Page 45 of Professor and the Seer

“Wait for what?”

“For the archive to grant you permission to enter.”

“What happens if it says no?”

“You won’t be able to pass any farther.” He didn’t mention the part where if the magic decided the person demanding had evil intent, they’d be incinerated on the spot. Hence the dark patch.

He refused to think for one instance Frieda was evil, and yet, as he passed and waited for her to stand and be judged, a part of him did worry.

For nothing. She let out her breath as the spell scanned and found her acceptable.

He held out his hand and tugged her past that point. “See, easy. The last is a gate that needs magic to open.” It also required blood, as the portcullis had been arcanely programmed to only recognize a few people. A pocketknife slashed the tip of his baby finger, and he smeared it to the metal before chanting a few words in Gaelic, the equivalent of “Open Sesame.”

Without a sound, the portcullis lifted and allowed them entry.

14

John

To John’s relief, the archive appeared untouched by the destruction in the main part of the library.

Frieda stepped past him and paused.

“Is something wrong?”

“My mind shield went down, and I can’t get it back up.”

“Normal. This room has numerous layers of wards and physical deterrents in place to prevent magic use.” He held up his hand. “I couldn’t even light a candle with magic if I wanted to.”

“It’s so nice and quiet.” She sighed. “We tried to create a room like this in my apartment. Best we managed was to dull outside effects. I still have the concrete on the inside trying to tell me its life story, but it’s rather boring and easy to ignore.”

“If you want, I can have that fixed so you have a quiet place. Doing the whole apartment might be a challenge though. It’s easier to accomplish with new construction, as we can build the shielding into the structure.”

“Anything would be amazing,” she sang, clapping her hands. She whirled from him and took in the archive, huffing, “Damn. Those are some old books.”

It wasn’t just the smell that gave it away but the leather and skin bindings. Not all of them animal.

He pointed. “We have them separated by region and year of creation. Although, in the case of family grimoires that are added to over a few generations, we organize them by their earliest entry.”

“Are they all about magic?”

“Mostly. Some, though, are rare first editions from famous people in the arcane past.”

“Who’s the most famous?” she asked.

“Depends on your definition. Some would say Merlin, just because his name is recognized even by the non-arcane.”

“I get the impression you don’t agree.”

“In the arcane world, Baba Yaga still gets a lot of attention.”

“Isn’t that the witch with the chicken leg house?”

“Yes, and unlike Merlin, she’s still around today.”

“But wouldn’t that make her like hundreds of years old?” she squeaked.

“Yes. She’s very powerful and not someone whose bad side you want to be on.”