“I hear ya.”
Bella whistled, and looked in the direction of their desks. On hers, there was a dark purple vase, and in it, rested a small bouquet of forest flowers. They really looked sweet and dainty. Eva couldn’t understand why Bella didn’t like them. It was such a sweet gesture, even if it was unwanted.
“Plans for the day?” Bella asked, changing the subject.
“We got that history assignment due next week. I have to wrap that up today or tomorrow, so I guess I’ll be up at the library,” she said, referring to one of the towers which contained part of the academy’s vast library.
“Who did you pick?”
“Marie Laveau,” Eva revealed.
“Oh, nice! The witch voodoo queen. Great choice.”
“I know,” Eva grinned, “but, there’s so much info about her, I think I’ll spend the whole day there.”
“Need any help?”
“I’m good, but thanks. I’ll have breakfast and lunch at the cafeteria, but I’ll be there if you need me for anything.”
“Sure thing,” Bella replied. “I was hoping to go for a walk in the woods with you today, maybe gather some herbs for the class or have a picnic.”
“That sounds really awesome. Maybe we can do it next weekend?” Eva asked.
“Absolutely,” Bella smiled.
“Oh, I just remembered!”
“What?”
“You never finished your story about why the vampires and the werewolves hate each other.”
“Oh yeah,” Bella exclaimed. “Where was I?”
“Rannulf and Douxora both wanted to take over the school.”
“Oh yes! Well, what happened then is that they simply couldn’t agree who should fill the position. According to unwritten law, the older brother should get
that honor. But, you see, they are twins.”
“Twins!?”
“Mhm,” Bella nodded. “I know they don’t seem that way but they are and, apparently, Rannulf is about half a minute older than Douxora.”
“Well, older is older, no?”
“Well, not really. I think the law referred to older as in by several years, not several seconds. Of course, there was no agreement and the whole thing just kept escalating, until finally, someone caught them fighting in the woods, stating that whoever lives will take over. Their mother heard what was happening. She rushed over, only to see that Rannulf was lying on top of Douxora. He was winning. They all thought he was about to give the final blow, but she stopped him. Douxora survived, as you can see, but the brothers never spoke again. Legend says that this game is the only time of the year they meet, because of a promise they made to their mother ages ago.”
“Where is their mother?” Eva suddenly asked, thinking.
“No idea,” Bella shrugged her shoulders. “No one talks about her because she isn’t important to the story.”
Eva nodded, not because she agreed with what Bella said but more as an unconscious motion which helped her mind absorb the story. It sounded important. It sounded familiar. It sounded like something she needed to remember.
Chapter 10
About an hour later, Eva was already at the library, getting comfortable, and making use of the library’s well stocked editions of even the most obscure of books. As she went through the covers, checking the titles she needed, she realized that some of them sounded strangely familiar. There were several grimoires; textbooks about witchcraft, wizardry and spells. Eva suddenly remembered that she had seen some of these on her father’s bookshelf. When she’d asked him how come he was interested in such a strange topic, he’d always smile and wave his hand dismissively, stating that it was just for fun.
Only, it wasn’t just for fun, and now, Eva kept going through those same titles. The Book of Abramelin the Mage. The Ars Notoria. Pseudomonarchia Daemonum. The Picatrix. Arbatel de Magia Veterum.