Chương 15: XV. Maid of Honor

Spring 8th, 1380 ASSETS: 64 Minted Gold Coins (65 gold +36 Blood Crop sale, -15 Seeds, - 15 Dress, -5 tool and weapon purchase, -2 Meal + Tip) 08 [Uncommon] [Carrots] 10 [Common] [Carrot Seeds] 15 [Common] [Green Clover Seeds] 06 [Common] [Potato Seeds] 01 [Common] [Lettuce Seeds] IN FIELD 09 TULIPS (Likely Poor) - Spring 11"Amaril, is she already dead?" Melissa yelled from outside. The wooden door shook on its hinges as she banged on its frame again.

I jolted up from the table, drool staining the pages of the Mortis Agrariae. Three new Rhey'an spells were neatly jotted down, and on the next page was the fourth, underneath a new header I couldn't understand! Obviously that was a higher tier Symphony, but with how much was written, it was no wonder I passed out while scribing it. The quill's plume had become… crimson, of all colors, though it was plucked from a pigeon.

I slipped it between the pages, and definitely had to actually remember to ask Maddy for a primer on Rhey'an.

"Alright, stand back Missy. I'm gonna BREAK THE DOOR," Jasmine said.

"Good Amaril you're not," Melissa said. There was some tussling outside, but I quickly got up from my desk. I was still wearing the black dress, but it had been less than a day. My hair was frizzy, and there was likely drool against my face. I would check, but there was a face near my reflection and I already dealt with disappointing one person important in my life, and I didn't need to assuage my guilt a second time.

"Quit yer hollerin'," I shouted and clambered down the ladder. I tripped over the final rung and then the upturned floorboard, but still stumbled towards the door. Melissa was wearing a blue dress with a white belt. Her blonde hair was clean and came down to her waist, and she wore black mascara that complimented her sky-blue eyes. The pink headband over her hair gave a splash of color. She looked me up and down, and I braced for her critique on my clothing. She leaned in and hugged me.

I began to push her off, but she patted my shoulder twice.

"It's happenin', Ashy. Ya jus' gonna have'ta let it." Jasmine perked up, and when she wasn't wearing that maid dress, looked a lot like Missy, if Missy was a lot more athletic and wasn't capable of keeping her mouth shut. Her dress was a darker blue, but she had gone with a bonnet over her blonde hair… which, thankfully, wasn't straightened. It looked more like someone put a hat over a dry mop. And she also joined the hug. Her body was warmer than Melissa's and a lot less 'boney' for a lack of a better term.

Melissa pushed her off, and then released me.

"Addy tol' me, an' I remembered the fight. Closest thing ya'se getting from me. If ya jus' wanted to run the farm, can' rightly ask why ya'se [Farm Girl]. Yer still a right-cunt though, could have written once."

"Thanks, Missy?" I said, getting her makeup and 'touch' off my dress. The one she made.

"Ah? Is Ashy not a [Doctor]? Town's sayin' she is [Symphonic] now? She's even gettin' the [Witchmark]!" Melissa stopped looking at my face and shot to the side. She grabbed my red– WHITE?! - hair and twirled it around her finger. I yanked the offending strand out of her hand and followed it to the root – and the entire thing was WHITE.

"Ah, Amar… Nyla-Flooded [Frostborn]. Not even a Varikinian, but an Empyrean gettin' the [Frost Matriarch] look. Such a scandal!" Melissa said.

"Bless your heart, why ain' ya showin' off the [Initiate] instead, carr… snowhead? Nah, yer still carrothead." I tugged against the strand and brought it to my face. White was a TERRIBLE color. I wasn't even old! Clay mixed with water milled with beetle husk would create a gorgeous copper shade, but if I wanted it to match, I'd have to mix carrot peel with orange beetle shell with some thickening agent.

"I don' geddit. Is she a [Doctor] or ain' she, Missy?"

"No, I don't have the certification nor was I acce–" I said.

"Deceiver take that, you was picked by NYLA. Ain' even a [Doctor] then, is a… uh…"" [Chirurgeon]," Melissa finished for her.

"Ain' gonna need to prove anythin' to the [Physician's Guild]. But uh… Ashy ain' interested in that line o' work, Jazzy."

"Right," I said.

"Thanks, 'Missy'. Why are you two here?"

"Ah, Addy tol' me and I was feelin' mighty guilty. Figured I'd take ya out on the town, discuss the weddin' if ya in the mood for it, and finish sizin' you up. Also, ya needed me to sign some paper for a guild don' ya?" I nodded slowly, and turned to Jasmine. She returned the stare and smiled. We continued to stare at each other, and Melissa elbowed her in the side.

"She wants to know why ya'se here, ya twit."

"Cuz you an' her are here?" Jasmine said, rubbing her side. Melissa shrugged and then nodded to me as if that was an answer.

"Let's go, you should see the Coffee Shop."

