"You... you're an apothecary?" I sputtered, staring at the girl. She only continued to smirk at me, Dustin silently sipping his coffee behind us and enjoying the action.

"Hmmm.... More like I'm apprenticing in the art of apothecary-ism! Prepping for the potion-making! Beginning in the brewing! Volun-"

"Okay, okay. I get it!" I threw my hands out in front of me, and she stopped, blinking at me with wide eyes. A sigh escaped my chest, and I reached to brush my bangs out of my face to think. Not as though thinking meant much, considering my train of thought had gone off the rails at the very first question: "But how?"

My specialty, being an apothecary, was rare. So rare that as far as I'd ever heard, the title belonged to just three people: me, myself, and I. And if it didn't, then it wouldn't have been coveted so much. Surely, if there was another Witch out there with an apothecary specialty, it would have been on the news, or I'd have heard about it from Dekoran or... something, right?

"Well..." she trailed, tapping a single finger on her cheek, causing me to notice the small tattoo there, shaped like a tiny, black crescent moon. There was another mark on her wrist, but I didn't get to read whatever words were there before she moved to talk. "You know about charms, right?"

That cleared up exactly zero percent of my confusion, so I stood there, continuing to squint warily at her. "I guess so?"

Charms were just another form of spellcasting outside of basic elemental magik and levitation. It was something that Witches could learn and use on a more general basis, no matter what their specialty was. At least... most of the time. I frowned a bit, remembering my last attempt at a simple ward spell just to keep bugs off me at work. Apparently, my magik didn't feel like working to the chant: 'mosquitos and flies I am begging you please, learn to stay the fuck away from my knees,' because news flash, they were still coated in bite marks.

"Okay great! So, before I even met Dustin and he told me about your plan to come to EAC, I'd heard about you and your shenanigans." She leaned further across the counter, exaggeratedly looking over her shoulder before putting a hand over her mouth to whisper, "I don't know if you know this, but you're sorta famous."
"... yeah, I gathered." I took a deep breath, already feeling eyes on me from other students probably wondering why I'd been in front of a bakery for the past five minutes. At least there wasn't a line.

She pulled back, giving me a nod. "All right, so then you can imagine my surprise to hear one day that some rando from New Jersey was out here making potions like some kinda fairytale Witch. And for me, baking's always been my thing, so obviously, I wanted to give it a go. And, not to brag, but they did well enough at the bake sales that my boss lets me sell 'em here." She waved jazz-hands over the display. "Ta-da!"

"Huh." I tipped my head at her, feeling lost, and behind that, something like regret starting in my chest. Odette seemed nice, really, but something about her enthusiasm and cutesy aesthetic just... felt familiar to me. I clenched my jaw, trying to push the feeling away. "So, do they work then? I never thought about putting them in food before," I told her. Really, the most out of the box thing I'd ever done was alter a jug of lemonade, and that had been at Elliot's suggestion, not mine. It wasn't exactly like I was what they'd call 'the creative type'.

Still, the idea of someone, anyone, being able to just walk up to a counter and spend five bucks to get the ability to throw a fireball, or command lightning, or enhance their magik... It was too dangerous. It didn't matter that the True Coven had been dismantled after Dekoran's death. Horrible people were always out there, waiting to get their hands on power, and I could never let that happen again.

But instead, Odette just shook her head, her spiky, dyed bangs tumbling into her face. "Not exactly. It's the same as regular spells, ya know? Without a specialty, the best I can do is measure out a few breaths of magik, whisper a few words, and try to push someone in the right direction. I've had a lot of reports of them helping people to fall asleep, or heal a bit faster, or maybe even get a lil' luck, but that's it. No fancy powers or giving Humans magik. That's all you my friend, so don't worry about me stealing your job security anytime soon, all right?" She grinned.

"That's not what I was worried about," I muttered, not able to stop myself from glancing at Dustin. He'd been hurt because I'd hadn't kept track of where my magik was going, and it wasn't just him. Blyke and Gwen each had their scars, and Liesel was...

"Hmm... Well, what's eating ya then?"

A crinkled sounded as I clenched the brown paper bag tighter. No. This was different. This was just a girl putting well wishes in food, not a weapon. Not a danger, like me. "Nothing," I assured her. "Thanks for the brownie."

"For sure! Anything for the Witch who inspired me, so don't be a stranger, okay?"

She waved as I turned, grabbing at the sleeve of Dustin's sweatshirt. "Yep. Bye."

I continued to drag Dustin away, with him throwing me a confused look over his shoulder. "We're leaving now?"

