Snowy Vault: Libraries Series

Hiya from Citali. I'm not so sure how this libraries writing thing will go, but here's my second one. It's a bit longer and different, but... more libraries and writing!

Snowy vault

"Ugh." She finished the energy bar and stood up, immediately feeling the blast of cold, snowy air as she poked her head out of the small rocky crevice that had been protecting her from the cold. "Almost there." Gripping her backpack straps, she tested the slope with her boot before taking each step, struggling to dig her foot first out of the snow, then into it for a grip as she moved the next step. Dig in, lean forwards, dig out. Dig in, lean forwards, dig out. She kept her gaze downwards, focusing on her steps so she would never fall. Never, she promised herself. Suddenly instead of the hard slickness of frozen-together snow, which would give if she pushed hard enough, she felt the hard solidity of metal. Using her boot, she brushed aside more snow to find a metal grate packed with ice. But it was metal nevertheless. Continuing to brush aside snow, she followed the path and was suddenly stunned at a sight she'd never expected to see in the wildest of places: a building of concrete and metal, rising at sharp angles from the soft curves of frozen water. She trudged to the front door and found it open as she brushed fingertips over a sensor. Somehow it had been frozen shut, but by giving it some good old pounding with her boot, the ice broke, shattering into a treacherously clear mound in front of the door. The big step she took over the threshold was hindered by her many layers of clothing, but once inside the blast of warm air felt like a zephyr of life. Shoving with her shoulder, she closed the front door. Now she was safe from the cold, inside this... vault. A counterlike ledge jutting from the wall was the perfect place for her to shed her waterproof gloves in favor of simple, warm wool ones under a round lantern. She hesitated just a bit before shrugging off her heavy backpack, but something about the lamp and the warm air made her feel secure after the day of trekking through treacherous snow. She brushed the snow from her boots and the folds of her jacket, then took the lantern carefully to explore the rest. Later, she realized she hadn't had to, as more lanterns were somehow lit inside. Instead of eerie isolation, the vault was filled with a cozy sense of comfort in solitude as she passed shelves. Unlike the concrete and steel exterior amidst black rocks and white ice, the shelves were full of color; books with spines of bold illustrations and fine embossed words, boxes of documents tabbed in bright plastic. She could imagine someone else here, someone like her, enjoying being alone; but she could also imagine many others here, filling this place with even more warmth and light, sharing in this color.

Happy reading! I'd love feedback or comments.

~Citali