01-22-2021, 04:08 AM
It wasn't a lie, but Jude wasn't sure he was telling the entire truth. The entire truth was that, sometimes, the boundaries between this world and Them could get a little porous, and these sometimeses often occurred in Jude's presence. It was an inhuman task, scratching out every single word in every single book. So was the task undertaken by a very patient madman? Or had something else cast its blight upon the pages of the library? If so, when? Before Jude got here? When he cut his hand? Now, only moments ago? Having not forgotten how poorly his party trick had been received, Jude did not want to have any other crimes ascribed to him.
"Mmmmmmmm," Jude said, long, drawn-out, peering at the wine bottle. He slouched deeper into his seat, folding his hands on his lap. Because rate of consumption was not equal to rate of absorption, he could feel himself getting drunker with each passing moment, floating further down the river of inebriation. Perhaps he should say something. Perhaps explain. But Near didn't like his explanations.
"May-be," he said, the first syllable high, the next dropping in pitch, "that's a bad sign. Of something." He made a pronounced gesture of bafflement. May-be we should drive right now. But that was probably dangerous. Was it more or less dangerous than the words being scratched out of all the books? But there could be a perfectly reasonable explanation for this that was not that Jude's pursuers were en-route, their witching stick wobbling in search of water.
"Mmmmmmmm," Jude said, long, drawn-out, peering at the wine bottle. He slouched deeper into his seat, folding his hands on his lap. Because rate of consumption was not equal to rate of absorption, he could feel himself getting drunker with each passing moment, floating further down the river of inebriation. Perhaps he should say something. Perhaps explain. But Near didn't like his explanations.
"May-be," he said, the first syllable high, the next dropping in pitch, "that's a bad sign. Of something." He made a pronounced gesture of bafflement. May-be we should drive right now. But that was probably dangerous. Was it more or less dangerous than the words being scratched out of all the books? But there could be a perfectly reasonable explanation for this that was not that Jude's pursuers were en-route, their witching stick wobbling in search of water.