Chapter Text
In the heart of the town of Everheart, nestled between a bakery and a wisteria tree, sat a small apothecary. A weathered sign creaked gently in the wind, its golden, curly letters 'Opal Charms' shimmered in the sunlight. Ivy climbed its stone walls and colourful jars filled the space behind the glass windows. Inside, dried flowers and trinkets hung from the ceiling and beams. The scents of earthy roots, herbs and incense mingled to create a calming and inviting atmosphere. It looked as if it had been taken straight out of a fairytale.
The apothecary might look picture-perfect, but its real success was thanks to its owner. Harry Styles, a young witch with long brown locks, sparkling green eyes and a heart as good as gold. He was always ready to lend a helping hand and it was really no wonder that the townspeople loved him. They often popped by for remedies, advice or a simple chat. Opal Charms was their safe haven and Harry's pride and joy.
Harry inherited the shop from his late grandmother. Harry's grandmother was the one who taught him the most about potion-making. She ensured he knew that the best potions and brews were made with love and hope. It wasn't all about the ingredients, but also the intent behind making it. Potions that were made in a rush rarely had the best effects. They practised together all the time, going on walks to find the best ingredients and hosting get-togethers to teach others about the benefits of their potions.
After his grandmother died, Harry couldn't stand the thought of selling the shop. It held too many fond memories. Not to mention that all the villagers voiced their opinions on the possible closing of the apothecary. Their reactions gave Harry the courage to continue all by himself. It was hard work and long hours but he adored it immensely.
''Harry!'' A young girl with black ringlets framing her face, rushed into the apothecary. She moved around the shelves with precision. A side effect of being in the shop almost every week. Harry was certain that the little witch could walk around his apothecary with a blindfold on without breaking anything. The man looked up from his grimoire to watch Lucy approach him quickly. ''Harry! Guess what? School ended early! I get to stay extra long with you today!''
Harry smiled and pulled out an extra chair from underneath the table. He greeted Lucy with a warm hug before he helped her get on the stool. ''Hey, Luce. You can stay as long as you want, poppet. But you need to do your homework before we do anything else, okay? It's always better to do the boring part before the fun part. Not to mention, I'll get in a lot of trouble with your mum if you don't.''
''Are you scared of my mum, Harry?'' Lucy giggled.
''A little bit, yes. Your mum is a powerful witch and I do not want to get on her bad side. Do you?'' He received a quick shake of the head from Lucy. ''I didn't think so. Now, let me make you some tea and a snack whilst you get started on your homework.''
Lucy made sure to sigh extra loudly to show her displeasure but she retrieved her book from her pink backpack nevertheless. Harry toddled into the kitchen, pushing his bell sleeves over his elbows to make sure that he wouldn't dirty them as he prepared tea for his little friend.
When he returned to Lucy, the girl was hunched over her book, tongue peeking out from concentration. He placed the tray in front of her, chuckling when she blindly reached for the cake. Harry opened his grimoire and continued writing a new recipe in it.
The two of them worked in silence for a long time. They often sat like that. Lucy preferred being with him because her mother was at work and she'd be home alone. Harry found this to be a reasonable excuse and he secretly felt the same way.
An orange cat hopped onto the table, sniffing at Lucy's tea with her eyes closed. ''Hi, Basil! I missed you!'' Lucy chirped and immediately petted the cat. Basil purred in response, pushing her head against the girl's hand to urge her to continue. Lucy smiled and pulled Harry's familiar towards her to cuddle her properly. Basil didn't protest, basking in the attention.
''Harry, I'm so bored, I think I'll die.'' She whined, pouting at the older witch.
Harry felt a smile tug at the corners of his lips. ''That bored? Well, we can't have that, now can we? I think you studied long enough, poppet. Basil must think so too if she's coming up here for cuddles. What do you want me to teach you today?''
Lucy seemed to ponder for a moment before coming to a decision and nodding to herself. ''Will you please tell me about gemstones now? I really like how they look.''
