some do magic some do harm

"Oh, some of it may be enchanted. I don’t think most of it is, though. I really am not familiar with witch things, you see, I’m not a witch myself. I just know some witches, and if you’re not interested, they may buy from me." He paused. "I’ll be honest with you, my dear. I just wanted to see how legitimate you were in your dealings. Not that the offer doesn’t stand still, if you’re interested in buying from me. I can use the money, as I believe I said before, but I’m also satisfied with my findings here. You seem to know what you’re talking about, which is unusual for a…human, even around these parts."

He tried to keep her interested in him, hoping that the curiosity he brought upon her would be key to tricking her back to his place to kill her. He would keep her for a while first, though, just to play with her and see how badly he could scare her. She needed to know that the magical side of things was quite dangerous and humans shouldn’t be playing around with magic.

   A curt smile formed on her lips, she knew he wasn’t a witch, he didn’t need to tell her that. “I could tell,” she remarked, not particularly bothering to respond to his musing that witches would just buy what he had anyway. In the back of her mind, she lauded herself for having such rare and valuable instruments that were readily available for witches. While they weren’t all acquired legally, she could still profess with a clear conscious that what she was selling was high quality. What this man spoke of seemed too vague to be of that much quality, but Lavender didn’t mention any of that to him.

   “Oh?” she tilted her head with a perplexed gaze “Just to see if I was legitimate? Well… I do know what I’m selling—I wouldn’t sell it if I didn’t know what I was dealing with.” Lavender sighed and gave him a soft smile “I may be a human but I’m not from around these parts,” she informed him “I’ve dealt with these things all my life… I’m not in the dark about the world of the supernatural and paranormal.”

Lydia’s eyes never left Lavender’s as the other woman spoke. It was to obviously be polite, but also to unsettle her as well. Her eyes and her smile were both useful components in creating the façade Lydia constantly used. So she smiled as Lavender finished speaking. “A few werewolves you say? Is there anything about the local pack that I should know of?” Werewolves had always interested Lydia, more so than the other species at least. “Yes, that does sound good, Lavender. Keep your ear to the ground, and if there is any danger to me and my brethren, I want you to report it to me immediately. I’ll let you know that you’ll be greatly appreciated. The strength of will is always one of my most favored traits.”

   She cleared her throat, trying to keep herself composed. For what she was faced against she was doing a rather good job keeping herself together, but she didn’t know how long her endurance would last if Lydia’s inquiries continued indefinitely. “There’s one that’s keen on selling me werewolf blood, and he has sold me a few vials…” she mentioned, her eyes wandering away from the witch as she tried to recall any other memorable encounters “Other than that, there hasn’t been anything else worth mentioning.”

   Upon being praised, Lavender’s gaze immediately returned to Lydia, and she couldn’t help but feel bashful in the face of helping the witch. There was a curt smile that she tried her best to keep professional as she spoke “Yes, well… I don’t believe that the supernatural should be hunted like they are… I wish to be an ally to them if I can.” It was a half-lie, as Lavender knew well enough that such creatures such a demons and necromancers existed, but until any other creature had proven its evil nature, Lavender assumed innocence.

                                                           So, it was another day in town roaming around the streets, most likely opting to spend some time at Capes & Collectables for possibly seeing if they have anything new that he could indulge himself with as he passed by familiar shop after shop ——

                                                                          Lvender’s Scents and Crystals.

                    ——- woah, he didn’t remember seeing this one before. This memory of ever seeing this shop was not sinking in at all when his eyes caught a glance of it from the corner, giving him all the more reasons to stop in his walk. Grayson just stood there for moment, taking in the storefront. From the looks of what he perceived from it, his curiosity was demanding him to check the place out, his mind wondering what a place like this sold on its shelves. With no other way to get the answers for the questions in his head, the boy went through those glass doors —- only to be overwhelmed by curiosity and wonder like no other the moment he was surrounded by the merchandise. 

Crystals and neat looking objects — really neat looking objects that he was honestly to afraid to fill his need of his current feelings, feeling like one slight wrong move and something was bound to break as he walked past displays and shelving and storage that held loads of these items. Only having the thought of this being an entirely new store that he hasn’t seen before confirmed while he eyed in awe at everything in here —

                                                                                 ”Hi. Do you need any help?”

— before his blue eyes were caught in the eyes of most likely the shopkeeper, a woman who looked a few years older than him behind the counter. Knowing that she was just merely doing her job, his gaze never left their spot as a smile was shown when he answered her question.

   Leaning forward she rested her head on her hand, gazing at the man who had entered her store. “Really? Well… if you have any questions feel free to ask… about any of this,” she motioned around the store with her free hand “Unless you’re looking for something specific, I can help with that, too.”

"Some souls are trapped until someone can bring them closure," River said, staring at the ground. She ran a hand through her hair. The voices weren’t saying anything anymore. Where did they go? "There’s something weird about this woman," Ash said, suddenly appearing next to her. She walked around the stranger, examining her. For Ash, it was the perk of being a ghost. She could be nosy without anyone noticing her. River let out a sigh, seeing this trip as a dead end. Perhaps her talking to this stranger was driving the ghosts away.

