Based on its interior, the Bibliotheca Vampiric looks like any other library. The lighting is dim and warm toned, and dark wood is a common texture among the library’s furnishings. The Bibliotheca Vampiric is filled with so many books (as most libraries are) that vary in age and size. The presence of this many books reminds me of the sterile, grey corridors of the library at Blackember Academy however, this place somehow feels more….inviting, perhaps? In an odd, quiet and dust filled way.

Justice: “This place is creeping me out. I expect no less of vampires…entertaining themselves in a place like this….”

Luke: “Just don’t freak out again. This is a library, after all…. Alright, there’s a desk over there. Let’s see if we can find an employee….or someone…”

We walk a few meters over to a large wooden desk near the front of the library. The desk is piled with books. One stack almost reaches the ceiling with a sign next to it that reads; “Please return books here”. Among the desk’s foliage of golden embellishments, there is a small name placard on the desk’s corner with the word “MANX” engraved on it.

Justice: “Damn, there’s no one here…. Just a lot of books.”

Luke: “Yeah, I can see that….”

I walk closer to the desk and pick up a book from one of the many stacks. Without thinking, I flip through the pages, when a small calico cat silently hops up onto the desk and starts licking its paws. The cat, which I now realize is tailless, looks directly into my eyes. I decide to put the book back in its place on the desk.

Luke: “A cat…. Weird, huh?”

I look over to Justice, but his gaze does not meet mine. I can almost see the shooting stars glimmer in his eyes as his teeth show through a sunshine filled smile. It seems….the appearance of the cat prompted this!

Justice: “Oooh!”

He steps forward and begins to gently pet the cat. It rubs its head against his hand and purrs along with his petting.

Luke: “Haha! I guess even complete weirdos, such as yourself, can have a soft side! I thought you were incapable of showing any sort of compassion! Ha! If only I were a cat and not a vampire.”

Justice: “Oh, will you just shut up? Anyway, what do we do? There doesn’t seem to be anyone else here, other than this cat.”

Luke: “Well, that John guy said to find someone who works here and ask them for….the Vampire Encyclopedia volume nine. So, if we can’t find someone to get it for us, then how about we just find it ourselves?... Here, this sign shows what genres and subjects are in each of the aisles.”

We both look at the sign posted on the wall next to the desk.

Justice: “Ok then, it says the vampire literature section is all the way at the back. Gosh, why do vampires need their own section?”

We travel deep into the very back of the library. The scent of old books seems to get stronger the further we go, and this area appears to be even darker, with poorer lighting than the rest of the building.

Paying attention to the signs, find the vampire literature section. We don't waste time to begin our search for the Vampire Encyclopedias. Justice decides to look on one of the bottom shelves, while I walk around to the shelf on the opposite side of the aisle.

I run my finger across the spines of the many books, I read their titles as my eyes pass over each of them. I suddenly stop what I am doing however, when I spot movement in my peripheral vision. Was that a person walking down to the end of that aisle?

I decide that perhaps it's the poor lighting that’s making me see things, or maybe I’m just tired from all of the walking. I take one of the books out of the shelf in front of me, it's titled “A General History of Vampires and Vampire Politics”. After briefly examining the book’s cover and skimming its contents, I look up again at the hole in the shelf where I had taken it. Peering through to the other side of the shelving unit, I see two large eyes framed by an even larger pair of glasses staring back at me.

In an instant, the eyes move away from the hole and I see a flash of blonde hair, as the person dashes to the left. I drop the book I am holding and leave it there on the floor. Justice might have said something just now, but I am not paying attention. Instead, I walk around the shelving unit to the opposite side where I had seen the person spying on me.

I look to the end of the aisle. Standing next to a small lamp placed on a table, there is a girl with blonde hair tied in wide pigtails, and large, round glasses. She leans against the bookshelf. The girl is holding a book up to cover her face, but I can still see the impression of a wide grin from behind it. I walk up to her.

