As the early morning sun peeks through her curtains, Horatia's eyes fly open as she looks up at the ceiling with wide eyes.
Sitting up in bed, she turns to look at the spellbook sitting on her nightstand. If she really focused, she swore she could hear a tiny voice coming from the book telling her to open it.
It was infuriating.
Grabbing the book, she buries herself under the covers and looks at the cover once again. For a book that only covered the basics of magic, the pretty letters made her think that mages must be very wealthy to bother making such an intricate cover.
Tracing the lettering over and over, Horatia struggled with the idea of opening the book. But at the same time, she also felt guilty that Mabel went through so much trouble to acquire it.
If I try to use magic, will I really be cursed like Miss Mabel says? Is reading the spells the same as using magic? If I do get cursed, does that mean I'll be double-cursed since I'm already a wendigo?
It was too much.
Throwing the covers off her head, Horatia slid off her bed and looked around her room.
Scanning her bedroom, she tries to think of where a good hiding place might be when an idea appears in her mind.
Opening her closet door, she walks in to see the rows of clothes and shoes she owns. Being a Marquess' daughter had its perks, she supposed.
Grabbing one of her many shoeboxes, she opens it to see a pair of small purple heels. "When did I get these?" Muttering under her breath, she stared at the shoes in confusion before shrugging and throwing them to the side.
Placing her book into the now-empty shoe box, she decided to mark its place by leaving one of her red ribbons on top of the box before placing it into the far corner of her closet.
Feeling a wave of guilt, she stared at the box for a few more seconds before sighing at standing up. "Sorry, Miss Mabel. But I really don't want Father or anyone else to find out and have you get in trouble because of my request."
…
After somehow managing to get through another insufferable family mealtime, Horatia found herself in the library once again.
Even though her formal education hasn't yet started, Mabel taught her how to read and write, and now, Horatia often finds herself wandering around the long bookshelves whenever there's nothing else for her to do.
The library, in Horatia's opinion, was a wonderful place. Her father must have put a lot of effort into designing it because, as she absentmindedly runs her fingers along the spines of the books, she can't help but admire how cozy it always feels.
However, she's not here to admire the library today.
As she browses the shelves, Horatia tries to find any books related to magic. Even if she doesn't yet want to risk opening the spellbook, she was confident that there was at least one book here.
At least she hopes.
Miss Mabel mentioned once that magic has always been a big part of the empire's history. So maybe it's in some history books?
Managing to find the history section, Horatia cannot help but grimace as she sees the size of the books.
"They're huge!" Looking at them in awe, Horatia manages to pull one off the bottom shelf and scans the title. "T-The Revo-Revo.." Furrowing her brow, Horatia struggles to pronounce the words and sighs in frustration.
"Do you need assistance, my lady?" Turning around to see who's behind her, she realizes that it's Allerton, and for once, she's grateful that he's around.
Pointing to one of the words in the title of the book, she nods. "I don't know what this word is, Mister Allerton. Can you help me?
Crouching down so he's at her level, Allerton scans the title and points to the word. "This, my lady, is the word revolution. Would you like to try saying it yourself?
Nodding, Horatia looks at the word again and tries to slowly sound it out loud. "Rev-Revolution?" Looking up at Allerton, she smiles, and he nods in approval and looks back at the book to read the entire title.
"The Revolution of the Curia Empire?" Scanning the title, Horatia can't help but frown.
Isn't that place to the south of our empire? I feel like I've read about this place before.
Sensing Horatia's discomfort, Allerton gently took the book from her hands and flipped through the pages. "This is quite an advanced book, my lady. Are you perhaps looking for a particular book?"
Shaking her head, Horatia turned away to look at the bookshelves, suddenly feeling a bit intimidated because of the large number. "Not about that place in particular. I was actually looking for a book about magic…"
Realizing what she said, she turned to look at Allerton and hastily waved her hands in the air, and she tried to explain herself.
"It's not what you think, Mister Allerton! It really isn't! The other kids at the fancy parties Father hosts always talk about magic! And..and I just wanted to learn about so I can talk to them about it too."
Looking away, she felt so nervous that she gripped the fabric of her dress tightly.
If Mister Allerton finds out what I'm hiding, then he'll definitely tell Father! I really can't let that happen!
Forcing herself to look back up at him, she gives a nervous smile.
A tense few seconds pass before Allerton smiles and stands up. "I see. Despite the rules in place, your father does have some books on magic. However, I can only allow you to read a select few."
Extending his hand to Horatia for her to grab, he leads her over to a section at the back of the library. "As long as you come and ask me for permission, I have no problem letting you read the ones you're allowed to have. So don't hesitate to come to me next time, my lady."
Looking at him with wide eyes as Horatia follows him, she manages to smile back at him and nod eagerly. "Alright! Next time, I'll ask you lots and lots of questions!"
Pleased with herself, Horatia can help but think that everything was going quite smoothly.
Mister Allerton is nicer than I thought! It must just be his face that makes me nervous. Maybe I can ask him next time if Father won't mind letting me read some of the bigger books!