Chapter 11 #3
“The woman also expressed the seriousness of the responsibility along with dire warnings. I was too scared to use it for years.
Not until college when I worked in the university library, and feeling overly bold one afternoon, I tested it.”
Stella had finished her muffin while Arnie talked. His story captivated her in the way fantasy novels enchanted her. When
he didn’t elaborate, she asked, “You tested it. What does that mean?”
Arnie reached for a glass of water and sipped slowly.
“I poured a little bit of liquid onto a stamp pad and used an ordinary date stamp.
The rest of the bottle is stashed away in the archives.
A little bit goes a long way. That afternoon I found a copy of Little Women and stamped the due date, two weeks from that afternoon.
Then I held it in a ray of sunshine, and said, ‘Jo March.’ A bit
later, she showed up, and my life has never been the same.”
Apprehension gripped Stella. “A bit later? How much later?”
Arnie shrugged. “Five minutes, maybe. But as the keeper of this knowledge, and the protector in a way, I knew being a librarian
was to be my calling. It’s not what I first intended for my life. I wanted to be a surgeon, but that all changed the day I
met Jo March.”
“You wanted to be a surgeon?” Stella interrupted. “I can’t picture that at all.”
“How could you? You’ve only known me as Arnie, head librarian,” he said with a small smile. “But I lived a lot of life before
you came along.”
“Let’s say I believe in this sparkly ‘breath of life’ ink. What’s it like when you bring out characters?”
“After Jo, I wasn’t sure what to expect,” Arnie said. “She was so strong-willed and vocal. Not offensive, but forthright in
a way I should have expected from reading the book. Meeting characters in person adds layers of complexity that you don’t
expect. After her I was very deliberate about choosing the most interesting characters I could think of. When they show up
here, they have knowledge of where they’re from—of their own stories—but they’re also aware that they are with you in a special
place, that they are out of their element temporarily.”
Stella clasped her hands together, her mind still circling back to Arnie’s earlier comment. “You said Jo appeared five minutes
after you stamped the book and put the ink into sunlight, right?” It had taken Stella longer than five minutes to leave the
library after stamping the books, and no one had appeared. “If someone doesn’t appear in five minutes, does that mean the
magic didn’t work?”
Arnie shook his head. “The time it takes differs every time. If you follow the process, it always works, no matter how long it takes a character to arrive.”
A shiver rippled over Stella’s body.
Arnie continued, “If you bring out more than one, they interact with one another, and let me tell you, they don’t always get
along. Captain Ahab is a challenging man with a singular focus, and Elizabeth Bennet couldn’t stand him at all. His arrogance
nearly undid her good manners on multiple occasions. At the same time, I’d also brought out Sherlock Holmes, James Bond, Scarlett
O’Hara, and Atticus Finch.”
Stella blurted, “What were you thinking?”
Arnie almost laughed. “That was probably the most complicated two weeks I’ve ever had with a group of characters. I could
have sent someone back early, but that’s an unpleasant choice. After that, I decided I would bring no more than four here
at a time. Much more and they’re difficult to control. But I’ve also brought out only one at a time, depending on who it is
and how much one-on-one time I want.”
Stella closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. Was it possible she’d released characters into the library today?
“Listen, kiddo, I know how it sounds. Like maybe they have me on too many meds. I get it. This is partly why I never told you.”
Were Captain Hook and Robinson Crusoe roaming the library right now? With unsuspecting Vicki and Dan alone with them?
“Jack!” Stella said, remembering how she’d told him to leave. Would he, could he, leave?
Not understanding her sudden alarm, Arnie nodded.
“I suggested Beyond the Southern Horizon to your dad. Did you know that? I always loved that story. Your dad enjoyed some military fiction, which was why I suggested the book to him, but I didn’t know he’d pass that love on to you and Percy.
I can’t remember the first year I brought Jack out, but we bonded.
That doesn’t happen with all the characters, but Jack and I formed a friendship.
He has a special interest in Blue Sky Valley, since it’s his birthplace, and of course, I talked about you and Percy a lot.
“From the first time he arrived, Jack was taken with you and Percy. I thought, in time, I might share the library secrets
with both of you, and Percy could meet one of his heroes. I knew you had a crush on Jack, but what young person doesn’t have
a fictional girlfriend or boyfriend? You were too young for any of that nonsense for years, but the other day you mentioned
wishing there was a clone of Jack, which was oddly coincidental since I’d brought him out a few days before. I thought maybe
it was time to tell you the truth and you could meet him.”
Stella lifted her cup of coffee with a trembling hand. The liquid had gone cold, and the bitterness sat on her tongue before
she swallowed. Her pulse quickened at her temples. When she spoke, her voice was a whisper. “This is . . . a lot.”
