Magic in your bones

This was normally not his typical place to go. All that witchy stuff was not his thing, but after browsing some online he had found this place. What was the harm in checking out a place anyway? If there was nothing to his liking, he could simply go again. The biggest problem proved to be getting there. It was a good thing he had nowhere else to be that day.

Míngzé opened the door to the shop and was immediately greeted by an abundance of scents. This was definitely the right place. Carefully he stepped inside, the large windows made it so that there was a lot of light, which helped him navigate the place. He made his way through the shop, hoping to find someone who could help him. His cane hit a few things along the way, telling him that it was rather messy. A sigh escaped through his nose. Perhaps this was a mistake.

No matter how careful Míngzé was, one little slip up was enough for a small disaster to unfold. One wrong step and his shoulder accidently hit something. Next thing he knew he could hear glass shatter over the ground and it made him quickly take a step back, only to bump into something else. This time however nothing fell and shattered on the ground.

“Fuck.”

Was it too late to leave?

Míngzé wanted to run straight out of the door the moment he could hear the glass shattering everywhere. A small part of him desperately hoped the shop owner did not hear what happened. Maybe they were somewhere in a backroom, giving him the opportunity to flee. Not that he would’ve done that even when given the chance.

A stern voice sounded to his left, which instantly made him jump. “I’m so so—” Míngzé started his apology. Now he had really done it. With what little money he got this month, he would never be able to repay something that expensive. His mind was racing, trying to come up with something— anything. Yet before he could even finish his sentence, the girl spoke again.

A relieved but shaky sigh rolled over his lips and he placed a hand on his heart. “Damn—”he wanted to say more, but that was really all he managed to get over his lips. This was another ten years of his life gone. “You really got me there.” His heart was still going crazy in his chest. Still, he tried to force a small smile on his face. “Really, I was trying to be careful,” he started his apology over, not knowing where he was going with it. He really hated it when something like this happened.

For a moment Míngzé had really believed her and now he was slowly calming down again. If it had been real, he would’ve never been able to financially recover from it. But everything was fine, she even apologized and Míngzé waved it away. “It’s fine, I’ll live,” he said with a small uncomfortable smile.

Hearing her talk helped get rid of the remainder of the stress that had settled into his bones. That was until his initial reaction was to pull his hands away as she grabbed them. That was unexpected. When she let go of them again, he held his hand closer to himself. “Yeah, it kinda is.” At least as far as he was aware. Míngzé looked around the place again, but even with the bright lights shining inside it was difficult to really discern one from the other because it was so packed. Again she told him not to worry about the vase he’d broken. “Are you sure?” he asked with a concerned frown, “As long as I don’t have to pay 2000 for that, I’m willing to repay you,” he tried to joke. That only sounded fair to him.

Only then they came to the reason why he was here and he cleared his throat as he thought about the right words. “Actually yes, I am looking for something to perhaps help me sleep? Or something calming?” Was it better to go to a doctor? Absolutely, but they would start asking even more questions, which he did not want.

There was so much he missed in life simply because his eyes were not working the way they were supposed to. It was infuriating. So much could be prevented if he was simply able to see like every other individual. But those were things Míngzé tried not to think about too much. It would not help him in any way.

Míngzé felt relief wash over him when he heard that she could help him. “Perfect.” If he had known this earlier, he would’ve done this sooner. His unfocussed eyes were looking in her direction. “The whole package. Falling asleep, staying asleep, preferably no dreams, everything,” he started summing up. Normally he would not believe in all this witchy business, but with the things he’d experienced that had all changed. With the cane still in his hand, he crossed his arms tightly in front of his chest. “Each day I wake up, feeling like I haven’t slept at all, and I fear I’m starting to feel the consequences of it.“ All he wanted was to have a good night's rest. Not that it would help him in any way. No amount of sleep was going to fix him.

“I’ve heard about certain tea’s helping people, but that is as far as my knowledge about this stuff goes.” Míngzé looked around himself while he said that. From the looks of it she seemed to know what she was doing, although it could all be a lie. Not that it mattered. What was the worst that could happen?

This was meant to help, not fix everything. Míngzé clenched his jaw and only gave a firm nod. That he knew all too well. Nothing could fix this. At least as far as he was aware. He had looked on the internet for help, but came back empty handed. This might not fix anything, but he had to try something.

For a moment the shop owner disappeared as she went to grab his tea. Míngzé took this chance to walk further into the shop, this time even more carefully as before. It did not take long for her to show up again and he vaguely saw how she held out something towards him. “Yeah, I’m fine, just a shit-ton of stress,” he sighed. That sounded very convincing. He grabbed the small bag and brought it to his nose. “Smells good, I’ll take it.” Míngzé handed her the bag again.

Something stronger. That sounded exactly like what he needed. A tea was fun and all and would definitely help him somewhat, but with this he needed more. However Míngzé grimaced as the other kept talking. “A spell jar?” He started fiddling with the cane in his hands, making it roll between his fingers. “I’m not sure.” His heart had slightly picked up in pace. Was it really a smart thing to invite even more ‘supernatural’ things into his life? “What’s in it, exactly?” he heard himself ask carefully. Above all, was it dangerous? Simply discussing this subject unsettled him and he had to keep himself from turning around and leaving the shop.

