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The Wolf
You sigh into the empty space as you step back and examine everything. The Magic Shop is always one of your favorite places to spend your time in. It's cozy, the fireplace almost always going with comfortable seating and tables spread throughout the many bookshelves. There’s just enough space to navigate and not feel cramped, but you made sure to take up every section of the room with something so not a single spot is unused. There are books of all shapes, sizes, colors and ages everywhere on the shelves, and though they look a little messy it was all organized if you were familiar enough with the store. Hanging from the ceiling or resting on the empty spaces between books are tons of plants, trinkets, crystals, and even magical artifacts. Every piece is handmade or picked by you, and while it looks a little chaotic as almost nothing matches you think it adds its own special charm to the space. Of course you have a devoted section for all of these things, which are all clearly hand-labeled, but you think it would look a little boring if there wasn’t some variety mixed in. You’d put in a lot of effort to make the place pass as normal should a mundane come in, which happens more often than one would think for a spot known so well for the supernatural to inhabit. To normal humans it would simply seem like one of those spiritual shops that has all you would need for things like meditation, divination, religion, or anything that can seem relatively “witchy”. Though there are some blatantly magical things around, you keep a lot of it in the back section where you only tend to let magical creatures go so they can have their privacy. With low instrumental music in the background and constantly burning candles or incense you hope the atmosphere melts everyone's stress away just as well as the fire or the warm cups of tea you give out for free, regardless of who or what they are. You find it amusing that humans can see so much of these things and even believe them, yet not actually think there is more to it than that. Yeah, they can totally connect with the universe and get a glimpse into the future with tarot cards, but a vampire being real? Ridiculous! You’re also grateful for how the human mind works when magic is involved as it makes you not have to worry as much about mundanes and magicals mixing. Magic is a natural energy all around, but for those that don’t actually know about it it provides a barrier of sorts. So while it’s not recommended and you’d probably get in trouble with the Ministry if you did it, you could literally do magic right in the middle of the street and more often than not people will just see what their mind wants them to see. The ability they have to just ignore something like that if that’s what they want or need is baffling to you. Of course, if someone is more open to learning or the universe decides it’s time for them to see things, that barrier slowly fades until they see the same kind of stuff you do clear as day. Well, not all of it as a huge part of what you experience is purely due to the powers you have because of your role in the universe, but they’ll see the magical world and all it entails clearly. There are ways to force someone to see, but those aren’t allowed for a reason as it’s much too harsh on one’s mind and body to suddenly be exposed to such magic all of the time. You’ve helped a lot of people in those situations before. It's much simpler for the magical to use a glamour or shift into a human form while magic covers any slip ups than deal with the chaos that it could be. You wish all of you could just walk around freely and be yourselves without judgment or the fear that comes with hiding. You know it’s also very draining mentally, physically, and magically to have to put so much effort into hiding yourself for that long, it’s why a lot of magicals settle into their own communities and stick strictly to them. While you know there are some realms where the people mix fine and in the end everyone is equal, not everyone sees that or is ready for that kind of thing here. There are simply some worlds where that will never work, you out of everyone would know that. After organizing the last section in the shop, you do one last check to make sure that the tea is already going and everything is the way it should be. It’s early in the morning, early enough that the sun had yet to begin to rise, but you had just finished up the tasks needed to open up The Crossroads. You loved this place with all your heart, how could you not pouring so much of yourself into it? Your magic was all over the place, your personal touches everywhere. You had spent years planning every inch of it and to see it in true form right in front of you will never not make you feel emotional and proud. You’d always wanted to provide a place for magical and non-magical people alike to coexist, and that’s what the Crossroads became. Really it’s a giant warehouse system that takes up an entire relatively sizable city block, broken down into parts so everyone can find what they need. You’ve got all sorts of charms and enchantments dousing the place, for protection, but also to monitor who comes in. The one you were most proud of was the one that drew any who needed something you could provide them through the doors. You’ve seen a little of everything throughout the years. The building itself seems to have a mind of its own and fills you in for each person, it’s nothing invasive, just the basics of who they are and what they need from you. Most of it you have to figure out for yourself just like any other interaction. In fact, you’re more likely to just get an impression or feeling of what you need to do and nothing else more frequently than not. You often just do it when the feeling pops up and then later down the line it all makes sense when everything is already over just why each step was needed. Due to all of that, everything is open pretty much 24/7, which means you have a lot of work to do as you’re the one running literally everything. You’ve got a bakery and café that’s probably one of the coziest places in the whole building along with the magic shop and the therapy rooms. A lounge, bar, and club section that is quite popular in the night hours. For those that need a bit more help you’ve got both an inn and a medical center. The back of the property is taken up by a huge garden, which supplies both your flower shop and your apothecary. There’s an area that doubles as a gym and a weapons shop for anyone that’s looking for it. There are private areas where you live or process everything for the public areas, and several in each section that are strictly for magicals should they want privacy or to show their true forms while browsing your variety of businesses. The busiest sections are by far the café and the lounge respectively, everything else just has people in and out periodically. If you wanted to you could easily expand to another block if you wanted to add more, however you would need more than just you in order to staff such a venture as one warehouse on top of your normal magical duties can often run you ragged. If you didn’t have magic you would be screwed, even when carefully monitoring what you do physically, you feel strung out constantly. But to you it’s worth it, this is your dream after all and you’re helping everyone that visits. You’re startled from your thoughts as the bell above the door rings, though you would have been alert anyway by the sharp feeling of the wards notifying you that someone entered. Ah, so that’s why you had felt the need to be here in the middle of the night. It’s not necessarily strange for people to come at odd hours, but it’s normally something that really gets your attention because most of the time these are the people that are most desperate for any kind of help. You can feel the fact that the person is supernatural as your magic brushes against them. Their magical signature suggests that they're a shifter of some kind, but that's a very wide category. With how unstable their aura is you’d have to say it wasn’t someone born that way or suddenly having a new power issue, so you’d bet it’s someone recently turned. That leaves options like a vampire or a werewolf. While you have slightly heightened senses due to your magical ability, you’re only human so you aren’t built to be able to scent things that would help you clear it up. It's a little funny considering the options you're trying to place for this mystery person would all be able to figure it out by scent alone due to their extremely heightened senses. Weird that they chose now to come in, the night you chose to dim the lights a little, turn down the music, and use lighter scents in the air than you normally would. You guess you were pushed by other forces to do that too. Well, this just means you’ll actually have to move from the back of the shop and figure out your conundrum with your own eyes. As you approach you can hear the person shuffle around almost as if they’re unsure what to do. When you come around the corner and see that they haven’t even moved from the entry way as they look around the shop with an equal amount of awe and terror you know that that must be the case. Your fingers twitch and with a simple thought you already feel a new cup of tea being made on its own magically in the back. The boy has to be around your age, maybe a little younger than you. His figure, though intimidating with how broad, tall, and powerful it obviously is, is hunched