Carver's nose was still bright red and dripping and his eyes were bleary when he showed up at the lab the next morning. Eden took one look at him and raised her eyebrows. "Go home."
"I brought a whole box of tissues."
"Tissues aren't going to keep you fro
(more)m infecting me, and I doubt you can think straight in that condition. Go home."
He shook his head, then wavered, reaching for the door frame. Eden opened her mouth to protest again, but he interrupted.
"Considering the information that's at stake, would you let something like a cold send you home?"
"The information will still be here once you recover. I'm not going to pack up and disappear."
"I want to help find it," Carver said, raising his voice-- which brought on a coughing fit. Eden winced and thought of germs staining the spines of her books. But she knew she would not be able to send him away.
"Go wash your hands, thoroughly," she said with a sigh. "I'll get you some cold medicine."
She found the bottle that Candace had sent her and brought it to Carver.
"Two pills whenever your head feels muddy. They should begin working in a matter of seconds."
Carver eyed the bottle. "...What's in those?"
Eden frowned, sensing where this was going. "They taste like sugar. Candace is very popular with children for that reason."
Carver began to say something, then closed his mouth.
"You've never taken potion before," Eden said icily.
He tried to wriggle out of the accusation. "It makes me uneasy. It's not... repeatable."
"Six hundred years' worth of being one of our most trusted healers isn't repeatable enough for you?" (less)
