Love Potion

✬ --- ✧ Chapter five : Side effects ✧ --- ✬

The group followed diligently. Now that she was thinking about it, Max remembered Hebaron being one of the Remdragons as well. The tall and cheerful man was hard to miss. As they went up the stairs she wondered how many members the Remdragon club had. She hoped there would not be too many people at that party... What if she started panicking and couldn't talk properly ? She could not make a fool of herself in front of the best people of the Academy; her father would kill her. Feeling her anxiety building up, Max tried to keep calm. Her hands were holding the gift basket she brought a little too hard and she had to remind herself to loosen her grip.

As if he sensed her uneasiness, Hebaron put his hand on her shoulder and guided her to the main room. That's when he noticed the gift basket.

"Oh, is that for us, miss ?" Max nodded, too shy to talk. "How nice of you !"

She felt ashamed of her gift for a moment but Hebaron's smile made her feel better. He took the basket and turned around so everyone could see him - and Max just stood next to him.

"Hey everyone, this is our new friend, Maximilian Croix ! Some of us already know her, she worked with us during this semester. Look, she even brought a gift, isn't she nice ?"

Max was mortified. He seemed so friendly, but how could he betray her and present her like that in front of everyone ? Her face became beet red because of a mix of hate and shame. If she could, she would have hit his head very hard but at the same time she wished she was tiny enough to hide in a mouse hole. Everyone was looking at them. Some welcomed her loudly, and a few even clapped their hands, but they quickly went back to chatting, eating and drinking like nothing happened.

Max sighed from relief but she wasn't free yet. Hebaron still had his hand on her shoulder and he brought her to a table full of people. She was happy to see familiar faces among them : Gabel, Elliot and even Ruth were there. She greeted them with a simple smile. She was sure to stutter if she had to talk right away. However, someone she didn't know greeted her warmly.

"Hello Maximilian, I'm Agnes, it's a pleasure to meet you ! Please sit with us and have a drink !" As Max obeyed, Agnes added : "You know, I've heard a lot about you. I was eager to meet you !"

The woman had long golden hair and piercing blue eyes. Even though she was seated, Max could tell she was tall and slender. She exuded a natural aura of authority but her expression was so friendly, Max started to feel more at ease. They wound up talking for a long time. Agnes was geniously curious about her. She asked Max about her work with the Remdragons but also more personal questions like what she liked, who were her friends, who was her favorite professor ...