Queen vs. Part-Time Job
image [https://i.ibb.co/9gP5RS6/toppng-com-line-dividers-png-1000x200.png]
Eydis's recent ‘meet and greet’ with her parents had painted a glaring truth: her bank account wouldn't be magically refilling anytime soon. This inconvenient reality led her towards a dreaded solution — a part-time job.
‘The Queen of Shadows, stocking shelves at the local apothecary? Unthinkable!’ she mused silently, then grimaced as a rogue itch attacked her, courtesy of the scratchy second-hand blazer. A sneeze followed, a delightful reminder of her newfound gift: allergy!
Back in her own realm, fragrant gardens were a whimsical dream, the infertile soil of Mythshollow mocking such fancies. Here, flowers were the enemy, their pollen a declaration of war. Clearly, an indoor job was a necessity. With a groan, Eydis trudged towards the library.
Desperation, thy name was minimum wage.
Ms. May, the kindly librarian, accepted Eydis's resume, a masterpiece crafted by the ever-resourceful Birgit. "Looks good, dear. We're shorthanded, so you can start today.”
The librarian led Eydis past mahogany walls that smelled of books and coffee. Students hunched over holographic desks in the central hall, but the rest of the library held an antique charm Eydis appreciated.
Ms. May began to drone on about the Dewey Decimal System, but Eydis zoned in solely on the Arcane section. Mental note: investigate later.
"Simple tasks," Ms. May concluded, patting a holographic screen. "Scan, update, shelve. Every three hours, if you please."
Eydis smirked. Finally, a chance to read physical copies while earning a few measly coins. Besides, a recent adventure into the internet's deepest, darkest corners (courtesy of a questionable Tweet) had left Eydis with a yearning for industrial-grade eye bleach. Who knew ‘waffles’ could be a euphemism for something so utterly horrifying?
The library fell quiet, the only sound the soft flutter of pages as Eydis immersed herself in the arcane tomes. Her eyes tracked the archaic symbols with an intense focus. Though most were in a foreign language, they followed a discernible structure, a pattern. They obeyed logic—the universal truth.
A world of possibilities opened up before Eydis, but a soft cough snapped her back to the present. Glancing up, she found herself face-to-face with a boy her height. Dark hair framed gentle blue eyes. Undoubtedly handsome, he approached the counter with a stack of books in his arms.
"Hi Eydis, I'd like to check these out, please."
"You know me?" Eydis quirked an eyebrow.
The boy scratched his ear sheepishly. "I'm Adam, and well, you've become quite the celebrity lately. Impressive, actually."
"Indeed. Though, 'amnesiac girl' isn't exactly a title to brag about."
"T-There's more to you than that!" Adam stammered.
Eydis leaned against the counter, propping her chin on her hand. "Care to elaborate, Adam?"
"I've seen you… I know who you really are, Eydis," Adam mumbled hesitantly.
"What do you mean by—”
Their conversation was abruptly interrupted by the arrival of a tall, lean boy with piercing emerald eyes. He cast a disdainful glance at Eydis as he swept his long, green hair aside.
"Are we done here, Adam?"
Adam nodded curtly. "Just a moment, Elias. Talk to you later, Eydis?"
The two boys vanished, leaving a bemused Eydis behind, who had already mentally filed them under "potential obstacles."
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
The rest of the day passed in a blur of tasks: locating obscure references, deciphering the Dewey Decimal System's mysteries, and the never-ending cycle of books on, books off.
Eydis sighed dramatically. With a flourish (and a slight wobble), she hoisted a particularly hefty tome onto her book trolley. A quick glance at the title, ‘Dungeons & Dragons,’ made her lips quirk into a smirk.
"Ah, historical accounts of legendary beasts," she declared. Steering the trolley with the grace of a queen navigating a minefield (which, come to think of it, wasn't far off), she made a beeline for the towering history shelves.
A figure, sculpted by the gods themselves, blocked her path. His wavy silver hair shimmered under the library lights, and his eyes, the colour of a glacial winter sky, held an intensity that made Eydis instinctively reach for her sunglasses (which, of course, weren't there).
Too bright, too perfect—the human equivalent of a sparkly unicorn.
