evowhisperer | (no subject)

"Second stop: The Apothecary."

Caesar refolded the muggle paper and tucked it into a robe pocket, steering his brother with a hand on one shoulder. Madame Malkin's door chimed cheerily as he opened the door for them both, and then they were outside.

They were late. Not for school, no, the Hogwarts Express wouldn't be leaving for a few days. What they were late for was to beat the crowds: the alley was packed, and there was such a bustle that finding his brother if they got separated would take the better part of an hour. To avoid this, he (quite literally, after a muttered charm) glued his hand to his brother's upper arm and led the way, carving a narrow path by sheer virtue of being tall. He'd done this before, albeit for different reasons: Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve had been worse.

The Apothecary's door also had bells, but they didn't hear them. Caesar waited until they were both inside before canceling the sticking charm and taking inventory: two bags of Rex's brand new school robes? Check. Rex? Check. Wallet? Check.

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It was sort of like unleashing an over-eager puppy; as soon as Rex felt Caesar's hand leave his shoulder he bolted. The shopkeeper would turn around to find a pair of curious eyes peering over the counter at the potion-making supplies on the shelves. Dragon's Blood, Snake Fangs, Flobberworm mucus - he wrinkled his nose in disgust, but a close look would show he was grinning with fascination.

"Do people really drink stuff made from this?" Rex asked, poking at a jar of Black Beetle Eyes on the countertop. The eyes bobbed slowly in fluid, and one rotated around as though it might be looking at him. He stuck out his tongue and shrank down behind the counter.

Edited 2013-01-25 03:37 (UTC)

"You've drunk stuff with these," Caesar corrects, picking up a basket and handing him the list.

"It's in the fever-reducers mom used to give you. Now you take the bottom three items on the list, and I'll take the rest."

Rex grimaced. "Really?" But he took the list, his face scrunching into a small frown as he read the ingredients at the bottom. "Castor oil, unicorn horn..." Okay, those were easy enough. But - he squinted and held the paper closer to his face.

"What's a bezoar?"

The shopkeeper - who'd already picked out the other two ingredients and laid them on the counter for him - produced a small box full of round objects that looked like rocks. "It's a stone from the stomach of a goat," he explained. "Commonly used in poison antidotes."

Rex took the box, blanching a little at its contents. "Are you telling me a goat barfed these up?"