The Halves of Us

by Sydney Paige Richardson

  “A secret library? But this is the main library. Everyone knows about it. Why would there be a hidden one, and where on Thindoral would they put it?”

  Adie’s lips curled into a smile, and she glanced upward at Samuel. “A hidden library would be filled with books they want no one to read. Filled with all the information they want no one to know. And the best place to have a hidden library is within a public library.”

  Samuel cocked his head and stifled a laugh. “So say there was a secret library within this library. How would we find it?”

  Adie raised her brow before walking over to the nearest shelf. “If I wanted something to be invisible, what would I use to hide it?”

  “By your tone, I have a feeling you already have an idea.”

  “Of course I do. I was just merely giving you a chance to catch up with me.”

  She ran past a few shelves, and Samuel followed. She slowed as she reached an aisle labeled Faekind. She stopped midway through the aisle and reached for a small orange book on the bottom shelf. Adie tossed it over to Samuel.

  “The Indescribable Power of Glamour by Bezzek Oberrender,” Samuel read. His gaze shifted over to Adie as his eyes lit up. “They’d use glamour to keep a secret library hidden.”

  Adie nodded.

  “Okay, but how do we find it?”

  “Open the book, page 43. Aura and I have been looking for this hidden library within the library for a while. At first, we went aisle by aisle. Then we split up. Aura got bored and started at the far-right end. The library is one giant half-circle around the Dome, so it’s taken some time.”

  Samuel’s lips moved as he whispered and read parts of page 43. “Ah. Invisibility of a space can be conceived on a large scale with the use of glamour. It requires a crate of Fae dust separated into each corner of the area. Then a mixture of a quart of hinky root and a droplet of blood from the Fae who provided the Fae dust must heated to boiling.” Samuel paused and cleared his throat. “The mixture is to be smoked on the edge of a jabba root and used to draw the symbol of the Rokis onto each wall, including the entrance.”

  “Then it basically says it would be rendered invisible until the symbol is broken from any of the surfaces,” Adie said.

  “This seems pretty extensive. Even if you were right and it did exist . . .” Samuel’s voice trailed off as he flipped through a few more pages of the book. “How do we find it?”

  “We break the seal of the Rokis that was drawn.”

  “How?”

  Adie walked up to Samuel, taking the book from him. Her fingertips lingered on the top of his hand for a moment. She stepped away but still felt his gaze as she flipped through the book. “You have to use one of the ingredients it was created with.”

  Samuel patted down his pockets. “Well, I don’t have any hinky root on me.” His lips curled into a side smile. “

  Adie pulled a pin from her hair and pricked her finger. “But we do have blood.”

  “We don’t need the original Fae’s blood?” His brow furrowed.

  “Not according to this book,” Adie said, placing it back on the shelf. “Any blood will do.”

  He shifted on his feet. “I’m afraid to ask, but I must. What are we doing with our blood?”

  Adie took his hand and pricked his finger. She walked over to the beginning of the shelf in their aisle. Holding his hand, she brought his pricked finger to the inside of the shelf.

  “You press your finger against the inside of the main board of the shelf. Draw a circle with a line through it. If the blood starts to sizzle or bubble, we’ve found one of the walls.”

  “So you’re leaving marks of blood on the shelves?” His blood didn’t bubble.

  Adie nodded as they walked to the next shelf. “Helps us remember where we’ve been. No one can see them unless they’re specifically looking at the inside of the shelf. Aura has done most of the hind side of the library, minus a few rooms we couldn’t get into at the time. I started at the beginning. We have maybe sixty aisles left between us. Then the rooms along the back and front.”

  Samuel chuckled. “Do we have time for sixty aisles?”

  Adie’s shoulders fell as she sighed heavily. I have to do something. Something to try and help and keep my mind off Aura going to Nitari. Something to prove to Mother she can trust me, again. She glanced at the shelves rising high above them.

  “We have to try.”

