The first thing Mercury thought when she turned around the corner and saw the bus stop was that this was another very weird place.
She was in the middle of an old industrial area. All around her were rusty old factories and half-empty parking lots, the streets deserted, the smoke and steam emerging from a few distant chimneys the only sign of life. Most of the buildings weren't in use anymore, the walls crumbling, the windows broken. In some places nature had taken back the area, dandelions sprouting through the concrete, moss and ivy crawling up the walls.
In the middle of this gray, ghostly scene, looking as if it had been planted on the wrong street by accident, was a brand-new, shiny bus stop. There was no schedule anywhere and no bus in sight; the only sign that she hopefully wasn't in the whole wrong place was the girl standing at the side of the street, a huge suitcase at her feet, her face half hidden behind a book.
She looked familiar, Mercury thought. But she couldn't really pinpoint where she had seen her before.
For a very long moment she just stood there, her eyes darting about, wondering if she should talk to the girl. Asking if she was in the right place was probably a good idea. Or it would be, if she knew any way to phrase it without sounding like a total nutcase if she happened to be wrong after all. And that girl was so immersed in her book...Wouldn't asking her just be a bother? Mercury hated to disturb people, and this girl would definitely be disturbed...
She walked a little closer to the curb and looked around. No sign of the school bus. But it would come soon, right? It was supposed to arrive in ten minutes. Nine now. How much longer till it came into sight? Should she go look around for other bus stops just in case, to make sure she wasn't wrong? What if–
No good. If she just continued to wait here in silence, her brain would get her convinced she was in the wrong place.
She took a deep breath, opened her mouth, glanced at the girl a few feet away, and closed it again. No way, she couldn't do it. This girl looked so serious, reading that strange book in...what language was that?
She'll definitely think I'm an idiot...I can't do this...
Mercury closed her eyes. Enough of that. She couldn't stand around here panicking. She'd just have to swallow her anxiety and speak up. A short, easy question...how hard could it be? And it was still less bad than missing the school bus!
"E-Excuse me!"
The girl looked up, and Mercury shrank, feeling even more intimidated. On top of obviously being smart, this girl was also very pretty. She was a little taller than Mercury, slim and graceful, her clothes simple and elegant, her skin the slightest tint of gold, her silky auburn hair tied back into a long French braid. Dark, long-lashed hooded eyes lay in a defined face with pronounced cheekbones, meeting Mercury's gaze with quiet, distant interest.
"Um..." Crap, what had she done? Mercury couldn't make a bad impression in front of such a pretty person...wait, what had she been trying to say again? "Ah, uh..." She laughed nervously. "It's...Is this the school bus...I m-m-mean bus stop! The bus stop for the school bus to..." To what? A magic school? Damn it, why hadn't she thought this through? What should she say? She was embarrassing herself, what did that girl have to be thinking–
"To Andromeda Institute, yes," the girl replied calmly. She glanced at her watch. "The bus will be here in five minutes."
Mercury nodded awkwardly, her face feeling very warm. "Okay...Thank you."
The girl went back to her book. Mercury moved a little closer to the bus stop sign, still looking around. There was an awkward silence.
Should she say something? No, the girl had made it clear enough that she didn't want to talk...after all, why else had she gone back to reading? But then again, wasn't it expected of her to try to make a conversation? But if she bothered her...but if she didn't...
"Um..." she blurted out, fidgeting with her sleeves, then the strap of her bag. "What...What grade are you in?"
The girl looked up from her book, then she closed it, glancing at Mercury from the corner of her eye before turning to fully face her. "I am a freshman starting this year," she said. "Did nobody tell you? The freshmen are the last to arrive, and everybody else is supposed to welcome them at school."
Her voice sounded stiff, stilted somehow, as if she was a book that had learned how to talk but didn't know how actual people spoke. Mercury couldn't shake the thought that she had heard it somewhere before.
"Oh," she said awkwardly, feeling very stupid. "No, I don't think anyone told me...sorry..."
The girl looked at her from head to toe, the mild interest in her eyes growing the tiniest bit. "You must be new," she said. "Are your parents not mages?"
