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Luckily for Oliver, the conversation had to end; they had reached the hallway from where they could coin travel to their respective buildings.

“You have to bring him,” Ella said, grabbing Mira by her elbow.

“Dawson? To what?” Then she realized what she meant. “Oh no. I will not bring him to your party.” Nor would he want to come.

Suddenly her friend turned solemn. “Yes, you will because I love you and he is important to you. And don’t deny it or start with your excuses. You’ve been keeping me at arm’s length, and I just want to be a part of your life.”

Mira didn’t know how to be part of her life anymore. Not fully. “I didn’t mean to make you feel like that.”

“That’s why you’re bringing him. That can be my present. If you want him there, that is. Think about it, will you?”

“I will.”

Two days had passed, and it was late when Mira headed to the Circular Hall. Rylan had sent her a scroll, telling her to meet him at their normal spot.

The researcher had a mini-lab set up, using one of the benches as a table.

Mira dropped her bag as she took a seat on the floor next to him. “This looks ambitious.”

He didn’t respond, too focused on the potion in front of him, which glowed midnight blue.

“What is it?” she asked as she took a closer look.

“Took me months to figure out the right dosage.” He exhaled as he stared at the vial, and Mira knew then what it was.

“Your shield potion. You’re already done with it?”

“Well, no. There are still some quirks, but, well…technically speaking…” He trailed off.

“So you’re telling me you’ve invented a shield against spells and it works?”

“Yes, it works but—”

“Have you tried it out?”

“Yes, I have but—” His eyes widened in shock when she downed the potion. “What are you doing?”

“I’m your second test subject.” If this worked, she could potentially face Corvin and destroy the amulet. “Go on, throw a spell at me.”

Rylan’s mouth still hung slack. “I can’t believe you just did that.”

“Come on. Hit me with your best shot.”

He looked at the clock on the wall. “It takes three minutes for it to work. I really wish you would have listened to the side effects.”

“Oh…” Now she did as well. “What side effects?”

“For starters, it only lasts about thirty minutes. I haven’t been able to manage more longevity yet.”

That wasn’t so bad.

“But the biggest issue I’ve had with the potion so far is…” He scratched the back of his head and made a face. “I couldn’t find a way to bind the shield to only apply to spells, not the user’s magic, and that meant I had to change the calculation—”

“Rylan, what in the dark dimensions is the second side effect?”

“I had to include saranay because that’s the only thing that will allow the hoxweed to stick to the liquid form of sandaltree flower.”

Part of her brain was genuinely interested in the academic challenges he still faced with the potion, but the other part of her brain panicked when she realized what those ingredients combined would produce.