Oh, what a week it has been dear reader! Between cleaning the cottage and beginning my first batch of remedies, I’ve had little to no time to explore any of the forest. And on top of that, yesterday’s market was…well, perhaps I’m getting ahead of myself. You see reader, when I moved to Greenwood, I agreed to take on the position of village apothecary. This means I am responsible for crafting magical remedies for the folks around the area. Auntie Ember is very skilled with Impressional Magic and taught me everything I know. So, even though I was nervous, I was fairly certain that once I settled in, I could fulfill my role. But, well, now I’m not so sure.
Yesterday was my first time going to market, and goodness, there were so many people all crowded out on the village green, with their animals, and carts, and baskets, to buy and sell whatever they might need for the coming week. Though there were not so many as in Larksville, for which I was very grateful. Otherwise I would have been completely overwhelmed. And I can only imagine what it would have looked like for everyone to see their new apothecary cowering amongst the cows! Not to mention I already stand out, what with being green and all.
No, thankfully I was able to keep my wits and find Mrs. Hume, who is an old friend of Auntie Ember’s. She has been very kind to me since I moved here and offered to help me on my first market day. She and her husband own the general store in town, and it seems like she knows everyone. I tried to remember all the people’s names as she introduced me, but there must have been more than twenty, and well … Still it was nice, seeing as Mrs. Hume did most of the talking. I was even able to sell or trade some of the small common remedies I had prepared and brought in my basket. Let’s see, I got five coins for a few spoonfuls of Cheer from a woman that I think is the innkeeper, and a bunch of carrots for a vial of Concentration from one of the farmers, and I can’t remember what else right now because that’s when things became, well, uncomfortable.
A group of men on horses came by. One of them had a fur-trimmed coat, whom Mrs. Hume addressed as “the Baron”. I found out later that this was Baron Rhodes, who lives in the big manor house on the hill, and he oversees all of Greenwood and the surrounding countryside! He nodded at us, still on his horse, and declared that I must be “the green girl”. I was a little taken aback. I knew it wasn’t a secret, but most of the villagers that morning had only gawked or mumbled behind their hands. No one had been so blunt as this. But he pushed on saying he had a “special request” and threw a bag of coins at me, which somehow, I managed not to drop. Oh goodness, the people around us were staring now. He asked me if I had any Courage, and for a moment I thought he was asking if I had any courage… personally, but then I realized he meant a remedy, and, well, then I mumbled something about not having any at the moment. He said he needed it for his son and gestured to a boy on the horse beside him who was staring at the ground as though he wished he were somewhere other than there. I could imagine why; I had been around the Baron for only a few moments and already felt uneasy. But the Baron didn’t seem like a man who wanted to be kept waiting, so I told him I could probably have something prepared in a month or two. He said that was fine and that he would expect it ready by the end of the season. And just like that, the group rode off again. Mrs. Hume smiled and winked at me and those nearby began to chatter, but I just wanted to crawl under a table and hide.
Even today dear reader, it makes me feel unwell just thinking of it. Usually such requests are made in private, or at least it was always so when people came to see Auntie Ember. A public scene like the one yesterday, well, oh…goodness, it makes me uneasy, especially when recalling the poor Baron’s son. Even more than that, I have never made a Courage remedy before. I think I probably could, given enough time to work it out. But with Impressional Magic, one must feel a thing first, and I don’t know if I can find enough of that in me. Still it is my task and I must try. After all, I did have the courage to move here to Greenwood and to try to find answers to my past. Perhaps that mindset is the place to start; at least, I hope so.