"Yeah...no...I mean, they are, but..." Mercury trailed off. Something told her it wasn't a good idea to tell this girl her parents were exiles. "It's..." She gave a nervous laugh. "It's a long story."
"I will not pry, then." The girl gave a quiet nod. "Don't worry about being new. You will learn everything important during freshman year. Many students are complete beginners at magic like you, even the ones from mage families. The first year in high school is always an introduction to the basics."
Mercury listened to her, wide-eyed. "You know a lot."
"I did research," the girl said as if this was nothing. "But this is common knowledge. My guardian studied at Andromeda too, and it was no different back in his day. According to him I wouldn't need to attend freshman year at all, but I insisted on going because I know how much he likes to overestimate me. Neglecting the basics is dangerous business."
Mercury blinked in surprise, both at her humble tone and at the unusual term she used. "Your guardian?"
"My adoptive father," the girl said. "Mortimer DeVille. He discovered my powers and took me in as a child." She paused for a moment, then she gave a slight smile, putting away her book and extending a hand. "My name is Georgiana, by the way. Georgiana DeVille."
What a pretty name, Mercury thought, just barely stopping herself from blurting it out loud. "Nice to meet you!" she quickly said instead, taking Georgiana's slim hand. "I'm Mercury...Mercury Day."
Georgiana's smile faded in an instant. "Day?"
"Y...eah." Mercury blinked in confusion, taking a step back. Had she said something wrong? There was nothing weird about her name, was there? "W-Why?"
"The Day clan is an influential line of Light Mages." Georgiana narrowed her eyes. "You aren't connected to them, are you? What are you doing here?"
Oh crap, crap, crap. Her father's last name...Why had Mercury never thought of that? He came from a family of Light Mages, of course there was the chance that someone like her might recognize it! Why hadn't she said something else? Why hadn't she just kept her mouth shut?
"I..." What should she say? Should she tell a lie? She could say it was a coincidence, that her parents were perfectly normal people and that Day was a common last name without everyone being connected to that Light Mage clan. But she knew Georgiana would never buy it. She wouldn't even believe it herself.
That left only the truth.
"I..." Mercury fidgeted again, looking down at the ground, studying the details of Georgiana's lace-up ankle boots. "The truth is...I'm...Twilit..."
"So it was true."
Mercury looked back up and shuddered. The calm, composed look had disappeared from Georgiana's face. Her features were drawn with fury, her narrowed eyes glowing with mistrust, resentment and fear.
"So it was not a myth that Sullivan Blake allowed your kind into our school this year," she hissed, practically spitting out the words. "The descendants of the very people who ruined our existence, into the space we painfully built for ourselves because of your deeds!" Her voice was shaking with hatred. "Why, are you trying to pass as one of us now that we are starting to appear cool? What are you planning to do when you enter our community, Mercury Day? Will you steal the spots of real Dark Mages? Try to kill us from the inside? Learn about all our secrets and tell them to your mass-murdering relatives? Which is it?"
So this was it. This was the real hatred between Light and Dark Mages.
Mercury backed away. Her hands were clammy. Panic rose inside her, panic and anger at the unjust accusations. Her head felt light. She was reeling, struggling not to completely lose her nerves.
No sane person would believe she was one of the oppressors, Principal Blake had said. And she had trusted him. She had expected suspicion, mistrust, but she had believed his words on this. She had never expected such open, icy cold hostility.
"Nothing!" she burst out, tears stinging at the back of her eyes. "I'm not connected to the Light Mages! My parents are exiles, they're not even allowed to–"
"Oh, really?" Georgiana arched an eyebrow, her voice dripping with cold malice. "Then what do you have to say about the rumor that the Light Mages are using Twilit Mages to infiltrate the Dark community, Mercury Day?"
Rumor...What?
Mercury shook her head, forcing herself not to lose her head. Keep cool. Keep cool. It's the truth. You know it, and Mr. Blake knows it too. You're in the right here. Don't panic.
"Those are just rumors!" she shouted, almost pleading, her hands shaking, her voice frantic. "The Light Mages exile people who marry Dark Mages just the way you guys do...They're treated like they don't exist! You know that, right?"
"True. That is the official statement." Georgiana crossed her arms. "But I would love to know what is going on beneath the surface."
