"Welcome to The Luminary," Rhys proclaimed, sweeping his injured arm in an inviting gesture as he led Penelope into the room. That action had to hurt his open wound, but before she could comment her attention was taken away to her surroundings. Stepping forward, Penelope found herself in an elegant chamber. It was compact, but bathed in warm light, with cream-white walls adorned with elegant gold and rich mahogany accents adding a touch of opulence. Its tall ceilings were incredibly daunting, taller than any in Willowbrook. Three wooden desks commanded the room's center stage, two cluttered with quills, books, scrolls, and parchment, while the third stood bare. Scattered haphazardly across the gleaming marble floor were heaps of books and scrolls.

"Kit?" Rhys called out into the empty room.

Still taking in her surroundings, Penelope asked, "How did we get here? Are we still in Inkwell's?"

Rhys left her questions hanging, occupied by something on the desk. As Penelope peered closer, she noticed a tiny red bird perched on the open pages of a book, its head buried in the pages as if engrossed in reading.

"Awww," Penelope cooed, her voice taking on a higher pitch. It was reminiscent of talking to babies, a realm she admittedly had limited experience with. "Is that little fellow your pet?" She turned to Rhys. "It's adorable."

The bird seemed to sense her admiration, lifting its head and locking its gaze onto Penelope. Without warning, it launched itself into the air, hurtling straight at her. Panicked, Penelope squeaked as the bird continued its rapid approach, only to splat onto the ground inches from her feet. She blinked, stunned.

The bird was no more. In its place, a lizard scuttled across the floor, darting up Rhys's leg. Penelope, recovering from her shock, let out a startled scream and instinctively lept back.

Rhys, seeming entirely at ease with the sudden transformation, turned to her with his hands up, attempting to soothe her like a wild animal. “No, wait, it’s okay. See?” He took a step closer, with the creature now perched on his shoulder.

Penelope jumped back. “Get that thing, away from me this instant!” she screeched.

In her panic, Penelope bolted for the entrance and noticed for the first time there were two identical doors on the back wall. Unsure which one they’d come through, she spun around to find Rhys standing about ten feet away.

"Penelope, this is Kit," Rhys said, gesturing to the lizard. "He won't harm you."

Rhys gingerly lifted Kit from his shoulder and placed him on the ground. The lizard took a few steps forward, causing Penelope to press her back against the wall. Then, she witnessed something that defied all logic. The lizard's bone structure began to shift, and in a matter of seconds, it transformed into a boy crouching on the floor. The boy looked up, his face bearing an embarrassed smile.

"Hi," he greeted as he stood. "I'm Kit."

Penelope remained speechless, her gaze darting between the boy and Rhys.

Clearly trying to break the awkward silence, Kit said, "I'm sorry I scared you. I had no idea Rhys was bringing guests." The boy turned to Rhys and the two of them exchanged a silent conversation with their eyes.

“Kit, this is Penelope.” Rhys introduced. “Sanaya’s daughter.”

Kit eyebrows shot up at that and he looked at Penelope once again, studying her features.

"Did you just-" Penelope sputtered, still stuck on the fact that he’d changed into an animal. Her thoughts whizzed about her brain, faster than a race horse. "Who, umm... What are you?"

"Me?" the stranger asked. "I'm Kieran Flintstone. But, like I said, you can call me Kit. And as for what I am, I'm a shapeshifter."

Penelope remained silent, internally processing what was just said. "A-a shapeshifter?" She turned to Rhys for confirmation, eyes wide, but his expression was serious. How was any of this even possible? She wanted to deny it, but Kit had transformed right before her eyes—twice.

"Okay." she said, matter-of-factly. Like, sure, he’s a shapeshifter, totally normal. She waited for the understanding to snap into place, for the profound revelation that would make this make sense. Nothing came to her.

"Explain."

Both boys seemed to hold their breath for a moment, exchanging another silent but loaded glance, and Kit nudged Rhys to break the silence first.

