This story begins in a tiny country town called Swampmava. Nobody really knew about this small town because it hit its peak way back in the 1920s. Back then, it was a summer resort that consisted of the cabins and homes that lined the train tracks and river bends. It was the place to be back then. Now it’s been almost a hundred years since its prime. The once-popular town has since been forgotten. The tracks that once brought visitors in town is long gone, the beach front is now just a fun spot to fish, and most of those cute cabins along the river bends are just abandoned ghosts looking for life to restore the once beauty and history they carry in their walls.

The only thing that seemed to flock to Swampmava anymore were deer and turkey from the woods, or so I thought. It didn’t take long after moving into the town to realize that there were many secrets here. It all started one night, I couldn’t sleep, so I snuck out for the night and did the only thing I knew that would help clear my mind, I went for a walk. That night, everything was still and dead quiet. It was so peaceful as I walked further down the road, I began to hear the flow of water. I was getting closer to the river. I could hear it, but I couldn’t see it; all around me was darkness. I couldn’t even see my feet beneath me as I was wandering aimlessly. I didn’t want to risk falling or tripping over something. I managed to keep my feet on the gravel as best I could, thinking and murmuring to myself the whole time, if only I had brought a flashlight with me, I should have brought a flashlight, what was I thinking? But then I remembered I had my phone, so I used the light as a guide to find my way down the road. This definitely helped me. Why didn’t I think of this a while ago? I thought to myself.

Soon, the silence was disrupted by the sound of a branch cracking. Was I being followed? I thought to myself. I raised my phone and looked behind me, but I saw nothing, then I turned back around, and to my surprise, I see two giant eyes glowing back at me! They reflected off the light they shimmered with a green iridescence. I almost ran, but soon realized that it was a deer. I threw my head into my hands and started to cackle. Oh, thank goodness it was only a deer! I thought to myself, holding my chest, I stood frozen in amazement as I watched her disappear back into the woods. I checked the time on my phone, it was 11:57 pm, almost midnight. I should find my way back home. Mom surely knows by now that I am gone. So, I started back in the opposite direction towards where my walk began. How could I have been walking this long? It didn’t seem like I was out that long. I am going to be in so much trouble! What was I going to do if my mom was up waiting on me? I could run back, but what since would that make, I was already past my curfew.

Suddenly I saw a bright light, I thought was it a car? I thought to myself, I’m really in for it this time, but it wasn’t a car at all, it was more of a bright, fast flash, like a camera. What was that? I managed to muster up the courage and walked towards where I saw the light. It was a building I couldn’t recall being here when I first walked through. Am I lost? Then, suddenly, an open sign lit up. I thought to myself, this sure is strange, who would be open at midnight in this town, and why didn’t I notice a building earlier when I walked by? There was nothing here, just trees all around. I must not have seen it or looked in that direction because who could miss such a large building?

I followed the stone path up to the door. I was drawn to it, I had to check it out and go inside it was like it was calling me, such a weird, indescribable feeling that’s for sure. As I walked towards the set of doors at the top, it read “Library” I thought to myself now this is super weird. I have never in my life known of any type of libraries open this late. This was all so strange, that’s for sure.

I continued to walk in all of a sudden, the door opened before I was able to touch it. A sweet little old woman opened the second set of doors. She welcomed me with a warm smile.

She said, “You must be new here. I haven’t seen you before. My name is Greta. What’s your name, sweetheart?”

I replied, “Yes, I am. I just moved in a few days ago. My name is Ellie.”

Greta said, “Feel free to have a look around, just be careful which book you choose.”

I wasn’t sure exactly what she meant by that, but I would soon find out.

I walked down one of the aisles and saw a book that was titled “Turn Back the Clock”. I took it from the shelf and thought to myself, yeah, if only I could turn back the clock, maybe I wouldn’t be in this whole mess I’m in now. As I opened the book, it was as if it were reading my mind. On the index page, it had a list of how to turn back the clock, one of which stated how to change the time to avoid troubles. I just had to check it out and read a bit, I felt like I had to, for some reason I needed to read this, like it already had a spell over me or something, but that’s impossible, it’s only a book right?

As I turned the page to read, Greta came to me and asked, “So have you found something you like?”

I replied, “Yes, can I take it home?”

Greta just smiled and said, “Of course you can, but are you sure you want to wait to get home before you start reading it?”

The thought popped into my head that I’m already late, so what’s a few more minutes? I checked my phone, no phone calls or texts, it was 12:30 am, it couldn’t possibly hurt anything, maybe my mom had no clue I wasn’t home yet. I looked at a few more books, but none really caught my attention.

