TrueBloods

Chapter 5: The History

As soon as we walked through the door, the first thing we saw was a large stone plaque with writing on it.

"This place is," Jackson whispered, "huge", his voice trailing off into silence.

And indeed it was. A vast hall stretching in every direction, more artifacts in glass display cases scattered throughout the room than there were any actual books. I had been there before, countless times throughout my life. But now I saw the library through different eyes, Jackson's eyes.

"What does it say?"

"Hm?"

He indicated the stone plaque. Jackson had evidently only just now become aware of it. Large as it was, for him, it must have been swallowed up in the vastness.

"Absolutely no idea. I could never understand it. Or why those never have anything in them."

I was pointing to several empty display tables and cases right below the plaque. They had always been that way, and it was only now, here with Jackson, that it occurred to me to wonder why. Off to the right side was a massive fireplace. It had sculpted feathered wings just like mine on either side and a fire, already roaring, brought some welcome warmth to the sharp edges of the natural cool spring air. Near the fireplace sat a table with two large, wooden chairs, and an open book already laid out.

"What do we ... ?"

"This library," I gestured around, "is pure magic. All I have to do is think about something and it appears. Whether I'm hungry, tired, or just looking for something in particular. Almost as soon as I think of it, the library brings it to me"

To prove my point, I thought about my favorite book and waited for it to appear on the table that Jackson and I were walking to. This room had been my safe haven for years. It felt suddenly awkward to have to share it with someone else now. I waited patiently as Jackson did the gentlemanly thing and pulled out my chair for me to sit on,before scooting me closer. He gently kissed the top of my head as he went around to the chair on the other side. Not for the first time, I found myself getting lost in my thoughts about him. He was too good to be true and I knew from my extensive past, that if something felt too good to be true, then more often than not, it was. Jackson jumped as the soft thud of the book I asked for echoed throughout the room as it landed on the table.

"Lilah," he exclaimed.

I smiled softly and slid the book closer, reading the title and marveling at the elegance of the handwriting for the hundredth time. "This is my favorite book, Jackson" I said. "It's supposed to be a history of the library. i don't know how much of it is true, but it was always my favorite. I love the way the author hand wrote the story. I know they didn't have all of the technology we have, but I can feel her emotions and her love for her people in every swirl of her writing. Every time I was expected to not be visible, I found comfort in her words."

He gently slid the book back around so he could get a better look at it and asked, "Who was she?"

I sighed, "I wish I knew. I've asked the library countless times for more information on her, but this is the only book it will give me."

He rubbed the back of his neck and said, " Tell me the story, Starlight."

I grinned. "Once upon a time, centuries ago, there was a beautiful girl. She was very strange, and everyone was afraid of her. She was a different being, not entirely human. She had huge, feathered, pure white wings, and exceptionally long golden hair. One day, a man just ad strange came to her and showed the world that she wasn't the only one of her kind. He had hair dark as a moonless night, and wings that were even larger than hers, just as feathered, and just as black as hers were white. They fell in love and as the world learned about them, more people like them came to be known. They had wings of every shape, size, and color. Some even had wings made of pure light. One day, their people started being murdered. The beautiful girl decided they needed to preserve their existence and history, so she and her partner combined their magic and created a wondrous library. Every person with wings put some little piece of themselves into that library. The library was a place where their people would always be safe and happy. If something was happening, all they had to do was enter the library and no one would be able to get to ]

