Chapter 83: A Suspicious Book
Sophia huffed in anger as she made her way to the library. There was never a ti when she didn’t exchange words with Orion whenever they t. It annoyed her a bit that their conversations were always like that even if she knew that sotis she was at fault.
There was also the fact that a part of her enjoyed bickering with Orion and she suspected that he enjoyed it too but would never admit it to her. She shook her head. She wasn’t here to think about Orion though. She was here to find out information about the moon goddess. One, to prove Orion wring and point out that she actually existed, two, to understand what was written at the altar and why.
She paused at the first row of shelves. For reasons she couldn’t explain, she felt...no, knew that the Goddess was real. She was not just a story told to pups by their elders or a symbol carved into the pack’s altars. She was real and she watched over them.
She began at the basics, pulling slim volus from the shelves one by one.
The Silver Huntress: Tales of the Moon Goddess.
The Lunar Cycle and Its Myths.
Rituals of the Crescent Moon.
All of them said the sa things, the moon godess’s blessing on the wolves, her gift of mates, her protection over the night hunts. Repetition of things every child in the pack could recite without a book. Sophia flipped through them with increasing frustration. She wasn’t looking for bedti stories. She wanted sothing deeper, sothing that proved the Goddess was real.
She worked her way deeper into the restricted stacks. Technically, there were no restrictions for her now, her position gave her access to everything, but she still felt the subtle shift of eyes tracking her. Discreet glances from the two junior scribes working at the far desk. A flicker of movent behind the archivist’s window. They didn’t stop her, but she could feel their curiosity, their faint wariness. She wasn’t the least bit surprised either because she was an outsider until proven otherwise.
Her fingers brushed over heavier tos now, cracked leather spines, gilt lettering dulled by ti. Books about ancient treaties. Scrolls on the banishnt of river spirits. Manuscripts on the creatures that existed in Nirvana but nothing that showed more about the moon goddess. She sought information that wasn’t known or generalized and what better place than the library Eldric was so proud of. If he was here she would have asked him to assist her but he wasn’t and she had to do this all on her own.
She exhaled hard, resting her forehead against the shelf for a mont. She needed the break. Her eyes grew weary from her search. Her head was beginning to ache and she was still suffering the repercussions of playing ball with Orion even if she had enjoyed the ga.
When she straightened again, her eyes caught on a book wedged slightly crooked between two encyclopedias. It had no title on the spine, only a faint crescent pressed into dark blue leather.
Sophia reached for it, and the mont her fingers touched the cover, a shadow of movent stirred at the edge of her vision.
She froze from shock.
The sound was soft but distinct, like fabric brushing stone. She turned sharply, scanning the narrow aisle between shelves. It was empty. Only shadows stretching long in the dim lamplight.
Her pulse kicked up. "Hello?" she called softly.
There was no answer though.
She stepped out into the main corridor, peering between the stacks. The junior scribes were still at their desks, heads bent over their work, quills scratching steadily. There was no one else.
She approached them and asked if they saw anybody but they shook their heads. Sophia frowned. Perhaps her eyes were playing tricks on her. She returned to the shelf and slid the book free to see what it was about.
It was heavier than it looked. Dark blue leather, worn smooth at the edges, the crescent on the front gleaming faintly as if catching invisible moonlight. The pages slled faintly of night-blooming jasmine.
Sophia tucked it under one arm and made another quick sweep of the aisle just in case she caught movent again but there was still nothing. She must have imagined it then, she thought to herself.
She sat at one of the secluded tables in the back corner and opened the book.
The handwriting inside was elegant, slanted, more like a journal than a printed text. Not the neat block script of a scribe, but the flowing, intimate hand of soone writing for themselves.
She turned the first page.
"In my ti, the world was not divided. Wolves and n and creatures of the sky and shadow walked the sa paths. The rivers held voices and sang beautifully. The mountains carried mories. The Moon herself lived among us, a woman with white hair and eyes like the moon. She played with us, I rember playing a lot with her when I was younger."
Sophia froze in shock but quickly recovered.
She skimd further, eyes devouring the words. It wasn’t myth. It wasn’t even written as a story. It was a record, a diary entry from soone who had apparently lived in that ti. It spoke of the Moon Goddess as if she were a friend. The book was strange.
And yet, sothing about it felt familiar.
Her fingers traced the ink. The cadence of the sentences, the way certain words curved, it tugged at a place in her mory she couldn’t quite reach. Like she’d read these pages before...she wasn’t sure.
Her vision blurred for a mont, and she pressed her palms against the table. The library tilted faintly, the scent of jasmine growing stronger. She forced herself to breathe slowly until it passed.
She turned another page.
"She taught us the ways of the night. She gave us...
"Miss Sophia?" A voice called out interrupting her. She jumped in shock and clutched the book to her chest.
Only then did she realize how dark it had beco. The lamps burned low, the windows above black mirrors reflecting the library interior. She’d been here for hours without noticing.
"Miss Sophia?" the voice called again.
Joseph appeared with a frown. "It’s quite late. We’re closing soon. Aren’t you going ho?"
Sophia forced a smile. "Right. Sorry. I am, I just lost track of ti."
He nodded. His eyes flicked briefly to the book in her arms, then back to her face. "Find what you were looking for?"
"Maybe," she said, clutching the diary tighter. "I’ll... continue tomorrow."
Joseph gave her a polite little bow and stepped aside to let her pass.
Sophia walked quickly toward the exit, her pulse still unsteady. She could feel Joseph’s gaze on her back as she left, though he said nothing.
Outside, the night air was cool, carrying the scent of pine and damp earth. She drew a deep breath, hugging the book to her chest. The crescent on the cover glimred faintly under the moonlight, as if answering so secret call.
She didn’t show Joseph the book. She didn’t tell anyone. And she wasn’t going to, not yet at least.
As she walked back to her quarters, her thoughts travelled. The Moon Goddess had been real. She’d lived here. And soone had written this. Could it be the sa person who wrote on the altar? She wasn’t sure.
And why did it feel like she had read this book before?
Sophia’s fingers tightened on the diary.
She didn’t have answers yet. But she knew one thing for certain: this book wasn’t going back on the shelf.
Not until she learned the truth.
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