Chapter 9: Uncovering Secrets

Daybreak came, the Sunday morning just after Kloeye's party.

The mansion was still fast asleep, or so Alythia thought, while making her way to the library. As she pushed against the two gigantic doors with all her might, she heard a creak, and straightened as they opened.

The room inside was absolutely breathtaking. Thousands upon thousands of books spread, neatly arrayed, across hundreds of bookshelves, some so tall that Alythia couldn't even imagine ever reaching the top.

As she slowly made her way through the hallways, skimming the titles of surrounding books - in search of a new spell casting guide - she noticed her mind begin to wander.

She remembered her father, and how all his bookshelves were in ruin. As she pondered on what drove him to it, she felt a shiver run down her spine - as both terror and grief trickled over her skin like water from a stream. It gave her goosebumps.

"Are you cold?" a voice asked, effectively pulling her away from her thoughts.

Alythia turned and there before her, immerging from a darkened corned where nothing more than a dim light shone, was Karlyle.

He was wearing a grey sweater, but quickly took it off as he approached. He stepped in behind her and draped it over her shoulders. She clutched at it with both hands, tightly gripping it around her neck.

"Couldn't sleep?" she asked, trying to prevent her voice from cracking and exposing her hidden dread.

Karlyle smiled.

"I'm always up this early - reading. You however, aren't".

He took her one hand in his and led her towards the corner from where he immerged.

As her eyes adjusted to the dimmed light, she saw a lit fireplace and three couches arranged around a tiny wooden table.

Karlyle held her hand until she was firmly seated on the couch opposite to where he had evidently been reading - as a book was placed open and upside down on top of the table right in front of his assumed seat.

After sitting down, he stared at her for a time.

Alythia glanced away, but since his intensity did not lessen, she puckered up the courage to speak.

"Even if Karlyle thinks I'm nice to look at... its rude to stare", she met his eyes, still bashful but attempting to feign confidence with a slight grin.

Karlyle blinked, clearly surprised by her response, and then instinctively covered his mouth with his hand as a chuckle threatened to escape.

He cleared his throat.

"Cute" he said, grin spreading. "I was contemplating... should I ask what's troubling you, or should I wait for you to tell me".

Karlyle's eyes narrowed

Alythia's eyes narrowed in response

"I'm still contemplating" he added

And they stared at each other for a time

Eventually she broke the silence, with a laugh. "I give, I give, Karlyle wins", she said in between giggles.

The boy sat back in his chair, utterly pleased with himself - his smirk reaching from ear to ear.

As she looked back at him, she noticed a very distinct tenderness bubble up inside her, threatening to spill over. She just found him so utterly endearing.

So with a deep sigh, she collected her thoughts and gathered up the courage to ask.

"Does Karlyle ever... miss his parents..." she bit her lip before hurriedly adding "since I don't see them around much, so I was just wondering..." her voice trailed off as her eyes were darting all around the room.

Karlyle's expression softened as he realized why she was asking such a seemingly random question, and a faint smile graced his lips.

"I do, it's hard sometimes... on my own".

His eyes glanced back up at her, and saw that she seemed to be fighting back tears.

She didn't raise her head, but biting her lower lip once more, strained out the next question.

"Do u ever wonder... if they still... or... if they ever... loved you?"

Tears were now evidently dripping on her lap, but she kept her gaze glued to the ground, hoping Karlyle wouldn't notice.

He sighed and stood up. Walking towards her, she felt her pulse quicken with each step.

Stopping in front of her, he placed his right palm on top of her head, gently petting it.

As she looked up at him, he leaned down, pressing their foreheads together.

"I know its hard..." Karlyle's voice sounded tender, and Alythia couldn't help but close her eyes as it echoed through the room.

It calmed her.

"Its hard... but try to accept the love others are able to give, albeit imperfect and fragmented. That may in fact be the only way they know how to give - so try not to despise them for is. The sacrifices behind that seemingly broken love, may remain wholly hidden from us".

