Author's Notes:
-Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No - it's another chapter! Finishing off my education really did distract me. As well as forgetting that I hadn't actually uploaded this chapter…
***Fri Night***
The night was a cold one. As a hooded figure made its way through the deserted streets of Magix, one dressed similarly slipped out of Alfea. Both were dressed for the cold, but only one was used to it. The figure in town pulled its hood back a little as if searching for something. The one wandering through the forest pulled its hood closer to ward itself from the slow dripping of rainwater off the trees. Neither carried any form of light source, as both valued their secrecy. In Magix, the lone figure had arrived at the place he had been heading for. He crept down an alley that ran parallel to the building, looking for the window that would gain him entry. Ordinarily there would be security measures to prevent the occurrence of things such as this, but paying off a member of the security team had rendered these useless. A subtle flick of the thumb in front of the right window to open it without a sound, and the figure in the dark was inside the storeroom of the Museum of Magical Artefacts. Minutes later and he had found his prize on the upper floors. Without the necessary security it took seconds to remove it from its display case and moments later, the figure had vanished. In the forest, the other had settled in a clearing that was relatively devoid of dripping trees. He felt a shudder pass through him as something... happened. As though something had disappeared from the world that had held a strong presence there for a long time.

Shifting slightly on his makeshift chair that was actually a very damp log, Palladium lit his pipe. He glanced around as if expecting to see someone stepping out of the shadows to chastise him, before shoving his irrational feelings of guilt aside. He could easily have put a small amount of the elixir into his evening tisane or even measured out a dose to drink without diluting it, but the aftertaste was almost unbearable. The only other option was to use his pipe. As a vapour it had virtually no aftertaste, and the effects were stronger too. His only problem was that Faragonda might not see it in the same light. Though she trusted his skill as a potion brewer, elixirs were not to be taken lightly - especially those in the palliative area. Concerns aside, breakfast would be much improved without that sickly sweet aftertaste. Eventually, as the vapour began to take effect, he stopped feeling the pervasive cold and a feeling of, not quite warmth, but of a decent ambient temperature spread through his body. The mild pain that had been running through his arm almost constantly until that point became a feeling of mild discomfort and the tremors that he had not noticed before stopped entirely. Sitting on a log in the middle of the forest, he could almost feel as though he were at home. His awareness of time began to blur, and he became aware of the movement of every living creature around him. At the same time, he could have sworn that he could see the trees growing and the stars moving through the sky...

That was, until he realised that the sky had been overcast all day. Suddenly the feeling that had been bordering on warm was very rapidly becoming a cool chill. The pain had not returned but the tremors, that he had only noticed by their absence, were replaced by shivers. This struck him as odd as it had been much colder at home and he had never really been so affected before. It could not have been a mistake in his brewing that had caused this, as he had been taking the elixir for a few days with no ill effect. However that creature had affected him, whatever illness he was seemingly falling prey to, something had been changed by the 'something' that had happened earlier. Whenever that was. With his sense of time lacking its usual precision he decided it was probably about time to return to Alfea. The second revelation he faced that night was that he now had only the vaguest idea of which direction to walk in. It took a few moments for this to sink in, but when he was absolutely certain that his chances of returning of his own accord were very slim he had a decision to make. Wait until daylight, when he would be able to know for certain exactly where he was, or use the pool of water that had collected in a dip in the log to scry for help. He knew which would bring results faster, but he also knew which would avoid all the questions he barely had answers to. As the wind picked up he tucked his pipe into a pocket and shuddered. He felt ill. Decision made, he muttered,
"Draumr kópa."
And he concentrated on the one person from whom he knew he would not receive a lecture. At least, not until the morning. The log under the pool faded away, and in its place the image of a very drowsy looking paladin appeared. The drowsiness left him very quickly when he realised that it was Palladium he could see in the rippling vision in his mirror.
"What are you doing in the forest at this hour?"
"I..."
Palladium hadn't actually thought about what he was going to tell his friend, and now that he was trying it was becoming very difficult to decide whether or not he should tell the truth. His silence did not go unnoticed.
"Are you alright?"
"I- Yes. I'm fine. I... just appear to have lost my way."
"If that was likely to happen I'd love to know why you thought it would be a good idea to go out at night in the first place."
"...What matters is that I'd like to get home."
"Do you know where you are?"
"I'm sitting on a log in a small clearing. I turned left off the main path."
"...I've done more with less. Stay where you are."
"What are you doing?"
"Getting dressed. From the sound of you I can't think of any other way you'll be getting home if I don't come and find you myself."
The log pool dimmed and the image of Avalon faded out. He did not believe himself to sound so... Well, he could not find the word to describe it.

