He heard something small giggle. Then a few more.
By the time he'd returned to the counter, a half dozen pixies had gathered on the open book. They were cute little things, and we'd get along as long as they didn't torment me.
"How did you get trapped in the book, Little Ones," Colin asked.
"Oh, we weren't trapped ... were we?" one of the little flowers said. The others looked troubled. "She just said she couldn't play with us anymore, and we should sleep in the book. I thought she meant for the day, but we slept for a long time."
Colin nodded and looked at Neko. "It happens with some human children. They have imagination enough to see magic, tie themselves to it for a few years, and then grow up."
"Maude wasn't a lot of fun anyway," one of the other Pixies said. "She never wanted to play our games and just sent us to spy on people."
Neko had barely heard the words after 'Maude.' It could not be --
"Her journal," Neko said, seeing Colin watching him. "I only saw it on her desk, and she didn't allow me near it. My subconscious recognized it online. Spells, Colin. My answer --"
Neko had reached for the book, but he pulled back before Colin made a warning sound. The cat carefully put some distance between him and the journal.
"There is no telling what else she might have trapped there," Colin said. "I'll get the pixies back over the veil, but I'll put a spell on the book for now and keep it closed."
Neko wanted to protest, but he gave a quick human-like nod instead. "Do it. Don't tempt me. I should have learned patience by now. I can wait a little longer. But I swear by all stars in the sky that if you don't come back, I'll find a way to curse you. And it won't be as pleasant as mine."
Colin took him seriously. He had turned toward the door and stopped.
"Storm coming in," he said. Neko noted the push of the wind against the windows and a little tapping of dust on the glass. "Let's hold up for tonight. I have some food in the car, and I'll share."
Neko wondered why he didn't use magic to create a meal. He had the power. And why use a car? The cat ran the questions through his mind, and by the time Colin returned, he was ready with a dozen questions.
One was the only important question, though.
"What is really going on?" Neko asked. "A cache of magic books isn't enough to get this kind of notice. You could have walked in, grabbed them, and left. Instead, you are doing your best not to use your powers and draw attention."
"Very observant," he replied, settling a cooler on the floor as he locked up again.
"It became a habit when there was so little else I could do."
Colin nodded and began to put food on the counter.
Tuna sandwich.
"You are my friend for life," Neko said and nibbled at the edge of the gift. "I haven't had tuna in a couple decades, and the last human only fed me dry stuff -- not horrible, but not tuna."
Colin found cookie treats for the Pixies, and while everyone ate, he reached over and sealed the book closed. Neko started to protest but stopped his hiss and nodded.
"Just don't try to take the book away," Neko warned.
"Not without your permission. I promise."
A fae's promise was not given lightly. Neko looked at him with a growing worry about what was happening.
He worried all the more when the first winds from the storm hit the building. No, this was not an ordinary storm, and he could feel the magic seeping in around the doorway. This was, after all, a very old building. It had been old the moment he walked through the door the first time, and it had never been given the proper care it needed. In fact, Neko suspected that it only still stood because of Maude's curse that kept him here.
But this storm was nothing ordinary. Even the little pixies had stopped darting around and gathered on the counter, looking with dread toward the door. They made chittering noises that were so high-pitched that Neko couldn't make them out.
Lightning struck close by, and then a bellow of thunder candidates power to the wind making the building shake even more. Dust from long ago shook down from the high cornices around the ceiling. A book fell somewhere else.
For the first time in many years, the cat worried about whether nature or Maude would win this battle.
Adding new magic to the battle only made it a little worse – – or maybe just a little more interesting. Neko had to admit that he'd been getting awfully bored for the last 30 or so years. Faces all started to look alike, and the treats he used to love seemed bland and not worth the effort of coming downstairs. Most of the days he had spent sitting in one of the high windows and watching the world slowly change around him.
The pixies were unhappy about the storm, and Nico couldn't tell if Colin worried about the weather. Neko ate more of his sandwich while the elf moved closer to the door and touched the wood. The cat sensed a little magic and realized that Colin had reinforced that weakest opening into the building.
Something moved past the window, and it was not human.
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