Ruby's Point of View
The lights burst above my head, showering me with sparks and broken glass.
I screamed and covered my head with my hands, but the sparks didn't burn me. They just danced around me like tiny fireflies before going away. The library was totally dark now except for the glow from the Awakening Book in my arms.
That's when I saw them.
Two red eyes floating in the darkness near the basement door. Not human eyes—these were too bright, too intense. They glowed like hot coals in the dark.
My heart stopped beating for a second. Then it started again, so fast I thought it might burst.
"Please don't hurt me," I whispered, holding the book to my chest.
The eyes moved closer, and I heard footsteps. Slow, careful footsteps like whoever was walking didn't want to scare me more than they already had.
"I'm not going to hurt you," said a voice from the darkness. It was deep and sad, like someone who'd been crying for a very long time. "But you need to put that book down. It's dangerous."
A man stepped into the silver light coming from the book. He was tall and pale, with black hair and those bright red eyes. He looked like he belonged in a scary movie, but something about him made me feel sorry for him instead of scared.
Maybe it was the way he held his hands out to show he wasn't packing weapons. Maybe it was the way he stayed far away from me, like he was more afraid of me than I was of him.
Or maybe it was the way he looked so incredibly sad.
"You're the shadow man," I said, surprised that my voice worked. "The one the books told me about."
His glowing eyes widened. "The books told you about me?"
"They said your name is Asher. They said you're not really a monster, just someone who made a mistake a long time ago."
He flinched like I'd hit him. "The books are wrong. I am a monster. And you need to stay away from me."
"Why?" I asked, even though part of me knew I should be running for the door.
"Because I destroy everything I touch," he said, and his voice cracked. "Because I killed an entire town by accident. Because I'm too dangerous to be around normal people."
I looked at him standing there in the darkness, and all I could think was that he looked like he needed a hug. His shoulders were slumped like he was carrying the weight of the world. His hands were shaking. And his eyes—those scary red eyes—were full of pain.
"You look hurt," I said softly.
He stepped back like I'd slapped him. "What?"
"You look hurt. Like you've been crying for a hundred years."
His mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. He stared at me like I was speaking a strange language.
"No one's ever..." he started, then stopped. "No one's ever said that before."
"Said what?"
"That I look hurt instead of scary."
I took a step toward him, and he immediately took a step back. "Don't," he said quickly. "Don't come any closer. My shadows might hurt you."
I looked around and realized the darkness wasn't just from the broken lights. Black shadows were whirling around Asher like smoke, but they weren't moving toward me. They were staying close to him, like they were trying to protect him instead of scare me.
"Your shadows don't look mean," I said. "They look sad, just like you."
Asher looked down at his shadows in surprise. "They're not meant to be sad. They're supposed to be frightening."
"Well, they're not doing a very good job," I said, and before I could stop myself, I smiled.
He stared at me like I'd grown a second head. "You're happy. At me. Why are you smiling at me?"
"Because you're trying so hard to be scary, but you're not scary at all. You're just lonely."
The shadows around him started moving differently, less like angry smoke and more like soft waves. The red glow in his eyes got softer, more like lamps than fire.
"I don't understand," he whispered. "People are supposed to run when they see me. They're supposed to scream."
"Maybe the wrong people have been seeing you," I said. "Maybe you just needed to meet someone who wasn't afraid of monsters."
"But I am a monster," he said desperately. "I have to be. If I'm not a monster, then what I did to those people was—"
"A mistake," I finished for him. "The books told me. You were young and scared and trying to help, and your powers got away from you. That doesn't make you a monster. That makes you human."
He made a sound like a sob. "I haven't been human for a hundred years."
"Then maybe it's time to start again."
We stared at each other in the silver light from the book. He looked like he wanted to believe me but was too scared to hope.
That's when I heard it. A sound that made my blood freeze.
Slow clapping.
Someone was clapping their hands in the darkness behind Asher.
"How touching," said a woman's voice, cold and cruel. "The monster finds a friend."
Asher spun around, his shadows bursting outward like black fire. "Seraphina."
A woman stepped out of the darkness, and I knew immediately she was the most dangerous thing I'd ever seen. She was beautiful in a terrible way, with blood-red hair and eyes like burning coals. When she smiled, I could see teeth.
"Hello, darling," she said to Asher. "Miss me?"
"Stay away from her," Asher growled, moving between me and the vampire woman.
"Oh, but I can't do that," Seraphina said, her smile getting bigger. "You see, your little human friend has something that belongs to me."
She pointed at the Awakening Book in my arms, and it started shining brighter. So bright it hurt to look at.
"That book has been lost for centuries," Seraphina continued. "And now this tiny little girl has found it. Do you know what that means, Asher?"
"It means you're not getting it," he said, and his shadows grew bigger and darker.
"Actually," Seraphina laughed, "it means she's going to give it to me. Because if she doesn't, I'm going to hurt everyone in this sad little town. Starting with the children."
The book in my arms was getting so hot I could barely hold it. Pictures were flying through my mind—the vampire woman hurting innocent people, burning down houses, making children cry.
"You can't," I whispered.
"Oh, but I can," Seraphina said. "Unless you give me the book and come with me willingly. Then I'll leave your dear town alone."
"Ruby, no," Asher said quickly. "Don't listen to her. She's lying."
"Am I?" Seraphina's eyes started sparkling brighter. "Tell me, little girl, are you willing to let innocent people die for a book you don't even understand?"
The book was burning my hands now, but I couldn't let go. Images kept flashing through my mind—all the people I'd helped at the library, all the children I'd read stories to, all the families who lived in Moonhaven.
"I'll go with you," I said, my voice shaking. "If you promise not to hurt anyone."
"Ruby, no!" Asher stepped toward me, but Seraphina held up her hand.
"Ah, ah, ah," she said. "If you come any closer, shadow boy, I'll kill her right now."
Asher froze, his shadows twisting around him like angry snakes.
"Smart choice," Seraphina said. "Now, little girl, drop the book and come here."
I looked at Asher, and the pain in his eyes made my heart break. He'd spent a century thinking he was a monster, and now the first person to show him kindness was about to be taken away by a real monster.
"I'm sorry," I whispered to him.
But as I started to put the book down, something incredible happened.
The book started talking.
Not whispering like the other books had. Talking in a loud, clear voice that filled the entire library.
"Ruby Martinez," it said, "you are not helpless. You are not useless. You are the Guardian this book has been waiting for."
The book burst into silver flames in my hands, but the flames didn't burn. They felt warm and safe and powerful.
"What?" Seraphina shrieked. "That's impossible! Humans can't bond with the Awakening Book!"
"This one can," the book said. "Because this one has the heart of a true Guardian. She sees monsters and chooses love over fear."
The silver sparks spread from the book to my hands, then up my arms. I felt power flowing through me, ancient and strong and totally terrifying.
"Ruby," Asher breathed, "what's happening to you?"
I looked at him, and for the first time since this nightmare started, I wasn't scared.
"I'm becoming someone who can help you," I said.
Then I looked at Seraphina, and my voice was steady and strong. "And someone who can stop her."
The vampire queen's eyes went wide with fear. "No," she whispered. "This can't be happening."
But it was happening. The book had picked me, and I was choosing to fight.
The only trouble was, I had no idea how to use the power burning through my veins.
And Seraphina was already moving toward me, her teeth bared and her claws extended.
"If I can't have the book," she growled, "then no one can!"