CRACKS FORM
Early the next morning, there is a knock on my door. When I call out to let them know they are welcome, Lent and Fem let themselves in. Lent brings my books in their linen bag and his own breakfast. Fem brings food for me. Fem reminds me to apply the salve to my injuries and then leaves, but Lent sits down, cross-legged on my bed, and begins to shovel food into his mouth.
Instead of asking how I’m doing, Lent begins talking about what he’s been researching, and we fall into an easy, companionable discussion about books. After he’s finished eating, I ask if he has any experience repairing books. When he says he does, I pull mine out of their bag and show him the damage.
“Oof,” he winces, “that’s pretty bad. Good thing you’re looking at the wizard of book repair!” He speaks grandly, which is quickly ruined by getting hit by the pillow I throw at him and nearly falling off the bed as he tries to avoid it.
Once the giggles recede, he leaves to get his repair kit, and I pull a different book off the stack, looking for something I was just reminded of as Lent spoke about what he was reading. I find the passage as Lent comes back into the room.
As he sets up his repair kit on top of my dresser, I call out to him to get his attention. “Hey, something you were talking about reading in one of your books reminded me of a passage I read, and I just found it.”
He moves to the side of the bed, standing close to me so our heads are both leaning companionably over the book. I point out the passage to him, and he reads it out loud.
As is known, rain always falls down and not up. This action shows the cleaning and renewal of darkness, but not in the traditional sense. Because darkness and shadow brings the rain it instead enforces balance. Light and the sun on one side, shadows and rain on the other. In Nuton’s research of magical effects, he has found that when looking for change, a good rain is nearly always the best approach.
Runes connected to this particular magical phenomenon are Ehwaz and Laguz. If combined, these will bring not only renewal to the rain but also help to usher in the change you are seeking.
Excitement is clear on Lent’s face as he gets through the passage. “Nice find, shorty,” he says, punching me lightly on the shoulder. “Mind if I borrow this book for a bit? I’ll return it, of course.”
I nod, the smile spreading across my face is a lovely feeling, a beautiful contrast to the emotions of the day before.
I give him the book and he tucks it carefully into a back pocket before returning to his task of mending my books. When he gives them back to me, I have to look carefully to see the prior damage. I can’t help but pull him into a hug, thankful to have my precious books back in good repair.
The rest of that day and the next pass in a similar fashion. Fem stops by more often than is needed or expected, but it’s nice to have him checking on me. I closelyfollow his orders, applying the salve and resting. Slowly, my body heals and begins to feel stronger, and the pain continues to recede.
Lent spends a considerable amount of time in my room as we compare notes on books or read in companionable silence.
I finish reading the history book and continue to fill in gaps in my knowledge of this place. Lent reads books on weather magic and shares small bits and pieces on different weather effects, such as rain, that the boys are trying to recreate during their magic practice. He asks me to keep this a secret, and I happily oblige. Honestly, it’s not as though I have anyone else I could share this information with, even if I wanted to.
On the morning of the third day, Fem shows up at my room alone and checks my injuries. I barely dare to breathe as he gnaws on his lip while examining my abdomen and the remaining bruising on my hand.
After it feels like too much time has passed, he declares them “healed enough,” but warns that I need to take things easy for at least the next several days. “Continue to use the salve as you need to for the pain,” he says.
I quickly climb out of my bed as though if I wait too long, he might change his mind. Pulling on black layers of clothing without really looking, I stack my books neatly on the table beside my bed and then head to the door of my room.
As I put my hand on the knob, though, I hesitate. The realization that outside of this safe space, there will be more interactions with Dio crashes over me. I close my eyes and rest my forehead against the door for a moment as I compose myself. The image of him trapping me against the wall at the concert plays on repeat behind my eyelids. The emotions knot in my chest.
Eventually, though, I can delay no longer and open the door.I refuse to give in to the intimidation of a prick like him,I decide as I try to confidently walk to the dining room for breakfast.
The full group is sitting at the table when I arrive, and my stomach churns.
Thankfully, Lent grins at me as I walk in and says, “There she is.”
I can’t help but smile back as I fill my plate at the sideboard and then settle into the chair next to him. As I begin eating, I notice that Dio’s glare doesn’t seem to have the same hold on me as it did before. Instead of glass, it feels like sand kicked up in the wind and is easier to ignore.
As I’m beginning to relax, Lent turns to me and says, almost conspiratorially, “You know, I was thinking, you seem to have a talent for finding books that could be helpful to our work. How would you feel about an excursion to the bookshop?”
Before I can help myself, I gasp back, “Yes!”
Dio grumbles from the other side of the table, but I ignore it.
“Which shop?” I ask as I think of the crabby little old man and all the piles of books.
“How about we start with the one that’s close but extend our errands and go further afield if we don’t find anything interesting?” Lent asks.
I could kiss him. Instead, I settle for leaning across the space between us and throwing an arm around his neck in a warm, one-armed hug.
He stops shoveling food into his mouth for a minute, his cheeks pink. “If you respond like this to an invitation to run errands at the bookstore, I’m going to offer to bring you with me on research trips more often,” he says, happiness clear in his voice.
