Alchemist’s Apprentice

My eyes were probably shining as bright as the little pile of gold coins in my sister's hand. I struggled to keep from smiling too widely as Cathryn tucked the coins into her purse then handed over our last six vials of healing potion.

Hands were shook, then the burly man turned and left. I moved to bar the door after him, since our shop still wasn't really open for business yet.

"So what now?" I asked as I turned back to face my sister. "We need more healing potion right? Only four days since you demonstrated that potion for Lucas, and we're sold out. We have to get more ready, we can't afford to turn customers away."

Cat smiled, "Calm down cutie. It's brewed in batches, the next batch will be ready for bottling in two days. And batch three will be ready a week after that. Now that we're up to speed, we'll be turning out about twenty vials every single week."

"Is that enough?" I asked. "There's still talk of war, since the duke conscripted all those men."

My sister shrugged, "It'll have to do Valeria. I'm not prepared to invest in the supplies and equipment to churn out large quantities of low-quality potions. I'd rather sell a hundred vials of top-quality potions at two crowns apiece than a thousand flasks of trash at two steeds each."

Before I could respond she added, "We can discuss this later, now it's time to get back to work."

"Ok Cat," I nodded.

Neither of us made it more than two steps before there was another knock at the door. I turned back to answer it, though I dreaded having to tell whoever it was that we were sold out of healing potion. At least we'd have more in a couple days, I just had to hope whoever it was would bother coming back again.

I unbarred the door then opened it, but instead of a merchant or craftsman I found myself looking up at a middle-aged gentleman dressed in the sort of finery that could only mean nobility.

He looked down at me and raised an eyebrow. "Are you the alchemist?"

"No sir," I responded with a curtsey. "I am her apprentice. How may I help you?"

"I should like to speak with your mistress," he replied.

His tone wasn't demanding or rude, he didn't even seem put off that he was talking to a mere apprentice. If anything the fellow seemed rather polite and approachable. Still, he was dressed in clothing that probably cost more than our entire home and everything in it. He was either a noble or a fantastically wealthy merchant, and either way that meant he was someone important and special.

Fortunately my sister was still nearby and she overheard the conversation. She took over for me, opening the door fully and welcoming the man inside.

"Greetings sir," she curtsied as well. "I am Cathryn Mercier, master alchemist. What may I do for you?"

I made a point of finding things to do that kept me in earshot, like sweeping the floor and dusting empty shelves and things like that. I was equal parts anxious but eager, I wanted to know who this guy was and what he wanted. And I wanted to see how my sister would handle the situation.

The man introduced himself as a Lord, but didn't mention any other titles or anything. He didn't look like a knight, which meant he was probably a second or third son. That meant noble blood and money, but he wasn't a duke or count or baron or anything like that.

According to my father, folks like that usually fell into two groups. First there were the dangerous ones who had frustrated ambitions. Knowing they wouldn't inherit their father's titles and appointments, they plotted and schemed, and they used their nobility as an excuse to hassle and bully us commoners.

Then there was the other group, the ones who were happy not to have the pressure of inheritance and responsibility awaiting them. They tended to be more laid-back, their lives might not amount to much but they were rich and comfortable. So they simply relaxed and enjoyed their easy-going lives.

And fortunately, my gut was telling me this customer was that second kind. He seemed polite and affable, and while I couldn't quite hear everything he and Cathryn were discussing I could at least tell by his tone that he wasn't being rude or demanding.

I was also confident he wasn't here for healing potions, or that would have been a very short conversation. Instead he and my sister talked for some five or ten minutes. The thing that made me nervous was for a minute or two both the customer and Cathryn kept looking over at me as they talked. Neither of them called me over though, whatever was going on didn't actually involve me it seemed.

In the end there was a handshake, then my heart skipped a beat as the noble produced a coin purse and started counting out money. That took long enough that my heart started racing, as I couldn't help wondering what he wanted and how expensive it was that he needed a full minute to count coins.

