I rise with the sun. Light filters through the half-closed blinds, strong enough to wake me but weak enough for it to be a gradual rise in consciousness.
I rub my eyes, then stretch my arms up and out. The bed-sheet slips down the bare skin of my torso as I sit up.
After blinking a few times to get the residual sleep out of my eyes, I notice there's foggy outlines of footprints all over the hardwood of the bedroom. The previous evening comes back to me.
I had spent the better part of two hours splashing around in the swamp to find a fire-bellied newt - one of the stock ingredients for Miss Adelaide's potion library. I was able to catch one, but it was well into the night by the time I deposited the salamander into its new artificial habitat in the storeroom. I was barely able to peel off my damp clothes before collapsing into bed.
Oh, well. At least I was able to find the damn newt in the end.
A thicket of trees wave good morning from my window. I get out of bed naked, as per usual. I walk around my room to prepare for the day with the blinds open to the green expanse outside. I figure with the apothecary's distance from the city, another person seeing me is unlikely.
I recall stories I was told as a child, cautionary tales of witches and hermits who reject civilization and run naked through the forest. Wild people ready at a moment's notice to eat or fight or fuck.
The stories were meant to scare us, I think, but they made me feel envious more than anything else. The people they talked about sounded free on a level I couldn't imagine.
After gathering everything I need for my morning tasks, I get dressed. Unfortunately, I have to put my exhibitionist endeavors on pause for a while. I doubt it would be fun trying to feed the chickens while naked.
Before heading outside to feed the animals and tend to the garden, I check the purifying wards on the household waterskin so there's clean water when Adelaide wakes up. She usually rises a couple of hours after I do, so I can bring more from the well if I need to replenish.
In the kitchen, I locate the jug the waterskin is stored in and inspect the outside. The sigils are intact, but the strength is beginning to fade. I crumble a nugget of soapstone to retouch the edges.
I used to not pay much attention to replenishing sigils before working for Miss Adelaide. Most magical institutions like the one I attended prior to my apprenticeship here don't consider that to be 'important' work.
They typically think that until they run out of clean water, anyway.
I came into Miss Adelaide's service close to three months ago. We met in a tavern a friend had referred me to, an avant-garde sort of dance club. Honestly, I was about to leave before Adelaide approached me. I felt hopelessly out of place. The club catered to more... experimental clientele.
Most patrons there were humanoids with hardcore body modifications, from full-body tattoos to plants growing from their skin. Elvish features were as common as orcish. There were even a few goblins with cropped tails that bounced around to the music.
The venue itself was even more intimidating. Magical orbs suspended from the ceiling were the main light source, projecting low red light into the room. The only seating was at the bar or at two small tables that seemed to be perpetually occupied. Mushrooms of various sizes lined the walls, producing synthesized music from their caps.
Adelaide explained to me later that night that the tavern is operated by a powerful druid who specializes in fungi. Apparently, this druid believes that mushrooms can connect to humanoids through their various electrical impulses, which she was able to translate into sound.
To me, it just sounded like loud thumping.
I had traveled to the city for the purpose of visiting that club, hoping to purchase one of those types of potions rarely sold in the open. And now, I was considering leaving after less than an hour there.
The process was much easier in my mind. I figured I would see someone consuming something I recognized and be able to strike up a conversation. I ran into two issues with this plan: the 'recognizing' part, and the 'conversation' part.
I was asking the bartender for my second beer when Adelaide sat down next to me. I remember our first conversation well. It went like this:
She turns in my direction and snorts. "No offense, but you look lost."
"Uh, yeah, I guess I kind of am." I say, surprised that someone was speaking to me. "Sorry, I'm not from around here."
She makes a point of looking me up and down. "I can tell." Her hand extends. "I'm Adelaide."
"River." I shake Adelaide's hand. Her grip is firm.
"Nice to meet you," She says. "I run an apothecary shop on the outskirts of town. Potions, enchanted items, and the like. What do you do, River?"
I open my mouth to answer her, but she interrupts. "Wait, don't tell me. You're into magic too, right? Maybe a student at that academy a few miles out?"
I laugh nervously. "You sure know a lot about me."
"Divination spell. For example..." Her voice is soft and low, leaning in to speak over the mycelium beats. "I also know you're bad at remembering to take your student ID badge off." She punctuates the end of the sentence by poking my chest.
My laughter loses its nervous edge and gains an embarrassed one. "Ah, shit, I've had that on for the whole time, huh. I was wondering why people were giving me looks."
We drink and talk some more about ourselves. Adelaide recommends a pink beer that fizzles on my tongue long after I've drunk it all. I tell her I used to be a cook. She tells me she used to harvest organs from adventurers killed in combat. I'm still not sure if that was a joke.
I complain about the wizarding academy. The higher-ups have a narrow view of how to properly practice magic, and they don't take kindly to deviations from their definition. Coupled with the unexpected religious overtones and gender-exclusionary practices, it's more like living in a monastery.
Adelaide asks why I decided to attend the school in the first place, if it's so miserable. I tell her it's not like I had a choice; they're the only academy in the area that accepts non-nobles.
That's when she offers me a job.
"You know, I've been thinking about taking on an apprentice for a while. Business has been good. Would you be interested?" she asks over our third beer together.
My head whirls, and not just from the alcohol. "I mean, I'm flattered, but am I not a little too... old for an apprenticeship?"
Adelaide laughs and claps me on the shoulder. "I'm looking for someone who already knows their way around a cauldron. I'll teach you some, of course, but it's nice to start with a foundation." She winks. "Plus, I don't have the patience to deal with a teenager. What do you say?"
A reasonable alternative to the academy, room and board included. I would've been insane to not take it. "Yeah. Yes. That sounds like a great plan, actually."
"Wonderful. Do you want to dance?"
The rest of that night is a blur. I do remember waking up the next day nursing a wicked hangover, packing my things, and finding a ride out into the woods.
My morning chores pass quickly as I reminisce about how I came to be here. Before I know it, I've finished all the work that needs to be done outside.
I head back into our shared house. Adelaide is awake and brewing herself a cup of tea at the kitchen counter.
