InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "If you break his heart"

Maeve Sheridan knows she's better than you. (few_and_far) wrote in wished,
@ 2010-07-28 19:18:00

Entry tags:

!2003: 07, !complete, maeve sheridan, shannon macfusty

Characters: Maeve Sheridan and Shannon MacFusty
Setting: Wednesday late afternoon, Slugs and Jiggers in Diagon Alley.
Summary: Scene Lottery: What to do with incompetent customers?
Rating: G, apart from maybe some customer bashing nothing big

“Mm hmm,” Maeve, leaning against the front counter shifted, moving her head from being propped by the right arm to her left and wondered if the foolish woman in front of her would ever shut up. She’d been lured in by the promise of an actual potions related question and was now trapped suffering mind numbing tedious, wondering if she concentrated hard enough if she’d be able to actually feel the brain cells as they died.

The sudden realisation that silence had fallen caused Maeve to stand up straight and blink, her mind scrambling to remember the last few statements and figure out what sort of response was expected. “No, mam,” she said, barely trying to hide her disdain, “Because it’s an antidote. Even if it’s not the cough potion you thought it was it’s an antidote. It...” the woman opened her mouth again, speaking over Maeve before she could finish her explanation, earning a glare until she fell quiet again. “Well, it would rather go against it’s classification as an antidote if it poisoned you, wouldn’t it?” She watched the woman storm off in a huff and felt that, for once, she hadn’t done anything to warrant such a reaction. She hadn’t even had the chance to smart off yet! It was the least the woman could have done.

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adorable_beast
2010-07-29 04:13 am UTC (link)

Snorting lightly, Shannon rolled her eyes at the woman's actions. Watching the shopgirl deal with incompetence made her glad, for once, that Rolf wouldn't take rent from her. She waited a moment until the woman was gone before approaching the counter. "You'd think some people never took a Potions class in their lives," she offered, smiling slightly in commiseration. "I've got a question?"

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	few_and_far 2010-07-29 04:25 am UTC (link)
	Maeve sighed and straightened up, wondering if she would ever get the chance to escape back to her workshop. "You'd be surprised how many of them are out there," she griped, turning toward the new woman. "Hopefully it isn't anything like 'Is there Mandrake in that Mandrake Restorative Solution?'" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	adorable_beast 2010-07-29 04:34 am UTC (link)
	"Well, that was one of my questions," Shannon answered, dragging a hand through her hair. "I was actually wondering if you sold wolfsbane?" She paused and twisted her lips to the side. "Rather, if you made it to order, or knew of a potioneer who did?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

few_and_far
2010-07-29 04:48 am UTC (link)

"You won't find premade Wolfsbane," Maeve explained, straightening up and losing the irritated expression when she realised this was of actual interest. "It's too temperamental a potion and not stable enough to be produced in that manner. We've mostly ingredients here," she explained gesturing at the shelf of bottles behind her, displaying the full range of their in house pre-bottled offerings. "But, yes, if you are looking for a potioneer, I could help you." Honestly, the opportunity to brew a difficult potion like Wolfsbane instantly appealed to her.

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adorable_beast
2010-07-29 05:20 am UTC (link)

Nodding, Shannon stuck her thumbs through her belt loops. "Yeah," she responded, idly, second guessing her decision to come here. She couldn't really afford to pay for the potion she needed, but she hated being coddled. What had happened to her wasn't Rolf's fault. He couldn't have prevented it or stopped it or protected her in any way and while she knew he didn't mean for it, his paying for everything made her feel useless.

"It's expensive, isn't it," she said, after a moment, then shook her head. It didn't matter the cost. "How long does it take to brew?"

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few_and_far
2010-07-29 05:28 am UTC (link)

Maeve nodded, pulling out a potion manual to show her the instructions. "It's complex. Complex is always expensive," she flipped over several pages that were all instructions for the Wolfsbane Potion. "You could make it yourself if you have the skill but it's very particular and the risks of misbrewing are, I'd think, quite obvious," she eyed the blond for a moment, assuming the potion was for herself. She shut the book but left the marker in it in case Shannon wanted to take another look. "Start to finish? Two weeks. Brewing takes 2-3 days and then it must simmer and set to maturation. As well as careful tending during the week prior to the moon. Volatile solution," she added, not without a hint of eagerness.

