Twilit Mage

Chapter 61: The Unraveling

"I can't believe we got normal class again," Raoul said the next morning as they walked towards the school building. "The world went crazy and today it's all just back to normal. Like nothing ever happened, ya know?"

Georgiana snorted at him. "What did you expect?" she replied. "Ongoing adventures every day until the day we graduate?"

"Dunno," he replied with a wry smile. "Sounds fun. As long as nobody dies, right, Mercy?"

Mercury laughed sheepishly at his glare. "I'll do my best."

"I don't think that will be necessary," Georgiana replied. "For the time being, at least. Apparently they discovered Bonnie's accomplices too; it's only a matter of time till they're all brought to court."

Mercury tensed a little at that, even if she knew she should be relieved. "Was it just Bonnie from our school?" she asked. "Or...someone else too?"

Georgiana furrowed her brow. "No promises," she said, "but I overheard the teachers saying that Mr. Salvatore was arrested too." Mercury and Raoul gaped at her, and she nodded. "Yes, I was also surprised. But apparently there's a founded suspicion that he was aiding Bonnie."

"Then..." Mercury almost dreaded the question. "Was he a Twilit Mage too?"

Georgiana shook her head. "I don't think so, no. But obviously...obviously there are also Dark Mages supporting her cause." Her eyes and voice trailed off, and suddenly Mercury remembered that she, too, had once been one of them. "Although he did very little except some magic tricks and support on the side. Most of it was Bonnie alone."

Mercury nodded slowly. She still couldn't believe Mr. Salvatore, who had been so unusually friendly and welcoming to her and Raoul, would have done such a thing. And yet just a day ago she had thought the same of Bonnie.

Besides, now that she thought back on the past days...hadn't he been present during their first confrontation with Riley? The time they had been lured out and their dinner had been floated away...Floated. Of course. Telekinesis.

"Cool," Raoul said next to her, clearly having the same thoughts. "Coolcoolcool. We can't trust anybody in this house, huh?"

Mercury gave a small smile. "Now we can," she said. "I think. They got everyone. And you're cleared too now, right?"

Raoul nodded and grinned. "Old man Blake recorded the whole thing, I think. And one of the guys they got confessed that he, uh...helped me blow the airport up."

Mercury smiled. "I'm glad."

There was a moment's silence as Mercury worked up the courage to ask another question that had been bugging her since yesterday. "By the way," she said at last, "why did you all arrive just in time yesterday? I mean, you couldn't know what was going on...right?"

Georgiana gave her a sidelong glance. "Your familiar."

"My..." Mercury blinked. Had Precious actually heard her? "My what?"

"A white baby tiger kinda popped up everywhere and dragged us." Raoul smirked. "When it came into my room it just took my hand and in its mouth – like this–" he demonstrated the move with his hands– "and made me type SOS and Bonnie on my phone. So I got GG and went."

Georgiana gave a nod. "It disappeared and visited a few others, apparently. What it did with Ms. Solstice I don't know, but she was already on her way when we started. And then it must have gone to the teachers and principal." She raised her eyebrows. "Did you forget that familiars can obey their owners' thoughts even from the Otherworld? We had it in class."