Emery waltzed in the library, feeling perfectly at ease. Today was a good day. Her class ended a bit earlier than usual, meaning she had all the time in the world to stop by her favorite place in the world: wherever there were books. She could feel her heart racing, breath accelerating slightly with pupils dilated at the mere thought of holding a fresh book in her hand. Truly she was, without a doubt, a geek in every sense of the word. And she loved every minute of it.

Turning around a new row, however, and she found herself running smack into another person roaming the aisle. Luckily she wasn’t carrying any books; unluckily, the boy she ran into had several books, one of which fell smack on her foot. She winced at the sharp pain on her toes, trying her best to remain calm and keep a neutral face in front of the newcomer.

“Oh, I’m really sorry, I, uh, wasn’t watching where I was going,” she heard the boy mumble, picking up the books and standing back up before she could offer to help.

Shaking her head, Emery put on her usual front and dismissed his apology. “No need to apologize. I wasn’t looking where I was going.” She really had a bad habit of running into people these days. Deciding to make it up to the boy, she offered politely, “I was actually coming in here to study. Do you need a partner?”

Emery wasn’t used to people being flustered around her, but as the boy fumbled over his words to speak, she found herself having to hold back a chuckle. He was apparently her age when she heard him mention Year Two, yet he acted younger. Smaller. More insignificant. Something she could relate to, and felt empathy toward.

After he introduced himself as Edmund, she nodded her head and began to speak. “Nice to meet you, Edmund. I’m Emery, a year two student as well.” Glancing around the room, she spotted a table by a window and pointed over toward the spot, adding, “Let’s go ahead and sit down.”

Not waiting for a response, she grasped half the stack of books from his hands and began walking over to the table, placing them down carefully and muttering a “These are heavy.” Looking down at the titles of the books, she flipped through a few before turning to ask, “Do you happen to have a book on pyrokinesis?”

“One of the characters in here is called Emery,” she heard him mention.

“Really?” Emery’s eyes lit up. “That’s a first for me. I haven’t met or read of anyone with my name. How neat.” She vaguely noticed his frown and reluctant tone as she helped him carry the books, but chose not to say anything. He surely knew she didn’t mean any harm by it; rather, if he knew her, he would know this was typical behavior for her. She couldn’t help but help others, whether they really wanted it or not. That was just the way she was. A people-pleaser.

As Edmund went on a bit about pyrokinesis books, Emery took the chance to sit down across from him at the table and folded her arms across one another. It was a little chilly in the library today, she noticed, and was kicking herself for not bringing a sweater or cardigan. “Oh, that’s fine. No need to go out of your way to find me a book," she explained, shaking her head. Really, the last thing she wanted was to inconvenience someone.

When he asked her about her pyrokinesis, she nodded her head. "I am, but I have it under control," she went on, not wanting him to worry about her ability. Not that it would stop her from worrying about him worrying about her. Ugh, it gave her a headache just thinking about it. Deciding to change to topic, she turned to ask him, "What about you? Do you have a certain ability that got you here?" Realizing she might be crossing boundaries, she quickly added, "I mean, you don't have to answer that if you don't want to."

“That’s so cool, I’ve never met one before!”

“Oh, really?” she asked cautiously. Emery wasn’t sure how to approach the subject of her being able to light fires wherever she pleased, whenever she pleased; she assumed the subject, itself, would make the boy nervous, but he seemed genuinely interested. Truth be told, she’s always wanted someone to confide in about her abilities. It wasn’t everyday she got an opportunity like this – better make the most of it.

Nodding to herself, she turned and put a pleasant smile on her face. “Actually, there’s a class for pyrokinesis, as well as others similar. To be honest, it’s somehow relaxing. I sometimes have a little fireball circling around me – he’s adorable, you’d like him. Oh! But I shouldn’t show him in the library, what with all the books that could possibly be burnt. That would be a tragedy.”

Embarrassed that she went so far as to talk about her personified ball of fire, she hastily made a comment of “But I’m talking too much!” and quietly shut herself up to listen to Edmund go on about his own talents. When he mentioned telekinesis and telepathy, her eyes lit up with interest. “Those are fascinating gifts,” she admitted, recrossing her arms over one another and leaning back in her chair. “But I can understand why you’d feel that way about your ability. Besides pyrokinesis, I can also sense another’s presence in the nearby area. That also feels a bit invasive, on a different degree. Like I’m a stalking magnet or something.” She blushed at her comparison and shook her head once more. Keep it together, Emery!

As Emery went on about her trusty fireball, she heard Edmund make out a little aww and held back a smile. She didn’t feel like smiling to make fun of the boy; on the contrary, she thought it was amazing that someone took a genuine interest in her. It wasn’t often she got to converse with others like she was today – the day was just full of surprises for her.