  “How many have you done?” Samuel peeked around the corner of the aisle at Adie.

  “I think twenty-one.” She ran her finger along the inside of the shelf. The cold of the wood soothed her sore, bloodstained finger. She watched. Nothing. She leaned against the shelf. I just want to help.

  Samuel stepped closer to her, resting his hand on her shoulder. “I’ve done about the same as you. What if you heard wrong? What if there’s no secret library. Or even if there is one, what if it’s not hidden here in . . .” He paused and stepped away. “Adie, your blood is dripping on the floor.”

  They both stepped back as they heard a sizzling sound.

  They crouched down as the droplets of her blood that had fallen on the floor bubbled. Adie reached toward the droplets and drew a circle and a thin line. The blood sizzled and smoked, forcing Adie and Samuel to stand away. The smoke rushed along their footpath in a line forming a rectangular shape. The floor disappeared, and in its place, a wooden door with a handle in the center appeared.

  “We didn’t even think the entrance could be on the floor. We always thought it would be hidden within a shelf!” Adie exclaimed as she eyed the round handle of the door carved from the same wood.

  I wish Aura was here. She dismissed the thought and reached for the knob. Turning it clockwise, she heard a click, and a cloud of dust escaped from the edges as Samuel stood and helped her pull the door open.

  A heavy smell of old books and dust filled the air. They waved the dust away and peered into the doorway. An unknown source bathed the room in yellow light, revealing giant bookshelves.

  “Is it upside down?” Samuel asked.

  Adie sat on the edge of the doorway, on the aisle floor. Her legs dangled into the secret room. “I don’t know. It’s like the doorway just goes straight into a room. Like a sideways basement.”

  They looked at the shelves lining the secret library. As she slid into the room, the world shifted below her feet, and she stood upright, looking at a confused, upside-down Samuel. She motioned for him to follow. He walked around to the side she had entered and let his feet dangle into the room before sliding in and standing upright beside her.

  The walls were old cherry-brown wood, decorated sparingly with a few old maps and black lanterns with bright yellow flames. Carpet lined the floor. Deep reds, beiges, and brown swirled around one another in a patterned design of the Rokis.

  “There are only ten shelves,” Samuel said, walking to the back of the room.

  “They’re not near as large as the main library. Should be easier to go through!” Adie walked around the room, peering at the shelves. “But nothing is marked with specific labels.” She sighed. “Never mind, this could take hours.” She looked around for Samuel. “Samuel?” She found him in the back, next to a shelf encased with a glass covering.

  “If I wanted to hide important information, perhaps it would be in the locked, glass shelf in the hidden library?” Thrilled with his find, he looked at her and smirked.

  She examined the glass casing, clear and free of smudges. “Before, there was all that dust when we opened the door, but the room looks like someone was just in here.” She glanced at a nearby desk with a book sitting open and a quill beside it. She grazed her fingers along the glass casing, feeling the coldness of it.

  “There are no handles or lock. It’s just a glass casing.” Samuel went to the edge of the shelf.

  “More glamour, I presume.” Adie rested her hands on her hips before kneeling and checking the bottom shelf. She placed her palm on the glass as it pulsed. “Whoa.” She stood and steppe
d back.

  “What?” Samuel came by her side.

  “It felt like . . . it felt like it had a heartbeat.” She placed her palm back on it, and the steady pulse returned.

  Samuel placed his hand on the glass and shuddered as he pulled away. “What is it?”

  She shook her head. “It’s unlike any glamour I’ve read about.” She looked at her other hand. Her finger was still red and sore. “I wonder if this will work.” She pressed her finger against the glass, and a drop of blood escaped, dripping down the side of the clear casing.

  The glass warped as her blood vanished. A hole appeared in the glass as it fell away into bits of sand.

  They stepped back. Samuel reached for Adie, pulling her away. The glass casing fell away into a pile of sand at their feet, covering the floor to their ankles.