over basically radiating uncertainty and anxiety. His clothes look very worn, his face filled with lines and deep bags under his eyes that tell you he hasn’t slept properly in a while. There are hints of bandages peeking out from under the wide collar of his shirt, though you’re pretty sure it’s unintentional that you saw it. Whatever the wound is, if you had to guess by the looks of it it’s a bite wound around the neck and collar bone area, it looks relatively fresh as the clean bandages are already dyed shades of red. That just confirms your suspicions that he’s recently turned, all of those are clear signs. Poor kid, he’s got it rough right now. “How can I help you?” You call softly. You should have known better. You thought that maybe he would hear your footsteps as shifters have phenomenal senses, but then again you’d always been told you moved silently and his senses are probably all out of whack so soon after turning. You know it’s not him that reacts, but his inner beast, as he whirls around with a snarl on his face and a deep growl resonating in his chest. His eyes flash gold, his canines grow sharper, and his nails become claw-like as he shifts into a fight ready stance. The boy you saw a moment ago is gone, you’re facing a cornered wolf now. You slowly raise your hands in surrender, your body remaining relaxed as you stay where you are and lower your head slightly to ensure a more submissive posture. Your magic thrums around you, swelling up in the room to let the wolf know that they’re safe and no harm will come to them. “I’m sorry.” You tell him, not looking away. “I didn’t mean to startle you.” His wolf must sense plenty of things that you aren't able to that confirm your statement, as his features gradually melt back to normal. You’ll have to be more careful not to startle him again, as you know after turning it takes quite a while for a vampire or werewolf to settle down their side that runs more on natural instinct. They are kicked into overdrive in order to protect themselves while their body adjusts to the massive changes, so things as simple as loud and sudden movements or noises can trigger them quite easily. You’re lucky you both know how to act in these situations and that he was easier to calm down, however you know that should you do it again it’s far less likely to go smoothly as he’ll begin to see you as a threat and be more likely to lash out. It’s almost as if he blinks and suddenly the boy is back in his body. His face immediately crumbles into one of fear as he shifts his shirt to cover his wound in a way that suggests it's unconscious. So you weren't meant to see it after all, you think to yourself. “I-I’m so-o sor-rry. I-I don’t kn-know w-why-?” “Shh.” You hush him with a gentle smile. “It’s alright. I triggered your wolf by accident, it’s completely my fault. I’m sorry I made you so uncomfortable, I promise you’re safe here.” Though the rest of his body is beginning to relax his nerves don’t quite seem to. “H-how did y-you….?” He doesn’t finish the sentence, either not knowing what to say or too afraid to say it. “How did I know you were a werewolf?” You attempt to fill in for him. He nods, eyes wide and gulping nervously as if terrified of what you might do to him now that you realize what he is. “Well, I could sense you with my magic as soon as you came in.” You explain calmly. As he hears the ‘my magic’ part his anxiousness drops away quickly. “Your magical signature says that you're a shifter. With that wound you’ve got there and your fluctuating aura, you're newly turned, right?” Another nod, this time with his brows furrowed as he tries to follow your explanation. “Well there are only a few shifters that can be turned, most of them are just born that way.” You tell him. “And I just saw your inner wolf come out a bit in order to protect you, you didn’t have the right features for something like a vampire. So therefore you’re a werewolf.” Oh he looks so confused it’s actually cute. You can’t help but laugh at him. “You don’t know what most of that means, do you?” He shakes his head with a sheepish smile, his face turning red in embarrassment. “No, sorry. I really tried to follow, it’s just…. I didn’t know any of this, um, existed until recently.” You shrug, trying your best to show him it’s not that big of a deal. “It’s nothing to worry about, it happens. You came to the right place if you want to figure things out. Come on in, pick a spot and get comfortable, I’ll go grab your tea.” “But I didn’t-” He tries to call after you and you shake your head with a laugh. “It’s complimentary, sunshine.” You inform him over your shoulder as you disappear into the back in order to grab his cup of tea. You grab yourself one as well so he doesn’t feel as bad about it. All of your teas are your own mixtures, you grow the ingredients yourself and actually sell most of the blends in the cafe. You just like to give it out here so people can relax a little, always getting a certain feeling when it comes to what types of food or drink your customer needs in order to feel their best in their current situation. You're convinced there is a tea out there for everyone, but if not there are plenty of other beverages both cold and warm to ease someone's stress away. You find him settled down in a plush armchair by a table near the fire. You make sure to make your approach much more obvious this time as you set his tea down next to him on a coaster. At his curious look you fill him in on the mixture and what each ingredient is good for, assuring him that while it will hopefully end up being a magical experience there is in fact no magic involved. He still seems quite hesitant when it comes to magic, it’ll probably take a while to be comfortable with it, but hearing you say that he carefully reaches for the tea and takes a sip. With a heavy sigh, he melts back into the couch so dramatically it makes you laugh. “Are you sure I don’t have to pay for this?” He questions again as he takes yet another sip. “Yes.” You assure him, trying some of your own. You honestly never really liked tea until you started making your own blends. Turns out you were just kind of picky when it came to the flavors you liked and how they were balanced. It took a little experimenting, but now you’ve got quite the wide variety of drinks not only for yourself to enjoy but others as well. You continue to make more options in your free time too, enjoying mixing normal and magical ingredients. You really are pretty insistent on the fact that every cup of tea here is a gift from you to them, but some customers are so stubborn that eventually you refer them to the cafe if they really want to pay for it. You try to go as long as you can without giving them that option, and it’s never mentioned on the first visit. Some people never ask about it, seeing that you’re unlikely to change your ways on the matter or they just like to take advantage of free things. Though the money and their desire to pay is appreciated, you prefer it if they don’t for this one. “When you’re ready, let me know.” You tell him, deciding it’s probably better for you to go somewhere else in the shop in order for him to gather himself a bit. “I’ve got plenty of books on any of those things I mentioned or other topics you might be curious about. You can always ask me questions and I’ll do my best to answer.” He stays well into the morning, hunched over the table with a bunch of books and only looking up when you refill his drink or if he has a question. A few people come in and out, and every once in a while you have to visit a different part of the warehouse really quickly, but for the most part you're hovering throughout the shop and always show up by his side right when he needs it. When he’s practically falling asleep on top of the table you gently shake him awake and offer for him to stay in one of your rooms in the inn if he wants to keep studying after some rest. He quickly refuses, saying he can go home to rest and come back later after work. “Before you go, will you let me treat your wound?” You ask him, eyeing the bandages that had somehow gotten worse since he first walked in. Being a normal human before this, he probably didn’t know how to properly treat the wound or how to deal with the after effects of it. He seems to debate it for a few seconds, but then gives up when he realizes just how tired and in pain he is. You take him back to the medical center and treat him there, explaining everything you’re doing and what he may need to know for treating it in the future. You offer potions and suggest lifestyle changes to expect that are either common or you’ve been told will help immensely now that he’s a werewolf, though you’d never try to force anything. If he ever wants to shift, your therapy rooms are a good place to do that without being interrupted. On his way out you tell him that he should think about registering with the Ministry if he hasn’t already before anyone gets in trouble and inform him that you know several wolves, both in a pack and alone, that would be willing to talk to him in order to help him get settled. If he wanted help with anything, there were plenty of resources both here and in the community for him to use. You’d like to think he leaves feeling reassured after thanking you profusely, but you can’t stop yourself from worrying about him in the days after that visit. You don’t know why your thoughts stray to him so much, maybe it’s because he seemed so lost being introduced to a whole new world. You think about all your customers, just never this much and especially not after a single visit. It’s a random day, at least a few weeks later, when the bell rings again and you look up to see a familiar face. The bright smile on his face causes you to beam in response, the tension you didn’t know you were holding melting away as you notice his magic and aura have stabilized immensely since the last time you’ve seen him. He walks right up to your counter confidently before holding out his hand. “We didn’t get a proper introduction last time. Hello, my name is Yunho . It’s nice to meet you.” You laugh, taking his hand in yours. “Y/N. And I assure you, the pleasure is all mine.”
