(COMPLETE) Sanders Sides - Ghosts (analogical book)

Chapter 4 - Little Lights

This is an example of what I imagine this school library to look like, although I believe this is a public library in Wales.

Words: 1467 Published: 5/2/2021

"It was right here." Virgil said to his friend, arriving at the P shelves where he had previously seen the spiritual orb. They had to walk around the school with the flashlights they packed – that they hadn't used since summer camp in middle school. They weren't the type to adventure in the dark apart from this time. The corridor of shelves was unfortunately completely empty. At least he didn't have to persuade his best friend ghosts actually existed after their spooky encounter earlier – Janus was still mind-blown and trying to explain the phenomenon with the limited logic he still had to believe in but failing miserably to persuade himself.

After a few seconds of silence Virgil stepped forward alone, moving the flashlight slowly. "Hey... Spirit orb... It's me, weird textbook kid... Where are you?" Virgil spoke gently, trying to be as quiet as possible as if he was trying to call forth a small animal. "Are you scared of the light?" Virgil asked the air again, turning off his flashlight and still calling his little light.

Janus stepped away from his crazy friend, admiring the library after dark. He did enjoy the architecture of the room – it was Victorian inspired he believed so looked very Gothic. And Janus loved all things goth and Gothic; Virgil was more emo. Gothic architecture was just so magnificent that he took any opportunity possible to marvel over it. He especially loved how, even though the library was two floors the ground floor was still visible from the second. The ground floor had desks and computers while the second had most of the books and went around the perimeter of the library. Janus hang off the edge to face the ground floor, just looking.

Everything seemed peaceful until Janus' eyes landed on something unusual. It looked like a small blue light – stationary and beside the T shelves. "Virgil!" Janus shout-whispered to his friend. Virgil immediately appeared next to him and looked the same direction, seeing the same light Janus did.

"That's the light!" Virgil almost screamed and immediately began running. Janus followed quietly, keeping his eyes on the dark blue light. The light was only small. Virgil remembered when he first saw the orb it was about the size on his hand, this time it seemed the size of a golf ball. "Little light! It's me the... Oh." The light disappeared again just as Virgil and Janus approached, leaving an open book on the floor in its place. "You have no reason to hide little light... I don't bite."

"Maybe don't call it little light? It sounds kind of infantilising." Janus mumbled as he picked up the book of the floor: The Theory of Triangles. It wasn't a book he knew actually existed, and definitely not a book that would be picked up by a high schooler and left on the floor.

"Um... Alright. L? Do you like that name spirit – L?"

Logan watched the book he was reading, and had to drop, be lifted from the floor by this adventurous high schooler dressed in all black. He examined the book with feigned curiosity, fiddling with the turtleneck that he had brought down from his face while he was breaking into the school. The kid next to him, Virgil, was ducking in and out of shelves calling for him to begin his aura again with one simple nickname: 'L'. It was quite lucky he knew the first letter of Logan's name straight away.

Logan was happy just watching the pair until they left and he could read his book again. It was like a weirdly fun game of hide and seek. That was until he looked up to the roof and spotted Roman – smiling down at the living boys not realising Logan was sat in a ball beside them. "I swear..." Logan whispered under his breath, knowing there was no reason to be quiet as the boys couldn't hear him when he was invisible.

He watched Roman giggle under his breath, then meet eyes with Logan and smile. He was going to haunt and disregard the promise on the rooftop.

Janus' eyes landed on a small red flame appearing beside the stairs down to the ground floor of the library. At first he thought it was an actual fire, even though that was illogical as the flame was absolutely silent. It was only until he nudged his best friend that Janus heard a noise – a soft singing voice like a siren erupting from that area of the library.

"What's that – L?" Virgil called out, walking to the flame ahead of Janus. Janus followed more cautiously. The small flame wasn't spreading; it was only about the shape of a candle flame. When the pair got closer they only sat down on the floor beside the small light. "I didn't know you could change colours and sounds. That's so cool!" Virgil was smiling at the small flame, and the flame was flying around him making the emo laugh.

Logan was in a perfect view to watch Roman play with the two boys. They didn't seem to care they were close up with a ghost – they were just having fun. Other students weren't like that and would be scared out of their skin at a misplaced book or half eaten cupcake. Logan would be lying if he said it wasn't nice. It was nice to be treated like a human rather than an alien. A friend rather than a monster. It made him stand up and approach the high schoolers closer.

Janus felt a shiver down his spine for a moment, causing the red flame to pause. "Is L playing with me too?" Janus joked, trying to poke the light. Logan could hear Roman laugh from the ceiling, before hearing another more familiar and lighter giggle.

After a few minutes Virgil saw another light appear in front of him, zooming around quicker than the red light. Virgil immediately gasped and tried grabbing it – it was a light blue light, the same size as the red light, but in a heart shape. When Virgil laughed the heart laughed, and soon the two lights zoomed together around the pair.

"Come on Logie! Join in!" Patton said, not needing to worry about his volume as he was invisible so the sound waves he omitted couldn't reach living human ears. Logan rolled his eyes and sighed.

"You promised no haunting Pat."

"And you promised you love me. So you'll do anything for me right?"

Patton giggled hearing Logan's defeated sigh. He'd take a bullet for his brother – literally. And if this made him happy, and there was no real threat as the boys didn't seem to want to tell anyone about this experience, then he'd entertain his little brother for a little bit. He conjured his spiritual orb, the small circle dark blue light he always admired. Patton giggled and clapped his hands at the same time the high schoolers gasped, and Virgil tried reaching for his spiritual orb again.

"L! That's the light I know you by... It's so satisfying." Virgil mumbled, and slowly Logan trusted Virgil to get closer to his orb, allowing him to have the orb rest on his hand. Of course this meant Logan's ghostly hands were in line with Virgil's. "Ugh – Your orb seems really cold L." Virgil said in a shiver. It felt weird that someone living was actually talking to him yet wasn't looking at him rather his small light.

"Maybe don't ship yourself with your ghost friend just yet." Janus laughed, receiving another shiver as he accidentally touched Patton's orb. "It's getting cold in here, maybe we should leave L for a bit and warm up wherever we're going to sleep tonight?"

"Sure." Virgil responded, dropping his hands from the orb and rubbing his hands together. That was one thing he didn't realise he missed until Logan saw it, he missed feeling cold and hot. In these days he couldn't feel temperature – he couldn't feel anything. Virgil stood and stuffed his hands in his pockets, facing the three orbs that were now fading. "Bye L." He said quietly, Janus also said goodbye and the two teenagers walked away and out of the library.

Logan kept his eyes on where the boys were, panicking slightly about whether he'd be found and bothered by more students but after a few seconds he realised he didn't mind. It was just nice seeing people again – and them acknowledging his existence rather than him constantly having to hide and stop what he was doing when they approached. Maybe he didn't have to worry about hiding at all around Virgil and Janus. There was just one question that needed clearing up.

"Roman?" Logan turned to Roman, who had lowered from the roof to the floor to sit with him and Patton. "What's shipping?"