Chapter 4

It was four in the morning. Firecrackers got into the car with Sky. It was awkward because they were blindfolded and kept stumbling into things and each other.

Pumpkin would drive them home with a letter from the MSS explaining what had happened that night. Goose was driving the girls.

Firecrackers fell asleep in the back of the car, lying across the row and resting his head right on top of Sky's legs.

Firecrackers' horn poked into Sky's chest, but he hardly noticed. He was restless, thinking about their clumsy theft attempt, freaking out over the image of Paperweight's face plastered in his head, and worrying about what his parents would do to him tomorrow.

They had signed a confidentiality agreement that they would not talk about the "deal" with anyone else. It was official-looking, with red fingerprints and all, warning them of the consequences should they break the agreement. Sky couldn't remember whether the agreement allowed them to talk to each other about it.

After a while, he felt the car park. Pumpkin opened the back door and took their blindfolds off, shaking Firecrackers awake. They were at his grocery store. It was open again, and a person could be seen inside. His mom or dad, Sky wasn't sure. Pumpkin escorted Firecrackers inside.

They were on the road again. Soon they reached Sky's home. Pumpkin parked the car off the side of the road.

Sky reached for the door handle, but it was locked.

"Officer Pumpkin? Can you open the door?"

Pumpkin did not reply. Their eyes met in the rearview mirror. Sky quickly averted his gaze.

Pumpkin finally spoke. "What a day, huh? And it's hardly even started."

Sky did not know how to reply. He tugged on the handle again. Firmly locked.

"Does it still hurt?"

"A little." His wrists were still sore, and his head throbbed.

"That Sparky girl sure was a lot," Pumpkin said. "How did you kids meet?"

"We're classmates." Is this another interrogation?

"Don't you ever get… tired of her?"

"Sometimes, I guess." Sky didn't know where this was going.

"How do you do in school?"

Here we go. Every single adult's favorite question. "Average."

"You could be better."

"Thanks."

"I'm not just saying. Officer Paperweight told me that. He sees through everyone."

"Mind-reader?"

"No. Just seen a lot." A pause. "How about Sparky?"

"Oh man, the school's considering expelling her to make their stats look better."

Pumpkin snickered. "Are you busy this summer?"

"Pretty much," Sky groaned. "Lots of classes."

"Sparky would probably drag you on that little quest with her."

"Totally."

"Got extra time at night?"

"Why?"

"You can make yourself useful."

"How?"

"Come to us every night. Tell us what you and your friends did with regards to the nuke quest."

"What? Why?"

"Because it's dangerous. You could get in real danger. We'll have to stop you before any of you get into serious trouble. It's our duty to protect the citizens of Bauhinia. And you can help us."

"Why me?"

"Sparky is a no-go. She's the one we have to be on guard against. We considered Firecrackers and Qibli, but Qibli would probably forget all the details, and Firecrackers would tell you guys about it. You won't forget anything, and you could keep a secret."

That sounded exactly like what Qibli and Firecrackers would do. "But what if I don't have time?"

"It won't take long."

"I still don't know." The sun was rising.

"Yes or no, I need an answer now." Pumpkin turned around in his seat and looked Sky in the eye. "You're helping us in doing this, Sky. You're assisting us in safeguarding the Bauhinian people!" He was nervous. What if he refuses?

Sky averted his gaze again. But he said yes.

"Great!" Pumpkin flashed a genuine smile. "You're probably gonna sleep through this day anyways, so I'll come by tomorrow evening."

Sky didn't know what he had gotten himself into, but he felt excited. He felt like he could hear his heart thumping. He was a part of something greater. He knew something Sparky didn't know! Was he going to get rewarded at the end? Was he…

"Are you getting off?" Pumpkin was holding the door open.

"Oops," Sky said awkwardly. He got off the car. Pumpkin walked him to his home and delivered the letter to his parents, telling them to cancel his classes that day and let him rest.

Magic school was there every day, and nothing could stop it from happening.

She had to walk past Trinket near the front rows of the bus. She was starting to think that Trinket sat there on purpose to annoy her. Thank fuck she didn't tell the Arch-Magician about the book though.

They arrived at school, put their wands into their little boxes as usual, and sat down, waiting for the Arch-Magician to show up.

Today was the 3rd of August. She scribbled "2031-08-03" on a piece of scratch paper torn from a notebook and shoved it into her pocket. At break time, she slipped the paper beneath that mystery door to the outside world again.

It was starting to become a ritual. Even if the pieces were most likely obliterated upon exit.

When she walked past the janitor's closet in the hallway, she felt compelled to open it and touch the book again. Just a little stroke to the spine. Was this a part of the ritual?

The preparation bell rang. She returned to the classroom. Trinket was holding her wrist high up in the air, making the ceiling light glow in different colors, while the others complained. The Arch-Magician came back and told her to put her bracelet back into the wand box. Qibli smiled a tiny bit.

She spent most of her time sleeping as usual. The book had taught her everything she needed to know — and more. But she dared not show it.

Firecrackers got a berating for shutting down the grocery store after coaxing his parents to sleep. Pumpkin had been no help. He was stuck behind the counter with heavy bags under his eyes, unable to sleep. After dinner, he plopped face-down onto his bed and passed out before his head touched the pillow.

The next morning, he was woken at 9 sharp by his mom.

"Your friends are here!"

