I sigh and look down at the inventory papers I've been meaning to file. Usually, I'd have all of this inventory keeping sorted at least one week before it arrives, but with wallowing in self-pity taking up most of my time these days, I'm a bit behind.
Luckily, after having done these about a million times in the past couple of years and with Florentine's help, I was able to breeze through the preliminary record-keeping. All that's left is to take care of the shipments that already arrived and prepare for the ones still on their way.
I eye the brown packages that have taken residence in the corner behind me. They're packed to the brim with books upon books. Being a wolf-shifter, I'm stronger than the average human, but lifting a couple hundred-pound box of books is still a feat I can't accomplish. And seeing as the rolling cart I usually use is broken, it looks like I'll just have to file them away manually.
I roll my eyes at the thought of the cart as I push my hands against the desk to get to my feet.
I requested a replacement with pack leadership weeks ago but I have yet to receive a response. Turns out, Maxton took over the Alpha responsibilities when he came back. Which explains the delays in literally everything. He opts to spend his time dallying away in the Archives instead of attending to his duties.
Maybe he really is an idiot.
An insufferable idiot at that. Forget rejecting me! Because of him I have to carry Goddess knows how many books to their proper places with no cart. A huff of annoyance parts my lips as I stab one of the boxes with my cutter. I aggressively tear the cardboard open and am greeted with the sights of books. A small smile graces my lips.
Maxton might be an idiot, and I might not have my cart but Goddess, I love books. I take a small sniff. That new book smell gets me every time.
With well-practiced movements, I start taking them out one by one and arranging them into their genres in alphabetical order. I've been the head Archivist at this library for four years now. Arranging books is a piece of cake. My hands pause on a beautifully bound volume with a deep purple cover.
The Lycan Compendium by Icarus Plyath.
My thoughts wander back to a pair of striking gray eyes as I flip through the pages. My fingers unconsciously land on a page titled Lycan Mates.
"In the countless ways wolf-shifters diverge from their more brutish counterparts, perhaps the concept of mates highlights the most glaring discrepancy. While wolf-shifters are graced with the Moon Goddess's divine foresight, binding them to their mates even before their paths cross, the same cannot be said for their lycanthropic kin. Lycans, in their lamentable deficiency, are born void of such mate bonds, a glaring omission in the grand design. They are, by their very nature, aloof and perilously self-serving, driven solely by an insatiable hunger for dominion and power.
One must pity the unfortunate lycan, condemned to live and perish devoid of the Moon Goddess's benediction. Their existence is a testament to the Goddess's undeniable oversightâor perhaps, one might argue, her monumental blunder. In their solitary pursuits and egotistical endeavors, these creatures demonstrate a profound disregard for the sacred principles of unity and connection that elevate wolf-shifters above them. Their lives, devoid of mates and pack solidarity, stand as a glaring reminder of what happens when the divine's grace is withheld. Furthermore, the lycan, who lacks-"
"What a bunch of bullshit!" I yelp at the sudden intrusion, whirling around to come face-to-face with
"Sabrina?!" I half yell in confusion. I clutch my hand to my chest in an effort to calm my thundering heart as I take in the three lycans who have somehow teleported behind me.
Sabrina, Cora, and Corban. I didn't even hear them!
"Sorry!" Sabrina apologizes, "Did we scare you?"
"Just a bit," I breathe out. Corban covers his mouth with the back of his hand in an attempt to hide his snickering, but I catch it anyway. Suddenly, I remember who's in front of me and frown, becoming self-conscious.
Lycans. Very powerful, dangerous, and intimidating beings. What were they doing here?
Cora promptly smacks Corban on the back of his head.
"Ignore him," she rolls her eyes at her brother.. "He is a bumbling baffling buffoon."
"Don't call me a buffoon! You're a buffoon!" He counters childishly. She just smacks him again.
What the hell is going on?
All of a sudden, I feel drained. I've had a fucking week. As if Blessing and her friends taunting me about my mate wasn't enough, now I have to sit here and allow a bunch of lycans intimidate and make fun of me. I lean against the desk behind me for support. What could they possibly want?
"Hazel," Sabrina asks, "are you okay?" I eye the concern etched onto her features warily.
"I'm," I study her for a second more because she seems genuinely concerned for whatever reason. "I'm fine." I finally force my fake customer service smile onto my face and ask, "What can I help you with today?"
"Are you sure?" She ignores my question.
"Of course, she's not okay," Corban interjects, snatching the book I was previously reading to wag it in my face. "She's reading Icarus fucking Plyath. If anyone's a buffoon, it's him."
"Who's Icarus Plyath?" I can't help but question.
Based on his writing, he does seem like a buffoon, a pretentious one at that. But what kind of buffoon writes about lycans in such a manner? I mean, they're lycans. Surely, there's some kind of punishment for referring to royalty as a monumental blunder!?
"The King of Absolute Bullshit, that's who. He hates lycans. Thinks we're a bunch of monsters because he thinks one of us killed his mate. He writes books about how we're terrible creatures with no capacity for love or kindness," Corban rants.
"That's awful," I say. Because it is. To condemn an entire species because of the actions of one is awful.
"How'd you get one of these anyway? Production should've stopped months ago." Corban frowns as he looks down at the cover.
"I'm not quite sure. It just came in with the new inventory," I answer. I make a mental note to look into that later. Corban's frown deepens. But before he can say anything else, Sabrina interrupts him.
"And what's worse is we do have mates," Sabrina huffs in annoyance, her perfect eyebrows furrowing. For some reason, this piques my interest.
