One evening, as she was working late in the garden, Alfred approached her with a mischievous grin on his face. "I hear you're looking for a way to make Priest Damon's life a little more interesting," he said, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

Ash looked up from her work, a smile spreading across her face. "You could say that," she replied. "I take it Danny filled you in on our plan?"

Alfred nodded, his grin widening. "Indeed, he did, and I think I might have just the solution you're looking for. We will need to gather a few things for the cooking process, but they shouldn’t take too long to set. The hard part will be hiding it somewhere before we start and the time we are making it.”

Alfred rubbed his hands together, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "Alright, let's get started on this little project of yours. First things first, we need to extract the key ingredients from those demon plants you've been growing."

Ash nodded, her heart racing with anticipation. "I've been tending to them carefully, making sure they're healthy and strong. What do we need to do?"

Alfred led her to a secluded corner of the orphanage grounds, where he had set up a makeshift distilling apparatus. "We'll need to grind up the leaves and roots, then boil them down to extract the essential oils and compounds," he explained, gesturing to the various components of the setup.

Ash watched intently as Alfred demonstrated the process, his hands moving with practiced precision. He carefully measured out the plant material, adding it to a large pot of water and setting it over a low flame. As the mixture began to simmer, a pungent aroma filled the air, causing Ash's eyes to water slightly. He handed her a mask that could cover her mouth and nose, then goggles for their eyes.

"We have to be careful with this stuff. Don’t want to waste it and don’t want any of it spreading. Now, we let it boil for a while, until the water has evaporated, and we're left with a concentrated extract," Alfred continued, stirring the pot occasionally. "This is where the real magic happens."

As they waited for the distillation to complete, Alfred regaled Ash with tales of his past exploits, his voice animated and full of mirth. She found herself laughing along with him, the tension of their clandestine operation melting away in the face of his infectious enthusiasm.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, the extract was ready. Alfred carefully poured the dark, viscous liquid into a small glass vial, holding it up to the light to admire its deep, rich color. "This, my dear Ash, is the key to our little prank," he said with a wink. "A few drops of this in Priest Damon's food, and he'll be in for an unnatural surprise he won't soon forget."

Ash took the vial from him, a sense of giddy anticipation bubbling up inside her. "This is perfect, Alfred," she said, grinning from ear to ear. "Thank you so much for your help. I couldn't have done this without you."

Alfred waved off her gratitude with a chuckle. "Think nothing of it, my dear. I'm always happy to lend a hand in a bit of harm to our keeper. Now, let's talk about how we're going to slip this little concoction into the good Priest's meal without getting caught."

“While we wait we can’t forget the preparation of the Starlight Bloom. This will have some much-needed kick so that it goes from sickness to torturous. I’ve tested some preparation methods and using it in its distilled form should hold its natural amplification properties.”

“That would be very dangerous. Are you sure you want to mix the two?” he asked skeptically.

Ash considered Alfred's words carefully, a slight frown creasing her brow. "You're right, mixing the two could be incredibly dangerous," she admitted, turning the vial over in her hands. "But if we want to make sure Priest Damon really suffers, we might need that extra kick from the Starlight Bloom."

Alfred nodded; his expression thoughtful. "I understand your desire to make him pay for all the pain he's caused, but we need to be smart about this. If we go too far, it could backfire on us."

"What if we use a smaller amount of the Starlight Bloom extract?" Ash suggested, her mind racing with possibilities. "Just enough to amplify the effects without pushing it into truly dangerous territory. We want him in pain, not dead.".

Alfred mulled over the idea, his fingers drumming against the workbench. "That could work," he said slowly, "but we'd need to be very precise with the dosage. Too little, and it won't make a difference. Too much, and we risk causing serious harm."

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Ash bit her lip, weighing the risks and rewards. She knew Alfred was right, but the temptation to make Priest Damon truly suffer was hard to resist. "Let's do it," she said finally, her voice filled with determination. "We'll be careful, measure everything out precisely, and make sure we don't cross the line."

Alfred grinned, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "Alright then, let's get to work on the Starlight Bloom extract. I've got a few ideas on how we can refine the distillation process to get the most potent result without going overboard. It should also go by much faster."

“Ok. I’ll go get the Starlight if you want to reset the distiller?”

As they set to work on the second phase of their plan, Ash felt a sense of camaraderie and purpose that she hadn't experienced in a long time. With Alfred by her side, she knew they could pull off this prank and give Priest Damon a taste of his own medicine.

