June, 2019

The luscious green hills rolled around the horizon as I inserted the nozzle into the car to fill the tank. Ollie remained inside, playing on her phone as I finished fuelling up. Then I hurried in to pay, grabbing us a few snacks for the way.

After climbing back into the vehicle, I moved us away from the pumps and pulled up in the nearby parking bays, then distributed our food.

As my teeth sank into a salami stick though, I couldn't help feeling like I was being watched.

And, sure enough, one glance at the passenger seat saw my gaze being met with two emerald eyes.

A slight pink tinged her cheeks, which I tried to not read into. Both of us had been having all sorts of ridiculous heart-racing and face-flushing reactions the whole five-hour drive thus far. And I didn't get how it was possible.

Then again, Olivia was clear yesterday that we are just friends. So maybe I was imagining things on her end...

"What?" I asked her after she said nothing yet continued to blush and stare.

"I just... I was wondering..." she mumbled, finally looking away.

"Glad your brain is still functioning then."

"Hey!" she scolded, glaring at me.

Though the moment she caught my grin, the grimace disappeared, replaced with a warm smile.

"I was wondering," she started again, eyes narrowing slightly as she challenged me to interrupt her again.

Though that would be too predictable. So I kept my mouth shut, biding my time for another tease later.

"What have you been... uh... eating all this time."

"Huh?" I responded, glancing towards my salami stick before going back to her.

"You didn't bring any luggage, so I assume no pills..."

Oh. That food. "I grabbed a few pills from Stephen before we left."

"Ah. Good. Very good."

Judging by her averted stare and fidgeting with her hair, I assumed she wanted to drop the topic. Which was why I couldn't help myself by probing, "Were you worried I was starving?"

"Well... a little." Yet her admission didn't seem genuine.

"You didn't think I was hunting humans, did you?"

The rouge returned. "I don't know. If not humans, perhaps there was some... mutant club in Prague that you went to last night... It's just that you seem very lively today, so I thought you must have had a feed."

I pressed my lips together as I watched her take small bites of her sandwich. I had many things I wanted to say. Like, would it upset her if I did drink from a human? From another mutant? Did she possibly wish I drank from her?

I shook my head as the last thought crossed my mind, reminding myself before I imagined it, Her blood will kill you, Lukas.

So I said the next best thing. "What vampire fiction did you get the mutant club idea from?"

Cough! Hack! Wheeze! Her body jolted, and her fist thumped at her chest as she tried to dislodge the particles that entered her windpipe.

"My gosh, Olivia! You're supposed to swallow your food, not breathe it," I joked as I patted her on the back.

"I... what..." she tried to get out, though had to pause to take a sip of her water first before her voice became clear enough to speak. "What makes you think I got it from—"

"Because it's an Ollie thing to do." I smirked at her.

And once again, the tension in her shoulders softened, the rapid thumping sound returned to the car, and her face flushed the familiar shade of pink. "Maybe I got it from the The Southern Vampire Mysteries series."

I whipped out my phone to check which one that was, and once I did... "Oh, wow."

"What?"

"That's the series that True Blood is based on?" I confirmed with her.

She nodded.

"We're using vampire erotica as reference material now, hey?"

"The books may contain sex scenes, but it is a paranormal romance, thank you very much."

I raised my hands defensively as she scolded me. "My apologies for mis-genreing your favourite vampire series."

"It's not my favourite."

"But it's up there, right? Since it's what pops to your mind when I seem so refreshed that I must have gone to some vampire bar?"

"You're insufferable."

"Am I now?" I jokingly replied.

But as she glanced at me, the annoyance was fleeting, only amusement remaining.

With us returning to our meals and away from the vampire erotica topic, I became determined to not let the conversation cease just yet. So I asked, "What were you reading earlier?"

"When?"

"While I was filling the car."

"Oh." She finished off her sandwich before she responded. "Peter Pan."

My brows lifted. "Interesting choice."

Heaving a sigh, she leaned into the seat like she was displeased. "I've been re-reading all the old fairy tales."

"Okay... why's that?"

