Twin Brothers

18

The wedding day was here. I watched with pride as the crown was placed upon Gwen's head. She looked gorgeous, and Arthur couldn't take his eyes off of her. There was not a soul in the room that disapproved––at least not a soul that showed it. It's as if the kingdom immediately accepted Gwen as their new queen. She was just like them after all. Grew up a servant but by chance fell in love with a prince–now king. Everyone had a smile upon their faces.

I managed to slip out half way through the celebrations. As expected, no one noticed. But it's not like I really cared. I was actually hoping none of the knights would stop me. I couldn't hold anything against them, and I had to remind myself I couldn't hold it against them. They were too busy drinking and listening to drunken tales.

Arthur and Gwen were busy making eyes to one another, and when they weren't, they were being greeted by guests who came to congratulate the two and wish them the best.

Slipping past everyone was the easy part. Looking for what I needed was going to be difficult.

I walked through the empty corridors, and without any traffic, I managed to get to the library faster than it usually took. The doors creaked from the weight I pushed on. The smell of old books and dust lifted into my nose. A couple sneezes escaped before I realized what was coming. Luckily, no one was there to question why I was there. Geoffrey took the day off just like most of the other servants in the castle. Of course the cooks were still in the kitchen preparing the feast. But other than them, there was no work to be done.

I had no idea if Geoffrey was joining the celebration or not. An image of the old librarian mingling with people in the square put a smile on my face. Inside I was laughing thinking about it. Geoffrey just wasn't one to mingle. But nevertheless, he wasn't here.

I spent quite a bit of time scanning bookshelves and flipping through old pages. There was nothing on a magical black stone. I pulled out a book of every gem in the world and sat on the floor. Using a single candle, I read through the pages. When I made it to the pages where the black stones were––there wasn't many––my hand reached into my jacket pocket and pulled out the black gem that was previously in my cup. I compared it to the pictures and descriptions. Nothing matched. It was like this gem had yet to be discovered.

With a groan, I shoved the book aside, the black gem still on the page, and searched the selves again. There has to be some sort of a history behind this type of magic. There has to be something in this library, right?

A sudden growing pain erupted in my stomach right then. I bent over and gasped. My head burned and a few books fell off the shelves. A pressure traveled up my throat. A bitter taste entered my mouth. The dizziness in my head numbed the pain a bit. I shook my head and did my best to ignored the numbing pain. Was it getting hot in here? I reached out, picked up the books that fell, and put them back where they belonged. I didn't waste another second. This strange occurrence can wait. I had other things to figure out first. I went back to the shelves and forced myself to focus.

As I pulled out another book, I took notice of how quiet it had gotten. The celebrations outside were so loud I could hear it in this dusty old room, but as I flipped through each book, the noise became background noise. I was so focused on the pain and my research that I didn't even notice there were no more cheers or laughter. It was just silence.

Then, I heard it. A single booming laugh. My body ran cold. Chills and hot flashes are never a good mix.

Slowly, I forced myself to stand. My shaking legs somehow managed to walk me to the open window which gave me a view of the square where the celebrations were being held. There was less movement, now, as everyone stood back. The knights were no longer sharing funny stories, but held a stern, cold expression as they fixed their eyes on the one ruining the party. Hands on the hilt of their swords. None made a move to unsheathe their weapon. Even they knew one wrong move could be the end.