Page 59 of Legends and Librarians
Roan sat at rapt attention as they announced the title of the play, only moving to eat some more of the good food. I smiled, happy we’d come here. Helping the library was great, but we needed to keep our spirits up too otherwise we’d be no good to Misty.
I pulled some squid ink pasta over to me and sat back to watch the show. The troupe used magic to enhance the story while actors played the roles of the three story gods: Terra, Solas, and Orion.
A narrator guided the actors through their parts. “At the birth of the universe stood three gods who yearned for a good story, and what do all good stories need? Settings, characters, and plots.”
The knight sat down and tried to focus after noticing how intrigued Roan was, but he obviously cared more about the food than the play. I smiled, enjoying the moment with the two of them.
“Terra came first,” the narrator said, “shaping the world out of magic, forming the mountains and rivers, the forests and plains. Her imagination formed the very land we walk on and grow food from. But a world without people was lonely, so Solas created gods, people, and beasts to roam the land, filling Terra’s dream with life.”
As the narrator spoke, illusion magic swept over the stage, showing the land being created and people walking across it aimlessly. Roan shifted his chair closer to me, smiling softly as his arm brushed against mine. My stomach fluttered. Yes, this was definitely a date.
“But simply living wasn’t enough either,” the narrator continued, “we had to learn and grow, struggle and love. So Orion wove our fate across the stars, giving each of us reasonsto live and things to strive for. From their imaginations, our stories were born. From our minds, we create new stories to offer them.”
As he finished speaking, the illusions grew brighter, glowing beautifully even in the daylight. I bet we could do something similar with the Demon Lord’s shadows, using them to put on a play like these illusions. If I could get him to cooperate.
A gong sounded and the crowd cheered. I would have joined, but spotted some exhausted looking people coming into the courtyard as if they’d just been set free from some terrible hardship.
I knew who they were: writers. Mentally exhausted writers.
“Come on,” I whispered, nudging Roan. “We need to get one of those writers to sponsor our library for the festival.”
“That was not part of the plan,” he said, laughter creeping into his voice.
“Well, it’s part of the plan now,” I said, sizing the writers up. “We’re not going to get anyone famous, probably not even anyone experienced, but I bet we could convince a newbie to give our library a try.”
“Do you think it’ll work?” he asked. “Not trying to be mean, but the Misty Mountain Library hasn’t been open in years. Will anyone really agree to bring their book there?”
He had a good point. Anyone who had heard of the library had probably either heard that it was closed or that it was haunted, neither of which were good for a festival.
“We’ll just have to get creative,” I said, “with a bit of good storytelling, you can get people to do just about anything.”
He raised an eyebrow, swallowing a bite of food. “That’s a bit manipulative, isn’t it?”
“We wouldn’t be lying or anything, just making sure we show off all the good points about the library.” I nodded overtly at the tiny knight who was wolfing down pie. “Show people why ourlibrary is so unique.”
Roan’s mouth opened in an O. “Got it. Let’s go nab you a writer then.”
He was always willing to help with whatever I needed and he seemed to enjoy it too. I’d gotten so lucky the day he’d walked into my library. So very, very lucky.
The knight cocked his head at us. “Wait, so what’s the plan?”
“Come with us and find out,” I said, offering him my hand.
He brushed crumbs off his armor before climbing onto my palm. “You know, it’s not exactly knightly to be carried around like this.”
“Would you prefer to be on my shoulder, like a little spirit guide?”
Roan laughed. “I don’t think that would end well.”
“Sir Roan, don’t talk like that!” the knight protested, but he was smiling as he did it.
Together, we walked toward the writers, ready to convince them that our library was the best in the world. With Roan and the knight by my side, I felt like we really could do just about anything.
Chapter 21
Roan
We’d asked four writers to sponsor the Misty Mountain Library, but they’d all turned us down. Seeing Nyssa’s excitement slowly die made me want to do something, anything, to bring her smile back a bit. I stopped to grab hot cocoa for all of us, hoping the creamy chocolate would warm her up and brighten her mood.