She shook her head. "I'm trying to find an answer to something... but I don't know what the question even is. You see, I had this... premonition a while ago in a dream. It turned out it was linked to a fairy tale. So after I read that one, I started reading the others... in case the dreams come back with more references I don't understand. I want to know what the warnings mean before I miss my chance to be... warned."

"How do you know it was a premonition?"

The corners of her mouth turned up slightly as she glanced at me, as if she was already expecting me to tease her for this. Then she said, "Because it was the Rainbow Serpent warning me."

"The... as in from Aboriginal Mythology?"

"Yup."

"What did it say that had you turning to fairy tales?"

"Blood in the shoe."

My hand that had been lifting the food to my mouth froze. The world around me seemed to blur away. And Olivia's next words were all I could focus on as she waffled in my sudden silence.

"I had another vision of the Rainbow Serpent earlier in the year when... I tried this spell thing out. My friend Marli said that seeing the Rainbow Serpent would have been an omen because it doesn't just appear to anyone. But I can't figure out what it came to me for. The first time, it just grew bigger and bigger as it threatened me. The second time it warned me of blood in the shoe. But I don't get why or what—"

"I had a dream about blood in shoes," I then found myself whispering, cutting her rant short.

She glanced my way in shock, mouth hanging open.

So I turned to stare at her. "It would have been around when you landed in London."

"What... what happened?"

My jaw tensed as I wondered if it was something I should share with her. Would it make me seem pathetic? Would she think there was more to it? Would—

"Is it too personal?" she guessed.

Heaving a sigh, I decided to try telling her anyway. She said to trust her with my feelings. "Emma was dressed as you... holding your shoes as they seeped blood."

Thankfully, she didn't laugh at or tease me for dreaming of her. Instead, that same, adorable crease formed on her forehead as she mulled it over. "Why would she be dressed as me?"

"Well, in Cinderella, the blood is in the step sisters' shoes as they try to impersonate Cinderella. The birds warn the prince that she's not the right bride. I guess it was my subconscious telling me Emma wasn't right? Or that she was going to break up with me over you?" I shrugged as I reasoned it. The truth was, I tried to not think about it after it happened. But now... now it all made sense as Olivia spoke of premonitions and omens.

"I guess that could be it... but why would I dream something similar?""

"Who knows..." I muttered. Because it was a curious phenomenon... But then, because I couldn't help it, "Maybe next time the Rainbow Serpent won't warn you with a line from fairy tales. Maybe it will be Vampire Erotica. Did you see a snake when you dreamt of me in this vampire bar last night?"

Next I knew, an electrified hand slapped me over the arm.

"Ouch! Ollie!"

The fairy glared at me, corners of her lips still hinting at her amusement though. "I did not dream of you last night. It was merely a thought that crossed my mind."

I smirked, wanting to push her further. Wanting to ask why she specified last night, as if there were other nights she dreamt of me.

But I stopped myself before I took it too far.

Before I could set myself up for disappointment.

Instead, I said, "Regardless of whether it will be a fairy tale next time—if there is a next time—Peter Pan is a good read."

"You've read it?"

I nodded. "It's actually got one of my favourite fairy creation stories."

I'd be lying if I said I didn't thrive at watching her face light up with joy at the mention of her kind... or that I was even thinking about it. Or that I had a favourite fairy legend. "Why is that? I haven't gotten far yet..."

"Because it says that 'When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies.' I like the idea that fairies were created out of joy, of happiness, of something pure and innocent as new life itself. I think it captures them beautifully."

Her green gaze glistened as our eyes met, tenderness pouring out of every crevice of her expression. "Lukas," she said ever so softly.

Though I shrugged away her adoration, refusing to acknowledge it. Telling myself I was seeing what I wanted to see.

What is it I want to see in her? I pondered as I put the car in gear and continued our drive towards Italy.

· · ───── ∘☽༓☾∘ ───── · ·

The parking lot was packed when we arrived as tourists spilled out of vehicles and ventured towards the waterbusses.

Thankfully though we managed to find a spot. I paid for an overnight stay before grabbing Olivia's luggage from the boot, much to her protest.

"I can carry that myself," she said.

"So can I," I replied before whisking away towards the vaporetto stop, joining in the wave of tourists.

The fairy was close behind me, almost gripping onto my clothes as she tried to not get lost in the sea of people.

