Marylebone, Muggle London.
Severa woke with a jerk the following morning. With a groan, she peeked an eye open. Nicole, who'd fallen asleep next to her, had kicked her in the side. Clicking her tongue in annoyance, she shoved Nicole, who snorted herself awake.
"Ugh," Nicole groaned, flipping onto her back as her foot kicked Severa in the side again.
Severa glared at the sleeping girl and shoved her off the bed with a thud. She leaned over and smirked as Nicole cursed "You bloody bitch! What was that for?" Nicole rubbed her shoulder, glaring right back.
Scoffing while running a hand through her hair, Severa sits up "You're a bloody menace while sleeping; how the hell anyone could sleep next to you, I'll never understand!"
Nicole reaches up, grabs the pillow she was lying on, and pulls it down to the floor before laying back down and flipping Severa off. Scowling, Severa stands up and nudges Nicole rather harshly with her foot "Get out, you menace, go sleep somewhere else."
A whine is heard as Nicole tightens her arms around the pillow "Let me sleep, you she-devil!"
"Out!" Followed by another harsh foot jab.
Nicole gets to her knees, holding the pillow close to her chest "I'm going! I'm going, bloody hell." She grumbles, slapping Severa's foot away as she tries to jab her again.
Severa watches as Nicole leaves her room, but not before the girl flips the bird once more.
She breathes deeply and shakes her head as the door shuts behind Nicole. Finally, she was alone. With a wave of her hand, the mess from the night before is cleaned up, empty packages and crumbs floating their way to the bin, and her bed makes itself. Once the room was tidied up, Severa sat down at her desk with a yawn and decided to pen her letter of resignation for the muggle bookshop. It didn't take her long to write, and soon she was slipping it into an envelope and writing Alice's name on the front.
With a sigh, she stood up from her desk and made her way out of her room and into the kitchen to start on breakfast. After floating the eggs and bacon out of the fridge, she began laying everything out just as Nicole walked in.
"I want French toast, make that." Severa arched a brow, sparing Nicole an unimpressed glance as she cracked an egg into a bowl. "You want French toast?" she repeated, voice flat.
Nicole, still half-asleep, slumped into a chair and propped her chin up with her hand. "Yeah."
"Well, I want peace and quiet," Severa shot back, whisking the eggs a little too aggressively. "But we can't always get what we want, can we?"
Nicole groaned, dropping her head onto the table. "You're insufferable."
"And you're lazy," Severa retorted. "If you want French toast, make it yourself."
Nicole lifted her head just enough to glare at her. "You're already making breakfast."
"I'm making my breakfast," Severa corrected. "If you want something different, the kitchen's right here."
Nicole let out a dramatic sigh, slumping further into the chair. "Fine. I'll suffer through bacon and eggs, then."
Rolling her eyes, Severa returned to the stove, cooking silently as Nicole continued to sulk. When everything was ready, she plated the food and slid Nicole's portion across the table.
Nicole perked up immediately, grabbing her fork with renewed energy. "You know, if you weren't such a pain in the arse, you'd make a decent wife."
Severa gave her a deadpan look. "And if you weren't so bloody annoying, you'd make a tolerable houseguest."
Nicole grinned, stuffing a bite of eggs into her mouth. "Awww, you do like having me around."
Severa stabbed at her bacon with unnecessary force. "Eat your food and shut up."
Nicole's grin faltered for half a second before she forced it back, stabbing at her eggs with her fork. "So," she began, keeping her tone casual. "What are your plans for the day? I was thinking we could do a girls' day—just the two of us." She fixed her gaze on the food before her, feigning disinterest.
"No," Severa replied flatly, biting into her bacon.
Nicole's head snapped up, eyes narrowing as she tossed her fork down with a sharp clink. "What do you mean, no?" she demanded, a stray piece of egg flicking off her fork.
Severa sighed, setting her fork down with deliberate care. "Stop trying to cling to me all of a sudden," she said, wiping her mouth with a napkin. "I know you probably had a fight, so go fix things with him instead of pretending you want to spend the day with me."
Nicole's jaw tightened, her fingers curling around the table's edge. She looked like she was about to argue for a moment, but then she huffed, leaning back in her chair with a scowl. "Tch. Who says I had a fight?"
Severa raised an unimpressed brow.
Nicole groaned, rubbing a hand down her face. "You're so bloody annoying," she muttered.
"And you're predictable," Severa shot back, standing with her plate as she went to the sink to wash it.
She set the dish on the drying rack and turned back to Nicole. "Anyway, don't you have work today? You're not skipping out, are you?" She asked, unimpressed as she glanced at the clock.
Nicole groaned, making Severa smirk, "I'll take that as a yes." She grabbed the dish towel next to her and tossed it at Nicole, smacking her in the face. "Get your arse up you lazy sod and face the music like a woman."
Sputtering, Nicole caught the towel as it tumbled down glaring at the dark-haired girl before her "Fuck off, eh? I don't wanna go!" She pouted, tossing the towel onto the table.
"Yes, yes." Severa rolled her eyes, stretching, her back popping with a satisfying crack. "Well, unlike a certain someone, I have work. We can't all afford to skip work on a whim."
With that, Severa left the kitchen with a chuckle, ignoring Nicole's sputtering of weak excuses and the poorly aimed towel to her head.
Fighting back a yawn, Severa entered her room and dressed; she went for a casual look, not wanting to spend much time on her appearance. She was looking forward to her new job where she could wear black pants and a white shirt under a robe. She froze as she pulled out a pair of leggings. Ugh, she would have to put more effort into her appearance on the off chance that Fleamont showed up unannounced.
