O'er the ramparts

Christmas trees, strung-up lights, mechanical reindeer. The streets of the nation's capital glitter with the bitter light of consumerism.

A bitter glitter. Ha! Oh, dear, I need to lay off the alcohol.

I've arrived safely. I'll update again soon.

...There are those mice again. Rats, mice - does anyone have any cheese?

Walking in a winter wonderland

Kentucky is not the best of places for a snowball fight.

I do apologize not for posting the past month. I didn't want to jinx my good fortune. But I had intruded on the Valentines' hospitality for far too long, and about a week ago I packed up what little I still had, graciously accepted (I like to think) the gold watch gifted to me by Teppy as an early holiday present, and headed east. Back to where it all began.

Right now I'm on the very eastern edge of the Bluegrass State. Literally. If I scooted my tent ten feet, I'd be in West Virginia. But yesterday, I had an enlightening conversation with stardust. I have to say, talking to stardust is very interesting. I would look forward to more of them in the future if I thought our paths might cross again.

I apologize for my mixed metaphors. I am still a little hungover. And a little drunk. I haven't finished all my whiskey, you see, and I'm trying to ration it out until I reach the coast, where I plan to retrace my steps. As far as is feasible, anyway.

Ah...tonight is the fourth night of Hanukkah, yes? I might still remember the prayer...not that I could manage to put it here without the assistance of the Internet, of course.

ברוך אתה ה' א‑לוהינו מלך העולם, אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו להדליק נר של שבת.‏

Blessed are you, Lord, our God, sovereign of the universe...

I haven't seen the dog since I arrived at Rose and Teppy's store, nor any trace of La Dame du Lac. Nor any trace, for that matter, of anyone at all, besides those on the blogs. Maybe the universe and its sovereign have finally decided to leave me alone.

Interesting. Even without the assistance of Anansi, I can hear rats, or perhaps just mice. They're not as quiet as you'd think.

Blessed are those who mourn

The Library was my last hope. The Library was the last possible place for my last possible lead on Infinity, on Isabella, on my friend. The Library was the last.

After I made my way out, I sat down and pulled my knees up to my chest. Anansi skittered over to me, but I wasn't ready to talk yet. I tugged my coat closer around me, drooped my head in my arms, and wept. Or tried to weep: no tears came. Sweat ran down my face instead, and I realized that if I stayed in the hot sun any longer I'd be burned. I trudged towards the gas station some mile and a half away. Once there I purchased a gallon of water and a pack of granola bars.

It is my personal belief that in any extreme situation, a man can survive on nothing but water and granola.

I started dialing on the pay phone before realizing I didn't know who to call. My father is long gone, and I would like to keep my mother out of the way of danger as long as I can. I can't face the Compass, even over the phone. Atlas is dead. And I have few other friends...

In the end I decided on calling Emilia's phone. She didn't want to have a cell phone ("Those horrible little devices! Take up all your time and leave you with huge bills.") but we went out and bought one for her after a week's worth of convincing on my part. She used to keep it off at all times except when she was using it, and even then she only took it out in times of great emergency.

I took the phone off the hook. The buzzing noise took over my thoughts.

Please deposit ninety cents, or press one to make a collect call.

Click, clack. Two quarters, three dimes, one nickel and five pennies. Nearly all the loose change I had on me after making my two earlier purchases. I was left with three cents.

Instead of telling me to dial, the phone line connected me to an operator. Her voice was dull and monotone, asking Hello, sir or madam, operator here. How can I help you?

How could she help me? I didn't know. The way she said it, it sounded more like a recital than a question - which I suppose it was. How could this drawling lady help me?  Well, maybe I could help her.

"Hi. I'm Erick. What's your name?"

There was silence for a moment. Then, Sir? Operator. How can I help?

"What's your name?"

Nothing.

"Don't make me guess." I stifled a crazed giggle.

"Terri? Samantha? Belle? Lisa?"

"Lisa," said the woman. I nodded, satisfied.

"Connect me to Emilia LeFay, please," I said.

"I'm going to need a phone number, sir." Her voice was suddenly much warmer and happier. I said nothing. Finally, Lisa said, "One moment."

Click.

Buzz.

"Hello?"

My heart stopped for a moment, then resumed its casual thudding. A casual thudding that quickly became exactly the opposite of casual.

"Emilia?"

"Erick? Is that you?"

