this is on ao3, but I decided to move it onto this platform, also.

Just a few raven feathers, snail shells and blades of grass from a fifteen-year old flower field.

Piece of cake for an intermediate witch such as Kiku Honda.

Especially seeing as he'd done this recipe at least a hundred times before. This recipe was used to create a potion that would help one discover lost things, and the one lost thing that Kiku failed to find was his employee ID for the local renaissance festival being held tomorrow.

As Kiku Honda is and always had been a witch coming from two past generations of witches, there seemed to be no better vacation job than working at one of the potion tents at the renaissance festival in his hometown. Of course, the "potions" being sold at the festival were simply brightly colored perfumes and lotions, but his parents thought it would be a fun idea to dress in his witch attire and earn a few extra bucks for the break. Making money he had no quarrel with; the brief social interactions throughout the day was what irked him. Kiku had never been one to make friends easily, and thus has never had many friends or much social knowledge - or "street smarts", as one of his dear friends puts it.

Dropping the four snail shells that the recipe called for into the small cauldron, he heard the door open behind him.

"What are you working on?" His older brother, Yao, asked as he neared the cauldron to peek at what was inside. Bubbles were barely beginning to form at the surface. "Another locator potion?"

"Yes. I can't find my employee ID for tomorrow," the boy moved from the cauldron to search the drawers lined on the walls of their family's conjuring room. Endless amounts of supplies were stocked in this room, as his parents and brother all used it for their studies and training. "You haven't seen it, have you?"

His brother shook his head, but grinned. "I forgot you took that job! Are you excited? You're practically being paid to wear your witch clothes."

"I'm excited to make money. Not excited to talk to people." Kiku replied as he shut the drawer full of raven feathers. He tossed them into the cauldron before going back to search the cabinets above the drawers.

Yao rolled his eyes. "Kiku, you've got to outgrow that. Meeting new people isn't that bad. And there are interesting people to meet at that renaissance festival! Almost everyone is in costume and the little kids are into that fake magic stuff."

Kiku narrowed his eyes at the mention of "fake magic". Witches were aware of the rip-off magic that normal civilians made money from. He grabbed a jar of wilted grass blades and moved back towards the cauldron. "I don't want to sell 'fake magic', or even be associated with it. It's a disgrace to real witches." He grabbed a handful of grass and tossed it into the potion, green bubbles foaming at the surface. After stirring it a few times, the potion was complete and ready to be used.

His brother watched as Kiku spooned the liquid into a small, glass jar. "You know what they do to real witches out there. It's been done in the past and it can happen again."

The younger sighed, capping the potion with a cork. His was right, as usual. Being three years older than him and much more experienced with magic and spellcasting than he was, Yao was truly someone Kiku looked up to from a young age. Their parents praised his skill with the element of fire much more than they did with Kiku's element of earth. Granted, Kiku had just picked his element as of a year ago when he was sixteen, whereas Yao had been dabbling with fire since he was fifteen. However, what Kiku lacked in element magic, he made up for in handheld magic such as potion-making and charming. "I know. I just want the festival to be over with."

"You haven't even started."

"Don't remind me."

Parking was proving to be the real challenge of the day, and it wasn't even after nine in the morning.

After finding a semi-decent spot to park, Kiku made the journey to the entrance of the festival. He wasn't surprised to see the parking lots were nearly full so early in the morning, nor when he saw the large crowd gathered near the entrance. As Yao mentioned yesterday, nearly the whole crowd was dressed in either elaborate dresses, pirate gear, mage, fairy or witch costumes - however, their witch costumes were nothing like the actual witch attire Kiku had on that day - complete with props such as wands, wings or swords. As he walked around the crowd to reach the employee entrance, he couldn't help but admire the effort that was clearly put into the costumes, even if they were inaccurate.

The park's opening day was always the busiest, as people had been waiting to enter since the festival was announced two months ago. Kiku had been to the festival a few times as a child with his family, and while it was fun to re-enact sword fights and witness the jousting competition all those years ago, years of witches' training had hardened his view of the festival. The "witches" he had seen as a child were now nothing more than imposters making profit from smoke and mirrors.

Still, their candied apples were to die for.

After clocking in - his employee ID happened to be under his bed, hidden amongst several pairs of sneakers - Kiku decided to search for his potion tent. Other employees were also in full costume getting their wares ready for the day, and the boy couldn't help but look down briefly at his own clothes. It wasn't anything too elaborate: a short, black cloak kept him warm from the day's chills, coupled with a long sleeved black shirt and pair of black trousers. Laced up black boots completed the outfit, and he kept the glass jar of locator potion he had prepared yesterday tied to his hip. To be fair, every witch was responsible for making their own clothes, and as Kiku had little fashion knowledge, he fabricated simple outfits that would be easiest to work in. Yao and his parents took their clothes much more seriously, creating intricate designs and robes to be worn during gatherings or family reunions.

