Blooming from the Ashes

Ch 17: Shopping with the Hawthornes

Two days later, the anticipation of our upcoming shopping trip filled the air. The Hawthornes decided to accompany us, making our venture into town a grand affair. We climbed into a luxurious carriage, with Miss Ginny and a few servants in tow. The town bustled with activity as we arrived, the streets lined with shops offering everything a student might need.

Our first stop was a small stationery shop, guided by Miss Ginny. The shelves were filled with an array of fine parchment, ink bottles, quills, and notebooks bound in leather. Elma and Aiden excitedly picked out their supplies, chatting excitedly about their future classes. I chose a selection of sturdy notebooks, various colored inks, and a set of good-quality quills, paying for it with the money I had earned by helping the princess.

Next, we visited a bookstore that was renowned for its extensive collection. We were each handed a list of required texts for our first year. As we wandered through the aisles, Miss Ginny and the Hawthorne servants helped us gather the necessary volumes. I couldn't resist picking up a few extra books on herbology and potion-making, knowing they would be useful for my powers. During this time, the Hawthornes were shopping in luxurious shops, buying high-quality stationery and other items. Miss Ginny informed us that we were to reunite with them after an hour and were free to wander around until then.

As we explored, I asked around and was guided to a herbalist's shop tucked away in a corner of the marketplace.

Inside, the air was filled with the fragrant scent of dried herbs and flowers. My eyes lit up at the sight of the various seeds and plants available. I carefully selected seeds for medicinal plants like Moonshade, Emberroot, and Silverleaf I had learned about in the academy in my past life. Although these plants were not rare, they were notoriously difficult to grow and required precise conditions to thrive. Their extracts were invaluable for healing wounds and crafting potent potions. I planned to cultivate them in my dorm room once we arrived at the academy.

I stepped out of the herbalist's shop, clutching the small bag of seeds tightly. I spotted Elma and Aiden approaching, and walked towards them.

Elma's eyes sparkled with curiosity as she hurried over and saw the bag. "What did you get?"

I opened the bag and showed them the seeds. "These are seeds for medicinal herbs. Their extracts are invaluable for healing wounds and making potions, so I decided to buy some."

Aiden raised an eyebrow, impressed. "You really know your stuff, Liana. I never knew you were interested in these things. Where did you even learn all this?"

I hesitantly answered, feeling bad for lying to him, "From the Holy Library in the Church."

Well it wasn't a complete lie, there was some information about these herbs I found while I was trying to look for books related to my magic.

Noticing my unease, Elma quickly replied, "That sounds amazing! Maybe you can teach us a bit about potion-making too. It could come in handy."

"Absolutely," I replied. "I'd love to share what I know."

Aiden glanced around the marketplace, then back at us. "We still have some time before we meet up with the Hawthornes. Is there anything else we need to get?"

Elma shook her head. "I think we've got everything. But we should head back soon so we're not late."

We made our way through the busy streets, chatting about our plans for the academy.