Mother grabbed a little bell that we used to call the butler. She flicked her wrist back and forth, the bell sounding out and startling the nearest maid. After a few moments, he appeared. He was an older man—about fifty—with greying hair and weathered skin. He wore a black suit and a red tie; his hair slicked back into a low ponytail. “Mistress Arin, what assistance do you require?”
“Is the carriage available?”
“Yes Ma’am. Would you like me to prepare it for you?” he asked.
Mother nodded in response. “Please.”
The butler hurried out of the room, returning a few moments later. “Do you require any assistance with Young Master Dalleon?”
Mother picked me up and rested me on her hip. “I should be fine. Can you handle the finances? I was thinking about having lunch at the local inn today. They have a new dish imported from Testion.” Mother tapped her foot on the ground, intensively thinking. “I’d also like to buy Dalleon a few pairs of pants. I suppose I should drop by the tailors’ while I’m out. They usually charge around 20 bronze” Her voice drifted into mumbles as she talked to herself. Mother was extremely good at maths in her head—as long as she could talk it out to herself. Otherwise… Well not as good.
Mother’s voice picked back up. “So, I believe that would bring our budget to one gold coin, one gold half 15 silver and 32 bronze?”
“Yes Ma’am. I will bring them out to you after I help you with the carriage.”
Mother, content with the plan, spoke. “Let us go then.” She walked towards the door as the maid opened it for us. Mother carried me just outside and into the property, down a gravel path that led to our driveway. Actually, it wasn’t much of a driveway, just a bigger gravel path that was large enough for a horse drawn carriage. The path led into our local village, but today we were going into a slightly bigger town, Buhrgbrannen, which was around eleven kilometres away. A horse drawn carriage sat on the road. It was rather big, with huge wheels and large, stylized windows. Two brilliant white colts were hitched to the carriage, their hooves restlessly scratching the ground.
After we were seated inside the carriage, a maid stepped inside. Although I had never been out, I knew that at least one maid came with Mother whenever she went out. I didn’t know exactly why, but presumably to carry her bags and assist with other needs.
The ride into town didn’t take too long, only around an hour. I barely noticed the ride, as I was preoccupied with watching all the new scenery. The only thing I’d seen so far was the garden that surrounded the house. Even peeking over the stone walls all I could see was pastures of green grass and the tops of buildings peeking out from the trees.
Soon, the bumping of the carriage stopped. We had arrived on the outskirts of town. Even here, people rushed about. The carriage opened and Mother stepped out. The maid picked me up, passing me over to Mother’s waiting arms.
The coach stayed seated as we made our way into town. The main square was a collection of shops and stalls built around a huge fountain. Clear water flowed freely out of a statue of the king. A kid who looked to be around ten was carefully using water magic to collect water into a bucket. It seemed that fresh water came out of the fountain here and whoever had water mana in a family would be assigned to collect it. I suppose the same principles applied to other magic types too. Our chef had fire magic and one maid had wind and water magic that she used to collect dust and clean the floors more easily.
As we strolled down the street, we stopped at a few places to browse available items. Food stalls sold smoking meat and juicy fruits. We soon came to a building with a sign saying, “Brunner's Blacksmithing.” Mother passed me to the maid, pulling open the door and walking inside. She stepped out soon after with a few bundles of arrows in her arms. I had learned through eavesdropping on my parents' conversations that Father had a deal with Brunner to receive monthly deliveries of arrows. A few were infused with magic, others reinforced with special metal coatings made of a material that resembled a tungsten tip. I figured that it would only be a few years before Father began training me in self defence. Though if my parents learned about my magical abilities, that might become top priority. If I had learnt water magic so fast, there's a good chance I’ll learn the others just as fast.
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Mother and the maid traded bundles and agreed to meet at the local inn. The maid was to stop by a few other places, mainly the fabric store, deliver the cargo to the carriage, and then return to assist mother after she picked out a few new clothes for me.
“Well then Dalleon, let us be on our way.” Mother hoisted me up and we navigated the streets of the square, walking by many things I hadn’t seen since my rebirth. For one, there must have been a farmers’ market of some sort, because there were countless stands selling anything from fresh produce to organic honey. Mom continued to walk as I made sounds of amazement, my senses almost overloaded as all the new smells and sights hit me.