His tent was white and had wooden steps leading to the platform with several tables that would have his wares for sale. There was a another smaller tent attached to the back of the main tent that was to be used during breaks and had extra bottles and jars of lotion and perfume should he run out. His shop was placed in between a jewelry tent and a gem shop, and right across from four food vendors. He could already smell the funnel cakes and cheesecakes being prepared, and made a note to himself not to forget Yao's request of a candied apple. Overall, it was a nice setup that hopefully would attract customers.

Looking around the tent, he kept an eye out for an item he could charm. Charming inanimate objects was another perk that witches often took advantage of, as they could help you get things done faster. For example, one could charm a broomstick to do the sweeping for them or charm a hairbrush to do one's hair while they did their makeup. Kiku often charmed brooms and mops for household chores, and when he was looking for exercise he'd charm a tennis racket for a game. For now, he settled on a broomstick he had found in the back tent, setting it to sweep the floors while he set up the potions.

Finished, he took his spot behind the cash register. He soon heard the opening announcements over the speakers, and prayed that the day would go by quickly.

"Thank you, and have a safe journey."

Another con to this job: having to speak as if Kiku were in a Lord of The Rings film.

All things considered, however, things were going smoothly. He had already made several sales before lunch, and had even ran out of a certain perfume named "Cupid's Brew". Along with selling the potions, he also had to come up with "side effects" of using them - such as becoming more valiant, attractive or lucky. "Cupid's Brew" supposedly had the ability to make others fall in love with the person who wears it. Kiku had given up on making up side effects after the first few sales and had instead fallen back on actual side effects to potions witches actually brew.

As he munched on a slice of chocolate-dipped cheesecake, he thought back to how many different people he had met. So far, he had met two Links from Legend of Zelda, one Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings, five witches, two little girls dressed as Elsa and Anna from Frozen, and three fairies. It was interesting to see how many different costumes people came up with, and he decided early on to keep a tally on how many Frodos passed by his tent.

Hearing footsteps on the wooden steps to his tent, he wrapped his cheesecake up and set it aside. "Welcome to the Witch's Garden, potions for every occasion."

A tall, young blonde ducked into the tent, looking around with interest. Kiku guessed he was around his age. He, like many others, was dressed in renaissance clothing, except he was much more casual. "Hey, dude."

"Let me know if you need anything." Kiku gave a nod, staying at his spot by the cash register.

The blonde took his time looking at each bottle and jar. Kiku almost reached for his cheesecake before the boy turned towards him, "Am I allowed to open one?"

He stood and made his way towards the other, the floorboards creaking under the added weight. "Ah, yes. Which one were you looking at?"

"This one." The boy pointed towards a jar of lotion labeled "Dragon's Ashes".

Kiku uncapped it and dabbed a bit onto his fore and middle fingers before spreading it onto the boy's hand. "This one's good for bravery and strength. It was made from a dragon's fire ashes, so it has a slightly smoky smell."

"Like, from a real dragon?" He asked, blue eyes glinting.

"...Yes, like from a real dragon."

"Rad. Do you recommend anything else to go with it?"

He stopped rubbing the lotion on his hand and paused to think. Then, Kiku moved to the table adjacent to the blonde, picking up a cologne bottle labeled "Blacksmith's Fire". The boy followed him to the table. "This has a similar smoky smell to it, but a bit more strong than the lotion. It was taken from a blacksmith's shop, so it also boosts your strength." He sprayed a bit onto the boy's wrist.

"So if I get both of these, I'll get really strong? You swear?" he grinned.

"Yes, I swear. And you'll smell really good." Kiku added, nodding. "You can get a bundle of a lotion and cologne for a lower price."

"I'll take them."

He rang the blonde up, and briefly ducked into the back tent to retrieve a box and ribbon to package the items. The broom he had charmed earlier was sweeping the dust off of one of the shelves stocked with perfume. "Please be careful," he muttered, grabbing a white ribbon from one of the storage containers. "If you break anything, it comes out of my paycheck."

Kiku boxed the cologne and lotion and wrapped it with a ribbon, handing it to the blonde and bidding his thanks. He left with another grin and a "thanks, dude!".

He had a cowlick, Kiku mused as he unwrapped his cheesecake. And a nice smile.

The next few hours went by with cheesecake and a few more sales before the sun began to set. His shift ended at nine, as not many people were around to shop in the evening as they were there to drink and eat. It was nearing eight-thirty, and Kiku decided to begin packing up shop for the day. He briefly stepped outside to see if there were any potential customers walking his way, and when the coast seemed clear, he set the broom to sweep the floors of the main tent while he counted the day's earnings. Opening day was always successful, and his business was no exception; he went over his quota for the day by a landslide. Yao was right - people loved the fake magic talk.

"Dude!" Kiku froze. He knew that voice. "Holy shit!"

He turned to find the blonde boy from earlier standing in the entryway of the tent, mouth agape and eyes wide behind his glasses. He was pointing at the broom, which was still sweeping on its own. "Y-Your broom!"

The witch snapped his fingers, causing the broom to drop onto the floor. The blonde immediately looked to Kiku, "It was sweeping on its own! Were - Were you making it do that?"

He knew this stupid job wasn't worth the paycheck.