nulli secunda

[witch_perfect]

Alli's out of Lethe's Bramble again. She found a reference to a potion- almost like a memory purge but backwards, it's a memory aid. But she keeps getting it wrong, and all she has to show for it is a lack of potion ingredients and distinct difficulty remembering the last three books she read.

She planned for that, at least; they're not school books or anything. But she wants to get this potion right,and more importantly, she wants to have it done before exams. So today she can be found in the Magic Box, digging through the herb selections.

"Ugh, least organized spices ever," she mutters to herself.

Comments

[cross_and_bow]

"What kind of expiration date do potions come with?"

[witch_perfect]

"Depends a lot on the potion. And the books are awful sometimes, it's like- imagine you're trying to make dinner, and you are making chicken from a recipe. And you do the marinade, or whatever, and then the last step is just 'cook until done'. No time frame, no temperature, no nothing. That is potion making."

[cross_and_bow]

"So this isn't necessarily something I can keep a vial of in my back pocket for a mnemonic emergency - if I am a total dud will it mess things up if I chop your ingredients, I wonder?"

[witch_perfect]

"I doubt it. I've used spices from the grocery store before and it worked okay, and those cannot possibly all be Magic Safe.

[cross_and_bow]

"Unless duds are very rare. But okay, I'll come over and help - how do you get home usually?"

[witch_perfect]

"Walk if it's nice, bus if it's not. Soph, you joining? Learn a potion?"

[keyed_up]

"Sure, why not. If we're both going with you we can give you a ride home."

[witch_perfect]

"Ooooh, fancy. Ride sounds great, thanks!"

[keyed_up]

"Dad got us a car to share as a welcome present."

[witch_perfect]

"Wicked! If I ever need a dad, I am borrowing yours."

[cross_and_bow]

"Unorthodox, but maybe you could make it work."

[witch_perfect]

"Pfft, yeah, what could go wrong there."

[cross_and_bow]

"Let me count the ways. Anyway, when should we go?"

[witch_perfect]

"I'm good to go whenever. Your car though, your call."

[cross_and_bow]

"I'll check some things out and we can hit the road."

She checks some things out. They hit the road.

[witch_perfect]

Alli's house is a ten minute drive away. It's little and cute and ever so subtly neglected, in that way that houses with occupants who will only occasionally remember things like 'hedges require trimming' can get. Alli bounds into the front room, yells for her mom, and upon receiving no response determines the house empty.

"All clear!" she reports cheerfully. "Mom's still at work, I guess. Come on, I'll show you the Witching Room."

The 'Witching Room' turns out to be a small room upstairs, too small to be a bedroom but with no obvious alternate purpose, tucked at the end of the hall to one side of Alli's bedroom. It's long and thin and the front part is pretty obviously being used for random whatever-we-toss-in-here style storage, but Alli navigates a path between boxes with the ease of practice. "Voila!"

The back part is cleared out, with boxes stacked in front to block the view from the front of the room; there's a small, battered bookshelf containing occult books and various spell components, and a small cauldron on a bunsen burner. Alli starts rummaging through her ingredients. "Okay, the bramble needs chopping and the thyme needs steeping, who wants what?"

[cross_and_bow]

"I'll chop."

[keyed_up]

"Is steeping just like tea or is it complicated?"

[witch_perfect]

Bella is handed a knife and a 'chopping board' clearly re-purposed from some broken furniture, along with the Magic Box bag of Lethe's Bramble. Soph receives the cauldron and a suspiciously grocery store style bottle of dried thyme. "Almost like tea. Except for the part where we take the leaves out, I guess. Water, boil, remove from heat, add leaves, let sit for twelve minutes, put back on the heat."

Alli then occupies herself digging out and measuring the remaining ingredients from her probably-has-a-system shelving.

[keyed_up]

Soph gets started on that.

[cross_and_bow]

"How fine do you want this cut?"

[witch_perfect]

"It's not super clear, but I think pretty damn fine. Let me know if you get tired or something."

[cross_and_bow]

"Mm-hm."

Bella starts shredding the bramble methodically.

[witch_perfect]

Once the ingredients are ready, they get to be added to the thyme-water. In a particular order, in particular quantities, and each with a phrase in Latin from Alli's spellbook, as corrected per their earlier library adventures. Eventually the potion has turned a deep, deep purple (which is mildly confusing, as nothing that went into it actually was that color). Alli stirs it three times counter clockwise, sighs morosely and sets an alarm. "And now to do that every fifteen minutes for the next six hours."

[cross_and_bow]

"We can't stay that long, sorry."