Wasperine Venom from a Nathurian insect
Two drops of Dragon’s blood.
I eyed the dragon’s blood more than a few times. Last time we messed with an ingredient involving a dragon, Remy and I were knocked out.
“Worst case scenario, he gets a sour stomach.” I mentally crossed my fingers it wouldn’t happen. Thankfully, that’s all the side effects I could figure out. No passing out or dying. Just might need to take it easy at dinner time.
The final ingredient was a dash of my magic, intentional magic to be specific. I raised my wand and held the tip over the bubbling potion.
With my eyes on the sapphire in my wand, I thought of the truth.
“Nicely done,” Remy commented, and I watched the potion turn clear like water. She held out a bottle with an eye dropper lid in her other hand while I poured the potion inside.
Remy closed the bottle and looked me over. “You should wear a black bra and that sheer star top and the wide leg pants. The arousal will cause him to be distracted and make more mistakes.”
She had a point, but I didn’t think that was necessary. Ethan wasn’t dumb, he’d see me wear something sexy like that and be suspicious. Especially if he was worried we were onto him.
My roommate looked at her tablet then pointed to my phone. “Has he replied to your text yet?”
“Yep. About a minute later actually. We’re meeting in thirty minutes at the gazebo.” I tossed on my sweater for the chilly weather and grabbed the cooled bottle.
“I’ve stationed a few armors and Jemison nearby to keep an eye on you. If you need help, they’ll assist.” She lifted her tablet to show me a video of the gazebo, then a metal hand popped into view with a thumbs up. It went without saying that she’d be watching through at least one of the armor’s viewpoints.
“Thanks for having my back.”
“Uh huh.” She quickly focused on the tablet again, probably worried I’d get mushy on her. She was in luck because I would have if I didn’t have to start my walk to the gazebo now.
“Here’s to finding out the truth.” I raised the bottle, and she touched the rounded corner of her tablet to it gently.
***
Twenty-Eight Minutes later
“Hey! I brought tea and a warm hug,” Ethan announced as he stepped into the gazebo, then set the cups on the bench beside me. His arms were wide and while I didn’t want a hug, I stood and gave him one anyways. I was the distressed girlfriend in need of comfort after all.
“Thank you. It’s just been a lot.” I tried to extract myself from his hold, but he held on for a moment longer then released me.
“I bet. He seemed like a cool guy. Everyonelovedhim. I’m sorry you’re caught in this mess,” he said as we sat on the bench.
He waited with hopeful eyes, and I hoped he didn’t do it. Ethan wanted a second chance at life like I did. Why mess that up with violence?
“The reporters are intense. He’s not a nobody. He’s known worldwide. There’s no privacy. I’m getting bombarded left and right, and I just want to learn, you know?”
All true, but it was technically true for everyone at the school. None of us had privacy right now. Ethan nodded and handed me a drink.
“I—” He started to speak, then paused. His eyes widened as he shot up and ambled over to the railing. Perfect timing.
I’d noticed the lake creature put on a show at this time weeks ago. I hoped it would distract him while I put the serum in his drink. Just three little drops, and I was done.
“This is incredible.” His voice was full of awe and wonder.
My stomach churned. Was I making a mistake? His comment was weird but maybe he was just weird and there wasn’t anything nefarious happening. I gripped his cup and mine then walked over to the railing.
Time to get the truth.
“Thanks.” He accepted my cup with gratitude as I leaned on the railing beside him to watch the creature.
“Do you think you’ll stay with him after all this?” He sipped his tea, and I watched for any signs of discomfort on his face. Did it taste weird? It shouldn’t have any flavor despite the sour ingredients. I was hoping it wouldn’t hurt either, and by the relaxed expression on his face, I’d say the potion was fine. We just needed a few minutes for it to start working.