Luke: “Um, excuse me, but could you help me find a book? I need the Vampire Encyclopedia, volume nine actually….”

At this moment, my inner monologue features a harsh curse at my shyness.

The girl with the big glasses moves the book down in a slow and painful manner. Now I can meet her eyes…

Girl with Big Glasses: “Hmmm….. You…. Would you be willing….to show me?”

Luke: “Uhh…. Show you what…exactly?”

Girl with Big Glasses: “Please! Show me what you can do! I’ve heard all about you already! Fire! It shot right from your hands! It's amazing! A fantastic first appearance of your ability! I’ve never met a half-vampire before, there’s so much I want to ask you! There’s so much I need to know! Tell me everything!”

The girl drops the book in her excitement. She grabs me by the shoulders, while her hushing breath streams through her wide grin.

Luke: “Oh! Uhh, well….. I don’t think it would be a very good idea to do it here….. Fire and books, you know, they don’t mix very well….I think.”

Girl with Big Glasses: “Hmmm…. fine. You can show me later, then. I’m sure there’s going to be plenty of opportunities for me to see it in the future, since you’ll be staying with us from now on! I’m Dot Button by the way!”

She takes my right hand in both of her’s and shakes it, so much so that I’m afraid my hand may snap off from my wrist. She still has that massive smile on her face.

Luke: “I’m Luke. It's uh, nice to meet you, I guess….”

Dot: “Oh! Yes, I know!”

Luke: “So, can you help me find the Vampire Encyclopedia volume nine? A man named John, I’m sure you must know him, told me to find it so….”

Before Dot can answer, Justice calls from the other aisle.

Justice: “Hey Luke, I found the Vampire Encyclopedias, but volume nine is missing…”

Luke: “Okay. I’m coming.”

I look back at Dot. She stares at me, wide eyed and expectant, while holding out a very large book that’s titled; “Vampire Encyclopedia, Vol. 9”.

Luke: “Oh, nice! You had that all along?”

Dot: “Yep! I kept it with me because I knew you would need it when you got here!”

Dot and I walk over to where Justice is. He stands up from crouching next to the bookshelf. I shove the encyclopedia into his hands.

Justice: “Where did you get this? And uhh….who is that?”

Luke: “That’s Dot. She was holding onto the book this entire time… I guess she was….excitedly expecting my arrival… Hey, now that I think of it, you actually aren’t supposed to be here Justice, are you?”

Ever since we entered the library, I still have been wondering what’s kept Justice here for so long….

Justice: “Well…. No, I’m not, technically.”

Justice turns his head down and looks at the floor.

Dot: “It’s true. John only mentioned that one new trainee was supposed to arrive today. However, it's no big deal, in fact it's even better now that you decided to come! After all, what is a good vampire without their kismet?”

Justice: “What did you call me just now?!”

Dot: “Well, you are Luke’s kismet, are you not?”

Luke: “Kismet. Oh, I think I remember my dad saying something about that…. What does it mean again?”

Dot pushes her glasses further up her nose and grins.

Dot: “Allow me to explain!... Ehehee!... A vampire’s ideal life is achieved, once they have found their kismet. It's the fateful relationship between a human and a vampire, allowing the vampire incredible power when using their ability. It's an honourable thing, to be a kismet. A vampire’s interaction with their human kismet is what keeps the human and vampire worlds connected. Beautiful, isn’t it? I am truly jealous of you…”

Justice: “What?! No way! Kismet? To Luke? Not a chance! I will not be degraded and insulted by such a suggestion…”

Dot: “How do you explain your reasoning for being here, then?”

Justice: “Well….. I am here…. To….To monitor Luke! That’s right. He’s the one who put my family in danger. I need to make sure he doesn’t put anyone else in harm's way…”

Justice grumbles, looking away from the two of us.

Dot: “Hmmm….. Sure! Keep telling yourself that!”

