The smell of coffee filled the air as Kleo brewed himself a cup to start the day. He tied his black apron around his waist before going to open the Apothecary doors for the morning. It would still be a little while before any of the regulars came in, so he figured it should be light enough for him to get some reading done while he waited. Kleo felt truly relaxed at that moment, probably for the first time since the semester started. He was on top of his studies, was getting the hang of magic, and somehow found himself dating his best friend. Things were going pretty great, and he felt thankful for it. His eyes scanned the pages as he breezed through the read. He was lost in the words and the soothing sound of the lo-fi station he left on for the store, that the sudden slamming on the counter nearly caused him to fall out of his chair. Eyes wide, he looked up to find Alexei there with a somewhat exasperated expression on his face.

“Do you mean to tell me that you have a secret workroom filled with magical items and who knows what else left by your mother, that you aren’t even trying to go through because it’s dusty?! Are you serious right now?”

Kleo blinked, stunned by the very sudden, aggressive accusation. “Well, it’s not a secret,” he started, balancing himself on his stool, “and, it’s more than just dusty. How did you even—“

“Flora told me,” he said, lifting up the cover of Kleo’s book to see what it was. “She’s gonna head over and we’re gonna tackle your dusty workroom.”

“What? No, you guys don’t need to do that,” Kleo said, feeling a bit guilty. At least wait for me to get off work so I can help.”

“Trust me, we’re doing this mostly out of our own curiosity. Flora’s really interested in seeing what stuff your mom would have had going on down there, and I’m just really down for seeing a secret room and what would be in there.”

“I don’t know,” Kleo said, still unsure. He didn’t like the idea of them putting so much work into something he should have done himself.

“Come on,” Alexei said, taking his hands as he gave him a pout. “Let me play around in your magic room. I wanna see all the magic stuff. I promise, we’ll organize to your liking, and if it feels like too much, we’ll stop and wait for you.”

Kleo thought for a moment, narrowing his eyes as he looked back at him before sighing. “Fine, just, if it does seem like a lot, please wait for me to help.” Alexei was bouncing on his feet before the words even left his mouth and Kleo couldn’t help but grin. “And be careful! Nox can go with you,” he said and the black cat popped his head up from his bed behind the counter.

What did you just offer me up for?

Nox didn’t seem entirely pleased with the interruption to his napping but Kleo knew he’d probably be helpful to them with whatever they found down there.

“You got it, no worries at all,” Alexei said, letting go of Kleo’s hands and pushing himself away from the counter just as the door chimed behind him. Flora rushed in with a large grin and a look pure of motivation.

“Morning Kleo!” She quickly said to him before turning her attention to Alexei. “Are we ready to get down and dirty with the creepy crawlies?”

“That sounds horrible,” Kleo said, chiming in. “Also, how do you guys expect to do all of this without any customers seeing? The door placement does not really allow for discretion.”

“I’m way ahead of you!” Flora said, that infectious grin still on her face as she dug through her bag and pulled out what looked to be a long, pointed piece of crystal. “You’ll soon learn that there’s a spell for pretty much anything, Kleo, including creating doorways of our own.” Kleo raised an eyebrow, skeptical as to what her plan was exactly. He glanced at Alexei to see that he looked pretty entertained with whatever idea Flora had cooked up. “I’m going to create a doorway somewhere upstairs that will connect to the workroom so we can access it from there. I just need to borrow your grimoire, if that’s alright?”

“Why do you need my grimoire?” Kleo asked, feeling a short sudden wave of passiveness over his family book.

“You see, you have to have a connection to the room to access it. Really, you just need some sort of familiarity and since neither Alexei or I have been there personally, and you are down here working, I need something from the room to form that connection,” she explained. Kleo eyed both of them over for a second before pulling the grimoire out from beneath the counter.

“Alright, just bring it back when you’re done.” He said and her smile widened as she took it. “I still really don’t get why you guys are so excited to go down there, but, just be careful. Tell me if there’s anything else you need.”

“As I said, no worries,” Alexei told him with a smile and the two of them bound up the stairs like a pair of children, filled with excitement. Kleo shook his head with a sigh and leaned against the counter. Nox hopped up, sitting beside him.

“I feel as if they’re up to something.”

Kleo nodded, agreeing but knowing whatever it was must be innocent fun. He was happy that they became quick friends, but he’d be lying if he didn’t say they were a force to be reckoned with. He could never say no to Alexei, and Flora was quickly learning ways to get him to agree to her whims as well.

“Go ahead and stick around them,” Kleo told Nox, scratching behind his ear. “Help them out if they need anything and keep them out of trouble for me.”

“Fine, but you owe me canned tuna.”

Nox left quickly and quietly, and Kleo sat back at the counter with his book, wondering what his friends were truly up to. The next few hours went by smoothly as guests started to come in. Some of them wanting coffee or a small snack before finding their space to study or chat. Kleo thought about how much the Apothecary has changed since it reopened. When his mother was here, it was some mixture of a nursery and book store. She sold anything from herbs and flower arrangements to books on any topic. Kleo wondered where she got all the books from. They had a vendor now that supplied some, and others were either donated or sold to them by people in town. Nowadays, the Apothecary was mostly a coffee shop with the book store part as well. There were still tons of flowers and greenery around the place, but none of it was for sale. Kleo wondered what else his mom must have used the Apothecary for when it came to magic and whatnot. Did she make potions or something? Is that where the name actually came from? And if she did sell to other magical users or magical creatures, what happened to them once she was gone? Are they still around and he’s just, completely unaware of it all?

He was so lost in his thoughts, that he was completely unaware of the door chiming once again, or the sound of damp feet walking against the linoleum floor as they approached the counter. It was only when the person was directly in front of him did he begin to register what was happening. His eyes focused on a girl who looked around his age. Her skin was pale, and her eyes were large. They were so dark, you could barely catch any specks of brown within them. Long, wet, dark hair framed her face and Kleo quickly realized she wore nothing but a sheet draped over her body. He was at a loss for words as she peered up at him and began to speak.

“You’re the town’s witch,” she said matter of factly, without the hint of any question in her gentle voice. “I need your help.”