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The Warlock
You’ve felt a presence at the edge of your consciousness all day, and it only got more insistent when you entered the apothecary so you assumed that was where you would be needed for the day. You’ve had plenty of spirits seek you out before, with your job and the enchantments around the building not only are you a beacon for that kind of thing but this entire place is as well. The problem is that you know someone is there, but they refuse to show themselves to you. They even feel familiar, so then why are they not just popping up and getting what they want with you out of the way? You don’t even mind if they stick around until they’re satisfied with their trip, it's the remaining hidden while doing so but not hiding that they’re there that bothers you. The literal hovering puts you on edge, it’s so different from when other spirits visit just to check on you. So instead you try to focus on what’s going on around you in hopes of calming yourself. You love the smell in here of all the combined plants, herbs, flowers, and spices almost as much as you love being in the actual garden where they grow fresh. The entire store is organized in a rainbow of colors, though most of it in fairly muted shades, it still looked stunning in its own way. Along the shelves on the walls and in the room there are a large variety of clearly labeled jars with all the different plants you could use for any sort of medicinal or potion use. There are at least a few jars for every plant, all of them prepared a different way because even the way you end up cutting them can affect someone’s work. You tend to have the most commonly used ones out front while all the other varieties are in the back because unless you used obvious magic you wouldn’t be able to fit it all out here. There are some jars with well known mixtures already prepared for anyone that needs them and doesn’t have the time to mix it themselves. Those tend to be popular mixtures used in a lot of different blends because they are some of the most common and useful plants in general. Hanging from the ceiling and some racks are items drying at different stages. In the back you have the more rare or magical potion ingredients, they would ruin the vibe you have going anyway as some of them are pretty strange and a lot of them aren't even really plants. There are even many sentient plants back there, so it just safer that way. Your distraction doesn't work no matter how hard you try so you will freely admit that you’re frustrated when the door opens and you look over your shoulder from where you are preparing herbs at whoever decided to throw it open with more force than necessary. That annoyance quickly melts away when you see just how distraught the person is, hair messy and body slumped as if holding the weight of the world on their shoulders. His eyes are red and it looks as if it’s from both a lack of sleep and crying, though it is the only evidence you have to suggest he’s been emotional recently as otherwise he keeps his face blank. The beanie he has on, likely to hide his pointed ears, seems a little useless as it’s so crooked one of them is right out in the open and showcases his messy hair as well. It’s a little odd to see such bright hair on an elf, as they’re normally all about staying natural and put together looking. Magic users with high levels of magical energy are normally ones that showcase the neon unnatural colors for either hair, eyes, or both as an attempt to release some of that energy. If someone is trained enough they can tame their power to it being near untraceable no matter how strong they are, but when using their magic their eyes change colors and glow. You don't sense much of an aura right now, but you also don't believe he has the capability to control it much, so you're getting a lot of confusing mixed signals. His clothes are just as ruffled as his hair, he’s probably been working on something for quite a while without taking care of himself. You’ve seen plenty of people, yourself included, when they go on a binge like that to spot the signs. You feel a slight twinge in the back of your mind, like you should recognize him, but you can’t place him in that moment. You immediately stop what you’re doing and turn to lean on the counter as his eyes scan the store before narrowing in on you. He rushes up to the counter, shakily patting down his pockets in order to find something. When his jean pockets don’t provide an answer, he eventually ends up pulling a wrinkled paper out of one of his many coat pockets, placing it on the counter. “I’m looking for these ingredients.” He basically demands, pointing at a few separate things on the list. You would like to say it makes it easy to understand, but it doesn’t. His finger is trembling hard enough that it’s difficult to know what he’s pointing at and the writing scrawled on the paper is messy looking, as if rushed. There are several mistakes crossed out in different spots with little notes drawn off to the side. There are also many things crossed off the list, but it makes it more than a little hard to tell which things are mistakes and which items are already taken care of, especially considering the fact that a lot of it overlaps with each other nearly incoherently. “I was told you have the best stock. Please, I really need them.” It takes everything in you not to raise an eyebrow at the guy as you tilt your head up from where you’re slouched over the counter to look him over. You decide that the desperate look has no place being on him, especially considering the fact he’s so young. If he wasn’t so obviously pushing himself towards the limit, you would even say he’s handsome with such clean cut angles and sharp eyes that remind you of a cat. You don’t know what’s got him in this situation, but if you can help him get out of it you will. Now that you’re paying much closer attention he has quite the beautiful magical aura, his signature suggesting that he’s fairly strong as well, even though he is obviously dampening it much like you do with yours. Based on the faint smell of ozone, the feeling of a light dusting of mist on your skin, and the lightest sound of a crackling fire or perhaps even lighting you get when you focus on it a bit more, you’d say his area of expertise is elemental. Maybe even specifically a storm elemental if you were to venture a guess, based on the elemental energy you're sensing. With a sigh, you gently pull the list out from under his hand and begin looking it over. “I’m happy to help if I can. Who recommended you, might I ask?” Oh you are so happy this paper is covering your face as your eyes roam over the ingredients. You are not liking where this list is going. “M-my mentor.” He croaks out, sounding rough enough that it causes you to move the paper down slightly in order to check on him. He looks upset, like he’s putting all his effort into holding it together and not breaking down in front of a stranger. That presence from before gains your attention suddenly and your eyes snap over his shoulder for the briefest of seconds to see someone you knew rather well standing a few feet behind the boy looking equal amounts exasperated and sad. The dots connect in your mind so fast it almost gives you whiplash as you feel a sense of dread fill you. Boram was an older witch of great power that had lived in the area longer than you had been alive, she specialized in things like blood, shadow, and soul magic even though she was very widely studied. Once you had built your shop she had become quite the regular, praising your high quality stock despite the fact that she admitted it in quite a grumpy and unruly way. You were shocked when you heard a few years ago that she’d taken on an apprentice, a younger boy named Hongjoong that she never seemed to be able to stop complaining about when she stopped by. Though she sounded like the stereotypical old hermit that hated people and interacting with them in any form, you could just tell by the tone of her voice and the look in her eye that she was quite fond of him. You briefly remember one or two times where you caught a glimpse of him while she shopped but he hadn't come often as she was quite protective of him. Her reclusive nature in general automatically rubbed off on him as he had to spend most of his time with her in order to properly study. Now you wonder if his hair was like that due to the magic coming off of him in waves or if it was his choice, he was after all living with a human witch until recently, so maybe that brought him into their side of beauty standards. Magic tricks such as changing the color of your hair can be some of the first things you learn depending on the type of magic you used or what type of magical being you are, so to many it was an enjoyable pass time in childhood when first discovered but not used afterward unless you were a proper