Page 42 of Surviving in Everton

“Now, Rowen, has this happened before? Your magic acting on its own?” I look at him in surprise and he chuckles. “I knowyoudidn’t tell your magic to hurt Hudson.”

“Oh, right,” I chuckle self-deprecatingly. “No that’s the first time, but I have been having mood swings and holes in my memory,” I admit.

“I see.” He sighs as he wraps up Hud’s hand. He turns to me and I can tell I’m not going to like what he’s about to say. “The magic has been on your brain for too long. It’s starting to affect you in unpredictable ways. The mood swings? They’ve been mostly irrational anger, haven’t they?”

“How’d you know that?” I swallow the lump in my throat. If he knows what’s going on, surely he can tell us how to make it stop.

“Your husband, his intent with this spell was mainly to force you to not be yourself. Everything he did while you were together, was him controlling you and slowly changing you.” I nod slowly, because he’s pretty on point so far. “Well, his intent is still within the magic. I think the magic is taking his core intent and manifesting it in different ways depending on what’s going on with you at the time. Take for example the irrational anger. When that happens, there’s a reason behind it. You may be feeling a fraction of the anger or frustration, but the magic takes that and amplifies it to a level that would go against your true personality. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah… it kinda does. I know I was feeling frustrated earlier when Hudson just assumed I would want him to come with me today, but really just a little, and I blew up on him for it.” I look at Hudson with a sad smile, and he offers me a loving one in return.

“Exactly. With this magic in you, it can take the smallest feeling and turn it into something near apocalyptic. You have to be very careful with your thoughts and feelings, so the magic doesn’t take over. What were you thinking earlier when you shocked Hudson?”

“Uhhh...” I bite my bottom lip as my face heats up.

“It’s okay, Rowen, you can tell me.”

“Okay.” I sigh. “I was mad at how you greeted us. You asked how we were doing today, and it pissed me off. I mean how do you think we’re fucking doing?!?” Blue sparks shoot from my hand and hit the wheel of Dr. Johnston’s stool.

“Yes. That’s exactly what I mean when I say you need to be careful with your thoughts and feelings.” He scoots his stool a little further away from me. “I understand it’s not fathomable toneverget mad, but hopefully if you realize you’re getting upset or you know something will upset you, you can think of something else before the magic has time to take over. Obviously, that’s a short term solution, but it should be enough to stop you from unintentionally using your magic again. At least until we figure out who did this and can make the dissipation potion.”

“So if we make this potion, she’ll go back to normal?” Hudson jumps in. “There won’t be any permanent damage?” he asks, his voice shaking, can’t blame him, I’m worried about the same thing.

“I really can’t say. I know that’s not what you want to hear, but the potion is our only option. There’s nothing else we can do. Worst case scenario, it will at least prevent the tumor from growing, but hopefully it will shrink it. Obviously we’re all praying it will completely eradicate the tumor and there will be no lasting side effects, but we can’t know for sure until we cross that bridge.”

“Do you know anything else about the potion that was used on her? Or how to make the dissipation potion?” Hudson is quick with another question as soon as the doc gets done talking.

“Yes, sorry, that’s actually why I called you in today. I got a little distracted talking about the symptoms you’re experiencing.” He offers me a kind smile. “I was able to determine what kind of potion was used. Every spell is unique to the caster, and this is no different, but after talking to several of my colleagues, we were able to locate a potion that works off of a spell it was created with, as well as the user’s intent.

“This kind of potion is actually very popular in the black market, because even people without magic can use it. The problem with it is, it takes a talented spellcaster to make it properly. Based on Rowen’s numerous side effects, I’d say whoever made this potion, didn’t know what they were doing. In plain terms, their magic abilities are very… lacking. If a powerful and knowledgeable spellcaster had made it, you would have never even known you were being spelled.”

“Do you know how to make the dissipation potion? Can we just use that? Do we even need to find the person that did this?” I ask hopefully.

“I can help you make the potion, but I only know what kind was used, not the spell that wasinthe potion. You’ll have to get the person who made it tell you that.Thenwe can make the dissipation potion thatshoulddissolve the foreign magic,” he explains.

“How long does it take to make? How soon can we do it?” Hudson asks.

“I’m not sure, since I haven’t personally made it before. You’ll need a skilled spellcaster,” he starts, but Hudson interrupts him.

“Declan is the best spellcaster in the tri-state area,” he insists. Huh, I had no idea Dec was that good. I know he’s an amazing teacher, but I didn’t know he was a spellcaster. That’s a whole different skill than just using magic.

“Well, that’s good. You’ll also need the ingredients of the particular potion. I’ll write that down for you, so you can go ahead and get everything ready. You’ll need someone with an exceptionally strong will to use their intent to power the spell.”

“Does it have to be one person’s intent? Would more intention going into it make it stronger?” Hudson asks.

“I don’t know. I’ve never heard of a potion being given by multiple people like that. I mean, I have to imagine the more intention given to it, the stronger it would be. I don’t see how it could hurt anyway,” he agrees with a shrug.

“Thanks, Dr. Johnston. If you could write down the name of the potion and how to make it, that’d be great. We’d like to make sure we have everything ready,” Hudson tells him.

“Of course. I’ll get that for you before you leave. Rowen.” He turns his focus on me. “I’d like to do another scan to see if there’s been any change. With the intensity of symptoms you’ve been having today, it’s prudent we determine if the magic is altering in any way.”

I bite my lip and nod as I stand to lay down on the bed. I close my eyes as he does the scan and try not to let the worry and frustration over not knowing what’s happening to me take hold in my mind. I don’t need my magic to go crazy again. Ugh now the guys arenevergoing to leave me alone. Obviously I can’t be trusted to control my magic right now. I just wish we knew how to make it stop. Hopefully the guys figure out who did this soon.

“Okay, Rowen, I’m done.”

I open my eyes and Dr. Johnston is holding his hand out to help me sit up.

“The tumor seems to be smaller,” he starts.

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