Mercury opened her mouth and closed it again. Her throat felt tight. All these accusations felt so unfounded, so unfair, and yet she couldn't do a thing. If she told Georgiana that she had never met anyone from her father's family in her life, would she believe her? Of course not. She'd call her a liar, just like she had dismissed everything else she said as lies because she didn't want to be wrong.
A low rumble in the distance snapped Mercury out of her thoughts. She turned around, and the next moment what looked like the gigantic tour bus of a rock band came rolling along the street, seemingly out of nowhere. It was the size of a small airplane, pitch-black, brand-new and polished, with rows of seats on two levels and faces looking out of almost every window.
The bus stopped in front of them, the doors opening with a hiss, along with the luggage trunks on the side of the bus. Mercury picked up her bag to store it– and couldn't move an inch. Her feet seemed glued to the ground.
Dread settled in her gut. Wide-eyed, she stared at her feet, then the bus, then at Georgiana, who had already put away her suitcase and was in the middle of climbing through the door. "What–" she stuttered out, looking from side to side for someone, anyone who could help her, even though the place was deserted except for herself and Georgiana and the rows of strangers on the bus. "Wait– I think my feet, they're...stuck..."
Georgiana simply gave her an unsympathetic look. "As they should be. As long as I can use my powers, I refuse to let someone like you into our home."
She stepped inside, and a metallic voice announced that the doors were closing. Mercury looked helplessly from side to side. Her legs still wouldn't move. Should she call for help from inside? Should she yell at the bus to stop? But asking strangers to save her...delaying the bus...
She couldn't do it. She couldn't do a thing.
The doors closed, and the bus set into motion. Mercury stared numbly up at it as it passed by, following the lines of windows with her eyes.
And stopped.
Just for a split second, she had met eyes with Raoul. And Raoul was looking back at her, unsmiling, the look on his face blank and almost...disappointed.
Mercury's mind started moving again. What was she doing? She couldn't stay here. What would she tell her parents? How would she see Raoul again? Could she really give up on her first and only chance to learn how to use magic?
If she managed to move her legs again...if she chased after it now, she might still catch it.
Without a second thought she leaped. Her legs moved freely again. Slinging her bag over her shoulder, Mercury chased after the bus, running faster and faster, stumbling, catching herself, speeding up until she could barely breathe. She was getting there. It wasn't too fast yet. She could make it. She could catch it. It wasn't too late.
Something opened in front of the bus. Something dark and shapeless, and the bus was running right into it as it grew bigger and bigger, swallowing the city behind. Mercury swallowed and chased after it. Only a little more...a little closer...
The bus disappeared in the dark shapelessness, and the strange blob was starting to shrink again. Mercury sped up. Her legs were getting heavy. The weight of her bag was insufferable. She ran.
Making a giant leap, Mercury reached the remnants of the dark blob and dived through it right before it closed.
~ ~ ~
Raoul stared at his reflection in the window without actually seeing anything. Whatever was happening outside was a blur. Whatever was going on inside the bus didn't seem any more real either.
That face...No, he hadn't imagined it. It had been her. But she hadn't got on, for whatever reason.
He sighed. Of course she hadn't. He had been happy to see her again, hoped that they might talk again, that she might seek him out, especially since he had stupidly, stupidly not asked for her number when they met. He'd been so happy she was a magic freshman too...and now this. As always, nothing had come of it. He didn't know what else he was expecting by now.
"You could have helped her."
Raoul looked up, blinking for a few minutes until he recognized the face of the girl sitting across the aisle. That girl with the braid...She'd got on at the same station as Mercury. Or rather, the station where she had left Mercury behind.
"I know who you are," she said coolly, speaking more to her book than Raoul. "Raoul Warden, from that family of Twilit Mages, was it? Did you not want to help your fellow Twilit Mage? Or do you Light traitors not even care about your own kind?"
Twilit. She was Twilit too. Damn it, Raoul really wished they had kept in touch.
"I could've helped," he said quietly, faking a smile. "But I didn't know she needed it. Most of all..." His expression turned lopsided, and he gave a quiet laugh.
"Most of all, she kinda looked like she didn't want to go anyway."
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