''Definitely. Let me get my chest so we can look at them up close. Can you clear the table in the meantime?'' The older witch walked towards one of the cabinets, taking a vintage chest from one of the shelves. It was filled with little samples of gemstones. He often used them to show customers who wanted gemstone jewellery so that they could look at them up close and feel the energy they gave off. They're also perfect for seminars or moments like these. He placed the chest in front of Emily. ''There you go, Luce. Open it up and tell me which one you feel drawn to. Which one catches your eye.''
Lucy opened it, her hands trembling with excitement. A little gasp fell from her lips when it was open and all the stones came into view. Harry could see the moment she found a stone she liked because her eyebrows shot up and she started bouncing her leg.
''I like that one, Harry. It's pretty. Gorgeous even.''
''A very good choice indeed, poppet.'' Harry took the red gemstone from the chest and placed it in the small girl's hand. ''That is a Carnelian. Now that you're holding it, would you like to guess what it's good for?''
Lucy tilted her head to the side, squeezing the stone in her fist before examining it up close. ''Uhm… Is it like a good luck thing?''
Harry pursed his lips. ''I guess you can say that. Carnelian is known for boosting energy. It gives you courage and confidence. Why did it catch your eye?''
''I think it looks the same as its power. It's a bright, happy colour. I was the first one I saw.'' She placed the stone back in its place and peered into the chest. ''I know the purple one. That's an Amethyst. Mum has it above her bed because it's a calming stone, right?''
''Right on the money, Luce. It's said to provide emotional support, confidence and calmness. It's a very popular stone to have but I still think that it's my favourite. Especially when it's not polished yet. The rough edges give it an expensive look and I like its powers.'' Harry explained, showing Lucy the difference between the rough and polished stone.
''Mummy has a big one. I think it's because she has trouble sleeping sometimes when she misses daddy. We got a letter from him yesterday. He'll be back in two weeks! Mum won't need the amethyst as much then.''
''Oh, that's happy news, Luce! Maybe next time you're here we can make something for your daddy as a welcome home gift, hm? What do you think?'' Harry asked, making a mental note to give Lucy a bag of tea for her mum.
''Can we use that stone?'' She asked, pointing at a serene blue stone. Harry took it from the box and handed it to her. He instantly felt her energy shift and watched her gaze zero in on the stone in her hand. She took a deep breath before whispering. ''What's this one?''
''That's a Lapis Lazuli. I believe Lapis Lazuli translates to heaven stone from medieval Latin. It's a very, very powerful stone. It's good for wisdom and intuition or your instincts. A lot of us use it to strengthen our psychic abilities.''
Lucy swallowed thickly at Harry's words, looking up at him in confusion. ''What are psychic abilities?''
''Hmm, let me think of a way to explain it to you. It's like… we constantly process stimuli, right? Things we see, hear, feel and smell. Sometimes we also process things we can't actually touch or identify. Some of us can also notice things that others can't. Examples of those abilities are clairvoyance or telekinesis.'' Harry tried explaining everything without sounding morbid or creepy.
Oftentimes, clairvoyance is portrayed as something scary. As if you constantly see how people will die or when bad things will take place. That may happen, but a lot of the time it's also about seeing happy memories. It's a power that can be used to help people and that's a beautiful thing.
''So, you're saying,'' Lucy gaped at him. ''That if I sleep with that stone under my pillow that I'll be able to move things with my mind?''
Harry barked out a surprised laugh. ''It is possible , yes. However, the stones are never able to guarantee their powers. Most of the time, the intention behind using the stone is what gives it power. If you want to use it for bad things, the stones won't always cooperate. The Lapis Lazuli is one of those stones that will only give its power to positive energies.''
''It's the prettiest stone I have ever seen.''
Harry hummed under his breath. ''Tell you what, love. I'll make a necklace and two bracelets out of it. You can give those to your mum and daddy so that you'll all stay connected through the stone.''
Lucy held the stone against her neck, grinning at the way the blue stood out against her dark skin. ''My classmates will be so jealous!''
''Good intentions, Luce…'' Harry scolded gently. ''If you want it to be pretty and work, you need to have good intentions.''
''Yes, Harry. I'm sorry.''
