Tiber'ian* ran. He sprinted through the market square of the holy city of Arbor, his sandaled feet slapping against the paving stones. Past homes grown out of trees, past market stalls grown right out of bushes, and past the holy tree that towered over the city so tall he couldn't see the top; he ran. He kept up the fast pace for as long as he could until he could no longer run, and then he jogged through the city for about ten more minitus until he could no longer move his feet. He flopped onto the grass beside the cobbled stone walkway, his fox tail twitching with exhaustion.

"Tiber'ian," came a voice over his head.

The ten-year-old boy's fox ears twitched, and he jumped at the sudden voice.

"What should you be doing right now?" asked a middle-aged man with lion ears and a lion tail: Say'zahn, the weapons merchant. He must have seen Tiber'ian flopped over in the grass, so he'd slipped out of his nearby shop to come pester the fox boy. Say'zahn had sold Tiber'ian his silver circulus last seven-day, so he could whisper to his future fox amicus. Tiber'ian had been waiting for the day he'd get to whisper to a fox and then his father Haust'us would bind them together. Since he'd bought the silver circulus, he'd been training with it to get a feel for the silver. Any day now, Haust'us would take him to whisper to a fox, he just knew it.

He thought about Haust'us and rolled his eyes. Father. Yeah, right.

"I was sent on a run," Tiber'ian said defiantly. In all honesty, he had been sent to get a book from the city library, but he had decided to run in the opposite direction. One of Tiber'ian's favorite things to do was run. When he was running, he felt like he could escape his life. A part of him thought of running today as training for when he'd run away for real.

"Sent to run where?" Say'zahn asked. The old lion man seemed to like Tiber'ian, despite how much trouble he was always giving the fox boy. Say'zahn had a faded blond beard, hair that mimicked a lion's mane, and a tail to match. Buried in his large hair hid his lion ears, hard to see amidst the mane-like hairdo. But Say'zahn mostly appeared to be a man. No mean lion face or paws. Just a man with lion ears and a tail.

Tiber'ian had to smile. "The library," he admitted. He looked down and let his wispy two-toned hair cover his eyes. Orange at the roots and white at the tips, his hair mimicked a fox's coloring, just like his ears and tail. But otherwise, he looked like a normal boy. No fox face or fur. Just a boy with fox ears and a tail. Though there were Silvaen who could use the imitatio magicae to take on more aspects of their animal, like paws or hooves or even faces of animals. Though Tiber'ian had no interest in that kind of magicae.

"Well, it seems you have forgotten. The library is in the opposite direction," Say'zahn said with a wink.

"It is?" Tiber'ian said, keeping up the ruse that he'd gotten lost.

"Past the holy tree and around the bend. It's a giant redwood building, created by combining four red woods, I heard. There is a giant book etched on the front. You can't miss it." Say'zahn helped Tiber'ian to his feet.

"Alright, thanks for the directions," Tiber'ian said with a sideways smile. Then he lazily jogged off toward the library, of which he happened to already know the exact location.

"Keep out of trouble, Tiber," Say'zahn called after him.

"I'll try, but trouble always seems to find me," Tiber'ian called back. He jogged along the cobbled stones, past more tree houses and market stalls grown out of bushes. The smell of fresh bread from the baker's stall made him turn and go back.

"I'll take a sugar loaf please," Tiber'ian said when it was his turn at the bread stall.

"Do you have any denari?" the baker, Miss Florie'nah, asked. "I won't have you stealing from me again." The deer lady refused to open up her stall for him.

"Aww, Miss Florie! Your bread is the best. Can I please have one? Haust'us will pay you back! I promise!" Tiber'ian put his hands together in a pleading gesture.

"Ah, you little beggar. I can't say no to ya." She opened her cart long enough to pull out a piping hot roll. "But! I will come for my money! So, you best warn Haust'us that he owes me!"

Tiber'ian nodded and ran while he bit into the soft sugary bread. By the time he made it to the library, the small bread roll was all gone. He opened the door and walked into the grand place. The curved walls held shelves upon shelves of books. Along the walls, stairs wound up to other floors above, for different sections of the library.

