Christmas Plans

CHAPTER 17

TW : Outright homophobic character

POV : James

Jamie was out at the crack of dawn. He needed some petals from a flower that was only going to be around for a few more days,  he hoped. Morning glories were very sensitive to cold temperatures and he hoped that the snow hadn't already wiped all of them out. The petals were the last ingredient to a potion he had been working on for days. Adrian's conversation with The King had reminded him of a spell he had read somewhere. The first day had been complete research to find the right spell. When he had found it the first time, he had flipped past it without a second glance. The thought of a potion being able to make a man get pregnant had made him blush profusely as he was still closeted at the time. His hike had been long and tenuous. He had only spotted the flowers going on the other side of the waterfall, he had spotted them when he and Adrian had had their date. The path he had found, a deer path at that, was along the edge of a cliff and he made a note not to go that way next time. Once he was in reach, he plucked seven flowers from their stems. He continued the way he was going after that, hoping to find a different way back around. He dragged his feet around every twist and corner and felt the ground give way in many different places. He could feel the adrenaline pounding in his head as he tried to navigate through a tight hole in the cliff. It was dark inside, but he could see the faint glow of glowworms and heard the faint rush of water. He felt himself get stuck in a crack. He knew he would be able to get out one way or another. He preferred not using magic, but he always could. He tried to crouch and managed to get a small amount of leverage, he took a deep breath and pushed. He broke free, taking a few stones with him. He continued on the way towards the sound and the light. He shoved through one last crack and was free. He was in the same cave Adrian had tried to reveal to him. He stopped to rest and sat down in front of the razzberry bush. He ate a few and was surprised to find them still good. The plant was clearly shutting down for winter, but it still had berries. He popped a few in his mouth and took a deep swig from a jar of water he had. He sighed but froze when he heard someone coming. He ran back the way he came and paused when he was still in sight of whoever was coming but hidden in the darkness. A man came through the waterfall and sat down next to the razzberry bush. It seemed that Jamie wasn't the only one who knew of the waterfall's hidden cave. Not only that, but he wasn't the only one who thought to go there. The man seemed to be quite tall, from the way he was hunched over, he was used to slouching to appear less so. He had ash blonde hair and Jamie cursed under his breath. 
"I know you're there." The man glanced behind him. "Little brother." Jamie sighed and came out. The man smirked and patted the spot beside him. Jamie didn't move to sit, instead, he leaned up against the wall. 
"What are you doing here, Kaleb? I though you had responsibilities. At least, that is the excuse you always have." Jamie let all of the pent up acid drip from his tone. His brother tsked and got up. 
"Am I not allowed to have a nice quiet moment here in the cave we always played in?" When Jamie didn't look impressed Kaleb's face fell into a scowl. "I saw you retrieve morning glory from the cliff. You weren't exactly subtle. I just wanted to know what you needed it for. It is extremely powerful in potions." Jamie contemplated how much to tell him. Kaleb hadn't been in Jamie's corner when their parents kicked him out. 
"It's to help a friend." He said, trying to sound casual. It clearly didn't work because Kaleb smirked and drew his eyebrows together. 
"It's for a boy isn't it. You have a boyfriend don't you?" Jamie drew up taller. 
"So what if I do?" Kaleb scoffed and rolled his eyes. 
"What poor lad did you turn? Was it the farmer's son? A visiting noble? Is it Mrs. Holbrook's grandson? Who is it?" Jamie turned red. 
"I am not going to tell you and subject him to the same ridicule I face from you. If you want to be supportive and actually care that I am in a loving and healthy relationship then come talk to me then. He is not ready to come out to everyone and when he is, then you'll know." Jamie squared his shoulders and walked out of the cave. 

Back at his shop, he hung up his cloak and took off his winter boots. He took the morning glory and went back to his pot he had on the stove. It had all of the ingredients except for that. Once he added the morning glory any man who drank the potion would be able to get pregnant and any woman would never bear children. He took a deep breath and poured the flowers in. He knew he could've asked Clara if she had any of the flowers, but then where would be the adventure? He stirred the pot until the color matched that of the description. He smiled and got out a jar. He poured all of the contents into it and went to put the jar in the cellar. It would need to be kept cool, or all of the ingredients would separate. He glanced back at the jar as he went back up to the main rooms. He smiled at the jar, awaiting the right time to use it. He would ask Adrian first. If he didn't feel right doing that with him, then Jamie would respect that. He knew it was a sensitive subject and he knew how hard children could be. He had watched Tamara enough to know that. Nonetheless, he would do it. If it was the only way for he and Adrian to be together, then he would do it.

Thank you for reading! I was originally going to make this a short chapter but then the words just started flowing like WOW! Well, I hope you enjoyed and will continue reading!