Tea, Biscuits and Birdsong [Adeline]

[Nigel Dextera]

With a soft pop, Nigel materialised from thin air a short distance from the Three Broomsticks Inn. In his hand was a small paper bag containing a wrapped gift. A muggle-made marvel of engineering: a 19th-century Swiss-made singing bird box. He had recently acquired and repaired it, and he hoped its intended recipient would like it.

Instinctively, he checked his surroundings. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. In recent weeks, that had proved to be a surprisingly high bar.

Satisfied that he wasn’t being tailed, he made for his destination: Enchanting Essentials, a materials and supplies shop for magical DIY projects that catered to artisans of all trades and skill levels. As a horologist, he had plenty of reason to pop in.

Except he had one big reason not to. The shop was run by Adeline Green, whom he had known since his student days. They hadn’t contacted each other much since they graduated, and when Nigel found out that she had opened a shop in Hogsmeade, he had deliberately avoided it as a way to protect her from his malicious mirror clone while watching over her from afar. Not that it had worked, which was why he decided that he should do the opposite of what he had been doing.

Soon, he arrived. Ahead of him was the shop’s wooden facade, painted a warm burgundy, and a sign above the entrance spelt out the shop’s name in gold lettering. Through the windows, he could see all manners of trinkets and curiosities on display.

Nigel smoothed the creases from his tan suit and took a deep breath. He opened the door, stepped through the entrance, and called his old friend’s name.

[Adeline Green]

The inside of the store was fairly organized, though that seemed to be because of the Ravenclaw student, Mera, who was currently walking around sorting out the shelves. She threw Nigel a somewhat disparaging look, though that seemed to be par for the course for her, before looking back towards what she was doing. Erynhil, the art professor, was sitting at the counter and smirked before glancing up as there was a creak, and looking up, Nigel would find Adeline lying across a wooden board she had somehow suspended across the ceiling, where she seemed to have taken up a project of painting the ceiling of the shop like an abstract view of the sky. It was splashes of color that so far had only been spreading out from one corner, though Nigel would realize there was a slight shimmer to the paint. Not quite glitter, but something that just made it pop and seem faintly alive.

She rolled over onto her stomach and grinned, "Oh! Nigel!" She grinned, paint smattered on her skin and in her hair, the vials of the paint hanging off the side of the board, and her plain grey dress had clearly turned into the tool with which she cleaned off the brush between colors... as well as herself, from the paint on her face and arms.

"See, now I get to know how you got up there cause you'll have to get down," Eryn piped up from the counter.

"Oh, shush," Adeline waved him off. "Give me just a second," she said to Nigel. She managed to get on her knees enough to close all the bottles of paint before sliding herself off the edge, holding on with just her hands, judging her landing spot, and jumped down with the ease of someone who definitely got into some chaotic situations in her travels. She wiped her hands on her messy dress, realized she'd only made the situation worse, looked around at her dress until she found a clear spot, and tried again before coming over to Nigel. "I'm glad you could finally make it! Sorry, I'm such a mess, I just got the idea in my head," she motioned up at the ceiling, "Thought it might help bring some more life to the room. Sometimes it feels a bit dark in here."

"The only time it's dark is when it's dark outside," Mera muttered from where she was, "You just wanted a chance to paint like Michelangelo."

Addie gave a huff, "Why not, it's a new perspective!" she looked towards Nigel again, smiling bright, "It's good to see you again. I'd give you a hug but," she looked down at herself again, "You're wearing a nice suit, so I'll just not do that," she laughed as she shook her head, "Come, I asked them here to help watch the shop," she said before motioning for him to follow as she walked towards the back, "That way we can sit and talk awhile."

Mera thought Addie was getting pretty good at pretending to be happy and peppy all the times, and while Nigel might not realize it with this being the first time he'd seen her face to face as an adult, Mera noted the slump in her shoulders, like when someone was tired and trying to push through on E. Mera glanced at Eryn who also gave a slight frown, but shook his head. They'd tried to talk to Addie about the obvious wear, but she deflected every time.

[Nigel Dextera]

For the first time, Nigel laid eyes on the interior of the store. Right as he stepped in, he noticed the smell that hung in the air: herbs, spices, and other things he couldn’t readily identify, all mixed into a pleasant yet oddly nostalgic scent. The shelves and display cases were well-stocked with all manners of magical crafting supplies. But what really caught his attention was Adeline herself.

Specifically, where she was and what she had been doing. She had been painting the ceiling, while lying down on a wooden board suspended under her canvas. It seemed so… her: the decision to paint the ceiling, the whole setup that she had rigged up, the sparkle of something in the paint that made the colours pop.

“I hope I’m not interrupting,” he began, before acknowledging the other familiar faces – Erynhil Zaheer, a fellow Hogwarts professor, and Mera Zaheer, a Sixth-Year Ravenclaw – with a nod. Mera did not seem thrilled to see him, which came as no surprise at all. To begin with, he had a distinct feeling that she had not enjoyed his classes, and his sudden intrusion into her personal life outside of school most certainly won him no favours.

“Colour me curious too,” he added after Erynhil’s remark, and he took a step back towards the wall in case Adeline needed more room to get down from her perch. In the end, she had simply jumped down from the plank, which probably didn’t answer Erynhil’s question.

And there she was. Adeline Green in the flesh, paint-stained dress and all. The last time they had met, they were still idealistic teens on the cusp of adulthood. Now they were both adults in their early thirties. While the intervening years had left their marks on both of them, she still resembled her younger self, albeit more mature looking. Time seemed to have been kinder to her, but then again, she hadn’t been the one poking at Time’s boundaries and testing its patience.

