really good

Shh, it's okay Santi. Tony absorbs George's spirit and grows hands with opposable thumbs as a result. He becomes the second best librarian. The townspeople erect a statue in his honor. They name a holiday after him, and from then on, all intruders are eaten by him.

Um. I mean. I had a lot of fun reading this, even though it might have started from procrastination. Maybe because I really like libraries or something, but I enjoyed the concept of this one. It reveals enough information for the reader to infer things about the world. The resolution was a bit sudden, but it was sudden in a funny way. Like a "Rock falls, everyone dies" sort of way.

Pff, the comments at the end. Maybe you're bookfuddled as well?

And wow, that twist. It was a bit unexpected? Usually I'm good at predicting plot twists, but I mostly thought of George as a clumsy person. I'm kind of sad that there's only one chapter left.

A little typo: "He stormed off n a huff, not caring where he headed"
Yeah, just the n. Wasn't lying when I said it was a little typo.

Aww! I love the ending. Also, I think it would be totally awesome if you wrote another story in a fantasy world where at some point the characters need to come into the Library for some research and we get a brief cameo of Santi and Tony at their librarian duties, as amiable companions. It would make me squeal with glee.

I pointed out a few minor typos after seeing the notes at the bottom about your edit updates. I figured they meant that you like to catch the little mistakes and make the changes. Sorry if they're annoying, I only mean to be helpful.

Absolutely love your worldbuilding, and your characters. The tone of your writing perfectly carried the story. It was hilarious, fun, and sweet, with elements of the fantastic. Excellent work.

Just after he thinks he may be bookfuddled, you write "he wasn't sure how to apologies for his abruptness," instead of "apologize." Also, later you have "I knew that you would eventually notice books the books missing." - and extra "books" in there.

Such a big sweetheart! Wormie is such a cutie!

As he's headed down the stairs, you have "Oh his way down" instead of "On his way down."

Just a little typo in the second paragraph:
"so Santi's approach this time was assistant was one of cautious indifference."
should either be
"so Santi's approach this time to his assistant was one of cautious indifference."
or
"so Santi's approach this time was one of cautious indifference."

Heh, that was a great ending, Augie. I look forward to more adventures with Santi and Tony. This last chapter wrapped up the dangling threads nicely and left just enough of a hook for more story - an excellent way to close it out.

Overall, this a great tale - high energy, good action, fun magic, an engaging setting (I really like how the Library completely reconfigured its style in the last couple chapters, instead of just rearranging the rooms) and some great character interactions - Tony really shines in how you've given him so much personality just through his movements.

The only major issue I can point to is that bad guy felt like a bad guy from pretty much his second scene, so his reveal wasn't all that unexpected. I never really felt like he was anything other than a bad guy. I think we might need a couple more scenes with him acting nervous and overwhelmed outside of when he's doing suspicious actions, to throw us off his scent a bit and establish that neurotic nature as his character (or at least persona). This way the reveal of what he's really been up to can be more dramatic - at the moment, to me, it's basically just "yep, thought so" instead of "omg, what?!".

Still, it was a great story and a great read. Can't wait for more from these two. :D

Spelling/Grammar/Etc:
-Nothing! Looks great!

Called it! :D This was a great chapter. Fire cows are just a hilarious concept, the look inside George's mind was great, and both the jovial back-and-forth at the start (especially the cuff on the head) and the menacing dialogue at the end were right on point. I love the ending, very dark and very appropriately jarring. I'm really enjoying the concept of being bookfuddled, and I can totally relate sometimes. :)

Criticisms:
The sudden leap into George's perspective, while cool, is a bit odd when the entirety of the rest of the story is from Santi's perspective. Not a deal-breaker by any stretch, but just strange for half a chapter.

Spelling/Grammar/Etc:
-"The grass was still damn with" - should be damp.

Aww. That's sweet. I'm really enjoying how you are pacing this story, with action interspersed with slower, more character driven moments. You've got the balance down quite well, allowing each side of things enough room to grow without either side dominating the story. The George-and-Santi scene was a quite nice bit of interaction and character development, especially for George, and I loved the old-man/worm-poop bit. That line was a great way to encapsulate their growing relationship (though George still feels evil to me :P).

The bookworm's secret hideaway is very sweet, and I love the little notes like it being primarily romances. I also really enjoyed the whistling-the-books-away scene, it really reminded me of Merlin packing his bags in The Sword in the Stone - that fun and energetic way of doing menial tasks. Damn, I want to be able to do that.

Also, the line: "It was quiet. Too quiet." I was so expecting that line to end with "even for a library." :)

Criticisms:
The part about how George "murmured something that sounded like gratitude" is almost exactly the same as in the previous chapter. While the consistency is nice, the almost-verbatim repetition jarred me a bit.
It's also a smidge incongruous that George doesn't want Santi to be worm poop then calls in sick the next day, even though he was just there.
The part about "the Library was supposed to know about every space within its walls but it had no idea about the door" is a bit odd, as I don't get the feel that Santi knows this. It seems like we've suddenly jumped perspective for a sentence. Possibly another line about how the Library feeds Santi information would make this clearer.

