Hello, fellow readers! Welcome back to Mysteries of Magic. Now, let's see what we got:
johannvanguard: Like I said, that shall be explained later. Well, Shade was already into books, Visor was the one that wasn't. Indeed he did. We shall see in due time.
Thanks for the feedback, man! With that said, let us continue!
Chapter 17: Mutual Connections
Sci-Twi was intrigued by the choice Visor made as the three have arrived at a candy store, the latter parking his motorcycle in a nearby spot. She hops off the back seat and looks at the store, seeing the sign of what it is called.
"'Sweet and Sour.' Hopefully, that's not all they have." She comments on it as Visor hops off his bike.
"Don't worry, they have all kinds of sweets." He reassures her before adding, "Plus, it counts as a diner too."
Shade caught up soon after, hopping off his skateboard and kicking it into the air in one swift motion before catching it.
"I'm still impressed that you can keep up with him." She recalls her own reaction to this when they went to the library earlier.
"When he goes as fast as he does on that bike, I have to do a flawless run." Shade admits, knowing from experience that mistakes will make him lose Visor's trail.
Once the three enter the place, there was a bunch of people inside either at the booths or the tables. Made sense since this is one of the more popular hangout spots for students. Once they found an empty table, they took their seats as a waitress saw them and came over.
"Welcome. Do you want any drinks before placing an order?" She asked, giving them three menus to share among themselves.
"Yes, I'll have a strawberry ice cream soda." Visor answers first before turning to the two, "You two can order what you like. I'm just going for the sweets."
Sci-Twi and Shade were looking through their menus as the latter spoke, "You do you, my friend. I'll just have a blueberry smoothie."
"Um, just water for me." The former simply said.
Once the waitress got their drinks written down, she went off to go get them while leaving the three to look through the menus. Visor was the first to finish with the other finishing later, mainly due to having been here before.
"So, what else are you into? Besides books, of course." Visor starts the conversation off with, mainly towards Sci-Twi.
"Well, I really love science. Especially when it comes to physics and the unknown." She answers honestly, "I always want to find an answer to something no one knows yet."
"Sounds like someone else we know." Shade sarcastically comments, Visor already knowing who he means.
Sci-Twi caught on soon after as the waitress comes over and places the drinks on the table before pulling out her pen and paper, "Have you decided on what to order?"
"Yes, miss. I'll have the key lime cheesecake." Visor was the first to answer.
"I'll have the regular burger and fries." Shade casually follows up on that.
"Just a chicken sandwich will do." Sci-Twi finishes the order as the waitress wrote that down.
Once she left to get their orders, Sci-Twi picks up the conversation where it left off.
"Speaking of answers, I'm really intrigued by this 'magic hunt' you guys are doing." She admits, getting both of their attentions as they were taking a sip of their drinks. "Do you three really believe that magic exist?"
"Well, considering all that we've seen so far, I'm starting to believe it." Shade has to admit, considering all that has happened within practically a week.
"And I'm very excited about that." Visor added.
"Then I'm in." At that moment, the two were straight-up silent at her words.
She was a bit confused at this and adds more to clarify, "I've been researching magical phenomenons for awhile too. I was even able to pinpoint where it's possibly coming from."
"We did too. If it's the same place, I honestly wouldn't be surprised at this point." Visor casually said.
"Same." Shade agrees with him on that before turning to Sci-Twi, "It's CHS, isn't it?"
He lets a small smirk appear on his face as her own face told him the answer he was expecting, "Oh come on, can't even do a dramatic reveal..." She mutters with a little pout.
"How did you get interested in magic, anyways?" Visor had a pretty good question there.
"Ever since the night of that... 'quadruple rainbow beam' I think it was?" Her answer was immediately recognizable to the two.
"And yet another coincidence to check off the list." Shade comments on the possibility of this encounter happening.
Sci-Twi then continues with her side of the conversation, "Once I deduced the location, I then did some research on the school webpage and found-"
"Wait... wait, wait, wait." Visor cuts her off while processing what she just said for a moment before having a realization, "Why didn't we just do that?"
Shade was taking a sip of his drink as his friend spoke, taking a second to listen before answering the question. "Simple, we didn't think of it."
He watches Visor pinch the bridge of his nose before turning to Sci-Twi, "You were saying?"
"Like I said, I did some research on the school webpage and... couldn't really find anything that mentions it." She eventually admits.
"Two things come to mind with that." Shade then holds up one finger before continuing, "One, this was a really elaborate rumor to send people on a wild goose chase. Considering the coincidences, I doubt that's the case."