"You do?" I have no idea why I sound so hopeful or why, for a brief second, I see the most beautiful shade of silver in the back of my mind.
"We do! And our mate bonds are even stronger than a wolf-shifter's!" She exclaims.
"We kind of have mates, although I'm not sure you can call it that," Cora continues. "Lycans have what we call potential Bonds. They're beings we're attracted to based on the Moon Goddess' decree. She bonds us to them, but the bonds can differ in how intense they are. But the thing is, we get to choose."
"We could choose to mate with a Bond. But we have actual mates too, like you wolves do," Corban chimes in. "Some lycans are lucky enough to meet their Erasthai, the person who has the strongest bond with us. But they're rare, so, many lycans settle for one of their Bonds." He says this almost wistfully. Then he gestures to Sabrina, "She's proof for you too. Sabrina and Allistar are Erasthais. Their bond beats no other."
Sabrina blushes at this and nods. "We are. But we have packs, too, you know. Maybe not as big as you wolves, but we do. And the pack bond comes as a close second to the bond of an Erasthai."
"So, everything this Icarus guy said is wrong? You have packs? You have mates?" I ask again.
"Why do you ask?" Corban plasters a shit-eating grin on his face and wiggles his eyebrows at me, "You interested?" My mouth drops open in surprise, and I struggle to come up with words.
"She's definitely not interested in a buffoon like you," Cora smacks him on the back of the head for the third time in the past five minutes.
With the same bright red hair and green eyes, Cora is definitely Corban's sister. But it's obvious who the older one is.
"I-" I pause and try to collect my thoughts, "What can I help you guys with today?" I internally beat myself up for being so awkward. Really Hazel? That's all you can say?
"Hazel, do you have dry eyes?" Sabrina questions me suddenly. She's close to me now, in a way that makes me feel like she's inspecting my face. I blink. Is she making fun of me?
"Um," I feel myself becoming self-conscious again, "No. Why?"
"It's just," she gives me the same look of concern from before, "your eyes are a bit yellow."
"Oh," I give my face a couple of pats. Maybe I've been crying too much? "I might just be tired. I had an early start today!"
The three of them exchange a look.
"So, what brings you here?"
"We're looking for books to read about wolf-shifter leadership. Do you have any recommendations?" Cora asks, after breaking herself from the silent conversation they were having.
"Leadership," I repeat, scanning through the mental Archives in my brain. "What about Leadership exactly? How to communicate? How to organize? Feminist Leadership? Pack Leadership? Historical Leadership? Oh, if you're looking for history, we have stuff on humans, lycans, wolves, faeries..."
"Wolf-shifter history," Corban interrupts my rambling. "Even better if it includes lycans as well." I take a moment to ponder.
"We don't have much on lycans but I have some recommendations. If you'll follow me, I'll show you!" I offer. They nod, and we begin walking towards the stairs. The section that covers the History of Wolves is on the third floor, and I'm already mentally compiling books for them.
"Hey Hazel," Corban calls out to me, "can I take this? It's not supposed to be circulating anymore." He gestures to The Lycan Compendium.
How'd it even end up here?
I nod in agreement. Anti-lycan propaganda has no place in my Archives. I don't even want to think about the kind of trouble I could get into for harboring a book that talks about the royal species in such a despicable manner.
"So," Cora starts as they trail behind me, "this is one of the biggest Archives in America, right?" Pride bursts in my chest.
"It is!" I say gleefully. "Did you know? We have the largest selection of research on wolf-shifters and faeries?"
"No, we didn't," Sabrina shakes her head at me, almost fondly.
"Over the past four years, we've worked tirelessly to grow our collection! Archivists from all over come here to study and learn!" I can't help but continue.
Goddess, I love the Archives. Sometimes, it feels like the only thing tying me down to this pack.
"We?" Corban snorts. "You're the only Archivist here."
His comment makes me pause. I recall the months and months I spent meticulously re-organizing hundreds of cluttered books and files. The sleepless nights I spent researching, reading, and reviewing every single piece of new content to order. The hours I spent ensuring every topic anyone could ever dream of had a place in this building. And mostly, I recall, how I did it alone.
"This wouldn't have been possible without the support of pack leadership, of course!"
"You know, I've heard of you, Hazel Wren," Corban retorts. "The brilliant Archivist who single-handedly turned the Rolling Woods library into one of the best Archives around. You've trained all the Archivists in the surrounding area."
"Not one of the best," Cora cuts in, "The best."
"You should give credits where it's due, Hazel," Corban states, "and it's due to you."
I don't pause and I don't falter as I keep making my way up the stairs. Being the Archivist that I am isn't brilliant.
It's lonely.
They don't know I spent all that time working with the hope of distracting myself from the lack of packmates to keep me company. They have no idea that I didn't choose to do this alone.
No one wanted to be with me while I did it.
But nonetheless, I wouldn't have it any other way. I don't think I could give up the Archives for anything.
"I love the Archives," I'm not sure why I'm saying this. It's not even a proper response to what he said. "It's my home." This time, I realize, I'm telling the truth.
Word Count: 2143 words
Lycans!! Ahhhh!!!!! Where'd they come from??
I've been writing like crazy this past week! I just started working full time but it's been kinda slow with onboarding and the holidays coming up. sooooo more writing time for me!! nervous to see how my writing pace will change when i start getting actually projects. I know i'll still be able to keep it to at least every week or biweekly. but for now, enjoy the multi week updates!
How are you guys feeling? The holidays are coming up!! Are you excited?
Remember to comment and vote! I love hearing your thoughts!
I hope you have a wonderful day jaani <3
Love, libahrary