An hour passed as they worked diligently, refining the Starlight Bloom extract, and carefully measuring out the precise amounts needed to enhance the demon plant concoction. The sun had since set by the time they finished; the orphanage grounds bathed in the eerie glow of the moon.

"We did it," Ash whispered, holding up the final vial of their combined potion. The liquid within seemed to shimmer and dance in the moonlight, its power almost palpable.

“Now we just need to put them together.”

“But first some rest. Tomorrow we can discuss how we get this into Priest Damon’s mouth.”

The next day, they spent some time huddled together, whispering and plotting, their heads bent close as they ironed out the details of their plan. Ash felt a thrill of excitement running through her veins, the prospect of finally getting back at Priest Damon for all his cruelty and mistreatment filling her with a sense of righteous satisfaction. Even Taylor joined them for a bit to bounce ideas off of and consider viable strategies.

When they were done they carefully packed up their equipment and made their way back inside, the precious vial of extract tucked safely away in Ash's pocket. She could hardly contain her excitement as she bid Alfred goodnight, her mind already racing with thoughts of the next phase of their plan.

Over the next few days, Ash, Alfred, and Danny worked tirelessly to gather the remaining ingredients they needed for their prank. They sneaked into the orphanage kitchens late at night, raiding the pantry for spices and herbs to mask the taste of the demon plant extract. They experimented with different recipes, trying to find the perfect balance of flavors that would both disguise the presence of the extract and appeal to Priest Damon's notoriously picky palate.

“We can’t veer too far off the regular dinner menu expectations. At the same time, we don’t know what will mix well with the extract we have made,” considered Alfred. “It also shouldn’t be diluted too much by the food.”

“There is the option of upping the dose, but that could mean that he tastes the extract too early into the meal. I still think that adding it into a paste would be best with a side of bread or something similar.”

“I would hope we can have something concrete. We need something strong to mask the scents we will be adding. Maybe something citrusy like lemon. Or otherwise, bitter. I just don’t want to tip him off when I’m not sure we can try this a second time through.

Ash nodded thoughtfully, considering Alfred's concerns. "You're right, we need to be careful about how we mask the taste and scent of the extract. Lemon could work well, but I worry that the acidity might interact poorly with the demon plant compounds."

Alfred scratched his chin, his brow furrowed in concentration. "What about something bitter, like dark chocolate? We could melt it down and mix it into a paste with the extract, then spread it on some bread or pastries."

Ash's eyes lit up at the suggestion. "That's brilliant, Alfred! Dark chocolate would not only mask the taste and smell but also complement the bitterness of the demon plant. Plus, it's not too out of the ordinary for a dessert or snack."

"Exactly," Alfred grinned, "and if we play our cards right, we can make it seem like a special treat, something Priest Damon won't be able to resist."

We'll need to be careful about the timing, though," Ash mused, tapping her finger against her chin. "We don't want to give him the opportunity to share it with anyone else or have someone else taste it by accident."

Alfred nodded in agreement. "True, we'll have to choose a moment when he's alone and unlikely to be disturbed. Perhaps during his afternoon tea time, when he tends to retreat to his study?"

"That could work," Ash said slowly, a plan forming in her mind. "We could have one of the younger children deliver the treat to his study, claiming it's a special gift from the kitchen staff. He's less likely to question it coming from an innocent face."

"And we can make sure the child leaves quickly, so there's no chance of them sticking around and accidentally tasting it themselves," Alfred added, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

Ash felt a surge of excitement at the prospect of their plan coming together. "This is going to be perfect, Alfred. Priest Damon won't know what hit him, and by the time he realizes something is wrong, it'll be too late."

Alfred chuckled, rubbing his hands together in gleeful anticipation. "I can hardly wait to see the look on his face when he takes that first bite," he said, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "It's going to be a meal he'll never forget."

As they cleaned up the kitchen and made their way back to their respective rooms, Ash felt a sense of calm settle over her. She knew that what they were doing was risky and that there would be consequences if they were caught. But at that moment, she didn't care. All that mattered was the thrill of the prank, the satisfaction of finally getting back at the man who had made her life and the others a living hell for so long. The anticipation of seeing Priest Damon's reaction when the potion took effect was almost too much to bear, but Ash knew that patience would be key in executing their plan flawlessly.