HEAVY IN MY SOUL || SIENNA

[Deleted]

FEBRUARY 25, 2025

Shopping at Slug & Jugger's Apothecary was something that the young witch enjoyed doing. She loved looking at the potions ingredients as well as buying them and using them. Hell, it was her second favorite to the shop that she worked at. She practically lived at both since coming over from Greece.

The moment she walked in, she could practically smell some of the ingredients, and a small grin appeared on her face. Someone once called it the same look that the grinch made - whoever the hell that is. And slowly she made her way through the place, gathering up some ingredients. Soon, she found her hands full and spelled some of the vials and such to float in front of her so that she could protect them.

Sienna Aurélie Linslee

[Sienna Aurélie Linslee]

It wasn’t often that Sienna found herself in the front room of the apothecary. Work kept her fairly busy in the back, and it wasn’t unusual to juggle brewing multiple potions at once. Still, every now and then there was the proper occasion to slip into the shopping area. Sometimes a customer needed a more thorough consultation than the shopkeeper could provide, and so a potioneer was called from the back.

Or, as was the case currently, Sienna found herself reaching for her stock of snake fangs only to find it empty. The potion really couldn’t wait for the next shipment, and the apothecary sold both potions and their ingredients which was particularly useful for situations such as this. So Sienna slipped into the front and rounded the counter – she was sure this could be a quick trip.

The sight of a customer browsing with what looked like half their inventory floating in front of her made Si stop short. The type of shopping trip Sienna could only imagine. She approached cautiously. “Do you…have a specific potion in mind? Maybe I can help.”

@kataleya

[Deleted]

Kate was minding her business, vials, and ingredients floating around her. She hadn't even realized she had shopped so much it probably looked suspicious to an outsider - though she was sure others did the same thing. A mass purchase and she was sure the store enjoyed the coins that came from it.

'Do you...have a specific potion in mind? Maybe I can help.' The voice caught her off guard, the vial of snake fang being knocked over before a quick spell brought it to a halt before it hit the floor. She watched as it floated back into place on the shelf, before turning to address the culprit. She shook her head, "Oh-no specific potion. I, I like to experiment, and it seems I've drained my stock at home," she said, adding a small laugh at the end.

Sienna Aurélie Linslee

[Sienna Aurélie Linslee]

Having spent most of her five years at Slug and Jigger’s in the back room, Sienna couldn’t really be sure what constituted a ‘normal’ purchase. Sure, she knew which potions sold out fast, which ingredients were left basically untouched, and she processed most of the shipments that came through to replace what she and Jamie couldn’t. Bulk purchases probably weren’t unusual for individuals and institutions that rapidly consumed potions, but Sienna was naturally cautious and she didn’t like accepting anything as a ‘fact.’

Still…she was trying to be better about that. So, Si gave a small smile and nodded, responding, “I get it. I do a little of that myself.” She quickly scanned some of the floating ingredients. “I’d recommend some of the dragon products, then. Very versatile in their uses. Dragon claw has mind-altering properties, and dragon liver can be used for healing potions or pesticides. Perfect ingredients for experimentation…if you’re not squeamish, at least.”

@kataleya

[Deleted]

Kataleya and her brother were interested in experimenting with poisons, potions that they created to kill someone that wronged them. The first person - or rather - people, to fall prey to this task were their grandparents. Since their deaths, many others had fallen to their deadly deeds, enough to get the Greece Ministry looking for them. Of course, they never found them - and now they were in London. While their poison killing days were behind them, they still helped with the experimentation process of Madam Ambrosia - using their skills to aid her.

'I get it. I do a little of that myself.' Kate almost snorted, she doubted that the girl experimented the same way that she did. 'I'd recommend some of the dragon products, then. Very versatile in their use. Dragon claws have mind-altering properties, and dragon liver can be used for healing potions or pesticides. Perfect ingredients for experimentation...if you're not squeamish, at least.'

A smirk slowly appeared on the brunette's face, her eyes seemingly lighting up at the new ideas. She had never honestly thought about trying dragon products in their potions. "Oh, I'm not squeamish in the slightest," she breathed out, slowly muttering a spell under her breath - one that lifted the products that the person mentioned into the air, allowing them to swirl around with the other products. "Perhaps I could use some tips...if you are free, that is..."

Sienna Aurélie Linslee

[Sienna Aurélie Linslee]

It had been a few minutes at this point since Si should have been theoretically returning to the back to continue working, but she always enjoyed spending time in the front. It helped with her motivation to see customers browsing and enjoying the ingredients and products that she and Jamie worked hard to put together, so Sienna dawdled longer. Her potion was simmering, so it could wait, and their projects were independent enough that Jamie could continue working without her for a while.

Sienna usually experienced two brands of customers here – the ones who knew what they had come for and didn’t take suggestions, and the ones who seemed more open to experimentation. It was exciting that this other girl seemed genuinely interested in trying new products, although it was hard to get a read on what exactly they would be used for. Si grinned at the girl’s answer, watching the new ingredients join the rest in floating airborne. “Well, they do have to pay me for something,” Si teased as a response to the girl’s question. “And I happen to love testing ingredients for new properties.” She held out her hand. “I’m Sienna…if it isn’t obvious yet, I work here. Although I’m usually in the back.”

@kataleya

[Deleted]

Kataleya wasn't someone to genuinely like someone helping her, besides her employer with whom she worked closely with. The other woman was the reason that Kat and her twin had come to London to be her apprentice in experimentation. But this time, she wanted to see what this employee had to offer, one that she had never seen before, though she had only been here in London for a bit.

'Well, they do have to pay me for something. I'm Sienna...if it isn't obvious yet, I work here. Although I'm usually in the back.' The girl spoke, holding out her hand in greeting. The brunette took it gingerly, as if scared to touch the woman, and plastered a smirk upon her face. "Kate. Why do you usually work in the back? You seem like the perfect person for the front of the house to me."

Sienna Aurélie Linslee

[Sienna Aurélie Linslee]

It was difficult to decide whether Sienna should be aiming for professional courtesy or a form of familiarity and warmth. The way Kate had insulated herself from the other wizards in the apothecary by creating a bubble of floating ingredients, and her seeming reluctance to shake Si’s hand suggested that she preferred her distance. But there was really nothing in what she’d said that implied that she disliked the conversation and would rather be left alone. Sienna had to forcefully cut off her train of thought here – she was definitely overthinking things (an unfortunate side effect of living in an atmosphere increasingly hostile to muggleborns) and she didn’t want to stall what was, by any measure, a totally normal conversation.

So Sienna let her smile turn into a teasing grin to match the tone of Kate’s comments. “I have to keep some secrets, you know,” she responded. “An air of mystery is the only way to stay in business nowadays. What else’ll keep you coming back?”

@kataleya

[Deleted]

Kate wasn't one for conversation; she usually attempted to get in and out of places without as much as uttering a word. Sure, there were times when she talked to the cashier when she was checking out, but only to say hello and goodbye. This would be a first that she had come into the store and struck a conversation with an employee and even invited their help in her shopping.

'I have to keep some secrets, you know. An air of mystery is the only way to stay in business nowadays. What else'll keep you coming back?' Kataleya smirked, shrugging her shoulders. "Oh yes, I totally come back to this shop because of the air of mystery and not because I've run out of mandrake root. I knew there were other reasons," she said, her tone somewhat joking. She was never one to tell a joke.

Sienna Aurélie Linslee