LSRO: Chapter 36 - Book Infirmary (Patreon)

Okay so I was writing this chapter and then the characters just went: So we're doing this now, and that's how you got this chapter. 

So here it is. I think I love it, I hope you like it too.

~~

Chapter 36

Book Infirmary

Quinn hadn't been entirely sure what to expect from a book hospital. She'd imagined a large room filled with broken books and perhaps a huge table for repairs. However, as she stepped through the space nestled between the infirmary and the kitchen, she realized she'd been vastly mistaken.

The very first thing she noticed was Narilin standing behind a massive table. But it wasn't just a table; it had sections cut into it where paper was draped over bars in huge sheets. Reams of paper were attached to one end, ready to be pulled across the table. Cutting implements hung over the same section, attached to the ceiling. She assumed were used to cut the paper into tome-sized pages in an automated sort of way. It was a very Industrial Revolution-esque setup.

It reminded her of the days of the huge Heidelberg printer presses.

Over to the left-hand side were piles and piles of books. So many that it made her feel a little queasy. There had to be hundreds, if not thousands, of books piled up there, and she could see just how damaged some of them were. Would it even be possible to repair those?

Narilin looked up. "Oh, hello. Have you not been to the workshop before?" she asked in her lilting, breezy, beautifully naturalistic way.

"No, I've been a little bit busy," Quinn said and gestured vaguely with her hands, "getting used to everything else around here."

Narilin laughed, a sound like leaves fluttering on a breeze. It filled the room with a beautiful, calm sensation. Quinn could see herself seeking out Narilin's company on a fairly regular basis, especially as she kept getting worked up about some of the stuff in the library.

"Would you like me to show you around?" Narilin asked.

Quinn shook her head. "I didn't want to come and interrupt you or anything."

Narilin glanced around and spread her many-fingered hands out, gesturing to the room in general. "As you can see, I have a lot of work ahead of me. I don't think a small interruption from the librarian is going to make that any different."

Quinn would have chuckled, but it didn't seem the right sort of place to do that. The room felt sad to her like the library was hemorrhaging knowledge, like it was traumatized by how many books had been damaged.

"Do you think you can really fix all of these?" Quinn asked earnestly.

Narilin looked around again and gave a half-shrug, which rippled her leafy hair. "I cannot say with precision. I should be able to help the majority of these books, but it may be that some must be repaired in such a way that they are recreated instead of pieced together."

Quinn sorted that out in her head. "Okay, and do we have the things for that?"

Narilin shook her head. "Not at this point, but by the time I know what books will need to be recreated or restored, I will definitely have some, if not all, of the equipment that I need."

"Okay," Quinn said, glancing around again at the massive room. "There's room for people to help you, yes?"

Narilin nodded emphatically. "Yes, indeed. I would welcome help from qualified individuals," she said. Quinn got the direct impression that she meant others of the Selosier species, people that Marilyn could trust to take the correct care of the books that were injured.

"Well, we'll see what we can do about that." It gave Quinn a burning need to make sure that the books were taken care of.

Narilin's face lit up and she inclined her head in acknowledgement. Then she pulled a book from the pile to the table in front of her. Quinn walked around the room, looking at the books that were damaged, watching as Narilin lovingly touched the tome in her hands.

The librarian took her time navigating the room and taking in all of the various aparatus that went into the repair. She could also see all of the stitching apparatuses that were obviously used to bind the books.

There were shelves and shelves of leather over on the right-hand side, stacks and stacks of different colors of the material. Next to those were embossing powders from what she could tell. Quinn didn't want to touch them. They were in tiny clear containers made out of glass. And the lettering stamps were exactly what she remembered from an assignment she'd done on printing presses back in the day.

Maybe her whole life had been subtly steering her toward being here right now.

The room was a strange mix of magic, Industrial Revolution technology, and old-world charm. She hoped that it was the sort of place where books could truly be fully restored. She didn't relish the library losing magic because of books that had been so badly damaged they were no longer salvageable.

Quinn stood and watched Narrolyn work for a little while. Her long fingers were deft, managing to reach even the largest edges of the tome. The selosier was an enthralling species. Quinn could watch her for days.

Suddenly, there was a chirp of some sort. It sounded more like a hoot. Quinn looked around and finally noticed the stand in the far right front corner, closest to the door she'd walked through. It wasn't so much a stand as a perch. Made of extremely sturdy-looking wood, it went straight up into the vaulted ceiling with massive logs stretched out from the midpoint on either side. It was like a ladder with one pole running up the middle.

Perched on some of those logs were the most beautiful owls Quinn had ever seen. The closest owl was only a few feet up. She could see that its flanks and belly were pitch black, so dark that it almost seemed like a void around its throat, mantle, and back. There were purpley-black sheens to it with gorgeous purple undertones that winked in and out as the light hit them through the window. 

When it moved, its tail had a rainbow of black plumage with different iridescent colours streaking through it—purples, blues, deep greens. Maybe there was a red in there too. They were simply beautiful, and their eyes were bright purple, glowing almost, sort of like the way a lynx's eyes glowed sometimes. Their claws, though, were deep red. Quinn decided then and there that she did not wish to be scratched by one of these owls.

They had to be the night owls she'd heard mentioned on numerous occasions now.

The owl she'd been studying turned to look at her and blinked very slowly. There was so much intelligence in those eyes. It was beautiful.

Thank you, it seemed to say.

Wait, what? Did you just speak to me? She thought at it.

Yes, it said, and then it hooted in this beautiful, melancholy way that rang throughout the whole room.