shifter. For anyone else using magic, any kind of shifting of the appearance is quite a difficult task to accomplish even with the help of potions, so most just go with basic enchantments. Despite the fact that you think it looks nice on him you push it away, now is not the time for such things. You were sad when news reached you recently of his mentor's passing. You had wondered why her spirit hadn’t visited you yet, as she was well aware of what you were not only due to her knowledge from being alive so long but her dabbling into the soul arts as well, but now it seemed to make sense. This boy was becoming clouded by his grief, despite the fact that she was right beside him trying her best to watch over him. The list he had going here is only made for one kind of work, and it’s quite dangerous. There’s a reason the kinds of work his master favored were regulated harshly if not all out banned, but she had been allowed to continue because she was very careful with what she did as well as powerful enough to handle it. A big part of it was just the fact that she came from a different time period where that kind of thing was normal, though now it’s nearly unheard of. You don’t know if she hadn’t been careful enough with hiding her more dangerous work and hadn’t taught him the consequences well enough or if he was simply too desperate for his own good and either didn’t take to or decided to ignore the lesson. Either way here he is going to try and bring her back somehow, and you don’t want to play any part in that. It’s literally against your job definition and it’s pretty much illegal to do those kinds of rituals anymore because it goes against the natural laws people like you are here to maintain. And most importantly, you can’t bring the dead back to life. But at the same time your heart breaks looking at his face and you feel a strong sense of resignation run through you. Even though you don’t want to do it, you somehow know that you have to. Boram is with him, she would never let anything happen to him. And if you need to step in at some point then so be it. Focusing back on Hongjoong you let your hand holding the list fall back to the counter as your other runs through your hair in an attempt to release the pent up stress you’re feeling. “I don’t recommend this valentine, like at all, but I’m guessing you’ll figure out a way to do it either way whether I help you or not.” There’s a determination in his eyes as he stares you down, a fire burning there for all the wrong reasons. “I will.” Pushing yourself away from the counter, you shove the list back his way. “Let me grab what you need. Might as well have the best stuff than find it somewhere shady. And make sure to hide that list a bit better, that’s not the kind of thing you should be carrying around so freely where anyone can see what you’re up to. You’re risking enough here already.” He doesn’t say anything as you gather the remaining ingredients he needs, too lost in his head as he carefully attempts to hide his paper again. You can feel his mentor’s gaze so intensely on your back it's a wonder this kid has no clue she’s there. You would think he’d have some experience in sensing spirits and auras, especially given Boram’s personal preferences when it comes to magic, but he either focused more on other studies or was too far gone to notice anything at this point. You hand over his bag of ingredients with a sad smile. When he moves to pay you simply shake your head. “....If it doesn’t go the way you hope, come on back. There are other options.” You mean to say when it doesn’t go the way he hopes, because that’s how you know it’s going to go, but you can’t find it in yourself to crush him like that. If you were in his shoes someone saying that to you may not change your mind, but it sure would make the situation hurt even more or even push you to do the exact opposite of what they tell you just to be contrary and prove them wrong. He doesn’t need that, he needs a hand to help him up when he inevitably falls from charging down this path blindly. “Thank you…” He mumbles so quietly under his breath you almost don’t hear it. You practically blink and the door is hitting the frame and clicking shut roughly again. And with that, there are only two of you left. “Why did you help him?” Boram snaps, clearly unhappy as she gets up in your face. “He needs to do this, Boram.” You tell her firmly. “I can feel it.” She scoffs at you, glare intensifying. “Well that feeling isn’t going to do anything to save my boy when this goes downhill fast.” “We won’t let anything happen to him.” You try to assure her, but it just seems to make her angrier as she storms through the shop to follow her basically adopted son. Her fury is so great it rattles the shelves and walls, causing some thing to fall over and crash to the ground. With a long groan, you wave your hand to fix the mess of shattered objects and collapse against the counter in defeat. What are you doing? You don’t see her again for a long time, you can’t help but feel like you’ve done something wrong somewhere despite the fact that everything around you is telling you the opposite. Should you really be thinking about it this way? It’s almost as if you don’t care in the long run how hurt he is from an outside perspective, which is the exact opposite of what you were aiming for. But how much can you really help him when you don’t know him and he doesn't want it? The more time that passes after Hongjoong leaves your store that day ready for the ritual the more frayed your nerves become. You want to go check on him and make sure he’s alright, but you know you’re likely not welcome there anymore if what has happened already is anything to go by. Whether you realize it or not, your spirit is searching for him when you dream and meditate, but you’re met with nothing. That’s either because he just has no clue you exist and what you can do, or something is blocking him. You wouldn’t be surprised if it’s his displeased guardian either. Then one night you feel it, an overwhelming wave of magic in the area (your sensory range is quite large) accompanied by a deep sense of wrong. You don’t even think before the clothes you’re in are switched out to the battle gear you normally use on missions and you’re teleporting yourself to the scene. You stop a little ways away, checking quickly for any wards, but when you find nothing that will harm you you travel in the blink of an eye to the center of the storm. There, practically collapsed in the middle of an unclosed ritual, is Hongjoong. He doesn’t seem to realize you’re there but given the magic coming off of him in violent tendrils and waves you’re not surprised. There’s a reason that nearly all rituals are done in groups, it's supposed to dilute the power through many channels in order to make it bearable. That type of energy being channeled through you causes an unbearable amount of pain and makes you lose contact with the world rather quickly. With the way he’s screaming and writhing where he lies he’s feeling it in full force, likely not being prepared or trained for that kind of thing in the way you are. This kind of thing causes serious damage to the body, mind, magic, soul and can even go so far as to leave you an empty shell of yourself as the rest of you is lost in the flow of the universe or disintegrate you entirely on the spot. It's not quite to that level of power with this ritual, but with the doors that have opened to let all this extra magic spill in it can rapidly get there. It looks almost like a psychedelic trip come to life with the energies ever changing colors and consistency. The added elements from his specific magic core make it even more chaotic as the earth trembles, the wind rages, and fire, lightning, and water swirls around him in a natural response to his distress. Without thinking about it you immediately begin channeling as much of the magic as possible, which is pretty much all of it because unlike him this is something you are made to do. Knowing what his intention for the ritual was and feeling his mentor’s presence nearby but unable to reach him due to the natural order you decide that since you still have enough ability to, even with the channeling, that you can grant them something. It’s not going to be what he intended, but it should give them just enough time to sort out what they need to before they’re separated for good. You’re sure Boram can talk sense into him where others couldn’t. As Hongjoong is already out of it and on the edge of his consciousness you maneuver him into the in-between, forming a small area where only both him and Boram can enter from their separate realms to see each other. Now all you have to do is maintain that while they talk and do your best to maneuver this excess magic back into the universe and not cause some sort of calamity. It’s easier said than done, but you’ve completed more extreme tasks in far worse conditions before. You’re unsure how long it takes for them to finish, you’re far too focused on your task to think about that, but you do end up waiting for a while after you’ve finished getting rid of the over spilled energy. You can’t close the ritual until they’re done, but channeling just the amount of energy to keep it all open is much easier than having to clean up everything that slipped in during all the chaos because it wasn’t a controlled enough environment. You know when it’s finished because Hongjoong completely slumps, falling into a natural sleeping state after everything he’s been through instead of the one you've