It was odd; she never felt anything except a vague magical presence about herself when she put it on. For some reason, she always expected to feel more profoundly different. The strangest thing about it was that even when she looked at her own hands and body after applying the potion, they looked no different: the same pale white skin, the same clothes. But her reflection in the mirror showed a tall, raven-haired elf maiden in pastel-colored, flowing garb. She looked like a much thinner version of Alaema, with pointed ears.
She smiled back at the elves that passed by, and spoke to the ones who spoke to her, recognizing her face -or the illusion thereof. The potion worked perfectly every single time, and so she had long since gotten over the initial uneasiness.
Aldrec was in the garden today, but not by himself.
Standing beside him, in a small white loincloth, was someone who looked like a young human boy. Or was it a girl? Gender-wise, its features were disturbingly unclear, and obviously not human.
Its hair, long and wiry, was flaming red, flecked with streaks of white, and on the ruddy skin of its face, there were sparse placements of what appeared to be tiny scales. Its ears were membranous and fan-shaped, like a bat's wings. A scaly, reptilian tail grew from its backside.
The creature looked her way, and then smiled like a lost boy who had found his mother. It bounded up to her on all fours, stopped, and then stood upright and bowed courteously.
"Well … hello to you too," Mericlou said, impressed with the child-creature's politeness. It blinked at her curiously, and then reached out its hand for her. Mericlou took it, and then nearly screamed as she heard a voice, like a whisper, echo inside of her head.
Hello, pretty one. I am Krako.
Jerking her hand away in fright, she was caught by Aldrec, who had come up behind her. He touched his finger to her nose, and she felt the magic of the illusion dissipate.
"Don't be afraid, Tulyr," he said. "Krako is friendly. He was trying to communicate with you. It's unnerving, at first, I know."
"It sounded like he was talking in my head," Mericlou said, staring nervously at Krako. "And he's very feminine-looking, for a male."
"Well, actually, I'm surprised that he was able to communicate with you at all," Aldrec said pleasantly. "But I guess that his method of talking is spiritual, rather than physical. And no, he's not male."
"He's … not?" Mericlou said. "But you just said, 'he.'"