''It's alright, poppet. You were just excited.'' The bell above the door tinkled, causing their attention to snap away from the conversation and the stones. Harry grinned when his best friend shuffled into the store.
''Sorry, Luce. But I feel the need to stop this class. You're getting too smart.'' Niall said, standing before the table with his hands on his hips. Lucy held his gaze, challenging him.
''I think everybody is too smart when you compare them with yourself.'' She sassed, raising one eyebrow.
Niall doubled over laughing and held up his hands in surrender. ''Alright, little one. I'm sorry. I do have to stop your class, though. Your mum is home and she'd like some help preparing dinner. Also, Harry and I were going out for a bite and we ought to get going.''
Lucy started stuffing her things in her backpack, grumbling under her breath. ''It's not fair. I got off early today and we still only had time for a few gemstones. There were so many pretty ones that I wanted to know more about. Now I have to wait until the next time we see each other again to learn more.''
Harry stopped Lucy when the girl slipped out of the chair. ''I promise we'll plan a date sometime soon to only discuss witch business. No stupid or boring school things. I'll make us lunch or dinner and we'll even make a few potions together. How does that sound?''
Halfway through his sentence, Lucy's smile reappeared on her face and she started rocking on her feet. ''Yes, please! I'll ask my mum if she can swing by later to plan a date!''
''Oh! Speaking of your mother,'' Harry scurried around the shop, picking a few leaves and flowers and putting them in a little bag. He picked each leaf and flower carefully to make sure that he would gift Lucy's mother the best blend. ''Can you give this to her? Tell her to make it into tea at least an hour before going to bed. It should help her sleep and feel more calm during the day.''
''I will, thank you. Bye, Harry! Bye, Niall!'' Lucy waved at the two boys and skipped out of the shop on her way home.
''She's got you wrapped around her tiny finger, mate.'' Niall said.
Harry started collecting his gemstones and placed them neatly in the chest, nodding gently. ''She does. She's going to be a powerful witch, Ni. The connection she just had with that Lapis Lazuli, I've only ever seen that with witches who actually have psychic powers. Not sure which one it is, but I'll ask her mother if she wants us to figure that out together.''
''She came looking for a book in my store the other day. Said she wanted to find the perfect book to start her own grimoire. I think we spent a good 20 minutes looking at the same two books because she couldn't tell which energy she liked better.''
Niall's store was a little further down the road. It was a little vintage shop filled with trinkets, magical artefacts and books. It's in his nature to collect things of value but since Niall preferred money over product, he sold the things he found in his shop.
''How is business anyway?'' Harry asked, whilst taking off his patchy apron and straightening the green vest underneath. ''Your trip was very fruitful, was it not? You were gone for weeks and returned with five duffle bags filled to the brim.''
''It's good. It always gets busy around autumn, especially when Samhain is approaching. There's always someone looking for things to add to their altar or costumes. The vintage picture frames are popular this year so are the candle holders.'' Niall took Harry's coat from the hanger and held it out for him.
Harry shrugged it on before wrapping a scarf around his neck. ''That's good to hear. I'll pop by later to have a look at your jars and pots. I'm running short on jars nowadays.''
''Any updates on those mysterious bottle breakages in the store? Can only imagine that it keeps niggling in the back of your mind.'' Niall asked.
For the past month or two, Harry had often found broken bottles and jars lying in his apothecary. At first, he thought he may have dropped them himself but they kept showing up in different places. All the shelves were still intact as well, so it wasn't faulty wood or screws. He'd double-checked everything but he just couldn't figure out why this was happening.
''Not yet. It's maddening, really. One minute everything is still in place and the next thing I know I'm cleaning up the glass again. Not to mention that I can't use the spices and potions that have been lying on the dirty ground so I have to replace them every time. It's so annoying.''
''Almost sounds like a curse to me.'' Nial murmured as they stepped outside and Harry locked the door.
''It does. Maybe something went sideways with one of my spells? It's the only explanation that I can think of. Maybe I said something weird in Latin when I was tired and drowsy. I shouldn't be practicing spells at night and perhaps this is my punishment for doing so anyway.'' Harry sighed and pushed his hands deep into his pockets.
