Arlie woke up to the sun streaming through the window. She lay there in bed for a moment or two as the fog of sleep cleared from her mind. She had the distinct impression that she had a dream last night. It seemed important, but she couldn’t recall any details. Slipping out of bed she found that she was in her underwear. A simple pair of blue panties and a matching chest wrap. Looking around she found yesterday’s ruined robe draped over the chair of her desk. Her desk was a small piece of furniture in the corner of the room. She often used it when she was writing and its drawers were stocked with writing equipment. On one corner of the desk was her inkwells. Opposite her desk was her wardrobe. She ignored the ruined robe and opened her wardrobe looking for something to wear. Pulling a new set of underwear out of a drawer at the base. She placed them on her desk to change into later and pulled out a new robe for the day. Unlike yesterday's robe, this one wasn’t intended for use in the forest. So the material was thinner and not as durable. It was a lovely shade of green with a light blue trim. She had yet to put it on when suddenly her door opened and Lily walked in.

“I was just coming to wake you up because breakfast is ready. I’ll leave you to get dressed,” said Lily.

“Good morning. What happened after we met that dragon?” asked Arlie before she could leave. Not at all bothered by her abrupt entrance.

“You fell asleep. Also the dragon told us that if you are curious about her past dealings with your family that you should reference your family diaries. She said you can find the relevant ones in your basement library,” said Lily.

“She told you about the basement? How did she know about that? It's a family secret,” said Arlie surprised.

“She didn’t tell us how she knew about it, only that it exists,” said Lily.

“Anything else she tell you?” asked Arlie with a sneaking suspicion.

“She told us that many mages of your line have had the gift of prophecy and that she has been helping those with it, whenever she senses they have a prophecy to give. That’s about it as she didn’t give us a lot of time for asking questions before she teleported us into your backyard,” said Lily. Arlie felt a bit of relief that the dragon had only shared a couple of smaller family secrets and not the big ones. Still, if the dragon had been dealing with her family for a long time and knew their secrets, she doubted she would just freely share that info.

“Come here. I have something I want to check,” said Arlie. Lily’s face contorted with a look of confusion. Then she came closer and asked what she wanted to check. Arlie stayed silent and held her hand sending a probe of mana into her.

“I thought so. It seems our dragon friend has left behind a silencing curse. A rather intricate one,” said Arlie.

“I want to say I’m surprised, but I’m not,” said Lily. She knew the gift of prophecy was rare, and that many families that have the gift often keep it a secret. To protect them, higher powers often also keep the secret.

“Well let's go eat,” said Arlie.

“Uh, Arlie? Aren’t you going to get dressed first?” asked Lily. Arlie blushed and said, “Sorry, I forgot,” as she started to slip into her robe. She didn’t need long before she was heading down her hallway to the main room. Rose was setting the table and Lily had already sat down. Taking her favorite seat, she waited as Rose went back into the kitchen to get the food. Breakfast began as soon as Rose handed out the bowls of warm oatmeal that she had cooked.

“So, does Aunty know you stayed here last night?” Arlie asked a question that had been on her mind awhile. She knew they had stayed here because Rose often cooks something when she has stayed over. It was one of her hobbies and she was pretty good at it.

“Uh, no. We haven’t been home since last night, but we have camped out in the woods before. I don’t think she is worried. Yet,” replied Rose, while Lily took a bite of her bowl.

“You could have at least told the guard to give a message to Aunty,” said Arlie.

“We didn’t come through the gate last night. Aurora teleported us into your garden,” supplied Lily.

“I doubt that. Can you two tell me what exactly you saw when we were ‘teleported,” said Arlie. As an experienced mage, she knew a thing or two about the theory of teleportation. When it comes to rapid travel spells, there were two types in general: teleport spells and warp spells. The problem with teleport spells is that they typically required an array at both the destination and the point of origin. The ones that didn’t often carry the risk of losing something during transit. As she listened to their description of events, she found her doubts confirmed.

“That wasn’t a teleport spell; it was a warp spell. I know they seem similar, but teleport spells don’t distort your surroundings. Also, warps aren’t instantaneous like teleports; they usually take about a fifth of the time it would normally take to transit from origin to destination. Making them technically inferior, but they don’t require an array on both ends to cast. Nor do they come with the risk of things being lost during transit,” said Arlie.

“Wait, what do you mean by lost?” asked Lily.

“Teleport spells have a mass limit. Most teleport spells that don’t require an array can barely move a person. As such, they often leave things like clothes or bags behind at the point of origin. Warp spells, on the other hand, have a much higher mass limit, require less mana, and can transport people a greater distance making them far more versatile,” said Arlie. The twins started laughing as an image entered there mind. The rest of breakfast passed in silence as they ate their meal. Arlie was the first to finish.

