The store was in a middling state of busy: the point between Cora actually losing her mind from boredom and stressing out until she couldn’t even see straight.  Instead, she was just busy enough to always have something to do and not want to gouge her eyes out. 

Steadily juggling her tasks, she worked on the repairs for the work robes Mrs. Lanningham brought in by jerking her wand suddenly, changing the simple running stitch to a top loop and sighed while biting on the nib of her quill.   Trying to figure out the fabrics to order for the rest of the month was probably one of the hardest parts of the job. 

So, standing at the counter, elbows on the hard wood and feet spread past a shoulder’s width apart, Coralie was nose first in the large, parchment log about the previous purchases, organizing the numbers like Grama had taught her. 

She was finally zoning in on the perfect wool blend for the last push of winter robes when she heard the bell above the door with its warm little ringing.  Her icy blue eyes jumped up from the page and toward the door.  “Hello!” she chirped with pleasure, “How can I help you?”

Some of Theta's fondest memories from childhood Hogwarts shopping trips was Madam Malkin's shop in Diagon Alley.

She could still remember the first time she and her mother had visited with their father. Theta's mother was the solitary Muggle amongst their part of the Pepper family, and had three daughters, all witches, and a wizard husband who painted things that spoke, and enjoyed trying to make cars fly. Despite her alternative upbringing, Catherine Pepper took it in her stride to a point. Either way, the shop always had a certain smell of the heavy fabrics and the chalk dust. A certain dulling of echoes against material as her boots crossed the floor.

In the years that had followed Theta, and then Zeta and Theta, and then finally, all three sisters, Eta included, had visited the shop each late August to have their school robes altered or purchase new ones. It seemed odd to be visiting on a Tuesday in February on her own after such strong memories of late summers when it might get a bit stuffy in there if too many students queued.

Theta would ordinarily be at work, but she had taken a few days leave to attend to some domestic matters, and have a bit of a rest from the Department of Mysteries, where she worked, learning to create and repair timeturners and other items.

"Oh hello!" Theta greeted the assistant warmly. She had a recollection of the young woman from previous trips, her name had begun with a sort of 'cuh' sound, Katy? Caroline? Theta was sure there were not too many years between them, but she couldn't remember the girl particularly from Hogwarts.

"Would you be able to help? I'm after something a little more special, for an occasion. It's a surprise for the ..." Theta blushed a little, "rather lovely wizard in my life. To go out to dinner in, somewhere nice, or even do for attending a wedding?" She drew further into the room and let her eyes glance about the racks that towered above her rather modest height.

"Any advice you could give would be simply amazing - I'm not all that daring on the colours, but I'd like to be if you know what might suit my colouring, and I'm always happy for the illusion of height." She hoped that gave something to start with, but she was confident the keen eyes before her would know the questions to ask, and be able to help her navigate the confusing world of fashion and fabric.

 For a moment, Cora had to remind herself what time of year it was.  When younger people came into the shop, she almost always assumed they were Hogwarts students, particularly when they looked so fresh faced and dewy, with big eyes and grins – just like they were getting fitted for robes before departing in September, but it was February, and that meant this young woman was clearly not a Hogwarts student.  They didn’t come down to London at this time of year!  They’d be more likely at Hogsmeade for Valentine’s Day, which had just passed and with it brought a rush of activity before, and now the pleasant lull after a burst of last minute “date night” robe questions. 

Cora couldn’t blame anyone, she supposed.  She would want to look nice too, had she had somewhere to go – but she’d spent her night at her apartment with a dress form, pinning robes that she’d ended up scrapping entirely because she had gotten frustrated.  Fortunately for the books, this young woman had interrupted before she got just as frustrated with them. 

“Of course I can help!” Cora straightened up from the desk and closed the book over the quill.  The girl’s explanation seemed about two days late, but that was all right!  Better to be able to spend time with a customer who seemed to have a vague picture of what they wanted, without any real specifics. 

It seemed like they’d be making their way over to the more formal section, abandoning the modest selection of school robes (parents looking to send their children gifts and replacements) and the winter robes all shown in front.  “Let’s move this way,” Cora smiled, opening her arm and gesturing through a path of racks that created something of a maze in the shop. 

