The Night Librarian

In the quiet corner of the library stacks, where the very essence of the books seemed to breathe, the librarian embarked on her nightly routine. With a rhythmic squeak, she pushed a trolley laden with grimoires and mystical texts toward their designated spot in the dark recesses. She spoke to the books, admonishing them, "It's not as if any of you are chained. Behave yourselves!"

The grimoires on the trolley occasionally resisted, but she handled them with care, undeterred by their tricks. The night librarian, a determined girl with a square jaw, demanded their obedience. As they reached the arcane and mystical bookshelves, the rhythmic squeak subsided, only to resume as she asked, "Does somebody want to be shelved on 99B?"

After a series of firm pushes, she arranged the volumes with practiced efficiency, showing both respect and authority. One grimoire, however, snapped its covers at her, provoking her response, "Start that with me, and I'll chain you." It meekly accepted its place.

Once all the volumes were neatly in position, the librarian locked the steel doors guarding the stack. As she returned to her central desk, she paused momentarily, pointed an imperious finger, and witnessed the books obediently rearranging themselves.

But she couldn't help but notice a stray book, one that had somehow ventured from Jersey to Guernsey. It scampered away. She chided it lightly: "Since when have you lived between Jersey and Guernsey?"

Dutifully, the dog-eared book retreated and slipped back into its rightful place.

Back at her central desk, the librarian began the second part of her duties, meticulously recording loaned volumes and returns and correcting inaccuracies and omissions in the documentation. As she was nearing the end of her tasks, she was interrupted by a polite cough.

A delegation of various small creatures had gathered, including brownies, gnomes, elves, rabbits, squirrels, hobbits, and others, despite their typical mutual distrust. Their alliance hinted at something of a dark power looming.

They informed her of an ominous presence roaming the library stacks—a hungry entity. She instructed them to wait and ventured into the stacks, preparing to confront the unknown intruder.

In a section of the library devoted to dark magic, she created a protective pentagram with salt, a mixture of blood and holy water, and a spray bottle filled with a unique pink solution. Within the circle of power, she called forth the hungry entity, a dragon. The dragon resisted, but her incantations compelled it to appear.

The librarian questioned the dragon, which revealed it had come from a deep sleep and wished to return home. The librarian agreed to help. After releasing the dragon, she returned to the creatures at her desk, instructing them to return to their shelves now that the threat was gone.

As she walked back, she was approached by a beautiful but insubstantial figure—the heroine. The heroine offered her help, and the librarian accepted, revealing her plan. The heroine transformed into beauty, a vision of allure, and they headed toward erotica.

They were soon accosted by a perfect male figure who seemed both enticing and nightmarish. He approached Beauty, but she kept him occupied with her charm while the librarian prepared to confront the true creature hidden behind the illusion.

Once the librarian got close enough, she tapped the creature with a small knobby stick and whispered, "Go home." The creature resisted at first but eventually vanished, leaving behind a sense of hunger.

Beauty bore a black burn mark from the encounter, and the librarian hoped that the creature's brother wouldn't appear. The librarian returned to her responsibilities, ensuring the creatures' sanctuary remained safe.

As the two sisters shared a brief moment, the heroine whispered farewell, and their presence disappeared from the library, leaving the stacks in silent relief.

The librarian's wand went back into her pocket, and she comforted the small creatures, assuring them that their sanctuary was secure once more.