Marvela Mystic | ✔️

Chapter 7 ✨ A Gift

"Curious, I said I'm sorry," Marvela mewled, peering into the dark crevice beneath a bookshelf where the rat was hiding. "Please forgive me."

Ever since they had returned to the silent solitude of the empty Vigilance Library, the rat had sulked as he struggled to process Branwenn's warnings to Marvela in the tree. He had heard everything the crow had said about Asra's plan and the true fate of Marvela's witch. It had been a shock to find that the world of witchcraft hadn't been as whimsical as he had originally thought. He was shaken to discover that it had hidden dark secrets from him.

Just like Marvela had done.

In the blackness beneath the bookshelf, a white shape finally stirred. "Just because you owe me an apology," Marvela heard a shaky voice squeak. "That doesn't mean I owe you my forgiveness."

The kitten retreated from the shelf with her head hanging. She regretted not telling Curious the true origin of her powers and the wicked plot that she was entwined in. But how could she possibly explain her situation to him when she barely understood it herself? She hadn't wanted to scare him away. She had needed a friend.

Now, more than ever, she needed a friend.

A little white pointed snout peered out at the cat. Black eyes glistened warmly behind raised whiskers. "But..." Curious said. "I do forgive you."

Marvela's tiny heart fluttered like a butterfly. She padded back to her rat and scooped him up in the tightest of hugs.

"Yeah," the rat said, wheezing, as he struggled for breath in her embrace. "You got me out of the hole in the ground for good and gave me some of your magic, so I guess I still owe you one." He wriggled free from Marvela and plopped down on the floor next to her with a grunt. "And honestly," he continued, dusting off his fur. "It's been fun hanging out with you. So, if you're involved in some evil control-of-all-magic-in-Vigilance plot, then tell me what I can do to help you. I'm still your familiar after all!"

The rat beamed up at Marvela, and the cat couldn't help but smile back.

"Thank you, Curious," she purred. "But first things first. Let's get this potion made."

Her fur prickled more than ever after their shenanigans at the pumpkin patch. Marvela prodded at the chewed-up bone they had brought with them. With a snap of his fingers, the rat took off in search of the remaining ingredients. It wasn't long before Curious returned with a flowerpot in tow.

"Excellent work, Curious!" Marvela cheered on the grinning rat as she gazed into the water sloshing inside the pot. A short length of an uprooted clematis vine floated inside the vessel. A single purple flower gazed up at the cat and the rat as if it were an intrigued eyeball.

Marvela gathered her spellbook from its hiding place and opened it to the desired spell. Following the instructions, she removed the dripping vine from the water and wrapped it around the bone. She returned the bone and the vine to the pot, where it floated in the crystal-clear water like a boat in a still pond.

"And now the last ingredient..." Marvela said as she gripped the edges of the flowerpot with her paws. "The magic."

She summoned her magic like a person would beckon a skittish animal from the woods. She softly called to it in her mind and let it come to her. She couldn't help feeling relieved as her magic slunk out of the shadows to obey her. Under her control, orange wisps of light left her paws and spilled into the pot like a heavy mist. At the magic's touch, the vine blossomed with more flowers, and the water took on a shimmering iridescent sheen.

Cautiously, Marvela dipped a paw into the opalescent potion.

A cold shiver ran down her body. Spectral wind swept through the room like a sigh, stirring books on the shelves and lifting stray papers into the air as if they were moths. And Marvela sighed, too, as instantly the annoying stinging pain that had plagued her evaporated. She removed her paw from the potion to admire her now lush and silky midnight-black coat. Her white star almost seemed to shine.