Page 49 of Professor and the Seer
“That wasn’t you. It would seem the being you’ve met is crafty and powerful. He most likely saw a chance to communicate and took it.”
“You saw him?” I hoped I didn’t sound desperate, but I really wanted to know I wasn’t going crazy and seeing things.
“Saw and heard. He spoke impeccable Greek.”
“You mean English.”
He blinked at me. “Interesting how we both understood but in different languages. Also of interest is the fact he knew we were looking at that secret place underground. I wouldn’t have thought a memory would have triggered his attention.”
“I’m not so sure it was a memory,” I mumbled.
He latched on. “What do you mean?”
“For one, the doorway with the smashed rocks? It was wider than before, and the rubble was pushed to the side.”
“Did you notice any other changes?”
I sucked my bottom lip between my teeth as I tried to think what had struck me as different. “There were lit sconces in the corridor, which were empty brackets before.” I’d not even realized it at the time, focused on showing John what I’d seen.
“Meaning it wasn’t a memory the mirror showed. I didn’t know it could do that.” He glanced at its cracked surface.
“Can you fix it?”
“Not likely. We never knew who made it, and it’s the only one of its kind.”
“Guess I’ll be in trouble for breaking it.”
He snorted. “Hardly. You are not to blame for an arcane attack. On the contrary, you’ve pointed out an obvious flaw in our defense of the college. That being, whatever he is, shouldn’t have been able to slip in so easily.”
“But he didn’t. The mirror acted like a telephone.”
“The mirror shouldn’t have been able to reach outside the boundaries of the college.”
“Unless it acts on a different level,” I argued, which might have been presumptuous given he was the professor and I was someone still learning about the arcane.
But rather than mock me, he rubbed his chin. “You raise an interesting point, especially given the fae-looking woman who originally brought over the mirror from somewhere else. It is possible that her brand of magic, being from another dimension, would not be bound by our usual spells. Which, in turn, makes me wonder how many other tomes and items in the archive might behave the same.”
“You really think that woman who owned the mirror came from another world?” For some reason, I had a hard time believing my own vision. In my defense, until recently, I’d never imagined there were places beyond Earth.
“Yes. It is well known that a small number of elves, or the fae as they prefer to be called, escaped their dimension. Some of them came to Earth. I imagine others ended up in other worlds.”
“Why would they leave? I thought elves lived in the most beautiful kingdom. At least that’s what the books I read used to claim.” I tried not to blush, as I didn’t admit those books were fantasy fiction.
“I could think of a few reasons. Natural disaster. War. Disease.”
“I don’t think the being in the cloak is an elf. I have to wonder how hideous he is given he keeps hiding himself.”
“His concealment will make it more difficult to search the database to identify him. Although we already know he’s got two arms and a head.”
“Arms or appendages? I mean, we haven’t even seen if he has hands. And he floats, so who knows what he’s got for a bottom half?”
He chuckled. “Again, valid points. But I have faith that together we can figure it out.”
“Can we?” My reply emerged wistful.
“We’ll do our best to find out who and what he is.”
“If he gives us time. He wants something from me.” I couldn’t help the grim proclamation.