Binx the Light Bearer, The Potion That Shouldn’t Have Sparkled

Binx was the younger brother in a trio that balanced each other like mismatched socks but somehow perfect puzzle pieces. Sage was steady. Amethyst was mystical...and Binx…

Binx was a Light Bearer who desperately wanted to be an alchemist.

Not a careful alchemist.

Not a measured one.

No, Binx wanted potions that fizzed, popped, whistled, and occasionally tried to escape the table. He was bright, literally. Wherever he went, he left a soft glow behind him like drifting fireflies, but Binx’s light wasn’t the only thing that followed him. Trouble followed him too, and right behind trouble waddled his best friend, Angel the chicken.

Angel adored Binx.

She admired his bravery and questionable hobbies. She also had a bad habit of sticking her head into whatever he was doing, which almost always made things worse, but that’s what best friends are for in the Hollow.

One cool morning, Binx set up a makeshift “laboratory” (Sage called it dangerous; Amethyst called it hopeful; Binx called it “professional”). He had a recipe that was supposed to create a gentle shimmer potion.

Something small. Something tame.

Something, if you asked Sage, Binx was definitely not ready to make unsupervised, but Binx believed in himself.

He sprinkled dawn dust.

He dripped moon spark.

He stirred counterclockwise, mostly...and right on cue, he heard it:

Tap tap tap tap tap,

Angel peeked her fluffy head around the door.

“Whatcha mixing?” she clucked suspiciously.

“Nothing dangerous,” Binx lied, which was a terrible lie because both of them knew if Binx said “nothing dangerous,” a kaboom was practically guaranteed.

Angel trotted in anyway. She hopped on the table. She sniffed the glowing mixture. She pecked the spoon, because of course she did.

Binx reached out.

“Angel, PLEASE don’t...”

She pecked again, and the potion shivered. Then wiggled. Then made a sound like a hiccup, and then...

KABOOM!

Light burst like fireworks, coating the room in glittering sparks. A puff of harmless smoke poofed out like a magician’s trick. Both Binx and Angel flew backward with their feathers and whiskers smoking. For a moment everything was still. Then Angel shook herself violently, spraying soot everywhere.

“BINX!” she squawked.

“You almost seasoned me!”

“I didn’t mean to!” Binx yelled back, coughing out a small smoke ring.

“…Did I do that?” Angel asked sheepishly.

Binx looked at her.

Angel looked at the melted spoon. They both looked at the bubbling cauldron that was now whistling ominously, and then, at the same time, they burst into wild, uncontrollable laughter.

Sage rushed in with a mop. Amethyst arrived with an exhausted sigh. The kitchen was a mess, the windows glowed for three days, and Angel smelled faintly of toasted marshmallow, but none of that mattered. Because Binx and Angel were shoulder to shoulder, covered in soot, coughing on sparkles, and smiling like fools, and at that moment, everyone understood:

The Hollow didn’t just have a Light Bearer,

It had a Light Bearer with a best friend who made the world a little messier, a little sillier, and a whole lot brighter.

By: Brittney Humphrey

December 24th, 2025