“It’s all right,” he said. “Inspiration strikes as and when it wants to, and we ignore it at our peril. I believe none of us here are strangers to that. And I must say, you’re looking as good as ever.” He took a proper look at the painted corner of the ceiling again, this time really studying the hues and shades. “Now, I’m no expert, but the colours seem to be working as intended.”

When Adeline decided against hugging him, he spread his arms slightly to indicate that he didn’t mind. “My clothes are no strangers to clock grease and oil. What’s a little paint to them?” Not that most stains couldn’t be removed by magic anyway.

Leaving Erynhil and Mera to tend to the store, Nigel followed Adeline to the sitting area at the back of the establishment without noticing the looks exchanged between the Zaheers. From the cozy atmosphere and the crafts proudly displayed in the gallery, he deduced that Enchanting Essentials was not merely a place where one could get supplies, but also mingle with other fellow crafters and share tips and ideas. “You didn’t just open a store,” he noted as a smile tugged at the edges of his lips. “You’re building a community.”

The accumulated weight of all those years they had known each other, and everything that was said and unsaid – their school days; then upon their graduation, the occasional correspondence whilst they both carved out their respective futures; and then his reluctance to contact her that soon became indistinguishable from avoidance, just to prevent his mirror clone from targeting her – caught up with him, and he felt it like a heavy stone weighing on his heart. But as always he masked it, and instead turned to look at Adeline. “So… where did your adventures bring you? And what brought you back to Hogsmeade?”

[Adeline Green]

"I have something for getting stains out of clothes, if you need some help with that," Addie offered of her shoulder as she walked, "And I dunno about all that, but I did try to make it welcoming. Maybe help encourage some budding artists into being willing to give things a try," she waved her hand, "Mera became an unpaid employee by accident when she was staying here and now she won't let me actually pay her for helping keeping the store organized."

It was a simple room with random flowers, birds, butterflies, and sun motifs. There was a small circular mosaic table with loosely matching chairs. There were a variety of items hanging on the wall that were clearly from her travels, and only three other doors in the space. There was a shelf between two of them, with books in various languages and little trinkets on display. She got the hot water from where she'd left it to stay hot without necessarily being boiling or getting cold from sitting off the flame. She poured it into the teapot she'd set aside. "Hope you don't mind, speaking of those travels, I decided to make some tea from said travels," she said as she brought the tea tray over. "It's called Nilgiri. I picked it up while I was headed through India, though the butterfly pea I got when I made it to Thailand really took the show," she laughed softly, "Nilgiri is just a bit more...normal?" She squinted like she wasn't quite sure that was the right word. "Oh, and then some cardamom cookies too; they go pretty well together."

She gave a little laugh at the question, "I had made it all the way to the east before I came back for a little while, then I went to South America..." Her tone around it made it clear that was not a part she wanted to talk about, "But, uh... that trip didn't go very well. I decided I was probably better off finding some place to settle down, but I'm not one for sitting idle, obviously," she gave a laugh, "So my parents helped me with getting the shop started," she shrugged, "And I've been here ever since."

"What about you? How did you end up becoming a professor?"

[Nigel Dextera]

To Nigel, Addie sounded like she was downplaying her efforts and the results. “Don’t sell yourself short. We all know how intimidating it is to start something new, and how easily and firmly self-doubt and perfectionism and other issues can hold us back.” And the story of Mera ‘accidentally’ becoming an unpaid employee, while brief on details, spoke volumes about their relationship and afforded the professor a glimpse of the girl’s personal life outside the classroom. “I wasn’t aware that she was staying with you,” he lied. “But it’s great to hear that she’s being proactive and responsible. She doesn’t seem to fancy my classes, so what I know of her is inaccurate as a result.”

The fragrance of the tea preceded Addie as she returned, tray in hand. “Of course I wouldn’t mind – tea is always welcome.” He helped with the cups and poured the tea out for both of them, before thanking her and taking a sip. It was light but full-bodied and fragrant, a refreshing change from what he normally drank, which he quite liked especially when paired with the cookies as Addie suggested. “Comparatively normal, but lovely all the same, and that’s all that matters,” he said. “Butterfly pea sounds interesting. I’ve only heard about it, and the general consensus is that it’s great.”

The atmosphere changed when she mentioned South America, and her tone indicated all too clearly it was an experience she did not want to revisit. A memory of various dates stolen from his reflection’s mind came unbidden to his, but he had too little information to deduce whether his reflection had been involved, or at the very least been interested, in what had happened. He brushed aside the thought, just as Addie spoke about how she eventually started the shop they were now in, and then turned the spotlight towards him.

“Me? His story was… convoluted, to say the very least. There was an official and sanitised version that he had only used once for his exit papers, but on account of it omitting so much of the truth it was for all practical purposes and intents a lie. And it was the best coverup he had by virtue of it being the only one that made any vague sort of sense, which quite rendered the entire point moot.

The unofficial version then.

He sighed, which on the surface seemed to be for dramatic effect, but was probably the most honest thing he could say about his abrupt career change, then shrugged as he spoke. “It’s not much of a tale, or rather, there’s not even a tale at all. I just thought it’d be easier to take care of my parents if I moved back to Scotland.” Technically that was true, but the monthly trips to Edinburgh before the full moon had never been a hassle to begin with. Not having to clean up after his best friend and then-flatmate Jamie would have made for a much more convincing reason.

“So… how’s everything been since you came back?” he asked, gently changing the topic. No strange stalker who happens to look exactly like me lurking around, I hope? Right then, a happier thought crossed his mind. “Oh, and before I forget…” he said as he produced a small package from his pocket, neatly wrapped in very festive-looking paper. The singing bird box that he had restored. “I came across this the other day and thought you might like it.”