Author's note- The usual disclaimers apply. I do not own the characters and I make no profit.

Many heartfelt thanks go out to my beta, Valawenel.

The Librarians and the Book of Myths, ch. 11, They Never Stay Home and They're Always Alone

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It was cold and dark when she woke. She lay on a dirt floor in a quiet cell that smelled of dampness, mold, rot and other unpleasant things.

Cassie could find no reason to get up. Instead, she simply lay there, counting the things she had been wrong about that day. She had been wrong when she thought her headache couldn't get worse. She was wrong when she thought it would be harmless to take that book from the case. She was definitely wrong to think she could effectively orchestrate a rescue mission for Jake. Oh, and she was quite wrong to just jump into the book without knowing where she was going. She was pretty sure there would be no salvaging her favorite fuzzy pink sweater. But then the damn thing had totally failed to cheer her up today- another thing she had been wrong about.

Ah, well. She could just continue to lie here feeling sorry for herself until she died or she could get up and face the situation. Cassie did not consider herself a quitter. Maybe there wasn't a good reason to get up but it felt wrong to give up and she had done enough wrong for one day.

With a sigh, she rolled over onto her stomach and pushed up to her hands and knees. The darkness was so absolute that she worried about trying to navigate the space safely. Staying on her knees, she carefully crawled a few steps, waving her hand back and forth in front of her. Before long, her hand made contact with a wall. It was cold and rough, and in places coated with a slimy substance that Cassie did not care to think much about. She stood and ran her hands over the stone looking for a door or boarded window, or anything that might be an egress. Finding nothing, she began a slow, cautious walk along the wall, still systematically examining the surface with her fingertips.

So intent was she in her tactile inspection of her confines, that the soft sound of breathing went undetected, probably for a minute or two. When she first became aware, she was not even certain it wasn't just her imagination. Her heart thudded so loudly in her ears that she couldn't quite tell what direction the sound was coming from.

"Hello. Is someone there?"

There was no response though Cassie thought the breathing increased in rate.

"I know you are there. I can hear you breathing. Please don't be afraid of me. I am afraid, too. Maybe we can help each other. My name is Cassie. Who are you?"

"Cassandra."

The reply was so soft that Cassie wondered if it was nothing more than a draft of air that she heard.

"I can barely hear you. Where are you? Who are you?"

"Cassandra."

This time the reply was audible. The voice was female, but barely more than a cracked whisper as if the owner had not used her voice for some time.

"Yes, that is my name. Who are you?" Cassie felt a chill that had little to do with the temperature in the room.

"I am Cassandra…also."

Comprehension flooded her mind. Of course. This is Cassandra the seer, the one I was mistaken for.

"Are you alright? You do not sound well. Can I help you at all?" Cassie couldn't fathom what she could possible do to help the other woman but she could think of nothing else to say. Turning her back to the wall, she slid down until she was seated and waited patiently for a response from her cell mate.

A full minute ticked by before the other Cassandra spoke. "There is nothing you can do for me. There is nothing anyone can do for me. But please tell me, are you a Librarian?"

"Yes," Cassie said, "I am. How did you know that?"

"I saw your arrival in a vision."

"That's amazing. You are the Cassandra that has the gift of prophecy?"

"It is no gift, I assure you." Cassandra spoke with disgust. "It is a curse and it has been my undoing. I am doomed and my fate is sealed. I have lost my family and my home, and soon I will lose my life."

"I have a curse, also," Cassie said. "I have a sickness that is killing me. The sickness grows stronger every day and I know I do not have much time left. So, I guess we are very much alike as I am doomed, too, and my fate also sealed."

"Well, at least we have each other, now. Perhaps it will be less frightening than dying alone."

"Perhaps so. How long have you been here? And exactly where are we anyway?"

"This is a prison deep in the ground beneath the home of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra. I believe I have been here for a day or maybe two. I was to be executed but your arrival stayed my fate for a little longer."

"My arrival?" Cassie asked. "Why would my arrival have anything to do with your execution? And why would someone want to execute you? I am so confused by all this."

"I am-or actually I was- a princess of Troy. We have been engaged in a terrible war with the Greeks for ten years. They tricked us and infiltrated our walls under the cover of darkness. After they defeated us, they killed my family and burned Troy to the ground. I was given to Agamemnon as spoils of war," Cassandra said with bitterness. "This angered his wife, Clytemnestra, who blames me though it was never my choice to be his chattel. She has declared that I am to be put to death for the sins she credits me with. I would already be dead if you had not come."

"Me? I mean, I am glad I somehow helped you but what did I have to do with it?"

"You are Cassandra also. And the goddess Hera claims that you have visions. Now, Clytemnestra does not know which of us that her husband Agamemnon has been consorting with. She would execute us both but she fears what people will think and do. They will allow her the privilege of destroying the woman who allegedly stole her husband's affections, but they would not be as open minded about her killing both of us just to make sure."

"So, we have until Agamemnon arrives and identifies you?"

Cassandra sighed. "That is not going to happen. Agamemnon is dead. Clytemnestra killed him."

