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.” He got a fresh blanket out of a cupboard, draping it around Julian’s shoulders like a shawl.It smelled of lavender and other freshening herbs, which made something inside Julian relax.“I will, if I’m allowed to go with him,” said Julian, leaning into Alex again and sipping more of the tea.“I don’t know where I’ll be able to go if he’s casting spells at me.”“Well, I have good news and bad news about that,” said Alex.“I can break the connection between you and your hair so he can’t use it against you, assuming he’s got any left.”“But?” asked Julian.“But it means a haircut,” finished Alex.“Not all of it, but I’ll need at least one big lock of hair.”Julian laughed, tired and relieved.“That’s fine, whatever you do my stylist can fix it,” he said, giving Alex a kiss.“I thought it was going to be something awful, you git.”“Perhaps our vain mage thinks that would be something awful,” teased Geoff.“One more pot of tea, and you can have a little nap while we wait for Jones.”Julian yawned on cue, burrowing more into Alex’s chest.“Nap on Alex?”Alex laughed.“Maybe nap on me, imp,” he said, kissing Julian’s hair.“If anyone wants my opinion on something, they can come find me, but not until I’ve broken the spell connection.”“Oh, I never did Murielle’s map,” said Julian, sleepy and worried.“She’s bringing it by later,” promised Alex.“Fisher’s on a bit of a rampage now, and she’s keeping him away from us on the condition that we feed her later somewhere he can’t find her.”Julian giggled and rewarded him with another kiss.“So, what happened, anyway?”“From our perspective,” explained Alex, “you stepped out of the Agency building, turned and fainted.I caught you, and carried you down here.I’m guessing whatever it was they sent after you was kept out by the building’s wards, so it hit you as soon as you stepped out.We knew it was something magical because your shirt started to burn from the amulet’s protection.”“Oh,” said Julian tiredly.“So not really very dramatic, then.”“It was plenty dramatic for me,” said Geoff, coming back in with a different teapot and fresh cups on a tray.“And I’m pretty sure Alex thought it was dramatic, to have you faint in his arms.”“Well, near my arms,” said Alex.“It would’ve been easier to catch him if he’d fainted into my arms.” He kissed Julian’s nose.“Work on that next time, will you?”“Yes, dear.” Julian rolled his eyes, then accepted another cup of tea from Geoff.He smelled it, then took a sip, feeling a little rush of power.“You charged it?”“It’s a special brew for magical exhaustion cases, which I got in after we has all those problems with Alex during your Courtship,” said Geoff.“I’ve used it a few times for the mages on staff.”“What’s in it?” asked Julian curiously.“Specially grown everything, of course,” said Geoff with a laugh.“I can find the recipe for you later, but it’s made by very talented monks in some monastery, and then I have magically-charged water to brew it with, and even a special teapot and kettle.”“Well, thank you,” said Julian, taking another sip.“It’s wonderful.”“It really is good,” said Alex.“It doesn’t feel like a restorative potion, more like one of those natural wellsprings.”“That’s where the water’s from,” said Geoff.“It’s all a kit, the plants are grown near the wellspring, they even make the cups there from local clay.It’s set up so that even someone like me who’s more of a sensitive than an actual magic user can do it.”Alex chuckled.“You’ve got talent, I could hear you helping Julian.I’m surprised you never got it trained, really.”Geoff shrugged.“It wasn’t really enough to train, back when I was in medical school.”“You mean the school you went didn’t think minor magic was worth cultivating,” said Alex.“I hate places like that, though you seem to have come out of it all right.”“Maybe he can join in my lessons sometime?” said Julian, feeling more alive and alert with each sip of tea.“I mean, it’s not healing, but it’s affecting living things.”“Given the rate you two seem to get injured,” said Geoff, “It could certainly be healing.”Alex grinned.“We could do that, and actually, this is a good excuse to test and see if you can brew potions, too,” he said, kissing Julian’s hair.“No more avoiding it.”Julian huffed at him.“I haven’t been avoiding it, I just don’t see what good potions will do me as a Grower.”“Those fertilisers you were using are a potion,” said Alex.“I hate it when you’re right,” said Julian.“But Geoff wants to do potions, too, there’s all kinds of healing potions.”“It would be good to be able to do customised work sometimes, though I can always send out to an apothecary,” said Geoff.“Still, a few lessons here and there would be nice.”“We can start when you come over to check up on me,” said Julian slyly.Geoff laughed.“Now I see how he keeps up with you,” he said to Alex, shaking his head.He took Julian’s cup and refilled it.“Clever and efficient, how can I say no?”“Just remember he’s taken,” said Alex.He gave Julian a sweet kiss, then rubbed their noses together.“Ugh, how could I with the way you two behave?” teased Geoff.“I can feel my blood sugar spiking.”“So, how are you getting me out of here?” asked Julian.He drank a big gulp of the tea, but he could feel sleep tugging at him, and he yawned again.“After my nap.”“Alex will snip a lock of your hair before you nap, and use my lab to set up the spell,” said Geoff [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]