"So, I says to him, I do, that if he ain' gonna stop shoutin' in the house, Memaw was gonna have a heart attack. So, bless his heart, Natty says, you know what he says? He thought he was whisperin' and the damn ringin' won' stop! We don' even has a bell! Ya ever hear of somethin' so silly, Missy?" The clay mug they poured the coffee in really trapped the heat. It smelled incredibly earthly, and a sip revealed it was incredibly bitter. That was caused by two things – the first was the actual processing, of course.

It was ground too harshly and boiling water was poured over it, which just roasted the bean. Oh, and the second was this was clearly [Poor] [Robusta] beans from a Neredian tribe. Probably grown with slave labour and no concern for the craft. I pushed the cup forward, I was willing to waste 1 copper not to drink this sludge.

"What do ya think, Ashy?" Melissa said. I blinked, and stared at the two. The table we were at was outside in a fenced off…

'patio', Melissa called it. The umbrella above us was blue, and the four wooden chairs – three of which we were using – were kind of uncomfortable.

"They burned the beans when they were roasting it," I said. Melissa looked down at her own cup and then at mine.

"Ya, you'se just gotta put some milk in it and some honey. Ya had coffee before, aye?"

"Kahir loves Coffee," I said.

"Refused to let us use milk or sweetener when we were having our club meets and discussing books. This is just burned."

"Bless your heart, Ashy," Jasmine said, leaning forward.

"Ya has the funniest stories. I mean more on, ya ever hear of ringin' in someone's ear?" Earnest Emerson's Encyclopedia of the Ear, the EARPEDIA, page 37.

"Tinnitius, which is often a misalignment of sanguine in the body which causes pneuma to build up until it's drained." Jasmine tilted her head.

"I… mean more on a funny story – but uh… how is a, let's say, poor [Maid] an' 'er 'usband cure somethin' like t hat?"