When Míngzé came here it was initially with an open mind. He did not truly believe in magic and everything, but there was nothing wrong with some tea. As he expected he was able to find some tea here that he would not be able to buy anywhere else. “Yeah, thanks,” he said with a soft sigh. There was nothing he wanted more, but each day his life only seemed to get crazier.

There was certainly something weird out there, but Míngzé had his limits as to what he was able to believe. He smiled a bit awkwardly when she spoke about dark magic and that it was not welcome here. “That’s good to hear,” he said with a strained smile. For some reason he couldn’t help but feel like he too was not welcome here if that was the case.

With a lot of enthusiasm the other started to explain what was in this so-called spell jar and what he had to do with it. His frown visibly grew the more she told him. It was basically just a pot with a lot of stuff inside that you could easily find outside somewhere. But the fact that he had to place it under his bed made him blink in surprise. “And just how is that supposed to help?” the words slipped out of his mouth before he had the chance to stop them. “Don’t get me wrong but— it all sounds a bit too dreamy.” In other words he did not believe it would do anything. If you asked him it was only to make some money.

Míngzé arched a brow when the woman started talking. Perhaps she was right. “Call me a skeptic,” Míngzé said with a small smile while lifting his shoulders. Not believing in any of this was always easier, but recent events had shown him that was not always the right option. But perhaps he’d made a mistake by coming here.

As the woman started talking, he loosely crossed his arms over his chest. “Magic,” he repeated, tasting the words on his lips. “Are you referring to those things people call affinities?”  The way she described it made it all sound so beautiful and well— magical. Reality was far different, wasn’t it? If only people truly knew what it all entailed, maybe they would thing differently.

“Sure, why not. What could go wrong with a bit of magic.” A whole lot. Placing some jar underneath his bed was easy enough. While he still did not believe it would really help, there was no harm in trying. Who knows, maybe she could prove him wrong after all.

The other introduced herself as Simura, a name he had come across when he found this shop online. Before she would call him Skeptic his entire life, it was probably best to give her a name as well. “It’s Míngzé,” he told her calmly.

Her rambling started again and she threw question after question at him. It was clear she was trying to convince him, but did not manage in doing so. “I’m no scientist nor doctor so I don’t have the exact answers, but there is an explanation for those things.” A simple google search and he would have an exact answer to all of her questions. But as he did not want to crush all her dreams, Míngzé decided against doing so.

Míngzé arched an eyebrow, but the other person was already searching for whatever she needed. Right, she was going to show him she had no bad intentions. He could hear her rummaging through her belongings while he was still processing what she had said. “Can it magically heal my eyes too then?” he asked her, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. For all he knew she was creating something existing of buneary legs, rattata livers— the last one he would probably smell.  

Míngzé hummed softly as she went on with her little rant. This did not feel like a discussion he could win. No matter what argument he presented, she would find a way to twist it towards the existence of magic. “I bet it can, in fact.” It was that he was not interested in that kind of thing, so he never looked it up or anything. “Could have fooled me.” Witches have covens, a group of people, all with the same ideas, beliefs and goals. Was that not in a way a cult?

Somehow people around him were more blind than the actual blind guy among them. Míngzé raised a brow when she told him there was nothing wrong with his eyes, only pretty. That was definitely a first. She might want to tell his doctor about it as he has been wrongly diagnosed his entire life. A smile that not quite reached his eyes appeared. “Don’t worry about it, I did not expect you to.” It was simply the way she’d been talking. Who knows, maybe if she had some magical solution to his eyes, he would’ve given it a shot.

Reluctantly he let her guide his hand. What she told him turned out to be the truth, it was nothing more than herbs, rocks and flowers. It only deepened the frown on his head as he held one of the rocks. “Right.” This was only to show him this would work, but even now he did not believe any of it. “The power of some rocks, herbs and written notes,” he said with a shake of his head. Míngzé let go of the rock again. “I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt.” If it worked it worked, if not there would be a weird jar underneath his bed. At least he had tea, which he did believe in.

Míngzé blinked a few times before his brow knitted together. So he looked tired. Given how he felt it should not surprise him at all. He felt as though sleeping for an entire week wouldn't suffice. This was one of those things he never thought about, forgetting that other people could see these details. All he did was hum in response. She also seemed to sense that her comment might not be what he wanted to hear. Instead, she focussed on the task at hand.

He forgot all about her last comment when she started doing— something. The frown on his face only deepened as she continued. First she wrote something down, but then, then she started talking. Her words made Míngzé very aware of his problems and the stupidity of all this. And then she stopped. “Is that all?” Míngzé questioned, not knowing what else he expected. Maybe a strange sudden gust of wind that shouldn’t have been there? A raise in the temperature? Something.

Still dumbstruck, he almost missed her question about the tea. “Huh— yeah— sure.” Míngzé shook his head while rubbing his eyes. What a very strange woman.

As she was grabbing the last things he’d asked for, something else came to mind. “I have one more quest.” Ever since he found her shop online, there had been one question that had haunted him. The reason Míngzé had yet to ask it out loud was that he feared it sounded stupid. Of course he would not find something like this in a place like this. But there was always the small chance that she could help. “Affinities are magic, you say, and there is magic in everything or something. Do you— is there anything that can block magic?” While he did not believe in magic, he did believe in affinities. How could he not? Instinctively, he ran his thumb over the scars that traced across the back of his right hand.