"Yeah? What, do you feel like standing in front of a counter all day? Let's just sit and eat already," I griped, heading towards one of the round, pop up tables scattered throughout the food court. There weren't a lot of other students around, but I made sure to pick one off in the corner, closer to the exit. We didn't need any more attention.

"Are you sure your name is Crow and not Crank, because it sure feels that way sometimes." All the same, Dustin pulled back a chair, plopping down across from the one I'd picked.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure I learned about not giving fake details about myself the first time." Rolling my eyes, I reached into the bag, pulling out the brownie. The paper label still stuck out of the top, reading, 'Keep going!'

I tugged it out, taking a bite. Just like I thought, the red bits in it were cranberries, making the entire thing into a fudgy, fruity combination, but there was something else behind that.

The sour, blue raspberry taste hit me again, more like a phantom feeling than actually part of what I was eating, but in all honesty, it wasn't bad. Maybe it was the sugar, or maybe it was just because I hadn't eaten yet today, but something about it perked me up a bit. I took another bite.

"Well, it's still a good thing you did. Lie about yourself, I mean," Dustin mentioned, casting a look out the windows making up the cafeteria's walls. More students passed outside, walking together, laughing, landing on brooms...

I just squinted at him, confused. "Why? I almost got fired for it, remember? Honestly, I'm lucky my boss cut me the slack they did. Otherwise I'd probably be hard-pressed to work anywhere else."

Not that my last job had been anything fancy, even up to the last the two weeks I'd spent there. Just a few way too early shifts at the garden section of a department store spent ringing up flowers and dirt. Mostly dirt. Still, it covered my broom's insurance and food delivery, which was all I could really ask for.

"Yeah, but that was when I really got to meet you, you know?" he asked, continuing to stare outside. Not really looking at me, just watching everything, and nothing. "Sure, we shared a bus stop, but it was just a few conversations here and there. If I hadn't accidentally let it spill that you were a Witch well..." He turned back to me, face thoughtful. "I'm not sure we'd have ever become friends."

Something tightened in my chest, and I dropped his gaze to stare at the green top of the plastic table. He wasn't wrong. Sure, we'd talked, but he was just the weird, friendly kid that stared at the sky every morning, and knowing me, had nothing happened, I probably would've left it at that. The only reason I'd started hanging out with him was because of that day. I could still remember sitting outside the gaming cafe, wondering if I was going to be fired for hiding I was a Witch... and he'd come out to apologize.

A smile should have crossed my face, but instead a lump started to form in my throat. It didn't reach my face though, or really anywhere else. Maybe I was just imagining it because the rest of me felt numb as I spoke, "That really was the start of everything, huh?"

If I'd never gotten into that fight with my mom and lied about being a Witch, I never would have been hired, way back when. Then I would have worked somewhere else, where Dustin didn't go. My Sophomore year of highschool would have been me trying to exist under the radar, passing some classes, failing others, Dustin just a random acquaintance, and by the time Dekoran came in, by the time he took advantage of me... My fists clenched.

There would've been no one close to me to hurt.

"Yep." Dustin took the final sip of his coffee, placing the empty cup down with a plop. His legs crossed underneath the table, his left propped up slightly to keep weight off the injury. A small smile pulled at his lips. "What a wild ride. One I wouldn't change for the world."

I hummed a bit, not answering. After all, there wasn't one. He was just being nice again, acting as though things didn't bother him. Like nothing mattered, just to make me feel better. I took the last bite of the brownie, wiping the crumbs off on my pants. He's a good friend. Better than I should've gotten.

As if on cue, my phone buzzed in my pocket, and I pulled it out. With the touch of a button, the lid of the case lifted off my phone screen, moving to slide into the back of it like an opening garage door. The lock screen lit up, showing the selfie Blyke took without my consent: him wrapping an arm around me, black hair jutting out at all angles as he looked at the camera with a huge, dorky grin, Dustin giving a peace sign while my face said peace out... I swiped the image away, unlocking my phone with a fingerprint to read the white bar of a text notification.

Hey dudes! Your not gonna believe this!

Glancing up at Dustin, I could see he'd gotten the same message, dots on the screen already appearing as he started typing back. You're, Blyke. You're.

I'm not an english major and I have zero respect for a language that's just secretly three more hidden in a trench coat keep it up and I'll make it worse grammar nazi

Rolling my eyes, I finally opened up the messages app, the familiar server name labeling the top of my screen. The Idiot Coven. There were five pictures making up the little bubble of contacts in the chat, but only four active. I winced, trying to ignore it as I sent my own response: Not gonna believe what?

Blyke sent one back a few seconds later, followed by a smiley face. Your boy got invited to a party!

