Darkest Hour

I

The library was always the most calming at night. It was this time that Faye loved most; when there were no obnoxious people talking nor crowds shoving you aside. Curled in one of the lounge chairs with a copy of Macbeth in her lap and Chopan playing through her earbuds, the brunette was finally relaxed.

Being a librarian was rough, she reflected while taking a sip of tea, not so much her duties but the continuous stream of people she dealt with. Faye had always been a loner, preferring a dialogue over a conversation, a character over a person, and a novel over reality.

So, there she sat, in a deserted library on a Friday night as was her preference. Taking a break to go and get some coffee, she sent a text to Jean asking if she was free. After agreeing to meet at their usual café, Faye started getting ready. With a content sigh, she picked up her bag and put away her few papers and after zipping up her coat, she made her way outside and began her walk to the café; Marie's.

Walking down the streets at nightfall was quite the sight. The soft glow of street lights over the street, the air crisp with the winters breeze, and the hum of passing cars. After taking a moment to gaze at the scene, Faye once again delved into Macbeth. Beauty was in art just as it was in nature.

Let not light see my black and deep desires.

The eye wink at the hand, yet let that be

Which the eye fears, when it is done,

To see.

"What a terrible way to live," the woman mutters, thinking over those few lines, "being disgusted by your own actions and still continuing them."

"Well, ambition trumps the morality of men," a velvety voice said. Startled, Faye dropped her manuscript and looked around for the owner of the voice. A tall man steps from the shadows of an ally; his features pointed and precise, his ginger hair in lose waves, his pale skin glowing in the dark, his eyes a piercing emerald. Of all his features it was the man's eyes that entrapped Faye, his steely gaze sending shivers up her spine.

"Ambition is foolish if it leads to harm," Faye retorts, eyeing the stranger with unease as he bent down to retrieve her manuscript. Instead of handing it back, however, the man simply read over the lines Faye had just referenced. Picking his head up from the pages with a sinister grin, he handed her back Macbeth. Though not before commenting, "Shakespeare was well informed of mans greed when he wrote this."

Tucking the large script into her arms, Faye rolled her eyes. Not all people were full of greed and ambition. Granted many are, but not all by any means. Amber met emerald as Faye remarked, "Just as he was also aware of the consequence of too much ambition when he wrote it."

"Fair point, Miss."

_______________

Faye: Confidence, trust, belief.

Jean: God is gracious.

Macbeth: Don't let others see my sinful desires, I may hate what I see but I will still do such actions in order to gain what I wish (Act I, Scene iv).

Amber: Preserves fossils and history, rare eye color.

Emerald: Valuable gemstone.