Seeing that Arlie had stopped eating Rose spoke up, “It's no wonder you are so tiny. If you actually ate something, you might actually grow.”

“I can’t help it. Besides, I doubt I would get bigger if I ate more,” said Arlie.

“You need to eat more. Unless you like being mistaken for a child,” said Rose. Arlie just turned red. She hated being mistaken for a child. It irked her that people would ignore obvious signs of maturity like her chest and assume that because she is small that she is a child. She then took her bowl to the kitchen and began to clean up. While cleaning, she heard Lily admonishing Rose about hitting one of her sore points. By the time she came out, the other two had finished breakfast. As they were cleaning up, she proposed they take a bath together.

“A bath? Sure! It will be enjoyable and far better than a cleaning spell,” said Lily.

“I need a nice warm bath too, so sure. Just let me grab a change of clothes first,” said Rose.

“Then, I will go get the bath ready,” said Arlie as she ran out to the bathhouse to start the water flow, and fill the tub. Then she waited outside for the other two. They stayed over often enough that they kept several changes of clothes in the guest room. They came along shortly and the three entered the bathhouse together.

Arlie had a rather nice private bath, one of the best in the village. A sign of how wealthy her family was. Most families in Voros didn’t even have a bath and had to use the public bathhouse in the middle of the village. Some of the wealthier families like the Contreys and the Santras, however, had their own private baths. The inside of the bathroom was tiled with smooth clay tiles. The center of the room was dominated by a large sunken tub. A channel at the rear of the room allowed water to flow into the tub, while two channels on the side allowed overflow to drain away. Small stones were placed at even intervals around the edge of the tub. These were magic stones, that maintained the temperature of the water. At the bottom of the tub was a wooden plug. The tub had a gentle slope toward this plug. Wooden shelves, built into the floor, are arranged at the rear edge of the large tub.. On the shelves were hung a few rags, and arranged around the shelves was an assortment of various beauty products. At the front of the tub were some steps to allow easy entry into the large tub.

Near the door was a changing area with a bar for towels and several shelves. There was a basket on the floor for dirty laundry. As soon as the three entered, they stripped down and tossed their dirty clothes in the basket and placed their fresh clothes on the shelves. Before entering the bath, the water was already at the perfect temperature. The group began to soak before striking up a conversation.

“I think I will have to look over those diaries later. Also, we need to let Aunty know that we are back,” said Arlie.

“We should do that first thing after our bath. As for the diaries, we can help with that,” said Lily.

“I don’t think Arlie would want us in her family library. I think she has good reasons for not telling us about it,” said Rose.

“Well you already know about it and it should be fine as long as you do what I say. Just be careful about the wards. The main reason we keep people out of the basement is because that's where the more dangerous magical items are kept. And that goes double for the treasury. It has wards that even I can’t pass,” said Arlie.

“In other words, there are parts of the basement that even you aren’t allowed in?” responded Lily.

“Yes,” said Arlie.

“But aren't you the master of the house now?” said Rose.

“My ancestors built the wards with special requirements. Those requirements are heavily based on not just my blood, but my rank as a mage. I can only enter areas that my ancestors deemed appropriate for a high mage,” answered Arlie.

“That sucks, but I guess they had their reasons,” said Lily.

“Well given what some of the things I do have access to can do, I shudder to think what the things in the restricted section can. In fact, many of the things I have found are too dangerous for the magically ignorant,” said Arlie.

“Speaking of your basement, maybe your library can shed some light on your prophecy,” said Rose.

“Really? What did I say?” asked Arlie.

“Well to sum things up, you foretold an apocalyptic battle and mentioned someone called the Last First Lord,” said Rose.

“The Last First Lord? I don’t recall reading anything about someone with that title, but most of the books in my library deal with magic. The Library in the town of Arcs is more extensive. They might have what info on him or her,” said Arlie.

“Um, Aurora said that if we were curious, that we should visit the Red Temple,” said Lily.

“The Red Temple? I actually have a couple of books on it. It was built by one of my ancestors, John Contrey. It has four counterparts all dedicated to the same god, The High God of Creation and Destruction. You know, I haven’t actually reviewed those books in ages. It might be a good idea to review those books,” said Arlie.

“That might be a good idea. Might shed some light on why she suggested we visit the temple. Maybe you should read up on that ancestor of yours too,” said Rose.

“I was thinking I should as well. In fact, it is beginning to look like we will be spending today in the library,” said Arlie.

“Looks like, but on the bright side, the boys won’t be bothering us,” said Lily.

“I’m glad, Thron is always hard to deal with,” said Arlie.

After a brief giggle, Rose said, while Lily was still giggling, “No kidding. You shot him down and he is still trying to court you.”