And why would I not believe that? I asked, drumming my fingers as I waited for him to answer. Blyke was popular. Always had been. If someone looked up the definition of likable class clown in the dictionary, his name would be right at the top, so I wasn't sure why I wasn't supposed to expect the first of what would probably end up being hundreds of invites he'd get over the course of the semester.

Becauuuuse I may have convinced a certain someone to not stay holed up in her room studying all the time and go on a date!

"Wait..." Dustin whispered next to me, a smile starting to form on his face as he typed. Date? As in you and Gwen? You got her to go to a party? His eyebrows shot up, the smile spreading further.

Not just going to the party... She's going as my girlfriend!

"Huh," I mumbled to myself, scrolling through the messages. I couldn't say I was surprised, given how well the two of them got along, not to mention how long Blyke had had it down bad for her. Still, while I wasn't one to care for relationships, if it made them happy, then I was glad for them. Nice going. Hope the party goes well then.

I'm sure it will, Blyke replied, taking a second to think before the next message popped up. Ya know what? You guys should totally come with us. Make it like a whole thing. Whaddya say? Tuesday at 8?

I'm free, Dustin sent before glancing up at me. "What about you? Can you come?" His face was calm, but I could feel his eagerness, my Empathy picking up a warm, excited feeling as he asked the question.

I wasn't sure why he cared. Sure, Gwen was his sister and all, but why would that make hanging out with them now any different than any other time? Then again, it'd been a while since I'd seen either of them, and given with my classes starting up tomorrow, it would be another while before the opportunity came up again.

"Probably." I shrugged at him. "I think all I have is my Archeology of Egypt class in the morning." And, as much as I could figure, a college party would be at night. I picked up my phone again. Yeah, I'll come. How far is it?

I don't know. Like an hour?

I sent him a quick, 'ok', and shut my phone off. All I knew was that Blyke's college was back in New Jersey, and the rest of the details I could look up when I got there. I didn't really want to go to a party, but... I cast another look at Dustin, still looking at his phone with a smile.

Whatever, I thought, pushing myself up out of my chair. It's just one party, and he wants to go. At least it was a social event where I knew a few people there, unlike every other time in my life. And, worst case scenario, I hung out in the corner with a cup of iced tea and played on my phone for an hour. There were worse things.

I reached a hand out to Dustin to pull himself up, but he ignored it, standing on his own. "Ready to head back and unpack the rest of the stuff?"

My eyes closed, and I'm sure Dustin heard the groan slowly escaping my body. "No. What happened to the rest of my supposed tour?"

"Okay," he mused, already digging through his pocket to pull out another lollipop as we made our way outside. The door opened to show grassy fields, a sidewalk weaving around the tall, white buildings of the college around us. He put the candy in his mouth, the stick shifting a bit as he muttered around it, pointing. "There's buildings A, B, and C, and inside those are classes. Welcome to EAC. Ready to unpack the stuff now?"

I tipped my head back, letting the groan turn into a full out lament. "Please... can we just do it tomorrow?"

"No, because that will eventually turn into never. Now go get your broom." He tipped his head towards the lot with a smile. "Let's go."

☾☆☽

The grating, scratching noise of cardboard edges sliding against each other hit my ears again, making me wince as I opened up the umpteenth box this afternoon. This one had clothes. I reached in, yanking them out and turning ninety degrees to toss them on top of my bed on the one side of the room. I'd sort them later. For now I just stabbed my keys into the next box in line. This one was stuffed with cornstarch packing foam and glass bottles. I pulled out one, the bright green liquid in it still glowing even though I'd made it months ago.

"You brought your potions with you?" Dustin asked from somewhere across the room. I glanced up to watch him pull out a pink and blue lava lamp, neatly placing it into the pile of things for his side, as opposed to the more general pile he'd made for shared stuff, like the microwave his dad had given him.

"Of course." I nodded, looking around for a spot for the potion box. Everything else I tossed on the floor but these... I don't want them to crack, or get wasted.

Not that I ever wanted to use my launcher again, but leaving it at home had felt like a bad idea, same with the potions. I was in Pennsylvania, most everyone I knew miles upon miles away. If someone wanted to find me, or knew me from the news and wanted to come after me for what I did, I didn't need to be unprepared again. Already, the scars on my fingers burned from holding the potion as long as I had, and I started looking harder. The dorm wasn't much, just a room with a single corner boxed off by a wall, but it would have to make due.

I walked into the alcove finding the world's most pathetic sink, and a few cabinets, with nothing else. Sure, there was a communal kitchen not too far down, and one of the boxes had a mini fridge my mom said I could take with me but... it wasn't much. Literally. I hadn't brought all that many potions, but I was starting to wonder if I was going to have to throw a few out. But I couldn't. What if someone else found them? The wrong kind of people.

