this assignment I had to write a short story biased off pictures and the caption from them i picked "Mr. lindens library." he caption was "He had warned her about the book. Now it was too late....

Date: 12-18-23

Harris Burdick Short Story

"Mr. Linden's Library"

He had warned her about the book. Now it was too late... Earlier in the evening a young girl with hazelnut hair, green eyes, pale skin, and some badge that stated she was a part of some after schoolbook club. Was walking through the doors of an old library. She looked around every corner, every shelf, but none of the books piqued her interest. She looked around and she saw a faint glow in the distance on a shelf a few rows down,

"What in the?" She went to investigate; she got closer and upon arriving. The glow had disappeared. She looked for a second and then a book caught her eye. It was a leather book lathered with gold, rubies, and emeralds; it had dazzled in the dull glow of the library light. Perhaps that's what caught her eye? That or the mystery of how it got there? Regardless, she picked it from the shelf, she looked at the cover, "Ann's Curse" when she looked through the book, she saw that it was a book that was about a girl who went missing after picking a book. None of them caught her eye, she saw a glow and picked it and she noticed some strange things. That's all she gathered from skimming the book's pages. The girl walked to the librarian.

"Excuse me sir," the girl said, "I would like to check out this book, please and thank you."

"Are you sure? This book is quite-" Mr. Linden spoke.

"I'm quite sure, um, Mr...?" She hesitated.

"Oh, Linden."

"Oh! You're the library owner!"

"That's correct, but this book is very dangerous. Beware of what it says and keep your eyes out."

"Yea, yea whatever you say." She said with an arrogant tone. He nodded and began to check it out. "Name?"

"I'm lvy."

"Ivy, aye? Wonderful name."

"Thank you, sir."

"Of course, now run along, and heed my warning." he said with warning.

Ivy nodded as he spoke. He gave her the book and she walked out and went home,

"Honestly. What a weirdo." she mumbled with a roll of her eyes. Over the course of a few days of her having the book She noticed some things. The book moved in places she couldn't understand, she had even seen it in the front yard under the tree. The book had even been in her school bag without her having to grab it. Regardless she finished reading it and she saw how the character saw the book taking her away just as vines grabbed her, the name changed from "Jane's curse" to "Ann's curse" then Ann saw black.

"That's...interesting." She thought, though she felt the book ended abruptly. After she finished the book, she realized how similar her life seems to be to Ann's and how she seems to notice things too. She brushes it off and then she closes her eyes and falls asleep, when she awakes, she feels like her air is being restricted like a corset, she opens her eyes and begins panicking as the book's vines are coming alive just like in "Ann's curse", she couldn't fight it and soon her vision went black, and she had fainted. Just before she fainted, she saw the book title change from "Ann's curse'" to "Ivy's curse." she then remembers, he tried to warn her, but now it was too late. Later in the evening, Ivy's parents came home for work, when they couldn't find Ivy they panicked and called the cops, when they arrived, they concluded that she was taken from her bed. They found the book and returned it to the library. Mr. Linden nodded and took the book; he brought it to its place on the shelf and it glowed once more.

"Now, now, be nice." he said to the book, as if it was a child. After a while of organizing the books, he began to walk away when he looked back the book was gone.

"Where did you go Ivy?" He looked around and was standing behind his desk and he felt confused, where had the book gone? He started to get free but then more vines went to him, making him fall. He grabbed a lighter from his desk and started to light them. He got free but the fire was spreading, And quick. He tried to put it out but then he saw the vines were still spreading and the book was burning. He ran outside and when he got out he laughed like a mad man, no reason whatsoever,

"It happened! It actually happened!" But then he saw little orbs in the smoke. The orbs then turned into children.

"You warned us, but we always will come back, you'll never get rid of us. We were trapped in those books for years. And you did this. You can't do anything if the books are gone." all the children had spoken.

"I'll find a way, I always do." he replied with an evil grin.

"You can try. We will always win."

"I tried to warn you. But you were always ignorant, every single one of you." He said with a smile "And now it's too late." He watched the fire spread to his library and walked away. Not even calling the fire station. The police tried to find him, but he disappeared, never to be seen again. Though they still see the souls of children that died because of those books, never leaving, never being free, they are bound by the vines that grow on the old ruins of the old library that now haunts the town.

word count: 969