Eagerly, I stepped in ---
and the brewing cauldron caught my attention. It was coal black and I felt troubled with the charred stacks of wood kissing the wooden floorboards underneath. A myriad of colored bottles adorned the different stalls. As my eye trailed upwards, I saw unusual objects hung around. There were animal eyes, dismembered organs, exotic herbs all but pathetically dangling from their posts.
This feels ecstatic, I thought to myself but the sensation invoked by the word was never felt. Shrugging the previous thought aside, my eyes stared down to my chest. There was nothing but darkness there. Then, I remembered why I was here in the first place.
I was cursed; I sought for a cure.
My darkened fingers rang the bell. Aside from the bubbling sound from the brew, there was nothing else that made any sound. I rang it again. No one. The Potions master must be out.
I guess, I'm on my own.
Just then, I heard soft tapping on the floorboards from behind me. Instinctively, I spun around and was greeted with green, green eyes.
A black cat slowly pawed its way to my figure; My entire being froze as it began to purr and rub itself around my legs.
Wait? Did I just felt something? How can this cat---?
As if knowing what I was thinking, it stopped what it was doing and sauntered towards a shadowed corner of the room. Green, green feline eyes glanced back at me, silently telling me to follow.
And, I did. My feet started to walk to where the animal was. There was a small table which held a small casket akin to those humongous treasure troves pirates have for their coveted booty. At closer inspection, the box held tiny vials of colored liquid. My eyes scanned through the labels...
For wit
For luck
For strength
For revenge
For happiness
My hands shivered as I carefully took the one I sought from its nestling place.
Is this really the cure I seek?
Out of recent habit, I stared at the cat beneath me. It was just there, watching me with its never blinking, green, green eyes. Refusing to give me anymore answers.
For happiness, it read.
Its content is as inky as my darkened chest. I blinked twice and panicked a little, the darkness has already reached the top of my neck. Pretty soon, I will no longer feel my face and my head.
My chapped lips sighed and I offered a tiny prayer of protection to whatever god can hear me. It was now or never. As my lips surrounded the glass' rim, I consume it in one gulp, struggling not to gag at the bitterness and burning it has caused as it passed my tongue and throat. I could feel it trickle down my stomach and then gone. I exhaled waiting for my body's reaction.
I chose my poison and willingly drank it in my soul.
There was light. It crawled from my lips down into the darkened parts of my body.
Then, I was transported to the most beautiful place I've ever seen.
There were people and they all smiled at me. This time, I saw honesty in their smiles.
There were kind words I longed to hear. I could feel the tears drop one by one.
That is, until I couldn't bear the potency of it.
My lips let out an airy cough and the light which crawled downwards suddenly retreated back to my lips and vanished into a speck of obsidian dust before my very eyes.
Panicked at the loss of the giddy sensation, I looked for the cat but it wasn't there anymore. Realizing that there was no other vial like the previous one in the casket, I laughed, and in the next second, cried at the hilarity of it all.
Of course, How can I be so stupid!
Potions, no matter how potent, were never meant to last.
Reverently, I placed the almost-emptied phial, tenderly wiped the excess off my now darkened lips, and slowly willed my blackened legs to walked away.