River turned her head to look at her ghostly friend. Ash walked back and forth, her hand on her chin. “Okay, so, whenever this kind of thing happens on tv and the authorities investigate, that usually means someone messed with it, yeah?” She turned her eyes up at River. “I’ll go check it out and talk to you later about it. Try not to look too weird in front of her.” She nodded towards Lavender. “She’s hot,” Ash mouthed before turning into a thin mist. River rolled her eyes as Ash left them. “What is it that brings you to this clinic?” She fiddled with some pieces of paper in her hands. All she could hope was that some ghosts would start approaching her sooner or later.

   She was genuine in her sorrow, glancing around the charred rubble that laid before them. The energy she felt from this place was negative through and through, and honestly, she wished to just get her ceremony done and over with. She was unaware that the energy she felt was partially contributed by the woman standing next to her, but her senses got muddled sometimes and she wasn’t always keen that she was making conversation with a witch.

Slowly making her way closer to the counter, she did her best not to appear too interested; it was meant to be a causal investigation, after all. The woman had expressed her belief in magic-workers; and the prospect of them existing in everyday life, as the shopkeeper had said, was worrying. How many of her classmates were witches? Even more worrying was the idea that they were impossible to perceive—her ancestor had been guided by his righteousness, records had stated. Madison wash’t all too sure of that virtue herself. Hence the need to seek out information.

"Well, I’m sure you’ve noticed the absurdly high number of urban legends in town. Usually, for a small town like this, there’s one or two, but Bindlebrim has just a little too many, you know what I mean? There’s Wraith Wood and it’s ever-present fog, even in the middle of summer. The Devil’s Crossing too, I suppose, although I’ve never managed to find out if that one’s actually true…" Making sure to look the shopkeeper in the eyes, Madison gestured abstractly, attempting to illustrate her point. "And, of course, Judge Hasting’s witch trials." She left it there, with further no comment. Madison knew that if she’d gone on for longer, her ability to maintain her casual air would be dubious, at the very best.

   She kept her courteous demeanor in conversing with the woman, but she leaned back in her chair as the blonde approached the counter. The notion to poke at the woman’s convictions to find exactly what she was getting at became Lavender’s goal. Maybe she could convince her of the supernatural, or at least gain an insight into how some of the oblivious townsfolk functioned in Bindlebrim. “Yes… there’s lots of mysteries and unexplainable phenomena in Bindlebrim… it’s almost kind of magical, don’t you think? Like something else is at work here, something else that can’t really be explained through our human lenses.”

Hearing the door to her office open, Lydia’s icy blue eyes pierced into Lavender’s approaching form. She was already expecting her, and Lydia did require all of her guests to be punctual. Giving her a friendly smile, Lydia motioned the woman to sit down on the chair in front of her. “Thank you, Lorelai. You can leave me and Ms. Mirael alone now.” Giving her sorority sister a slight nod, the girl left the room. So what really inspired Lydia’s change of heart? She could have easily continued to drag poor Lavender along for what could have been eternity.

   When the inquiries came, Lavender was more than ready to answer, fidgeting in her seat ever so slightly as she waited patiently for Lydia to finish so she could relay what she knew. She wanted to prove her worth, just as Lydia had said, so she could learn whatever spells the witch was willing to teach her.

   “I can’t really say for certain, Lydia,” Lavender began slowly, and with a soft smile “I suppose it might have been because I offered to give you some of the artifacts I have in exchange for helping me…” Pulling her satchel up on to her lap, Lavender dug around for the artifacts, bringing out the pouch to hand eagerly to Lydia “Those are the two artifacts… two rings. Talismans, specifically… they’re hundreds of years old, forged by Gaulish druids… they’re for good luck, mostly.”

"Yes, it’s at the outskirts of the forest. Nice and quiet but rather isolated.", she replied with a smile. She realized she was speaking a little like a realtor agent would but then again house buyers were potential clients of hers too and it was second nature to her to approach meetings as business opportunities, it’s what had gotten her this far in her career.

He currently did not have any victims back at his home. His usual charm seemed to be lacking as of late, as he hadn’t been able to lure anyone back home in a month or two. It was boring for him, and he’d do anything to get such an interesting woman back to his house. Unfortunately, he was afraid he didn’t have much to offer her, and it would be up to her own curiousity whether she came back with him or not. At the moment, he was a little more concerned with the money. No victims meant no money to steal from them, and no money would mean no house soon enough.

Not that he wasn’t open to looking at her wares. He just doubted that anything would interest him enough to take priority over his bills. He was a werewolf after all, not a witch, and stores like these catered more to witches than to anyone like him. He just happened to know a great deal of information on what witches would buy. He was almost positive the woman at the counter wasn’t a witch, though, which threw him off a little. If she wasn’t a witch, why did she have a legitimate shop catering to witches?