Niall frowned at his best friend sympathetically. ''So sorry, H. Have you reconsidered talking to the police about it? Maybe they can help you?''
''With shattered jars and bottles and no further signs of a break-in or a hex? I don't think they'll do anything. They'll ask me to investigate a little further. I'll try another cleansing spell tomorrow. The last one did work but only for a little bit. It wasn't strong enough.''
The two of them chatted all the way towards the Inn, coming up with solutions and explanations but everything seemed debunkable.
''I don't know, Ni. At this point, I need to brew potions just to keep my sanity. I'm second-guessing my own brain sometimes.''
''Take it easy, H. And hey, if all else fails, you can always come by the inn for a drink. Even witches deserve a night off, right?''
Harry smirked and nodded, holding open the door to the inn. ''You're right. I'll definitely need this night. Thanks, Niall.'' The two walked towards their usual table and sat down. Harry immediately threw his long locks up into a bun, tired of the way his hair was tickling the back of his neck.
''No worries, mate. That's what I'm here for.'' Niall fell silent before he leaned in closer to Harry. ''You know what I'm also here for?''
Harry rolled his eyes with a deep chuckle. ''Gossiping?''
''Gossiping! And boy, do I have a juicy one tonight.''
''Let's wait until we have our drinks and food, okay?'' Harry suggested. ''Last time you wanted to tell me a story we kept getting interrupted and you had to tell me the rest of it about a week later.''
The flickering firelight cast shadows along the brick walls, voices and laughter filled the air with the scent of incense in the air. They waited patiently until they had ordered and until their food arrived. Niall was bouncing with the need to chat, so as soon as the waitress dropped off their food and disappeared, he opened his mouth to start.
''Apparently, someone arrived at the Inn last night. Rumour has it that he's looking for a permanent home here. Like, he wants to live at Everheart.''
''Yeah, I heard about that.'' Harry leaned back in his chair and stirred his mushroom soup. ''A vampire, right? Really, Ni, if we have to believe every rumour that's spread around here… I suppose Jill was the one to start babbling about this guy? She's probably making it sound more mysterious than it actually is.''
''Yup. Jill says he's got a face that can charm the stars and a manner to make a banshee blush.''
Harry scoffed. ''Oh, please.''
''Chris said that he is so strong, he can charm tiles of the walls. That he only drinks blood from silver chalices. Silver chalices! How fucking classy is that, Harry.''
''Classy? In this day and age? Sounds more like a vampire with a flair for dramatics. Who likes to leave an impression or scare people. What's the next rumour? That he can turn into a bat or that he's killed hundreds of people?'' Harry moved his hands around frantically.
''C'mon, H! You gotta admit, it's not just any vampire. They say he's old. Like very old. Someone speculated that he's hundreds of years old. That's some next-level shit. He must be incredibly strong and absolutely loaded . I'd like to be his friend if that's the case. You badmouthing him won't bring you anything good.''
Harry pursed his lips. ''I can handle myself, Niall. Even against an overgrown bat with a taste for drama. The townsfolk are great at exaggerating. I'm sure this man is just as normal as you and I.''
Niall took a bite of his potato chips, sulking a little bit. ''Okay, but think of it this way, if there's even a sliver of truth to it, doesn't that make life at the inn more… I don't know? Thrilling? It's been a long time since something exciting happened around here. Every day is the same.''
''I like my days the same, thank you very much. I like the serenity and calmness of it. I'm happy like this.''
''Ugh, you witches always like it when things are in order, don't you? Where's your sense of adventure and making mistakes?''
''I make mistakes and I go on adventures!'' Harry replied defensively. ''I take loads of risks when making potions. I just don't like taking risks when they could potentially ruin or end my life. If this vampire wants to live here, then he has a right to do so. And once he's settled, I'll pop by with some tea and cookies to welcome him.''
Niall laughed and shook his head. As if what Harry said didn't make sense. ''Think he'd appreciate it more if you'd offer your neck or wrist, mate. I don't think a vamp can do much with cookies.''