After a busy holiday and much travel, that night was the first in a week that Avalon could expect to get some undisturbed sleep. Needless to say, he was less than impressed to be woken up in the early hours by a rather sheepish Palladium. Once he was dressed he let himself out through the skylight and spread his wings in the cold night air. When using basic tracking charms that showed the trail of the person being traced, the best place to be was in the sky. It made things easier when said person actually wanted to be found, too. It took only a few minutes of circling in the air to spot the elf sitting forlornly in a small clearing off the trail. It occurred to him that Palladium was probably embarrassed about finding himself lost in a forest that he knew so well, and he made a note to avoid saying anything that would make his friend feel any worse. He may have been woken up in the middle of a decent night's sleep, but he knew Palladium was probably feeling guilty enough to make up for it without Avalon complaining. All thoughts were pushed from his mind, however, when he landed. Even in the dark, he could see how pale the elf was. The forest around them was unnaturally still, which added to his growing sense of unease. Palladium didn't even look up as he approached and seemed to be staring fixedly at something Avalon couldn't see.
"Palladium?"
Hearing his name made him flinch.
"I'm sorry I called you out at this time of night."
"Are you all right?"
"...I'm fine."
"You don't seem so convinced."
"I'm just disorientated."
"Just? You look ill."
Palladium's gaze dropped to somewhere beyond his right elbow.
"I'm fine."
"If you were fine you wouldn't have needed to contact me. You've already told me you were disorientated. What aren't you telling me?"
He couldn't help letting a small amount of annoyance filter into his voice as he couldn't think why Palladium would be trying to hide anything from him, especially after asking for his help. His friend shifted, seemingly uncomfortable with being asked so many questions. He sighed. Softening his tone, he tried again.
"Okay. I won't push you for an answer - not tonight, anyway," he added under his breath.
"Thank you," came the murmured response. The elf was staring at something behind him again, so he turned to follow the elfin stare into the darkness. He was struck by the stillness of the forest around them, but could see nothing particularly unusual. It was at this point that Avalon decided enough was enough.
"Stand up. I'm flying us back."
Palladium said nothing, but he could see the alarm in his expression.
"It's the fastest way back. I won't let you fall."
"...If you're sure..."
"It's this or we walk, and I don't think you're in any condition to do that."
"I'm fine! I just-"
"You're still sitting. Stand up and convince me that you're fine."
Again his friend was silent, but this time his expression was a grimace. He eased himself up from the log and stood rather shakily in front of the doubtful paladin.
"I'm not convinced. Come on; I'm flying us back."

The next morning brought Palladium a difficult conversation. He had arrived early for breakfast, as usual, but was put off his morning plate of fruit by the presence of Avalon, who had somehow managed to make eating toast seem ominous. Or Palladium was starting to project his thoughts onto others, but he preferred the more whimsical explanation. His friend was evidently trying to come up with a way of approaching the subject of the night before without sounding too much like he was complaining, which he really had every right to do. He felt deserving of whatever lecture Avalon could come up with. Although he felt no remorse for his decision to go out he did regret having to ask for help, both because it made him appear irresponsible and because it was such an inconvenience for someone who clearly needed a full night's sleep. He decided to put the paladin out of his misery and speak first.
"I believe I owe you some form of explanation."
"It would seem that you do."
Avalon's tone was not unfriendly, but it had an element of disapproval to it that sent a jolt of guilt down to the pit of his stomach. Which left no room for breakfast.
"...It doesn't- It's not supposed to do that - my elixir, I mean."
He watched as his friend's eyebrows lowered into a frown.
"Elixir?"
"Ah..."
Rather belatedly, Palladium remembered his decision to not mention his elixir to anyone.
"I have questions, and I'm rather hoping I'm not going to bear witness to the elven capacity to avoid giving answers."
The guilt coagulated into consternation and he felt his mouth grow dry, anticipating the verbal minefield he would be about to traverse.
"My answers will depend upon your questions."
"Is it dangerous?"
"That would be determined by your definition of dangerous."
The look Avalon gave him was withering. He carried on hastily,
"As with any palliative substance, a dose that is unnecessarily high could have ill effects. I am well aware of my tolerance threshold and do not intend to exceed it."
"The effects I saw last night could be defined as ill."
"I have no explanation for the side effects last night. I've experienced nothing like it before."
"Then would you like to explain instead why you were off site?"
"I didn't think Faragonda would approve..."
He said this quietly, feeling very much as though he were sealing his fate. Avalon raised an eyebrow but said nothing, so Palladium answered the unspoken question.
"The composition of the elixir is not entirely standard. I am obviously capable of brewing my own potions so I took the liberty of adapting the formula to suit my needs. That alongside my preferred method of consumption would render the situation rather dubious."
"Palladium, I can't pretend to know nothing about this. I'm also concerned about the side effects you experienced last night. Disorientation, weakness and something that appeared to be hallucination. I think the first two could be lived with, but... The third could have a serious impact on your teaching."
"I told you, it doesn't do that. I don't know what happened."
"How long have you been using it?"
"A week or so."
Here, they paused to clear up the remnants of their respective meals. Neither of them had eaten much, but with the slightly late arrival of Faragonda and Griselda they thought it would be better to continue their conversation elsewhere.

Once they were out in the corridor Avalon asked about something he had noticed Palladium mention earlier in their conversation. It had stuck in his mind and he felt that now was a very good time to bring it up.
"You mentioned a method of consumption. How does it affect the situation?"
"While vapour is sometimes used to aid recovery it is not usually used as the primary method of treatment. I prefer it, but it does appear to have side effects. I could drink it in its base form, but..."
"But?"
"It tastes bad."
If the look he gave Palladium before was withering, the look he was giving the chagrined elf now was actually having a physical effect. He watched his friend flush a rather handsome shade of pink.
"As excuses go, I've heard better from students. I see now why you thought Faragonda would disapprove."
"But... It's true..."
Avalon said nothing, and the pair lapsed into silence.

They wandered towards Avalon's office, where they had left the assorted paraphernalia they would need for the day. As the students were set to return on Sunday, most of Saturday would be spent in preparation for the new term. This meant that their day would consist of a staff meeting on safeguarding and a training course for goodness-knows-what. Most schools would have told their staff the subject of their training course, but Avalon had his suspicions that Faragonda liked to keep her staff on their toes. Any time left before dinner would be spent organising classrooms and equipment, then the rest of the evening would be team building. Or, as Palladium put it, an opportunity to create scores to be settled later in the term. As they approached his office he noticed the way the elf was walking. He seemed to be limping; stiff on his right side. He wondered if it was caused by the events of the previous night, or if there was more to his injury than he had let on. It took all of his restraint not to say anything when Palladium flinched as he walked past to unlock the office door. If he was going to ask any more questions, he would likely receive better answers later on in the day when his friend had recovered from the first set that morning.