“I heard you have all the knowledge of the legendary apothecary, Marguerite. I want to be an apothecary, too. Please, let me be your apprentice.”
“Apprentice? Lara, where are you from?” Olivia asked.
“The capital. I came by myself by carriage.”
“By yourself, from the capital? That must have been a difficult journey. First things first, come over here and have a seat.”
Olivia took a casual look at the girl while she urged her to a chair. She looked rather classy, but something about her didn’t feel like nobility. Perhaps she’s the daughter of a wealthy merchant? she wondered as she made some apple tea.
“This is amazing! It smells just like sweet apples,” said Lara.
“I’ve added the flesh and skin of dried apples to the tea. Right, so, about what you said earlier,” Olivia said, getting them back on topic. “I’m not taking on apprentices. I’m not even working as an apothecary. I’m sorry I can’t help even though you’ve come out all this way.”
“I guessed that might be the case. Mister Auber said you’d definitely refuse.”
“You know Randall?” The intense dejection on Lara’s face made Olivia feel uncomfortable. “What I know I just memorized by reading the notes my grandmother left behind. What if you copied them?”
“Could I? But they’re such valuable resources.”
“I don’t mind. I’m sure my grandmother would be happy if her knowledge did some good in your hands. But copying them will be a huge undertaking in and of itself. There’s a lot.”
“It’d probably take several days, wouldn’t it?”
“I think so. I doubt you’d finish in three or four days even if you spent all day copying from morning until night.”
“Sounds about right. It is the entire life’s work of the great Lady Marguerite, after all.”
At that point, Olivia realized she’d forgotten to ask one very important question. “Lara, do your parents know you’re here?”
“No. I was…run out of my home. Because, out of all my siblings, I’m the only one with a different mom. I depended on my dad, but he died. My stepmom said she had no obligation to take care of me anymore, and that she’d give me a carriage if I’d just leave. But, thanks to that, I finally get to go after my dream. The only thing I own right now is my horse and my carriage. So, as embarrassing as it is, I don’t have a whole lot in my pockets. Could I stay here? Just even in the corner of the barn, and just while I copy everything.”
Olivia’s mind had been leaning towards firmly refusing until that point, but that flipped to “I want to help this girl,” so forcefully there was practically a loud clang when it did.
“You’ve been through all that? Well, there’s an outbuilding behind his house. The goats live on the first floor, so you’ll hear some noises from them, but the second floor is clean. You could stay there, if you like.”
“Are you sure? You’re a lifesaver! Thank you, Ms. Olivia!”
“Please, just Olivia.”
“Sure thing, Olivia. Thank you for everything.”
“Of course. Take your time copying, Lara.”
Olivia gave Lara the books Marguerite left behind and a set of writing utensils, then went to prepare dinner.
Today, she was making a stew from chestnuts dried until they were crispy crunchy, as well as dried mushrooms. It was loaded with onion, carrot, and dried celery, just covered with water and simmered on a gentle flame. Once warm, she added chicken stock and salt, then boiled it all together.
While the stew was simmering, she worked on a side dish of pan-fried homemade bacon and beans. Just as she was frying the beans in the bacon fat, she turned around and saw Lara sniffing the aroma wafting from the kitchen with rapt attention.
Oh, what if…? thought Olivia. She quickly sliced a big round loaf of bread into thin slices and smothered those in butter and wild strawberry jam. The jam was made by boiling down the wild strawberries Olivia picked in the forest during summer.
“Have some of this to tide you over until dinner,” she said as she gave Lara the bread.
“Are you sure? Thank you!”
Lara was hesitant at first, but halfway through a slice she became entranced with the food. Her now unguarded thoughts slipped out: Oh my God, this is so good! It’s amazing! Yum!
Olivia felt sorry, wanting to apologize for not having noticed the girl’s hunger sooner. She’d probably been sent packing without much money, either. She’d likely been rationing whatever money she did have for food.
It doesn’t matter what the situation is, does Lara’s stepmother not feel intense guilt over sending a girl of this age out on her own? And isn’t it a bit odd for her to give a carriage to someone she has no blood relation to? She sounded like the kind of parent that would kick a girl out with just the clothes on her back.
“So, your stepmother gave you the carriage even though she forced you out of the house?” asked Olivia.
“The carriage and the horse were left to me in my dad’s will. He left me more than that, but they changed his will. But it doesn’t matter. Staying in that house was like living in hell. I’m actually grateful she made me leave.”
“You’re a strong person, Lara.”
“I’m not sure it’s because I’m strong. I’m just used to it. My real mom was a servant. I started working when I was six, and it has been like that ever since. Servants get paid for their work, but me and my mom weren’t paid. We got everything we needed when my dad was still alive, but it’s gotten really bad now that they’re both dead. Even these clothes were my mom’s. There was only this one set of clothes. Well, more like I hid this one set so they couldn’t take it. Hee hee!”
Olivia looked at Lara, giggling with jam stuck to the corner of her mouth, and her protective instincts went off at full blast. “Lara, you can stay here for as long as you like, not just while you’re copying my grandmother’s books. I was also chased out of the house I was born in, but I came here and was saved.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. And I was raised with so much love. This time, it’s my turn to protect you and raise you.”
“Well, I’m pretty much all grown up already…”
“You need to put some meat on your bones, though. You’re so thin. I ate so much when I was your age…”
“Haha! Thank you, Olivia. I don’t hate working, so I’ll help around the restaurant however I can. Cleaning, or something. I’ll keep copying the books when I have free time.”
“You can just take it easy,” Olivia said.
“Nope. I’m good at working. Don’t you worry about it.”
What Lara said was no lie. She threw herself with passion into her work.
“Huh, Olivia, did you hire someone?” asked a regular customer later.
“I did,” replied Olivia with a smile. Then she and Lara looked at each other and smiled. Olivia never had much opportunity to chat with young ladies, but she wasn’t nervous when interacting with Lara. She could smile with her, and that made her happy.
She doesn’t lie at all, either, thought Olivia. She didn’t feel on edge when dealing with animals and people who didn’t lie. In contrast, she couldn’t handle people who lied at all.
Olivia had always been terrified of humans whose actions didn’t match their minds, but Lara didn’t seem afraid of people despite the horrible treatment she’d been subjected to.
I’d like to be a strong person like Lara, even if I get there just little by little, thought Olivia.
She was captivated by the perseverance of this girl who was ten whole years younger than her. They’d only been together for a few hours, but Olivia was already starting to like Lara a lot.
When Arthur came home that evening, he was shocked to find Olivia getting along with this girl he’d never seen before like they were sisters.
“Arthur, this is Lara,” Olivia said, introducing her. “She’s going to be living in the outbuilding starting today.”
“All right… Olivia, can I talk to you for a second?” he said. They went into the kitchen, and he whispered, “Are you sure about this girl?”
“She has no bad intentions. It’s all right. Her father passed away and her stepmother chased her out of the house. She wants to become an apothecary, and I want to look after her while she’s copying my grandmother’s books. Is that all right?”
“I have no objections if you really like her that much. And you said she doesn’t have any lies in her heart? That’s good.”
“I know! I’m so happy, she’s like a cute younger sister.”
If Olivia was happy, then that’s all that mattered to Arthur.
That night, they ate the dried chestnut and mushroom with veggie stew, with a side of bacon and beans, along with buttered bread. They paired it with cups of apple tea.
Rob quickly grew fond of Lara, too.
And so, Lara came to stay at Soup Forest for some time.