Otherworldly - A Shadowed Awakening

Peak of Autumn, Week 5, Day 4

It didn’t last long. Because as soon as I took the first sip, Dame Arella made a noise of outrage and went into motion. She must have been in shock before then because, suddenly, I was being lectured on the health issues of children drinking too much caffeine.

“You are a child. Absolutely not,” Dame Arella finished, huffing as she handed the mug back to the waitress.

I can’t believe they know about caffeine. I grumbled mentally, irritated and impressed both.

“She’s right, Lady Nora,” Sir Limrick started, “It’s not good for growing children.”

I crossed my arms, disgruntled, “Fine.”

It’s not worth the fight.

There was more dissatisfaction from [Eternal Communion], but I decidedly ignored it.

It was a short wait for the food, mine a cranberry cake, and theirs a mix of meats and bread. The cake was perfectly bittersweet, and it brought me back to elsewhere, where I would have cranberry and orange scones on break from the office. My heart ached, but still, I stayed present in the moment. I didn’t let my grief overwhelm me. I took a breath, and it passed.

It was as we were getting ready to pay I found something new to irritate me.

“But why can’t I give them the money? You said it’s my money.” I looked up at Sir Limrick with narrowed eyes, and to his credit, he only looked mildly uncomfortable.

“My Lady, I’ll handle it.” He said, putting the bag of coins on the table.

I reached for it, and Dame Arella slid it out of my reach.

“Lady Nora,” she said under her breath, “It’s not proper for a noble to handle their own finances.”

“That doesn’t even make sense!” I snapped back, “It’s supposed to be mine.”

I may not be willing to fight over a cup of coffee, but I draw the line at whatever breach of agency this is. I mentally decided.

Arlen was blinking at us, and Klein had his lips pressed together tightly, clearly fighting back a snide comment. I chose to ignore them and argue with the two people who had actual power here.

“Sir Limrick, it’s a ridiculous rule. Just let me count the coins. It’s practicing my arithmetic! Surely, that’s something helpful to the County?” I insisted, straining my reach for the small bag of coins.

Dame Arella looked as if she was about to whack my hand, thought better of it, and simply grabbed the coin purse and quickly grabbed a handful of coins and plopped them on the table.

“There, done,” she said smugly.

“Absolutely not! You didn’t even count them,” I hissed, “Just let me double-check.”

[Quick Calculation] filled me with the knowledge that she had actually put down the appropriate amount, but I wasn’t about to lose this fight just because she had a similar Skill. I reached for the laid-out coins as Dame Arella leaned back.

Sir Limrick pulled the coins closer to him.

“We’ll give you a ledger to track if you’re worried about it,” he sighed.

I glowered at him as he waved over a waitress and gave the coins to her. With a brilliant smile, she wished us a good day. It was several minutes of grumbling and ignoring the scolding coming from [Eternal Communion] that followed. Inside, I could even feel embarrassment from little Eunora. I pushed it all away.

I am an adult. I stated to myself, I am an adult and should be allowed to use my own allowance.

I distinctly ignored the definition of a child’s allowance.

“I should be allowed to use my own allowance, Dame Arella, Sir Limrick. It’s simply fact.” I stated finally, holding out my hand, “Now hand it over.”

“Lady Nora.”

“This doesn’t even have anything to do with my safety. Do you even have the right to stop me?”

The two knights looked at each other in exasperation. Sir Limrick looked fed up and plucked the coin purse from Dame Arella’s hand and tossed it to me. I caught it in a single smooth motion, a shocked smile filling my face.

“Yes!” I said triumphantly.

“Sir–”

“Dame Arella, please. It’s too early for this,” Sir Limrick sighed, “It’ll be fine. It’s a soft rule anyway.”

Dame Arella grumbled something about negotiating with terrorists. I chose to let it go. I was on cloud nine, victory fueling my benevolence. Arlen covered his mouth, and Klein remained hard to read as ever. But he did not look nearly as entertained as Arlen.

Then we were back out in the square, with merchants and hawkers and loads of new people who hadn’t been there before breakfast. A small sliver of anxiety crept up my spine, but I kicked it back into the bucket it belonged in and looked around to take in my surroundings. Little Eunora had never left the estate, [Eternal Communion] was a cynic, and my own time in Adeline was limited. Thus, this was new.

There were a couple dozen actual storefronts that lined the outer edge of the square and rows of merchant tents in between them. It was a madhouse. There was fresh produce I could spot in one area, trinkets in another, jewelry in yet another. There were potions, and herbs, and books. I saw a stall for shirts, one for trousers, and one for styled outfits. I went to approach when Dame Arella cleared her throat. I looked over my shoulder at her, and she pointed to the storefronts. They were clearly of higher quality than the market stalls set up in the center of the square. I tossed my coin purse between my hands before nodding. I’d pick my battles yet again. Sure, I could buy more at a market stall, but what did I want anyway? There wasn’t anything I was interested in. I’d wanted control of the money to prove a point, not because I wanted to use it. I slid the coin purse into my bag.

So we walked around the outer edge of Yllan Square. There were fun names –Phil’s Pills– and very serious names –The Illuminaria- and then there were simply names –the Yllan Square Apothecary. That was actually our first stop: the apothecary. As I looked in the window, I watched as shelves moved of their own volition, reorganizing as a woman approached, and I saw a plant jump from one shelf to another away from another customer. It was bizarre. And unrestrained. And there were only two people in the store. So I wanted to go in.

