Spark

     The heat was almost unbearable, beating down on them as they tried to hurry everyone out of the section. Fire ate at the books on the polished redwood shelves with a harsh crackling sound. The fire had spread quickly with dry books for fuel. Some of the books let out ear piercing shrieks as the flames devoured them, revealing their magical nature.

   Sam helped a younger girl up after she tripped on an overturned chair. She pushed the girl along in front of her, finally getting out of the burning section. She hoped they could close it off before it spread even further. Bending over she rested her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. Her blood pounded in her ears so loudly she almost didn't hear when Veritie spoke.

   “We have to do something,” she said.

   “There's not much we can do,” Sam replied, straightening up. A wave of heat washed over her and Veritie floated back further from the fire. “Hopefully it'll burn itself off, once they shut the section.”

   But Veritie was already shaking her head. “Does that look like a normal fire to you? There's no smoke, even though it's burning hundreds of books.”

   Sam's stomach twisted. “Since when do you even care? I've never seen you so caught up in something.” It came out harsher then she meant, fueled by fear. Verities back stiffened and she glared at Sam. “Well even if it is magical what could we do?”

   There was a condescending tone to her voice when Veritie spoke, “well I think magic might do the trick.” She turned, facing Sam. She leaned forward till their noses almost touched, hands locked behind her back.     “And you have magic.”

Stepping back Sam shook her head. “I have enough magic to light a candle, which the is opposite of what we want right now,” she babbled, “besides there are people more qualified, like the head librarian, or even-”

   “The whole library will burn,” Veritie interrupted. Then she leaned back, tucking her heels up under herself, as if she were sitting on a couch. “But with my help you could put this blaze out in a second.” She tilted her head to the side, as if thinking, then corrected herself. “If you could find the source, that is.”

   Sam looked around to see if anyone was coming to help. The only people she saw were people still fleeing. The fire was spreading faster then she would have thought, tearing through the charms against fire like they didn't exist. Turning back to Veritie she forced the fear back. “How?”

   A catlike grin spread across Verities face. “Ask.”

   Sams mind raced. Ask what? Ask for the power to put the flames out? Ask for Veritie to do it? For what? She blurted out of the first thing that came to mind, not even processing the words before the were out of her mouth. “Help me.”

   Veritie laughed. “Good enough.”

   There was a moment when it seemed like everything dimmed, except for Verities gold eyes, which blazed like miniature suns. “Channel your magic through the pendent and cast your spell,” her voice like thousands of silver bells compelling and harmonious. “My magic will be yours.”

   The light returned, and with it the searing heat. Sam cast about for a spell that would help her, gripping it and casting without thinking. Using the ember stone she cloaked herself in a protection spell that shimmered gold against the heat. If she had tried that normally it would have drained her dry.

   She didn't hesitate now, plunging into the burning wing without a thought. Veritie followed behind, practically glowing. A bookself fell in front of them with a crash, almost knocking Sam to the ground.

   “There!” Veritie pointed to a small point of stationary fire. “Use a void spell!”

   But Sam didn't know any spells like that but she knew how fire worked. She could use that, right? Her panic fueled her as she cast a wind spell around the fire spark, holding it in a globe of air. At first it expanded, the fired growing, but after a moment Sam drew the oxygen out of the air, the fire dying almost instantly.

   Sam fell back with a gasp, leaning on a table and trying to catch her breath. Next to her Veritie clucked her tongue. “That was stupid,” she said, “You weren't thinking like a witch, you were thinking like a scientist. You have a lot to learn.”

   Sam wanted to point out that she had everything to learn, because she had never needed magic before, but her lack of breath kept her from doing so. Finally she was able to lower herself to the ground without
collapsing outright. She had a feeling her days of a calm life were over.