After Seraphine left, Levy remained with her, watching her eat the rest of her food in silence. He seemed to pay great attention to how she chewed her bread, and whether or not any crumbs fell onto her bedsheets.

"So, I've been meaning to ask," Aubrey said as she finished off her plate, licking a glob of jam off the corner of her lips. "Are you and Seraphine a couple or what?"

Levy's head whipped towards her, his pale skin reddened and a flustered expression crossed his face. "W-Why does everyone ask that question every damn time when we work together?! We're just partners, colleagues—"

"Uh-huh," she said with a smirk as she set the now-empty tray aside. "Wait, I think I'm starting to understand something about you..."

Aubrey grinned broadly at Levy's flustered expression, winking at him as she reclined on the mattress.

"Lemme guess... you like Seraphine, but she seems to either not catch the subtle hints or she's one of those oblivious types, right?"

Levy sputtered something unintelligible as he rose abruptly, grabbing the tray. "The only hint I'll give you is that you shouldn't get too comfortable here, Miss Sinclair."

Aubrey watched in amusement as Levy stomped away. He eventually returned to stand guard once more, idly flipping through the pages of an old book while shooting dark glares Aubrey's way.

Despite herself, a tiny kernel of pity for the young man formed somewhere inside Aubrey's heart.

"Did you confess to her yet?" she asked.

Levy snapped out of whatever he was reading to glare at her once again. "Why would that be relevant to your situation?"

Aubrey shook her head, chuckling lightly as she shifted positions to lie sideways while still propped up on her elbow. She gazed at Levy with an amused gleam in her eyes and a smirk pulling at the corners of her lips.

"I've got nothing else better to do right now than offer a little romantic advice... besides, we already talked yesterday about this place being too stuffy and boring... but I guess there are other ways to pass the time~"

He looked unimpressed. "I'm not falling for your taunts this time, Miss Sinclair. Just stay in this room, and things should go well for all of us. Keep trying to rile me up and push my buttons, and see if I don't take drastic measures."

"So, did you confess or not?"

A sigh escaped Levy's lips. "...I did."

Aubrey gasped. "And you got rejected? A handsome stud like yourself?"

Levy shook his head before returning to his reading. "She's more like an older sister to me... than anything else, so we decided to keep our relationship professional instead," he explained, flipping another page over.

Aubrey hummed in understanding, resting her chin against one palm as she studied Levy thoughtfully. There wasn't anything about him that really caught her eye physically or aesthetically—though he definitely seemed the intelligent type based on the way he carried himself.

"Hmm, but you still harbor romantic feelings for her."

Levy didn't answer immediately, turning another page over. At length though, he nodded in confirmation after muttering a quiet "Yes."

"Have you tried pursuing relationships with others since then? You know what they say: always remember that there's plenty more fish in the sea."

The look he sent her seemed genuinely baffled.

"You're not going to give this subject up, are you?" he muttered dryly.

Aubrey grinned impishly, shrugging as she rolled onto her back and kicked her feet in the air with playful energy. "Not until I learn of something more interesting happening around here. Unless, that is, you have a cute girl waiting for you in some secluded location somewhere that I can tease you about?"

"Unfortunately for you, Miss Sinclair, I've never had much luck when it comes to matters of the heart," Levy replied quietly, tapping his foot impatiently against the floorboards. He didn't seem angry or annoyed now though. If anything, he appeared merely resigned to her teasing.

That made Aubrey pout. She wanted to stir him up some more... hm...

"A-anyways..." Levy continued, glancing away and clearing his throat. He closed his book with a loud thump, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Why are you so obsessed about romance all of a sudden? And where does this interest come from?"

Aubrey blinked at that question and laughed sheepishly, running one hand through her messy bedhair and shaking her head. "Ahaha, no particular reason, I guess... just thought that I might get to know you two better by hearing your love stories."

"You don't think it'll distract me from watching you closely? How foolish," he remarked, smirking in that smug way men tended to do when thinking they've got you figured out.

Aubrey blew raspberries. "Said the guy who couldn't keep his eyes off of my body yesterday~"

Levy's pale skin reddened again, averting his eyes quickly as he looked down at his lap and mumbled something under his breath. When he eventually looked up once more, he stared hard at her as though trying to drill a hole inside her skull with his mind. "Miss Sinclair, while I'm not an expert on this matter, there seems to be a pattern developing with these questions. Either way... even if it helps alleviate your boredom for a bit... don't think that means it's okay for you to act like this, understood?"

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"I happen to have a love potion on me. Interested?"

He blinked owlishly at her. "Pardon?"

With a smirk, Aubrey lifted her hands above her head, wiggling her fingers as if doing a sensual dance for his enjoyment.

She reached down between her breasts and slowly pulled out a tiny glass vial filled with pink liquid. She showed it off with an innocent smile upon her lips, before hiding it away within the folds of her bosom once more. "It's called Xeno's Kiss, a special brand of 'liquid love' that's very hard to get your hands on, but comes with guaranteed results. It's designed to make people fall completely mad for you…temporarily anyways, and I had it prepared specifically for a special occasion such as this one, hoho~"

Aubrey winked playfully at him. "So, whaddaya say~?"

Levy stared incredulously at Aubrey, his mouth opening and closing like a fish gasping out for water as he struggled to formulate a coherent sentence. He seemed so flabbergasted by her proposition that no words came out no matter how many times he attempted to speak.

