Chapter 1
Harry didn’t really have a good reason to be in a muggle pharmacy school.
After the war, he wanted peace and quiet, away from the pestering prophet reporters who seemed to appear at random times like unwanted cockroaches. But after seeing how his friends seemed to know what they wanted to do, Harry felt a bit restless doing nothing in Grimmauld Place or at the Burrow. All he knew was that he was one, tired of hunting down dark wizards (so crossing off being an auror), two, he wanted a break from the wizarding world, and three, he did have some passion for healing people - in albeit an indirect way. So Harry just thought of being a pharmacist and ran with it, and he also wanted to have the last laugh once thinking that Snape would be rolling over in his grave if Harry did pull through with a degree that is somewhat similar to potions.
With a magical loophole, thanks to the goblins, they were able to convert his OWLs to A levels to be accepted into the University of Strathclyde, just to be close to Hogwarts. A couple of years later with a lot of shed blood, sweat, and tears, Harry finally finished his Mpharm and foundation training. However, with his pre-reg exam coming up, Harry sat down in his local coffee shop, and spread out his notes, laptop, pens, and paper to study. As Harry was muttering about amiodarone and Afib (1) under his breath, he heard a whisper, “Potter?”
A bit startled, Harry glanced up through his bangs to see Theodore Nott holding a cup of iced coffee with a heaping amount of whipped cream on top. Harry never imagined Nott out of all people to be standing in the middle of a muggle cafe.
“Nott. Fancy seeing you here. I thought you were hiding in your house after the war, but…?” as Harry gestured questioningly.
Nott scowled slightly at his remark, but quickly recovered and blankly said, “Potter. Just like you, I decided to venture out to see what the world is like beyond the wizarding world and decided to study in higher education when possible.”
Nott, without an invitation, placed his iced coffee and business textbook onto the same table Harry was occupying and sat down.
“What are you doing? There are plenty of empty tables in this small cafe. We didn’t even talk to each other at school either.”
“Well, after hearing from Granger and Weasley how you are doing quite well in muggle studies - was it… pharmacology? - I wanted to hear if that area of study is viable with business.”
Harry eyed the textbook and stared back at Nott.
“I have a Masters in Pharmacy, and yes, business is sometimes needed in pharmacy. But why do you want to know? Pharmacy is primarily for health while business can be used for practically anything.”
“My family was primarily focused on niche healing potions, but after the war, I decided to study what was so great about these muggles you were fighting so hard for. But with the lack of progress in the wizarding world in comparison to the constant updates from the muggles, I realized that this muggle science may be a good business opportunity for Wixens.
So, I have a proposition to make with you. Are you willing to come back and set up a pharmacy at Diagon Alley?”
Harry was baffled at the sudden job offer when he only knew Nott as a kid from Slytherin who wasn’t part of the Death Eaters but still was somewhat close to its associates. Nott mostly stayed quiet at Hogwarts, sometimes trailing behind Malfoy when there was a fight between the Slytherins and Gryffindors.
Harry thought for a moment. He knew that Wixen were quite behind compared to muggles when it came to science and innovation, but Wixen also had different sets of health problems due to potions, spells, or other magical accidents. And pharmacists need prescriptions from other providers to actually dispense medications. He doesn’t have training to diagnose patients.
“… Hypothetically, it is possible to set up a pharmacy in the middle of Diagon Alley; however, we need to figure out the logistics of distributors coming to us when delivering medications, especially with controlled drugs. A lot of this process is done electronically. I would also need prescriptions from healers that are tamper-resistant in case someone wants to illegally get the meds. There’s a whole other set of problems that are on top of my head, but sure. As long as we cover these problems, I can set up a pharmacy.”
Nott seemed to jot down a couple of words onto a napkin with a pen Harry was using just moments ago. Nott smiled. “Thanks, Harry. I’ll owl you once I get everything sorted. Are you done with licensing?”
Now it was Harry’s time to scowl.
“No. I just finished my training, so I was studying for my pre-reg until you came in.”
“Oh. Well, good luck with that. Hopefully, you can get it done around the time the pharmacy is all set up.”
Harry sighed. “Thanks, Nott. I’ll let you know once I pass.”
Nott nodded, stood up, gathered his belongings, and left the cafe, leaving Harry behind.