He then puts up a second finger, "Or two, this is true and the students there are covering it up as best as they could. Obviously, some of them have big mouths and couldn't help themselves."
"The thing is, both of those relates to the school. Which means no matter the choice, it's the same result." Visor had a good point there.
"Then why don't we just go there now?" Sci-Twi pitches the offer to the two, which they were surprisingly hesitant at.
"You have to keep this in mind. If the magic is real, and it's capable of firing lasers..." Shade said slow enough for her to piece together what he means.
Once she does, her expression deflates into a more sorrowful one upon the realization. "I'm staying behind, aren't I?"
Shade and Visor look at each other before going back to her, "If you're talking about being at a really safe distance-" The latter was cut off by the former speaking up rather bluntly.
"This magic can be potentially dangerous to anyone. The last thing we want to happen is getting anyone else involved. I know you also want to see it, but we agreed that it'll be between the three of us to find it."
Hearing the last part, she should have figured that Levin would also be against the idea of her going with them. Still, she wants to get something out of this at least.
"But, it doesn't mean we're leaving you out." She looks up at Visor as he continues, "Just think of us as the field guys collecting data. Once we get what's there, we can relay the info back to you."
"Since Levin trusts you enough to bring up our 'magic hunt', I wouldn't be surprised that he tells you this as well." Shade adds in, knowing their friend too well.
Sci-Twi was still a bit bummed from not going, but cheered up a bit after their reassurance on the results. "That's good enough, I guess."
Soon after saying that, the waitress brings in their food and places them on the table for the three.
"Thank you, miss." Visor thanks her right before she leaves.
Once she does, the three then digs into their food with the occasional dialogue to share between bites and sips of their meals.
"Ooh, so close!"
Levin leans back against the back of the couch as Sunset caught her breath, having scored a narrow victory against her opponent in the final round of an old-school fighting game. She had a confident grin as she looks at him, seeing his blank expression before speaking.
"I noticed that slip-up. Guess that wasn't intentional?"
"Yeah..." He then lets out a sigh before adding, "A rookie mistake, too."
"It's all right. People tend to panic under pressure."
She wasn't wrong, but he didn't want to dwell on it before sitting back up. He thought about having one more match, but notices how late it was getting outside with the sun setting in the sky.
"I think we should stop there for today." He puts the controller on the seat next to him as she looks at him.
"Oh, OK." She then sees how late it was getting, "Whoa, time flies fast."
"You have no idea." He comments, knowing the feeling as he gets up to his feet. "You're pretty good. Been awhile since I had trouble keeping up."
"Come on, you won a few yourself." Sunset knew he was being humble with his gaming skills, throwing a compliment his way as a response.
"True." Levin simply said, leaving it at that.
She then pulls out her phone, "Since you're leaving, mind giving me your number? That way, Shade doesn't have to be the middle guy for messages."
"I'm sure he doesn't mind talking to you." He comments, mostly teasing his friend to get a chuckle out of her.
It succeeded, but only for a second as she insisted on it. "Still, I doubt he can do it every time."
Pulling out his phone, he agrees on that part. "Good point. All right, here's mine."
It didn't take long to exchange numbers, taking only a few seconds to do so. After making sure it worked, Levin puts his phone back in his pocket before seeing her little Christmas tree again. Curiosity strikes as a question popped in his head.
"Any reason why you don't have a bigger tree?"
She was caught off guard by his question, following his sight to her tree before getting what he means.
"Oh, you mean that? Well, I'm the only one that lives here. A big tree for one would be pretty weird, honestly."
"But, I thought your Twilight was staying over for the holidays."
Sunset was quiet for a moment before speaking, "She told me that she can stay for a couple of days. After that, she has to head back."
Levin was surprised at that, "Really? That sucks."
"Kind of. She does have friends and family back home."
"What about her sister?"
"She's still deciding on that." He wasn't really surprised, but his point still stands. However, he drops that in exchange for another question.
"...Doesn't it get lonely?" His tone changed upon asking that question, sounding rather caring as he shifts his gaze from the tree to Sunset.
She was quiet for a bit longer than before, making it seem like she was taking time to think about it. After what felt like a whole minute, she spoke.
"Not all the time. My friends help keep the place lively and school more bearable. Honestly, I owe them a lot." She admits before looking at him, "What about you? You have your friends, going to Crystal Prep and even have financial insurance to back you up on top of that."