To ease her anxiety, I snatched her hand in mine as I whispered in her ear, "Stay close."

Even with the deafening sounds of the hundreds of people pooling around us, I could still single out her rapidly beating heart in the crowd.

And I hated myself for it.

When we had made it onto the waterbus and found free seats, I eventually let go of her hand, looking instead out the window.

Ollie seemed to have the same idea, turning her head the other way. Until she gasped.

"What's wrong?" I asked, following her line of sight. Water lapsed at the window, but I couldn't see anything alarming outside.

"We're sitting in the water."

My gaze narrowed as I tried to figure out what she meant by that. "Yes. Boats are designed to have a part that goes into the water as well as out."

"I don't need a lecture on boat physics, Lukas," she snapped at me. But her heart still thrummed loudly, and her knee bounced up and down.

"Have you been on a boat before?" I then asked.

"Only a ferry," she squeaked, glancing at the window once again.

I couldn't stop the chuckle from making its way out.

"Don't laugh at me!" she scolded.

"Sorry, sorry," I said as I tried to take her seriously. "I didn't realise there's still so much to learn about you."

"Of course there is. You haven't been with me my whole life, and there's no way I could catch you up on twenty-one years of life."

A sense of solemnness consumed me, yet I hid it under a smile.

Though in my silence, Olivia forgot her worries for a moment to glance at me. Given the confusion that suddenly stripped away her fears, she seemed to notice something had shifted in me. "You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah. Fine."

She cocked her head to the side, like she didn't buy it. However, rather than responding right away, she studied me. All the while the bus continued to fill up with passengers. "You once said we told each other everything."

"I thought we did," I mumbled a little too morosely.

Which had her gaze softening. "To be fair, I didn't realise I had a fear of boats until now. Apparently ferries don't phase me. It would have been a very random fact for me to bring up that I had never been on a boat."

"This is true," I replied, feeling myself cheering up a little.

"I also haven't ridden a horse before. Have I told you that?"

I raised an eyebrow, and the corner of my mouth tilted up a little. "No you haven't."

"Hmm... I also haven't ridden a motorbike."

"That doesn't shock me."

"Oh, but the boat thing does?"

"I guess not," I laughed.

She grinned at me, so warmly that the corners of her eyes crinkled a little.

And I almost got lost in her stare again, admiring the way her whole face lit up when she looked at me. Adoring that her eyes only seemed to see me right now.

Then the engine started to rumble and the boat started to move, cutting the moment short and forcing Ollie's heart to kickstart into a roaring pace.

So I enveloped her hand in mine once more, wincing as the electrical current hit me.

Though she quickly calmed it with a few deep breaths, keeping her head turned towards the ground all the while.

I gave her hand a gentle squeeze before I leaned in and whispered, "You can close your eyes if it helps. I'll let you know when we're there."

· · ───── ∘☽༓☾∘ ───── · ·

Wobbling as we walked off the waterbus, Olivia still gripped me tightly as we made our way into Saint Mark's Square.

Only once she seemed to regain her composure and coordination did I finally let her go.

It didn't take long for her to start digging through her bag in search of the card. Though once she extracted it from her wallet, she paused, glancing at me. "I can't summon them here, can I? It might be a spectacle."

"Probably not the best place," I admitted. "How about we check into our rooms and do it there, away from watching eyes?"

Agreeing with me, we started walking towards our hotel, following the map on our phones and signs on the streets.

Half an hour later, we forwarded into her room and sat at the small table cramped into the corner.

After placing the card on the desk, we both stared at its nondescript design. White and plain, all it sported was 'The Cursed Cauldron' and 'Circe Asclepius'.

Olivia's eyes narrowed the longer she stared at it, until she finally cured my curiosity with her question, "Aren't those two Greek Demi-Gods?"

I perused the name again before saying, "I believe so."

"Hmm."

"What?"

"Do you think their parents actually named them that or—"

"Judging by the shop and the familiar... I'm going to say they came up with the name themselves. At least one of them."

Yet then she sighed.

"What's wrong?" Is she second-guessing this? If so, perhaps I can convince her to drop it. Perhaps—

"How do we even use it? Do I just... tap it?" Then she poked the card, watching as it skirted along the table with nothing out of the ordinary happening.

