The library was ginormous, and as Rachael stood just inside the doorway, looking up at rows and rows of books, across to even more books on the other side of the circular space, she had to wonder what in the world she’d been thinking when she created such an expansive area that played such a small part in the plot of her story. Perhaps it had been because she loved books so much herself or that she’d been inspired by the dramatic visuals of seeing thousands of books all at once in some of her favorite movies--like "Beauty and the Beast." Maybe it just felt right to have such a place in any school. Standing there before it all, she wondered if there were even words on the pages of all of these books. Where had they come from? When she’d somehow brought the world from her own books to life, had the authors who allegedly scribed these bound volumes also come with them? She had to imagine that was the case, but none of it made any sense to her.

Fumbling for the light switch by the door, Rachael brought the room to life. The soft glow from the skylight in the domed ceiling had only reached the open center of the room. Now, the bookshelves looked even more impressive. She could see them all clearly with the lights on. Her stomach tightened as she realized she had no idea where to start. With a deep breath, Rachael walked into the room and let her fingers run along the spines, realizing there were more books here than she could possibly read in two lifetimes.

A librarian would’ve been helpful. Unfortunately, when Ms. Turner had retired a few months ago, right after Chell banished Sasha to the cave, Rachael hadn’t seen fit to replace her. There’d been no need. Thus, the lights had been off, the shelves were slightly dusty, and the scent of millions of pages of paper had taken over what would’ve smelled like a special cinnamon potpourri Ms. Turner made herself and kept freshly strewn in small baskets around the library to keep the room “crisp and fresh.”

“I could sure use your help right now, Page Turner,” Rachael muttered. The name sounded even sillier than her other characters’ names when spoken aloud, but she didn’t take the time to laugh. Instead, she stood and surveyed the room, trying to remember if she’d given a description of where Chell had found the book that had allowed her to lock Sasha away the first time. Had she written the title in her novel? Surely, she had. She’d just have to remember what it was.

Rachael’s eyes wandered over section labels. This library didn’t have the usual Dewey Decimal System since almost all of the books were on the same few topics--the history of vampires and vampire hunters, and of course, magic. She saw plenty of interesting labels, many of which might be useful, but she didn’t know where to begin. Would “Spells Against the Undead” be a good place, or “Unusual Historical Weapons”? What about “Hidden Spaces and Portals” or “Rare Locks and Keys”? There was just so much in front of her, it was difficult to decide what to look at first.

Finally making a decision, Rachael headed over to the section containing books with spells she could potentially cast against Sasha, once she knew how to use her magic, and looked through the titles. Several seemed interesting, so she pulled them off of the shelf and headed to one of the reading nooks Ms. Turner had created so that all of her students and staff members could be “cozy and comfortable” while reading. Setting the stack down on a table next to a couch, she sank into the cushion, a tiny bit of dust coming out of the fabric as she did so, and absently wondered if it was too late to get Ms. Turner back.

Flipping through the table of contents of the first book, Rachael saw a few chapters that looked like they could help, so she began to scan them, reading some more carefully than others. She had gotten through three books in such fashion when she realized her phone was vibrating, so she pulled it out of her pocket, setting the book aside. It was Trip. With a sigh, she glanced at the stack of books, wishing she’d had more luck, and answered. “Hello?”

“Hey, Rach! It’s Trip. How’s it going?”

He sounded far too chipper for someone who fought vampires for a living. Perhaps he still didn’t realize Sasha was back. Maybe Rex hadn’t been able to reach him yet. “I’m good, Trip. How are you?” Rachael managed, not really feeling it at all.

“Good, good. Say, I was just about to head out to meet with a new recruit, but I wanted to get you your badge and a few other things first. Can I swing by and drop them off before I go?”

“Sure--but I’m not in my room right now. I’m in the library.”

“Perfect! I’m right down the hall. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes.”

“Cool,” Rachael said, but she realized the books she’d selected earlier might seem a little suspicious to Trip. Her subject matter didn’t quite seem to fit with something a new student would want to read about. She’d have to hurry to get them back on the shelf before he got there and started asking questions. “See you in a bit.”

“See ya, Ra--” was all he got out before she hung up and popped up off the couch, grabbing the stack of books as she went.

Rachael had no idea where each specific book had come from, except for the section, and without a librarian, there was a good chance they’d never be put back correctly. She hurriedly shoved them into empty slots on the shelves where she’d been earlier and had just gotten the last one pushed into place when the library door opened. As fast as she could go, she darted to another section of the library and grabbed a book off of the shelf, pretending she was nonchalantly browsing and not looking for anything specific. At least she wouldn’t pique his curiosity about her interest in spells since this book was on a different subject.

“Hey, Rach!” Trip exclaimed making short work of the distance between them. “Nice to see you.”

“Nice to see you, too.” She closed the book and leaned against the shelf, resting leisurely. She wasn’t up to anything. Just hanging out….

“This is a pretty awesome space, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, yeah. It’s great.” She looked around, nodding.

“Too bad we haven’t gotten a new librarian yet. Ms. Turner is just about impossible to replace.”

“Indeed.” Rachael realized that sounded stupid coming out of her mouth but wasn’t sure what more to say.

“Anywho… I gotta split, but here’s your badge and a few other items you might need.” He handed over a lanyard with a badge attached to it. The picture was one Ms. Post had taken of Rachael when she’d arrived the day before. It wasn’t a bad shot, if she did say so herself. The rest were papers with information such as the passwords she'd need to access certain websites and her schedule. “We don’t require you to wear the badge all the time, but you should have it with you.”

“Got it. Thank you.” She smiled at him, piling the papers on top of the book she’d been flipping through.

“If you need anything before Graham or I get back, just go to the office or give Ms. Post a ring. She’ll be able to help you.”

“Awesome.”

“All right, Rach. See you later.” He smiled again, gave her a little wave, and then backed up a few steps before turning and walking out of the library without seeming to even acknowledge what section she’d been perusing, which was a good thing because Rachael had no idea where she was standing and would’ve had no explanation for the book if he’d asked.

Her bag was back by the couch, so she slid the paperwork and her badge off on an empty part of the shelf so she could put the book away. She caught a glimpse of the title as she put it back where she'd found it. "Collision of Worlds" by Dr. Wadsworth J. McCall. Rachael wondered if the writer was any relation to Jared but didn’t otherwise pay it much mind as she grabbed her stuff and headed back to her bag. She’d had enough library exploration for one day. Deciding she’d go back online for a while before lunch, she made sure she had everything and took off, hoping her next visit to the library would be fruitful. This trip had yielded nothing important--nothing at all.