When Edmund made a little comment agreeing with her to not create the fireball, she nodded her head. “Yes, well, it’s more of a comfort for me than actually being useful. There’s something soothing about watching the flames flicker on a fire, though I suppose my attraction to fire has something to do with being naturally affiliated to the element. Still, to each their own. I’m sure you also have something that comforts you in a similar way, yes?” Realizing she was being intrusive, she quickly shook her head and added, “You don’t have to answer that.”

After she compared herself awkwardly as a stalker with her secondary ability, she watched the boy chuckle and make the same comparison to himself. Deciding to let her guard down a notch, Emery felt the corners of her lips raise into a small smile. Letting out a soft giggle of her own, she nodded her red head in agreement. “Things sure can be messed up, especially at this school.” Her laugh lowered to silence as she paused to think that statement over. Yes, it was true: she had run into a few messed up situations since joining Aurora Academy. There was no denying that.

Still, she didn’t regret accepting her enrollment to the school. There were things she was learning about herself, and others, that she would’ve never understood without the help of the extraordinary academy. She really did have a lot to be grateful for. Before she realized it, her mouth opened of its own accord and formed the words, “I’ve never felt more at home than at this school, though.”

Emery listened to Edmund go on about books and nodded her head in agreement, giving a small chuckle at the Hunger Games comment. “Yes, well, that’s certainly true. I don’t think a lot of us would last in a world like that.” She tilted her head for a moment, pondering, before turning to face the boy with a new thought on the forefront of her mind. “While it’s true that some books would be a disaster to live in, I believe some would be interesting, don’t you? Imagine living in the world of Pride and Prejudice, for instance,” she replied, laughing. “A world where all you have to worry about is social status and who’s going to the next ball. What a regal time that must’ve been.”

Emery didn’t consider herself much of a romantic, though she supposed that last comment might’ve given the wrong impression that she was. The truth was, she just loved the world of books. Immersing herself in a good book could leave her busy and satisfied for hours, taking her to faraway lands where different things were possible. It was almost like Aurora Academy – the school felt like a fairytale in the sense that people came to discover more about themselves then they could on their own.

Plus, students had supernatural powers here. That, by itself, made this seem like some strange fantasy story.

As she listened to Edmund’s comment about her fireball, she was quick to shake her head in disagreement. “That’s not true. Books can hold so much more inside them than a simple ball of fire can. Books hold worlds of fireballs.”

She felt his last words about family were something he was honestly revealing about himself, and so she said nothing but merely nodding her head. Honesty was something not many people felt comfortable about around her to reveal, and with Edmund giving her a chance she didn’t want to mess things up. A normal person would take the opportunity to add something honest about themselves – reveal something, perhaps, from their own past – but Emery was hesitant. She didn’t want to cause problems, something that ultimately held her back from being herself in all situations.

Deciding to change the subject, she grabbed the nearest book by her – a science book – and asked in a softer tone, “So what are you trying to study?”

Emery felt herself laughing along with Edmund as he poked fun at Austen novels. While she should’ve felt embarrassed that he didn’t like her suggestion, as most people would, she instead took it for what it was: his own opinion. She rarely took anything personal – her end goal was still to please those around her, and she seemed to be doing a good job regardless of their differences in books.

When he brought up his own preference of Shakespeare, she found herself nodding in agreement mechanically. Normally she would agree regardless of her opinion – after all, the other party is always right – but today she agreed simply because she agreed. And that, for her, was something of a rarity. “True. Shakespeare certainly had a way with words. I certainly wouldn’t mind being described in the era of old English.”

Edmund made a comment about looking presentable cross-dressed, and Emery nodded her head in approval. “You certainly would make a pretty girl,” she added, giving a small smile to show she was in on the joke, despite the fact that she did agree: Edmund’s small stature would, in fact, make for a pretty girl.

As she turned her attention back to the books, she vaguely heard Edmund mention his dislike toward the current math lesson. She hummed in thought, knowing she didn’t understand math well, either, but wanting to help him regardless. “Actually, I’m not too great with math,” she admitted, feeling her cheeks blush. “But I’m sure if we put both our heads together, we’ll be able to figure it out.”

“As for what I’m working on,” she continued, “it’s like I mentioned earlier – I was hoping to find a book on pyrokinesis. I’m open to finding books on several abilities, though. I was wanting to learn about other abilities so I’m not taken by surprise anymore. The other day, someone teleported right in front of me!” She laughed at the awkward encounter, scratching her cheek in thought. “Maybe we could look for books of that sort? Unless you need to focus on your math,” she quickly added, giving him the choice. She made sure to never be the one to choose.