As soon as she stepped inside, Azalea pulled back her hood, probably relieved after her nerve-wracking efforts at breaking in. However, instead of revealing her face, a smooth, white mask was all that could be seen beneath the cloak. The mask had no holes, no eyes, no nostrils, no mouth. It was completely blank, eerily featureless, like an ivory oval covering her entire face. Despite this, she moved without hesitation, showing no signs of being hindered in her sight or breathing.
After slipping inside, Azalea immediately shut the door behind her and pressed herself against the wall, carefully attuning her senses to the environment. She extended her magic outward, scanning for any signs of life. Only after ensuring the shop was empty did she finally allow herself to relax.
Raising her wand, she cast a soft Lumos, illuminating the space around her. Then, she froze. ‘What the hell?’ It had only been three months since her last visit, and Alex had even gone back to Hogwarts. So why had the entire shop changed so drastically? The interior was larger, significantly larger. The furniture had been rearranged, the shelves were different, and the entire space had an unfamiliar air to it.
Frowning, Azalea cautiously stepped forward, glancing around. She had come with a specific goal in mind, but now, faced with all these unexpected changes, she hesitated. She needed to find what she was looking for, but… her attention quickly got sidetracked. "Wait a minute… where did all these new items come from?" she muttered, wandering over to a nearby display. One shelf in particular caught her eye. "This pendant is beautiful! And this one, this one looks even better!" She moved along, eyes darting from product to product, her fingers brushing over intricate charms and enchanted trinkets. "They even have couple pendants now? Why didn’t I see these last time?" Her gaze landed on another item. "A belt buckle? And it's enchanted? That’s… actually kind of cool."
Then, she spotted something unusual, a table covered in small, rune-inscribed tiles. "Are these… Charms?" she murmured, leaning in for a closer look. Her curiosity only grew as she examined more of the shop’s mysterious inventory. "Wait, is this a lamp?" She reached out hesitantly but quickly pulled her hand back. "Better not. Don’t want to set off any alarms."
Then, she found a small ornate box. Azalea, unable to resist, carefully lifted the lid. A burst of music filled the air. Startled, she nearly dropped it. "What the, ?!" Slamming the lid shut, she let out a frustrated sigh. "A music box? Seriously? Why does this feel like something straight out of the Muggle world?" Annoyed at herself, she shook her head and muttered under her breath. As much as all these new products intrigued her, she had to stay focused. She had come here for a reason.
Straightening up, she quickly resumed her search. She checked the shelves, rifled through drawers, and even peeked into the cash register. But no matter where she looked, she couldn’t find the object she was after. Her brows furrowed. If it wasn’t here in the front, then there was only one other place it could be. She turned her gaze toward the door leading to the back room.
Azalea’s lips pressed into a thin line as she recalled her last visit. Alex had taken restricted items from there before, perhaps what she was looking for was inside. Approaching the door cautiously, she hesitated.
Would this door be as heavily protected as the entrance?
"Ugh," she groaned quietly, rubbing her temples. "Who even sets up this many defensive spells inside their own home?"
Bracing herself, she raised her wand and whispered an unlocking spell. The door swung open instantly. Azalea let out a long breath, relief washing over her. After the nightmare of getting past the front door, she had half-expected another set of magical barriers. But to her surprise, the inner door wasn’t protected at all. "Ha," she chuckled to herself, shaking her head. "Guess I was just being paranoid. Who would go that far to secure their own house?"
With a smirk, she stepped forward, unaware that Alex was still watching. Azalea stepped into the inner room and immediately noticed that it had undergone just as many changes as the front of the shop.
At the far end of what used to be an empty space, there was now a humanoid target, likely for testing spells or enchanted items. One side of the room was lined with opaque cabinets, and further along, three small compartments had been added. Each of these cubicles contained a floor-to-ceiling mirror and a phonograph.
Curious, she stepped inside one of the compartments and was immediately struck by the silence. A soundproofing charm had been placed over the space, effectively cutting out the noise from outside. "So, this is a place for customers to try on accessories and listen to music?" Azalea muttered to herself. "Huh. Seems like the owner finally figured out how to run a business properly. It’s like he had a sudden stroke of genius." With that, she casually browsed through the phonograph’s selections and played a tune.
Ten minutes later, she was still inside the cubicle, quietly enjoying the music. Anyone who didn’t know better might have actually thought she was here to shop rather than break in.
Eventually, she shook herself out of her reverie and exited the compartment, feeling surprisingly refreshed. The civilian-grade alchemy products in this shop were unexpectedly good, and the quality of the music had even made her forget about the time. But she hadn’t come here to admire Alex’s expanding business. Refocusing on her task, she approached the row of lockers beside the cubicles and carefully began opening them one by one.
Most contained standard alchemy gear, defensive gloves, Magical vests, and various enchanted trinkets. Nothing particularly illegal, but all practical and well-crafted. She was careful not to disturb anything too much. Even if she had to rummage through the contents, she made sure to return everything to its original position, doing her best to leave no trace of her intrusion.
Then, as she unlatched a vertically locked cabinet, she finally found something promising. Inside, hidden at the back, was a metal safe about half a person’s height. There were no dials or keyholes, only a single small handle. Azalea let out a quiet breath. "This has to be it." She raised her wand and cast an unlocking spell. Nothing happened.
Well, that was expected. If the front door had such heavy enchantments, there was no way Alex would leave something valuable unprotected inside a simple safe. If this thing had opened easily, she would have started to suspect it was a trap. Unfazed, she tried a few different spells, unlocking, dispelling, even minor blasting hexes, but none of them worked. Each time, a complex pattern of magical lines appeared across the safe’s surface, absorbing the spells completely.