Eva was watching me, and I had no doubt that my cheeks matched my hair color. “Hmm,” was all she said, then she switched gears as if the whole “in heat” thing didn’t exist. “Alright, honey, I need a strand of that gorgeous hair,” she said, reaching out and yanking apiece.
Ow.
She coiled the hair into the mortar and pestle, and the second it hit the powder, it puffed with a bright green light that flickered purple for asecond.
“Ohh, I love the color of dragon magic,” Eva said,smiling.
I returned her smile; it was hard not to like her. She had an open and friendlypersonality.
“So, are you like … a lead Sorceress or something?” I asked stupidly. I didn’t know what they were called, but this woman was clearly theboss.
This time laughter spilled from her throat. “You could say that,” she answeredcoyly.
“Hah!” Logan barked and I looked over to see him casually leafing through a book like this was just another Friday night. “She is being modest. Which she never is, by theway.”
Eva scoffed and spit her tongue out athim.
“Ninety-nine percent of magic users are watered down with human DNA. Most don’t even know they have magic. They call themselves lucky or intuitive. They wish for things to happen and sometimes get their way. But Eva is one of the very few and very rare full-blooded magic wielders. Her Sorceress powers cannot be matched by many.” Logan informedme.
Whoa, that was comforting and nerve-racking at the sametime.
Eva leaned into me. “My ego doesn’t need any boosting either. Remember that,” shejoked.
I smiled. “Willdo.”
Eva walked over to a jar on the wall and pulled it down. The fluid was a clear-ish yellow, and as she poured it into the bowl, I tried to convince myself it wasn’t morepee.
“What is that?” Isqueaked.
She turned and made her way back over to me, swirling the bowl as she walked. Green sparks were shooting off of it. “Best not to ask those questions dear,” sheanswered.
Oh shit. It was totally pee. She leaned over and pulled a big jar of honey out. It was one of those bear squeeze ones from themarket.
“That’s a special ingredient?” I musedaloud.
Eva squeezed a heaping spoonful in and stirred it with a spoon. “Makes it palatable,dear.”
Oh hell no. I was NOT drinkingthat.
“Bottoms up. This won’t change who you are one bit, but it will fool most of the magical idiots that roam this earth.” She handed me thebowl.
Ugh. I could see crap floating in it, and my hair! I couldn’t drink this! I was ninety-eight percent sure that she’d poured wolf pee intoit.
I was about to object when, “I’ve done it,” Logan called from behind me, as if that would make me feel better. Well, a little I guess. But standing in a velvet purple bikini about to drink hair, pee, and God knows what else, made it hard to control my gagreflex.
“The faster you drink it, the faster I can find out who kept your dragon hidden for twenty years,” Evamused.
My eyes widened. She could find that out? Okay, screw it. Without over-thinking it, I opened my mouth and threw the potion down the hatch. Besides, if this was some paranoid delusion, maybe this much repulsion would wake meup.
Oh gag!The bitter, lukewarm fluid hit my tongue and I gagged, but took the contents down in one gulp. I coughed, about to throw it up, when Eva shoved a water bottle in my face. Grabbing it, I chugged half the bottle until the taste finallylessened.
I’d just drank my own hair. The thought was more psychologically disturbing than I thought it would be. A warm soothing wave worked down my body from head to toe, leaving a slight tingle in itswake.
Finally, a popping noise emitted right behind me, or in me. I couldn’t tell. And Eva clapped her hands. “Perfect!”
I lifted up one arm and took a whiff, scrunching my face in disgust. “I smell mildly ofdog.”
Logan gave a strangled laugh. “Don’t tell Keegan or Nadinethat.”
