It’s the wicked witches fault. I have to say that straight out. I wouldn’t be here if not for her anal ways.
Lady Theodora is my boss, I call her the wicked witch as her stare can melt butter and her tongue can give you a whipping like you’ve never known.
‘You cannot alter the formulas Tilly,’ she says to me. “The potions are tried and true, our customers expect the same exact quality each time they purchase our products. You can’t go adding a pinch of and a slash of that willy-nilly with no idea of the consequences. Just think, what if the universe went out of balance, if harmony became a thing of the past because you interfered with the mix you have been entrusted to make. You need some reflection time and I know just the place.”
So here I am in this prison of tangled roots. There’s no getting out, believe me I’ve tried. Every movement is responded to by the roots wrapping themselves a little more tightly around you. Its almost like they care, or it could be they don’t want to risk the wicked witches wrath should I escape. Though I do hope there are no storms while I am here, I’ll get more than a little wet I should think.
I have worked for Lady Theodora for many years now. It’s all a bit humdrum after a while. Most of the spells and potions I can mix, make, conjure with my eyes closed. I mean how hard is a love potion. A ounce of dried swans blood, a cup of black rose petals, a splash of desire lotion, all mixed left then right and finally a drop of the Valentines liquid and you have a lover falling over themselves to get into you pants and your dowry.
I’ve dabbled a bit from time to time to see what might happen if I did add a little extra. An extra pinch of crocus petals in the trust potion and man do you create a monster. I explained that away by saying to the client I was sorry for the loss of their potential lover but you do have to take the potions in the prescribed doses and obviously skulling the bottle in one dose was always going to have die consequences. She happily went away with a refund and a new bottle of the correct potion to try again she said once Horace had returned to human form and they could remove the chains.
The one that got me into this mess was the Exuberance Potion. Lady Theodora happened to be watching me one day making up a bottle for Miss Jack of Lethbridge and asked me why I was adding an extra teaspoon of lemon flower extract.
‘I did?’ I asked in all innocence.
“Yes Tilly I saw you add an extra teaspoon into the mix. I’ve told you so many times our reputation is on the line in this business. Up till now we have been fortunate in being able to cover our mistakes, as mistakes happen, but you Tilly are flouting the rules well and truly. ‘Spells Are Us’ has been in business some five hundred years and our good name is what brings in custom day after day.’
I did apologise and promised to be more careful in future.
Then Phyllis of Lore came into the shop, the saddest, poorest, most down trodden woman I’d ever seen. She wanted something to give herself a lift. It seemed to me that the Exuberance Potion was what she needed and she needed a bit more on top so I added a touch more salt of exuberance.
She comes in every week wanting another bottle. The skip in her step is very marked, the twinkle in her eye is striking and the potion is working a treat for her.
I don’t know how she’s going to get along with me stuck here. Guess the standard potion will have to do.
Good thing I stuck a few special bottles aside with her name on them, in case something like this happened.
Now I need to wriggle a little, oh yes that’s good, wrap that root just there, oh goodness that’s perfect.
Written for: http://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2014/10/24/fairytale-prompt-31/
Morpethroad 