As his last sentence fell on her ears, her eyes shot open. She found herself staring up at him.

She thought his eyes looked so strangely... familiar.

But she did not ponder it much. She quickly broke away and fervently started wiping her eyes with the sweater. Then midway through, she paused, realizing that it was in fact his sweater. Her eyes widened in shock, mingled with utter fear and remorse for wetting his clothes with a mixture of tears, saliva, and snot.

"There, there" he comforted, slowly lifting her chin with his finger tips. "I don't care for the sweater. But... does the mouse at least feel a bit better?"

She stared at him in utter disbelief, blinking several times. When suddenly, as if without warning, an unrestrained smile slowly crept across her cheeks.

"Karlyle's so kind, and wise" she said, brimming from ear to ear.

The dragon boy felt a bit of heat nestle across his face so he abruptly pulled back his hand and returned to his chair.

"Pretty" he mumbled, while slowly sinking down into the cushioned sofa, but it was much too soft for Alythia to hear.

With his left hand he attempted to cover most of his face, while his right hand reached for the book placed on the table in front of him. The moment he flipped it around, his eyes were glued to the pages, pretending with utmost earnest to read.

Alythia stared at him, confused at his reaction, but the confusion was quickly replaced by curiosity as her eyes fell on the book's title.

"The Seer no longer Sees" she repeated, and Karlyle glanced up.

"The book you're reading", she pointed, "What's it about?"

"It's a tale, set around the time of Elysium's origin" he said, regaining his composure as the heat around his cheeks and ears slowly faded.

"Seer is a term used to describe an ancient bloodline, descendent of the country's first inhabitants, which the Ancient gifted with foresight".

Alythia blinked several times, clearly lacking any useful background knowledge.

He thought for a bit before clarifying "The original Seers were believed to have the ability of seeing the future, however, we have no record of them. All our history tells is of the exploitations that ensued, causing the Ancient to seal up their power as a means of protecting them".

His gaze met hers, and he scanned her face to ensure she was still following.

When she nodded, he continued.

"If any of them are still alive, it is assumed that they are no longer able to see the actual future. All that's left, after the seal was set, is mere glimpses of possible futures. These 'possibilities' would supposedly reveal themselves to Seers in very vivid forms. So vivid in fact that these experiences, at times, would confuse some into believing that the memory thereof were nothing more than a mere play they had watched--"

"--Or a book they had read" Alythia interjected, not herself  knowing where the thought had come from.

'Why... is it all so... familiar...' she pondered, greatly troubled.

"I suppose so" he said, rather contemplatively. "There are accounts of Seers describing their experiences somewhat like a book, read from another's perspective"

Alythia continued to stare at the book and as she stared, her eyebrows furrowed.

Karlyle, seeing that her mind felt troubled once more, quickly closed the book. The snapping sound, as it shut, shook her out of her thoughts.

"Maybe its time for breakfast" he said, striding towards her and holding out his hand.

She smiled, took it, and was gently raised to her feet.

As they walked down the many book filled corridors, towards the library's exit, Alythia suddenly tugged at Karlyle's shirt, effectively stopping him in his tracks.

"I still wanted to ask..." she hesitated briefly.

"Why is Karlyle up early every morning reading?"

Karlyle glanced back at her.

"To reach my dream", he said frankly.

Alythia stared at him pointedly, clearly wanting him to elaborate.

He chuckled. "My dream..."

Just then, Kloeye stormed in, slamming both doors open with utter force.

"BROTHER!! ALLY!!!" the little girl yelled at the top of her voice. "Where'd you go? You need to come for breakfast, HURRY!! I'm STARVING"

Alythia quickly let go of his shirt and dashed towards the girl to quiet her down.

Karlyle was left behind.

With a sigh he mumbled the rest of his sentence underneath his breath

"Is to be like Izana... so I have to read all I can about him..."

He glanced at Alythia cooing Kloeye like a mother trying to calm a tantrum throwing toddler, and smiled.

'Perhaps that's a conversation for another time', he thought, as he set out towards them.