[G] [O] 744.01.29 | Mixing It Up

Ulliendis was a fan of putting in as little effort as possible into most areas of his life and he was fine with making people believe it actually extended to all areas, but mixing chemicals was not one of them. He carefully eyed the slowly pouring amber liquid coming from the vile he tipped above the beaker he had recently pulled from the open flame. Too much too quickly made for a horrible combination that sent up a noxious cloud and he didn't feel like knocking himself out that day. Ever since the first lesson years ago where he did that, Ulliendis made it a point to pay attention when working with poisons and other nifty concoctions. He breathed a sigh of relief when the last drop left the vile and the contents of the beaker stayed clear. It was the perfect amount and it blended properly. Good. It had admittedly been too long since he last made this specific mixture and wasn't looking forward to starting the lengthy process over again if he messed it all up.

It was still too warm to transfer and stopper the bottles, so Ulliendis draped a small cloth over the top to keep it from being contaminated until he returned to it. In the meantime, the vile was cleaned and then he pulled out the mortar and pestle to begin breaking down the leaves for the next project. He may as well take advantage of all the downtime he now had since Rh'us became utterly boring thanks to having a kid. The man only showed up for his scheduled shifts in the infirmary and waved Ulliendis off as an annoying underling that just fetched things. The bronzerider Healer's research seemed to be on hold and Rh'us didn't seem to do any extracurricular activities now that he was fussing over August and their baby. Not to mention August's gold had clutched recently for the first time so they were both extra irritating because of that.

Whatever. It was fine. He knew how to create his own fun and his snooping and sneaking skills were still top notch with plenty of places begging for his delicate touch. Maybe he'd go wandering that night and plot out his next target. Maybe he'd just send Geric a letter and tell his friend he would come for a visit soon. The man had been far too cagey about any further interactions with Wynera whether drunk or sober and Ulliendis still had to figure that mystery out.

He frowned when he heard someone approaching Rh'us' workroom. It was late evening and the bronzerider had left for dinner and for the night hours ago, which was why Ulliendis remained to work on his own projects. Was the Healer returning? His gaze flicked to the cooling beaker but it wasn't anything Rh'us wasn't already familiar with thanks to his studies so it was easy enough to explain away. If it was anyone else, he'd just have to make sure they weren't dumb enough to drink random liquids left sitting out. Keeping up with appearances, Ulliendis put on his best overly dramatic bored with a hint of irritation at being made to work late as he continued to crush the leaves as he waited for the person to peek in.