I sighed.
Perhaps it didn’t mean much to me, but it meant something to the people of the town.
With a wag of my wings, I alighted to the street below. Making my way through the streets, I heard the buckles of my boots clicking as I walked. The fashion of my boots was nearly as old as the library itself. With a little upkeep, they had lasted me a long time. I had no need of new fashions.
Grumbling as I went, I made my way down the winding paths of Moonshine Hollow until I found myself at the door of Elder Theodonna.
Her small cottage sat on a quiet side street not far from the river. Colorful lanterns hung from her picket fence. I groaned as I approached her bright-yellow door. A wreath of cheerful, enchanted pansies greeted me with a chorus of hellos.
Even her house was too loud.
This was ridiculous.
I didn’t owe anyone anything.
And yet, that annoying half-elf’s cutting words were seared in my mind.
And if I admitted the truth, I had felt ashamed. Miss Windsong had awoken a part of me I had long buried. I felt…embarrassed over my behavior. How had that hazel-eyed girl managed to worm so deeply under my skin?
Steadying myself, I knocked then waited.
Every second I stood there, my heart began to beat harder in my chest. With a leap, I could fly away before anyone even saw me. This was ridiculous. What was I even doing there?
I was still debating fleeing when a woman in a fluffy bathrobe, her hair covered in a scarf, opened the door. The sweet scent of fresh-baked bread and soup—pumpkin, perhaps—drifted from within her home. My stomach growled, reminding me I had not yet eaten today.
Elder Theodonna blinked twice when she saw me. “Master Erasmus?”
“Elder Theodonna,” I replied, bowing deeply.
“I… Is there something I can do for you?”
“I came to apologize for my behavior earlier today.”
The elder stared at me, confused. “You have?”
“Yes. I acted…rudely. I am sorry.”
She studied me a moment, then her expression softened. “You are forgiven.”
“Thank you,” I replied, then nodded to her. “Good evening.” I stepped back and looked upward, making sure I had a clear departure, but the elder stepped forward.
“Erasmus, we all know the library is important to you. It’s your home. But it is important to the community as well. We all honor your work, our dear bookwyrms, and the books housed in the walls of that magnificent structure. The library has fed the minds of our young people for years. I hope you can find a way to allow us to honor the contributions of the library and its inhabitants. Please, talk to Primrose. Be…flexible.”
I inclined my head to her. Much to my embarrassment, my stomach growled once more, this time, rather loudly.
Elder Theodonna gave me a warm smile. “May I invite you in for something to eat, Master Erasmus? Something tells me you’ve forgotten dinner.”
If it were possible to die of embarrassment, I would have keeled over right there. Instead, I managed to say, “Thank you for your kind offer. I have things I must attend to.”
“Oh, all right,” she said, but her expression told me she was not convinced. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, Elder. But thank you for the kind offer. Good night.”
“Good night.”
With a flap of my wings, I lifted into the air and took flight once more.
As I flew back to the library, the elder’s words sat heavy on my heart. To honor the library was noble. The library was a resource for the town. She wasn’t wrong. The library deserved recognition, but did that recognition have to be so…loud? So much noise was potentially dangerous, especially with the witch’s codex nearing completion.