“I’m Cora, by the by,” she added, wanting to walk behind the young woman so she could have a good look at the stock as they walked.  “Would you be more keen on something in a jewel tone?” she asked aloud, thinking through their stock.  “A rich purple might be lovely.  Something along the line of aubergine?”

"All of those sound lovely," Theta agreed, leading the way, reaching out with her hands either side to touch the fabrics with childlike curiosity, and then turned on the spot. "I'd like to stay away from any patterns that, you know, make me look even shorter."

Her cheeks blushed. Her height had never horribly bothered her, but she didn't like to draw attention to it with the way she dressed. She already had to tiptoe a little sometimes to kiss Chris without him having to lean over so far. It was worth it though!

"Theta by the way," she extended her hand politely to Cora, "I guess you were pretty busy before the weekend? Truth is that it made me feel a bit self conscious about things." the unspeakable reached out and traced her hands over the arm of a blue robe with a line or buttons on the edge.

"Oops, old habits die hard as a 'claw. Aubergine you say? I was thinking something that might do for Spring, perhaps not as thick as the ones I'm wearing." She gestured to the rather plain but functional attire she had on, which was definitely more suitable for the cooler months of the year. 

"Have you worked here long?"

“I’ll make sure if we look at any overwhelming patterns,” Cora assured her.  She wanted to make sure her client was happy, and big patterns didn’t work for everyone.  In fact, she found they worked for very few people, in reality.  She didn’t wear them, being petite herself, and figured her insight into that could help the young woman out as well. 

Taking the woman’s hand, she only vaguely recognized the name, Theta.  It might have been on a file already.  Whatever the case, Cora greeted her happily and shook her hand with vigor.  “No need to feel self-conscious: I’m sure we have something that will suit you perfectly!” 

She watched the woman gravitate for the blue and that informed a little bit, being a ravenclaw, she guessed, was important to this young woman (she probably had recently graduated).  Purple, perhaps, was not so good for the spring – and maybe she had several events this spring.   “Oh, I’ve been here since I was a little girl,” she explained happily, “I’m the owner’s great granddaughter,” she furthered: it sometimes built in some trust with her clients when she told them, and stepped back from the young woman. 

“You know,” she considered, “with your coloring, teal might be very flattering: and it’s quite close to your alma mater’s colors,” she added with a grin.  She just hoped they had something flattering in teal.  Sometimes some of the more unique colors came in styles that… weren’t very flattering, but Cora was sure they had something in the aqua or teal shade that might appeal to this young woman.  “Does something like that interest you?”

"Oh! Of course you have!" Theta exclaimed and clapped a hand to her mouth, looking apologetic. "I was trying to remember, but it's been a little while since I was last in. Sorry." Thankfully Cora took it in her stride even if Theta felt a little silly.

"Teal would be lovely yes, and it doesn't have to be blue, I just, tend to end up towards that end, but people tell me I'd look better in some brighter colours. I'm just a bit tentative to know what to pick." Her eyes and soon her hands were busy seeking out such colour around her in the racks.

"This feels lovely," she tugged gently at the arm of a robe in a brighter teal, the material of which reflected a little in the light, "What's this made of?" Her arms reached up as best she could to try and lift it up and out of the other robes. "A little patterned, that won't make me look short, will it?" Theta asked, eyebrows raised as she turned it round before her to the other witch.

“No worries,” Cora giggled, waving her hand.  She wasn’t here to be remembered (yet), and she couldn’t expect customers to recognize her any more than she could recognize them (save for the entirely out of the ordinary happenstance, in which case, a mutually acknowledged acquaintance would be in order).  She had quite a few of those at this point, but the more regular customers didn’t exactly warrant remembrance on either part. 

She could probably agree with others: bright colors would suit the petite witch, maybe elevate her stature a bit (Cora struggled with the same thing in some ways) and bring more presence to her.  They could be daunting, however, particularly with hair that took on red tints.  But, Cora was going to make a mission of this. 

Joining the young woman in her robe search, Cora’s hands expertly roamed around, looking for a soft spring sort of material that wouldn’t scare her off because of color, nor in a big enough print that it would drown her small stature out.  She was just about to pull rather lovely wheat colored set with embroidery in white and pink out when she heard Theta’s voice.  Looking over, Cora pulled the robe anyway, putting it in front of the rack so she didn’t forget it, and nodded approvingly at the girl’s choice. 

