Chapter 4

The merchandising guild was a stone building with two stories. When you entered the building there was an open space with tables and chairs, behind the open area were several desks with clerks behind them. There were stairs that led up to an open space with more tables and chairs. There was a bar behind those table and chairs. It was nice. People were talking to each other at the tables. It sounded like important conversions about how they ran their business. I walked up to one of the desks. Trying not to bring attention to myself. 

“Hello ma’am, my name is Wonda. How can I help you?” There was kindness in her voice. She looked me up and down. I wondered if she noticed my horns.

“I’m new in the capital. I would like to purchase a building I can use as a home and a shop.” She turned around, and walked to a table full of maps. She came back with 3 papers rolled up. 

“Right now we only have 5 buildings available. Do you know what kind of shop you want?” 

“Yes. I want to open a bakery that sells wine on the side.”

“Oh. Will your husband be signing today.” I looked down. It was normal for the husband to buy the business. I was a women. For me to have my own business would not be easy. I looked back up at her, smiled, and firmly spoke.

“No, it will only be me.” Her eyes widen. She was surprised a women wanted to start a business. I was surprized she did not ask me if I was a widow. I am old enough to have married.

“There are only 2 buildings with stone ovens in them. One building has 3 ovens, but it is not cheap.” 

“The other building?” I asked, my hopes fading. Was I really going to be able to buy a shop to rebuild the shop my family put their heart into? 

“This one only has one oven, and it has an upstairs you could live in. The downside is the shop. there is a fancy shop right next to it, so it will be hard to get people to enter your shop.” She pointed to the spot on the map. I noticed the building was close to the castle. This would not be cheap. Maybe the customers will make up for it... if I can bring people into my shop.

“How much?”

“15 gems, and they have to be a decent size.” I opened the pouch I had the gems in. I had 8 big gems, and 10 shardes. How much would I need to start my business? I’d need flour, butter, milk, eggs, fruit, sugar, and barrels. 

“Okay, here you go.” I put the 6 gems on the table, then pushed them toward her. She looked down at them, then back up at me. 

“How?” I looked confused at her qeustion. 

“How what?” She picked up one gem. 

“How do you have this much? Most people pay little by little, not all at once!” I looked dumbfounded. I thought this was normal for the capital. Was making one gem a day normal here too? I wish I would have known I could pay little by little before showing her all of my money.

“I inherited it from my mother.” She looked at me confused.

“Where is your mother or even your father?” I frowned.

“They died in a horrible fire.” She sighed in shock. 

“That horrible.” I thought to myself… I did say a horrible fire. 

“Yes, I know.” She took the gems and the papers to the back. When she came back, she had another paper.

“Can you read and write?” Her qeustion almost made me giggle. It was not normal for a women to be able to, but my father knew I was smart. I taught me everything he taught my brother.

“Yes.” She handed me the paper. It stated that I was the new owner of the property, and that I paid full price. On the paper was a spot for me to sign. I wrote my name. She took the paper from me, then handed me another one. This one read that I was opening a bakery that sold wine on the side. After that, it said I was to pay 5% of whatever I made a day to the merchandising guild. This was the fee for having a licence, and selling in the capital. I signed it too. 

“Alrighty. You are all set to start your business.” She handed me a map that led the way to my new shop. I took the carriage. The building was several blocks in. It sat in between a house and a cafa for rich people. My shop was small. Downstairs had a kitchen, a front room, and a storage room. There were stairs in the storage room that  lead to a bedroom. It was like a small attic. This was it. I finally had a place to call home, and to keep my family’s memory alive. 

I spent the rest of my money on getting a stall for Alsie at the local stable, and getting ingredients to start baking. I got enough supplies to make one barrel of strawberry wine, one small cake, and 10 loaves of bread. I even had enough left over to make my sister special sugar fruit bread. I could only make 3, but it was a start. I stayed up the whole night baking. The wine took the morning to make, but it has to ferment for 2 weeks before I could sell it. My dad normally got 100 or so bottles from one 20 gallon barrel. I went to bed around sunrise, and didn’t open the shop until noon. I did not know if I would get any customers the first day. I did not have the money to get decor yet. The pastries and bread sat on top of the counter in a pan. It was like I was selling from a stand. I did get a sign for the shop. I decided to go with the family name for my bakery.

Celestia’s Bakery 

My family’s last name was passed down from a family legend. Supposedly, our ancestors were a favorite of god, and were protected by angels. I laughed at the thought. If God loved my family so much, then why did he let them die? At that moment, a man walked into my shop. I could not believe my eyes. A man with metallic white skin, an oval face, and silver hair with bangs that covered half his face walked in. He wore a plain, cloth shirt and pants, but his body was muscular underneath. Above his head was a circle of light, shining like 1,000 torches. Behind him; wings, bright white like the moon, with a silver tint to them. I wondered if my eyes were playing tricks on me.