Twilit Mage

Chapter 33: Public Trial

Mercury had hoped that the news wouldn't spread around the entire school immediately. But that hope had been futile.

She didn't even need to go down to breakfast to know that. As soon as she opened her door a messy scrawl caught her eye, written from doorframe to doorframe in what looked like black marker. GET OUT TRAITOR BITCH!

Her heartbeat picked up. All warmth disappeared from her hands. This early...it was this early, and yet people knew already. They had heard the story. They knew.

If she went down there now...what else would happen?

She shouldn't go downstairs. She didn't want to go downstairs. She was afraid. Terrified. If they had heard the wrong version of the story, if they had only heard what she had said under the influence of the drug...and from this scrawl it looked like they had only heard that much, and the rest had been ignored...then...then...

"There is a comma missing there."

Mercury spun around on the spot, but she recognized the voice behind her even before glimpsing the face that went with it. Georgiana didn't return her glance. She simply went on walking past as if she hadn't spotted Mercury at all.

"Also, factually incorrect in the case at hand," she continued to seemingly no one in particular. "Besides, this is public property damage by all known magical and mundane laws. What an embarrassment for this school."

Georgiana went on walking and disappeared behind a corner. Mercury tried to call out to her when something caught her eye. The scribble on her door was gone.

"Georgiana!" she shouted, running after her and trying to catch up in vain. "Georgiana, wait! Did you just–?"

No answer. Georgiana was somehow faster than her without running at all, and she disappeared out of sight once more.

Still, in Mercury's mind there was no doubt that she had helped her just now. Even if she had no idea why.

Steeling herself, she walked out of the girls' dormitory and made her way into the breakfast room, ignoring the way her hands were shaking like dry leaves.

She expected the whispers, of course. She expected the stares and the pointed fingers, the eyes locking down on her as she stepped inside, the figures moving out of her way with a shudder as if she was carrying a contagious disease. And yet, when it all happened, she felt like she wasn't ready at all.

For a short moment everyone was perfectly silent. All eyes were staring at her. No one moved or breathed or spoke, and for this short moment she felt perfectly naked. Exposed.

"Hey," someone broke the silence at last. "Why didn't she get arrested?"

"I don't know!" said another voice, startled and agitated. "I thought she did!"

"For what she said last night? She should've been. Having a traitor like that around...What if she kills somebody next time?"

"Yeah, I mean, she said it! She said they want to destroy us!"

"And all those lab break-ins! It's so obvious it was her squad, they said it was Twilit Magic!"

Someone jumped up from behind the table, someone Mercury didn't even recognize. "Hey, Light Mage!" he shouted across the entire room. "You wanna destroy this place like you destroyed the lab last night?"

"Hold on!" said a girl's voice, sharp and filled with a mocking edge. "We should give her another chance. You know, so she can kill us all and we can feel good about keeping her here!"