As Sir Limrick opened the door, Dame Arella took her guard position at the entryway with Arlen. Klein and Sir Limrick followed me in. As we walked, the shelves did not move, but I was able to get a closer look at them. They were not supported by columns or on a rotating chain. The shelves were levitating above each other by magic. For all the magic in Gargantua was limited, they used it so much more than in elsewhere. All the runes and enchantments and spirits gave magic so many options –if you had the right Skill, of course. Whoever made these shelves was a vision, in my own limited opinion.

But the interesting bits were what was on the shelves. From powdered lightning bugs to whole mandrake bulbs, from fairy wings to mermaid scales, there were a thousand things I’d never seen before. It wasn’t until I stepped closer to the shelf to my left that it moved –and replaced the ground iron fly with tinctures and blended powders. They had names that children would love. Flight of Fantasy. Dreams of Dragons. Cloudgazer. The powders within shimmered, and I picked up the Cloudgazer –a pearlescent blue powder that took up half a vial.

‘Put into your favorite tea to watch clouds form. WARNING: Weather is unpredictable. Please do not use conductive tea sets in case of thunderstorms. 23 Copper.’

I blinked, then grabbed two more.

I looked over the other vials filled with powders before deciding I was only interested in the Cloudgazer. That was until I saw several teas that promised other magical effects. And, really, if I wasn’t going to be allowed to drink coffee, no one should complain if I added anything to my tea.

I picked Lilac Dreams, Tides of the Merfolk, and Stargazer. They were all dried teas that promised fun effects –such as waves breaking in your teacup or stars shimmering around your head. Altogether, it was 2 silver and 19 copper. Not too bad for children’s products. I had no basis to think Dame Arella was glowering at me from outside, but as I pulled the coins out, I had the feeling I was disappointing her. I promptly ignored that feeling and went about my transaction.

Sliding everything into the bag with Noir, we left for other stores. Surely, were I not a child of the Dawn, I would have depleted all the coins given to me. But despite the irritation of the Dawns, they gave me a dozen gold as an allowance. Plenty enough to buy most things, aside from true extravagances.

We passed several more shops, none of which drew my interest. Not the least because I wasn’t allowed to wear their wares –one shop was entirely brown and green gowns. Another was a jewelry shop that I had no need of. The next, however, was just as interesting as the apothecary –it was a bookstore.

I looked up at the name of the shop and nodded. I’d be going in, of course. Any place named Mira’s Magical Means and filled with books had to be filled with treasures. This time it was Dame Arella and Klein who joined me –Arlen was stuck at the door with Sir Limrick.

Unlike the apothecary, Mira’s Magical Means had sturdy bookshelves up against the walls –and they didn’t seem to move. They had glass panes in front of the displayed books, with tags stating the names and topics. One shelf was labeled, ‘Spirit Bonds for Tier 2 Mages by Hploh Revi’, and behind the glass, there were a half dozen copies of the same book with a single copy set up to display the cover –a deep blue leather with silver embossed letters. Below it was a similar book but labeled for Tier 3 mages. The bottom two shelves didn’t have glass panes, and when I bent down to look at the contents, I saw topics related to more mundane subjects –such as the history of spirit bonds, the memoir of Hploh Revi, and essays on his teachings. The next shelf over became more specific – ‘Water Spells for the Bonded Mage, Tier 2, by Sharin Grevich’—the shelves below following the same pattern as the Spirit Bond shelf. None of the books had price tags, but I was confident enough in the contents of my coin purse that I still made my way deeper into the store.

“Young Miss, is there anything specific I can help you with?” Came a silky smooth voice. When I looked over to the back of the store, there was a woman in an oversized witch’s hat looking directly at me.

I felt little Eunora shrink, and I squared my shoulders to fight the rising emotion, “Do you have all the elements?”

The woman gave a merchant’s smile as her eyes flicked to Dame Arella’s armor, then back to me, “Why, of course. Any specific one you’re looking for?”

I glanced behind me at Dame Arella and Klein –they were looking bored– then nodded.

“I’m looking for Light and Shadow?” I closed the distance and approached the shopkeeper.

“Ah,” the woman’s smile faltered, “I have the full collection for Light, but unfortunately, I only have a couple of options for Shadow.”

I gave the woman a small smile, “That’s fine, can you show me?”

The shopkeeper nodded and slid out from behind the counter, “Follow me. The children’s beginner tomes are this way.”

For once, I didn’t grit my teeth at the idea of being a child –perhaps it was because I’d had the victory regarding my finances, or perhaps it was because this woman didn’t say children as if it was the bane of her existence. Either way, I followed right behind her. Her heels clacked against the hardwood.

She took us through a curtain off to the side, and as the fabric parted, the atmosphere changed. Suddenly, everything looked so vibrant. The main shop had looked severe and spartan in its decorating, but here there were soft yellow walls and multi-colored glass chandeliers. It was clearly meant to appeal to a younger audience. The sound of the shopkeeper's heels was muffled by the plush carpet that covered the floor now.

After another moment, she stopped before a shelf with a dozen different books behind a glass pane. They ranged from Light Magic: A History to How to Win A Light Spirit with a Shining Personality and A Beginner’s Spellbook for Light Magic. Then the woman gestured to the shelf directly to the right, where there were three copies of a single book, Shadow: Your First Spellbook. One of the copies was displaying the contents, which included several illustrations and a simplistic set of instructions.

I want it. I hissed in my head.

“I want it,” I said out loud.

The woman blinked before widening her smile, “Wonderful! It’s 7 gold and 50 silver.”

I refused to balk at the price, even when I felt Dame Arella burning a hole in my back.