Winter gives way to warmer weather early. Annaliese's 17th birthday is approaching in a matter of weeks and the pile of potion instructions is shrinking to a tiny stack by comparison to where she began.

As the sun rises on a beautiful blooming world, Annaliese stretches herself awake and dresses for the day. Though no one is here for her to impress, she continues to shy away from the little girl dresses, and puts on a silver grey dress that shows her collar bone.

The staff is all that remains to see to her needs while her family is away running earns for the wedding, and joining of the kingdoms. After breakfast, Annaliese immediately sets off to the tower. She locks the door behind her as she had taken to doing and approaches the table, eager to read her instructions.

Good day, Princess

You are nearing the last phase of the potion. By now, your birthday should also be looming close. Has this been an interesting distraction? Or a chore I wonder. Today you need only stir and add 1 pinch of locus. To find the locus, go downstairs into my chamber. I'm sure you have already snuck around down there by now. In my writing desk you will find a velvet pouch in the center drawer. The key to open the drawer is in the pocket of the only robe I left in my wardrobe. DON'T USE IT ALL! Just a pinch, Princess.

Zorander

Well, at least now she had actual permission to venture down. Her cheeks had blushed pink as she read. He knew her too well...

...and she loved it.

*******

Her birthday this year would not be such a grand affair. Annaliese was allowed to scale back the event to her liking. She invited a small group of her Princess friends for an elegant dinner party. There was no one she wanted to dance with. At least, no one that would be in attendance. So she requested to go without a ball and keep it intimate. She used maturity as her disguise. As if she was now just too much of a proper lady to need a "party" as such. The truth is she didn't want to feel pressured to mingle with the opposite sex and open herself to offers she would only want to refuse.

Two days before her birthday, she finishes the last step of the mystery potion.

Here you are at the end of the potion process. Was it as glamorous as you imagined? Not all potions are this tedious. Today you need only remove what should now be a soft green and somewhat viscous potion from the heat and give it time to cool. Within a few hours you can bottle it in that vial labeled with your name. You probably already put that away when you cleaned the top of the worktable. You did clean it, yes? Of course you did. On your birthday, which I imagine is what? Next week? Flip this last page and I will tell you how to use the potion. Use it at exactly midnight, after whatever stuffy ball your sister has in mind. If it works, well done, Apprentice.

She beams at the page. Well done indeed. If it works of course. It will be a long 2 days, waiting for this big reveal. She decides sitting around the castle alone is no way to keep her mind off (her sorcerer) her potion. Changing quickly to her riding gear, she spends the rest of the afternoon riding away, lost in her thoughts.

The morning of her birthday is a clear, crisp spring day. The sun dissolves the dew from the leaves in the garden and song birds fill the air with their song. Since she was to have a simple dinner party with friends. Annaliese decided to wear something a little bit more royal and fitting.

She spends the day bustling about the hall, answering questions for the kitchen staff regarding her event and trying to stay busy. The hours tick by, one by one. By sunset she is vibrating with excitement. Her family assumes it is for her sweet little party. However, it is the surprise that awaits her in the tower.

Her guests begin to arrive as the sun is just vanishing over the horizon. All her invited guests were in attendance. Dinner is served on simple gold rimmed china. The friends laugh and remember fond childhood memories, as that part of their life is coming to a close. Many discuss their romantic lives. Princess Evangeline is shyly quiet on this topic. Lately, she and Daniel have been meeting in secret.

Eventually, the friends begin to take their leave. They thank Annaliese for the evening and hug her warmly, wishing her a happy birthday and amazing year ahead. As the last coach leaves she bounces away from the door and nearly runs, as much as her gown will allow, down the halls to the stone stair case.

At the top of the stairs she grabs the key and nearly fumbles it in her haste. The time is almost midnight and she doesn't know if there will be any other preparation before using the potion.

Locking the door behind her she flies across the room and rips the top page away, revealing the last parchment on the table.

Retrieve the mirror from my wardrobe and set it against a wall. Poor the contents across the face of the mirror and recite "recedentia visio".

That's it? Not even a "Happy Birthday"? Not as personable as she had hoped on the last day. This is her last message for a year. Her disappointment goes unnoticed.

She removes the mirror and stands it against the wall across from the bed. By now it is midnight. She pours the liquid over the surface of the mirror. It is murky now. Slimy and dripping on the stone floor. She takes a breath and says the words he wrote loudly and clear.

The mirror slowly changes. The blurry vision of herself in the room falls into blackness. The potions seems to vanish into the lost reflection. For a moment it seems nothing is happening. Then it starts. Barely visible at first.

Standing in the mirror, no longer a reflection of Annaliese in her royal party dress, but Zorander. A grin on his face, the most genuine she has ever seen. In his hands, a parchment with large letters reads:

"Happy Birthday, Princess. Well done"