"Then we are safe," Cassie said, "as long as we don't tell anyone which of us is Cassandra the seer."

"You are too optimistic, my friend." Cassandra sounded resigned. "She is an evil, selfish woman. She will find a way to kill us both, I am sure."

"I don't accept that. While we live, we have hope. We need to make a plan so we can get out of this mess."

"You do not know this woman. She will destroy us both," Cassandra said.

The hopelessness in her companion's voice was heartbreaking to Cassie. It seemed that the universe might be offering her an opportunity to do one thing right today.

"Cassandra. Perhaps your fate is not sealed. Mine definitely is. My sickness will kill me and there is no way to stop it. But perhaps we can save you."

"I do not see any way that can happen," Cassandra said.

"Clytemnestra wants revenge on a Cassandra. Let's give it to her. I will tell her that I am the seer. I am going to die anyway, but you don't have to. She will have no reason to keep you imprisoned once she has what she wants."

"No. I can't allow you to do that for me."

Cassie sighed. "Let me help you. It would, at least, give my death some meaning. And it would be a quicker death than fading away in a hospital bed. I can give you back your life."

"You are good and kind. You have already given me much, as I have never had a friend like you. You are…" Cassandra abruptly stopped speaking.

Cassie heard the squeal of rusty hinges as a door opened and closed nearby. Footsteps approached.

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"I have a plan."

All eyes focused on Flynn. All three of them looked at him expectantly, and he could read the cautious hope on their faces. He cleared his throat and spoke.

"I have a plan. I think we need to approach this differently. We have completely failed with our current approach, and now we have two Librarians trapped in that damn book. We can't afford another failed attempt."

Jenkins was lightly tapping his fingers on the table while thoughtfully staring off in space. Ezekiel's face was still carved with a haunted look and his body language emanated defeat. Eve stared at Flynn with laser beam intensity. He shifted uncomfortably and continued.

"I should not have to say this, but I will," Eve said. "There cannot be any more spontaneous, unplanned and ill-considered actions. That is what got us into this mess to begin with. Are we clear on that?"

All three heads nodded.

"Good," Flynn said.

"How?" Eve asked. "How do you propose we get that other book? How do we get the planet off of Jake? How do we break Cassie out of jail? And then, how do we get them both back here?"

"We don't."

Jenkins squinted and Eve tilted her head, but it was Ezekiel who reacted strongly. Jumping to his feet, he kicked his chair over in frustration. "No way, Flynn! No way are we going to just leave them there!"

"Calm down. I never said we were going to leave them there. I am just trying to say that we need to do things differently. Sit down, Ezekiel." Flynn softened his voice. "Come on, sit. I would never just leave them."

Mollified, Ezekiel righted his chair and sat, never taking his eyes off Flynn.

"We have tried and failed to correct what has happened. What we need to do is to make sure it never happens to begin with," Flynn said.

Eve raised her eyebrows. "And exactly how do we achieve that?"

"I am going to go into the book. Before I go, I will write out today's events in my journal and place it in my satchel, which I will take with me. I will find the book and return immediately, using an earlier chapter. This will create the time paradox you two have already experienced. When that happens to me, I will lose all my memories of this day and the book as well. But, I will have the account of today's events in my journal, written in my own handwriting. I will be sure to give myself instructions to move the Book of Myths to a more secure location. If I succeed in doing that, then this day will not happen the way it did. Cassie will not have access to the book and Jake will never end up stranded in a mythical world with a planet on his shoulders."

"That could work," Eve said slowly. "Jenkins, what do you think?"

Jenkins took a few moments to consider the plan. "It's a possibility. We cannot know for sure how the time paradox would affect an inanimate object such as the journal. It well may be that the journal returns blank because the story wasn't written yet. I simply do not know."

Ezekiel broke the silence. "You should let me do it. I am a thief. I have a better chance of getting in and out than any of you."

Eve looked at Flynn in alarm.

"No," Flynn said gently. "Ezekiel, you haven't been yourself since you returned. I know that your brush with Pandora's evils has hurt you. And Eve, before you volunteer, you are also not your usual confident Guardian self since your return. With all due respect to both of you, this one is me. No arguments."

Flynn was relieved though faintly surprised when they both nodded in reluctant agreement without the expected debate.

"Okay. Good." Flynn pulled his journal out of his bag, set it on the table and began to write.

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"Any minute now, " Eve said.

"Yeah, and it should be the last swooshy boom we ever have to hear again," Ezekiel replied, "and I am sure not going to miss it."

"No, me neither..." Eve's words were cut off by the boom and she squinted to save her eyes from the flash of light under the door.

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Jake had run out of inspirational songs and moved on to his considerably long list of favorite country western tunes.

Mammas, don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys

Don't let 'em pick guitars or drive them old trucks

Let 'em be doctors and lawyers and such

Mammas, don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys

'Cause they'll never stay home and they're always alone

Even with someone they love

There was a deep throated chuckle. "Perhaps, those mammas you sing of should make sure their babies don't grow up to be Librarians."

"Well, hello Atlas. Nice of you to come back."