’t always like the things it shows me.” Fumbling in the inner fold of his cloak, he draws out a small silver pocket watch, flips it open, and snaps it shut.
Straightening in his chair, he eyes the massive pile of books I’ve accumulated. “That’s quite a collection.” He leans down and begins stacking the books into a pile. His eyes flick over the titles. If he has any thoughts about my selection, he doesn’t voice them. “You know we can come back, right?”
“We can?”
“Anytime. But we should probably head back,” he says with a yawn.
“Can’t we leave them out for next time?
“Don’t you want to bring them?”
“I can bring them?” Our texts were never allowed outside the monastery.
“Yeah, of course. That’s why I brought you down here.”
I eagerly stack the books. It’s almost too much for me to handle. I manage to balance them precariously under my chin. He gathers up the rest in one hand and chuckles when he notices me teetering slightly.
“Give me those.” He pulls the books out of my grasp, balancing the two stacks in one hand in a way that defies the laws of nature. “Come on, Thumbelina.”
I make a face and he laughs. “Don’t know that one?”
I shake my head. Not sure I want to based on the other nicknames he’s anointed me with. He gestures and a book comes floating down from one of the upper shelves. He adds it to the pile. Guess I’m going to find out whether I like it or not.
I close the library doors behind us as the lights flicker out. I watch the lights of the hallway blink on as we near them, and the ones behind us fizzle out. “The lights…are you doing that?”
He nods. Which means if I ever do find a way to escape his chambers…I’ll be in the dark.
“In the hallways, yes. My chambers and the library run off off the Crux. These ones out here used to too. They used to stay lit all the time, but now we try to conserve as much as possible.”
“The Crux?”
“You recall the factory outside of the kingdom?”
“Factory…” I repeat.
“Big clanking building. Pipes, smoke.”
“Yes, I remember,” I say, recalling watching the Magi filter to and from the building.
“It’s how we disperse magic to power the kingdom. The lights, plumbing, water.”
“That’s…incredible.” The words slip out before I can think better of them. I shouldn’t be complimenting them and their wicked ways. It’ impossible not to lose myself in the fascination of it all.
“It’s not as idyllic as it sounds. If you saw what goes into it.”
I count three other doors on this floor. I never hear anyone coming or going besides the night Morin paid a visit. “Is there no one else on this floor?”
