About 6 months had passed by...but no luck...Philip had no clue what he had to do to create a stable portal, and Elizabeth was equally as clueless about how to help him. Philip was debating whether he should give up, or if he should continue on...

In the time that he was in the town of Bonesburough, Philip managed to make many impressive sketches of the residents. He was very much into the arts and sciences, and back home he would often do extraordinarily detailed drawings of plant life and animals that he would encounter. But this world was unlike anything he'd ever seen. He wasn't sure if people back home would even believe him, and the one's who would probably would want to conquer the area and kill the witches. So he was no doubt having second thoughts about telling anyone.

As he was in a spare room that Elizabeth let him use as a study, Elizabeth popped in and offered some food. The food in this realm was...odd...but he figured that he'd starve if he didn't eat something, and he ended up enjoying the food by this point.

After she kissed him and left the room, Philip pondered how he had managed to court a maiden such as her. The only issue was...if he returned home, it would be far too dangerous for her to go back with him unless she had some way of concealing her ears. Even then, with her free spirited nature, someone was bound to accuse her of witchcraft. He wasn't so sure himself that she didn't cast some sort of love spell on him, but he didn't mind.

Would it be so bad if I stayed?

He immediately tried to get that thought out of his head. He wanted to get home to see his mother and his sister. But the thought of settling down in the Boiling Isles with Elizabeth was in his mind and it wouldn't leave.

He left the room to go into the kitchen. He sat down and started eating.

"Still no luck on figuring out the portal?"

"No...I don't know what I'm doing wrong..." Philip fiddled with his fork. He had never used one before coming to the Boiling Isles, though he heard stories of a mayor in Massachusetts using one. Forks seemed to be more common around here, though.

"Maybe you need to find a place to clear your mind a bit...and I may have a place in mind..."

After they ate, Elizabeth flew Philip on her staff. Over time, he had gotten more used to flying with her. She had advised him to get warmer clothes, so they stopped by the marketplace and he picked out a coat for himself. Once they were ready, they flew towards the right knee of the Titan, the arctic region of the Boiling Isles.

"This area is brimming with magic," Elizabeth said. "This is said to be a sacred place. I figured you might get some inspiration here."

This realm never seizes to amaze me...

There was definitely something different in the air, aside from it being colder. It was far higher in elevation, and it appeared that the further up they went, the more Philip could feel the magic of the Isles...

They landed on the knee, which was much like a snow covered mountain top in the human realm. Philip looked up and saw that there were magnificent lights in the sky. Then, he noticed something peculiar. There were stars forming a circle with a strange symbol in it. Philip had the idea to draw this symbol in the snow. He drew the symbol, and then suddenly, an ice formation shot up.

Did I...do magic?

Elizabeth was in awe over the discovery Philip made.

"This is the elemental magic of the Isles...this must have been how the first witches did magic many years ago."

"How many more elements are there?" Philip asked.

"Nobody really knows for sure..." Elizabeth moved closer to Philip. "But perhaps learning more will be the key to figuring out how to get home..."

"Maybe..."

"If...you do find a way to make a portal...can...I come with you?"

"I don't know...what if people find out you're..."

Elizabeth performed a spell on herself. Her ears changed shape to look more human.

"I think I can fit in just fine..."

She leaned forward and gave Philip a kiss.

Hours later, they arrived back at Elizabeth's house. The night was still young, and they decided they were gonna have fun. Elizabeth brought out the apple blood and some card games to play. Philip hadn't tried apple blood up to that point. He took a sip. This is pretty strong...As the night went on, the apple blood was gone, and Elizabeth led Philip up to her room. They passionately kissed as they layed down on the bed and she beckoned him to make love to her...

Morning came. Philip woke up with the worst headache. He turned to look at Elizabeth, who was naked under the sheets. Did we...?

He got dressed and went to his study. He wasn't able to make a journal entry last night, so he figured he should go write it. He had scattered recollections of his time with Elizabeth in her room. It was almost enough to make him forget about making the portal, but he felt that this time he may have it figured out.

Elizabeth woke up and got dressed to go to work. She was also suffering from a bad headache, but she was more used to it than Philip. She popped into the study and kissed Philip goodbye as she left for the tavern to start her shift.

Philip had found his own job as a handyman around town, but he didn't have to go today, which meant he could focus on making the portal. He had crafted a door and infused it with magic so it could hopefully lead to the human realm. All he had to do was test it out.

He opened the door, and he could see through the portal. It looked like it was around where the old women's house was. But then, everything became blurred. The portal became unstable and stopped working, but it was the closest he had gotten up to that point. He was confident that he was on the right track.

He sat back down at the desk and began writing in his journal.

Entry 186

November 23...This is the closest I have come to crafting my own portal. There's still some work to be done. Thankfully, Elizabeth has been keeping me company. I've never known love before, but I think this is what that feels like. Her radiant beauty almost makes me want to never leave this realm. Hopefully though, when the time does come for me to leave, she can leave with me.