"Visit a [Do–" I began." Can' afford, and ain' one here," Jazzy cut me off. I looked back down at my coffee cup." I don' know, Jasm- I didn't stu–""Jazzy! Stop," Melissa cut in, before turning towards me." So, ya startin' a [Guild] to pay for the taxes, Ashy? Here." She pulled out parchment from her bag and signed her name on it." Dunno what you'se callin' it or anythin', but I'll join." Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings." Just like that?" I said, taking the piece of paper from her. I signed my name above hers, since it was my guild." Ya? Makin' a [Guild] ain' hard, just gotta talk to people. Jazzy and I are in the [Class of '74], [Oakheart Women], [Kart Racers], and [Kart Racers - Women]. If you'se formalizin' it, I think Addy is already tryin' to get ya the [Guild Writ]."" Shouldn't I be in two of those?" I said." Ya wanna be? Don' think you like talkin' that much," Missy said. I shook my head, but Jasmine took the paper." I wanna join too! I need way more if I'm gonna beat Missy. I had thought the [Hawthorne Maids] was gonna be interestin', but they don't say much at all. And the other one Orphy made me join ain' showing up. Besides," she said, looking right at my face." May not look it, but Lady Hawthorne been trainin' me well with money and coins. Says I could be [Book-Keeper]!" She signed the page and handed it back. That was… two out of the three names already. I turned around to stare at the road. While it wasn't exactly on the same path, I could see The Cat's Cradle from here. A maid holding a black basket walked into the store. Melissa and Jasmine kept talking, and it might have been easy to excuse myself for a little bit, at least. They had changed the topic to other clubs they were part of, and I had just gathered my courage when the maid left Madeleine's shop. Madeleine walked out shortly after and locked the door. In her other hand was a black envelope, which she tucked into a pile of books. She used her other hand to shield her eyes from the sun and scanned the road. I think she locked her eyes with me, but we were kind of far away. So I raised my hand to wave at her, and Madeleine returned the wave!" Who are ya wavin' at, Ashy?" Melissa said, raising her head from her own conversation." Madeleine the, uh, [Witch]," I said. Melissa's face scrunched up, and she lowered her head into her drink. She didn't raise it either when Madeleine showed up." Ah, chérie, I have the books you ordered," Madeleine said." Books I ordered?" I repeated. She had three books in her hands and handed them towards me. Levan's Anatomy: CENSORED EDITION 1362. NYLAN SISTERHOOD: THE HEALERS OF ST. CATHERINE-MAJOR A black envelope with golden trim, and wax bat seal. Fenwick's Almanac for Soil– I put the other things down and lifted the Almanac to the sky. It was the 1381 edition! The [Meteormancers] responsible for filling out the predicted weather patterns were at least 84% accurate! The book was still freshly pressed, and the cover had the gold foil with different seeds plastered against Fenwick himself, plowing the legendary evergarden. The pages itself were fresh and still smelled like the dwarven press– Madeleine coughed loudly." Chérie, perhaps you want to read the other things first." I shook my head. She put her hand on my shoulder and clenched down." Fine! Yes, I do," I said, before looking at the pages. Melissa poked her head at the books, and lifted Levan's Anatomy. Jasmine however moved the book away and grabbed the envelope." Ah, pipelette, don't touch that, si vous plait!" Madeleine interjected. Jasmine touched it anyway, and turned it around. Her face went pale and her eyes widened, and she returned the envelope atop the desk." Uh… I gotta be goin' now, Missy, Ashy, Madsy." She quickly scattered away, heading towards… the centre of town? I think. Melissa flipped to the first page, and then slid the book back." Uh… Ms. La Croix, how did ya come across that?"" Ah, you must be the tailleur! You are as pretty as people say," Madeleine said, picking the letter off the table and handing it to me." You're too kind, Ms. La Croix, but I must insist, how did ya get this?" Melissa said." It's… just a medical book, popular with the physicians back in Martivia."" It's illegal in the Phoenix Empire, at least. Addy says so."" An illegal book? Wait, Addy tells you thi–" I began." Of course Addy tells me things, carrothead. He's my fiancé," she said. My hand trembled, and I converted the twitching muscle into a smile. I'm not sure if it reached my eyes." An' what's that gotta do with an illegal book?" Melissa turned to look at Madeleine, who kept her sly smile. Madeleine's eyes scanned Melissa, and I felt like the third girl invited to a poker game." It's written by a [Lich]. Well, now a [Lich]," she said and opened the book to the first page. Of course, there was a condemnation of his atrocities – something about live experimentation, and the discovery of another entire branch of medicine with something called 'Germs' instead of humours. Honestly, Levan seemed like a nutjob. A Vivisection seems needlessly inhumane, and what was the point of figuring out how dead muscles reacted to electricity? Well, how else are you going to figure out how a person works? Maybe not cut them up? Why not? Is it bad research just because he's a [Lich]? Wait, what is a lich anyway? I focused on the word. [LICH] [VILLAIN] [SYMPHONIC] [CRIMINAL]'Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me… Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men. And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.' Opposite of the condemnation was a painting of Levan in his study. His face was old and plain, scarred with wrinkles that clung onto decaying skin. His eyes were rendered rather poorly by the artist, but they had already begun to droop; gray was used instead of his once illustrious green. She had loved him before, but she was timeless, and he was not. She loved him still, but it was her family that made them part. He still wore her ring around his finger, and it flexed. It was of a Chrysanthemum, though she wasn't the daughter named that. The hand flexed again, and tapped at the blackboard behind him. It is how they met. He had promised something so grand, and made it sound so trivial. A cure for death. His formula was indecipherable, but on the board were sigils made of circles with long and short hands. They were diagrams. Rhey'an was a diagrammatic language, not unlike the script of the Bureaucracy of The Long. But I snorted, causing Madeleine to shake my shoulder." Chérie? I didn't know Levan was a [Lich]. I'll just take that boo-""He tried to cure death," I said, pulling the book away from Madeleine." Cure Death. How arrogant." Melissa put her coffee back on the table." Ya familiar with that monster's work, Ashy?" Yes." What? No, I've never heard of him before, I was just readin' the condemnation."" Good. No Chosen of Nyla associates with The Deceiver, [Witch]. She impersonates the Great Deluge all the time." Madeleine chewed her lip for a moment, and then looked down at me." They are both healers, La? In Martivia, The Saintess Of Jude is the physician, but the Harvester of Marik are la… Undertaker? Embambler? You Empyreans embalm, oui?"" Maddy," I said, raising the book up." Do you know what language this is?" I tapped on the blackboard, and both Melissa and her craned her head to look." Paint," Madeleine said. There's nothing there, and the drawing is… not satisfactory." her hand pointed towards the blobby face and makeshift patterns for the image. But every time I focused, the image became clearer, until Madeleine pointed out it wasn't." And if he is writin' anythin' there, carrothead, it's gonna be in…" Melissa began and leaned in. Madeleine too craned in, and grabbed my head to join the circle." Rhey'an. Gravespeech. Cryptmouth." Madeleine swallowed." Ah… oui. Wouldn't want a [Farm Girl] getting involved in that, especially if she is chosen by Nyla."" Ah nonsense," Melissa said and lifted her cup of coffee again. She took a sip, and smiled." Addy says it's like High Empyrean. Ya don' learn it, ya earn it."" What is High Empyrean?" I immediately said. Addy knew a language I didn't?" Language of Angels," Melissa said." Addy speaks it, and it sounds… weird. A lot of the Clergy can too, actually."" Druidic," Madeleine said, and then beckoned to the envelope." Read the other one for sure. If you Empyrean's don't mind breaking your backwater ways, Levan's journal is also interesting."" Wait," I said." Want to join my business, Maddy?" Madeleine stopped walking and looked at Melissa and me." Business, or [Guild]... [Farm Girl]?"" [Guild], [Witch]." Madeleine smiled at the response, and reached out her hand. I gave her the piece of paper, and she signed it. But more importantly, I had three new books to read, and I guess a letter.