At length though, Levy managed to sputter, "W-What?! Are telling me to use that on Seraphine so she'll fall in love with me? How did you even manage to obtain something so—I-I mean... why would you even offer such a suggestion? That is immoral! Unethical! Deviant!"

His reaction made Aubrey burst into a fit of giggles, rolling onto her side as tears threatened to spill from the corners of her eyes. Her shoulders trembled in mirth, laughing so hard her body shook. At one point, she kicked out with a leg, knocking over the pile of books and scattering them all over the floor.

When she calmed down enough to talk, her chest heaved heavily as she lay back on her side. She wiped away tears from both eyes before sitting up and smiling devilishly at Levy's flustered expression.

"Nah, I ain't telling you to use that on Seraphie, silly." She waggled a finger at him. "I'm saying, we could have some fun with it. You know... spice things up a little bit."

She winked again, licking her lips suggestively as she wagged her eyebrows in mock seduction at him. "I happen to find a cute nerd like yourself attractive enough for me to spare my precious concoction~"

Aubrey grinned when Levy reddened further, averting his gaze quickly and coughing to hide his embarrassment. The poor lad probably had a lot of thoughts about her comment right now, though hopefully none too negative.

"I know you've got some pent-up energy that needs releasing. So, come on over. I'm not shy with the guys and gals I find cute~"

"If you're so confident about your own appeal, then why bring along the potion in the first place, huh? Why bother offering?" Levy questioned, crossing his arms once more in an attempt to compose himself. His cheeks remained flushed crimson, but he no longer fidgeted uncomfortably or stuttered.

She shrugged nonchalantly in response. "Because even though your body is telling you 'yes', your mind says 'no'. So, I thought giving you some 'encouragement' would make things easier."

"You think some love potion is enough to make me throw myself at you?"

"Well... it doesn't exactly need to be love... lust works just fine. Besides, I thought you could use a pretext so that your pride doesn't get bruised afterwards..."

She trailed off with a sly smile curling upward on her lips, glancing down at her lap demurely. "Would you really pass up on having your way with a beautiful young woman who's practically throwing herself at you?"

"...No," he admitted quietly after a pause, his blush deepening further still. "No... you're certainly a unique individual... but you're an Unhallowed! What if you drain my life while w-we... d-do it?"

Aubrey gave another shrug at the accusation that she was a parasitical being. "We can make a bet. If it turns out you're correct in assuming me to be dangerous and bad news, then fine, whatever—you can punish me however you see fit. I wouldn't mind that, hehe~"

Then, with a wink, she continued. "However! If nothing happens because, like I said before, the concoction works both ways... well, that means you're worrying too much and need some stress relief to cool off~"

Levy swallowed hard, breathing unevenly now as his gaze flicked between her face, her body, and the bedsheets. "You're crazy. And insane... and completely out of your mind!"

But there was also a certain glint in his eyes that seemed to sparkle with barely contained excitement as he stepped closer, stopping just shy of actually coming up beside her.

Aubrey giggled playfully in response. She lifted her bound hands above her head again, wiggling her index finger and beckoning him closer with a seductive smirk.

"Sooo... is that a yes, mister? Or are you just nervous that the potion wouldn't work properly and then I'd think you're bad in bed?"

Her remark seemed to strike something inside him because, after hesitating briefly, Levy sighed as if giving in and stepped forward to kneel next to her bedside. His eyes darted away from hers momentarily while he bit his lip, seemingly torn between rationality and desire. Eventually though, the latter won out as he turned his attention back towards her, staring intently into her eyes.

"Don't think me to be a weak-willed man for falling into this kind of temptation," he warned her, leaning over her torso.

"Pfffftt—I don't believe there's anything weak-willed about you."

"Just know that once I start, I won't stop. You'll regret having teased me so relentlessly, Miss Sinclair. Now hand me that potion before I change my mind entirely."

Aubrey's eyes narrowed deviously at those words. She reached between her breasts to retrieve the vial, then carefully removed the cork with her teeth and set it aside before handing it over.

As soon as Levy took hold of it, he brought it close enough to sniff at its contents while he eyed the swirling pink liquid dubiously.

"Are you sure this is safe?"

She gave a thumbs-up.

Suddenly, she recalled the words that Crone from the apothecary told her.

"Ye folks are... resistant ta mortal toxins and curses. Normally, a human would have their sanity ripped ta shreds or die from being overstimulated..."

Oh shit!

"Wait!" Before Levy could gulp any down, she reached up and caught his arm to stop him, causing the vial to slip from his grasp and fall onto her face, most of its contents spilling against the corners of her mouth.

Nooo! It's going to waste!

She tried licking her lips clean while wiping away whatever had spilled onto her cheeks and licking her hands. The potion was sweetly potent, coating her tongue and throat with intense flavors that reminded her faintly of strawberry milk, except stronger and with more of a fruity tang than creaminess.

The effect was immediate—an overwhelmingly intoxicating sensation of warmth spread throughout her entire body almost instantly, making her skin feel hot to the touch while goosebumps covered every inch of exposed flesh.

More of the Crone's words echoed in her mind as she felt heat pooling below.

"Careful. One drop will provide the effects ye desire. Consume more. And..."

Oh...OH FUCK ME!