Two Sides of the Same Coin: An Owl and a Wolf

Chapter 16: A Potion Drained, Will Keep The Wolf Tamed

Eda had said she would be gone for a couple of days to do 'undisclosed things' so Luz took the opportunity to do her own 'undisclosed things' involving a certain elixir. Once Eda was gone, Luz got to work.

She retrieved her potion belt, dagger, notebook, and of course her staff- still disguised as a pen, and finally her phone. She headed out of her room while flipping through the pictures on her phone.

While heading down the stairs she stopped on the picture with the list of ingredients she needed for her elixir. She squinted at it, reading the list of ingredients and seeing which ones would be easier to get.

Thyme Leaves and Lavender would be the easiest to get, just finding them in the wild. Fire Bee Honey would be more difficult but not impossible with her new ice glyph and staff. Burdock Root had to be bought, since it closely resembles a poisonous plant and the two are often next to each other in the wild. Luz didn't trust herself to tell the difference between the two- never having to gather ingredients before. Rose Thorns were rare and expensive, but had to be bought as well. Along with Silverwing Powder.

Luz headed into the living room and to the front door, King was sleeping on the couch as she walked past him. Opening the door revealed Hooty, who enthusiastically greeted her a good afternoon. Luz quickly shushed the house demon and slipped outside, luckily without waking King.

"Where are you off too?" Hooty asked after Luz closed the door, she winced at the sound of his voice so close to her sensitive ears. "Just going to get some ingredients." She replied casually. Hooty tilted his head before replying "to make more of that potion you drink?" Luz's eyes widened in alarm.

"How'd you know about that!?" Luz whisper shouted, an edge of panic in her tone. "Since the first time you drank one. It looks a lot like Eda's elixirs." Hooty replied cheerfully, not realizing the rising panic in Luz's face. "What else do you know?" Luz questioned hastily. Hooty hummed in thought "I know your favorite color is purple!"

Luz never said her favorite color was purple, but how did he know that? Luz shook her head, no that wasn't the problem right now. If he knew about her calls with Kikimora- "you also have a friend you call every once and awhile, but Eda said I shouldn't eavesdrop on people's conversations." He continued, Luz stared at him. It took a moment for her brain to catch up before she replied.

"Sooo... you don't know who I talk to or what I talk about?" Hooty twisted around in his spot and replied "nope!"

"You don't know what my potions are for?"

"Nope!"

"And you haven't told anybody about those things?" Luz stressed. "Nope!" Hooty said cheerfully. Luz sighed in relief, her skin tingled and itched but she ignored it for the moment. "Don't tell anyone, alright? Not Eda, not King, my friends, not even the bugs on the ground. You hear?" She narrowed her eyes at him and he nodded... somehow. "I could be put in serious danger if you told anyone, and you wouldn't want anything bad to happen to me right?" Luz said, Hooty nodded again and Luz turned to head down the path. "Good."

She sighed, her shoulders sagging as the tension left her body. Luz pulled out her phone again to look at the list once more. There was bound to be a Fire Bee nest nearby, right? She headed off the path in search for a possible nest while she thought about where to find the other ingredients. Lavender grew best in hot, dry, rocky or sandy soil, Lake Lacuna might be a good place to search or Cuticle Valley. Thyme was similar but might also be found at the base of the Knee.

It took Luz a little over an hour to find a nest of Fire Bees. A large tree in the middle of a clearing, dripping with flaming honey. Luz crouched at the edge of the clearing, knowing how territorial they could be. She had ice glyphs with her, but it would be a lot easier if she could create an icy mist with them. All she could do was create pillars and spikes of ice.