Chapter 1: 1. Family Reunion

"Hello little brother," Cathryn said quietly as she pulled me into a tight hug.

I awkwardly returned the hug, but quickly pulled myself free and stepped back a pace or two.

My emotions were all over the place, but as usual I tried to fall back on jokes to lighten the mood and push away all the other feelings.

"I've been bigger than you since long before you left for school Cat," I replied with a forced smile. "You can't call me 'little brother' anymore, ok?"

She was four years older than me, and by no means a small girl. At a hundred and seventy-five centimetres she was slightly above average height. She wasn't overly tall, but she stood taller than most of our former maids.

That still left her noticeably shorter than my hundred and eighty-six centimetres. I'd caught up to her back when she was seventeen and I was thirteen. And by the time she was ready to go away to school I was even taller than her.

Cathryn rolled her eyes, "I'll always be your big sister, unless you've found some way to get an extra four or five years older while I wasn't looking."

"What if you got four or five years younger instead?" I teased. "I bet you could make a potion that would do that, right sis? Anyways how was Anwen's Academy of Alchemy? Did you..."

My smile faded as my mood suddenly fell. I couldn't keep up the act any more and I sighed, "I'm sorry you had to leave early Cathryn. I wish you could have stayed on to finish your third year."

She pulled me into another hug as she replied, "It's ok. As soon as I got your letter I started putting in extra hours. I doubled my studies, and I bartered a couple of my fancy dresses to buy copies of the advanced books. I learned as much as I could before the tuition ran out, and I have the books and a few other things I liberated from the academy when I left."

"I'll be able to finish the last of my education on my own here," she added as she let go of me again. "Even without their fancy degree, I already know enough to make plenty of useful potions, elixirs and salves. I just need a little while to get set up, and I'll have some money coming in for the both of us."

Before I could respond she looked me in the eyes and promised, "We're going to be ok. I'll make sure of that."

I gave her a sad smile but I couldn't find the words to respond right away. And this time I was the one who pulled her into another embrace.

"I'm sorry you had to find out about our parents through a letter. I'm sorry this is the sort of place you had to come back to. I'm sorry I couldn't do anything more to..."

"Shh," she responded softly. "It's not your fault. I'm sorry you had to go through everything here alone. I'm sorry I couldn't be here to help you, ok? You've only just turned eighteen, you shouldn't have had to face all of this on your own. And you won't any more. I'm here, and we're going to stick together ok?"

"Thanks sis," I smiled as I blinked away some tears.

She held me a few more seconds then finally let go as she grimaced, "I really need to get changed and washed up ok? I'm surprised you haven't said anything, but I know I must stink of dirt and sweat. Two weeks travelling rough isn't kind on the nose."

I forced a smile and teased, "I assumed that was just how you smelled now. Like after three years working in an alchemy lab?"

Cathryn rolled her eyes but finally picked up the two heavy-looking packs she'd brought in with her.

"Let me carry those!" I insisted as I took them from her.

She smiled "Thank you. Be careful though ok? I've got fragile and valuable stuff in both of those packs, and we cannot afford to replace any of it."

That made me sigh again, but I held my tongue.

It was hard to believe just how far we'd fallen, how much our lives had changed, in only a few short months.

Our father was a wealthy merchant. We were practically among the town's nobility. We lived in a grand mansion, we had almost two dozen servants, and life was good. Both Cathryn and I had magical potential, we were the first in our family to have any affinity for the arcane arts. Or at least, we were the first since our family became wealthy enough that it was worthwhile getting us tested.

As soon as Cathryn was eighteen she was sent to the best alchemy school in the land. Now that I was eighteen I was to have joined her there in a few months, at the start of the next semester.

Then four months ago it all came crashing down. Dad gambled on a high-risk venture. If it paid off he could have bought a title, we could have become actual nobility. But the ship he hired was lost at sea. We never found out what happened, whether it was pirates or sea monsters or just a mundane storm. Whatever it was, the family fortune was devastated.

In a desperate attempt to salvage the situation dad set out with a caravan to try and recoup some of his losses. And of course mom accompanied him, she wouldn't let him go anywhere without her. And two weeks after that word came back. No guesses or mystery, two of the hired hands survived and told of the attack. Bandits had set upon the caravan, and both our parents were among the dead.

