Beneath the City ✔️

Knowing

I woke slowly, the ache in my limbs probably pulled me from my slumber. I grimaced and sat up, and tried to massage my stiff joints. A part of me felt as though I was taking my own body back from Jackson Wang, but if I were honest it was a childish notion. Either way, it helped me feel calmer. I looked round, confirming that I was the only person awake. I pushed the covers off me, making sure I didn't disturb Jimin, and waddled over to the table.

He'd left more notes on the table, this time on magic withdrawal. He'd written up a list of symptoms, and Jin's book on medicine and healing lay open on the table, with various pages marked. It contained diagrams of complex healing circles Jimin had meticulously copied out. I collected his notes together into a pile, and sat down at the table. I probably ought to learn these things myself, but I preferred not to think about this for long. I had Jin either way.

I flicked through the book, and turned to the index. Pages 204 to 274 were on brewing remedies. I leafed through the book till I reached that section, then began to turn the pages more slowly. I quickly found a pain relief tincture. It didn't need much, just some thyme, oak root, egg shell, powdered elfsbane, and ethanol. I pulled the ingredients from the cupboard, silently thanking Jin for replenishing our supplies. I grabbed my alchemy tablet from a chair, picking up a wooden spoon, and my cauldron, some matches, and a lump of long out of date MagiHeat. It'd probably burn fine.

I set my apparatus down, and picked up a piece of chalk from the side, drawing up a simple alchemist's circle on my tablet, using a compass to make sure it was exactly 20cm in diameter. I drew an additional circle at 4cm, to cut through the top of the larger one, and another at approximately four o'clock. I picked up a ruler, and drew two points on each smaller circle, about 1cm apart, then connected them quickly. The tablet I used was magically charged, which meant I wouldn't need any help, so the circle should be armed already. I chopped the Thyme and root, placing them in one circle. Then ground the egg shell and mixed it with the elfsbane, leaving it in the second smaller circle. Then I poured the ethanol into my cauldron, and set the block of MagiHeat on fire. I waited for it to boil, then poured it along the channel I'd created between the two circles. It flowed between the two circles, and after a flash of light, I scraped the contents back into my cauldron and left it to simmer.

I heard shuffling behind me.

'What the hell is that awful smell?' Jin grumbled. 'Not a nice way to wake up.'

'Sorry.' I replied. 'I wanted to make a painkiller.' I explained.

'You could've just woken me up.' He pointed out.

'I don't want to wake you'

'I don't mind' he replied

'I don't need the help.' I argued. and he gestured for me to walk over to him. I obliged and he held two of his fingers up.

'Don't move.' He ordered, so instead I glared passive aggressively up at him. His fingertips began to glow pink, and he placed his fingers on my forehead. I let out a small gasp. It felt like the soreness was evaporating. A mild tingling sensation lasted for a couple of seconds then he pulled away. 'All done and look, no bother.'  He said with a smile.

'Thank you.' I said . He patted me on the shoulder.

'If you want to show us appreciation, let us worry.' He said firmly. I didn't know how to reply, so I didn't. He walked away towards the mattresses, presumably to wake the other two, then stopped and backtracked. He knelt down beside the ladder, and picked something up off the floor. 'What..?' I heard him mutter.

He turned around with his eyebrows furrowed, and I tilted my head. 'You've got post!' He exclaimed, holding up a cream coloured envelope. He gave it to me, and I turned it over a couple of times, not sure what to expect. Inscribed on the front was Y/f/n Y/l/n. I went to open it then hesitated.