“I love that,” she said honestly, “It’s a silk faille,” she explained – though the word silk meant more to a customer than the type of weave in the fabric.  But, better to give a full answer than an incomplete one.  “This sort of pattern,” she drew a piece of the robe into her hand and pointed with her other index finger, “is small enough that it’ll create some visual interest, but it won’t make you look smaller.” 

“I’ve also got this as well,” she turned to grab the wheat colored set to show.  “The embroidery is focused on the hem, neckline, and cuffs,” she explained, “quite unique.”

"Silk what?" Theta asked, looking confused. She'd never been that up to speed on materials and such. Her mother was a Muggle, and found the elaborate clothing of the wizarding world extravagant and over the top, like wearing a ball gown to a bus stop.

The wheat coloured set danced before her eyes on the hanger, and her eyebrows rose while her mouth below formed an o.

"Quite!" Theta exclaimed, "I am so glad I asked you, already you have brought to my attention something I'd never dare look at. but that is … something…" In the back of her head she was imagining Chris seeing her in it for the first time.

"Oh my, I might have to try that on first, see how that colour works." Thoughts of the robe she had previously studied were forgotten for the one shown. Something different, something unexpected!

It did not take long to don the wheat coloured set, and soon enough, Theta was stood out before a long mirror, cheeks flushed with the warmth in the shop against the winter heat. She turned this way and that, and ran her fingers over the embroidery with child-like marvel.

"You don't think it will make me look pale?" she asked, self-consciously, "do I look taller?" she dithered.

 “Faille,” she repeated without a hint of condescension or annoyance.  It was a weird word, and not something many came across in their days.  “It’s just the way the fabric is weaved,” she added in the same breezy tone.  Wasn’t important, really, especially in the face of so much more INTERESTING ideas about what they were up to. 

It was always exciting to see a customer positively light up at the idea of something unexpected.  Cora would be strutting around for hours if she made this sale like she thought she might! 

“Why not both?” Cora asked, whisking the teal and the wheat with them toward the dressing room.  The young woman seemed so jazzed over the wheat, however, that the teal was hung up on the side and Cora let her into the dressing room to try it on.  When she came out, Cora was so pleased! She clapped excitedly and made a sort of toned down screaming sound at the woman.  “It’s very nice!” she led off with, because it was true.

The color was subtle, but not underwhelming on her, and the embroidery brought out some of the brighter colors.  “The tone suits your skin well, especially with your hair color,” she assured her in earnest (she’d never sell someone something that didn’t work), and she stepped back.  “You know,” she considered, “to make you look even taller, I could take it up at the waist,” she walked forward and reached her hands toward her waist, “If you don’t mind,” she sort of excused herself and lifted the skirt from the top, hitching it to show what it might look like just a wee bit higher on her thighs.  “It won’t destroy the embellishments and you’d hardly even notice.”

"Oh I don't mind!" Theta explained, quite taken with things. "It's definitely beautiful, and absolutely gorgeous, but as you say - why not try on them both, or anything else. You have such an array of beautiful pieces…"

She blushed, feeling all a little silly for her naive ways.
"But I don't want to waste your time. Could we look at a bolder colour perhaps, or anything else you might suggest? You know, for comparison."

Together they turned back to the rails.
"So did you used to always want to follow in the family's trade?" She asked out of curiosity, "it's just I… I sort of follow in our family trade, but it's less common these days to meet someone else who does." It was a fumbled question, but she needed a little distraction from feeling out of her depth with all the material around her.

Cora liked clients who wanted to try things.  Theta was willing to look at different sorts of things and not settle on the first thing.  Some customers came in so single-mindedly that it was as though it didn’t even matter Cora was there or not.  Customers who needed help were, usually, much more pleasant. 

There was, of course, the shopper who simply wanted a pet to follow them around and smile and nod – but Cora wasn’t so good at those interactions.  She got distracted and lazy: not a good combination.  It was something she desperately needed to work on before her grandmother was ever going to allow her to do things on her own.