forced upon him. His mentor’s spirit doesn’t visit you again, but you do feel a rush of gratefulness that you know is her before her entire presence disappears. With a heavy sigh you quickly go about closing the ritual and spreading out the leftover magic. When you’re done you feel thoroughly exhausted, and are going to have to clean up some blood now, but you know there is still plenty to do. Luckily he decided to do this outside, so you make sure to take him inside their house and get him settled in with everything you can think he might need. You have to summon things like potions and even some food that are all charmed to stay in their best state, but part of your gear was to have items like that on your person in various ways so you can survive when working as often you don’t always have the best accommodations. You make sure he has everything he needs to heal properly after experiencing such an episode, he'll likely be out from magical exhaustion for a little while and when he wakes up his magic will be weaker and unstable for a bit as he recovers from the injuries to his magical core. He may be experienced enough to make it himself, you're unsure just what Boram taught him, but this will be easier for him while he'll likely still be in pain and it's no extra work for you. To be honest, no one can go through these kinds of things without dealing with some kind of repercussions. Your body isn’t meant to be put through that kind of thing, you know well how it affects you as your body was purposefully broken down and built back up to withstand this kind of thing with less issues. However, you know that it often causes you injury and you're giving up years of your life the more you go, which is why the few of your people there are don't live long. It can take months to years to recover fully, and even then he may be so damaged from this that he never gets back to the place he was. However, you don’t know what the effect will be on an elven warlock such as him, so you hope it’s nothing too bad and he’ll come to you for help with whatever it is when he wakes up and figures it out. You feel a little bad intruding in his and Boram's home like this when you certainly weren't invited, but you think given the circumstances it's alright. Besides when Boram left she was basically requesting that you take care of him for her, which you would have tried to do anyway, but that could be considered permission enough. After you’re satisfied you go outside and clean up the ritual completely, leaving no evidence behind of what happened. You know with a spike like that the Ministry had to have been notified, but you'd sent a message at some point on your way here letting them know you were taking care of it and would be reporting to them about it once you handled it. If for some reason you needed back up, you would contact them, but you and they both know well that you’ve never once called for such a thing. You don’t take missions unless you are certain you can accomplish them and do it well. Though you’re not looking forward to it, with nothing else to do at Hongjoong’s house you reluctantly make your way to the nearest head Ministry building despite it being the early hours of the morning. There’s someone in every department constantly, and you’d rather get this done as soon as possible. You take out as much information that can get Hongjoong in trouble as you can, smoothly covering it up with partial lies that could pass whether someone has the ability to sense when someone is telling the truth or not. It’s not necessarily something you were trained in, but you had picked it up somewhere along the line and honed that skill for whenever you needed it. By the time you get back it’s well into the next morning and you’re ready to pass out, despite feeling satisfied with your work. Even though you want to stay awake and go through the day as normal, your body betrays you and you fall asleep as soon as you sit down. But you know if you’re needed something will let you know. You don’t really expect Hongjoong to take up your offer to come back, so you’re more than a little surprised when nearly a month later you come out of the back to find him standing in the middle of your shop examining things. He looks rather put together, and though there’s a small hint of tiredness in his body and aura, he’s much more well rested and healthier than before. You expected him to be out for at least a week to two weeks in a magical coma as he recovered from all of that magical backlash. Then it would still take him time while conscious to stabilize his aura and months of training at least for it to get to the level it had been as it takes a while to recover from that kind of thing for others. You bounce back far quicker because you had to. You had checked up on his spirit every once in a while, but he was in tune enough with the flow of the world around him for his magic to maintain him while he was out without any interference, so you didn’t physically visit him. You clear your throat lightly to get his attention, and you’re shocked when his head snaps up to you just how intense his gaze is compared to the other times you’ve seen him. You smile gently at him, saying just as softly, “Hi, how can I help you today?” There’s a few moments of silence where he seems to be thinking, before he takes a slow deep breath and asks with a surprisingly steady voice, “You can’t bring the dead back to life?” You feel your heart drop to the floor, giving him a sad knowing look as you shake your head. “No. You could get something if you were brave, stupid, and desperate enough to branch into some pretty horrible magics, but it would never come close because it goes against the natural order. Any tiny thing you could gain would have unimaginable consequences.” This time his breath is quick and shaky as he looks up towards the ceiling in an attempt to gather himself as his eyes tear up. He hastily wipes away the few that fall before he gets better control of his emotions, though he still looks just as devastated. It’s the most emotion you’ve seen from him, but you’re happy he deemed you worthy enough to experience it and that he’s hopefully beginning to work through his grief properly now. You pretend not to notice, certain you don’t know each other anywhere near well enough for you to be able to comfort him the way you’d like to. Luckily you don’t have to wait long before he turns to one of your items on the shelves and begins asking questions. You gladly answer and help him shop, he probably is one of those people that just needs to focus on something to work through things and is just happy to have some sort of company. He comes back several times, his trips becoming closer together and longer until he’s there almost all day every day. He knows the shop nearly as well as you do at this point. You’re startled when one day out of the blue he says, “You said there were other options, what did you mean by that?” It takes you a second to realize what he’s talking about. When you had first met, you had said that in order to encourage him to come back. “Well,” you begin slowly as you attempt to gather your thoughts and think about how to say this, “you obviously can’t bring anyone back but there are ways to communicate with spirits. It won’t be much, especially if you want to learn how to do it on your own, because it’s a very specific brand of magic that’s not only difficult but the things you’ll be able to read won’t be much because it takes so much energy on both sides.” “What else is there?” He asks rather quickly, not seeming as interested in that. It speaks volumes that he’s not desperate to go against the natural flow of things the way he had before. It’s a tremendous sign of healing to you, or at the very least a big step forward in the process. “It won’t be the same, but a lot of times forming another type of connection is something people need. Being around existing family and friends is nice, but gaining new pieces in your support system is sometimes more helpful. You could always attempt to summon a familiar if you're interested or your options here aren't satisfying enough for whatever reason. If you don’t want something as attached that's a bit more flexible you could work on summoning magic.” Familiars are similar to spirit guides or guardians. They're attached to a specific individual through certain bonds. Unlike those other two though familiars are a spirit energy that can manifest themselves into the physical world in order to be with the one they become soul bonded to. While familiars can take form in as a simple mass of energy, they can make themselves appear in whatever way they or their bonded feel most comfortable with. It is slightly limited to the imagination or acceptance of the bonded individual, their power level, and the strength of their bond because some forms are more straining to manifest. A familiar bond is similar to those of a soulmate, but not as powerful. They are both similar in the way that they form, the fact that it’s more often than not a lifelong bond, and that even though it’s considered normal to have just one of these bonds there is the possibility of having multiple. It’s unlikely for anyone to survive the loss of a soulmate or a broken bond, and if they do they won't for long, but you can survive those things happening with a familiar. You’re also able to reestablish a familiar bond or form another while that is impossible with a mate bond. Once you lose your mate, there’s no fixing it. Though the backlash of losing someone can be