Shopping  

Came afternoon, after lunch, Dorothy came back with paper bags of makeup hauls and a new look probably for a day that we witches celebrate the final chapter of birth and death and made way for the last harvest of the year –– the Hallow's Eve.

Hallow's Eve is a time where Either amplified and potions, spells, and rituals became potent. Witches gather at this special day to celebrate, but I never had the chance to attend once since . . . I was a traitor and all.

They'd probably sacrifice me to some ritual to attain power if I showed even just a drop of my shadow.

"Here." Dorothy flung a pouch of gil on the table.

"Is this compensation for shutting my mouth?" I asked but still pocketed the gil. Never declined an offering, as we witches like to say. It would attract bad luck and karma if we did.

Dorothy looked at me from head to toe. "That and you could use a new look. Honestly, Trinity, do you have just two pairs of dresses?"

I gave a half shrug. "Madam Bertud doesn't buy us clothes, remember? This is a donation from the church."

Dorothy's face soured. "Go and buy one. You look poorer than beggars on the street."

I checked my long sleeve dress and the many patches of colorful fabric sewn on its holes. The frails near the ankles were torn, and the colors were fading as the materials were fuzzy. But it was the most comfortable garment I wore in my lifetime.

(Pic)

When I became Queen of the Vampires, I actually missed this kind of simple clothing. Those heavily embellished robes, dresses, and jewelry pieces were difficult and time-consuming to wear. They were heavy, and the corset that came along with the status was a nightmare.

"Maybe I'll buy one," I said as I threw my apron on the table. Dorothy's focus was on her new makeup sets that she didn't even bother to lift an eye when I went into the town square.

The first stop I made was the little girl I saw yesterday, and as I expected, she had a new set of freshly picked herbs and flowers.

Trees, flowers, and herbs were different from each other and what separated a seasoned witch from the novices was knowing each plant's correct naming and uses. Trees were birch, oak, maple, pines. Flowers were rose, daisies, lilies, carnations. And Herbs and Greens were basil, cinnamon, clove, garlic, and the likes.

It was not important to others for they're simply known as plants, but to us witches, it was the first knowledge hammered to us since young since not all parts of the plants were used when concocting a potion or spell.

A little mistake in the ingredients and the result is already a failure before you even stir the cauldron.

"How much for this?" I asked the girl, grabbing a stem of Aconite and Deadly Nightshade. Two of my ingredients for the Blood Potion.

The girl looked over before she lowered her head. "F-five gil."

She pumped the price from yesterday, but I didn't care. Five gil was still cheap for these herbs.

I gave her twenty gil for a stem of Aconite and Deadly Nightshade. Twenty gil was far too cheap for an Aconite. It was a highly-toxic herb with multiple purple flowers, commonly used in producing poisons, vermin repellents, and anti-inflammatory medicines.

Not many bought them for their properties.

I smirked. If only humans were witches. They'd known that dried Aconite petals were common ingredients to repel werewolves and vampires. And with the right brew and added ingredients, it also impeded a werewolf's shape-shifting abilities.

Because of one simple pouch I made, thousands of werewolves died by the vampire's hands, and also because of that, I was finally accepted to become Rhazien's Queen.

I stretched my neck when it hurt as I thought of Rhazien. At this time, he was probably busy making new laws and plans for the Kingdom and debating it to the council. Probably about the increasing rogues and the hunters.

A small smile lingered on my lips, but the heaviness in my heart grew by the second as I thought of him.

I shook my head and forced him out of my mind as I went my way to the lined of flower stalls. I bought calendula, elder and jasmines for the Love Philtre. And calabar bean, burning bush, cloves, garlic, mandrake root, rosemary in the herbal shop. I also snatched dome apple, peach, and strawberries along the fruit shop.

It seemed like my hands were full from all the shopping I made, but they hardly filled the basket dangling in my arm. I just needed a stem and petals and a slice of fruit for the potions.

Not exactly the whole bunch.

I checked my list, and the next stop was tools. Usually, witches have workshops with the usual materials like mortar and pestle, jars and canisters, knife, altar, pentacle, candles, incense, chalice, cauldron over a fireplace, athame, crystals, and gemstones, and the likes.

But since I didn't have an altar, nor do I plan to make one in the land of the humans, a simple burner under a small pot would do.

And now . . . came the hard part of my shopping . . . jewelry.

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