Wally looked off to the right, at the staircase leading to the second floor of the library. He nodded toward the stairs, and Roger looked across.
"You think we should head up there, do ya?" Roger asked.
"Got any better ideas?"
"Nope," Roger shrugged, "may as well check it out. Books bore me, anyway."
Wally led the way, climbing the stairs with Roger one step behind, to his left.
After about ten seconds, Wally realised something was wrong. They didn't seem to be getting anywhere. They were about half-way up the staircase, and they hadn't gotten any closer for the last couple of seconds.
"You need a pass to access the second floor" a young man, maybe seventeen, called out from behind them. "You guys newbies, or something?"
"Yeah, just arrived today." Roger said as Wally nodded.
"Then let me take you up. You should receive your passes tomorrow, next day at the latest."
"Thanks. I'm Wally, by the way, and this is Roger."
"Name's James. You guys in the Stonewood dorms?" James seemed a genuinely nice guy, and his smile warmed the area.
"Yeah," Roger replied, "room 104. You?"
"Room 105. Guess we're gonna be neighbours. Grab my arms - one each side. It's the only way to get you up the stairs."
Wally grabbed hold of James' right arm, and they completed their journey up the stairs. Wally glanced around at the contents of the floor. There were the remainder of the books off to the left, the alchemy store to the right, and a computer lab up the back. What interested Wally, though, was the shelves almost right in front of them.
The shelves were filled with a variety of objects, all clearly magical. There were wands, and amulets, and small statues, there were quills and bags of powder, and many other things. Wally was impressed. A moment later he noticed that James was heading towards the labs.
Wally knew that Roger had also picked somewhere to go, and couldn't decide what to do. He could split from Roger, and go to the wands and amulets, or he could follow Roger, or James, or he could suggest that Roger go with him. So many choices.
After a few moments, Wally made up his mind.