Chapter Text
'The rain reminds me of you, because it's falling hard and I am too.'
The market was closed, as it always was on Sundays, and as any other business usually was. Or at least, that was what the normally glowing sign at the front said.
Approaching a darkened building made of mismatched tiles, the outside a patchwork of countless shades of blues, greens, reds and everything in between, Levi was undaunted by its appearance. By an outside glance the store’s closed state was believable, however, every supernatural in the area knew that Hanji hardly ever truly closed, and that when she did it was not on Sunday's, but instead on whatever night the moon was at its full. The schedule confused humans, though Hanji was more than willing to explain if asked.
Besides , the other witch had always said, grinning brightly behind her glasses. It never brings down business. There's always another sick person looking for a herbal remedy that will actually work, or a poor sap that got pulled into the wrong crowd and needs to break a spell.
Levi hadn't been able to argue, knowing full well just how fast new problems could arise. His own request list was never low--or on rare occasions, empty--for long. Which was exactly why he was venturing out into society on a Sunday instead of relaxing at home. He'd run out of Phoenix tears and mermaid saliva and he needed those if he was going to make Isabel a leash that wouldn't snap whenever her over exuberant hellhound puppy got too excited--which was always.
Walking past the main door to slip around the side of the building, Levi muttered a cloaking spell under his breath. Free of any prying eyes, he raised a hand towards the back door, tracing a pentagram into the air before the peeling paint. He traced a second rune into the space beside it, a flick of his finger bringing the two together like clockwork. They shimmered in the air before him, before with a sharp order and a flash of eyes full of shimmering blue, the surface of the door rippled like water, the runes vanishing into the surface. Hanji's wards were always up, especially on 'closed days', though one could usually get in by simply knocking on the door. Magic was a common knowledge now, as opposed to the days when supernaturals were hunted down for being different and killed. However, there were always those that got too curious for their own good, and wanted to explore--or god forbid, steal--that which was far more dangerous than they could handle. That was why Levi was slipping through the back door instead of the front, entering directly into Hanji's store of magical items as opposed to her tamer human set up at the front.
The large room was empty from what he could see, the variety of shelves lining the room in long lines much like a library blocking out most of his vision. Above him hung herbs and trinkets, as well as the odd creature. The truly dangerous were kept in a room at the very back, the door locked with countless charms and wards that only Hanji herself could open. As a rule Levi stayed away from anything involving animals so he rarely, if ever, ventured back there. His specialty was potions and spell work, not beast taming. He left that to the shapeshifters and werewolves.
Speaking of which... "Levi!" A voice called from above, barely giving him time to look up before its owner was leaping down from the bookshelves and into his arms.
Righting himself quickly, Levi let out a soft huff of annoyance. He stared down at the ball of fur peering up at him. "Petra, you know I hate it when you do that. Your fur takes forever to come out."
She grinned as much as a fox could grin, her nose twitching with pleasure. "Which is exactly why I do it."
He rolled his eyes, tweaking one of her ears gently. "Where's your owner anyways? I need to pick up some stock."
Unperturbed by the term, Petra gave a very humanistic shrug of her shoulders, leaping out of his arms to land on the floor before him. Used to what came next, Levi didn't even blink at the dull sound of snapping bones, face as unimpressed as ever as what had been a fox became a women.
Stretching out with a sigh, Petra stood from her crouch, pushing the cream colored hood of her robes back from her face. Her ears perked up on either side of her head once free of the cloth, her tail swishing behind her in slow flicks. "Hanji is working on a project right now, but I'll get your things." She told him once she was done, intelligent golden eyes fixing on the witch. "What did you need?"
"Phoenix tears and mermaid saliva," Levi told her. "and a couple vials of pixie dust, werewolf fur and spider-silk on top of the usual."
"Warding potions?" She asked knowingly, turning to walk deeper into the maze of ingredients and magical artifacts.
Levi grimaced. "Unfortunately."
"You've always hated warding," Petra mused, whistling for a basket. "Why don't you just say no?"
"Wardings are a good source of income," Levi sighed, following after her as she began plucking vials and small packages from the shelves, the basket wiggling by her elbow. "I can't just cut them out. The most I can do is charge a large price and get my stress paid in full."
"I suppose that's what comes with being one of the best," Petra agreed, fangs flashing as she smiled back at him.
"Speaking of the best," Levi drawled, grabbing a ink well and putting it in the eager basket--he was running rather low now that he thought about it. "when you say 'project'--"
"I mean don't ask." Petra shook her head, ears flattening. "They’ve been in their study for hours now, working on some new concoction. They won't even eat."
"You know how potion work can go," he reminded, reacting to the worry in the shapeshifter’s voice. "It's hard to take a break. I'm sure they'll be out soon. Just stick around and make sure the idiot doesn't fall into their own cauldron and it'll be fine."
"I know," she sighed. "I just..."
"Get worried," Levi smiled faintly, touching a hand to her shoulder. "I know. If it helps, I'll go in there later if this continues and drag them out myself."
Petra chuckled, nodding her assent. "Alright. Thank you, Levi."
"You're the one looking after them," he shrugged, hooking an arm through the handle of the basket before it could shake itself and all of its ingredients into a bookshelf. "if anyone should be thanking someone it's you. Hell, the entire world should be thanking you. Hanji would've probably blown it up by now if not otherwise."
Petra laughed, beginning her walk through the shelves once more, her progress faster now that she didn’t have to keep giving calming touches to the basket currently snuggling under his arm. He was glad that Hanji had given up on giving items faces, otherwise his situation would have been far worse. "They’re not that bad."
He smirked. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."
"Alright, that's it." Petra sighed, stretching her arms out as they looked over the large pile of items on the counter. "Everything on your list and more--and in all the correct quantities. Is there anything else you can think of?"
"No that's everything," Levi told her, mouth curling up into a small smile at her look of relief.
"I'll have this delivered then," she told him, lifting up a large wand of wood. She passed it over top the items, and Levi watched as the air shimmered for a second before slowly everything lifted up off the counter by a few inches. Slipping a finger down the wand she pressed into a small groove there, the action splitting a greater part of the wood into something resembling a rather large bubble wand. She used it to go over and under the items once more, the array of supplies gliding smoothly through the middle to be encased in a box of shimmering magic. Once done she converted the wand back into its original shape before placing it back into the cup holder where it came. It was all made special for her, he knew, watching as she grabbed both sides of the box to deposit everything into a neat little package. Hanji had gone to great extents to make things as easy as possible for Petra who was without magic. Making sure she didn't have to lug large orders of supplies over to the delivery portals was just one of the many things the witch had done to make her comfortable since first meeting. Petra had protested wildly at first, arguing that she didn't need special treatment, but Levi could tell that she was happy in Hanji's shop. If not she would have left.
"Alright," Petra smiled, pushing the order into the portal. "It'll be waiting for you at home. I'll tell Hanji that you stopped by."
Levi nodded, handing her a set of bills. "Thank you, Petra."
"It's my job," she shrugged, taking the money with a small smile. She fed it to the box next to her elbow, earning a pleased gulp that made Levi's nose wrinkle. "I'll walk you out okay?"
"Sure," he nodded, pushing away from the wall he'd been leaning against to stand straight. He didn't have to look to know that Petra was changing back into her fox form, well versed in how she worked. As someone who had been trapped as a fox, unable to talk or change back, she was never too comfortable being out of it for long. Most people would have thought it'd be the other way around, but then again, Petra had never been a normality.
She trotted over to his side, peering up at him with golden eyes that were far from mere animal. Levi raised an eyebrow. "How you fool the humans is beyond me."
A soft, chittering yip was his answer.