“At least he’s cute,” said Lily between giggles.

“Cute!? He’s disgusting!” exclaimed Arlie.

“I think he is quite handsome, with those chiseled features and that lovely scar. If he wasn’t so blindly focused on you, I would be going for him,” said Rose.

“I don’t think he is worth it. He might look good, but he is an absolute idiot,” said Lily.

“At least he doesn’t think with his dick, like another boy we know,” said Rose.

“Hey, Arlie. Is there any boy you have an eye on?” asked Lily.

“What! No, boys are disgusting,” exclaimed Arlie.

“You still think boys are disgusting? I thought you would have grown out of that by now,” said Lily. Arlie finished washing up climbed out of the tub and said, “I’m going to get dressed. Feel free to keep talking about disgusting boys.”

As soon as Arlie was out of earshot, Rose said, “You really need to stop teasing her about boys. We both know she is more interested in us than any boy.”

“I know, but I just wish she would admit it,” said Lily.

“It would be nice, I guess. Come on, we have to get dressed,” said Rose ending the conversation. When they got back to the main room of the house, Arlie was waiting for them by the front door. They followed her out into the early morning streets of Voros. Like yesterday, Arlie was greeted by several of the townsfolk on her way to the Santra’s house. Aunty Santra greeted them at the door.

“Where were you girls last night?” asked Aunty Santra.

“Sorry, Mom we got back late from our hunting trip. So we decided to stay the night at Arlie’s place,” said Rose.

“You should have told me. And Arlie you’re the responsible one, why didn’t you make sure they told me?” said Aunty Santra.

“Sorry, I used a little too much magic yesterday and fell asleep on the way home,” said Arlie, feeling it best to omit the encounter with the dragon.

“Be more careful next time. I have some errands to run. Will you three be alright on your own or do I have to keep an eye on you?” asked Aunty Santra.

“We were going to help Arlie out in her garden today and then help her sort some old books,” said Lily.

“Have fun then. I’ll come by later today to check on you three,” said Aunty Santra, moments before she left via the front door. The twins went upstairs to put their armor and weapons away. Arlie waited for them in the main room. It didn’t take them long to finish and before long, the group was on their way back to Arlie’s house. The way back went by without any interruptions. As soon as they were back, Arlie went straight to the hidden door and then said, “Remember do exactly what I tell you down here and don’t touch anything without permission.”

The two agreed and Arlie then opened the door using a complicated magic. Bookshelves that hid the door retreated into the wall and then slid downward, revealing an old, but well-maintained stairwell. Worn stone steps showed signs of countless feet having passed through. A magical torch lit the stairwell with bluish light. The three then descended the stairs. The landing opened up into a small room with a hallway directly across from the stairs and a door to the left. A number of shelves decorated the right wall and an open door could be seen in the middle of the shelves. The room was filled with row after row of shelves and crates stacked to the ceiling. Herbs, bottles, and magical ingredients abounded in the room. The shelves outside the room had a number of books on them, along with more ingredients.

“Let me guess, those are your potion making ingredients,” said Lily staring at the shelves.

“Yeah, that's where I store all the ingredients I use in my potions, along with the books that contain the recipes I use the most. That door leads to the workshop. Just stay out of there and follow me,” said Arlie. She led them down the hall towards the last door at the very end of the hall. It was a nice elaborate door that opened into the Contrey family library. They found themselves in a sitting area. To the left was some railing and stairs leading down below with a shimmering blue barrier blocking access to the stairs. All around them were row upon row of shelves, and again access to the shelves was blocked by blue barriers.

“What are those blue barriers?” asked Lily.

“Those are the wards. You won’t be able to pass without permission,” said Arlie as headed for the table. She then produced some papers from seemingly out of nowhere.

“What are those?” asked Lily, while Rose was looking around.

“This is a mage’s library. Many of these books contain secrets that my family has guarded for generations. These are magical contracts that will allow you to enter the library. The terms are pretty standard you agree not to disclose any family secrets you learn here and you are allowed to enter the library. Failure to abide by the terms will result in you and whoever you told those secrets being magically bound as slaves to the family,” said Arlie.

“I’m guessing you brought these out thanks to family rules, right?” said Rose as she sat down.

“Yep, I can’t just let you in here. No matter how much I trust you, thanks to the rules on the wards,” confirmed Arlie. Rose and Lily grabbed the contracts and read over them. It took them a few minutes to go over the contract to find they were exactly as Arlie described. They were quite straight forward and written in the old tongue. The enchantment on the paper translated the words so they could read it. Neither had plans to share what they learned and signed the contracts. As soon as they signed the barriers seemed to vanish, but glowing outlines remained where they were.