In the end almost a full purse of money changed hands, Cathryn curtsied again, then saw him out. She closed and barred the door behind him, then when she turned back towards me the big smile on her face got my heart racing again.

"What did he want?" I asked as I hurried over to her. "And how much did he pay you?"

Cat carefully tipped out the contents of her purse on the counter, and my eyes went as wide as could be. A veritable pile of small platinum coins sat on the dark polished wood surface.

"One hundred platinum sovereigns down payment," she announced proudly. "And a further four hundred are due upon completion of the potions."

After giving me a moment to get my jaw up off the floor she added, "And now my darling little sister, you and I have a lot to do and not much time to do it. Lord Olivier requires two Minor Transformation potions, two Permanency potions, and one Fertility potion. We have ten days to get them ready."

I gulped, "Is that enough time? Will you be able to do it? We can't mess this up, it's your first commission!"

"We'll be fine," Cat replied with a confident smile. "I can come up with a couple permanence potions in a few days. Most of my time will be the two custom transformation brews."

"And the fertility potion?" I asked.

She smiled, "You'll be preparing a batch of that, while I'm working on the commission."

That left me feeling equal parts nervous and excited, and I gulped "But Cat I have no idea how to do that! Are you sure my very first attempt at making a potion should be for a customer who's paying five hundred sovereigns?"

"It'll be fine," she assured me. "He's paying for the transformation and permanence potions, I'm giving him the fertility potion for free. Ironic since he actually came in for the fertility potion, and I managed to talk him into the big order."

"Seriously?!" I gasped. "What's the fertility potion worth?"

She grinned, "Ten silver steeds? They're pretty simple and fairly common."

That left me speechless. My sister turned a simple ten-steed nothing order into a five-hundred-sovereign windfall, and I was almost in awe of her.

"So what did he actually want?" I finally asked. "What minor transformations?"

Cat's grin turned into a smirk, "Apparently his wife is rather flat in the chest, but Lord Olivier found your figure to be quite inspiring. And for himself, he'd like to be a little more well-endowed in a certain way, so he's better able to please his wife than he is right now."

"Needless to say this should all be kept in strictest confidence," she added. "What we do for our clients is between us and them, no-one else needs to know."

I nodded, "Of course, I wouldn't think of telling anyone. Except um, what about his wife? Is he going to tell her about these potions? Like if he's going to give her a transformation potion and a permanence without telling her..."

My sister shook her head, "That won't happen. I told him I wouldn't give him a transformation potion for his wife, unless he brought her in and I could give it to her directly. That way I can make sure it's her choice and she knows what she's getting into. Same with the fertility potion, and the contraception potion. Those potions only affect women, and we only sell them to women."

"Good," I nodded again. "Thanks Cat. I should have known you'd already be on top of that stuff."

She gave me a smile then gestured to the workshop, "C'mon cutie. We've got a lot to do, and only ten days to do it."

'A lot to do' was something of an understatement, but in a way it was nice to be so busy. The money didn't hurt either of course. The hundred sovereign downpayment was very carefully hidden away, then I spent the rest of the day studying one of Cat's alchemy books and reading up on the ingredients and method for the fertility potion. Meanwhile my sister was reviewing one of her other books while making notes and double-checking the ingredients and reagents we had on hand.

The following morning we were up with the sun and out at the market before breakfast, to purchase what we didn't already have in our workshop. That was an expensive outing, but I couldn't get worked up over spending the equivalent of sixty-three gold crowns when we had those hundred platinum sovereigns stashed away back home.

After the shopping there were just a couple more ingredients we both needed, but they weren't the kind you bought at the market. And while I couldn't deny it was fun collecting them, I couldn't shake that sense of how weird I still found it.