He wanted to tell them to fuck off. He hadn't even changed his clothes since the day they found the nuke. His underwear was sticky.

He took his sweet time taking a shower while Sparky stood in the grocery store, cursing everyone to the moon and back, and buying stuff whenever their presence was starting to feel unwelcome. Finally, Firecrackers came out.

"Alright, motherfucker," Sparky said, "we're going to that house again."

Why the fuck.

"To search for evidence that could lead us to the nuke's origins!"

Firecrackers wanted to roll his eyes, but he didn't want to stay in the grocery store. Might as well go.

Sparky came in a car.

Is this legal?

She flashed her license at Firecrackers. "Totally," she grinned.

How did you even get that?

Sparky just smiled and shook her head. "Get on."

He sat in the back with Qibli, but not before flipping her a bird. They parked on the road beside the abandoned house.

"We had already sniffed the entire place out last time," Qibli said. "I'm not sure we were going to find anything else."

"Ahem. I sniffed the place. Literally. You stood there and did nothing." Sparky hopped down from the car.

"Besides, we were looking for the cat," Sky added. "This time we have a different focus, so we might find something new."

Qibli really wanted to lie down on the backseats while they went outside. Still, she got up.

"Me and Sky will search the basement," Sparky started.

Qibli felt compelled to interrupt. "Sky and I."

"No, not you," Sparky snapped. "I have a flashlight." She waved her phone at Qibli. "You and Crackers are doing the first and second floors."

Qibli sighed to herself.

Firecrackers did not know what to look for in a room of bare cement. He tried putting his ears against the wall while knocking on it, but then remembered he had no ears¹. Qibli tried casting a detection spell but wound up hitting her own forehead with the wand.

She went outside. A cat was standing on the low, half-built wall. The gray tabby! She rushed over and grabbed it with her magic.

Her neighbor thanked her and treated the kids to ice cream. Sparky couldn't wait to get back to the house. She glanced around, making sure that the neighbor wasn't within earshot.

"We found out how they got the nuke into the basement," she said in a hushed voice.

Let me guess. Through the entrance?

"Yes, through the entrance! There are scratch marks on the stairs leading up to the first floor."

Firecrackers rolled his eyes. Sparky didn't get why.

"Of course they got it in through the entrance. It was the only way to get anything inside." Qibli explained.

Sparky had long finished her share of ice cream and was staring hungrily at Qibli's. She shoved it to Sparky.

"I'm going home," she said.

"What?" Sparky reached for her. "Why?"

"There wasn't anything to find," Qibli said.

Firecrackers nodded and stood up. Sparky turned towards Sky.

"It's true. We have no idea where to start," he shrugged.

"Alright, if you motherfuckers have to be such downers," Sparky yelled after Qibli and Firecrackers, "we're also coming tomorrow! Don't you stay home!"

Sky sighed. He thanked Qibli's neighbor and left too. Sparky sat at their table alone, seething for a while before also leaving, but not before finishing Qibli's ice cream.

Pumpkin was waiting for him at the entrance of the apartment building. "How was the day?"

"Did you really think we could find anything at all?"

"That's not my judgement to give."

"Well then, I have nothing to report," Sky shrugged and pushed open the gate.

"Wait, stay with me! If I go back too early they'd think I slacked off!"

Sky stared at him dumbfounded. "Seriously?"

"Let's go get some kebabs," Pumpkin pointed a thumb behind himself. "I'm hungry."

"Can't you just go yourself?"

"Don't you want kebabs?"

Sky still had his hand on the metal door for a while. Then he released it, letting it screech shut. "Sure."

The kebabs were a little too oily. Sky kept drinking tea after each one.

"Do you really have no idea how to approach this case?" Pumpkin asked. The restaurant was loud, full of late-night patrons, and Sky had to pay close attention to hear him.

"No," Sky admitted. "It was just Sparky constantly bugging us. She's pretty much all nonsense."

Pumpkin chuckled. "But she has something none of you three have," he said with a mouthful of mutton.

"What is it?" Sky asked.

Instead of answering, Pumpkin said, "Do you want to know how we would approach this?"

Sky raised his eyebrows. "How?"

"We'd check our database of international smugglers and see if any of those folks had been up to no good recently."

Sky's eyebrows drooped into a frown. "We don't have anything like that."

"We'd also consider the people who want a nuke."

"Sparky," Sky said.

"And rich enough to buy one."

"Sparky," Sky said again. "Her dad is stupidly rich."

Pumpkin looked at him expectantly.

Sky sat there, dumbfounded for a while, and suddenly his eyes widened. "It's Sparky who bought the nuke?"

Pumpkin slapped his own forehead, snatched Sky's half-eaten kebab from his hand, and stood up to leave. "I thought you were the smart one!"

"Wait!" Sky called after him. "You haven't paid the bill!"

He raced Pumpkin out into the street, but he had long since disappeared into the night. Sky had to call his parents for money, pretending he'd had the meal with his friends. They paid, but not without scolding him for a good while. He was sent to bed early.

The next day, Sparky called everyone again. To the house again! We're bound to find something this time.

The three friends groaned, in separate homes but sharing the same tired heart. Qibli went right back to sleep. Firecrackers said he needed to man the grocery store. Sky had to come, not only because Sparky would throw a tantrum, but also because he needed something to report to Pumpkin.

He sighed and dragged himself out of bed.