As she pulled on her leggings and slipped on a bra, she thought about what could be practical yet attractive. After all, working at an apothecary meant she would be brewing; being glitzed up was irrational. Severa never did anything by the halves, especially when it came to potion work. Yes, the job was a stepping stone to Fleamont, but it was also a great opportunity not only to put her degree and knowledge to work but also a chance to learn from one of the best apothecaries in Britain.
Apotheca Briarwood was founded in 1005 A.D. It was the oldest apothecary in Britain alone. And it wasn't your run-of-the-mill apothecary, unlike the more 'modern' Slug & Jiggers. If you wanted quick cures, over-the-counter Pepperup or mass-produced Polyjuice kits, then you go to Slugs & Jiggers. But if you were after something rarer, like a true Wolfbane's brew, or a memory elixir steeped for seven moons, a restorative traced back to the Black Plague, then you go to Apotheca Briarwood. It's where all the old families shopped, Rosier, Nott, Prewett, Malfoy, you won't find a Slug & Jiggers potion in their personal stores. No, only the best for the best.
So, yes, Severa was eager to start working; she especially hoped to be able to learn the shop's most famed yet secretive potion.
The Evernight Draught
No one could reproduce it. Many had tried over the years, including Slug & Jiggers, but the results were less than desired. It was a powerful sleeping potion that was said to grant prophetic dreams that mimicked a seer's ability. The potion was carefully controlled; not anyone could learn it, nor could anyone just buy it.
From what Severa had learned, not only did you have to be on very good terms with the Briarwood family, but you had to be a long-standing client. And even then, there was no guarantee they would sell it to you. Only seven people had ever used the potion in all the years the apothecary had been around.
Seven people in nearly ten centuries.
Oh, how she wanted to be able to dissect such a potion.
Slipping on her socks, she looked at herself in the mirror, her reflection staring back at her. Giving herself a once over, she hummed and turned to grab the letter she'd written. Slipping it into her bag, she left her room. She passed Nicole's door, which was left ajar, and poked her head in.
"Alright, I'm off," Severa said, raising a brow.
Nicole, who was half dressed in her work clothes, yelped, her cheeks turning slightly red at Severa's raised brow and cleared her throat "Right, yeah, cool. I'll see you later?"
Severa hummed "Going to work then?"
"Might as well. It'll be boring here otherwise," Nicole said, shrugging her shoulders and trying to be casual.
Severa knew her well, so she just smirked "Alright, catch you later. Tell Ben I said hello." And then she left, ignoring the slight spluttering behind her.
It didn't take long for her to get to work; she was rubbing at her eye as she reached the door and frowned. The shutters were still down, which was unusual for Alice; the old lady was nothing if not punctual. She gave the shutters a little push and listened to them rattle.
Huffing and feeling both a little irritated and worried, she spied a white piece of paper sticking out of a letter hole in the shutters. Unfolding the paper, it read:
Severa,
There's been a family emergency (that bloody son of mine!), and I've had to go down to Cornwall. So, the shop will be closed for the next week. If it ends up being longer, I'll give you a ring. I hope your landline number is still the same. Either way, we'll speak soon luv!
Alice
Well damn. How was she supposed to quit now?
Severa groaned, folded the letter and stuffed it into her bag. She puffed her cheeks and blew air. What the hell was she supposed to do now? Running a hand through her hair, she started back down the way she came. She could finally have a chance to go through that new book of hers and practice some of the spells within.
With a more eager pep in her step, Severa made her way back home.
Many hours later, Severa's bedroom door slammed open, startling the girl who was nose deep in Spellbound Beauty: The Art and Logic of Magical Enhancements.
"UGH!" Came the screech as Nicole flopped onto her bed.
Severa pinched the side of her nose and let out a sharp breath. She turned around in her chair and crossed her arms "What happened?" She asked, tone bored.
To be fair, she didn't really care. But perhaps the quicker she could sort out Nicole, the quicker she could return to her book. Her desk was covered in papers, the pages covered in both ink and pencil scribbles, drawings of wand movements and lists of spells– some crossed out, others circled.
"Ben, that bastard! I tried to talk to him, and he just brushed me off! 'I'm busy, Nikky.' - 'We'll talk later." Or my favourite, just plain up ignoring me, he actually just walked past me like I wasn't even standing there!" Nicole buried her head into Severa's pillow and screamed again.
Severa hummed, her fingers tapping against her arm "Well, that's a shame," she drawled, amused. While it wasn't normal for Ben to ignore Nicole like this, she wasn't surprised either. Their relationship was weird, kind of fucked up, there were a lot of Nicole-fucks-up-Ben-stays-quiet times.
Nicole sat up quickly and scowled "Fine! If he wants to be like that, then he can go right ahead! I'm going to drown my sorrows tonight in ice cream, and then tomorrow, I'm going out to the club!"
She stood up and made her way to the door before stopping and pointing at Severa. "I'll get my jammies on. You find a film!" And then she was gone.
Severa blinked and stared at the spot Nicole just stood in before groaning. She turned back towards her desk and let her head drop with a thud.
Why her? Why was it always her?
Severa huffed and lifted her head so her chin rested on the desk. What in Merlin's name did she do in her life to be subjected to such chaotic horror? She looked at her book and papers longingly.
"I hope you're getting that VHS ready!" Nicole's voice rang out.
Merlin's tit.