Flesh and Blood

14

Willow and Sienna were silent as they rifled through the Magickal supplies left in the study. The urgency of Spike's dire situation weighed heavily on the pair. The redheaded witch had taken it upon herself to look through the herbs, whilst her mousey-haired companion fingered through the potions. The air was thick with frenzy as the witches worked around the small satchel that lay empty on the table, waiting to be filled with the ingredients required for the cure. Luckily, they had not yet come across any materials that Willow did not already possess. A small part of Sienna wondered about what her counterpart had seen in her many years of practicing Magick. To have such a deep well of resources at her disposal spoke volumes. Even though there was the odd occasion where the Wicca had to buy supplies from a Magick shop, Willow knew she had to be prepared for every eventuality. Sienna was young and inexperienced and had a desire to learn everything she could from Willow. Being part of a force for good was a goal she only dreamed she would one day reach. But first, she had a vampire to save.

Sienna placed one bottle of potion next to the rest of ingredients on the small table. "I got the enzymes."

Willow nodded as she found the page containing Amy's poison, the ingredients the witch had combined to create the toxin were handwritten to the side of the incantation. It was exactly what they needed to devise the antidote. She began listing them off.

"Snakeroot."

"Check."

"Rowan berries."

"Check." Sienna placed the tiny white flower and the berries into a small wooden box to keep them safe.

"Acacia powder."

"Check."

"Sanguinaria Canadensis."

"Check." The final flower was laid carefully into the small wooden box, and then gingerly again into the satchel.

"The Seccora cup... Oh! One sec!"

With the main ingredients packed away, Willow quickly excused herself to look for the cup. When she returned, she found Sienna wore a worried look on her innocent face, and she was trying hard to hide it. She placed a reassuring hand on her novice's shoulder and offered her a warm smile.

"If you can channel your energies to drain a coven's power, then I have every faith you can make this work," the coven leader encouraged.

Sienna eyed the experienced Wicca with self-doubt, letting her brown, sorrowful eyes do the talking.

"Sienna, the first rule in Magick is to never doubt yourself. Don't let that control you, okay?"

The young witch nodded her head.

Willow tossed the bag over her shoulder and passed the cup for Sienna to put in the satchel. "Let's get this to Giles."

The pair travelled to the basement to find that the room was filled with silence, despite having several occupants. Giles stood with his back turned to the evil witch that had caused so much pain and grief to the slayer he considered to be his daughter. He was setting out a variety of tools on a table, mostly with the intention to scare the witch, his sleeves of his off-blue shirt rolled up to his elbows.

"I have the Seccora cup, Mr. Giles," Sienna gulped. Seeing Amy in this state made her nervous. Part of her felt bad for betraying Amy, yet her instincts told her that she was on the right side of the fight.

"Thank you," he mumbled, choosing to keep his focus on the task at hand.

The young witch thought that Giles looked like a true gentleman, but the glint in his eyes made her wary. She didn't fancy getting on his bad side.