Stifling a sigh, she ignored his curious gaze and scanned the shelves with regal disdain. Her brow furrowed as she checked the Dewey Decimal code. This section housed the dry accounts of the 900s, while "Dungeons & Dragons" clearly belonged in the fantastical realm of the 800s.
"Miss," the dazzling unicorn ventured cautiously, "this is the, uh, actual history section."
Eydis, channeling her most unimpressed noblewoman, arched an eyebrow. "Really now? It did escape my notice."
The sparkly boy chuckled, a low rumble. "You're holding a fantasy novel, Miss… Eydis," he said, peeking at her name tag. "Unless you secretly are a dungeon master by night?"
Eydis bristled. "Just Eydis will do." Asking him to call her "Your Majesty" was probably pushing her luck.
"Just Eydis, then," he conceded with a smile. "In that case, mythical creatures tend to reside a few shelves down, keeping company with the likes of unicorns and centaurs. Not alongside Julius Caesar."
A playful pout formed on her lips. Unicorn? He certainly fit the bill. Julius Caesar? Never heard of him. Must be a lesser-known mythical beast. But unicorns and centaurs - now those were history worth studying.
“So, dragons are relegated to mere figments of our imagination? How terribly mundane." She muttered a sarcastic, "Thanks," under her breath before turning to leave.
"Theo, by the way," he said, extending a hand. "And the Student Council Vice President."
Eydis's eyes narrowed. Theo. As in, Athena's boyfriend? This encounter just went from mildly amusing to exquisitely inconvenient. This guy was practically a walking advertisement for sunshine and rainbows, everything Eydis secretly despised.
"Well, Theo.” She took his hand. "My gratitude for the historical clarification. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date with destiny… in the fiction section."
With a regal tilt of her head, Eydis glided away, leaving Theo speechless and slightly amused.
The rest of the day went by peacefully. With the library's closing hour approaching, Eydis found herself alone among the bookshelves. She stretched, muscles protesting in a language she hadn't yet mastered. This frail body continued proving to be a royal pain.
Eydis packed her bag, slipping a book inside before heading toward the exit. Reaching for the light switch, a sudden chill slithered down her spine, defying the heaters’ warmth.
The sensation was almost intimate—the sinuous essence of dark magic, searching, seeking, probing.
She frantically scanned the room but there was nothing. Empty. With a final check, Eydis flipped the switch, plunging the library into darkness. Stepping out into the courtyard, she inhaled the fragrant autumn air. Yet, the disquiet refused to dissipate.
She knew, with near certainty, that something was coming.
----------------------------------------
“My apologies for disrupting your evening, Dean Saito,” a man in a finely tailored suit said authoritatively as he entered the dean’s office moments before closing.
Dean Saito pinched the bridge of his nose. "Senator Blackwood, our academy has a strict policy. Once a student is expelled, they are not considered for readmittance."
The Senator, a silver-haired man whose power radiated from his very posture, leaned back in his chair. "Consider this," he said, "an exceptional circumstance. My niece won't be returning as an 'Elite.' But as a Gifted student, that's a different story, don't you think?"
Saito's eyes widened. "Gifted?" he repeated. "Power awakening at eighteen is…unheard of."
The Senator smirked, nodding toward Tiffany, who stood proudly at his side. "Show him what you can do, Tiffany."
A cruel smile played on Tiffany's lips as she raised a hand. An unnatural purple mist swirled around it, coalescing into a single, malevolent point. Before Saito could react, the mist slammed into his prized porcelain cup, shattering it into a million shimmering shards.
Saito stared at the wreckage. "This power… it's not just telekinesis. It feels… sentient."
Noah Blackwood leaned forward. "Indeed. You seem well-versed in Gifted students, Dean. Now, a proposition. Are you willing to let Tiffany's power run wild, unchecked, or perhaps... accept a generous donation for a new music building, with a powerful returned student as a bonus?"
The room fell silent, broken only by the steady drip of Genmaicha tea hitting the wooden floor. Saito's shoulders slumped as he wrestled with a difficult choice. "Eydis," he murmured an apology.
With a sigh, he straightened and extended his hand towards the Senator. "Thank you for your...generosity, Senator Blackwood. Tiffany, you may return to the Academy...next week."
Tiffany, unable to contain her growing excitement, bit her lip to suppress a smirk.
‘Oh, Eydis. How would you react to this turn of events?’