The Gift of Good and Evil: Bound By Blood

Missing Ingredients

It was a few days later in your office that the first inkling of students attempting to make love potions reared its head.

You had been working on the schedule for school events, as Professor Dovey was already talking your ear off about when she could host the next Unification Ball.

Between that, the dueling club schedule, staff meetings, new professor reviews, and Sophie's private tutoring, your calendar looked like a war map.

On top of that, you had been hoping to set aside some time for you to resume your own dueling; though you had to admit you were more reluctant to duel your wife, now that you knew she could actually kill you. You'd considered asking Anemone, Espada, and Clarissa to join you; but then figured perhaps you should just offer it to all the professors, as a way for them all to hone their skills against other adults.

You quickly wrote yourself a "To-Do" list and placed that at the top, before scribbling off a few other things you needed to remember to do. You were about halfway down the list when you heard a knock on your office door.

"Professor Manley," you said, surprised as he waltzed into your office before you could even invite him in. "What can I do for you?"

He looked frazzled, even more so than usual; which you had realized fairly early into last year was very difficult to do. "Headmaster, I'm sorry to bother you, but we've had some things go missing from the potions lab," he said plainly. It was clear he was flustered; and rightfully so.

"What do you mean missing? The potions cabinet is locked," you replied. "How is that possible?"

His eyes widened. Your tone hadn't been overly harsh, but perhaps it had come out more harsh than you had originally intended. "I-I don't know Headmaster," he answered. "That was my question as well. Only the professors know the enchantment to the lock; plus a few promising students."

You stood from your desk. "Show me," you insisted.

Bilious nodded, leading you down the stairs from your office, out of the tower, across the bridge, and up the stairs towards the potions lab, one of the few classrooms that remained in the Castle for Evil. It was just outside Lady Lesso's office that you ran into her and Dovey discussing something in hushed tones.

"Hey," Lesso cooed as she saw you and Bilious approaching. "What's going on?"

You looked from Dovey to Lesso, curious as to what they were discussing, but dismissed it quickly; whatever it was, it wasn't nearly as important as this. "Professor Manely says there are potion ingredients that are missing from the lab." You informed them.

Dovey's eyes widened. "What? How?"

"Those cabinets are locked," your wife added.

"We're aware, which is why we're headed there now. Would you care to join us?" You asked the two of them.

They both nodded, following in pursuit as you and Bilious made your way to the lab.

"What was taken?" You asked as you and the two deans examined the cabinet. There were no signs of forced entry, no magical blast marks, no tinkering in any way; the lock was still very much intact.

Bilious pulled a parchment from his pocket; a list of everything stored in the cabinets. "Three empty vials, 2 werewolf fangs, 4 inferi bones, 1 bottle of wraith's tears, and several petrified toads," he said as he read down the list looking for the tick marks of things he'd marked as missing.

Your brow furrowed. "That...doesn't sound like any sort of love potion I've heard of," you muttered, more so to yourself than to the group. It surprised you; as you and Lesso had figured that if anyone was going to attempt to make any of the potions after Sahar's lesson, it would've been an ever, and it would've been a love potion.