Chapter 14 - Phoenix

She left Damien’s store, ironically named The Glass Phoenix, a few minutes later with 9 crowns and a small metal box in hand. He’d boxed up the phoenix she first touched and tried to give it to her with 14 crowns, but she’d stubbornly insisted on paying at least the original price for it, and thus would only accept 9 crowns. She’d already accepted bribery once, and besides, they were hopefully going to have a long and successful partnership, so she wanted to start on equal grounds. 

Still, the coins in her pocket filled her with a quiet sense of pride. She’d begun her first foray into building up the capital to take over the capitol with her ‘new, innovative’ ideas. And yet, the quiet jingling and weight of the coins also made her nervous. She needed to get a coin pouch or something that would deter any would-be pickpockets. Shaking her head, she walked down the two doors it took to get to Evergreen, entering the brightly lit...bar? Cafe? She wasn’t quite sure what to call it.

The large windows facing the street let in copious amounts of sunshine, making it seem much brighter and cheerier than what the movies pictured bars to be. And yet, there was the stereotypical bar at the back of the room, bottles and glasses lined up prettily on custom made shelves. There was also a healthy stream of traffic into a back room which she assumed was a kitchen, given that the servers kept coming out of it with steaming plates of food. 

She clutched her little metal box tightly, unsure of what to do. Did she just find a seat? Did she wait to be seated? Did she go order at the counter? Her indecision seemed to spark the pity of one of the waitresses, because she came over and asked kindly, “This your first time here luv?”

Not your luv, dearie. But whatever, she’s here to help! Don’t be picky about what she calls you…

She smiled brightly and nodded a bit shyly to disguise the brief flash of discontent she’d had there. “Yes, it is. Is it that obvious?” She laughed a little nervously, trying to crack a joke. She never claimed to have any great interpersonal skills…

“Just a wee bit. Well, come on in. Next time you can just find a seat you like. For now, why don’t you come over to my section?” Is she trying to get a better tip? Jade just smiled and nodded again. She didn’t care where she sat, as long as she got food, and fast. She was led over near one of the windows, which she was actually pretty happy about. It meant she could people watch! She cheerfully sat down and smiled at the waitress, her look saying, ‘well?’ 

Getting the hint, the waitress smiled. “Ah right, first timer. We serve set meals here. Today’s specials are the steak, pork chops, or the blue salad. Each comes with two sides and a mug of juice and costs five leaves. Anything on top, you’ll pay extra for. For sides, you can choose between a baked potato, mashed potato, grilled carrots, broccoli soup, rolls, or roasted corn.”

Jade looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded and said. “I’ll take it.”

The poor waitress was confused and maybe a little annoyed at her. “Which one?” 

Jade smiled innocently. “All of them. I want one of each dish and side. And the three mugs, of course.”

The waitress looked a little confused still. “Are you waiting for someone to join you?”

“Nope, just me! Can you maybe sneak me ahead though? I’m starving!” She said the last part with dramatic emphasis, even though it was totally true. 

Hesitantly, the poor waitress asked, “Did you want me to bring it out all at once?”

Jade just grinned and shook her head. “No, just bring whatever’s ready out as it’s ready. I don’t need it all in front of me at the same time!” She laughed softly, and the waitress muttered a soft confirmation before scurrying away.  Looking at the box in her hand, she set it on the far end of the table by the window, figuring there was probably enough room, and opening it up gingerly. She pulled the sculpture out covered in its protective cloth. She put the cloth back in the box, then placed her phoenix on top of it so it was still fairly safe, but now glowing softly at her. 

A giddy smile soon took over her face. This was the first thing she’d ever bought with money she earned herself! (She didn’t want to count the bribe.) She found herself just staring at it dreamily. Where was she going to put it? If the library was safe, maybe she’d leave it there. It could give her courage in the darkness. 

Fairly soon, thankfully, the waitress brought her first dish out with a mug. It was the steak, baked potato, and grilled carrots. Setting it down on the table in front of her, she said cheerfully, “Here you go--is that one of Damian’s creations?” She had paused mid-sentence to stare at the beautiful figurine on the other end of the table. 

“Thanks for getting this out so fast! And yes, it is.” She ignored the shocked look on the lady’s face as she picked up her fork, stabbing a few carrots and shoving them in her mouth. She chewed, moaning very quietly in bliss. 

“It’s so pretty… When did he hire a light mage to help him?” The lady asked in curious awe, seemingly fascinated by her phoenix.

Jade smiled, chewing furiously before she swallowed and answered with a soft snicker, “When I walked into his shop and accidentally lit this phoenix up.” She then proceeded to cut her steak and shove it in her mouth ravenously. Mmmm… It was delicious. She started cutting everything as she chewed for easier access as quickly as possible, pausing only occasionally between bites to sip at her juice. 