Spelling/Grammar/Etc:
-"since the time he was a fledgling, and all *thorough* the lonely years" - should be "through".
-"he wish that he hadn't named it Gluttony" - should be "wished"
-"so he fixed himself a stiff brew from the herbs in the greenhouse" - you've been putting a capital on Greenhouse up to this point.
-"running toward the sound like a startled bat from a cave" - "running" doesn't feel like the right word here, given that bats aren't exactly known for their fleetness of foot. :) Maybe "rushing"?
-"why a bookworm would be brandishing light" - I think this should be "a light", maybe? Not sure.
-"Too old for all nighters, but still too young t die" - missing an "o" in "to",
-"he danced whistled around the room" - I think this needs an "and".
-The first mention of A Stampede of Wild Men is not italicized.

Excellent once again. Lots of action, high stakes, drama, and then a lot of heart and humour in the aftermath. The action is again quick paced and frantic, which is good fun to read. Afterwards, especially with the elephant-book and a throwaway reference to Excalibur, is just lots of fun. Learning more about George is also great, though I'm still suspecting him of being evil. His actions are just giving off that vibe to me - he doesn't feel like he's accidentally doing these things. I'm not sure what you're going for yet, so I don't know what to make of that.

Criticisms: I found the word "hypocentre" to be awkward, as it's such an esoteric word - but once I looked it up I saw that it was absolutely the perfect word for the situation. I s'pose that's on me, though - if I knew what it meant, I wouldn't be in that situation. :)
Beyond his melancholy when he sees the damage to the terrarium, we don't really get any emotional reactions from Santi in the second half of the story. We feel his fear in the first half, but it's hard to tell if he is casually indifferent, well adjusted or just suppressing his reaction to the damage to his precious library. He also seems very indifferent to George possibly leaving, despite lots of hope for his future in the last chapter. Both parts are almost there, but not quite.
Also, Santi calls for help at some point, but we never see that, unless that was part of his spell, which isn't made quite clear. It seems like there's a jump in time while he's in his office, which is a bit jarring as he's the POV character.

Overall though, very entertaining.

Spelling/Grammar/Etc:
-"In a library full of delicate spells holding things together, power magic" - should that be powerful?
-"Santi weaved haphazardly through the chaos, protecting his head with hs hands" - missing an "i" in that second "his".
-"It was a black creature, no talker than a dining table" - should that be taller?
-"George's spell had undone many of the workings in the Library, and thankfully, Santi's had frozen" - I think this would work better with "but thankfully" instead of "and thankfully". The "and" doesn't really flow, as Santi's spell is kind of counter to George's, not following along from it.

Another cute chapter. Once again, excellent work with the subtleties of the bookworm's movement conveying so much of its character. I'm also quite enjoying the trashy fiction Santi is feeding it - those titles are hilarious. And the tiny ornate book to give to the bookworm is a stroke of genius, and you've described it beautifully, as always. I can really feel a love of books bleeding through from both you and Santi in this story.

I'm concerned with George here, however - either he is quite nervous, or he's evil and not doing a very good job of hiding it. If he does turn out to be evil later, then his nervousness here is a pretty big tell. Of course, if he's not you've done an excellent job misdirecting us. I s'pose I'll find out soon enough. :)

Spelling/Grammar/Etc:
-"in which to lay and confabulate storied" - should be stories.

Chapter 2
Wow, that was a very neat exploration of some larger themes. The Tyger discussion was very intriguing, well thought through and a excellent insight into Santi's character. The character of the bookworm really shines through here as well, as it slams itself against the glass in protest. Very cute - you've done a great job of giving the bookworm real character through its actions.

Once again, your knack for beautiful descriptions shines through with the terrarium, which just looks magical. Santi's office is great as well, and I love that the Library helped with that. The throw-away notes about the previous assistants and the former librarian who suffered an unfortunate run-in with blast runes really flesh out the world. Great work.

Some minor criticisms: as excellent as the Tyger discussion is, it doesn't make as much sense without the rest of the poem. Once I had read the rest of it, though, the parallel was all the more powerful. Also, Santi has a very cavalier attitude about death that is a bit disturbing - while the joke about his previous assistant going to dust the unused areas was great, the unconcerned way he thinks about that and then never considers it again is a bit unnerving.

Overall, though, excellent - possibly one of your best chapters ever, I just love how you've so expertly worked the classic literature that is a librarian's bread and butter into the scene - and I'm looking forward to the next chapter.

Spelling/Grammar/Etc:
- In the sentence where Santi is working on a training schedule, you've misspelled George.
- "He hadn't needed to spend three day building the elaborate enclosure" - should be "days".

Ooh, an intriguing first chapter Augs. I love the in-medias-res leap into the fight scene. The action itself is fast-paced and brutal, and you've really done a good job of getting inside Santi's head, especially with how he is willing to be hurt to save the precious books. I also really like how you've weaved the description of Santi into the narrative itself, using the descriptions of his injuries to tell us what he looks like instead of stopping the action to describe it.

I also especially like the Greenhouse and the Library as settings. You've got a real flair for describing beautiful, wondrous settings that really make them feel alive and magical. I like the contrast between Santi's chaotic Library and the peaceful serenity of his sister's Greenhouse. The way the Library reshapes itself and creates paths for Santi is also quite cool. I really look forward to more adventures in this Library.

I'm trying to find things to criticize or ways to improve this chapter, but (beyond the below), I just can't. Well done. Looking forward to more. :)

Spelling/Grammar/Etc:
- "He'd just survived *and* encounter with the largest bookworm" - should be "an"
- "Feeling the *flair* of power" - do you possibly mean "flare"?
- "It made for a more *interest* story" - should be "interesting"