=]them. Only the winged people were allowed in the library, unless invited. And that was the downfall of the beautiful man. He had a family and wanted them to see what they had created. The family were not winged and as such had to be invited into the library. The family hated the beautiful man and his equally beautiful wife and wanted their kind to be erased from existence. Right there in that very library, the man's little sister stabbed him in the heart as the beautiful woman was forced to watch in horror. The family attempted to do the same thing to her, but she had been a skilled swordswoman and equally skilled with her magic. In her grief stricken state, she lost control of some of her magic power, turning the family into dust. The library shielded the woman and the man from the effects of her powers by absorbing all of the excess. By the time the family was gone, she was on her knees holding her lover, unable to heal him. He was too far gone. She screamed and cried for days, the library locked down and hidden from the world. Her people still knew what was happening though. They gathered around the entrance and stood vigil, protecting their queen from anything that may come. Many of those people died that day defending their home. As the sun rose on the final day of her grief, the young queen opened the doors and addressed her people, naming them the TrueBloods. It's not known what else she said on that day, but when she finished addressing her people, she handed a very young girl with hair just as gold as hers the key to the library and locked herself back inside with her lover, never to come out again. When the doors were opened again, there was a plaque on the wall and their queen was nowhere to be seen."

"What," he exclaimed. "That's it? What happened to the queen?"

I smiled at him. "I'm not sure. There's another book that skims over the topic, but the author briefly mentioned that it was believed the queen had poured all of the magic into healing her lover and when those doors closed for the final time, she lost control and the library absorbed all of her power and essence."

He stared at me in fascination. "So, basically , she was grief struck that she killed herself and the library absorbed all of that magic to better it?"

I nodded. " Basically."

He shook his head. "That's absolutely fascinating, Starlight. So, you said there's nothing more on the author?" I nodded. "Is there anything on that little girl? Who was she? Why did she get the key? Also, were these two the only ones with feathered wings?"

I smiled. "Those are all extremely good questions, but Jackson, I don't have the answers."

Jackson chewed the inside of his lip, lost in thought, when suddenly a new book plopped onto the table. It was plain, leather bound, almost identical to my mostly unused journal and I had never seen it before. I looked over at Jackson who said, "I don't think that's what I meant to do."

"What did you mean to do?" I giggled.

"I was just thinking that that little girl was mentioned specifically for a reason, so it felt like we needed to learn more about her. I didn't even ask the library to do anything."

I giggled again. "That's the magic of the library. It gives you what you need, whether you know to ask for it or not. Thinking about it brings it into existence, remember?"

I trailed off into silence as the table and chairs disappeared only to be replaced by a nest of pillows and blankets on the floor and underneath of us. I shot Jackson a glare as I fell to the floor, only to stop short when he smiled sheepishly at me. "I apologize. I find myself having a hard time controlling my thoughts, Starlight."

I adjusted my skirts to maintain some propriety before grabbing the journal. I had to marvel at how soft and supple the leather was, so contrary to my very own. I opened the journal to the first page and read, "Princess Ifera 'Mizuzu' Ariherty."

Jackson and I shared a look of confusion. He said, "Who's Princess Mizuzu?"

I shook my head. "Princess Ifera Ariherty was the first documented TrueBlood royal,but this diary goes on for years. It doesn't make sense."

"Why not," he asked while gently flipping through the pages. "I've kept my journal for years."

"Mizuzu as she preffered to be called, disappeared when she was 14 without a trace. So how did she manage to keep a diary all the way into her twenties that also somehow ended up in here?"

He shrugged and began reading, "14th, Sun's Moon, Era 1:

Father died. At least that's what they are telling me. I was there when Mother unlocked the library and addressed us with tears streaming down her face. She told us that we were called TrueBloods, whatever that means, and that we have to forgive the other people for their ignorance. She said that when the time came, the stones would reveal the truth. One day, she said, our story will repeat itself, and it will be up to us as a people to prepare the future for it. She handed me the key to the library and told me that when the stones began to weep I would know it was time to unlock the doors again. She told me I had to protect the key with my life, that our descendents would need it. Then, she went back in and locked the doors again. There hasn't been any signs of her since then. It's been a month and the stones still have not wept. Our people urge me to take up the throne and find a husband, but all I can think about is Mother and Father."

As I listened and read with him, I couldn't help but wonder what happened to lead the people to not document their Queen better.