“You’re a light mage?” She looked incredulously at the still fairly skeletal Jade before her. 

“Mhmmm. Healer too.” She paused only long enough to give her very short response before digging in again. You did not try to get between a girl and her food! Aside from that, she needed to let people know there was a healer around so she could get practice…and money. 

“Oh.” The lady seemed dumbfounded, but then she noticed how quickly Jade was chowing through the plate in front of her. Startled, she said quickly, “Oh, I’ll be right out with the next meal.” Jade just nodded happily, enjoying her food. She scurried away, and out of the corner of her eye she could see the waitress had flagged another one on her way to the kitchen and they had put their heads together, whispering furiously. 

The two of them returned shortly thereafter with the other two meals and mugs. The new one was staring both at the plate Jade had just finished polishing as she was finishing off her juice with a satisfied sigh. “You finished that already?” She seemed completely shocked, but Jade just smiled sweetly at her.

“I’m a growing girl, and I feel like I haven’t eaten a thing all day.” You know, apart from the three plates of pancakes and eggs this morning. And the half a pig for her midnight snack. But those didn’t count, they were forever ago! They just set the plates and new mugs in front of her, collecting the now empty plate and mug she’d just demolished. She happily started digging in again while they stared at her in amazement for a second. “So good!” She mumbled happily. 

Deciding to leave her alone to eat while they went to attend to other customers, she happily munched. She had slowed down a little bit though, given that she’d alleviated the worst of the hunger pains. It really was good food, and she could see why Lucas had recommended it. For only a crown and a half, she had gotten three decent sized plates. Granted, at that rate, she’d only last a dozen meals before she ran out of money. So while it was amazing, she’d need to see if there was a cheaper, but still filling and delicious, alternative. 

When she was winding down, finally full, the waitress came back again. She cast another admiring glance at her phoenix until she asked politely, “Would you like anything else?” She was still masking her obvious surprise that the waif had managed to eat everything in front of her. When Jade shook her head, she continued. “That’ll be one laurel and five leaves then.” Nodding, Jade reached into her pocket and pulled out two laurels, handing them over to her.  She smiled and took them, saying simply, “I’ll be right back with your change.”

Jade simply nodded, not feeling the need to say anything. She didn’t know the waitress’ name, but that would change now that she had a blinking dot for her. Instead of looking at it, however, she slowly and carefully packed her phoenix back up again. She caught a few people glancing over at it, trying to figure out what was shining. When the waitress, she checked her notifications really quick to get her name; apparently it was Donna, came back, she looked disappointed that she’d put it away already.

“Here you are miss.” She handed her back five leaves, of which Jade took two and handed them right back to her.

“Keep that. Thank you for your help.” She smiled, pausing for effect as she held her box up. Talking just a little louder so that curious ears could hear, she said happily, “Damian has a set of this new line in his shop for sale. We’re calling them the Light Within collection.  You should go take a trip to the Glass Phoenix and see the rest of them.”

“I will. Thank you, miss.” Donna smiled fervently. After all, the Glass Phoenix was only two doors down. Even if they didn’t feel like they could go in, he’d displayed the glowing figurines right at the front of the store so they’d be eye catching, especially as it got darker and the glow became more obvious. It had been her suggestion, and she was fairly proud of it, since that was what had drawn her into the store in the first place. 

Jade grinned and nodded, sauntering cheerfully out of the store, box held tight against her chest. There was absolutely no way she would let anything happen to it. She’d go down and use her body to protect it first. 

She began her trip back to the library, though sadly she was now avoiding people instead of being able to touch them casually. She didn’t want to accidentally bump someone and send herself flying, not with the phoenix in hand! As she was about to walk into the main square, she noticed a store with a few coin pouches in the window, amongst other various cloth items and clothing.

Detouring, she gingerly opened the door, slipping inside to the familiar ding of the bell. A thirty something man who was as lanky as she was came hurrying out of the back with a slightly harried smile. “Hi there! What can I do for you?”

She smiled softly. “Hello. I’m looking for a small, slim coin purse, and maybe a bag.” She wandered closer to the section that was obviously the coin bag section. He came over as well, a more natural smile on his face now.

“We’ve got a lot of very popular bags right now…” He started to go on a spiel, picking up several larger coin bags and extolling her virtues. She stopped him after the second bag when he took a breath, hurrying to interject. 