   Wiping her hair back, she nodded at his request, reaching over for the cash register. “So, how much do you want for the blood?” she inquired, turning her gaze back to him “Those are 20 milliliter vials, right?” Lavender waited for the man to make his offer, a bit wary of what he would ask of her for the blood. She knew the figures for human blood off the top of her head, but the price for werewolf blood varied from place to place. It was all dependent on the population and if anyone was capable enough to extract the blood. She certainly knew that she had enough funds to purchase werewolf blood, unless the man asked a ridiculous amount for it.

Selling his own blood and the blood of enemy wolfs was the only way he could make money to afford his house, not having a paying job. He normally had to sell to witches directly, but if this store was legitimate, she might be interested in buying them. If she was, it would make his life easier. If she wasn’t he would take it elsewhere.

"I also have some bigger items at home you may be interested in." he hinted, giving her a small smile, "But maybe not. I suppose you would have to come see them to tell me. I have a few collections of mostly werewolf related things, as well as some body parts that can be used in potions. If you’re a witch or potion maker yourself, you’d find them quite useful. I’m attempting to downsize, and I don’t need any of these things anymore, but I can’t just toss them out, either. Knowing they’re useful to witches and expensive objects is enough to stop me from that."

Not that he actually had anything of interest at home. He just wanted to lure her back to his place. But he did have a few collections to show her that she might find of interest, at least until he killed her. He wanted her money first, though, if she was willing to buy from him. And then he would try to take her back home and kill her. Priorities.

   “I do indeed buy, and I do indeed buy werewolf blood… I had no clue that someone was selling, in town, at least. Are you wanting money or something else for the blood?” she inquired, leaning forward slightly as she thought out her strategies to barter with the man “… I’m fine with either, but I wouldn’t know if I’d have any items that’d be good compensation for the blood, unless you’re looking for something specific.”

   Was this man a hunter? He may have been, and Lavender looked him over with an incredulous look before she continued the conversation. “Bigger items? Hmm…” she swallowed. It was hard not to picture the items he mentioned as opportunities for profit, but she was having reservations about engaging in a deal with a man who just happened to have body parts to barter with.

The bell tinkled when he stepped inside and immediately a fresh array of aromas hit his nostrils. His advanced sense of smell made him cringe, but he managed to step farther into the store nonetheless, not being completely overwhelmed after a few short moments.

He looked over at the storekeeper when she spoke and gave her a small smile, heading up to the counter. “I suppose I just had a few questions,” he offered, “To be honest with you, I wanted to see if this store was real or not. So many of these stores come up with fake items that mean nothing, you know?” He looked around the shope briefly. “You seem different.”

He had a thing for humans. He loved them. He would never take a human on as a mate, but they amused him entirely. It was that kind of love. He liked to bring them back to his house in the woods and tie them up, where he would perform experiments on them until they begged for mercy and he got tired and tore their hearts out for his collection.

He vaguely wondered if this woman would be any different from the rest of the humans he had met. What did she know? Could she tell he was a werewolf? Did she even know they existed? This conversation could be the best one he’s had all day, if he played his cards right and things went according to plan. It didn’t matter what she knew, in the long run, but he could get what he wanted much easier if she was aware.

Inhaling, she pulled up her resolve and stepped in. Immediately the scents of the shop, distinctly herbal in nature, hit her like a wave, prompting her to blink, disorientated. She could almost taste the incense. The blonde loitered in the doorway, looking around with wide eyes at the rather…interesting selection. Shifting on the spot, her face betrayed how unsure she was; the cloying smell of herbs combined with the varied displayed greatly confused her. Never in her life had she been in an establishment of this kind, and she was on unfamiliar ground.

The shopkeeper’s voice drew her out of her reverie, and Madison looked up, embarrassed. “Ah no…Just looking around.” To be honest, the whole shop looked too New Age to be genuine.

Nevertheless, Madison had to start somewhere, if she were to ever destroy Bindlebrim’s plague, and this kind of place seemed like it had potential. Things had changed since her ancestor’s time, but even now, she sincerely doubted that a genuine witch would run something of this sort. Which was a good thing, she reminded herself. There was no way that she could, in her inexperience, face a witch by herself.

Steeling her resolve, she drew a pleasant smile to her face, using her most pleasant tone, light and casual. “Actually, Miss Shopkeeper, there is one thing. Do you believe in witches?” she asked, looking up from the crystal display.

   Reaching down into her bright, orange colored satchel, she minded to pull out a book or two along with her phone. She always tried to sit and read books, but she seemed to be distracted too easily from the contents of the book. Three weeks and she’d only managed a hundred pages or so in the paperback that sat before her, and she only managed to read a couple of sentences before she heard the woman speak to her again.

   The inquiry, and the reference to her status as Miss Shopkeeper drew her attention away from the book to the woman in confusion. It took her a few moments to process what she had even said before Lavender gave her a soft smile “Well… yes, I do believe in witches… they exist alongside us in our everyday lives… we don’t perceive them but yes, they are there…. Why do you ask?”