At least I was used to the milking, and as soon as the bottle was full Cat took it down to the workshop with her. That left me to collect a sufficient quantity of the other ingredient, which I needed for a batch of fertility potions. And at last my sister was proved right, I was was glad she gave me that volume potion way back when. Otherwise it would have taken far too long to produce the required amount.

Even so, I still needed a half hour to recover afterwards. Then I headed down the stairs and joined my sister in the workshop. She was using the main work bench, while the smaller table had been set aside for me to use. And while she had first choice of all the best equipment, I made do with what I could.

I followed the method in the book as carefully as I could, and whenever Cat had a moment she'd double-check that I wasn't making any mistakes.

According to the book it would take a week to prepare the fertility potion, though about half that time was just waiting for things to ferment or distill or otherwise react.

The next day both Cat and I were busy bottling the next batch of healing potions, though she left much of that in my hands since she was busy with her custom brewing while I was waiting for my batch to do its thing.

And that was pretty much the pattern for the next week or so. I still had my other responsibilities, though tending the fertility potion took precedence. So things like fetching water from the well, cleaning our home, making meals, even going to the market, all had to happen in the times when I wasn't doing some critical handling or manipulation of the brew that would hopefully become a magic potion by the time I was finished.

Cathryn was just as busy, more so even since she was actually working to produce two unique custom potions and two doses of another complicated potion all at the same time.

On top of all that, we still had people showing up now and then looking to purchase some healing potions, which was wonderful but also distracting. It was hard to believe how quickly our fortunes changed, from one week to the next I went from being awed at the prospect of a two-crown sale to being mildly annoyed at having to stop what I was doing to collect a mere two crowns for a vial.

Needless to say, the two of us put in a lot of long days. Despite spending hours on end next to each other in the workshop we rarely spoke outside of what was necessary for the job. Meals were taken before dawn or after dusk, and all we did in bed was sleep.

We did it though, and in the end after all that work I had a batch of two dozen vials of fertility potion. And Cat had four very valuable vials completed.

As usual everything was colour coded. The fertility potions carried a pleasing verdant green tone while the two custom Minor Transformation potions were coloured light pink and light blue respectively. And the permanence were both clear.

On the day our customer was due back to collect his order both my sister and I made sure to wash up, and we both dressed in clean clothes. I was a bit anxious but Cat seemed relaxed and calm.

Lord Olivier arrived at noon sharp, and this time he had his wife at his side. Once again I wasn't part of the conversation, but I made a point of hanging around so I could watch and observe. Nobody complained or commented, and I figured it wasn't uncommon for apprentices to be curious how their masters do business.

Like before I couldn't hear much of the conversation, but I was able to watch it play out. And to start with, my attention was on the lord and his wife.

The age difference between the two was obvious, he was in his forties and she was probably no older than Cathryn. It was probably an arranged marriage, but the young noblewoman didn't seem unhappy. In fact she seemed to enjoy her husband's company, she stayed close and frequently made physical contact with him. She wasn't scared or timid though, she didn't cling to him for protection. And she took an active part in the conversation at times. To me she appeared curious and intelligent.

After some ten or twelve minutes Cathryn placed five vials on the counter. The blue one and one of the clear ones were set before Lord Olivier, and I watched Cat quietly explain in detail how to take them and what they both did.

Then she addressed Lady Olivier, as she indicated the pink, clear, and green vials in turn. This was a longer conversation, and the Lady asked some questions and discussed things with my sister. That was in contrast with her husband who just quietly listened to the instructions without asking for details or clarification.

At long last the lord picked up his two vials and tucked them away, while the lady took her three and slipped them into a hidden location in her dress. Then Lord Olivier took out four full coin purses, one at a time. Each was opened and the contents revealed to Cat, then she hid them away behind the counter.

And with that the business was concluded. The two nobles left our shop with smiles on their faces, and I secured the door behind them.

"We're taking the rest of the day off," Cat announced when I turned back to face her. "You and I are going to celebrate!"

"You're the boss," I replied with a big grin on my face.