"Emilia, oh, God, you're alive."

"Erick, I don't know where I am..."

"Just stay calm. I am coming to rescue you, I am."

"I believe you."

"I love you."

Nothing. I started again.

"Emilia, I'm sorry."

"Sorry?"

"For -"

I bit my tongue. It was hard to remember. I had put myself under a mental haze long ago, trying to block it out.

"There's something I have to tell you." We said it at the same time. I laughed. "You, first," I said.

"Okay," said my wife. I imagined her biting her lip in the way she has.

"It's a boy," she whispered. "His name is Seamus."

I didn't even get to say "Emilia?" before the line went dead.

The clerk had to call his manager, but they gave me a cot and allowed me to stay in the gas station for as long as I needed to, which has included all my time since I escaped from the burning Library to now. There is an ATM which I can get money from using my Institute-supplied credit card, and all the water and granola a man could eat. The clerk's name is Teppy. The manager's, Rose. They're nice people, a married couple. They make me smile with their morning greetings and evening goodbyes. There's not much business here, but that's okay. I like the quiet.

In another life, I'd have liked to work at a place like this. Just settle down with a store, my wife, and my son.

Seamus LeFay. Has a nice ring to it, eh?

As for inquiries, don't expect any for a while.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I promise a better explanation soon.

Inquiry something or other

This one, for fulfillment: Like wine I am, with no alcohol; like a priest I am, with no faith or soul. Like the sun I am, with no light and no time; like a poet I am, with no reason or rhyme.

Potion One and potion Three hath poison none, as ye shall see

But drunk together, you will find, they'll quickly kill the human mind

Within this baker's dozen bottle-line, four have trace of vintage wine

Of which two are with poison, two without, and Two tastes quite like sauerkraut

Gorgon's blood fills bottle Eight - but right or left? You'll have to wait

And Six and Ten hold potent cures, but for what ailment no one's sure

One of the odds holds deadly venom, distilled only by juice of lemon

Which resides inside the neighbor of the drink that makes ye braver

Potion Seven's from the sink, mixed with arsenic, I should think

And potion Four can get you drunk, or sunk, or locked in a trunk

Eleven and Twelve are harmless, and tasty, like a pastry

Unless that was Thirteen, in which case, don't be hasty

Now look upon your thirteen choices,

Tell me with your eager voices

Choose three, leave ten, and split them up

One for your glass, one for mine, and one for the witchchilde's cup.

The smell of smoke in the morning

It would seem that even the Mulla and his Library do not contain any knowledge of use to me.

No; that's not true. There's so much in that library that I could use, but I don't have time for it all now.

It took me a while to get in. Anansi couldn't even slip in through the windows. It didn't, obviously, occur to me to knock. I stood just outside those huge doors for what felt like a year but probably lasted about an hour, pondering every possible route of entrance. I imagined how the Compass might get in, or how Atlas would do it, or Infinity - I didn't even think to look for news of her inside. And I call myself a researcher.

After such time had passed that I thought my feet would fall apart just from standing, a slightly hoarse and deep voice called out from inside the Library: "Do you need something?"

I was taken aback, and for a moment I was afraid it was the Businessman come to collect his ill-gotten claim upon my life. But I recovered and replied, "May I come in?"

There was no reply, and I was worried that I had said something wrong and now I was never going to be allowed inside. Then, with a great screeching and rumbling, the doors swung open as slowly as doors of that size can swing, and I rushed inside, leaving my children to wait for me. In retrospect, not the most thoughtful of decisions, though all worked out fairly well in the end.

Once inside the Mulla spoke again, asking what sort of information I was looking for. I told him I needed to find something out about La Dame du Lac, and a great sigh came from nowhere. "I've heard that one before," he said.

"Does that mean you've got nothing?" I asked. The Mulla sighed again and said, "Yes."

"But you've got to have something - you have something on everything!" I protested. The Mulla sighed for a third time and said, "No. Now, unless there's anything else, you'll have to get going." I frowned and shook my head in disbelief, and that's when the fire started. It was quiet at first, a flickering heat that began just beneath my boots and spread out slowly until it reached the endless bookshelves, where the flames erupted into reality. It was pure luck that I hadn't gone far enough into the Library to get lost, and I was able to turn tail and get out before any damage was done to my person.

When I looked back the Library had completely disappeared, as it does.

The previous inquiry still stands. There are two chances left.