Crazy In Love! [Twisted Wonderland]

The Potion

It was empty in Night Raven College. All the students had long since returned to their respective dorms, leaving the usual bright and populated campus to one devoid of its usual atmosphere. The quiet breezes of wind provided some noise, and along it, the quiet pitter patter of Ace's shoes as he walked through its terrain. Along the way, Ace looked around the empty building, finding it strange to see it in such a state, and a sense of eerieness crept up on him.

"..."

Ace looked back down at the book in his hands, the glowing having been abruptly stopped ever since he first opened it. He flipped back to the page that led him to be walking the campus halls in the first place before closing it once more.

He sighed. "You better be worth it."

As he muttered those words, Ace's steps slowed, and he turned. It was the alchemy lab. Usually, it would be emitting all sorts of colors as spells would constantly be brewed in all sorts of directions, but before him, it was dark under the door. Not a speck of bright blues or orange hues were slipping out from underneath. Ace placed his hand on the door knob and shook it, but to his surprise, the door moved itself. It was as if it was unlocked with purpose, allowing the other to enter.

"..."

Ace didn't expect this and felt a sense of caution overtake him. He opened the door slowly, and through each small push, he grew even more ready to face the person inside. However, when the door was fully opened, he saw that the room was empty. Not a single figure was occupying the room. Ace sighed, relieved. "Tch.. I've been getting paranoid for no reason at all."

With his worries now completely diminished, he walked in and was greeted with the familiar room. He placed his things down before walking towards a single cauldron in the center of the room and lighting a fire underneath with his pen. The fire crinkled under the cauldron, a comforting noise to hear for Ace. Since he knew no one else was around to see him, he got more comfortable. Actually, he got so comfortable that he forgot the suspendable actions he was currently partaking in.

As the cauldron heated up, Ace headed back to where he placed his items and picked up the book. He opened it and read through its contents once more.

"Level one potion... level two potion..." His eyes gleamed as he read each word carefully, occasionally scanning throughout the lab to see if the ingredients it asked for were available. "Level three potion... level..." He stopped at the description of the fourth potion, having found that its description reminded him of something. He read it out loud. "Level four potion. Makes the recipient crazy in love with you." He scoffed. "How ironic."

Crazy In Love. The infamous movie trending on Magicam and the one Ace thought was a waste of time. Ace recalled that everyone online seemed to have liked the movie. Many would say it was creepy, but nothing of the sort to keep them up at night.

Keep them up at night?

Ace paused his thoughts. "Wait."

Suddenly, Ace was thinking about the other person whom he watched the movie with. He thought about Deuce's reaction to the movie, recalling the fear in Deuce's eyes as he watched the final act unfold and how he wouldn't want anyone to act like that towards him.

"...Wait, seriously?"

He paused, as everything soon came together. So that was it. The real reason as to why Deuce had been tired the whole day. The real reason he couldn't focus in class, leaned on his broom during gym, and slept on Ace's lap when visiting Yuu.

Deuce stayed up all night thinking of the movie because he was scared by it. Deuce was scared of the movie.

"...Haha." Ace quietly laughed.

"Hahaha." His laugh grew louder

"HAHAHAHA!" He was now laughing out loud, ignoring the loudness of his laughs. He was holding his chest, tears in his eyes, as he thought about Deuce and his fear of such a crappy movie.
With the realization, Ace's lips slowly formed a faint smile, and he cried, looking at the recipe for the level four potion. "This one's perfect."

Ace then proceeded to look around the lab, gathering ingredients for the level four potion, formulating a newfound plan in his head. Though, his excitement spoke for himself as the warnings against the potion were lost in his mind, being the last of his worries. I mean, who knew if there was any truth in such a book? And for someone like Ace, he was willing to take that chance if it meant embarrassing his best friend.