Arnie’s features softened for a moment and he nodded. “Stella, I’m not making up fairy tales here. As unbelievable as it all
sounds, it’s still true. The world is full of the impossible. You know what Roald Dahl said.”
Stella stood from the bed and walked over to the window. “Yeah, yeah, if we don’t believe in magic, we’ll never find it.”
She stared down at a long stretch of asphalt rippling in the summer heat. Her heart filled with a tickle of hope. After a
couple of years of heartache and loss, she wanted to believe the world might hold a little bit of wild magic.
Stella looked at Arnie. “Why have you waited all these years to tell me?”
“Kiddo,” he said, “I’m sorry I haven’t been honest with you about all of this, but I wasn’t sure you’d want this life.
Once I realized what was possible with books, all other paths for me evaporated.
I felt responsible to the magic, to the library.
” Arnie sat up straighter. “There are warnings. Consequences when things go wrong.”
Stella sensed a shift in Arnie’s mood. “Like what?”
“I could have used the magic anywhere, and I did. But being in the library allows me the ability to keep the characters safe,” Arnie
explained.
Stella’s mouth went dry. “Safe from what?”
“The world,” Arnie said. “Do you know why I asked you to keep them in the library?” Stella shook her head. “If they get out
in the world, they could get lost or hurt or worse. They can die.”
Stella’s forehead wrinkled. “After two weeks, wouldn’t they just disappear back into their books?”
Arnie’s shoulders sagged. “No. They can’t get too far from the source of the magic.”
Stella returned to the bed and sat on the edge. Arnie’s distress filled the air with a suffocating heaviness. “What happens
if they do?”
“If they die, they’re gone. Forever,” he said. “They disappear forever from every book, every article, every piece of history.
Except”—he tapped his fingertip against the side of his head—“from in here. People hold on to the memory of that character
for as long as they have it, but it feels like a dream, and no one in the future will ever be able to know those characters
or love them. Even the authors who wrote the characters are forever separated from their creation. It’s terrible.”
Stella hesitated before saying, “You sound like you’ve experienced it.”
He met her gaze. “Do you remember The Treasure of Ruby Lou?”
“Yes!” Stella said immediately, and then a cloudy sensation pulsed through her brain. “Well . . . I think so. Two best friends went on a treasure hunt in an enchanted forest, or was it a quest for a wishing well?” The harder Stella tried to remember, the more evasive the memory became.
“Remember the author?” Arnie asked.
Stella shook her head. “No.” Her chest tightened. It wasn’t like her to forget books or authors.
“One day I brought out Ruby Lou and her best friend, Pearl,” Arnie said. An expression of immense guilt tugged his features
downward. “They were witty and adventurous . . . and rebellious. They snuck out of the library, and I searched for them all
over town for days. I never found them, Stella. I hoped they were living somewhere, happy and unharmed, but a few days after
the two-week mark, their book disappeared from the library. After an extensive internet search, I realized they had vanished
from existence. Their book never written.”
The truth of Arnie’s devastation was still evident on his face. Stella’s skin prickled. All of this was true. The magical
potion from Ireland, the glittering ink pad and library stamp, and the ability to breathe life into fictional characters.
Stella’s stomach dropped. She’d told Jack it would be better if he wasn’t there when she returned. What if he’d changed his
mind and left the library? What if he got lost? What if her stamping had worked?
Panic pounded her heart. She stood from the bed as a chill swept down her body. “When the characters arrive, are you there
to give them instructions?”
“Stella, are you okay?”
Her entire body started to tremble. “Are there rules you have to give them? So they know what not to do?” Like leave the library.
Arnie said, “It’s important they know my rules while in the library, but yes, I’m there to instruct any new characters.
” He reached out his hand for her, and she instinctively grabbed it.
“Stella, what’s wrong?” His heart rate increased.
“Just know that I didn’t tell you sooner because I didn’t want to trap you in a life you didn’t want. ”
Stella’s anxiety spiked. “Can more than one person use the stamp, or is one of the rules that only one person can use it at
a time?”
Arnie frowned. “I’m not sure. Why?”
“I need to get back to the library. I’ve left Vicki and Dan long enough.” Possibly left them in a complicated situation with
fictional characters. “I’ll check in later.”
“Hey, kiddo, you sure you’re okay?” Arnie asked.
Stella shook her head. “No, there’s a lot happening, and I need to get back.”
“I’m here if you want to talk it out,” Arnie said. “And be kind to Jack, okay? He’s a good friend and a good man.”
Remorse wriggled through her. What if he ended up like Ruby Lou and Pearl? She would never forgive herself. Stella grabbed her bag and pulled out her cell phone and turned on the ringer.
“Call me if you need anything.” Then she ran out of the hospital to her car and drove to the library like someone trying to
break the speed of sound.