And my heart fell to know that that was what had her troubled. "There's probably something you have to say."

"Like... what?"

I shrugged. "We didn't ask."

Her lips pursed, and this time she directed her glare at me. "You knew there'd be an incantation and didn't feel like notifying me before we left Prague?"

"I was still hoping you'd drop it."

"Lukas—"

"Just try reading it out."

"Reading..." But then she sighed away her anger and turned back to the card, pulling it back in front of her on the table. "The Cursed Cauldron. Sir... Cher... I don't know how to say it."

Unable to stifle the chuckle in time, I received a well-deserved scowl before I read the name out for her.

Then she tried again. "The Cursed Cauldron. Circe Asclepius."

We stared at the card, waiting, expecting.

But once again, there was nothing. No movement. No sparkle. Not even a touch of magic in the air.

The fairy pouted. Yet she wasn't phased yet. Picking up the card in her hands, she tried again. "The Cursed Cauldron. Circe Asclepius... I summon thee."

Once more, the air was still. No tremoring of the paper. No rattling of the desk. No apparation of a face above us.

"I've been scammed. By a fucking cat of all things."

I barked a laugh at her despair. And not long after her fingers wrapped around my arm and I jolted and jiggled in shock as the electrical current ran through me at full force. "Hey!" I complained, rubbing my arm as she pulled away.

"Don't laugh at me."

"Don't make funny comments then!"

And she responded in the most Ollie-like way: she poked her tongue at me.

Once again, air hissed out of my mouth, not taking long to transform into a guffaw.

"Lukas!" she whined.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Then, this time, I pried the paper from her hands, inspecting it from every angle.

It looked like a regular piece of paper.

Closing my eyes, I ran a bit of my magic through it, looking for some form of clue. But I didn't feel anything.

So I did the last thing I could think of. Bringing the card close to my mouth, I said, "Hello? Circe Asclepius of The Cursed Cauldron? Are you there? We need to talk—"

Then it happened.

The card flew out of my hand and into the air.

It wiggled and wobbled and whipped about above us.

Until finally a voice boomed around the room.

"Oh my gods and goddesses. What in Zeus's name do you want?" the voice demanded.

"Did they just use Zeus in place of God?" Ollie whispered.

I shrugged at her. "Some people have different beliefs."

"But I didn't know that still encompassed Ancient Greek G—"

"Oi, you two!" the voice thundered again, high-pitched and nasally in tone. "You've been calling me non-stop the past ten minutes. Tell me what it is you want already, or so help me Hades."

"Oh, yes, hi," Ollie fumbled as she realised they could hear everything we were saying. "My name is Olivia. I went to your shop yesterday and—"

"Obviously you did otherwise you wouldn't have my card. Cut to the chase. What. Is. It. That. You. Want."

"Rude much," Ollie muttered so quietly, that I think only I was to hear it.

But then, "That's it. I'm done. Don't bother me—"

"Wait. Please. I'm sorry. I just..." She took a deep breath and then blurted as fast as she could, "I went to find you because I heard you can bring people back from the dead, and I wanted to hear more about it and potentially bring my ex back."

There was a moment of silence before a groan sounded. "People and their exes. Y'know, sometimes it's better for people to stay dead."

"That's what I said," I mumbled.

Though Ollie shot me a glare. "Yes, I know. But I still would like to hear what's involved. If you could tell me—"

"I can't just tell you through a business card. Have some sense. These are top secrets."

"I'm sorry."

"Ugh. Do you always apologise this much?"

The fairy opened her mouth to respond, but then glanced at me for an answer.

"She does," I added for both of them.

"Well," the witch's voice went on. "I guess you must be in Italy then considering you're summoning me. Meet me tomorrow in Bologna. We can talk then."

"Bologna?" Ollie repeated. "But we heard you're in Venice?"

"Venice? I was there forever ago. Now I'm in Bologna. Call me when you're here."

"Wait. Can we set a meeting p—"

But the card fell back to the table before she could get out the rest of her sentence. And she stared at it, flustered and in disbelief of what just happened, potentially with a case of whiplash.

"Well," I said after endless moments of silence. "That went well."