  Samuel knelt, picking up the few grains of sand. “It’s sand. Your blood and . . . make . . .”

  She stepped forward, reaching for the bookshelf. Her fingertips grazed a thin red book. She pulled it down. “History of Vadim.” Adie flipped through the pages of maps and hand drawings before tossing it off to Samuel. “History Years 1030-1070, Constellations in Sector 7, The Birth of the Designers.” She read the bindings of a few books.

  “The Birth of the Designers sounds interesting,” Samuel said, reaching for the book. His knees bent under the book’s weight. “Gah, this weighs more than an Ogre!” He set it down gently in the sand by his feet.

  Adie stepped up onto the first two shelves of the bookcase, reaching for the top. “There are only a few books up here.” She climbed up a few more shelves and looked down at Samuel as she heard him chuckle. “You better be averting your eyes!” She pulled her skirt closer to her and eyed him.

  “I swear not to look, Future Ruler.” Samuel bowed and kept his eyes to the ground as he rose.

  Adie huffed but couldn’t help smiling. She reached for a thin book that appeared to be carved from wood. “This one has no title, just a flower carved on the front. Catch!” Adie tossed it down to Samuel. “Desert of Time, The Forbidden Zone.” She gently tossed them down to Samuel. “There’s one more. It’s not titled, and it’s really large.”

  “Just be careful. I don’t know how sturdy these shelves are.” Samuel stepped back and looked up at her.

  Adie pulled at it. “I think it’s stuck!” She positioned herself on the shelf and used both hands. With a final tug, the book came loose. Quickly trying to balance herself, she released the book and heard a loud thud below.

  “Ouch!” Samuel shouted.

  “Sorry!” She laughed.

  Her laughter quickly faded when she heard a loud click, and she turned her eyes back to the shelf. Where the big black book once was, there was a thin metallic wire.

  “Um, Samuel . . .” Her voice trailed off as she followed the wire to the edge of the back of the shelf. In the center, a brass gear surrounded by a golden circle began turning counterclockwise. The clicking echoed around the room.

  “Adie, what is it?”

  “I think we should—”

  A creaking sound came from the walls.

  “What is that?” Samuel asked as Adie jumped down from the bookshelf.

  She grabbed the smaller books they’d found and handed them to Samuel. “We need to leave.” She reached down for the larger unmarked book and froze as the sand below their feet shifted. “The sand . . .”

  “Is there something in it?”

  She kicked it, but nothing appeared. They looked at each other and Adie shrugged.

  The click click of the gear returned.

  Adie stumbled forward as the ground shifted below her feet and fell into Samuel’s arms. With a loud crash, books fell from the shelves around them.

  “The room is turning!” Adie held on to Samuel’s arms. “The books!” She reached for the wood-carved book as the black book fell against Samuel’s legs when the room shifted again.

  “I must have triggered some kind of trap when pulling out that book.”

  The room grew quiet as the sand settled. They were stuck at a forty-five-degree angle.

  Two clicks resounded, filling the silence, and the room began to shift. Adie and Samuel climbed onto the shelf as the books around them tumbled past. She gripped onto the edge of the casing and grimaced as the occasional book hit her body.

  Samuel tried to position himself over her as the spinning gradually settled. “Are you okay?”

  Adie nodded as she rubbed her shoulder and looked at the mess around them.

  The room was upside down.

  Books were strewn about the room, covered in bits of sand. The light had dimmed, as most of the lanterns were covered. The room swayed as though it dangled by a string.

  She dusted off her dress as she heard the next two clicks.

  “Head for the door!” Samuel shouted.

  Adie kept her grip on the book and leapt to the next empty shelf as the room spun. And this time, it didn’t stop. She held onto the shelf, tucking one of the books in the belt of her dress, watching remnants of the room tumble around her.

  “Samuel!” she shouted, looking over her shoulder. Her stomach churned as the spinning of the room grew faster.

  “Here!” he shouted as he jumped from the bookshelf behind her.

