Chapter 2

-To Become Something You Need To First Crawl-

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Sun comes from the attic's round window, falling exactly atop my closed eyelids and shining through them, producing a feeling of comfort to the point of making me want to take the whole day and spend it here, even though I know that I can't because I promised to let Milesian show me around the village. I take my phone from my pocket in a practiced move, ready to check the time and complain that it's too early, but the memories from yesterday come like the twist of a knife as my eyes spot the shattered screen, so instead of lazing on the comfortable sheets as I would prefer, I force myself to my feet and spontaneously stretch my arms while allowing a yawn to escape my throat.

Going to the bathroom, I take my shoes and the extra pair of socks from my backpack, using the sink as a seat to allow me to put them on. My eyes travel around the bathroom in search of my dirty clothes, but they are nowhere in sight—something that for now I keep in mind to later ask. With my palm, I check my breath, and when the smell of yesterday's soup hits me, I groan and take from my backpack my toothbrush and toothpaste kit. While brushing my teeth, I make sure to wet my fingers and rub my face, getting rid of the dark circles around my eyes as best I can, and cleaning my skin in general with the cold sink water, removing some of the still hanging dirt that yesterday's bath wasn't able to take care of.

Soon, with all of that done, I look presentable enough to go out, leaving just my wild hair as one thing to take care of, which I do by tying it up in a low bun to postpone it, leaving the bangs taking the side of my face in whatever way they want. In the end, with my backpack with me and a good night's rest on my system, I'm ready for the day ahead of me, I guess.

I take the stairs down, wandering my eyes around as the natural light permits me to have a better look at the library as a whole, and I have to say, it's almost dreamy. Books everywhere, ranging in type even more than I thought yesterday, and somehow, even with all of that, I don't spot much dust around, unlike how the attic was. I stop by the couch I almost destroyed yesterday, and there, I see that the ice shards were broken off and the ripped material was stitched together so well that, if not for me knowing there were holes in it, I wouldn't notice.

The little creature too, who was resting at the coffee table, is still nearby; the only difference is that she was moved to a small birdhouse hanging alongside others, varying in four color types: red, blue, green, and brown; there are five of them in total with an extra blue. As I reach a finger to touch one of them, a figure sneakily moves to my side, stopping me in mid-action, and when I inevitably turn my attention to her, I notice she is holding a small wooden box with a letter on top. I get a little spooked by the sudden appearance but play it off with a cough. Looking at this person, it's clear they are not Milesian, so that leaves me curious.

At first, what calls my attention is her unusual hair, messy and white, tied up in a ponytail, leaving two long bangs that reach for her shoulder, hugging the area near her ears and highlighting her sharper facial features; then, her white skin like the snow—literally, if you take a piece of paper and place it beside her, it would be the exact color match. When I move my eyes up, orange, serious eyes move from the birdhouses to me; they glow like a furnace, making me stop and admire them for a second.

The young woman with the uniform resembling a maid's offers me the box, which I take without saying anything at first, choosing instead to give my mind time to process her existence by reading the letter. Unfolding the carefully treated paper, the letters inside are revealed:

"My dear guest, I'm sorry for not being with you at this moment to fulfill my promise to show you around the village. An important business that requires my undivided attention arrived this morning, and so I had to leave hurriedly.

If you feel like exploring, please do take this medicine with you, and if you can do me this favor, deliver it to the house number written below. I promise that my business won't take more than a few hours, so I'll be back soon. Safe travels.

-Milesian"

The house number stays at the bottom of the letter, 'twenty-nine', alongside a small map drawn by hand to give me directions; there isn't a real reason to not accept the request, especially as I need a breather anyway, and this way the pressure to take the decision is lessened on me; maybe this can be fun even.

I notice that I've ignored the girl in front of me for more than I intended, probably looking rude, so I look back at her with a simple, friendly smile. "Thank you; I'll make the delivery; can you just point me in the general direction?"

With a bow of her head, the woman doesn't say anything; she only walks to the window and points towards what I remember to be that dirty path I saw yesterday, the one leading to the village start. I hug the wooden box securely near my chest and copy her gesture, bowing to her as well and walking towards the exit. On the way out, I look at the library one more time, taking in the scent of old books before pushing the door open and stepping outside.