"Yeah, you're right about that." He was rather monotone with his response, but changes the conversation back to her. "I only ask since... well, I don't like the idea of being alone on the holidays."
"...Oh." Upon him saying that, she remembers the times when she was alone.
Looking back, a lot has changed since her reformation. After the battle with the Dazzlings, her school has finally accepted her new self and she joins the Rainbooms as a new member. A smile forms upon her face as those memories flows through her mind, confusing Levin a bit.
"Guess you're doing fine, then." His voice got her attention, making her look at him with a brief surprised gaze.
"Huh? Sorry, just daydreaming." She admits, getting a little chuckle out of him as a result.
"Figured." He then remembers the time, "Anyways, I better get going before it gets too dark."
"OK, see ya later." She said to him as he walks to the front door.
She was about to go back to the game before seeing him stop at the door, not even going for his bike. He didn't stand there long as he then turns back around to face her.
"Now I know why I asked that!" He blurts out, lowering his voice back to normal soon after. "I wanted to invite you girls over to my place for a little holiday party."
Sunset blinks once as her immediate response before fully processing his offer, "Oh, really?"
"Yeah. That way, we can spend more time together." Levin sounds pretty excited about it as he had a big smile on his face.
She couldn't help but smile back as she answers, "OK, sounds like fun."
"Awesome! OK, now I'll be going!" His excitement didn't waver as he takes his bike and leaves the house.
Sunset still had her smile as she turns back to the game to continue playing.
The moon was able to be seen in the night sky as Adagio looks out her window, who is currently wearing her nighttime attire with her hair fully down. Her mind was preoccupied with what has happened yesterday, replaying over and over in her head as she tries to figure out the cause.
Sonata was never the one to lose her cool, mainly since she was pretty much the most... positive one of the group. After their defeat, it seems like the negative side of her went dormant or something to that effect. Aria was less aggressive, but has her level-headed sarcasm to make up for it.
Upon reflection, she realizes that she hasn't really changed at all. Whenever she was 'nice', it was mainly a front to keep her pent-up frustration in check. All because of that one night...
"Why? Why does this keep bothering me?" She mutters, clenching her hands against the sheets as she did.
Maybe it's just the idea of the Rainbooms themselves, what they represented to her. Ever since the three of them were banished to this world, they were able to adapt and live in this new 'home' of theirs since there was no way to return. With the return of magic, the possibility of having all that power again was within reach, no one to stop them as they were adored by their 'fans'.
Upon encountering the Rainbooms, the three faced their next big challenge as their magic was strong enough to counter their own. It wasn't much at first, since it had to be musical magic to even count as a threat. However, through perseverance and their own overconfidence, the seven girls were able to conjure magic strong enough to shatter their only source of power, the pendants.
Her left hand reflexively reaches up to her chest where the red gem once was, only grasping the air that stood in its place when she realizes what she was doing.
"Wait, is that it?" She sits up as she wonders her action just now.
Was that the answer? Was it their magic that took, no, DESTROYED what they had their ENTIRE LIVES that night? The gems that represented who they were, that had helped them live in this bipedal prison for so long, only to be nothing but red dust in the wind?
Their failure then started this small 'dark age' once they were just normal girls like everyone else. That's when her mind stops, not wanting to revisit those memories again.
"Then, is it not the girls? Just the magic they used?"
This question was more towards her conversation with Sunset, when she lets out this burden she had on her shoulders from being the leader of the three. She still doesn't know why she did, but her best guess is that it just peaked by then. What really surprised her was Sunset's reaction. She kinda expected some sort of resentment towards her, only to be met with sympathy. Her apology had only sincerity when spoken, giving her something else she didn't expect:
Someone to connect with.
Sunset was in a similar position before when the other girls gave her a second chance. The three of them have found theirs, right here.
Maybe that's why Sonata felt the way she did, she knew this. How could she have been so blind? This whole 'revenge scheme' had consumed her, much like the powers of their gems.
"Wait..." That's when it clicked in her head.
Getting up out of her bed, she exits her room and goes to Aria's door before knocking a few times on it. Hopefully, her sister hasn't fallen asleep yet. The door opens, revealing Aria is also in her nighttime attire and her hair also down. She didn't look tired, which is good.
"Hey." Aria simply said.
"Hey." Adagio said back, "I need to talk to you."
Aria stares at her for a moment before speaking, "OK."
She lets Adagio into her room, who just sits down on the corner of the bed as Aria closes her door.
"So, what do you want to talk about?" She asks as she also sits down on her own bed, more towards the middle of the side to be specific.