"Okay cool... but I don't think you need three boxes of them," Dustin pointed out as I tried to shove another set on the next shelf. It was a bit high for me though, and I couldn't be bothered to struggle to levitate things twice in one day. I moved down to the next one.

"They're for self-defense," I argued, moving down yet another cabinet. That one held the crackers Dustin had bought on the drive here though, and turning, my gaze settled on the fridge, also known as the only thing I'd managed to set up thus far, not counting the beds. Maybe there?

"... okay, but I already keep the one on me, remember?" As if on cue, he eased a small, golden vial out of his pocket, shaking it a little for emphasis. "Only for emergencies?"

"And what happens when you have to use it?" I opened the empty fridge, placing the last two bottles in there. It was a small, square thing, consisting of two shelves and an even smaller ice box. Well, whatever. It was only two bottles.

"When?" He looked at me incredulously. "Crow, it's an 'if' at best."

Something about his words irked me, my fists clenching as I turned to face him. "Fine," I answer, voice snippy. "Then what happens if you have to use it? You'd want a backup then, right? You'd rather be safe than sorry, right?"

Dustin facepalmed, dragging his hand down his face with a sigh. He opened his mouth like he wanted to say something snide, then he closed it, shaking his head and limping slowly towards the kitchen. Finally he leaned against the open bracket of a doorframe, staring up at me. "Crow, I get it, okay?"

I was about to ask what he meant, but he picked up again before I had a chance to. "You're... scared, after everything that happened. I get that you feel like it's your fault, and that you don't want anyone hurt and Liesel..."

He stopped for a second, eyes dropping to the floor. "We all miss her, and we all regret what happened, but it was years ago. There was nothing any of us could have done, and you need to move on. I know I couldn't see you much last year, what with being in another state and all but if this is how you're coping..." He waved a hand towards me, gesturing. "You're worrying me."

"I'm worrying you?" I rubbed at my temples, squinting at him. Was he insane? He was the one refusing to take care of himself after being injured, or thinking that I shouldn't try and do my best to keep us safe when anyone could be out there, wanting to hurt us just because they didn't agree with my stupid actions. Rage flared in my chest again, my face growing hot. How was this my fault?

"Yes," he stated, voice calm despite the soft, concerned look on his face. I didn't know why it was there though. He was the one accusing me.

"You're worrying me. You're constantly panicking, not paying attention, moody... then again, you're always moody." He shrugged. "I don't know. Psychology is Gwen's department. All I'm saying is maybe you ought to look for a therapist."

"I- what?" A scoff pulled out of my throat as I looked at him standing there. A therapist? Is he kidding me right now? My fists clenched further, nails digging into my palms until they hurt. "There's nothing wrong with me, Dustin. I'm just looking at it logically."

I turned back to the fridge, not looking at him. The cold air hit my face along with a little blue light. I don't know why I opened it. There were only two bottles in there, nothing to eat.

"You mean emotionally."

I gripped the handle tighter, glaring into nothing. Dustin, just drop it already. Why would I even go? I didn't have anything to talk to a therapist about. My childhood was fine, my parents were great, and I had a fully covered college scholarship for the job of my dreams. Back home, everyone practically worshiped me for 'saving them', calling me a hero, thanking me for making Witches look good, or stopping the Insurrection. The only "issues" I had I was handling just fine. I didn't need some old lady to bitch and complain to about my first world problems.

So I stared off into the empty fridge. "... We need to buy food at some point."

The silence stretched a bit. "Yeah, at some point."

I heard footsteps as he headed back to his bed. "Not tonight though. I'm tired from unpacking. We can just get a pizza for now."

I let go of a breath I didn't even know I was holding. My hands unclenched, and I followed after him, the idea of a pizza making a smirk settle on my face. "Pineapple and olives then?"

"God no. I'm not a psychopath." A chuckle left him as he picked up his things, heading to put them in his room.

"Not today you aren't, but sometimes." I continued to trail him, the smile stretching to a smug grin as I stood at his doorway, watching him set up the lava lamp he'd picked up before.

"And today is not that kind of day, so if you order that monstrosity, you're going to be the one paying." Finally he flicked on the switch, a purple glow settling over the room as it turned on. It was soft, calming in the darkening room with the sun slowly setting outside. Then he flopped onto his bed, clearly exhausted. "Just get extra cheese or something normal."

"Aight." I turned on my heel, pulling my phone out again as I started to walk away.

"And Crow?"

I stopped as his voice reached me from the end of the room, gentle, but impossible to miss.

"I'm glad we're going to the party together. I think it'll be good. For the both of us."