The Shamer's Daughter - A Fanfiction

Chapter 19 - The Widow

All she had to do after getting through the gates was to follow the spear of the Saint Adela Church. It didn't take long to find it, because it was visible from most every part of the city, even though her eyes were covered in hair the whole time. She had walked quickly and with a determined mind, so it didn't take long for her to reach the picket fence around the Apothecary Gardens. As soon as she swung open the small garden gate, she was met by smells that reminded her of home. Many herbs that she recognised from her mother's stash or the flower bed in front of their house. But also plants she didn't recognise - but she felt sure that if her mother had been here, she could have told her the name of every single one of them. A woman was kneeling by the herb bed by the gravel bath, pulling cloves of garlic from the earth. She was wearing a hat of straw that shaded her face and she didn't notice Dina until she spoke.

"Madam Petri?" She only now remembered what Magnus had said her name was.

"Yes?" The woman answered as she turned around and wiped her forehead under the hat with the back of her hand. Dina was surprised to see that she was wearing a yellow shirt with a green skirt, because she had expected her to be wearing all black. Maybe because everyone apparently just called her 'the widow'. She was also younger than Dina had imagined. She looked slightly younger than her own mother, and not at all like the old wrinkly lady Dina had expected to meet. Neat red hair stuck to her face from the sweat, but there were only very few traces of gray in it, that Dina couldn't see from where she was standing.

"I have a message from Mr Magnus," Dina stated in a voice that felt surprisingly confident.

"Is that so?" Madam Petri answered with a little smile and shook the dirt from her hands and wiped the rest in her apron. She got up and picked up a few tools from beside her. She was quite a tall woman, but still had a manor of elegance about her. "Well we better get inside then. Would you mind getting that basket for me, please?" She pointed without even looking at Dina and started heading for the door of the little house in front of them. But Dina was already carrying her own basket, so only her left arm was free, and she couldn't carry a leaf with that hand. None-the-less, she lifted it from her pocket and tried to close her finger around its handle, but since two of her fingers still werenøt working properly, she accidentally knocked it over so all the gloves fell to the ground.

"I'm sorry." She said, looking down in a hurry when she felt the widow's eyes on her. "I have hurt my arm."

"Is that why he sent you?" For a moment, Madam Petri looked almost disappointed.

"No," Dina started picking up the mess she had made..

"Oh, just leave them." Petri said. "I'll get them later." She smiled again trying to catch her eyes, but for some reason, the boy wouldn't look at her. But he followed her to the house when she opened the door for him.

"Have a seat." Petri gestured to a chair by the kitchen table. "I'll have a look at your arm while you tell me what dear Magnus has to say." Something in that subtle and genuine smile made Dina feel like she could really trust her. She looked around the small kitchen. It looked more like a work space than a kitchen. There were shelves everywhere stocked with herbs and jars and bottles of different fluids. Sha kneeled by her side and started unwrappig her wounded arm. "So, what does he want from me, the old grump?"

"I was supposed to tell you, that someone the Dragon is hunting needs your help." Petri stopped in the middle of a movement.

"I should have guessed." She mumbled. "He always stuck by that boy. He better be right." She continued her unwrapping and Dina clenched her teeth as she felt the fabric starting to move against her skin.

"I was also to tell you, that the Dragon forced its way to the throne." Dina continued and Petri was very close to looking her in the eye, but Dina avoided her at the last second.