Page 76 of Scars Like Wings

“Welcome home, little lotus flower.” Her accent was foreign and thick but was gorgeous, wise, and warm. Her eyes twinkled as she continued. “I’m sorry your mud was so very thick for you to be here and be so beautiful.”

I sniffled, wiping my nose and eyes and clearing my throat. “W-what? What does that mean?”

“The lotus is a flower that blooms in the mud. The thicker and deeper the mud, the more beautiful the lotus that blooms. So, the more adversity, the more beautiful the person.”

“That’s beautiful. Is it like a proverb or something?”

The woman laughed. “In a way. It’s a quote from the beginning of a movie,What’s Love Got to Do With It.”

I blinked.I think I love her… a lot.

The woman helped me stand up, but she kept a reassuring hand on my arms. “Welcome to the Archive, young lotus. You’ve done well to seek your sanctuary here.”

“My sanctuary?”

“Yes, the Archive is a beacon to those who are othered and lost in need of a place to rest.”

“Oh, I don’t need?—”

“Not literally, my child. Well. Not necessarily. It’s more for your mind, heart, and soul than your physical body though it can help with that as well.”

Wow, Aunt Max would love her. My heart hurt along the scars she had just patched. It felt sore and aching.

“Ah, you are hurting. You’ve experienced pain most would never survive and withstand. The Archive feels it, it is so great. She called you here.”

“You sound like an old sage or wizard in a movie or video game.”

Her smile grew. “Most would say I speak in riddles.”

I shrugged. “I’m not most, I guess. But I am confused. You talked about the Archive like it was a person. Even gave it a gender.” I looked at the Archive, finally taking it in for the first time. “Is that this place? It looks like just a library.”

“To most, it is, but you aren’t most, right?” She winked. “The Archive is as alive as the city, you, or I. She has her own quirks and dislikes, trauma and loves. She was born to be a mother to those society hurt, neglected, abused, hated, ignored, and othered. Her walls are a mother’s arms, her magic, her unconditional love, and her favor a support.”

The Archive’s tree rustled behind the front desk. I looked up above and watched as the domed ceiling changed to a cotton candy pink sky above mountain trees with red cardinals flying across.

“She’s taken a liking to you. It’s been a while since she has done that. It’s quite rare.”

My chest fluttered. I couldn’t contain my smile and pure wonder. My eyes were wide, trying to take it all in. It wasincredible. A beautiful sight. I never wanted to stop this feeling… Wait, a feeling. Finally, something else instead of the cold and the numb. It was a drop into the dark and still. The ripple was small but growing with the light reflecting in the increasing wave.

For the first time in a long time, I felt like maybe I was finding my okay at last again.

“You have lost. Now, it’s time to gain.”

“Who are you? How do you know so much? Can you read my mind or something?”

The woman laughed deeply and infectiously. It made my smile grow wider. “No, little lotus flower. When you live as longas I have, reading people becomes as easy as reading a book or solving a puzzle. Oh, and how rude of me not to introduce myself! I am the Guardian of the Archive, but the job that pays me is acting as the Director of Procurement and Acquisitions. You may call me Izzy. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Rhois was kind enough to watch the desk for me while I ran my little errand. Gripping the book tightly in my arms, I practically ran across the library, my skips light if not rushed. Simone and Maisie had to almost run to keep up with me and stay close behind. Despite my shorter legs, they were not used to me basically running.

“Byrdie! Byrd! Where are we going? Who were you and Rhois talking about?” Simone asked.

“Oh, you’ll see. You guys are going to love her!” I kept going. When was the last time I had seen Iz? She was always so busy. Trying to see her these days was harder than getting a shout out from Beyoncé on social media. Rhois and Journee had even been complaining to me about how busy she’d been and how she was never home nowadays. I wonder what she had been working so hard on?

Around the tall stacks on the main floor toward the right of the Archive, there were long, winding stairs that led up to the second floor. This floor was dedicated to women’s fiction of all kinds. The side the stairs put out on were specifically dedicated to classical and literary women’s fiction. The whole floor was truly one of my favorites.

Upon arriving, I immediately started scouring the shelves. Simone and Maisie breathlessly appeared at the top of the stairs,their hands resting on their knees while they tried to catch their breath.

“Any… chance… we… can get… some kind of… an explanation… here?” Simone asked between pants.

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