June 19th, 1888 — The Apothecary

Of course there was a level—a very loud level—on which the witch knew that venturing into the fog was not the most sensible of ideas. Had her husband not been entirely occupied by it, Roslyn might have allowed him to dissuade her. Unfortunately (for him or her?), he had not been present, leaving the housewife to fret about her greenhouses without any interception. The fog had brought with it an utter absence of magic, and it was magic that many of her plants (those not native to Britain) required to thrive in the foreign environment. Unwilling to give up on them, Ros knew she would have to get creative.

“Don’t touch anything,” she instructed the trainee auror dryly. The young lad had been tasked with watching the Ross house for the duration of the fog, and had felt duty-bound not to allow her to venture out unaccompanied. Likewise, Ros had felt duty-bound not to allow him to inadvertently poison himself. What a pity it would be, if a need for summer income proved to kill the promising wizard!

(What he was supposed to do without magic, Roslyn couldn’t say, and she hadn’t wanted to damage his pride by asking).

Satisfied her guardian was, himself, safe, Roslyn began methodically working her way through the shelves, looking for anything that might be of use.

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— #PrettiesByMJ —

Jeremiah did not have much to do with helping his wife with her shop. He knew absolutely nothing about making clothing. Though he felt that it was best not to take his children for an outing into the fog, he decided that he can manage by himself to get some supplies to use in the home. With not much else to do this summer, he decided that perhaps taking up some potion making could be a good day to spend some free time. Of course, he also had studying for the next year of teaching to do, but why spend all of his time on just that? Charms were out of the question, at least practicing them was. Reading about them didn't take up much time, and practicing skills that he had not used in a while seemed like an interesting way to spend his time. Perhaps it would entertain his children as well.

Glancing over at the source of the voice that stated to not touch anything, he thought for a moment that he was being addressed. Slightly shocked, he looked over to find that he was not the addressee of the statement. How silly of him to think he was. It didn't take him too long to realize who the woman was either. It would be more shocking if he hadn't recognized her. What an honor to see the Minister of Magic's wife in person. Was he even allowed to make small talk with someone so important? Lost in his thoughts, he didn't even realize that he was still looking her way, a thoughtful expression on his face.

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Pretties by Bee

Gingerly, Ros placed two or three jars she thought might be of use into her shopping basket. Grey eyes left one set of shelves to move to another, but were stopped in the process as the witch realized she was being stared at. Merlin's beard.

"Yes?" she inquired, not impolitely but hardly full of warmth and love. It was not the first time Roslyn had been recognized since her husband's election, and the blonde did her best to remind herself that the population at large had no idea how much it bristled her to be under such scrutiny.

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— #PrettiesByMJ —

Looking down quickly, Jeremiah felt quite flustered. "My apologies Mrs. Ross." He said, glancing back up. "I've never met someone so important before. The most important person I've met before you would have to be my boss." He added quickly. Was he being ridiculous? His wife would certainly laugh at him by now if she were here.

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Pretties by Bee

Roslyn relaxed slightly at his bumbling, earnest reply, even going so far as to smile.

“I assure you, Sir, that I am not the least bit important—I leave all that to my husband,” she answered with a bit more kindness to her tone. She should, Ros knew, express how flattered she felt, but in truth, she felt as though any recognition she received (particularly given how unwanted it was!) only cheapened Justin’s own post.

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Still quite embarrassed, he looked up to see her smiling. At least he had brought a smile to her face through this awkwardness.

"I feel that you are very important. A spouse is one of one's greatest supporter, I'm sure you help your husband in your own way. I wouldn't know what I'd do with my awkward self without my brilliant wife." He responded. It was true, even if he was the professor, she always seemed to be the one who knew what to do in their lives together.

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Pretties by Bee

“You are good man, to acknowledge your wife’s importance in your life,” Roslyn offered the gentleman reassuringly. “I am sure she would be tickled to hear you speak so kindly of her!”

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Joyful pride flashed in the professor's eyes. "Thank you Mrs. Ross. It's true. She's quite amazing. I'm truly lucky to have her in my life. And I am sure your husband feels the same way about you." He said with confidence.

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Pretties by Bee

"Yes, well," Roslyn answered, pleasantly enough, though her smile had a bit of discomfort to it—she had never particularly known how to receive a compliment. "I doubt he would dare say otherwise, at least not within my hearing!"

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— #PrettiesByMJ —

Noticing Mrs. Ross's discomfort, he tried to think of a new topic. Perhaps that would ease whatever was going through her head. "What brings you to the apothecary? If you don't mind me asking of course." He asked. A lighter subject would hopefully be ideal in this situation.

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Pretties by Bee

Her smile was now a bit more forced, for she had thought their conversation had reached a natural conclusion and had been readying to make her departure from it. Her mother had always said that manners cost nothing, but Roslyn couldn't help but wonder if they didn't cost a great deal.

"I need something that will aid my more exotic plants," she offered by way of explanation, "those that are usually protected from our climate by magic. I should be loath to lose even a single shrub to this fog nonsense."

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— #PrettiesByMJ —

For a Ravenclaw, he certainly felt quite far from wise at this moment. Rather than stop any discomfort, he seemed to have caused more. Listening to what she had to say, he tried to think of a way to give a polite way out of their conversation if she wished to leave. "Well, I do hope that you have good luck with your efforts." He responded kindly.

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Pretties by Bee

“I thank you, Sir,” Roslyn replied graciously with a smile before turning her attentions back to the task at hand.

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— #PrettiesByMJ —