managed a little better if there are multiple other bonds formed as it can help the soul cope. Summoning magic is similar to a familiar bond but it’s less binding. It’s almost like a contract formed with certain summons or spirits that allows them to manifest in the real world and assist their summoner at a certain price, most of the time being using the magical’s energy in order to do so. These contracts can be started or ended at any time and while many people bond with their summons, especially if they use the same ones for years, others can have a purely professional relationship with them. This allows you to use a wide variety of entities for whatever purpose you have and is overall more of a freeform style that many prefer. As long as said entities are approving of it, that is. And that’s how you fall down the rabbit hole of teaching Hongjoong all about familiars, though you can’t help it when he gives you that look of such genuine interest and curiosity. You don’t mind that his visits shortly after are accompanied by an extra. Aurora is a cosmic entity that often prefers to take the physical form of a miniature dragon with ever shifting colored scales and eyes that reflect images of the galaxy. Though they appear as a cat when they need to be more mundane, the changing appearance remains. When not in a physical form they simply look like someone snatched a piece of the night sky or space and shaped it into a shifting mist that follows Hongjoong around. They become just as regular of a sight as their bonded warlock. ...Not that you mind either in the slightest.
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The Shifter
Out of all the sections in The Crossroads, the flower shop is one of the ones most bursting with life, likely only second to the garden itself. Sure, the café and the lounge respectively can get quite lively, but that ebbs and flows depending on the time of day while here it is constant. There are flowers, fruits, and plants everywhere, making the store appear in a kaleidoscope of nature packed into one space. The way it’s arranged depends on what you feel is right. The majority of the shop is taken over by flowers, sometimes all mixed together in a vibrant rainbow, sometimes they’re separated in alphabetical order and then sorted by color from there in each individual section. There are signs for each flower to explain their meaning and how that may change depending on the color for anyone who is interested, and there are also advertisements for your nursery should anyone wish to try growing their own plants at home. You treat the fresh fruit, herbs, and other things the same, though they tend to take up space a bit more outside of the shop than the flowers in different stalls, tables, and stands. Everything is stocked fresh from your garden, just like in the café or the apothecary. You quite liked gardening and flower arranging, they were more of an outlet to escape your stress and responsibilities than anything else. It allows your mind to shut off and simply rely on the muscle memory you built up by repeating your task a million times over, or to rely on what looks the most pleasing to the eye. With nothing else required it’s quite soothing. Though you do enjoy things like doing magic, healing, or even keeping yourself in shape, those are mostly there in order for you to be able to do your job and keep yourself going for as long as possible. The only thing that compares are things like cooking, baking, mixing drinks, or potion making but that’s more of a way for you to experiment and express yourself than allowing yourself to feel relaxed and comfortable. Today had been rather soothing in general. You hadn’t had many customers not just in this store but in the warehouse as a whole. You can’t blame anyone for not wanting to come inside, as it seemed to be a perfect day outside. The temperature was lovely, allowing you to open the windows and in many cases even the doors to let the sunlight, refreshing breeze, and the sounds of people laughing stream in from outside as they go about their day. Even the animals were joining in on the fun, as you had been humming under your breath as if singing a duet with the birds in the hours since the sun came up while you danced through the shop. Every so often you’d have a new little friend stumble their way in to keep you company, not that you minded as you always kept things around for furry, feathered, and scaled critters alike. Even so, you were more than a little startled at the crash and the loud screech that followed near the front of the shop. You rush over to find a ragdoll kitten in a pile of fruit they had likely knocked down from the stand. You’re worried for a second, as it looks like the cat attempted to come in through the window and must have fallen off the stand to the ground, but if they had been bothered by it it disappeared just as quickly as it popped up as it was now playing with the fruit that had fallen and was rolling around it. You would automatically assume they’re a stray, as you have quite the collection at this point based on how often you end up feeding them all, but the kitten looks too well cared for. Its long hair is stunningly clean and fluffy, obviously brushed through meticulously, and you can see a small collar made of pearls and sparkling studs shining in the light as it darts around in excitement that oddly enough doesn’t have a tag on it. It’s awfully cute, despite the fact that you now have a fair amount of ruined fruit. Your laugh causes it to look up with a shockingly expressive startled look that would have made you laugh more if your breath hadn’t been stolen from you when you made eye contact. The striking blues carry so much depth, emotion, and understanding to them that you immediately have an inkling that this little beauty isn’t quite what they seem. A quick glance over their aura tells you all you need to know. A shifter, how interesting. You bend down and hold your hand out to them, though you stop your hand plenty of space away as they seem quite skittish after being caught like a child doing something they weren’t supposed to. “Are you alright, doll?” You ask, unable to keep yourself from smiling down at him as after taking a second to sniff your hand he rolls over to let you pet his stomach. You happily obliged when he reaches towards you with a light trilling sound in the back of his throat. You spend some time playing with him before you eventually sigh and stand up. Wiping your hands on your apron you look around the mess that had been made with your hands on your hips, the shifter looking up at you curiously, leaning so far back that he ends up flipping over himself. As he gets to his feet again he attempts to shake it off and weave through your legs as if nothing happened, surprisingly loud purring filling the otherwise silent shop. “Well, I guess we should clean up this mess.” You say, and this time the cat doesn’t look the slightest bit sheepish about having caused the situation. “Would you like to help?” Despite looking at you curiously, perhaps due to the fact that you’re speaking to him as if you knew he was fully intelligent and responding to you unlike most people probably do when he’s in an animal form, he lets out a soft meow in what you take as confirmation. His “help” ends up being threading his way through your legs, batting at your hand when you get close enough to him, or darting around to attack the fruit left on the floor spreading it out even more. When he disappears for a while you leave him be while you clean up what you can, as you haven’t heard another disaster take place yet so you assume he’s fine. When you think you’ve gotten everything except the ones under the stand you had last seen the kitten crawl under, you have no option left but to check on him. You see the cat failing horrible at trying to eat a piece of fruit that is the size of a pretty decent portion of his body, “Would you like some fruit, doll?” You ask him, amused as the fruit he had pounced on top of rolled causing him to tumble across the floor. He just looks at you with wide eyes, head tilted and one ear twitching. “Go ahead and pick one out.” You implore him. While most humans wouldn’t eat these fruits at this point, it doesn’t necessarily mean they were bad. Besides, you never were one to feed animals with that processed stuff they make for those mass products. You’d much rather make something with pretty much the same food you could eat just as well as them, which he would probably appreciate if he was used to a human palette some of the time. The one he rolls to you with so much effort it ricochets off your foot and he goes to chase after it again makes you shake your head. “Don’t be silly, that one isn’t safe for cats.” Shifters are special due to the fact that their magical expertise is so intricate it literally changes their body. It’s not an illusion or something that lasts temporarily, it changes their entire chemical make up and stays that way until they make the effort to change it again. It’s technically one of the largest categories of magicals in existence, because so many beings have some ability to shift in some way. Something like a vampire and a werewolf technically qualify because while most times they’re in the natural human form they were born in, when they use more than their most basic power their body shifts facial structure, teeth, nails and so on. In a vampire it typically stops at that beyond any special powers they may be granted, but the variety of weres can shift into a complete