Chapter Text
When Anna walked into the Annex that morning, she did not expect to see Micah splayed out on the floor, staring up at the ceiling with a listless expression on her face. She raised a brow and debated whether or not she should disturb the Guardian. The Clippings Book rattling and flipping open made the decision for her and she peered at the pages, squinting at the foreign headline. While attempting to decipher what language it was, she heard someone else enter.
“Micah? Are you alright?” she heard Jane ask. The Guardian grunted in reply. Anna turned around with a small frown on her face.
“Do any of you know how to speak French?” she asked.
“I don’t but Anne does, why?” Jane replied, absently holding a hand out for Micah to take. Anna pointed at the Clippings Book in response and Jane nodded in understanding, “I’ll go get her, then.”
She helped Micah to her feet and hurried out. The Guardian shuffled towards the book, tiredly running a hand through her hair. She looked like she hadn’t slept and Anna was sure that that was the same shirt she had seen on the Guardian yesterday.
“Are you… feeling alright?” Anna asked, as Micah practically folded herself in half, resting her elbows on the table. The Guardian blinked up at her, with eyebags dark enough to rival Cathy’s, and slowly nodded.
“I just… need coffee,” she replied. She stared blankly at the page for a few seconds before shaking her head, “I don’t even know why I’m trying to read this, I speak Italian.”
“They are similar languages,” Anna replied. Micah nodded and a slightly awkward silence settled over them.
“Are you doing alright?” Micah asked, breaking her out of her reverie. Anna looked over in surprise, not having expected the question.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” she replied, glancing back down at the book.
Micah shrugged, “Last mission didn’t really go as planned. I just wanted to check on you.” Anna shifted awkwardly as her hands curled into loose fists.
“I’m ok,” she said. Micah raised a disbelieving brow but didn’t push any further. Jane finally returned with Anne, who was halfway through a bagel, and Cathy, who had a huge mug of coffee in hand. Anna gave a small wave and saw Micah perk up slightly at the smell of coffee.
“What did you need me for?” Anne asked, through a mouthful. Jane wrinkled her nose in distaste and Anne flashed her a cheeky grin.
“We need you to translate the articles,” Anna said, scooting over to make room. Anne walked over, taking another bite of her bagel, and began to read.
“Is there any left?” Micah asked, pointing to the mug in Cathy’s hand.
Cathy thought for a moment before nodding, “Around half a pot, I think.”
Micah grinned, “Good.” She swiftly exited the room with a new burst of energy, leaving the three Librarians to their own devices. Cathy curled up in one of the swivel chairs, carefully cradling her mug in her hands.
“Huh,” Anne said, beginning to read the articles again, “that’s interesting.”
“What is?” Anna asked, leaning forward.
“Almost everyone seems to be showing symptoms of Narcolepsy.”
“Narcolepsy?” Jane asked, “But that’s not magic at all.”
“It could be magic disguised as it,” Cathy said before taking another sip.
“This might be a silly question,” Anna said, leaning her hip against the table and crossing her arms, “But what exactly is narcolepsy?”
“It’s not a silly question!” Jane replied, hurrying over to the table, “Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder where someone falls asleep at random intervals, usually during the day.” Anna blinked at her as Cathy took another loud sip of her coffee.
“Jane, are you sure you didn’t read these before I got here?” Anne asked, with a slight laugh. The blonde blushed and shook her head.
“I like audiobooks and YouTube is a surprisingly informative place if you know where to look,” she replied, sheepishly looking down at the table.
“Have you been fostering her YouTube habit?” Anna asked, shooting an amused look at Cathy.
Cathy grinned over the rim of her mug, “Maybe.”
“We’re getting off track,” Jane said, a light blush still staining her cheeks, “Is there anything else you can tell us, Anne?” Anne took another bite and her green eyes flew across the page.
“Well, the town’s obviously located in France and apparently everyone began experiencing symptoms around two or three months ago. Two people wound up in the hospital because a driver fell asleep at the wheel.” Anna winced and Jane frowned, drumming her fingers on the table in thought.
Anna raised a brow, “What is it, Jane? You have your thinking face on.”
“It’s just strange that almost everyone began experiencing symptoms at around the same time,” she replied.
“Ok, so if it’s not narcolepsy, or anything medical, what is it?” Anne asked
“A slow-acting sleeping curse?” Cathy supplied, beginning to swirl her coffee around.
“What’s a slow-acting sleeping curse?” Micah asked, having returned with a mug around the same size of Cathy’s clutched in her hands.
“The thing these poor townspeople are suffering from,” Jane replied. She frowned at the coffee clutched in the Guardian’s hand as Micah perched on the desk next to Cathy.
“Well, we should get the others then,” Micah said. Anne visibly paled and Anna bit back a chuckle.
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“Do you two really need that much coffee?” Catalina asked, warily eyeing the mugs that both Cathy and Micah were cradling. They had finally managed to locate Catalina, who was buried in a book about ancient languages in South America, and drag Kit away from her notebooks, which she had been obsessively pouring over and herded them into the Annex to finish coordinating their plans.
“Have you seen these eyebags?” Micah asked, with a dry smile.
"We're raccoon buddies," Cathy quipped, and they clinked their mugs together. Catalina just nodded, sighing in slight exasperation.
“So we’re going to… France?” Catalina asked with a raised brow. Anna nodded, squinting at the town she had scrawled onto a stray piece of paper.
“Are we leaving now?” Micah asked, “Or do I have time to finish my coffee?”
“If we leave now, we’ll arrive close to midnight so, yes you do have time,” Cathy said, frowning down at her now empty mug. She moved to go get a refill and Catalina caught her arm with a shake of her head.
“You also have time to go home, change and take a nap,” Jane said, already herding the Guardian towards the door.
“What? I’m fine!” Micah said, easily sidestepping the queen.
“Forgive me, but you look like shit,” Anne said with a shrug. Micah glared at her, although the effect was tempered due to the way she was swaying in place. Anne held her stare for a few seconds before Micah rolled her eyes.
“Fine! Call me when you’re ready to leave,” The Guardian, threw a weak wave over her shoulder and left, leaving the queens to their own devices. There was silence for a moment before Cathy sighed loudly.
“I’ll start researching sleeping curses,” Cathy said, walking towards the main Library.
“I’ll help,” Catalina said, quickly following her out of the room. Anne and Kit paired off, most likely going to cause some form of havoc, leaving Anna and Jane.
“Ready for another mission?” Anna asked, with a grin that she hoped looked real. Jane harshly swallowed.
“No, not really,” she replied, “But I’m sure it’ll be fine. After all, it’s just a sleeping curse.” Anna nodded. Jane was right, everything was going to be fine.
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