Page 8 of Myths and Manuscripts
Chapter 4
Demon Lord
I stepped out of the pages of my book carefully, hoping nobody would be waiting to ambush me when I returned to the Misty Mountain Library. The pages glowed with a bright golden light whenever we came or went, drawing far too much attention for my liking.
We’d had so many patrons visiting since the festival, which was great for Misty, but tiresome for me. Now that I had to dodge fans as a daily occurrence, my home no longer felt like my home, and I wasn’t sure what to do about it.
The bond between the library and me warmed as it checked in. It never spoke in words, but I could feel what it meant all the same. It was worried.
“Don’t waste your time on me.” I tucked my book away in its hiding spot behind an old shelf. “I’m fine, honestly, it’s just different now.”
A book rose in the air, flying over to me and landing in my outstretched hands. It was Willow’s manuscript. I walked to the edge of the upper floor, gazing at the book tree over the railing.
“What am I supposed to do with this?” I held the pages Willow had worked so hard on tight. “It’s not like she really needs me to finish reading it today or anything.”
The library sent a jolt of magic at me that felt like an eye-roll.I sighed, unable to hide anything from Misty.
I’d spent every moment since I got back from meeting with Willow reading and was already three-fourths of the way done. I assumed it would be awful like she said, so I was going to be the bad guy and tell her that, but it was surprisingly good. The worldbuilding was intricate, putting me right in the story along with her characters, and the plot was excellent. There wasn’t a single reason I could think of to have the little dragons burnthisstory.
Well, maybe one thing. Her characters obviously had feelings for each other, but they just flirted and never did anything about it. I kept thinking that would change, but I was nearing the end, and still nothing. It was pretty frustrating actually. The characters just didn’t feel realistic, like they had a lot of self-discovery left to do.
Huh, maybe that’s what the story gods had meant about it not having heart. I’d have to read the note to be sure, but that would mean it was supposed to be constructive instead of harsh, so it made sense.
If Willow spent the time editing this with more emotion, it would be an amazing story. Maybe I should ask her to enter the contest for the last book in my series too. My story didn’t have any romance in it, and besides that aspect, she was a really talented writer. If I had to trust somebody to finish my story, she felt like a good choice.
The library tugged on our bond again, pulling my attention to a vibrant red-haired woman walking inside. Willow stopped to chat with Nyssa, her eyes bright as they roamed the library, looking for something.
Or someone.
No, that was ridiculous. It had only been a day, there was no way she’d expect me to be done already.
Even so, I walked down the stairs to the main floor and sat ata table close enough to overhear them. I flipped to the last page I’d read in Willow’s book. The Queen was describing her big plan to defeat the enemy, and I couldn’t wait to see how it all played out. If it was an easy victory, I’d be pretty disappointed, but I had a feeling the bad guy would have a big dramatic ending like he deserved.
Nyssa’s voice carried over as she pointed at a pile of logbooks. “Here’s our donations list. If you could sort through all the new books we’ve gotten and write down who donated what, that would be great. Then you can add tags to the books as well.”
“Sure, no problem.” Willow nodded, but her gaze kept drifting over to me as if she could feel me staring.
I buried myself in her book. What was she doing here? It sounded like she was volunteering, but she’d never done that before. So maybe waiting to hear what I thought of her book was driving her so crazy that she couldn’t stay away...
That idea filled me with an odd sense of pleasure. Everyone was always bothering me about my own story, but having her seek my opinion on something that had nothing to do with the insufferable hero of my book was refreshing.
I read another chapter as she gathered up all the books that had been donated to the library over the past week, laying them out on a table suspiciously close to me. I could feel her attention on me more than once, watching me read the story she cared so much about.
“What are you grinning about?” she finally asked me.
“Shhh, I’m reading.” I forced a serious look on my face and focused on the book.
I hadn’t even realized Iwasgrinning, but she smiled that overly happy smile of hers and hauled even more books over. The clanking of metal drew my attention to the floor where dozens of tiny knights rushed to Willow’s side. I ignored them as best I could and kept reading.
Their commander bowed low. “Lady Willow, welcome back to the Misty Mountain Library. May we be of any assistance?”
Willow smiled. “Sure, I could use some help writing names on these tags and putting them in their books.”
They chatted a bit more as she lifted each knight onto the table, handing them pens and labels as she organized the books into what I assumed were stacks based on who donated them. Other libraries had sent some over, but the bulk of the donations had come from the townsfolk, offering up whatever books they had lying around as an apology for abandoning Misty after the wild magic storm.
I’d have refused them outright if it was me, but the library had literally glowed with happiness when they stopped by with their wagon full of books. It reminded me of the first time Nyssa had shown up. Eager and determined, just like the whole town seemed to be now.
I flipped to the next chapter, getting closer and closer to the end of Willow’s book. Now that she was standing right in front of me, I wanted to finish reading as soon as possible so we could talk about it. Except, every time her gaze wandered over to me, I felt myself re-reading the same paragraph over and over, as if the words weren’t sinking in. I’d never been so unfocused in my life.