So, I found a spot on the floor, I got comfy and began to read, and I had no idea what was really happening. I was so immersed in this book, almost like I was in a trance, I was so drawn to it, I failed to notice that the sun was coming up and the birds were singing. I was no longer in the library; I was in the middle of the woods. I quickly checked my phone, and I was very confused when I saw the time. It was noon, not midnight. What had happened? The book must have caused this. I was reading the chapter called “How to turn back the clock” so that had to of caused this, but how? There’s no other explanation for it. It’s just a book, there’s no way, and then I remembered what the old woman told me she told me to be “careful” in choosing a book. Is this what she meant by it? How is this all possible? It can’t be real.

I quickly managed to hurry back home. I needed to figure this all out. After getting home, I said hi to my mom and went straight to my room to study the book. I opened the front and noticed a stamp that read “property of the midnight library, beware of the possible effects caused by reading our books. Not responsible for curses or hexes that may occur!” I thought to myself how did I not see that? But hey, it got me out of a lot of trouble last night, so I’m not complaining. In the back of the book was a date of return card and the hours where listed open midnight til three am in case of emergency contact Greta Sanderson, but no contact was provided.

I placed the book down on my desk and went about my day. I went back downstairs to grab something to eat, my mom left for work, and I was alone. I kept trying to make sense of last night, but I couldn’t come up with any logical explanation to explain what happened other than magic. That was the only way it could have happened, no matter how much I thought about it, that was always the answer. They say midnight starts the opening of the witching hour. That makes since on why the hours of the library where so odd, that’s why it was able to appear and disappear without a trace. I made up my mind that I had to go back and see if it was really there.

I finished my chores and tried to find things out about my town. I searched the internet, but nothing new was found, and the “midnight library” didn’t turn up anything. I was so confused but very intrigued, I had to know more and that the library was real. Finally, 11:30 came, it was time for me to make my nightly escape out of the house, only this time I was prepared with the book and a flashlight. I knew what direction I was headed, I just hoped that the library was open and really there that it wasn’t just a figure of my imagination.

Finally, I made it to the area I followed the stone path nothing was there just the trees. I checked my phone, it was almost midnight, so I’ll just wait to see if anything happens.

Suddenly, there was a bright flash the deer scattered from the trees and across the street. I shielded my eyes from the light that blinded me once it dissipated, and I uncovered my eyes. The open sign flashed in the window. Wow, this is magic, it’s the only way it could be explained. Now I know it wasn’t all in my head.

I grabbed the book and went inside. Greta was there to greet me once again with her warm grin, and she soon asked, “Back so soon, my dear?”

I replied, “Yes, can you explain a few things to me, please… what happened yesterday, no wait, I mean today?”

She peered through her glasses at me with a wide grimace and asked, “What do you mean, Ellie?”

“Strange things happened yesterday, no wait, I meant last night.”

She responded, “I thought you knew about our library?”

I replied, “No, not really.”

Greta chuckled and responded, “Our books can be both a blessing or a curse; you just have to be wise when choosing which one you want, and sometimes they appear right when you need them.”

It took me a second to understand what she was telling me, but I understood. “So, they are magic?” I asked.

Greta responded with a wink and asked, “Do you think they are magic?”

“Yes, that’s the only logical explanation I’ve figured it can only be magic. Right?”

Greta sat down at a table and began to explain. She stated that yes indeed, the books are magical, but they can both have good and bad outcomes; it just depends on how you want to use the books. I then returned the book that I previously checked out. I was a bit scared of how it might alter things, after all, it did when I read only a few pages.

I proceeded to walk around the library, where there were so many books.

Greta handed me one book, she said, “Try this one”. It was a book that was about flying. She said, “Careful with this one, it also has immediate effects.”

I opened it to the first page to read the intro and noticed my feet were feeling funny, and then I realized how right Greta was, because I was indeed flying. I spread my arms out and flew over to the next aisle and seen a book that intrigued me. It was called “A time before you”, Greta had said that it was able to take you to any time or place as long as it was before the timeline of you existence. So, I figured, why not? I already read one altering book, how different could this one be? Greta seemed a bit hesitant about this one, but still proceeded to let me check it out. I thanked her and walked back home. I figured I’d try things out tomorrow and see what happens.

The next morning, I figured I would try and go back in time to see how my new town used to be. So, I flipped to the index, searched for my location and the year 1929. As I began to read, I slowly found myself fading back into time. The good news was that my home was still there, but other people lived in it, so I had to once again sneak out without a trace, undetected.