Now that I'm outside again and I'm not being followed by a night glob creature wanting to kill me, I have time enough to appreciate the library from outside as well as its surroundings. An old dirt path leads from the forest to the village, hugged by a broken stone wall extending as far as I can see. A garden with a small river resides and brings life to the left side of the library, as on the right, the windows of what looks like a greenhouse seek to blind anyone who is courageous enough to stare at it long.

So much green takes over my surroundings; sometimes I forgot how summer feels outside; it's hot, and not all the blowing air is cold, but it's at least enough to keep me from sweating much. The sound of my shoes against the dirt ground accompanies me on the lonely journey. The box and its contents shake at every step I take, so I do my best to keep a steady and calm pace to avoid breaking its contents. The countryside is so much calmer than the city; there are no sounds of cars or their loud horns on traffic every morning; there is no one on the road to give me dirty looks or hateful gazes, forcing me to hide my face on my hoodie even on hot days; this is something I didn't know I missed, even if I had never been to a place like this.

I consult the small map in the letter as I leave the forest area, seeing that the mountain valley far to my right is beautiful, but even more so is the flowery field encircling the dirt path. I can even see the part where I fell down as I pass by the poor flowers that sustained my fall. Little by little, from the ups and downs of the fields, some of the village houses start to peak from the distance, allowing me a mesmerizing scene with the sun in the distance, still taking its time to go up.

Time still passes by, to the point that I find myself walking on a road more suited for cars to drive in; small old houses made out of stone take on the scene, all so aesthetically interesting, that in my pursuit of the number twenty-nine, I appreciate the way they were constructed. Their numbers stay on display on a wooden plaque easy to spot near their doors, so it takes me no time to find the one I need to get to. Number twenty-nine, a house just like the others, the only difference being the chalk drawings on the wall near the entrance door.

I stop and kneel down, putting my hand near the forms in pink—flowers in the ground, two adults, and an old lady standing next to a child—or at least that's what I can make out of the drawing, seeing that one part of it is smudged like someone tried to wipe it away with their fingers.

"Lily? Sweetie, what are you doing outside?" A crispy yet gentle voice asks. At first, I just rise to my feet, ready to make the delivery. That is until I notice the old woman looking straight at me. "Are you off to visit that Sunny boy? I told you, he is no good."

"I'm sorry, miss; I'm not Lily." Awkwardly, I bow to her instinctively.

"Oh, I'm sorry, dear; my eyes have not been the same lately. Is there something I can help you with, then?" She asks sweetly, making the grandma pose with her hands clasped together near her chest and a cracked-lip smile, forcing the flacid skin of her cheeks to accompany the motion of her lips.

"I have a delivery for you, from Lady Milesian; it's some medicine." Extending the wooden box to her view, I wait for the old lady to take it.

"Oh, how foolish of me; I almost forgot. Lily's medicine." She takes the box carefully, holding on in her weak hands for dear life and shooting it a relieved smile before giving me the same. "Thank you, young lady. Why don't you come in? I can make you some cookies."

"I would gladly take the offer, but I want to explore the village before I probably head out."

"Well, then please wait a moment; I'll be back in a second." She walks back to the house slowly, clearly having trouble walking, then, in less than a minute, returns with a basket half filled with vivid blue-violet grapes. "Take these with you; my husband got them not an hour ago, but as hardheaded he is, he got more than I can cook, so it is best if you could take them. I'm sure you find some use for them, and it saves me from dumping the rest when it goes bad." She leaves me with not many options; I would feel bad to reject and pass the wrong message, so after a quick breath to prepare a smile, I take the basket, bowing deeply for her.

"Thank you; then I'll accept your kindness."

There is a second of silence before the old lady puts her hand on my shoulder, seemingly to comfort me. "Don't let me hold you here; I'm sure you have a lot to explore. Please do come back some time; you and Milesian, dear, are always welcome for dinner."

"I'll let Lady Milesian now; bye, miss..." I try to recall her name from the letter until I remember that it was not in it.

"Rose." She stops and waits for me to give her my name in return.

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"Noma. Have a good day, Miss Rose."

