Fiona put her phone away, satisfied with the blackmail photos she'd gained.

[i]This isn't fair! Now the NSA has pictures of me being fat too![/i]

"Estelle is fine," Carolyn said with confidence. "Mostly just pooped. Whatever used her to make the charm just left her super tired. Like she drank a whole bottle of cola and crashed right after."

"Without the mess," Fiona added.

Carolyn nodded. "We'll keep an eye on her but I think it'll just give me and Fiona a quiet afternoon together."

"Like going to the Bahamas," Fiona laughed, stepping out of the kitchen to watch the rest of the children. "Whatever will we do with free time?"

Carolyn started up the blender. "I can feel the sun and surf already!"

Parry ignored the flirtatious banter, his eyes focused on the blue concoction in the blender, rapidly turning from a mass of disparate solids into a liquid. The wolf pups in the other room started barking up a storm in response to the sudden noise.

[i]At least it isn't green,[/i] he thought. [i]Potions are always green. Why can't witches make them look like margaritas? A little tequila in there wouldn't hurt.[/i]

Carolyn shut the blender down and reached into Estelle's bag, removed a clean bottle, and poured the potion in before screwing the top back on.

"I've got more experience with this thing," she said, shaking the bottle furiously in one hand, reaching for Parry with the other. "If you'll allow me?"