At the American potion assessment registration office, Senna was uncharacteristically indecisive as she filled out her forms, taking ages to decide which potion to register for the assessment.
Lys, who had already finished her paperwork, was casting Scourgify on Fry's trousers and bottom—the little fellow had soiled himself.
Lys suspected it was from the pressure of Apparition... since he hadn't had an accident in ages.
Seeing Senna's hesitation, she asked: "What's wrong, Mother?"
"I'm wondering if I should switch to a potion that takes less time. I'm rather worried." Senna answered Lys absent-mindedly, still wavering.
Lys didn't know what to say. She could only stack the somewhat listless Fry on Crunch's back, floating them both in the air while patiently waiting for Senna to finish filling out the forms.
In the end, Senna did register for the shorter potion, but after the staff member reviewed it, they apologetically informed Senna that the materials for that potion, due to freshness requirements, weren't suitable for preparation in this type of venue.
"Mother, just register for the potion you prepared. Father will take good care of himself."
Though Lys was also worried, this was Mother's dream, delayed by twenty years—she didn't want her to complete it hastily or carelessly.
With a smile, Lys grabbed the quill the staff member handed over and refilled Senna's form. The staff member saw Senna nod hesitantly and approved it.
After arranging their accommodation, they just had to wait for the assessment to begin in three days.
Sitting in their room, Senna's rare absent-minded state left Lys somewhat at a loss. She pulled the ouroboros ring Senna used to wear from her small pocket and handed it to Senna.
Ever since Senna was taken by Bellatrix, Lys had kept this ring in her pocket, only now taking it out.
Senna took a breath and straightened her back: "Right then! Open the case and organize the materials. If anything's damaged, we can still go out and buy replacements."
Only then did she accept the ring from Lys's hand and wear it beside her wedding ring.
Lys suppressed a smile and opened the case in her hands. The next instant, her reflexive magic nearly crushed the dishevelled Pygmy Puff that bounced out!
"Squeak! Squeak!" The Pygmy Puff that had narrowly escaped death quickly hopped away from Lys.
Fry, who was chewing on a Sichuan peppercorn stick and drooling, saw his furball and immediately called out with a couple of cheerful "gaga" sounds.
Grabbing the Pygmy Puff's fluffy fur, the little lad visibly perked up considerably.
After Senna swatted away Fry's hand that was waving the Pygmy Puff about, she asked: "Still the problem from first year?"
Lys nodded embarrassedly. Actually, she was much better now, but something suddenly popping out of a case—even if it wasn't furry, she couldn't handle it.
The two checked their respective needed materials and discovered the toad brain had been eaten by the Pygmy Puff during the journey, so they needed to go out and buy a replacement.
As usual, Senna browsed ahead whilst Lys used magic to float Crunch and Fry behind her, carrying things.
Since this Potioneer Certification Assessment was an international project, the surrounding area had been thoroughly arranged by the American Magical Congress.
There was a dedicated street serving the potioneers who came for assessment, along with their family members, assistants, and apprentices.
Senna tilted her head, studying a Chinese vendor's "Ant Strength Pills," finding the man's vocabulary quite fascinating. She bought two pills to hear his pitch again, but unexpectedly, someone nearby snorted with derision.
Lys was examining what Senna had just bought—something supposedly an ancient Egyptian secret remedy—but no matter how she looked at it, it seemed like organs from excavated mummies turned into sludge.
Hearing the derisive snort, Lys stepped forward two paces, blocking the short man's view of Senna, and cast the same mocking look down at the wizard from the corner of her eye.
The little creature looked quite revolting—human-shaped but radiating sleaziness.
Don't think she hadn't noticed—this git had just been peddling potion materials tainted by some disgusting Dark Magic to others whilst concealing the truth and downplaying the risks.
Using such materials for personal research was one thing, but allowing contaminated materials to circulate in this place and venue whilst insisting they were safe to use—wasn't that just harming people?
The man was only slightly taller than Senna. Seeing Lys's imposing figure and unfriendly demeanour, he immediately cowered, quickly walking several steps away before daring to roll his eyes.
Lys immediately called over a nearby supervisor. Seeing the supervisor's sluggish and ineffective response, she secretly cast two spells. The short man, now itching unbearably all over, scarpered on his own.
Meanwhile, Senna was still curiously staring at the mushrooms and fleshy rhizomes the Chinese vendor had displayed, attempting to mimic his pronunciation with an odd intonation: "Lingzhi, ginseng?"
But the vendor explained these were medicinal herbs, not magical potion ingredients. The Ant Strength Pills from earlier also weren't potions but medicine. However, Senna had no idea of the difference between medicine and potions, as this concept didn't exist in the Western wizarding world.
In the end, Senna bought a bit of everything to take back. By the time they had replenished the needed toad brain, Lys had specifically bought a case just for storing materials.
As dusk fell, Senna looked at the materials street with lingering interest, then glanced at Lys: "Ahem, I've finished my shopping. Let's buy yours next."
Holding the already sleeping Fry, Lys really wanted to tell Mother she didn't need anything... but she still accompanied Senna to continue browsing.
Senna gestured with two sets of materials in her hands, unable to decide which to choose. Lys looked carefully and pressed down Senna's left hand holding the mineral: "Wrap up what's in the right hand for us."
The vendor glanced at Lys and efficiently wrapped up the materials in Senna's right hand.
Buy! Buy! Buy!
They shopped until Fry was groggily whimpering from hunger, and only then did Senna take Lys back to their lodgings.
After taking care of Fry, Senna and Lys began organizing the materials they'd bought back—fleshy rhizomes to be wrapped in moss, pink salt, and so forth. Lys automatically stuffed them into the bottom layer of the case, then thoughtfully organized two sets of materials Senna would need for the assessment in proper order.
Watching Lys's small silver knife swiftly and precisely process those materials, Senna went into the bathroom. When she emerged after washing up, she stuffed the furball from sleeping Fry's hands into a pet cage.
Pygmy Puffs were wonderful creatures in every way except for one serious problem—they liked to eat dried wizard snot...
So if you had a Pygmy Puff at home, you might wake up in the morning to find it lying on your chest with its thin, pink tongue extended, waiting for breakfast...
Lys finished organizing everything and yawned, quickly ducking into the bathroom to prepare for an early rest.
Originally, the organizers had arranged two rooms for Senna and Lys, but Lys had refused. Though Fry rarely cried or fussed, when he did get restless, it was quite a headache. Lys was afraid that without Father around, Mother might toss him out the door in the middle of the night.
Then he'd be left calling "gaga" in the corridor with no one to care for him.
Sure enough, Fry woke up in the middle of the night and refused to go back to sleep after feeding. Lys had to use a Hovering Charm to float him in the air, forcing him to paddle his limbs until he was exhausted and whimpering before falling asleep again.
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