"You too, Noma, dear; please do stop by to keep this old lady some company if you come to explore again." Nodding my head, I turn around and adjust the basket on my arm; it doesn't feel too heavy, and the aroma it produces is nice, so with that out of the way, I should look around some more before going back and making my final decision.

I walk in the road, seeing more and more houses extending on this hill and a river running down in the middle of the village that has a stone bridge made just for crossing it; for some reason, an unspoken will takes over me. I walk to the side of the bridge and carefully climb its side; it's not too high to be dangerous, and focusing my eyes on the river below, I spot some fish going around, some small and others not so much. The clear water provides me with a view of the bottom which is filled with rocks, a sight I've never seen before. That's one of the perks of growing up in an orphanage your whole life; everything is kinda new.

"Be careful, miss; the waters are rather cold below." A voice gets me back to reality, making me move my gaze from the river to the man walking towards me from the same side of the bridge I came from. Of all of his features, the one that immediately calls my attention is his priestly clothes, including a white cleric collar.

Upon noticing that, I start quickly climbing down the side of the bridge. "I'm sorry, I was just looking at the river."

"That I could see, but please do be careful; the stone can be rather slippery." He offers me his hand as he notices my difficulty climbing down with the basket, so with an awkward smile, I take it gratefully. Once I'm back to the safety of the bridge's middle, the man who looks just a little older than me smiles, focusing his dark blue eyes on me. "I don't recognize your face; are you one of the elder's granddaughters?"

"No, I actually was just passing by to take the bus to the next town yesterday night, but I hurt my ankle, and a nice woman helped me, and she offered me to stay at her house for the night." Not exactly a lie, but telling him a raven skull lady saved me from a monster in the forest would be harder to explain, so that version it is.

"Really? That's good; the elders from around here can be a handful at times, but they have their hearts in the right place." He sits down on the bridge's stone wall and pets his side, gesturing for me to sit beside him, something I do. "I assume you're going to London."

I let out a dry laugh and nod my head. "Is it that obvious?"

"I've seen a handful of lost travelers come and go on the central church there when I was doing my 'internship' to become a priest, and because of that, I can sense the aura of a lost young soul. Are you Catholic by chance?"

"No, but I came from a Catholic orphanage." Something I can't hide from my face is the sadness that comes to me from remembering, and the priest seems to perceive it.

"I sense a long story; and not a happy one."

"Yeah, but let's not talk about it, please." I dangle my feet, focusing my eyes on the stone ground, to relax the muscles on my face by brushing the memories away.

"Certainly, just know one thing, young lady: I know your experience was a harsh one, but please don't think twice if you need any help; the church at the end of the village has always room to help those in need if you find yourself in a bad situation."

"Thank you, priest," Bowing to him, I force myself back to my feet and look at the priest, noticing him blow a bang of his short black hair out of his brows. "Do you know the time? My phone is broken."

At my question, he takes from his clothes a pocketwatch and looks at it for a second before looking back at me. "Five minutes until eight."

"It's best I return then; Lady Milesian should be almost back. Thank you for the company-"

*Whoosh*

With a grip strong enough to hurt, he takes my wrist and stops me from moving; on his face, an expression unlike what I wouldn't expect from the way he acted five seconds ago, he looks serious and a bit angry. "It was Milesian who sheltered you."

"Yes, can you please let go of my arm? You're hurting me." I try pulling myself away from him, but to no avail; he maintains an iron grip on my wrist.

"I need to get you out of here right now. What was that demon thinking, breaking the law like this?" He rubs his face with his free hand, turning away and pulling me beside him. "I'll explain things later; for now, just let us get out of here."

I struggle to walk, still trying to free myself from his grasp, and, at the same time, to avoid falling, I divide my focus on that and not tripping. From the edge of my vision, something moves quickly towards us; the priest reacts fast but not as much to dodge what happens. A raven dives down and cuts the top of his arm, forcing him to flinch in pain and lose grip on me, which, in consequence of how abruptly it happened, makes me be pulled forward and start to fall.

A white-gloved hand pulls my shoulder and balances me, saving me from meeting my nose with the stone bridge ground; that hand, to my surprise, belongs to Milesian, who simply appeared out of nowhere.

