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Chapter Text

In the middle of December, Sapphire walks through the door to the library, followed by a swirl of wintry air, and heads straight for Thora at the counter. "I need your help," she says as she pulls the knit cap off her head. Somehow, underneath the hat, her blue hair is pristine, not a strand out of place. Thora is starting to wonder if she uses magic to keep it in place.

"What can I help you with?" Thora asks.

"I think I've decided which spell to use. It's a potion that teleports you to your one true love, your perfect life partner, when you drink it."

Thora blinks. That wasn't what she imagined three months ago, when Sapphire started talking about her new project to fix her love life using magic. If Sapphire is planning to brew a potion to teleport her to her true love … what if …? A quiet flutter blooms in Thora's chest. "Sounds like a very promising potion."

"Right?" Sapphire gives Thora a bright smile that turns the fluttering in her chest into a minor stampede. Thora tries to remind herself that there's a good chance that the potion won't turn out the way she's hoping. She's spent the last three months trying to get over Sapphire by convincing herself that her feelings for Sapphire are nothing more than a crush — what if the potion comes to the same conclusion?

"I'd like to brew it, to try it out myself," Sapphire continues, "but I can't remember which book it was in. I don't suppose you have any idea what book it might be from?"

"Unfortunately, I haven't read much of the love magic collection. Don't you have notes?" Thora asks.

Sapphire grimaces. "I did start taking notes — but only from the second week onward. There's nothing about the potion in my notes, so it must have been from that first week." She sighs. "I just wish I could remember the title. I know that I first read about the potion when I was at home, because I remember imagining what it would be like to have my true love suddenly appear in the middle of my living room. But that doesn't exactly narrow it down."

"Well, let me take look at my records. I may not be able to tell you exactly which book the potion was in, but I can tell you which books you took out that week." Thora heads for the cabinet where she keeps her checkout logs, flipping through the pile until she reaches what seems to be the right entry:

Borrower: Sapphire Shelley

Date: Sunday, September 14

Books:

• Love in a World of Magic, by Cassandra Brevil
• Love Potions: A Beginner's Manual, by Zaleria Hunt
• The Perfect Potion: Assorted Brewing Notes for Love Potions, by Zaleria Hunt
• The Herb of Love: 101 Uses for Zisia, by Osran Lovelace
• The Magic of Love: A Primer, by Osran Lovelace

Thora sets the log down on the counter for Sapphire to view. "I think this might be the right one."

Sapphire studies it briefly, before raising her head and giving Thora a grateful look that sets her stomach aflutter again. "Thanks, that narrows the field a lot." Sapphire makes a face. "I just wish I could remember the title, instead of how I felt when I was reading it. Five is better than fifty, but I don't want to have to read through all of them again just to find one potion. Even if I could just narrow it down to two or three of the books …"

Thora looks to her left, at the backlog of books that she needs to re-shelve. But she's never been able to resist helping Sapphire. "Well, do you remember anything else about what you read that week?"

Sapphire leans forward, resting her elbows on the counter. "I read one book each weekday, Monday through Friday. I remember that I saved The Perfect Potion for Friday, because it seemed like the most advanced. And The Herb of Love and Love Potions were a little long, so I definitely didn't tackle those on Monday or Tuesday."

"That's good, that's a lot of information," Thora remarks as she scribbles down couple of notes on a blank parchment. "Do you know which weekdays you might have been home?"

"Monday was such a lovely day, I remember I decided to pack a picnic lunch and climb up the hill for my reading. And I always go to the market in Greenport on Wednesdays, so I definitely wouldn't have read anything at home that day." Sapphire taps her chin, staring into the distance as she thinks. "Oh! And I remember it was raining on the day I went to Greenport, so I didn't take Love in a World of Magic or The Perfect Potion with me to read on the wagon that day. Those two looked way too delicate to survive that sort of treatment."

"Wednesday?" Thora frowns. That doesn't sound right. She double-checks the date on the library log. "The seventeenth?"

"Yes, I think so, why?"

"That was the day you took me out to the cafe for lunch, to celebrate my birthday. I don't remember it raining that day." She does remember other things about that day — walking to the bakery, laughing and talking in the autumn air, buying cupcakes, wiping a smear of frosting off of Sapphire's nose. But not rain.

"Oh, right! We went back to the library afterwards, and I ended up reading Wednesday's book there. I must have rescheduled my trip to Greenport for a different day — a rainy day." Sapphire lets out a deep sigh. "If only I could remember which day it was, I might be able to figure out which of the other three books I did bring with me. That might narrow down which books I read at home."

Thora reviews her notes, making a couple of marks on the parchment to try to work out the puzzle. Unfortunately, no matter how many ways she approaches it, she keeps coming to the same conclusion. "I don't think that narrowed it down at all. You could have read any of those five books at home. Do you remember anything else? Anything at all?"

Sapphire narrows her eyes. "Hmm, now that you mention it, I do think I read The Herb of Love while I was out doing my washing by the river. The book just kept going on and on about Zisia, with sketches and everything, and I remember noticing a little patch of it on the riverbank. Does that help?"

Thora makes a couple more notes on the parchment — and then more, as the pieces start to click into place. When she finally lifts her eyes to meet Sapphire's, she doesn't bother to hide her bright grin. "Surprisingly enough, that tells me the exact book you're looking for."

Which book contains the potion Sapphire's looking for?

*

The following grid is interactive, if you want to use it to solve the puzzle:

The next chapter has the solution and the epilogue.