animal form as well. Some creatures are not born in a human-like form and have to work in order to shift into one, like a kitsune. Even half human-like forms like a siren would have to work for a full transformation because even though they may look like it, they are not human and could not pass as such. Natural born shifters, often referred to as true shifters as their abilities come from their magic alone and not from some sort of magical creature heritage, all have extremely similar paths to shifting even across different races. No matter the power level of a shifter, basic things like being able to shift hair, skin, or eye color is where they start. Next you go to actually shifting your form, your body shape, adding birthmarks, your hair type, all of these things are much harder to grasp and most times where a shifter's ability can stop. More advanced shifters in this category can actually change their gender without the use of potions, but it is by far the minority in this category level. Some more uncommon shifters have the ability to shift into an animal form, but only with extreme training as it can often end in accidents or someone being stuck in one form so long they could just give into their instincts and forget what it’s like to be a more developed creature. It takes a toll on the body and an extreme amount of magic, which is why it is limited to non-magical animals as that requires even more. It is extremely rare to find a shifter able to do all of these things, as most don’t get past the part where they can shift their own body slightly due to their own strength limitations. No matter how much someone may be determined to try, sometimes it’s just physically impossible to do no matter how much you attempt to train. Magic may be like a muscle you can train, but even it can only go so far. So while he may have his own more advanced mind, and perhaps a little extra strength in his form to survive due to being a shifter of such magical ability, he was still very much a cat. Which means things like eating the wrong food could be just as disastrous for him as any other. Ears drooping slightly in disappointment, he takes a second to pout and look around at the remaining fruit before eventually pawing lightly at a different one, looking up at you with wide hopeful eyes. How is he so cute? “Wonderful.” You say, picking up the fruit and putting it on the counter. “Let's pick the rest of these up and then you can eat.” Seemingly determined he crawls around and bats the rest of your fruit your way, managing to get into and under things you never would have been able to without the use of magic. In the end he looks hilariously ruffled, but proud of himself nonetheless. As you move to put the container you had with the unsellable fruit away to use for other things later, he jumps up onto the counter and begins pacing impatiently around his chosen meal. On your way out you ruffle the fur on the top of his head as you grab the fruit and call back to him as you close the door, “Be right back.” In hindsight, perhaps not the best idea for someone that currently has the body, instincts, and attention span of an actual kitten. You weren’t gone long, simply using one of your kitchens to make a quick meal that would taste good no matter if he was in animal form or not. Most consider it too much for animals, but you’d always preferred it this way. It tasted fine to you, even if you experimented a little due to having to use things safe for cats, so you have faith he’ll at least be willing to try it. You can hear mournful yowling before you even make it to the door. You’re immediately worried something else happened, and rush back in to find the entire shop is fine. The kitten, who had been pacing agitatedly by the door let out a much happier sounding screech at the top of its lungs and tried to climb its way up your pants. He only makes it about half way, and you think that’s just because of the momentum he used to launch himself, but he latches on tight as he looks up at you with watery eyes. “Oh, you dramatic thing, I’m back now.” You huff as you place the bowl back on the counter and swoop down to pick him up and cradle him in your arms like a baby, he immediately burrows in and purrs happily, looking less like he might cry as the seconds go on. Without thinking about it you kiss his forehead. “I was only gone a few minutes, did you really think I would leave you with the promise of a meal?” Shaking your head you stare down at him fondly as he gently attempts to claw your hair. “You only get a few minutes here until you have to try this, okay?” You wonder how such a little thing has such a set of lungs on him.You look up at the ringing of the bell from where you're making new bouquets on the counter to display. The girl that walks in quickly disappears between the stands, almost looking nervous. With how small she is, though she looks to be around your age, you only see a hint of her brightly colored pink hair every so often as it peaks out above the flowers. A little curious, but knowing sometimes shoppers or viewers can all act differently, you keep an eye out. You don’t catch many glimpses, but to you it seems like the products you have out are not what the girl is interested in despite how long she tries to pretend. Her attention keeps going back to you as you continue to work, and you’re unsure if she thinks she’s being subtle but you politely let it slide for quite a while. One time while you’re observing her she manages to look up before you can look away. It doesn’t bother you as your eyes connect but it sends her head shooting down as a blush spreads across her face, making the freckles she has stand out more. What catches your attention though is her eyes, they send a jolt of recognition through you. You would think you would remember eyes that pretty of a hazel, but it's the look in them that you can’t quite place with such a brief glance. Your magic reaches out without thinking about it on pure instinct due to your curiosity. Even the slightest brush against their aura makes the dots connect in your brain. That shifter you had met a while ago had come back a few times, though it had always been in an animal form and more often than not they tended to stick with the original one. There was now a permanent bowl on your counter for the kitten as they refused to eat anywhere else and a lot of customers assumed that he was your cat. However, not once had they come in in a human form, and rarely had their animal forms been female. You wonder for a moment if this is her natural form but the slight hint of her magic tells you otherwise. Shifter magic leaves a trace so slight it’s nearly impossible to spot, another reason why they are so talented as it helps them blend in even more completely with whatever form they take. It feels similar to illusion magic, but it is different, and that’s what you can sense here. With how much there is, you would assume she isn’t just changing simple things like her hair color but her gender and body as a whole. Yet another sign of her extreme skill, but you’re a little disappointed you won’t be seeing their natural form today. You shrug it off easily enough, you’d rather they be comfortable than anything else. If they were that rare of a magical practitioner then you can’t blame them for being so skittish, it even seems like it may be part of their personality to begin with. “Need some help, doll?” You ask her, leaning over the counter. “Um, I-I was just looking.” She mumbles out. You raise an eyebrow at her, but decide to let it be for now. “Let me know if you need anything.” It doesn’t take long with you pretending to work when all you’re doing is shifting some flowers a little or taking too long to tie a ribbon before she makes her way up to your counter hesitantly. “I was just wondering….” She pauses when you look at her again. “I, uh, heard there was a language of flowers. I-is that true?” “Yes. It’s called floriography.” You tell her. “Is there something you’d like to tell someone?” She rubs her arm sheepishly, though she seems more confident as the conversation continues. You guess it makes sense that she would be more bold in an animal form as people expect a bit less from you, and she likely doesn’t care much of social expectations when she operates more on instinct. “I wanted to make a new friend.” She admits softly, unable to look you in the eye anymore as her blush flares up even darker than before.You can’t help but smile at her, apparently you’ll find her cute in any form. “I think that’s lovely. Would you like me to show you some options and share what they mean so you can pick some out for your friend?” You spend a long time walking her through the shop and explaining the different flowers that could fit her request, as well as explaining the ones you use most often in combinations. Despite how invested she looks and how thrilled she seems to be with the conversation as all of her questions are answered despite how off the wall some of them might seem, when you ask her if she wants to use any of them she just pouts cutely. “I don’t really have the money for it right now.” She admits. “Besides, I don’t think it’s the right time yet.” “Hmm.” You hum in thought before turning to grab a flower that you had left lying on the counter, having not yet found the right bouquet to put it in despite it being one of the first ones you had picked out. You hold it out to her, “For you then, a gift and a request for you to come back when the time is right.” Though she hesitates, eventually