Tiber'ian walked up to the front desk and pulled a note out of a pocket. "I need to borrow this book for Haust'us." He handed over the note to the librarian behind the desk. "Can you help me find it, Miss Ves'da?"

"Of course," Ves'da replied. She took the note, squinting at Haust'us's slanted handwriting. Ves'da had the ears and tail of a mouse. Her face even resembled a pudgy mouse's face. She was such a wonderful librarian though. So friendly, so patient. And supportive of anyone who liked to read. She especially liked Tiber'ian, who spent most of his spare time in the library finding good books to read. If he wasn't running, he was reading.

Ves'da checked her card catalogue and then waved for Tiber'ian to follow her. She led him up three flights of stairs while she chit chatted with him. "So, do you have your silver circulus now?"

"I do!"

"How is the silver treating you?"

"It's a bit rough to get it to cooperate," Tiber'ian admitted. "I'm working at it all the time though. I'll be ready for the animalis manipulare magicae soon!"

"Well, I would certainly love to see a cute little fox following you around. It will be precious, I'm sure."

"It's going to be amazing. I can't wait."

"How are Liviann'ah and Vuk'as?" she asked.

"Alright. I think Liviann'ah is jealous though, because she doesn't even have her silver circulus yet, and Vuk'as and I have been practicing for a whole seven-day already. Haust'us says she's not ready. I guess I feel bad because she's usually the one who masters all the magicae first. So making her wait seems cruel."

"I'm sure Haust'us has his reasons. I've heard the silver is unruly and can bite."

"Where did you hear that from?" Tiber'ian turned to look at Ves'da, and she averted her gaze and adjusted her glasses.

"Oh, it's just a saying." She waved her hands dismissively. "Here we are, this way please." She led him into the second floor and along the wall of shelves. She pushed over the rolling library ladder and climbed up five rungs to the top of the shelf. She deftly plucked a book from the top shelf and reached to hand it to Tiber'ian, but she took the book back and said, "Wipe your hands. You've got sugary butter all over you."

Tiber'ian wiped his hands on his shift and took the book. "What's this book about?" he asked as he flipped through the pages.

She climbed back down from the library ladder. "Magical items mostly. Haust'us is probably going to teach you three how to make something wonderful."

"Oh, I hope so!" He silently flipped through the pages while he followed Ves'da back down the stairs. The book had pictures of all sorts of magical contraptions. Extractors of all shapes and sizes for extracting different ingrediens. All sorts of different infusers for infusing all the elements into any possible weapon imaginable. Imitation contraptions of all sorts, so that no matter the personality, the Changer was sure to find one that fit his or her style.

But something on a page caught his eye, and he stopped in the middle of the stairs, and a person behind him bumped into him, causing him to drop the book and slip five steps down.

"You can't drop my books, Tiber'ian! By the holy tree!" Ves'da said.

"I'm sorry." Trouble always found him, he thought ruefully. He grabbed the book and got back to his feet. Then he followed Ves'da to her desk, searching the book to see if he could find the page again.

"The book please," Ves'da said once she was behind her desk.

Tiber'ian handed the book over, and she stamped it and handed it back. "Due back in a fortnight. Be sure to tell Haust'us he has three overdue books!"

"Hah! I will. Thanks Miss Ves'da!" Tiber'ian took the book and left the library. He walked slowly while he flipped through the pages, painstakingly searching for the contraption he'd glimpsed on the stairs back in the library.

Finally, when he was almost all the way home, he found it.

A Memoria Animus. He read the description: A Memoria Animus will allow the caster to project his or her memories into the mind of another.

A memory projector? This! It was exactly what he needed. If he had a Memoria Animus, he'd be able to show people his oldest memory.

The memory of the night he was stolen at birth.

This is the second book of the Circles of Ciridia series. Before you continue, it would be best to go read The Windtalker's Amulet. It has won two awards and been featured on Stories Undiscovered. It is also a sequel series to a Wattys Shortlister. Give it a read!

*Tiber'ian rhymes with Siberian. 

Word Count: 1,626

Entering the 8 Chapter Challenge!