The people seemed so different compared to the time I lived there. The first thing I noticed was that everything was different; the town was busy. They had people coming in on trains, cars, and buses. All the houses looked so beautiful, a few even had in ground pools. I know one thing I had to do was check out the beach! It did not disappoint, it was gorgeous, it had a huge sand bar, people were having fun hanging out and swimming, others were too busy catching sunrays and getting tan. It looked so different and full of life. During the day, it was the place to be, and if you weren’t there, you were either at the club, the bar, or the restaurant. It was a different world from how I saw it in my time. I can’t believe how lively it used to be, so many faces smiling and having fun. I had to take the day and wander around to see everything it had to offer. At the end of the day, I just had to get back home to my book. What more should I check out? I thought to myself. I wasn’t sure, but I sure do wish that I had something like this happen when I needed to study for my history course. I definitely would have passed if I had a book like this. Getting to live in the moment a see it all firsthand, but I had to get back to the house and dig more into my book. I had to sneak in through a basement window earlier, but it was locked now. I had to find another way in. I needed that book! I hid it behind the stairs down in the basement. How am I going to get in without being seen? I tried the back door; it was luckily unlocked, so I quietly walked down the stairs into the basement. I opened the second door. I was now finally in the basement. But where was my book? I know I left it here, but why isn’t it here? Where could it be? I searched high and low in every corner and shelf, but it was not there. I couldn’t believe that it was gone. It couldn’t have gotten far.

Suddenly, I heard a voice come out behind the door, “Who are you? What do you want?” Then the man stepped out from behind the door. “I saw you sneak out earlier today. I thought you might come back for this book you left behind. It seems important to you. What’s so special about it?” he asked.

“My name is Ellie, and I just want my book back. Yes, it’s important to me, I just needed a place to stay last night. I’m sorry, sir.”

He responded, “That’s ok, next time just ask. You don’t have to call me sir; people call me Valad.”

“Thank you, Valad. Now, may I have my book back, please?”

“Oh, yes, here ya go.”

“Thanks, Valad,” I responded.

He then proceeded to ask how I got such a book, and I lied and said that I was studying up on history for an upcoming test. We talked for a few more minutes, then it dawned on me who Valad really was. His father was the one who built our home, how neat! He later inherited it after the passing of his parents. I was talking with the man who would live the rest of his life here until he passes away here in this home. It was a strange feeling. He invited me up to the kitchen for some lunch after eating, and I headed back to the beach. I thanked him for being so generous and understanding before I left. Once I made my way to the beach, I found a spot to relax, then I opened the book. I flipped forward to choose to go to another time and place.

This time I chose to go to the seventies and visit my family before life got to them and changed them into who I know them as it was fun, I got to see my mom, aunt, and uncles as kids. I watched them from a distance. I didn’t want to risk anything. They looked so happy and carefree, not knowing where their lives would take them in the years to come. I knew I had to visit another time, but this time wasn’t as easy. I found myself stuck; I couldn’t go forward or backwards. I didn’t think this through at all. Now what can I do? I started shouting for Greta, but she never showed. I began to walk; there had to be an answer in the book somewhere. So, I stopped at the park, sat down on a bench and scanned thru the index to find the page for black hole by passing time. It stated that sometimes this happens and can take a while to realter and reline the time zones. So basically, I was going to be there for a bit. I’m not sure how long I was there or if any of it was real. After a while, I got tired and decided to sleep, it must have been the right thing to do because when I woke, I was home in my bed. My mother arrived home from work and was just letting me know that she made it back home. I was so confused. Did I dream up everything? Or did it all really happen? Either way, it seemed pretty real to me.

I got up out of bed to check my phone. It was 11:45 pm, and I had a text message on my phone. I opened the text, it said, “Your book is going to be due soon. Please return it in the next few days, please.” I looked over to my desk, and there was the book laying there waiting for me to return it. I knew somehow it had to be real! I’m just glad to be back home. Hopefully, nothing has changed, and it was all a dream. I’ll leave that for another day and see how tomorrow goes. I’m sure nothing has changed, right?

Oh boy, was I very wrong the next morning. Things were way different. For starters, I had a sister somehow that happened. I have no clue how that was possible, her name was Rosie, she was two years younger than me, she favored mom a lot so much that she could practically be her twin. My mom appeared the same as she always had, everything else seem the same mom woke up from her nap to have some coffee to gain her wits from last nights late shift at work. I had so many questions going thru my mind, but it all had to wait until tonight when I would be able to speak to Greta; she had to have known what had happen; she should be able to explain all of this. Until that time could come, I got to learn that a few other things where different. My father was alive! He called my mother; he wanted to let my mother know he would be back from his work trip in a few days and that we could all go out to celebrate our move and have a nice dinner out. This was all so confusing. How did this all happen?