"John, it has been a while since our last encounter." Milesian comments emotionlessly, adjusting her coat and placing her crane on the ground; her hand stays on my shoulder, keeping me beside her.

"Milesian, what do you think you're doing? Breaking a strict law from the church like this?" John, hugging his bleeding arm, takes a step closer to us, stopping just close enough to look at her with disappointment. "What you're doing is something I can't help you with. If anyone from the church comes here, I'll have to report this."

"I know the law very well, John."

"So you know that you're not allowed near humans, and worse yet, you got out of your way and housed one in your forbidden library."

"Can I say something?" I ask, and both of them turn their attention to me. "I'm sorry, priest; I lied about what led me to this. Yesterday some creature was trying to hunt me in the forest, and so I ended up in front of Milesian's house; she just helped me, that is all."

John's expression for a second goes between different stages until he stops at a sigh and a tired expression. "So this is your game, Milesian; you allowed a human to enter the library's territory?"

"What do you mean?" I ask, confused by what I'm hearing.

"Not just anyone can find the forest library; you need to be allowed to by the mage living there." Milesian still stays silent, only watching the conversation—that is until John forces her into the conversation again. "I'll ask once again: Why are you breaking a church law? And why now?"

She seems to ignore the man's question and instead turns to me. "I see you delivered the medicine to Miss Rose; thank you. The little time you had to explore the village, have you had time to make your decision?"

"I-"

"What decision? I demand you tell me now, Milesian, in the name of the oath you took." John almost screams that, firming his footing on the ground.

"I see some magical potential in this girl; that's why I decided to offer her a place to explore that potential as part of my family."

...

Family? Is that what she wants—me, as her family? No one ever wanted anything to do with me before; this is something that plays on my heartstrings painfully, to the point that my mind becomes clouded by thoughts. That... is an opportunity I should take, no? I can wander on London's streets and try my luck, fighting the cold, hunger, and people, or I could accept to stay. While I'm lost in thoughts, John and Milesian continue their conversation.

"You can't; the law says specifically that you can't have any involvement with humans on matters of friendship, research, or expose them to the magic, meaning that taking her as part of your family is a breach of the law."

"There is one thing you're forgetting, priest boy."

"And what is that?"

Once again, Milesian turns to me and extends her hand, snapping me out of my thinking state. "So, what will it be? You take my hand now, and I can show you a whole world you don't know, one in which your responsibilities in the modern world are not real, one in which you can make your own path towards your goals, and more than anything, one in which you don't need to face the world alone."

Milesian's eyes glow a deep red like she's manipulating me, seeing through somehow, striking all of my weaknesses, and making me feel like accepting without a second thought. But does it really matter if she's using me?

John, in the meantime, checks on his bible in search of the meaning behind Milesian's words, which he seems to find as soon as I make up my mind. "Girl, think about what you're about to accept; they are not offering what you think-"

"I know. I know she is probably lying, or at least manipulating me by telling me what I want to hear, but... if only a part of what she said is true, if she's willing to take me as family, I... accept."

Milesian puts her hand on my shoulder, petting it for a second, making me lock eyes with her. Her serious and emotionless expression somehow is not one of a monster; even in her skull-head form, she looks at me, and her face goes to that of yesterday, the human form. "Know one thing: I'm not lying to you; my words are truly meant." Once again, she waits for my hand, and in the moment I take hers, she looks at John. "In your church's law, I'm entitled to have a relationship with any type of being, supernatural or not, so here I present to you my apprentice, my wife."

The words are stolen from me, and worst yet, when she takes me in her arms, the same seems to happen to John; he stops and almost drops his bible from shock. He regains his posture after a quick set of coughs. "Excuse me, I have to report this to my superiors at this moment." John walks away, taking from his clothes a phone which he quickly dials something as he disappears in between houses.

Milesian, still holding me in her arms, turns around and starts walking out of the village. "Let us return. Loa must be waiting for our return; I assure you, you won't like to see her mad."

That is one of the things that makes the 'perks' of coming from an orphanage away from the normal world look more problematic; there isn't a single way my mind finds to react but to keep quiet and enter quiet panic mode. The walk back to the library is quiet and peaceful, even with the circumstances being... unusual.

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