Floryana removes the ring, placing it into the front pocket of her short overalls; the room is silent—it makes her uncomfortable; Gekaryna and Kolaus—seemingly aware of what she said—look at her queerly; they squint at Floryana from their brown leather chairs, and she grows flustered by the pressure of their gazes; she begins gesticulating in front of her, frantically snapping her fingers, “Uhhh... Honeyed...” she fumbles over her words trying to translate her outburst: “Honeyed almond paste,” but the translation does nothing to alter their queer looks—this panics her further; closing her eyes, she presses her palms against her eyelids, rubs them, and then runs them down her face, “Immediately, immediately, immediately!” she says, “The book—I need the book so I can explain myself. I must retrieve it immediately." She scrabbles from the chair, and as quickly as her thin legs can carry her, she bolts for the concealed door; tilting a thick green book towards her, the bookshelf swings inward, and she exits the Library Cabinet, running down the gallery on the upper floor towards the staircase, pushing past Dyder.

  Dyder looks back into the library cabinet, seeking answers for the sudden outburst—he finds none.

  ?nnywella shrugs to Dyder when he looks through the open entrance, "You know how she is."

  "Fae-child."

  "Verily," ?nnywella responds, "Please close the door again."

  Dyder obliges, and the shelf clicks back into place once more.

  “I do not know why she thinks honeyed almond paste could help us in this situation.” Kolaus turns to Gekaryna. “I’m aware of its use of pastries, specifically in the winter season.”

  “Doubt she got a sudden craving; she hates honeyed almond paste. " ?nnywella pauses to take a drag on her cigarette and stands, making her way to the mantel to add the butt to the ashtray. "She tried some during Nyluhnkroux celebration in 1052; her reaction was one of such vehement disgust that Floren was apologizing to the baker for the next fifteen minutes. She has logic behind her decision; she usually does when she puts on that ring. We just need to let her explain.'

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  Kolaus runs his fingers through his thinning hair, sinking back into the chair. His face scrunches as he tries to figure out Franheska’s reasoning.

  The two sit in silence, patiently waiting for the apothecary's return.

  The five-story library is lined, floor to ceiling, with ebon wood shelves, generating an oppressive academic atmosphere. The second and third-floor galleries have bridges spanning from wall to wall, allowing the upper shelves of the bookshelves erected freely from the outside walls to be reached without large ladders (originally similar walkways had been planned for the upper floors but were abandoned shortly after the fracturing of Ianya because of the difficulty of obtaining new books from trade).

  The bibliosmia slowly overwhelms Floryana’s sense of smell—as it does to most—as she descends to the first floor, purging the scent of ?nnywella’s cigarettes. She runs over to the front desk, pausing briefly to catch her breath. “Where is the book by Myldhon Thouwan? It's purple; I brought it in to be copied two days ago.” She says to Tella.

  From behind the counter, Henn Tella B?cwyr slowly looks up at Franheska. “My brother has it; he is copying it at the moment. It will still be a few—”

  Floryana turns on her heel, heading to the opposite end of the library before Tella can finish speaking.

  Floryana stops at the desk of Head-Scribe, Tile B?cwyr. She points at the book on the stand in front of him. “Myldhon Thouwan

  “Yes, why? do you need it? It will still be a few days if you don’t mind—” Tile answers.

  Snatching the book from the stand, Floryana is off again, hurrying back to the Library Cabinet.

  Footnotes

  [1] Construction on the Herst Castle Library began in 4360 EotTS on the orders of Klausynn Herst I (b. 15/04/4310 EotTS, d. 17/08/4401 EotTS). The building was originally part of the castle, but because of the castle's expansion around it and the increasing number of books needing more space, they rebuilt the library separately from the castle; this was done in 0150 EotG by the wishes of M?selana Gekaryna Herst II (b. 15/04/0103 EotG, d. 06/13/0192 EotG) and the previous library was renamed the Queen Library.

  As of 1063 EotG, the Library contains aproximately sevun-hundred-thousand books.

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