The library had always been there. At least as long as any humans could have remembered. Kate knew it had only been here for a measly forty thousand years and that her best friend Apollyon was over triple that age. They were both demons, as were all librarians here. Compared to her friends, Kate was inexperienced at being a librarian and a demon, becoming both just five years ago.

Kate looked up from the stack of books she had been sorting back into their proper places. She felt Apollyon approach. The older demon was pretty bad at hiding her presence from Nightmares, demons with a natural talent in interacting with other’s minds. Kate was building on that talent with weekly training, and she was learning fast.

“Hey Polly.”

“Kate. You didn’t have to stay all night, especially not alone.”

“I know… it’s just so relaxing.”

“May I relax with you?”

“Sure, just want to finish returning these to their homes.”

“Let me help you.” Apollyon picked up part of the stack of books and began sorting them back onto the shelf.

“How did your meeting with Azazel go?”

“I expected something more problematic when she said she needed to talk to one of us immediately. Thankfully it’s just a cult.”

“A cult? That sounds worrying.”

“Not at all. They are not much more than an occult study group made up of students. The nature of the library causes them to form every few decades. They tend to fade on their own. Azazel is worried because this one has figured out what we are.”

Kate frowned. “That’s not too bad but annoying.”

“Exactly. Currently they believe that our nature needs to be kept secret, but that may change. We should keep an eye on them.”

“Yea. Anything else new in Hell?”

“Actually yes. Fury has begun writing a cookbook.”

“That’s awesome! I definitely need a signed copy when she’s done.”

“I am sure she would be happy to give you one. Speaking of food, shall we have breakfast?”

Kate put away the last book. “Sounds good.”

 

A huge mug of hot chocolate, a stack of fresh warm waffles and Hell’s equivalent of raspberry jam. Breakfast didn’t need to be nutritious for a demon, it simply had to be delicious.

“I don’t think I will ever tire of your food.”

“I hope I can keep that quality up.”

“I have no doubts.” Kate smiled and shoved another piece of waffle into her mouth.

“Your answer to my question why you stay here alone at night made me think. I am not entirely satisfied with it. I suspect there is more to it than just relaxing. You could do that at home.”

Kate sighed. “You got me there. It’s about my powers actually.”

Apollyon tilted her head slightly. “The minds of others bother you.”

The young Nightmare nodded shily. It was something she was ashamed of. She made incredible friends and now she was withdrawing. “I have become too good at reading others, I just do it without trying. I have learned to ignore it, but it’s never quiet… only when I’m alone. But when I’m alone at home I feel lonely, I need something. Some noise, if that makes sense. Here I can feel the presence of the emotions that stick to the books like ghosts, but they are quiet. They are there and will speak when I open a book, but they are silent when they are just waiting to be picked up. Here I am alone but never lonely.”

“I see. Am I correct in assuming that my presence is exhausting in some way?”

“No! No… I… don’t know, honestly. I need to talk to Nirrti about this. Thank you for bringing it up.”

“That is what a friend is for. But there is something else that happened this week, correct? Your change in behaviour was sudden. Too sudden to simply stem from your training.”

“My aunt Euphemia is celebrating her seventy-fifth birthday in three weeks and I am invited. As is my ‘girlfriend’, meaning you.”

“Your family does know that we are not entangled in that way, correct?”

“My mother tried to explain it, it apparently didn’t stick.”

Apollyon made a sound of amused annoyance. “Oh well. I take it that you do not look forward to that visit?”

“Not at all. First time I will be able to read all their minds and a lot of my extended family is questionable at best. I’ll also likely need to stay overnight, which means I can’t withdraw if things get too much. I still don’t know the physical range of my abilities, but I can feel most people in the library whenever I am here, I would basically need to hide in the woods to get some silence.”

“That is bothersome. I will support you as best I can.”

“Demon minds are so comfortable, just snuggle up in there and be warm and safe.” Kate closed her eyes and took a big gulp of her hot chocolate.

“I am almost envious of that experience. Your journey is teaching me so much about what a Nightmare’s life is like and I still can barely imagine it.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yes.”

“I definitely want to try something tonight then. No hiding alone in the library, we are going to have us the coziest of nights.”

“I am looking forward to that.”

“I do too.” Kate paused. “We have a visitor.” She quickly gobbled up the last tiny bit of waffle and picked up her mug after shifting into her human disguise.

Apollyon followed suit and walked out of the small restaurant in the back of the library. At the reception desk was a young woman, second semester at the local university.

“Hey, sorry to bother you.”

“All good, what can we do for you?” Kate took a seat behind the desk.

“This will sound weird, but do you have anything about summoning demons?”

“Historical, scientific or fiction?”

The woman stared at Kate for a moment. Apollyon turned away and walked to the shelves as she couldn’t suppress a wide grin and eventually a slight laugh.

“Uuuuuuh… Scientific and historical I suppose. You know, the theological stuff.”

“Theological works are two floors down. If you want any specific historic works, I can point you to them. You don’t want to dig through all the old papers, they are sorted by year and there have been a LOT of years in history.”

“Okay, fair enough. Thank you.” The woman made her way to the stairs and Kate joined Apollyon between the shelves.

“We need to keep an eye on her.”

Apollyon raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“She studies economics. I doubt you need knowledge about the summoning of demons for that. Could just be normal interest or a hobby of course, but after you told me about that ‘occult study group’ I am worried.”

“Hm, your worry is warranted. Very well, I’ll make sure we know if she gets involved with them.”

“Thank you. I should get ready to head to uni anyway.”

“Alright. I will be here.”

“See you later then.”

“Of course.”

Kate gave a little wave as she teleported away to her apartment.

 

Her home here on earth still held many of her possessions, despite the fact that she had effectively moved to a small cottage in Hell. A temporary home, but a cozy one. Kate had travelled Hell in an endeavour to find a place for her permanent home, a wonderful house she had begun planning with the spider demon Jorogumo, Hell’s foremost architect. Together they had found a wonderful spot, a hillside forming the border between the fifth and sixth circle, surrounded by a beautiful blood-leafed forest. Merely a stone’s throw away from the small city of Sheol and the Acheron flowing through it. Just a little further down stream was Dis, Apollyon’s home and the nearby village of Gehenna, where Nirrti lived.

But right now, she split her time between the small cottage in Dis and this apartment. A lovely apartment, one Kate definitely wanted to keep to have human visitors and a place on earth for herself, but her heart belonged to Hell. It also served as a nice cover for her identity, walking from here to the university every day and not simply teleporting.

She grabbed her bag and magically traded her librarian outfit, an all-black combo of corset, tall boots and leather trousers, for something more normal, an ornate sweater, jeans and short boots, still in black of course. Her choice of various everyday goth-y ensembles was still unusual but made her look a lot less like a character from a fantasy novel.

Kate grabbed her bag and left her earthly home. She hadn’t spent much time there today, but that was normal these days. Most of her human friends knew about Hell and were eager to be taken there whenever possible and Kate was happy to comply. It was nice to still have them, and to still be able to share not just time in Hell but also uni lunch here on earth with them, even if her own cooking was vastly superior now. Both Oliver and Adelina had opted to pursue master’s degrees in their respective fields, just as Kate had. With those theses now looming on the horizon, it had yet to be openly talked about and decided if they would still share lunch afterwards, but Kate knew that both of her friends were unwilling to give up their little ritual. It was something small and consistent she looked forward to every day as well.