Chapter 1
The bell that hung from inside the place rang repeatedly as the old door creaked open. Adrien cautiously stepped inside and gave the place a quick glance as he closed the door behind him. No one else to be seen around, not even a shopkeeper.
The place was dimly-lit, filled with shelves that contained different stuff, which made the place look more narrow than it already was.
Adrien gave the door another quick glance before walking towards a random shelf and peek curiously at the items there. He knew that a young man that came from a high-status family like him couldn’t be seen in knockturn alley, let alone a strange store like this. But oh well, a stingy friend of his described Borgin and Burkes like “the heaven of trinkets!”, and of course, Adrien needed to check that out. Curse him. Curse everyone.
His eyes fixed on a big piece of ceramic with the shape of a pig. Adrien naturally picked it up and chuckled at it, scanning the object from all angles. It had a little slot in the back, probably broken; Adrien guessed.
He wondered what such a silly thing was doing in a brooding place like this, and it made him want to ask about it. Then, he turned and there it was, someone behind the counter, probably the shopkeeper.
Adrien almost jumps and squeaks like a cartoonish hunted down mouse, while the attendant just seemed to not care. He was pretty sure no one was there when he just arrived the store. The guy didn’t even made a sound... Anyway. He walked to the counter and placed the pig-shaped item there, eager to buy it and get out of there.
“Hey, um...” Adrien faltered when he took in the shopkeeper’s features. What a man... He thought to himself.
It was a boy, possibly not older than Adrien. He had a nice pale skin, along with dark, curly hair and darker eyes. He seemed tidy and professional, somehow contrasting with the rest of the store.
“Welcome to Borgin and Burkes. How may I help you?”
He spoke in a soft, collected tone, greeting Adrien in the usual protocol greeting. Adrien bit his inner cheek at the beautiful and mesmerizing sight of the shopkeeper normally greeting him like he would greet any other costumer. Simply priceless, if you ask him.