Page 2 of Brews and Banishments
The familiar doorbell chimed as a customer slipped inside the store. Daisy looked toward the door, surprised by such an early morning customer. Dressed in a long trench coat, the patron stepped further in but hesitated, wrapping the edges of the coat further around her body. She lifted her head, the hat she wore casting a dark shadow across her face.
Daisy left the scarves on the counter and walked around an aisle to get a good look at her. Something about the customer looked familiar, but the added trench coat and shadowy hat shrouding her face left her more confused than she wanted to be.
“Good morning,” Daisy called out. “Can we help you?”
The woman stepped further into the light. “I-I’m sorry to burst in like this.”
“Diana?” Daisy asked. “I could hardly recognize you with that get-up! What’s going on, are you -”
The regular patron stuck her hand out from within the trench coat.
Instantly, Daisy and Tessa jerked backwards in surprise.
Diana’s hand was three times the size it should’ve been, the skin plumped and tight, as if her muscles would surge out from within and tear her skin like paper. Even her nails, which were painted a deep purple, were much larger than a human’s hand ever should have been.
“Do you remember the lip plumping spell?” Diana asked.
Daisy winced. “Oh, you poor girl. Don’t tell me you split it on your hand?”
“Every last drop,” she cried out. “I have a huge interview this afternoon, Daisy. Tell me you can fix this!”
Daisy snatched up the boombox remote, pausing the music and growing serious within a second. “Don’t eventhinkabout worrying, Diana,” she said as she moved across the store. “We’ll have you right as rain in no time.”
Pride flared in Daisy’s chest. After so many years, this was the exact thing that reminded her why she loved the life she had been blessed with. Hardship came and went, as it always did, but there was nothing more rewarding than solving a person’s mistake, healing a misfortune, putting a blunder to rest. Every single thing in her shop was concocted to bring a smile to someone’s face. Even when it dared to go wrong, like it did in Diana’s case, Daisy was ready and prepared to fix it.
Daisy ran her hand along one of the shelves against the wall, her lips moving as she searched for a particular vial. She passed by a series of them.
De-shrinking, de-flowering, de-magnifying, de-growing?
Daisy snapped her fingers. “That ought to do it,” she whispered to herself, snatching up the de-growing vial. There was a shimmering purple liquid inside, the light reflecting offit and sending a kaleidoscope across the floor. “Hold out your hand, Diana,” she said as she curved back around the aisles.
Diana pulled up her sleeve, holding her enlarged hand out in between them.
All it took was a few simple drops, and Diana’s skin moved and shrunk before their eyes. After just a few blinks of an eye, Diana looked as normal as Daisy remembered her. Diana knew her well, having helped her with everything from preparing for a big project to getting ready for a spontaneous date.
Diana breathed a sigh of relief as she held her hand up to the light. The purple liquid had sunk into her skin, no remnants of the disaster remaining. “Have I told you how much of a life saver you are, Daisy?”
“You have,” she replied with a cheesy grin. “But I’ll hear it again, all the same.”
“Then you’re a lifesaver,” Diana breathed, not waiting another second to throw her arms around Daisy’s thin neck. “I can’t thank you enough.” Pulling back, she dug through her coat to retrieve her wallet. “How much do I owe you?”
Daisy raised her hand. “Not a thing.”
“But -”
“A mistake is a mistake,” Daisy interjected as she shrugged. “No need to pay for an accident.”
Tessa cleared her throat from behind the counter, still trying to sort all the fallen scarves. “You can pay through recommending the shop to your girlfriends, Diana.”
“Now, now,” Daisy said, giving Tessa a pointed stare. “She doesn’t need -”
Diana snatched onto her wrist. “Thatreminds me,” she said. “I’ve got family coming into town in a few weeks, and I need sleep aids.”
“Are they that bad?”
“Oh, not for me,” Diana replied.
Daisy raised a slender brow.
