Page 5 of Magical Mission
“Oh, I can tell,” I said dryly, dodging a playful swat. “I want to show you something before we get to your room.”
We reached the old library doors, looming and silent, and Twobble stopped, his mouth falling open.
“Maeve,” His voice was a breath. “It’shuge.”
“Welcome to the Academy library.” I smiled. “Or at least one of them.”
He whistled low. “It’s… it’s more books than I’ve ever seen in one place.”
“You might explode from happiness.”
“I might.”
His gaze swept every shelf, every curve of the arched windows, every speck of dust dancing in the streams of amber light. For once, Twobble was completely, blissfully silent.
And in that moment, with the scent of old magic wrapping around us and the warmth of the Academy blooming like a hearth fire, I realized how right this felt.
The Academy wasn’t awake because I’d forced it.
It wasn’t just opening for me.
It was opening for him.
For all the misfits.
For all the ones the old world forgot.
For those who loved it enough to try again.
Chapter Two
Twobble was practically vibrating beside me, his stubby legs bouncing in place as I led him through the winding corridors.
Well… I say “led,” but truthfully, I was about seventy percent sure I was making it up as I went along.
The Academy had never exactly handed me a floor plan. I hadn’t stumbled across a welcoming committee or a map etched into the walls. And yet, some part of me, deep in my gut, or maybe it was the strange tickle behind my ears, seemed toknowwhere to go.
It was a little disconcerting, if I was honest.
Twobble, of course, was oblivious to my inner existential spiral. He was too busy doing little hops, trying to peek over the railing into a stairwell that descended into shadows.
“Bet there’s secret tunnels down there,” he whispered.
“Probably,” I said, distracted, as I squinted down a curving hallway. The air smelled different here. The oxygen was warm, tinged with lavender and something like spiced apples. Cozy. Inviting. Which made sense if thiswaswhere students once slept.
“Are we lost?” Twobble asked, his voice laced with suspicion as he eyed a suit of armor that turned its head just a fraction too slowly as we passed.
“Of course not,” I lied.
Before Twobble could grill me further, a familiar voice echoed down the corridor.
“Well, well, well. What do we have here?”
Twobble jumped high enough to lose his hat, which he caught in midair with impressive reflexes.
“Blazing Bogwarts!” he cursed. “Don’t sneak up on a goblin like that, Nova!”
Nova leaned against the wall like she’d been waiting for us the whole time. Her sweater flared behind her like a cloak, and her ever-present smirk tugged at the corners of her lips. “Twobble. You’ve made it farther than usual, I see. Didn’t get tossed into the buckthorn brambles this time?”