Luke: “So, if Justice is my kismet, why does it have to be him, and why now?”

Dot: “There is no specific age that a vampire is guaranteed to find their kismet. After all, a hundred year old vampire is still like a child, really…”

Luke: “A one hundred year old child!.... Ahh…”

Dot: “And, fate could pair a vampire with any person, regardless of who they are.”

Luke: “I see. I didn’t even know that real vampires existed, before today, let alone that there are humans who are fated to interact with vampires… If this place is supposed to be a school for vampires, does that mean that there are humans who go here too?”

Dot: “Yes! The Bibliotheca Vampiric is a training facility for both vampires and humans! I myself am a human, and there are other human trainees here.”

Luke: “Since you are human, does that make you a kismet, Dot?”

I make wide gestures with my hands... I keep spewing out questions...

Dot, who had been smiling continuously, now has a dejected expression.

Dot: “Tragically, no, I’m not….. It's all I’ve ever wanted. To be a vampire’s kismet! All my life I’ve devoted my time to learning about vampires, just hoping that one day I’d become a kismet….”

She throws her open arms into the air, as if pleading to the world that she be made a vampire’s kismet…

Justice suddenly speaks again, after being quiet for a while.

Justice: “You said that students train here. Just what kind of “school” is this?! Why is it in a library?!”

Dot: “The Bibliotheca Vampiric runs as a library to serve the public, but it is actually a training facility for young vampires and their kismets, operated by VLAD. The Vampire Law Administrative Division. We are trained and work as agents of VLAD, aiding in the elimination of human and vampire conflicts… The facade of a library is meant to decrease public suspicion.”

Justice: “Oh, because the way this place looks is totally not suspicious… Yeah right!”

Luke: “Human and vampire conflicts? Are there lots of those?”

Dot: “Yes, unfortunately. It all boils down to the rocky history between vampires and humans...”

Justice: “Well, since you happen to know so much about vampires, why do we need this?”

Justice holds up the Vampire Encyclopedia.

Dot: “Oh! Perfect! I can show you!”

Dot takes the massive book from Justice’s hands and leads us over to an area of the library that is less dense with bookshelves. In front of us there is a brick wall and a small book cabinet that I find strange to be empty.

Dot: “All of the volumes of the Vampire Encyclopedias have many pages, making them all very heavy… But, volume nine in particular has one thousand, four hundred and eighty three pages.”

Justice: “Ok, your point is? We’ll believe you, if you say that you’ve read them all.”

Dot: “Be patient for a second, will you? And yes, I have read them all… Twice.”

Dot now walks over to the empty book cabinet. She places the encyclopedia in the very middle of the highest shelf. She takes a couple steps back, looks at Justice and me, and smiles.

A minute later, the brick wall next to the cabinet begins to open, revealing a perfectly cut doorway within the masonry. The three of us step forward to look. Inside the wall there is a small hallway leading to a metal spiraling staircase.

Dot: “Here is the real entrance to the Bibliotheca Vampiric. You see, the weight of one thousand, four hundred and eighty three pages is the exact amount needed to trigger the pressure plate that opens this secret door. It’s genius, isn’t it?! It's not like your typical hidden door like the ones you see in movies. No one would suspect an empty book cabinet in a library, now would they?!”

John: “It’s true. No outsiders have discovered it yet.”

We all turn to look and in the doorway there stands none other than John Jackdaw. The man who had previously introduced himself as an agent of VLAD and the person in charge here. He waves, while he leans in the doorway.

John: “It's great to see that you guys finally got here. Sorry that I couldn’t be the one to welcome you both. I had some business to deal with… I knew that Dot here would have been delighted to do it anyway.”

Dot: “Good afternoon, John! I did what you asked and helped these two. It's true what you said, they really know nothing about vampires.”

John: “Yes, well, it seems there’s still lots of explaining to do…. How about you all follow me?”