Later that night, everyone was finally asleep, so I made my escape. I grabbed the book and crawled out my window. I was on a mission to get some answers. As I began to walk down the driveway, I heard footsteps behind me. “Great, I’m busted. Mom caught me” I spun around to expect my mother to be standing there, ready to lecture me. The anticipation was met by the darkness nothing was there, “I must be hearing things I thought to myself, so I continued on. It didn’t take long before I heard the footsteps again. I walked a few more strides and then quickly stopped in my tracks.

I shouted, “I know you’re following me, show yourself, I know you’re there!” Suddenly, the footsteps approached closer to me as I held the light of my phone in front of me. “Greta? What are you doing?”

"I was on my way to find you. You sure did give me a good scare!” Greta replied, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you, Ellie. I wasn’t sure how long it would be until you came back to see me. I’m sure you have a lot of questions by now.”

She was right, I did. “Yes, Greta, I do, I have so many questions, I don’t know where to begin!” She looked at me with a brokenness in her eyes and said, “I know a place where I can explain it all to you. Come, let’s go.”

We walked the trail that led to the library’s stony path, and Greta unlocked the doors. The library had a different vibe; it didn’t seem the same. The door shrilled like a sharp squeal as it opened the once bright, warm lighting now dim and cold. Greta was different to she didn’t appear as smiley and chipper as she normally did. We sat down at one of the tables, and I explained everything that had happened over the past two days. Needless to say, for a moment, Greta was surprised. Then she told me something that I was not expecting.

Greta’s tone got serious, and she peered through her thick glasses with a shimmery glow in her eyes. She told me that things aren’t always what they seem. The books held more than one kind of magic, so they’re drawn to people who hold magic in their hearts.

So I had to ask Greta, “What does that mean?” I was not ready for the answer she gave me.

Greta responded, “Well, you see…. your heart was broken with the loss of your father, you and your mother faced so many struggles. I knew I had to fix the magic in your heart before you lost it completely.” She paused, took a breath and continued. “I am the reason your mom and you found this house. I set in motion that your mom got this job and moved you guys here. The library has always been here, and I knew it would be the right thing to do. It worked, didn’t it?”

I responded, “What worked?”

Then she said, “You have your family back. My child, I have seen the magic in kids dim at a young age, and I couldn’t bear another moment to watch yours dim along with your heartbreaks of everything you have gone through so young.”

I responded, “Why me, though, out of everyone else you could have chosen, why me? Why my family?”

Greta glared at me warmly and said, “Your light was different. You are a healer, you haven’t fully caught on to it, but you are, and you’re going to change so many things for the better, and I couldn’t risk you losing that light. I had to give you a chance to see how healers help with the hurt. Although you seem ok, I knew you were in pain. You hid it so well, but I was able to see it the moment I met you.” “So, have I met you before?” She replied, “Yes, when your father passed in your original life, I was sent to watch over you from a distance. You saw me the night you found the library. Do you remember the first night you moved here, you took a walk?”

I was baffled and responded, “Were you that deer?”

Greta replied, “Maybe if you truly believe in magic, it is a possibility. How else would you have turned around and stumbled upon the library? I had to catch your attention, so how?” Greta giggled.

I was so confused about how that could happen, but as she said, it had to of been magic, right? It's crazy how things work out. Technically, what Greta was saying was that she’s my guardian angel. That she was able to use her magic to distract me and heal my hurt all at the same time. I was so caught up in this whole book thing that I didn't even notice. Talk about a major distraction. She was good, definitely good at magic, that’s for sure.

So I did the only thing that felt right, I returned the book to Greta, she smiled and slyly asked, “So no renewal for this one?”

I replied, “No… well, at least not right now.”

Greta giggled and said, “Well, that’s ok, we have a whole library, I’m sure you can find something else.”

I almost took up her offer and said, “Yeah, true, but tonight I think I'll just go back home, finish my homework, and finish unpacking. My dad is finally on his way home, and we have some dinner plans tomorrow. So, I’d like to hold off on the time travel for a bit to enjoy some time with my family. But thanks for the offer. I’ll be back soon enough, though. Thank you for everything, Greta.”

With that, I waved to her and headed my way back home. As I walked out through the door to leave, I noticed the door didn’t close, so I turned around to shut it, but the library had already disappeared. I thought to myself, good one, Greta, you got me again. I continued my way back home with a huge smile upon my face, when suddenly I heard the leaves tussle about and out came a deer, she looked at me with smiling eyes.

I said, “It's ok, Greta, I’ll be back next week. I’d like to see what adventure I can find next.”

And then the deer, with an understanding look, walked off back into the woods. I made it back home and started to unpack my room. I think I might like it here after all.