They sat in silence for a while before Niall started up again. ''They also say he wears a cloak.''
''For fuck's sake. If you wanna gossip, at least give me some actual information. Things I can work with. What's his name, where did he come from, what does he look like? These are all superstitious Dracula kind of rumours.''
''Now that you mention it, I don't think I'd recognise him if I bumped into him. The only thing Jill said was that he had bright blue eyes. She didn't mention anything else about his physique or history. She must know about those things, though. Sticking her nose into other people's business is practically her job.'' Niall shrugged.
''That's what I meant. Don't get me wrong, I love how entertaining these speculations are but they're not concrete information.'' Harry sighed.
''That's the part I love as well. Who knows, maybe he sleeps in a coffin lined with deep, red velvet. I might just be stirring the pot there…''
Harry laughed, kicking his best friend under the table. ''Honestly, Niall. You're incorrigible. But I appreciate your enthusiasm. Let's hope this vampire is as entertaining as they say, huh?''
The leprechaun clapped his hands. ''Oh, I'm counting on it! Let's see if this town loves a good story enough to bring it to life.''
The two were completely unaware of the man in the corner, hiding his fanged smile behind a book.
Their dinner continued with happy chatter. Niall talked about the adventures he encountered during his last trip and he described the special knick-knacks he found. As they talked, the Inn grew darker and more quiet. The two didn't stop talking until the fire had died down. They went home after the waitress came to get their empty glasses for the last time.
“Thanks for dinner, Niall. The next one is on me, okay?”
“I'll hold you to that! Oh, and make sure to lock the doors and keep your windows shut. We wouldn't want that broody vampire to get in and suck you dry tonight.” Niall replied, taking on a spooky tone of voice when he said the last part.
Harry rolled his eyes. “Remind me, why are we friends again?”
Niall shrugged and opened the door to his flat. ''I don't know. You're the one that's obsessed with me.''
With that, the door slammed shut in the witch's face. It left Harry squeezing his hands into fists because he couldn't very well yell back an insult at a closed door. Especially at 11.30 at night. Instead, he huffed and spun around, stalking back towards the apothecary.
After a long day of hard work and chatting with friends, he was actually craving his bed. He was practically already asleep with how heavy his eyes felt.
The drowsiness disappeared quickly, however, when he got close to the apothecary. An eerie feeling filled his chest and made his steps falter before picking up. It wasn't until he was standing in front of the store that he realised what had caused the feeling.
The door, which Harry knew he had locked, was slightly ajar.
Harry took a deep breath before approaching the apothecary. He pushed open the door, making the bell jingle quietly. He waved a hand through the air to light the candles so that he wouldn't be peering at a black wall but when he saw the rampage in the room, he almost wished he hadn't.
It wasn't a huge mess. Maybe 12 or 15 things were lying shattered on the floor, but the fact that there were no obvious signs of a break-in sent a chill through Harry's body. Somebody had been in his shop, in his home whilst he wasn't there. They had broken his things and Harry had no idea who they were or why they were doing this.
The realisation that this also meant that somebody had been in here the last few times he had found the broken artefacts was chilling. There had been no signs of a break-in back then but it must've happened when Harry wasn't home.
He mumbled some words under his breath, trying to find something, anything , that would show him who or what did this to his store. When nothing showed up, his shoulders slumped in defeat. For some reason, he knew that his spells and sage wouldn't save him from a possible next rampage. He needed a different plan.
On his walk back to Niall, there was no way Harry was gonna sleep alone in the apothecary tonight, he started brainstorming on a possible solution. Niall was still awake when Harry got to him. The leprechaun instantly pulled on his shoes and filled a bag with necessities before following Harry back to Opal Charms in complete silence.
His best friend stayed the night, helping Harry clean up before crawling into bed with him so that they could talk and cuddle for a bit. Not long after, Niall fell asleep, leaving Harry to stare at the ceiling and figure out a plan.
The fact that he didn't want to be alone tonight and felt safer with Niall in his home, gave him just the idea.
A roommate.