Adagio decides to just be blunt with her, "This whole 'revenge scheme' we have been planning."
Silence followed her answer for a moment before she was surprised by what breaks it, "You too?"
Adagio looks at her sister with a puzzled expression, the latter having a small smirk on her face in response.
"You're not the only one that was thinking about it." Aria crosses her arms right after saying that.
Adagio got what she meant. The two share being the brains of the group, after all.
"Then, am I right in thinking that... the gems were somehow controlling us after they shattered?" This is the realization that clicked earlier in her head.
Aria blinks once as she processes her question, answering it shortly after.
"I'm not exactly sure about that." She admits before following up with her own question, "What made you come to that conclusion?"
"...What Sonata said got me thinking. Even if we do go through with it, what do we have to gain?"
The two try to come up with some sort of answer for minutes on end, only to come up short. At this point, Aria couldn't help but let out a minor chuckle.
"Funny that Visor proposed the same thing." She remembers her conversation with him as she continues, "Guess he did have a point. But, what does that have to do with the gems?"
"Think about it." Adagio got up to her feet and turns around to face her as she spoke, "When we had them, we were annoyed at each other's antics at best and moved along. Now, we were blinded by revenge that may have separated us instead of them."
Aria understood what she was saying, but one thing wasn't adding up. "If the negative magic went into us after the gems broke, then how come it's disappearing now?"
Adagio thought about that for a moment, her mind recalling what they did beforehand for any clues. The three met Levin, then his friends, then the Rainbooms, then their little return to CHS and meeting the stranger... wait, was that it?
When they figured out that the statue was where the magic came from, they tried to see if it's possible to utilize it. The three then got pushed away by a sudden pulse of energy-
"That magic pulse..." She utters out loud, "That must have been positive energy that weakened the leftover negative energy over time."
"Really? Surprised that the positive side hasn't disappeared instead." Aria had a valid point.
"Maybe their influence was somehow able to change the balance between the two." Adagio counters with, the boys and girls popping into her head as she said it.
"Like some sort of weird scale or something?"
"Seems like it."
Aria lets out a sigh as she rubs her forehead with her fingers, "This is getting confusing..."
Adagio gets what she means and sums up her feelings as of this moment, "...Does this mean we've been fools this whole time?"
"Depends on how you look at it. True, they stopped us from our plans, but it was probably more towards our magic. Then again, we had those gems as long as I can remember..."
Yet another ambiguous answer to their many questions, Adagio groans as she sat back down on the bed corner. "My head hurts now..."
"Then, is there any reason why Sonata wasn't affected as much as us?" Aria proposes a very good question.
This is where the two were stumped. How was that the case? Finally realizing that they might not get an answer to any of them, Adagio lets out a exasperated sigh.
"I don't know... I just want us to not separate over something so pointless." She was just tired at this point.
Aria nods her head in agreement, "She may annoy me sometimes, but she is our sister at the end of the day."
Adagio then looks over at the clock to see it's almost one in the morning, "We'll apologize to her at dawn. She's most likely asleep by now."
"Good, I'm... feeling tired too." Aria yawns in the middle of her sentence, proving her point.
As Adagio got up to her feet to leave the room, she reaches the door before saying one more thing. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight." Aria simply calls back, getting under her blankets as Adagio leaves the room.
Once she closes the door behind her, Adagio couldn't help but spare a glance at Sonata's door. Funny that the one they thought was just the 'silly' one would actually be the one to teach them something. A small smile forms on her face, going to her own room to then finally go to bed herself.
And done! Sorta back to my usual pace, but nothing wrong with that. Now, to the breakdown!
I looked up what shops they had in this universe and found this candy shop called 'Sweet and Sour'. I liked the name, so I picked it and even expanded upon it a bit, making it a candy shop/diner combo. The next shot was getting Sci-Twi into the 'magic hunt' without actually being involved, for obvious reasons. Also a neat fun fact, this scene was written before I had a root beer float for the first time. (It was delicious :)
I continued the scene with Levin and Sunset, wanting to have something in common for the two to share. With the holidays on the horizon, it makes sense that the thought of being alone would be brought up. I didn't want it too long since it's only a simple question. Other than that, I think it came out pretty well.
This is yet another big change in terms of character development. I wanted to have this conversation to be an exchange of questions, mainly since they wouldn't know the answers to them, yet still kinda have a picture of what's happened so far. All they do know is where their path has taken them and their attempt at correcting course. More on this later.
As usual, thanks for reading and I'll see you guys next chapter!