she takes it gently as if it’s the most fragile thing in the world. “What’s this one mean?” “Irises are for a lot of positive things such as faith, hope, trust, wisdom, optimism, valor, and new beginnings. Quite fitting for the occasion, don’t you think?”The garden takes up the entire secondary warehouse lot behind The Crossroads, making it the biggest single devoted section out of everything else you have to offer. A considerable portion of the lot is an outdoor garden that visitors can relax in and has plants that can grow nearly all year around and don't require special care or a unique environment. But multilevel greenhouse is the really important part. It also happens to be the most magically expanded part your warehouse. While the other spaces have to pass as relatively realistic should a mundane stumble upon it, the inside the of the greenhouse seems to have a nearly endless amount of sections hidden from the public eye that expand both horizontally and vertically. Each section is completely devoted to different biomes from jungles, deserts, underwater, and more. There are normal and magical plants alike, many of them are even sentient and some of them are straight up dangerous if you do not know how to properly care for them so they are hidden behind fierce wards. While some sections are arranged like a normal garden, many expand to wide ranging farmland or even a meticulously captured piece of actual nature to the point that there is it's own mini ecosystem thriving unhindered from the civilization outside. Many of your magical creatures take up residence throughout the greenhouse wherever they feel most at home and several mythicals like to stop by to assist in taking care of the place or experience a bit of the home they left behind. Your mouth practically drops open the first time your now familiar shifter friend finds you in your garden in the form of a phoenix chick. They looked absolutely stunning with feathers the color of the rainbow shining in the light, and the songs they liked to sing to you as their pure magical aura surrounded you was one of the most soothing things you’ve ever experienced. How is it that you got the attention of the rarest form of shifter that likely hadn’t been born in hundreds if not thousands of years? However, all the cuteness and skill in the world doesn’t cover up the fact that they’re often loud, dramatic, and playful sometimes to the extent of being annoying. Yet you still let them get away with it as they nest on top of your head and groom you to their heart's content, causing your hair to stick up everywhere and look wild, in between cheerful chirps as you spend your day gardening. They’ve become a normal feature in your life as several different animals and even showed up several times looking completely different in human form. You have yet to see them in the body they were born in, but as literal months have passed by it has long since slipped your mind. One thing is certain though, your life would be a lot more quiet and boring without their ball of energy coming in to cause some havoc. When they seem satisfied enough they flit over to a nearby tree branch and puff their chest out proudly as they look over their handiwork. After several moments of puppy dog like eyes you finally sigh, “Thank you, doll. You did a good job.”The proud trill you get may be worth it, but you’re still a little unsure as you don’t yet know how much of a disaster you look like. It’s probably better left unknown, you don’t want to hurt their feelings when something like grooming is such a sacred act. While you had firmly believed you were in the friends category despite never meeting properly face to face like a normal relationship, perhaps it was more than that to them if they thought it fitting to partake in such an activity considered so intimate it was normally left for one’s flock whether they be born or chosen. It was honestly heartwarming and sweet, and you find yourself giving in to the stronger feeling that had been welling up deep within you each time they stopped by in order to keep your relationship comfortable for them. You always bonded with others so much easier than most, being able to sense so much about someone on first meeting does that to a person. It had been a while since someone had so openly displayed such a level of affection towards you, whether it be friendly or familial you’re unsure. You’re well aware this shifter often has a relatively short attention span. Though they like to fill the air with any kind of chatter they can make when in animal form, there are several instances where they will get distracted trying to pick a shiny pebble out of the ground or go off to chase a flower petal swirling in the wind. But they normally remain within sight or hearing distance, and always say a heartfelt goodbye when they leave. So when you realize it’s been quiet for too long and you haven’t seen that bright flash of feathers in a while you get nervous. You put down your gardening equipment and begin to make your way through the expanded greenhouse. This place is huge, with several different sections with different environments for all sorts of plants to survive in both magical and mundane that you maintain with well placed runes and constant stores of your magic. When you don’t find them inside you feel panicked as you make your way outside, beginning to call out for them as you make your way through your open air garden. Eventually you hear their calls coming from the side of the building, but the relief it causes doesn’t last long as you realize just how frantic they sound. Charging around the side of the building you see the shifter fluttering around a figure in a panic. It was odd to see them switching dramatically between trying to comfort it with low trills and gentle touches, and then letting out the loudest shriek they could manage in order to lure someone closer. As you approach, you see why they are so worried. They’d found a poor dog that looked as if it hadn’t had proper care in weeks, but the worst part was an injured leg mangled likely beyond repair and hanging limp, completely useless under its body. Based on how bad they were bleeding and the trail that was forming behind the two of them, you would guess the shifter was trying to lead the hurt pup to safety. While anyone could hear him at this point, you feel a little touch they thought that that safety meant you. “Shh. Shh.” You try to calm them both as you crouch down next to them, you don’t need more attention drawn to you at this point. “I’ve got you. Let’s get you fixed up.” And that’s how you end up spending the next few days in the medical wing trying to keep a puppy alive and attempting to fend off a newly developed mother hen. It takes a long talk with the shifter to help them realize that while you understand their worry, they are actually getting in the way and delaying the process rather than helping. “It’s okay for you to rest, doll.” You stress to them where they droop sadly on your shoulder in shame. “You brought them here to get them the help that you couldn’t provide, so let me help them. I would never cut you out of this process, but right now you’re so anxious when all we can do is wait that it’s harming you. You won’t even leave this pup’s side to eat, sleep, or bathe.” Despite the loss of a limb, the puppy makes a full recovery and attacks the learning curve with a vibrant energy and personality. While watching him play with the other animals you had slowly gathered over time you can’t help but turn to the phoenix perched in the tree next to you and say, “You really need to stop bringing me strays.” It’s true, while the shifter only brings a variety of animals that need the help you can provide, you’re very worried there will be a point rather soon where you don’t have the ability or space to continue to take care of them all. You only get a huff in response, because really you both know neither of you can say no in a situation like that.You look up rather startled, to nearly a face full of flowers with how close they are to you. Taking a bit of a step back at the sudden person that had appeared while you were focused, you see a face you had never looked at, but an aura you knew well. The flowers were beautiful, but also a haphazardly put together bouquet of different colors that suggested they were done by someone who wasn’t as practiced at the task as you. They were trimmed a little sloppily and the entire thing appeared a bit more rumpled than the ones displayed throughout the shop around you. It looked like this person had done this by hand, and had found these flowers on their own rather than gone to a shop like the one you were in now. “Hello.” You say slowly, still attempting to catch up with the situation. You receive a bright, though slightly bashful smile, “Hi! I’m Mingi, and I’d like to be your friend.” Taking a second look at the flowers it clicks in your brain. You had forgotten that a while ago, the first time you had ever seen this shifter in a human form, they had come in and spoken to you in length about the language of flowers and what to do for an expression of new friendship. That time was apparently now and that new friend was hopefully you. You could see clearly the nervousness and excitement in his eyes, as well as the startling clarity in his aura that suggests you’re finally looking at his natural form. By magic itself, you could literally melt at the cuteness of this chaotic creature. But instead you smile back so hard it makes your cheeks ache. “I’d love to, doll.”