Narilin looked up. "Oh, she likes you," she said.

Quinn turned to her. "How can you tell?"

"It was an approving hoot. They're not usually very fond of humans," she said the word distastefully. Quinn really wanted to dig into some of the history about humans on worlds other than Earth.

Just as she was about to ask another question of the selosier, the owl in question swooped down and landed on her shoulder. Quinn fought the urge to scream until she realized that it had landed ever so gently and the claws weren't digging into her but only finding balance with the slightest of pressure.

Will stay, the owl said. In her head, the words echoed colorfully inside with all of the rainbow iridescence that the creature's tail had in it.

"Okay," Quinn said, not really knowing what else to say to the night owl that had decided to attach itself to her.

Protect, the night owl said again. And Quinn wondered just what its name was.

Aradie. Aradie Protect Quinn.

Quinn had to admit it was quite a nice feeling. Now she had a guard night owl thing.

Is this supposed to happen? She asked it.

Sometimes. No. But now. Now is right.

Aradie leaned forward, grabbed a small piece of Quinn's hair, and hooted softly into her ear. Quinn shook her head slightly, shocked at the breath of air that hit her. The owl sat back, making an odd cooing noise that sounded very similar to a laugh. Narilin chuckled from over at the repair table.

"Yes, that one really seems to have taken a liking to you," she said.

Quinn paused, marveling slightly at the owl on her shoulder. "Is that a good thing?"

Narilin shrugged. "I have never heard of it, but that does not mean that it hasn't happened before. It also doesn't mean that it's a bad thing. You should enjoy it. Night owls are very particular."

Quinn glanced at her shoulder. That sharp black beak looked like it could kill her on the spot, or at least peck an eye out. The owl flashed images in front of her and words. Will not harm. Quinn. Protect Quinn.

She looked at the owl, wondering for a moment. What had the library thought or encountered in the past few days that made it think she required a guard?

Not library, Aradie said. Not library. Just Aradie.

"Okay." Quinn could deal with that. She continued to examine the room, the bird sitting very calmly on her shoulder. Only sometimes, when Quinn turned a little too quickly without considering the balance of weight on her shoulder, did the owl dig its claws in a little more, but never enough to break the skin or to truly hurt her. It was fascinating. She was really enjoying having this bird near her. It made her feel less alone in this entire place.

As Quinn was examining the embossing inks again, Narilin called out to her. "You should take some of the leather and create padding so that your partner there, your new companion, does not accidentally tear your shoulder flesh."

Quinn paled a little at the thought of that because she could definitely see how those extremely sharp claws would be able rend flesh quite graphically. While she understood that the owl had no ill intentions toward her, it didn't hurt to take precautions just in case.

In that second, the fatigue and weariness that Quinn had been somehow holding at bay washed over her like a deluge released from above. She stumbled slightly and leaned against the massive bookcase that held all the intricate parts required to complete the covers of the tomes.

The bird pushed against her head very gently and softly in an almost reassuring manner. That's when Quinn realized that it also had a soothing scent—woodsy, owly, like down in a pillow, and soft. She half-smiled.

Sleep, the night owl intoned in her mind.

"Not yet," she chuckled out loud, "I need to make it to my quarters first."

She got the distinct impression from Aradie that the owl was impatient for Quinn to do so.

Narilin spoke up again. "You should really listen to the night owl. They are intuitive creatures. It is why their feathers, and their feathers alone, can be used to construct magical tomes. If it's attached to you, there is a reason. You will find it out in time. Not even the library will know it. It doesn't know everything."

Quinn glanced at Narilin, rather taken aback by that comment. She knew the library wasn't a god, definitely wasn't omnipotent. But the way Narilin said it made Quinn want to question her further. But her thoughts were too jumbled to follow it up in the way she felt necessary. They were going to sit down and have a chat once Quinn had all her thoughts on the matter sorted, and not marred by lack of sleep. "We should talk later when I'm not asleep on my feet."

"That would be a very good time to speak," Narrilin said, an amused tone to her voice. "I do have a lot to do right now and while I appreciate the visit, I would like to get back to completely concentrating on the task at hand while you, it seems, are about to fall down. Use the rest of your energy to rest, to make it to your sleeping quarters."

"Okay, Mom," Quinn said, laughing.

Narilin cocked her head to one side. "Mom, a maternal figure, correct? I see how that could be humorous."

Quinn blinked at the salosier, "Uh, yeah, it was pretty sarcastic."

Another wave of exhaustion hit Quinn and she realized that she'd only slept a few times, one of which she'd been knocked out for since coming to the library. It was truly catching up to her now, magic or no magic.

Sleep now, the night owl spoke in her head again and Quinn decided she would take its word for it. She plucked some extra padded leather and waved it at Narrolyn. When the Salosier nodded, Quinn took it with her and decided that she would figure out how to make a padded shoulder piece once she woke up from her nap.

She trudged through the library, up the stairs, not seeing anybody else, ntr Lynx, Malakai, none of the golems, no one at all. She barely paused to absorb the next energy efficiency book on her list so it could marinate in her over night.

Her footsteps echoed through the library, even though the soles of her shoes made her footsteps soft. She got to the staircase and walked up the winding frame.

When she made it to her bed, she remembered that she'd wanted to take a good look around her quarters, but all she could think of was the soft mattress, the sweet scent of the bird that suddenly took off and perched at the head of her bed, and just how soft that pillow would be when her head hit it.

~~

Well there you have it!!! haha!

Now she has an OWL! I did not see that coming - did you?

Let me know what you thought.