Sinaloa found himself once again in Khalash’s shop, receiving instructions for a new task. He cowered near the door like he had the first time, wide eyes staring up at the old man as he wrote him a list.

“Now this won't be as simple as the other job, alright? I need you to find me these three herbs in the forest. They’re all fairly common, but can be difficult to find. I’m sure you’ll be able to to manage. Hurry back child.”

Khalash gave Sina a list of names he couldn’t pronounce, a small basket and a pat on the head, sending him on his way to the forest. The route there was faster this time, weaving and dodging through empty backstreets instead of edging along mainstreet. He rushed into the woods, but not immediately to the herbs - he was smarter than to go looking blindly. Instead, he scurried up the path to knock on the Old Hermit’s door. Sina beamed as he answered, quickly explaining himself.

“I need to find these three plants for Mr. Saton. I didn’t want to get lost on my way so i came to ask where I might find them? You seem to know much of the forest, so if you could please, share some of tha-”

The Hermit silenced him with a chuckle, agreeing to help. The hermit went inside and returned with a pencil, marking down on the list where they were generally found. Handing back the list, the old man wished Sina well and sent him on his way.

It didn’t take long to find an area like the one the Hermit had described for the first plant. It was supposed to be a curly fern thing, but he didn’t see any here. It was here the Hermit said to go to, so it had to be here. Sina dropped to the ground, army crawling through the dirt until he came face-to-leaf with the exact fern that was pictured on the list. He gently grabbed it, running back to put it safely in the basket before hunting down another, and then another and another. Barely an hour into the search and he’d found plenty of the strange curly things. Sinaloa wasn’t sure what made them fresh, but they smelled fresh and looked fresh, so they had to be fresh, right?

Next up was this blue… mossy… thing. It grew on dead trees further into the forest. Sina took off running, excited by how easily he’d found the first plant. He spent the better part of an hour searching for fallen trees. Unfortunately, in a forest this big, trees didn’t seem to fall as often. The trees all seemed to be green and growing and full of life and there was no sign of blue moss or dead trees. Until he tripped over one and landed face first in the dirt.

It looked like the clearing had been made a long time ago, by some sort of disaster - or, looking closer, a giant spell. The trees had all been either completely eradicated or knocked over, the ground torn up and scarred even years later. A powerful mage had once practiced here, years ago. Sina stood awed in the middle of the leftover carnage, grass and other plants sprouting over the sunnier parts of the man made clearing.

Scanning the area, Sina’s eyes settled on a patch of blue at the far end. He rushed over, tripping over furrows and ruts, sliding next to a felled tree covered in the blue lichen Khalash was asking for. The lichen came off easily and Sinaloa packed it into the basket with the curly ferns. Two down, and one plant left to go, he took off running again as soon as he was out of the clearing.
The only guide to finding the vines he’d been given, was to go further and further into the woods, to the oldest part of the forest. They’d hang down low enough that he’d be able to see them, but it might be a little difficult to reach them. And indeed they were, when he finally arrived. It took quite some time, traipsing about the trees, but find them he did - after he'd run under them for five minutes. The vines were feet above his head, and way out of reach.

Sinaloa clawed at the trees, trying to reach the vines, only able to get far enough up to wiggle his fingertips at the ends of the vines. The red leaves hung like mocking signs, bright against the dark colour of the tree bark. The mage growled, climbing a tree and then leaping at the vines, grabbing on with both hands only to realise what an absolutely horrible idea that was. Sina clung to the vine for dear life as he swung back and forth, until the vine snapped, sending him tumbling back down to earth.

Winded, Sinaloa lay on the ground with a length of vine draped overtop of him, face hidden beneath a red leaf.

“Ididit.”

When he was finally able to breathe and move around, Sina hopped up, storing the vines in the basket. He’d found everything Khalash had asked for, without ruining anything. Sinaloa whooped as he ran back towards the town, only to trip over a rock and go tumbling. Lesson learned, he walked the rest of the way, slipping into Mag Drug Magic Shop quiet as a mouse, with a smile on his face.

“Ididit.”

Khalash took the basket, examining the herbs before he accepted them. “These will do. Thank you dear. Now sit a moment while I work.”

Sinaloa sat where he was, in the middle of the floor. Khalash raised a questioning eyebrow but said nothing, already aware that the small mage on his shop floor was nothing short of peculiar. Sina could hear Khalash as he prepared the herbs, and stewed them in a boiling liquid. The shop owner returned with a small vial, presumably the potion he had been working on in the back. “Try this. It will either do nothing, or work properly, but no harm will come to you.” Sinaloa stared up at Khalash for a long moment, before hesitantly taking the vial. There was nothing in here that would damage his body or mind. He told himself this over and over again, but still couldn’t convince himself to drink it. Absolute terror flashed in his eyes as he dropped the vial, scrambling as far away from it as he could.

“I can’t.” He whispered, staring at the vial like it was evil incarnate. There was no way he could, not with what had happened to him before. Potions on their own, or mixed with their food and drink. Each and every one of them meant to do horrible things for his masters’ entertainment. The old man seemed to sense the fear, gently petting Sinaloa’s head and brushing her hair out of her eyes. This went on for several long moments before Khalash broke the silence.

“There is nothing to be afraid of. I will not harm you. I don’t know what happened to you, and I will not force you to drink the potion, but it’s meant to help you, not harm you. You can relax, you’re safe. The town is protected by good people, who will never let harm come to you.”

Sinaloa kept her eyes downcast, staying quiet. She uncorked the vial and downed the contents, causing her to hiccup. There was definitely an effect, though she couldn’t seem to tell what had changed. Khalash on the other hand, could tell immediately. It was a success.with another gentle pat on her head, he guided Sinaloa to her feet, handed her the payment, and sent her on her way with a very sad smile. It was easy to tell, for him, and many of the people she had ever passed by in Magnolia since arriving, that she was horribly broken in many ways, and there was no magic or potion that could heal those kinds of wounds.