Chapter 23

The next day was our first Hogsmeade weekend. After handing in our parental consent forms, we followed old caretaker Pringle to the school gate leading to Hogsmeade village.

Hogsmeade is the only all-wizarding village in Britain. Walking along its main street, I felt a bit underwhelmed. It seemed quite rundown, with shops interspersed among cottages that looked like they hadn't been renovated in a century.

On this Saturday morning, Lily, Severus, and I wandered around, trying to familiarize ourselves with the area to find a suitable place for our meeting with the potion consignment contact.

Despite our intentions, we were still children, eager to explore. Lily entered every shop we passed. Severus and I followed, with Severus pretending to scoff at Lily's excitement while secretly examining everything curiously in each shop, all while maintaining an air of indifference. I couldn't help but smile—no matter how mature he tried to be, he was still just a kid at heart.

We bought some sweets and chocolates from Honeydukes, and Lily picked up a new quill from Scrivenshaft's. After browsing, we returned to a small pub located at a crossroads off the main road called the Hog's Head. Compared to the bustling Three Broomsticks, this place was more suitable for us.

The Hog's Head was a dark, small, and very dirty room with an unpleasant smell, but it was less likely we'd encounter anyone we knew. Most patrons were peculiar and often concealed their faces with hoods or masks. It would be easier to use Aging Potion and hide our identities here.

We sat at a table near the bar, observing our surroundings. The barkeep, a grumpy-looking old man, approached us gruffly. "What do you want?"

"Uh, do you have any juice?" I hesitated, thinking it wasn't the right time to drink alcohol.

"Third-year brats, this isn't a place for your games. Go somewhere else!" The gray-bearded old man waved his arms to shoo us away. "Get lost! Annoying little brats—"

Kicked out, we walked down the road.

"Good thing we didn't drink anything there. Did you see those cups? Gross!" I grimaced.

"We should bring our own cups next time," Lily wisely suggested.

"We'll come back in the afternoon after we've aged up. I brought the Aging Potion," Severus said, pulling out a few small bottles from his pocket.

"Alright, let's have lunch at the Three Broomsticks first. The food there is more likely to pass a hygiene inspection. This place could win an award for being the dirtiest. Don't wizarding establishments need health certificates?" I mused.

Madam Rosmerta, the proprietor of the Three Broomsticks, was a young and beautiful woman, friendly and warm. The food was decent, too.

After lunch, we went to Gladrags Wizardwear and bought some adult-sized robes in the most ordinary styles—Lily chose deep red, I picked dark gray, and Severus opted for black. We returned to the Three Broomsticks, changed in the bathroom when no one was looking, and drank the Aging Potion.

Emerging, we retreated to a secluded corner, marveling at each other's grown-up appearances.

We had all grown significantly. Lily looked more mature, quite the beauty, with her deep red robe complementing her hair. I had let my hair down and styled it in large curls to appear more mature. Severus's features had become more defined, especially his prominent nose and sharp facial lines. His thin lips pressed into a stern expression, he looked like a severe scholar.

"Perfect, no one could doubt your age now. You look like a fastidious Potions Master," I said, looking up to meet Severus's gaze—he was now a head taller than me.

"Exactly. Oh, Sawyer, you look great! Very womanly," Lily evaluated my future appearance, her hand on her chin.

"Of course," I said, drawing out the words dramatically, before bursting into laughter. "Ha... let's go to the Hog's Head."

"Wait, pull up your hoods first. I can't guarantee we won't be recognized. We still look like ourselves," Severus reminded us. We pulled our hoods over our heads and headed towards the Hog's Head.

On the way, we ran into Mary and Rebecca, who were giggling and carrying heaps of Honeydukes candies to their next destination. Thankfully, we had our hoods up; they had been our dormmates for two years and might have recognized me and Lily.

At the Hog's Head, we sought out the old man to view and possibly reserve an upstairs room suitable for meetings, not overnight stays.

Climbing the creaky stairs, we found room number 4, as the old man had indicated. Inside, it looked slightly better than downstairs—still shabby but at least clean. The room had a desk, a heavily faded sofa, a relatively intact coffee table, and a few armchairs.

"This place is pretty good and affordable," I concluded after inspecting the room.

Lily nodded. "We can reserve it every Saturday morning, and if needed, extend it into the afternoon. We can post a notice at the potion shop saying we'll accept potion consignments here every Saturday morning."

"I'll write to my mother tonight. She can inform the regular consignees before posting the notice," Severus agreed, satisfied with the room. We went downstairs to negotiate the price with the old man.

The old man, who introduced himself as Aberforth, didn't question our intentions for the room or fear trouble. Then again, the Hog's Head attracted all sorts of people, making it easy to hide one's identity and conduct discreet business without interference, though it didn't guarantee safety—privacy relied on one's own ability.

We paid the deposit and booked the room for every Saturday morning until Christmas. According to the plan, Eileen would leave next week, and from then on, we'd handle all the potion shop's affairs. Kaká would look after the Diagon Alley store while we managed everything via owl post. Only basic potions would be sold directly in the store, as they had low costs and prices, even allowing for customer self-service, with Kaká merely overseeing transactions on the shop's behalf. More advanced potions would be listed in a catalog for customers to choose from, paying a deposit and filling out order forms. Kaká would organize these daily, handing them over to Severus when summoned, and we'd dispatch the potions via owl. Special requests requiring immediate preparation would be noted on the orders. Although more cumbersome, this method afforded us maximum independence, and Eileen had approved our plan, likely seeing it as a chance to train us.

Leaving the Hog's Head, we strolled down the main street. The Aging Potion would wear off soon, but we weren't planning to use the antidote—walking around Hogsmeade as adults was fun. It would have been even better without the hoods.

"I heard that house over there is haunted! People have heard terrifying screams and noises coming from it for years. Let's go check it out!" Lily, both frightened and curious, tried to drag us along to bolster her courage.

I wasn't too scared. Having lived twice, I was pretty calm about most things. Besides, after entering the magical world, I'd encountered plenty of ghosts. "What are we waiting for? Let's go on an adventure!"

Lily cheered softly, linking her arm with mine as we headed towards our destination. Watching adult Lily act like a child was quite amusing. I could hear Severus's faint snort behind us; he must have felt the same.

As we neared the Shrieking Shack, the surroundings grew desolate. We lowered our hoods. Up close, the house looked abandoned, with its doors and windows sealed shut.

"Sawyer, it doesn't seem that special. Maybe we came at the wrong time? Is it scarier at night?" Lily, initially fearful, now seemed disappointed, proving her adventurous Gryffindor spirit.

"Yes—" I leaned close to her ear, speaking in a creepy, slow, hissing voice, "at night, a refined vampire gentleman awaits your visit..."

Lily shivered, "Ugh, that's creepy, Sawyer. That's not scary at all." She tilted her chin, mimicking a noble lady's tone, "If he's a handsome vampire, it might be worth it."

Severus chuckled. Lily had indeed grown. Before I could respond, we heard a soft "pop" nearby. Severus, Lily, and I immediately drew our wands, pointing them in the direction of the sound.

Nothing happened. No one was there, nor any non-human creature. It was as if the sound had been an illusion.

Lily moved closer to me, with Severus on her other side, all of us still on high alert.

"Ah!" Lily suddenly exclaimed, startling Severus and me.

"Uh, sorry for scaring you. I just wanted to say—we're starting to revert. The potion's effect has worn off," Lily said innocently.

Severus sighed, and I looked skyward. Lily, you did that on purpose. I was wrong—Lily was becoming a sly little Gryffindor.