Disclaimer: My name is not Diane Duane, therefore I do not own any of this.
Just so you know, this is just a ridiculous vignette I came up with at work. I am a librarian in my late teens but we're not crazy. J J/K
Rose stood behind the library desk, bored out of her mind. Her job at the moment was to watch the desk and check books in and out. Unfortunately, no one was being obliging enough to give her some work. Much to her relief, the outer door opened after a few minutes of staring into space and balancing pens, chaining paperclips, etc.
A young woman in perhaps her early twenties approached the desk, a stranger. This was a small town in southern Kentucky and the librarians knew just about everyone who came in.
"Can I help you?" Rose asked politely. She was in her late teens and had been working there for just over two years.
"Yes. I was wondering if I could use the Internet?" That was a fairly common request from visitors and locals alike.
"You will have to fill out an Internet contract." She handed the woman a paper. "Just put down your phone number where it says card number." She watched the woman fill it out, because some people who did were very bad at following simple instructions. This woman had no problem, though, and neatly filled in the blanks.
"Juanita Callahan?" Rose asked, verifying the name, since the handwriting was a bit cramped.
The woman nodded.
Rose looked around for anyone who might hear and then asked quietly, "Are you on errantry?"
Nita blinked. "Uhhh."
"I won't tell. I'm not a wizard, but I love to read, and one of my favorite series of books is the Young Wizards by Diane Duane."
Nita sighed. "I wondered when those books would get me in trouble. Most people who read them and then hear my name think it is just a coincidence. Well, that is mainly because of the glamour cast when the books were printed. You must have some potential for wizardry to have gotten past it."
Rose grinned. "All Right! Anyway, how are Kit and Dairine and Spot and Darryl?"
"They're doing well."
The two talked a little while longer until things finally started to pick up and Nita went to use the computer. An hour later, Rose was off work. She was going to invite Nita over, but the wizard was already gone, probably having used a transport spell, Rose thought with a sigh of envy.
She left in a more mundane way out the door and onto the bike locked up in the back. As she rode away from the library building, Rose heard a familiar voice in her mind, one that she had in fact had many conversations with over the past four or five years. Only, then she had thought it was just her own thoughts, having mental conversations about any number of crazy subjects. Now she knew that it was the Whispering.
The Whispering realized that she realized too, and said, :Are you ready?:
And Rose replied, :In Life's Name…:
The End