The last of our family fortune had been lost, and I was left scrambling to save and sell what I could just to keep a roof over my head and food in the larder.

Instead of welcoming Cathryn back into our big luxurious mansion we now lived in a little two-level building in town. Three months ago it was just one of over a dozen properties dad owned. Now it was all we had left.

It wasn't the nicest of dad's properties, nor the biggest, but I'd picked it over all the other options because of the location. It was on the main east-west road, just outside the central market square. That put it almost in the middle of the busiest part of town, in an area that was frequented by almost everyone - locals and travellers alike. And thanks to the town's size and where it was located in the realm, there were plenty enough of both locals and travellers to bring us lots of potential business.

Credit for picking what town to set up shop in went to my great-grandfather, but he obviously chose well. Kaemasse had a population of about seven thousand, not including all the surrounding farms. It was built on a rise overlooking some fertile lowlands, and was on the crossroads of two major trading routes.

The town didn't have a port, the nearby river was too shallow to navigate most of the year then flooded in the spring. Instead the nearest port was about two days by wagon to the west. And the capital was a further week's travel east of us.

So we had a good location in a good town, and the building itself was also ideally suited for the two of us.

The ground floor was set up as a shop and the upper level would serve as our home. Both floors were divided into two main rooms, we'd handle sales to the public in the front room on the ground floor and the back room would be a workshop and storage area. The upper level was set up with a bedroom at the back and the front room was our kitchen and living space, with some curtains separating a corner that would serve as a little washroom area.

We'd both have to get used to the lack of privacy, but that was a luxury we could no longer afford. At least it wasn't a big surprise to either of us. I knew from her letters that Cathryn had roommates when she was at school, so she already had some experience in that area. And even though we grew up wealthy, dad made sure we weren't spoiled or sheltered. He wanted us both to understand how it was for other people who weren't as fortunate. People like us, now.

So our new home wasn't much, but it was enough to help us start over. My hope was to keep doing what our family had done for three generations. We'd be merchants, and this property was where we'd begin. The problem was I had nothing to sell.

That's where Cathryn came in. If she could put her alchemy training to work then we could open a little apothecary. She could make the potions, and I'd do everything else.

I prepared a simple meal for the two of us, and had it ready by the time my sister had cleaned up and changed out of her travel clothes. She was wearing a simple sundress and sandals as she joined me at the little table, and I served up a bowl of watery stew and a half loaf of rough dry bread. I also poured her a cup of cheap wine, then did the same for myself.

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"Thank you," she replied as she started eating.

I sighed, "Sorry it's nothing like you're used to. It's the best I could manage."

She smiled, "It's fine."

After that the two of us ate in silence. My emotions were still all over the place, like on the one hand I was happy to see her again. We were the only family each other had left, and I'd been so lost and alone the last couple months. On the other hand I felt awful that she'd had to give up the last of her education, she left one of the best schools in the land to come here. Where all I had to offer was a thin mattress, some threadbare blankets, and watery stew and stale bread.

When we were both finished eating I rinsed out the bowls and cups while Cathryn busied herself with one of her packs. By the time I was done tidying up she was at the table again, with a fancy wood box in front of her.

It was about thirty centimetres long by twelve centimetres wide, and about three centimetres tall. The box was smooth, dark, polished wood and the hinges and clasp were made of shiny brass. And the first thing I thought of was how much silver we could get if we sold it, which only served to make me more depressed.

"Come and sit down," Cathryn stated. "Thank you for dinner, but now you and I must have a serious discussion."

"What's in the box?" I asked as I sat down across from her.

Cathryn rolled her eyes, "I've spent almost three years learning to make potions, what do you think's in there?"

My eyes widened, and once again my first thought was about money. What potions did she bring, what did they do, what could we sell them for?

As I stared at the box I asked, "You brought some potions from the academy? Why, what do they do?"

"I did," she stated. "As for what they do..."

My sister took a deep breath, then with her eyes on mine she asked quietly "Do you remember what you asked me back when you were twelve and we both learned of our magical affinity? When dad agreed to send me to alchemy school as soon as I was eighteen? You asked me to make you something."

