Page 91 of Potions and Proposals
“Moving in together?” he whispered, following her into the staff entrance of the theatre. No one asked for their tickets.Where the hell is she taking me?
“I don’t think we’re in any position to talk about moving too fast in a relationship.” She threw her words over her shoulder, leading him past the tiered seats in front of the stage.
“We’ve known each other since forever– it’s different!” Benedict barely got the words out before he was shushed by a family.
She held her fingers to her lips as she slipped behind the red curtain concealing the stairs to the back of the stage. In the flurry of activity backstage, they went unnoticed. Benedict watched in bewilderment as Lucinda led him to an empty prop room and pushed on a wooden statue carved into the wall. He thought she’d lost her mind for a second, but then she disappeared into a secret stone passage. He followed.
“How’d you even know there was a tunnel here?” Benedict asked, brushing a cobweb from her shoulder. The passage smelt like damp and clothing left in the wardrobe for too long, which made sense, considering that most of it was filled with old costumes and stage sets long forgotten about. He estimated they’d been walking for about fifteen minutes, but it looked like they’d reached the end now.
“I found it by accident when I was forced into compulsory theatre class in my first year at uni. I didn’t have to take part if they couldn’t find me,” Lucinda explained, pressing on a stone.
“Aren’t you just full of secrets? I’ve got to admit, I didn’t think you’d be skipping class, creeping around secret passagesand stealing keys,” he marvelled as the door opened out into the university library. Light filtered in through the long, arched windows, revealing rows of old books.
“You said you didn’t want to break in. Since no locks were involved, I don’t think this counts, and I didn’t steal the key, I merely borrowed it,” Lucinda said proudly.
Benedict shook his head, torn between amusement and concern. She might technically be correct, but he didn’t want to think about what would happen if they were caught in the ancient relic section after hours with a stolen key.
Lucy unlocked the steel door to the restricted relics section at the back of the library. The loud creak as she pulled it open made her cringe. Hopefully the security guard wandering around the various floors of the university would be too far away to notice the disturbance.
“Let’s get this over with,” Benedict said at her back.
Lucy nodded, closing the door behind them before he changed his mind. She understood his hesitation; he’d be blamed if they were caught. No one would suspectshewas the mastermind behind a plot to steal from an Order member and break into the university during one of the most important events of the year.
They searched glass case after case until they found the Dragon bestiary. A vial of chalk-like dust was suspended above the open book illustrating the vicious slaying of the wingedbeast. Lucinda didn’t hesitate to use Emerson’s key to unlock the case. She reached for the vial, but Benedict’s hand clamped around her wrist.
“We’ll have to break the wax seal,” he whispered, looking at the red wax sealing the powdered venom within the vial. “When they do their routine checks, there’s no way they won’t notice a seal that’s been tampered with, and that key will lead them back to Emerson. All keys are charmed to reveal their owner, remember?”
“Not if I can reseal it with your fire,” Lucy said confidently.
“Too much heat and you could smash it altogether.”
“I’ll just melt the wax seal.” She reached for the suspended vial and disconnected it from the glass hook.
“Are you sure you can maintain control?”
“I can only try.” Lucy used the side of the key to break the wax seal, going past the point of return. “We need something to hold the powdered venom.”
“I have this,” Benedict said, removing a small pill box in his pocket. She looked at the small box, wondering if it closed tight enough to keep the fine powder safe, but they didn’t have a choice.
“It’ll have to do,” she said, tipping out the gum it contained into his hand. He popped them in his pocket.
Uncorking the vial, she tapped out about half a teaspoon’s worth. The venom in powdered form would be concentrated, and she didn’t want to kill them by accident. She needed just enough to strip their element, and then the reset of the potion should restore it. Death by dragon venom in Foxford in the twenty-first century would certainly raise a few eyebrows.
“Pumpkin, hurry up!”
Lucy nearly dropped the vial at his sudden urging. She wanted to snap back at him, but they needed to keep quiet.
“I’m going as fast as I can,” she hissed, corking it again and handing Benedict the pill box. He popped it in his jacket pocket as she summoned his element.
“Careful,” he breathed, so close she could barely concentrate on the melting wax. Her skin blazed, but she managed to contain the flow of heat as she resealed the vial. “That’s enough. Any more and the vial will warp,” Benedict instructed, his voice gentle and cautious rather than commanding.
Lucy admired her work. The red wax was a little too shiny for an old relic, but it would dull once it cooled. Benedict hissed as she handed him the heated vial; it was petty, but he deserved it for spooking her.
“Why do you have to call me pumpkin just to annoy me?” she asked, locking the case once he’d put it back in its rightful place.
“I never intended to annoy you. It’s just my favourite. The food that makes me feel like I’m home,” he admitted, like it wasn’t supposed to turn her into a puddle of mush.
She swallowed, unsure of what to say, of what it meant. Was he messing with her? But the way his eyes narrowed, waiting for her to respond, forced her to acknowledge the confession as true.