"Um, well..." Rhys trailed off, struggling to find the right starting point.

After a moment of silence, he tried again. "See where…Where you live in Willowbrook, there's no magic. But most places, actually, almost everywhere, have magic."

Penelope’s eyebrows shot up. Oh, so they were insane.

Well, she’d just walked through a portal, so did that mean she was insane too? 

Yes. The answer was decidedly yes.

"So we're not in Willowbrook right now?"

"No, we're not," Rhys replied. "This is The Luminary."

So he’d said, numerous times. And yet, they had just been in Inkwell’s. "And where is that, exactly?"

Rhys began to respond but then paused. He turned to Kit. "That's actually a good question. Where are we?"

Kit shrugged and thought about it for a second, which was, really, just so comforting. She had quite stupidly just followed a complete stranger into a dark closet, and now said stranger and his inhuman friend were unaware of where they even were. “The Luminary doesn't exist in a specific location.” Kit began. “It's a magical archive of knowledge accessible only by the Realm Guard, and it’s tied to the physical world through portals."

Penelope's mind raced with a whirlwind of thoughts—Magical Archive? Portals? Realm Guard?—until a sense of calmness descended upon her and finally, finally, the insanity made sense.

She was dreaming.

Or, wait no… maybe she’d gotten knocked out in that fight in the marketplace and was hallucinating? Penelope figured it was probably a fifty-fifty chance. Either way, Penelope felt a pang of sadness at the revelation. Now she wouldn’t learn about her mother.

"What's the Realm Guard?" she asked. Something about that name pricked at her memory, though she couldn’t say why.

Rhys responded to her question. “The Realm Guard is a law enforcement force. It has branches in all the major magic centers. Its agents are trained to handle all sorts of crime, though usually of the magical variety.”

“Like Callista Ember?” Penelope asked. Now she remembered why the name had sounded familiar. Her mother used to regale her with tales of Callista’s harrowing mission when Penelope used to beg for bedtime stories. She looked up to find both the boys staring at her.

“Your mother mentioned her to you?” Kit asked, his eyebrows raised. He glanced at Rhys, cluing Penelope in on the importance of this fact.

She nodded. “Uh, yes? Sometimes she would tell me bedtime stories about her. How do you know about her?”

“Everyone knows about her.” Rhys answered.

“Do you mean to say she’s real here?” Had her subconscious created a world centered around her memories of her mother? She’d read something about this phenomenon a couple months ago. When she woke up she’d find that book again.

“Yes, she’s real. Callista Ember sits on the council. She’s the representative from Nova Central.” Kit responded.

“She sits on this… Realm Guard counsel?”

Rhys nodded. “She’s the most accomplished Realm Guard ever,” he added, his eyes alight with awe. “She’s never failed a single one of her missions. It’s said she’s so good with a sword, she can beat you blindfolded.”

Penelope grinned at that. “That can’t be true.”

Rhys shrugged. “You’ve got no proof it isn’t.”

“You mom would have known her.” Kit interjected, rushing over to a desk and beckoning Penelope closer. He motioned to a letter on a crinkled and yellowed page. “Your mom wrote this letter to Callista right before she moved to Willowbrook.”

Penelope leaned over the desk. The page was covered with swirly writing, seemingly scribbled on.

My friend,

I have made a mistake and my family has had to pay for it. I can’t let that happen again. I am leaving tonight for the town of Willowbrook. It has no magic, and I can change my name and disappear there.

It is our years of friendship that I call on now when I ask you to keep my secret. No one can ever know where I’ve gone. I know you disagree with my actions, but know I never wished to hurt you.

With this letter, I give you the most precious thing I now own: my safety and the safety of my family.

Contact me when everything has settled. I can’t lose you too.

I will miss you.

Yours Forever,

Sanaya

Penelope read and re-read the letter. If this was a dream, where did this fit into it? What was her mind trying to do?