Mutante

Chapter 27

Copyright 2023 Elizabeth Frerichs

Crossposted on elizabethfrerichs.com and fanfiction.net

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To begin the potion, she first had to cleanse the cauldron. Fortunately, as the cauldron was self-cleaning, the magic for that came from the cauldron and not from her. But once everything but her blood was added in, starting the fire was—even with that small spell, she was nearly as tired as she'd been before her nap.

Thomas agreed to keep track of the 20 minutes and now they just had to wait.

"What now? Maybe you should lie down again," Robert suggested.

"I'd rather spend time with you, but you may be right." Trying to look as though she wasn't on the verge of collapse, she made her way back to the hammock and attempted to recline gracefully.

Almost before she could credit it, Robert was back up. "Thomas says we just have 5 minutes, so you'd probably better come back."

Rosie feigned wakefulness, despite having drifted off. "Of course." Her head felt like it was stuffed full of sea grapes, so reading through the spell again would probably be a good idea.

Thomas once more studied her when she arrived. "You are quite pale, Miss Rose. Are you certain you can perform this spell?"

Rosie pulled herself up to her full height. "I can't guarantee success, but I have to try. I'm sure I'll be fine, and even if I'm not, Robert is here to get the potion to Grandma."

"Madam Essie would never forgive me if you gave your life for hers," Thomas said fiercely.

"No, but she would forgive you if I gave my life willingly for Aquaria. I doubt it will come to that though."

Robert eyed her. "If Thomas is worried—"

Rosie waved his objection aside. "If I had more time to rest, we could discuss it further. However, I don't. I've already used our extra time resting and dealing with Rina's spell. Besides, the potion needs to be completed now—it's not like we can wait around."

"I—are you sure, though?" He grabbed the vial of her blood and clenched it in his fist. "I don't want—we can't lose you. What if Rina has other traps? It would be ridiculous if you gave your life for a spell."

Rosie held his gaze, wishing that her fatigue was less obvious. She couldn't not do the spell. Maybe she would have preferred to hold off. Maybe it wasn't exactly safe. But there was no other choice. And if it didn't work, well, they would at least be safe here for a little while.

"Robert, you know that I would never choose to leave you and Thomas. I'm not doing this to prove anything. I—both our families will be at risk if Rina has her way. We can't let her win. Let me do this. I can do this." I hope.

Slowly, he handed over the vial of blood. Rosie suppressed a sigh of relief. For a moment there, she had thought he would choose her definite safety over the hope of saving Aquaria and their families. His care lit a warm glow in her, but still . . . . They didn't exactly have time for it right now.

"How long do I have left, Thomas?"

"One minute," the mirror replied promptly.

Rosie took a deep breath, trying to remember exactly how it had felt to fight Rina's magic. She would need every ounce of determination to pull this one off. But she could do it. She was a mutante—even if the circumstances didn't seem in her favor, she changed circumstances simply by being there. So . . . .