When Two Worlds Meet

The Library

Virgil's POV

I opened the door to the library, panting. I wasn't exactly out of shape, but I did spend most of my time sitting down and reading. I hated walking for more than a mile; flying was much better as long as I stayed close to the ground. If I got too high, my fear of heights would kick in.

I rested for a moment, drinking in the beautiful library as I rested my spindly broom against the wall. Giant stacks of leather-bound books sat on tables, obscuring my vision so that I couldn't see the walls. There were windows high above me, since the library doubled as the clock tower and therefore was the tallest building in the coven.

Everywhere I turned, moonstones glittered, shining and flashing in the sun as I moved. The beautiful stones provided light at all times, since they glowed as long as at least one of their sister stones sat under a light source. The magical stones were all over the coven, mostly on hills unobscured by trees so moon and starlight always illuminated them.

Bookshelves lined the walls and ladders leaned against the polished wood. I caught a flash of movement in the corner and I walked in that direction. I came around the corner of a stack of books to find Remy holding a ladder for Picani, who stood three times my height above us looking through a row of books.

Without looking over, Remy said, "Ah, good. You're here, Virgil. Do you know where that book on quintessence and hologram messages went? The one bound in yellow dragon leather? It's missing."

I thought for a moment, unsure of which book she meant and Remy sighed. "Oh well." She shook her head, and the tassels of her blindfold flapped onto her black-brown hair. "We'll find it eventually."

Picani looked down and noticed me. Her eyes lit up and she hurried down the ladder, making Remy scramble to keep it steady. Her flowing blue and pink robes tripped her up a couple times, and we held our breaths. I grabbed my pendant again; it barely fit in my hand, since it was the size of my palm. It was a flat disk of clear crystal, with a pattern of concentric circles carved into it, ending in an intricately carved hole in the center.

In case you haven't noticed, I grab my pendant whenever I'm feeling particularly nervous. I don't know why; it just gives me comfort to grab something solid when everything else seems unsteady. In this case, I was feeling anxious for Picani. Though she was spry and almost cartoonish in appearance, she was still very old and I didn't want her to break.

Picani finally reached the floor safely, and I breathed a sigh of relief as my chest unknotted from the anxiety. I let my hand fall to my side as my muscles unclenched. Remy unconsciously reached out and patted my shoulder. I shrugged her hand off, ignoring her sympathetic face.

Picani lifted her hands and signed 'We've been looking for the book on-'

I interrupted her by signing back 'I know. Sleep told me.' It took me too long to sign out people's full names, so I had nicknames that I gave people. Remy's nickname was Sleep because she had a chronic sleep disorder called narcolepsy that caused her to fall asleep at random intervals.

My nickname for Picani was simply Quiet. Picani was deaf and really didn't make much noise. Of course she made some sounds because she couldn't tell what made noise and what didn't, but she didn't speak at all. When she signed, her nickname for me was Purple. She loved how purple I was, from my cloak to my eyes to my aura, apparently.

One thing that was common among all witches was the ability to sense the quintessence, or the aura, of those around them. I wasn't very good at this, but I was still capable. Picani was very sensitive to those around her, capable of sensing intentions and emotions of those around her, which is why I think was why she chose Remy as her apprentice.