As the quartet left the house, James and Nicola both managed to feel a strange sort of tugging, as though they had walked through a thin yet strong gelatin film that had been hung up at the doorway. In reality, there had been absolutely nothing there. Both managed to surmise that it was some sort of magic that kept them in the house, which Elspeth had hinted at earlier on. Neither asked her in order to confirm this, as they remembered what it was that Elspeth had told them about talking without her permission. Even though there was nobody around, it wasn’t worth the risk of upsetting her.
The walk into town was a lengthy and cold one, with the grey skies above giving ample forebodings to either rain or snowfall. James couldn’t see very well inside of the pocket, but the angled gravitational pull around him coupled with the sounds of descending footsteps against cobblestone told him that the house had been situated atop a hill of some sort.
Nicola kept her distance from Silas, remaining close to Elspeth, and looked around curiously. When Jasper had transported her here, clad in the old fashioned clothing, it had been right outside of Elspeth’s home. She hadn’t had the opportunity to get her bearings or figure out exactly where they were, which was what she was attempting to do now.
After a while, they entered into the town, which was a small modern village by the name of Haverston, apparently located in Durham, based on what the signs were saying. It was a largely unassuming place, with no distinct features aside from the fact that a witch lived nearby to it. Though, with this no doubt being kept from public knowledge, it didn’t seem to count.
Elspeth eventually walked into a store located on the corner of a back alley street, with a large brass sign out front labeled “Murdoch Family’s Wares, Est. 16...”, with the last two numbers of the year being blotted out by weathering and oxidation. The door bell jingled softly as the witch entered the dimly lit establishment, which in turn drew the attention of a man who appeared to be in his forties who was filling out a book at the front counter. Upon hearing someone enter, he looked up in shock, only to relax upon seeing who it was.
“Oh. Evening, Elspeth. How’s the work?”
“Well enough, Kenneth, thank you. Is your uncle here? I’ve some..... business with him.”
The man opened his mouth to say something, but then nodded, reluctantly turning his head to the back room. “Oi, Uncle Oliver. Uncle Oliver, ‘s Elspeth. Says she’s got business with you?”
After a good dose of grumbling, an extraordinarily elderly man who made Elspeth look juvenile in comparison lurched out using a simple wooden cane to help him along.
“Ehh..... whassis now? Eldritch?”
“Elspeth, uncle. Elspeth Hollyoake. You know ‘er. Witch that lives up the way.”
The old man stood still, thinking for a moment, and then nodded, smiling. His teeth were all silver and gold, with noticeable gaps between each of them. “Ah, ah, yes, yes. El-Elspeth! Dear, how are you?”
Elspeth smiled back. “I’m fine, Oliver. You’re looking well.”
“Ill? I’m looking I’ll? Really, now?”
“WELL, Oliver. You’re looking WELL. You look GOOD.”
The old man nodded and smiled again, nodding. This went on for a few minutes. Elspeth would compliment the old man or inform him about something going on, the old man would mishear it, Elspeth would reiterate, so on and so forth. Silas looked like he was constantly two seconds away from snapping his own neck (that is, if he was physically capable of such a feat), while Kenneth busied himself with writing in the book. Nicola and James both watched (or, in the case of James, listened) intently, both somewhat fascinated by the ordeal. It was clear Elspeth had no actual ‘business’ with the old man, but merely wanted to speak with him, a gesture that was clearly giving him immense joy and companionship.
After a short bit of this, Elspeth asked Oliver for some “privacy” so she could “chat” with Kenneth, which the old man agreed to before heading into the back of the store. After he was out of earshot (which wasn’t very difficult, given his borderline deafness), Elspeth began to speak in a more professional and serious way with Kenneth.
“Sorry about that. It’s just..... you know I feel bad for him. I mean, he has you, but it must get lonely, right? Anyway, I’m here to pick up my ingredients.”
Kenneth clapped his hands together once, clearly happy to finally be doing some actual work in the old store. “Splendid. Your order number was Nine-Two-Seven-Four, was it?”
“Yes, that’s the one. But, before that.....”
Elspeth placed James on the counter and picked Nicola up before placing her next to him. “I want you to meet my two new friends, Ken. James, Nicola, you can talk now.”
“Hello”, the duo said enthusiastically, still not looking at the other.