Chapter 6 - The Café

Avyanna woke up to the sound of birds chirping and yawned. Waking up somewhere she wasn't used to, it took her about five minutes to get used to the light and remember what happened yesterday. It turns out she slept through the whole night. Yesterday was a lot for her, both physically and emotionally. She started, telling herself she needed to get up and wondering what time it was.

She flipped off her sheets, stepped out of bed, and took a moment to take in the view outside her window. If she had to guess, it was probably around six o'clock. The river reflected the sunrise. Behind the river was a thick and dense forest. It was fall, and the leaves were starting to change colour. The air in Maguna had a much cleaner smell than the earth did. Taking a deep breath, she changed into a new pair of clothes.

She unlocked her door and walked down the hallway into the dining portion of the inn. To her surprise, Jamie was already awake.

"Good morning, Anna. I guess you knocked out, huh?" She said.

"Yup, I didn't expect to sleep for so long. I travelled for a while yesterday; it probably drew a lot of my energy." Avy said.

Jamie smiled and walked into the kitchen. "I hope that the trip was at least peaceful. You didn't eat last night; let me make you something. Would a simple egg and toast work for you? I'm not that great at cooking, and the cook isn't up yet, but I hope it will tie you over."

Anna told her it sounded great and asked if Jamie would want any help. But she said no, so Amy just sat down and waited for the food to be ready. After about ten minutes, Jamie woke up at her table and delivered the food. One for her and one for herself.

After Anna and Jamie had breakfast, they made their way out of the inn to check out the shop. It was at the very edge of the town, located right next to the forest. It had two stories, with a brown door in the front. Beside the door, there were two windows. On the second floor, there was a balcony that allowed people to access the outside. The exterior was in good condition. Jamie pulled out the keys and unlocked the doors. There was a slight creek as they opened, but the inside looked like it had been cleaned recently. The main floor was pretty much empty, aside from a table and a few chairs.

Jamie pulled out one of the seats, sat down, and started reminiscing. "My grandma used to run a restaurant here, but it closed down when my grandfather passed away. As a kid, I used to come here all the time with my cousins. This place brings back good memories, but I know I'm not treating it the way my grandparents would have wanted me to. In a way, I feel bad that they left me the place."

Thinking back to her parents at home, she formed somewhat of a sad smile. "It sounds like your grandparents were lovely people."

Hitting the table, Jamie stood up. "Yup, they were great people anyway. Let's look upstairs. Just to let you know, it hasn't been cleaned in a while."

The upstairs was quite simple. The main space was the bedroom, with a large closet on the side of the wall and a wooden bedframe with no mattress. There were also two separate rooms, a bathroom, and a small library/office. Five windows opened onto the balcony, one larger than the other four. The shop had all the basic things that Anna was looking for. She hoped to turn the first floor into a café to make some income. Satisfied, Anna asked, "So, how much are you looking to sell it for?"

Taking a deep breath, Jamie said, "Um, I was thinking around four gold coins. Is that too much?"

Anna had twenty-three gold coins, so it was well within her budget. She said, "That is way too little. I will double it. I will give it to you as soon as I get back to the inn."

Suppressed Jamie exclaimed, "Are you sure? That is a lot of money. That could last you at least ten years living by yourself."

Smiling, Anna replied, "I'm sure we should go to the bank to do the transaction today. I also want to go buy some necessities."

"Oh my gosh, I forgot to tell you I can't go into town today. I promised to look after my neighbour's kids. Since you don't have much with you, you will probably need to go into town, right? I can give you a map; the path is pretty clear and safe, so you should be fine by yourself. With your horse, it shouldn't take too long." Said, Jamie

"That's too bad. I think that I will go to town today. I want to pick up some things from the shop we will visit. But I will give you the gold coins before you leave." Said Anna

Jamie handed Anna the keys to the shop as they walked back to the inn. Along the way, Jamie talked about some of the shops she recommended in town. When they got back to the inn, Anna grabbed her bag and gave Jamie the eight gold coins. She grabbed her horse and went to the shop to drop off the clothing she did not need. And she made her way to town, following the map. When she arrived in town, she promised to pay her fare at the guild center. One of the soldiers escorted her there and told one of the staff to make sure she paid. After talking with the staff for around forty minutes, she walked out of the guild with her new identification, which also functioned as a credit card.

The city was called Tending Town, and it was one of the biggest towns nearby. The town was the place where all the small towns brought their products to sell. After exiting the guild, the first shop she visited was a general travel store. She bought a bag that she could mount on the back of her horse. After that, she picked up some food, cooking tools, clothing, first-aid supplies (this includes pads), and healing potions in case something happened.

After packing everything in her bags, she started to make her way back home. About halfway through the trip, she took a short water break for her horse, as it was carrying a lot of weight. When she was about to get back on the road, she heard an animal cry.