“I’m sorry if I wasn’t clear. I would like a small, slim, fairly flat bag. Nothing bulky.” He deflated a little now that his sales pitch had been interrupted, but she didn’t want to spend all afternoon in there. She still had another stop to make before she went back to the library, after all! He started pulling out bags from behind the others. They were basically flat pockets, fairly similar to a wallet, but made of cloth and closed with buttons. No zippers? Ugh, at least that’s simple enough to make. Yet another thing for her to ‘invent,’ though she supposed the more there was, the better it was for her in the long run. 

However, her eyes lit up when he pulled out a pretty green bag that matched her eyes. She immediately interrupted his spiel again, saying simply, “I want that one.” He seemed a little deflated again, then seemed to comfort himself by the fact that he was making a sale. Taking it from him, she turned and walked over to the larger bags without giving him a chance to start extolling their virtues. 

Sadly, they were just… sacks with handles of varying quality. No pockets, nothing. Okay, apparently purses and backpacks are on the list as well… How do these people carry anything without mashing it all to heck? She chose a sturdy looking medium sized bag in dark gray and turned to him. “This too. How much is it for both?”

He looked at the two bags, then at her, before saying glibly. “One leaf and eight nuts.” 

Her eyes narrowed. Apparently he didn’t notice that when he’d been rummaging for more bags to show her, she’d noticed tiny numbers discretely penned on the wooden tables they were on. There had been a four on the table with her coin pouch and a six on the table with the bag. Obviously, the coin pouch was of higher quality. Looking at him, she decided he thought she was a pushover and had jacked the price to nearly double, planning to pocket the difference. 

“Oh really? Because I think that the purse was four and the bag was six nuts, leading me to believe the price was only one leaf.” Thinking of something, she silently drew her library card out of her pocket, staring him straight in the eye as she slid it into the coin pouch. “Now, do I need to talk to your boss, or are you going to be reasonable?” He blanched. Sweet, it really worked! She had figured the silver card was a basic indicator of power around here, especially this close to the square, and she was proven right. 

“N-no, you’re right. I must’ve been m-mistaken. One leaf for both.” He was stuttering in his urgency to appease her. She narrowed her eyes, pulling out a leaf and handing it to him.

“Very well.” She turned with her bags and began to walk to the door. She paused there, looking back at him as she said with a softly threatening voice, “Don’t ever try that again.” He looked scared, and she smirked evilly as she opened the door and walked outside, letting the door loudly clang shut behind her. She stepped to the side of traffic flow, quickly putting the remainder of her coins in the pouch before slipping it into her bra. Hey, it was the safest spot where she was most likely to feel if someone tried to take it. Besides, not like she had much going on there…though she did have something now! Huzzah!

The phoenix box was now safely ensconced in the larger cloth bag, which was in turn still held tightly to her chest.  No way was she letting go!

Cheerfully humming let it go, she pranced proudly towards her last stop, the nearby bakery. It looked a little nicer than the last one, and it wasn’t quite as crowded. All of the merchandise was behind the counter as well. 

She waited a minute until it was her turn at the counter, then happily ordered six muffins, two loaves of various sweetbreads, three baguette like breads, two chocolate croissants, three rolls, and two small cheese wheels--one white, one yellow. 

The woman took everything and then said simply, “Would you like an extra croissant to round it off to an even four leaves?”

“Yes, please!” She had been trying to hold back on only ordering two of the chocolatey goodness, but screw it. She pulled her coin purse out of her bra to the lady’s raised eyebrow, checking her coins. She frowned slightly, which caused the lady to frown. She shook her head with a sigh, “Sorry, I thought I had exact change. Can you break a laurel for me?”

“Oh, of course!” Jade handed it over and the lady took it with relief, counting six leaves back to her. It was obvious she thought she wasn’t going to have enough for the massive amount she’d ordered. It was wrapped neatly in two little cloths, and she smiled, putting it into her bag, which she now held in front of her gingerly after tucking the coin purse away again.

“Thanks, have a great day!”

“Come back anytime!” The woman called out cheerfully. Like seriously, anytime. She would be happy to have such a big spender coming back. Jade just grinned, making her way to the library. 

Inside, she bounced happily towards Lucas, who was once again reading. He actually looked up before he said anything this time, which was an improvement. Apparently this morning had given him a scare! He smiled upon seeing her grinning face, then sniffed the air as she got closer. He asked in a warning voice, “Jade, did you bring food to the library?”

Defensively, she reached into her bag and said defensively, “Eric said I could, as long as I didn’t get anything on the books. I asked, okay. I’m speshul.” He was shaking his head at her, but she ignored that and pulled out her little metal box, placing it on the counter and opening it, taking out the phoenix and unwrapping it before proudly showing Lucas. “Look! I made it sparkle! Isn’t it pretty?”