  She gripped his hand. “We need to head for the door!”

  A book flew between them, knocking their hands apart. He fell away from the shelf, holding on to the side with one hand.

  “Samuel!” Adie tried to pull him up, but books slammed into her.

  “Get to the door! I’m right behind you!” He pulled himself up as she jumped over to the next shelf, covering her head and neck from the falling debris.

  She could taste the sand in her mouth and spat as she ran with the turn of the room, Samuel at her heels. Tripping over books, she fell, and Samuel helped her stand. They gained their balance and pushed through the tumbling books. Adie reached for the door frame as the room shifted, leaving her dangling from the entryway and Samuel in her grip. She could feel the cold stone floor of the main library on her fingertips.

  She grunted as she tried to keep her grip on Samuel. “Hold on!” she shouted.

  With one long spin of the room, they slammed against the main floor and books fell atop them.

  Adie broke free from the debris. “Samuel!” she cried out as the room teetered as though it were shifting directions. She pulled herself out of the room and back into the main library. “Samuel!” she shouted again as his hand broke free from a pile of books.

  He climbed toward her as the room spun in the opposite direction, grasping her hand. The giant black book that Adie pulled off the shelf earlier came crashing into his side, almost knocking him out of Adie’s grasp. She screamed as she pulled with all her strength.

  Samuel tossed the large book upward through the door and into the main library. He climbed toward her and grabbed her hand as the room spun in the opposite direction.

  Adie flew backward, lying on the floor as Samuel came out on top of her. His face was inches from hers before he rolled onto his back to catch his breath. A few books tumbled out of the door as the room continued to spin before the door suddenly slammed shut.

  She sat up as the door vanish and the stone floor of the library returned.

  “And just what are you doing?” a high-pitched voice demanded.

  Adie and Samuel both turned. A short, floppy-eared creature with light brown fur stood in front of them. Her nose twitched, and her ears jerked into an upright position.

  “Just looking for some books,” Samuel said breathlessly.

  The creature walked toward them. “Books are not supposed to be tossed from their shelves!” She ran toward the books on the floor, dusting them off. “Is this sand? In my library?” She huffed, hopping angrily toward Samuel. Her eyes narrowed. “My name is Seriat, and I’m in charge of this library. It’s currently closed to all. To be here, you would need the permission of—”

  “The Ruler,”
Adie said, walking up to Seriat.

  Seriat gasped. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea the future Ruler was here.” She tapped her foot. “You do have permission, right? The Dome is on lockdown, and everyone is supposed to be in their chambers.”

  “And why aren’t you in your chambers?” Samuel asked.

  “This is my chambers!” Seriat shouted, her pitch growing higher. She hopped up a nearby ladder to get eye level with Samuel. “And if you want to check out a book, you must go through me.” She smiled. “Did you find what you were looking for?” Her left ear flopped down, and she twiddled her fingers.

  “Yeah, just these few books here,” Adie replied, tossing a few over to Samuel and reaching for the large book.

  “Careful! These books are precious!” Seriat took the books from Samuel and caressed them gently. Her eyes were suddenly drawn to the book Adie reached for. She shoved the others back to Samuel and hopped over to Adie’s side. Her fingers traced the book still on the ground. “I’ve never seen this book before.” She eyed them. “I’ve never seen any of these books before.” Her nose scrunched again as her eyes darted back and forth between Adie and Samuel.

  Adie tried to pick up the book and buckled under its weight. “I think we’ll head back to my chambers with these.”

  Seriat hopped in front of her and pointed a furry finger. “You will not go anywhere until these books are properly checked out. I must add them to my list.” She kicked at the sand around them. “I should make you clean up this mess!”

  Samuel gathered the books and followed Seriat to her desk.

  Adie trailed quietly behind them, looking over her shoulder at the floor where the door had been. Is the room still there? An uneasiness crept over her, and she shivered. She thought of Aura and prayed to Fate that she was safe.