Thankfully, Theta was not like those people.  But, she wanted something brighter.  Maybe she was looking for something completely new, shocking – life changing.  Cora loved that clothes had the power to do that, change somebody’s life.  She was happy to go back into the fray with the young woman.  Looking rhrough the rack, Cora smiled at her question. 

“My parents always questioned it,” she answered honestly, “but I practically grew up in this shop and I guess I just gravitated toward it.”  She shrugged her shoulders, unsure of any other way to put it.  “What does your family, and by extension, you do?” she asked, rubbing her thumb against a fuchsia fabric with gold and silver detailing. 

"We're…" she tried to think of the best word to describe it, still rather tentative to speak of things as an unspeakable, even if it was semi-common knowledge what the family's trade was - it had been it for more generations than lived today.

"We're metalworkers," she explained, "I'm learning the family trade at the moment, it's really fiddly stuff, watchmaking, and the sort. I'm learning from my uncle though, my parents didn't expect me to do this, either, my dad's a painter."

She moved from one rail to another, eyes inspecting the materials.

"The work on these though, must be as fiddly if not more so with a little needle. That takes proper talent. Did you create some of these?"

Cora nodded as Theta spoke, “That sounds complicated.”  She didn’t really know what went into that sort of work, but she assumed it wasn’t anything she would know how to do at all – or would probably want to learn.  Metal made her think of fire and force and neither of those things appealed to Cora.  She was a little more delicate than that. 

She had to admit, looking at Theta, she didn’t imagine she would be working metal like she pictured it.  Maybe it was a different sort of work than what she thought.  “Parents can be such a trial,” Cora sighed, sympathetically.  She didn’t really see her parents that often, didn’t care to.  It was strange. 

Dragging her attention back to Theta’s question, Cora nodded.  “Oh it’s not that difficult,” she smiled, waving her hand.  “I take the designs that are there and just put it together.  My Gramma is the real mastermind.  Then, of course, all the designers we commission,” she shrugged, “I’ve really only made a few sets of cloaks so far.  I’m trying to work my way into proper robes.” 

“If I did though,” she smiled, “I’d want to make something like this,” she pulled out the edge of a skirt in a vibrant green-yellow design with flecks of silver in the fabric.  “Divine, isn’t it?”

Theta wouldn't necessarily agree that parents could be a trial, having grown up in such a close-knit family she would miss them all if they weren't in her life. But she knew friends who had rocky relationships. Certainly it helped sometimes to have a mother who was a Muggle and was somewhat grounded in her workings of the world, against her father who could have his head in the clouds - quite literally if this flying car business was to work in Britain.

Cora drew out a set of vibrant coloured robes. Theta's eyebrows rose at the bright colours.

"Lovely, yes, but the colours wouldn't be something I'd wear, say. But I'd adore it on others. When you design your own, do you stitch them too? Or do you just do the drawings?" She asked politely, stepping forward to touch the skirt and admire it with Cora.

"They must take hours."

Well, at least Cora knew what to stay away from now.  She still stroked the fabric Theta was not so in love with, despite her lack of love, Cora knew it wasn’t for everyone. But, she wanted to make things that weren’t just for anyone.  After all, Cora wanted to be someone known –she wanted her robes to be the talk of the town, and separate from her great grandmother’s fame.

Though, she assumed she’d never be able to get out from under that shadow, having probably thousands of Hogwarts students coming through the doors of this shop every year – no real other option.  But, Malkins could be more than that – and was more than that in some ways – Cora puffed up with pride at Theta’s questions.

She liked to share her craft and eyeing Theta when she stepped forward to thumb the pattern on the skirt.  “A little bit of both,” Cora explained, “depending on what is needed.  I draw a lot more than what is actually put into circulation,” she had to admit that piece, since she wasn’t usually asked for her input… she sort of just… did it sometimes… or embellished what she was given.

“Usually though, after you get going, you can just charm the needle to do the work for you, so time is drastically cut.”  She smiled and put down the fabric from her own hands.  “I imagine it must be similar for you – magic always seems to make thjngs just a little easier.” 

She lifted her eyes up and bit the inside of her cheek in thought.  "You don't happen to like bold stripes, do you?" she thought suddenly of a robe that had the most flattering vertical stripes and started to grin - antsy to show her and gain some more approval.