After we’d passed the stands, actual buildings began to populate the roads. Most seemed to be restaurants and small shops, but a few piqued my interest. For example, a smaller building had a big logo containing a horse and letter. Must be a post office. I thought. Another that interested me was a huge building that loomed above all the others, its sign containing a logo of fruit and veggies. Is that a grocery store?
Mother soon stopped, arriving at a medium sized building with a sign saying, “Barissa’s Baby Boutique,” I smiled at the catchy name as Mother pulled open the door and walked inside. A bell rang, like you’d hear at a barber’s shop back on Earth, and a voice yelled from the little area behind the counter. “I’ll be out in a moment!.” I heard frantic shuffling, and an older lady walked out from the swinging door that separated the back from the counter. The lady began by asking, “Is there anything I— Oh,” She paused as she caught sight of Mother and me. “Madam Arin! Welcome, welcome, dear.” She hustled over to us, and I saw her eyes flick down towards me as she gasped. “Is that baby Dalleon!?” The lady—who I assumed was Barissa—had a very loud and energetic voice. It almost seemed like she was screaming most of the time. Mother nodded as Barissa fawned over me. “You finally brought him to me! Are you looking for clothes today?”
Mother responded, “Well yes, I was looking for a few better fitting outfits. Maybe a pair of nightclothes as well?”
Barissa shook her head, a huge smile on her face. “Yes, yes! We can definitely do that. Are we fitting him, or are we buying a premade size?”
“I was thinking we could fit him for his new clothes, make sure they're as comfy as can be. Isn’t that right Dalleon?” She looked down and bopped my nose with the top of her finger, the sudden pressure on my nose making me sneeze. My head shook as a big glob of snot forced itself out of my nose, right onto Mother’s hand. She laughed, asking, “Do you have a disposable handkerchief, Barissa?”
Barissa nodded and hurried over to the counter, grabbing a box from under it and shuffling back over. She pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to Mother, who wiped the snot off her hand. She dropped the handkerchief back into Barissa’s hand, who promptly threw it away.
“Whenever you’re ready, Madam,” Barissa spoke, and Mother gestured for her to get her materials.
Barissa left for a few minutes, then came back to fetch me. She carried me into a small room where she then measured me, looked over colours, and tested how my skin reacted to different fabric types. “Fur would probably be too heavy. And hot. Maybe… Chenille… Cotton might work…” Barissa rambled on and on (and on, and on, and on… I mean, it seemed as if she could talk about fabric types all day.) She quickly picked up a notebook and started sketching frantically.
Nearly fifteen minutes later, it seemed like she had finally decided on what she wanted. “Miss Arin! I think I’ve found a few good designs for you!” Mother walked into the room and looked over a few pages. Barissa began to sputter out words, all quick thoughts as if she couldn’t string anything together. “So I decided cotton would work best for his nightclothes, since it’s nice and warm on cold nights. Oh, and… Fur should be best for his other clothes! So, what do you think, Madam?”
Mother slightly turned her head. “Yes, I think that would work well. Oh, I also found a few things outside that I would like to get. Would you mind stepping out for payment?”
“Of course, of course,” Mother grabbed me and stepped out of the room, closely followed by Barissa. Once back in the main room, Barissa went over to check where the maid had appeared, holding a few pairs of shoes and a couple bibs for when I ate. The total amount owed came out to a gold half and a silver(roughly £300) . The maid put the clothes in a bag and tied it up tight. After Barissa counted the coins, she hastily walked back over to Mother.
“Shall I start the fitting, then?” She asked. Mother leaned forward as my grip on her shoulder fell and I dropped into her arms. She then handed me to Barissa, who laid me across her shoulder and carried me to the back. She sat me down, grabbed a measuring tape, and started to measure me. After a few moments, she smiled at me and picked me back up. Walking back to Mother, she spoke. “Okay Madam, everything should be set! You can come pick up your clothes in ten business days. I should be done with them by then, so drop by anytime after that.”
She smiled brightly at Mother, who responded, “Sounds great, Barissa. I’ll be on my way then.” Barissa gave me a little wave, before wishing us a good day. Mother, satisfied that I would have good clothes, walked out of the store. The little bell rang as we exited and Mother negotiated when and where to meet up. Soon, they had decided on the plan: the maid was to go back to the carriage and pick up our order of groceries, and then drop everything off and make her way to the local inn.