My cheeks started to colour and I gulped slightly. I did remember, but I never imagined Cathryn would. I'd blurted it out, dad gave me hell, then I played it off as a joke and none of us ever spoke of it again.

"No," I lied. "That was six years ago, I don't remember."

Cathryn gave me a look, "You are an awful liar, little sibling. But let me refresh your memory. As soon as you found out I was going to learn how to make potions, you asked me to make you a potion that would turn you into a girl."

I gulped again, and I could feel my cheeks burning as my heart-rate jumped. My eyes flicked down to that fancy polished wood box then back up to meet my sister's gaze.

"Yes," she quietly answered my unspoken question. "And incase you really have forgotten, after dad kicked your ass and you played it off as a joke, I told you if you were serious then I'd do my best. And my little sibling, I did it. So if you are serious, if you still want that, then tonight is your lucky night."

"But Cathryn," my voice wavered as I spoke, "A potion like that must be worth a fortune. Surely you could sell it, you could -"

"Nothing is worth more to me than you," she stated firmly. "But you're right. The contents of this box are probably worth ten times its weight in gold. This is the result of three years of study and research and several months of work. If you're worried about the price, then I have a proposal that will benefit us both."

She took a deep breath then stated, "You can be my little sister, but you will also be my apprentice. We'll open up shop, we'll do your alchemical apothecary idea, but you will be my assistant. I'll train you, and in time you'll be able to make potions as well. But you'll be working for me. As my apprentice you'll have to do what I say. You'll have to obey me, ok?"

If she meant it to sound like being her apprentice was a bad thing, she did it wrong. Because the idea of having my forbidden wish granted, and learning alchemy at my sister's side was better than anything I could imagine. It was literally a dream come true.

"Ok," I nodded. "I agree, I'll be your apprentice. Is this for real Cathryn? Can we do this?"

She smiled and carefully undid the latch then opened the wood case. Inside it was lined with velvet and had spaces for ten little vials, but there were only five in place. Each glass tube was a little over a centimetre in diameter, about ten centimetres long, and tightly stoppered with cork and sealed with wax. And each one was filled with something different.

From left to right there was a red mixture, a bright pink liquid, a watery pale blue fluid, a white creamy substance, and a clear slightly viscous concoction.

I frowned, "Which one is the..."

"They work together," Cathryn stated. "There is a specific order, a process. It has to be done right, or the results will be unfortunate."

That sent a shiver of fear through me. It was a very clear reminder that magic was not something to be taken lightly. Even something seemingly-innocuous like potions, if used wrong, could have unpleasant results.

My sister was still watching me and she looked very serious as she said "I need you to think this over and be very, very sure of yourself. Once we begin we can't stop halfway. You'll need to listen to me, do as I say, follow my instructions until we're finished. We're talking about completely changing you in profound ways, and by the time we're finished those changes will be permanent. You will no longer be a man. You'll be a woman, along with everything that entails. Men will not see you as their equal. You'll be able to get pregnant, though I can brew a potion to eliminate that risk."

She continued, "You'll also be my assistant and my apprentice. I'll be teaching you alchemy but you'll be working for me. You'll have to do what I say, you'll have to obey my orders and it won't always be easy."

I took another deep breath. My heart was racing again as I stared at those five little glass tubes and their magical contents. I knew a lot of men thought of women as lower-class citizens. Some even saw women as chattel, property rather than people.

That hadn't been a concern when our family was wealthy, a rich upper-class woman held higher standing than most men. Things were very different for us now, as a poor merchant-class boy I was only a couple steps up from the bottom in terms of social hierarchy. A poor merchant-class girl was even lower.

But an alchemist...even a woman alchemist was respected. Just like witches and wizards and sorceresses. Cathryn would be respected, and she'd protect me. As her sister, and her apprentice, she'd look out for me, and train me. And someday I'd be an alchemist in my own right. That would put me further ahead than I'd ever get as a merchant.

"Ok," I nodded to her. "I understand. I want to do this Cathryn. I want to be your sister, and your apprentice."

She smiled, "Then let's begin."

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