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adorable_beast
2010-07-29 10:33 pm UTC (link)

Gnawing on her lip for a moment, Shannon studied the book until Maeve closed it. She opened her mouth to ask the other woman a question, then stopped, not wanting to insult her. She was clearly a shop girl, but only at the moment. Even though it didn't seem likely to Shannon that a potioneer would be manning the front of the shop, it didn't mean it wasn't possible.

"Who would be brewing the potion?" she asked, although she wasn't sure why, it didn't really matter who so long as they were capable.

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	few_and_far 2010-07-29 10:45 pm UTC (link)
	"Me," Maeve said dryly, bristling only slightly that she was being overlooked. "Is that a problem?" She asked, nothing about her tone of demeanour aggressive apart from one raised eyebrow. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	adorable_beast 2010-07-29 11:22 pm UTC (link)
	Arching her eyebrow, Shannon studied the other woman, her voice dry when she spoke. "Yes. Yes, it is," she responded, speaking before her brain could stop her. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	few_and_far 2010-07-29 11:26 pm UTC (link)
	Smiling viciously, Maeve folded her arms on top of the counter and leaned in, acting like she was about to hear the most riveting story. "And that would be..." It meant nothing to Maeve to lose a potential client. She had other opportunities and didn't have nearly as much to lose as she assumed this woman would. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	adorable_beast 2010-07-29 11:31 pm UTC (link)
	"Well," Shannon shot back, fighting to keep her voice mild. She wished Rolf was here; she'd never been good with interpersonal situations and the incident in Germany had only made that worse. "For starters, you apparently can't identify sarcasm." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

few_and_far
2010-07-29 11:39 pm UTC (link)

"Maybe you should identify a better time to use sarcasm," she snapped, just managing to keep her tone from turning aggressive. Pulling the manual back toward her, Maeve stepped out from behind her counter and headed for the door to her workshop. "There are several other apothecaries and potions shops between Diagon, Knockturn and Memorial Alley, I'm sure one of them can help you," she said, turning back toward Shannon before she disappeared. Hand on the doorknob she hesitated again and turned around once more, shooting Shannon and overtly false smile. "And they'll also probably charge you twice what I would." She waited another beat before adding one last addition, pure bravado. "And they'll probably do it half as well."

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	adorable_beast 2010-07-29 11:51 pm UTC (link)
	The other woman's quip about price caught her and she pulled herself back. Gritting her teeth, Shannon pushed aside her ego and called after Maeve with a monumental effort of will. "How much are you charging?" she asked, her eyes squeezed shut. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

few_and_far
2010-07-30 12:04 am UTC (link)

Turning back, Maeve leaned against the door and held the book to her chest, doing the calculations in her head. "13 galleons a batch," she said after a moment, taking what most potioneers would charging and stripping it of the mark-up, leaving enough for supplies, the shop, and her own labour. It meant more to her to have the woman's business than her money. "Up front," she added, considering how much the initial supplies would cost just to start brewing. "Not now, but two weeks out."

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	adorable_beast 2010-07-30 12:13 am UTC (link)
	Shannon only just managed to hide her look of surprise at Maeve's price. If thirteen galleons was half, she didn't even want to think about what Rolf had been paying. "I can do that," she said, weakly, after a moment, not even attempting to bargain. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

few_and_far
2010-07-30 12:17 am UTC (link)

"Have you taken it before?" Maeve asked, walking back toward the counter and swapped the book for a piece of parchment, making a few notes. "It's as particular to take as it is to brew," she explained, hoping she wouldn't have to go through the description and side effects of the potion, as they weren't too fresh in her mind. She preferred to avoid making herself look ignorant whenever possible.

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	adorable_beast 2010-07-30 12:32 am UTC (link)
	It took Shannon a moment to respond, forcibly dragging her attention back to the conversation. "Yes, for several months now." Rolf had never discussed the particulars obtaining her potion and she wasn't sure what information to offer to the other woman. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	few_and_far 2010-07-30 12:42 am UTC (link)
	Maeve nodded, glad she could skip over the fine details. "Mmm, I'll save you the lecture on side effects and seriousness of properly following doses," she said, scribbling down a few more things, silently, before she laid down the quill and looked up at the blond. "I need payment by the 11th, in person or by owl is fine," she added, holding out her hand. "I'm Maeve." (Reply to this) (Parent)