I return home well before dark, but everything is nice and quiet there. Elzbieta is still tending the shop, even if there is not much to be done. She takes the chance to show her little boy around a little, showing him some of the wares I have on the shelves and in the bins. It's really not much, but he is still watching wide eyed, as if every piece of refurbished second hand gear were one of the greatest marvels to be seen.

It's a heartwarming sight for sure, thus I pause to watch the two from the doorway for a while. I hope we can keep up this attitude. Curiosity and enthusiasm help with learning after all, especially if they go hand in hand. Ulryk will have a much easier time finding his way in life with an attitude like that.

Finally the two notice me, or rather Ulryk notices me. I'm pretty sure Elzbieta has been well aware of my presence even before I stopped in the doorway. I motion for them to join me on the bench out front. It's in the shade now, so we won't risk giving the boy sunburn or heatstroke.

"Olgierd will probably drop by some time tomorrow with a design and a quote for the magic lamp I intend to enchant for Agnieszka. I might head out early in the morning though to gather a little more Ochre first. For my chalks. I'll be heading downriver. Not too far though. Want to come along for a walk together with Ulryk?"

Elzbieta gives it some thought. Finally she nods.

"Downriver should be safe enough and a little walk will do both of us some good. Maybe my little boy can get to see a few new things too. He might just already be on the path to become a great explorer."

I chuckle.

"Should we get our little explorer familiar with water at the bathhouse first once we close up around here?"

Now its Elzbieta's turn to laugh and her baby boy is quick to join in with his own baby laugh too.

"We can do that. But I think he might still be a little too young to play in the creek, even if it's just a little splashing about while I hold him. That creek always stays pretty chilly, even at the height of summer. I'll probably just be carrying him. In all likelihood he'll marvel at all the new sights for a while and then fall back asleep before long. At least until he gets hungry again."

For a brief moment we sit there in silence. Then she speaks up again, while Ulryk yawns mightily.

"I could do some simple reed weaving and try to catch some fish or maybe crabs. Not the big ones, no Rock Crabs like Bogomil did, small ones."

I nod as she gestures, indicating much smaller crabs.

"That reminds me, want to visit the inn and have some of that crab pot for dinner? There was already an incredibly tempting smell on the breeze, tickling my nose, when I was down there. And … uh, unless you know how to cook crabs we might have to ask Patryk and Maryla at the inn to do it for us, because I certainly don't have a clue. I'm no good with fish either, should you catch some of those instead. Uh … maybe I'm not much of a cook in general?"

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Now she laughs out loud which irritates the baby napping against her chest enough to elicit a wail of protest. She quickly placates her boy by kissing the top of his head and humming the tune for a song about one of Ksawery's many misadventures. Only when he is back asleep does she speak up again. Her tone is till amused though.

"It's a little hard to believe that you as an alchemist of all people aren't at least a half decent cook too."

Before I can protest that the recipes are very different, I'm silenced with a quick peck on the cheek.

"Don't worry. I'm not a grand cook, but I can make do. We just have to make sure that we have all the ingredients beforehand. There are some kitchen spices growing in that little garden of yours out back and the rest we should be able to get at any of the farms around here. At least if we don't buy any more than we need for a single meal for the two of us."

I nod and pull her to her feet.

"Fine. I think I have a cauldron and some other tools I can spare and a fireplace too. If you catch something that is. Let's close the shop first though and have dinner at the inn. It's been forever that I had a chance to taste rock crab."

Elzbieta raises an eyebrow, as she helps me close the shop.

"I'm surprised you are familiar with rock crab at all. They don't exactly spread all the way to the coastal towns after all."

It's an understandable assumption, thus I nod.

"The academy would post requests for them every once in a while. Their shell, finely ground, is one of the ingredients used in stone skin potions. And since the teaching staff is not in the habit of being wasteful, they would be cooked and served as crab pot beforehand."

Surprise and understanding are visible on my companions face.

"Oh! You probably could ask Maryla and Patryk for the shells. If you grind them up after cooking anyway. I think they usually end up with the trash."

I nod, but I'm not quite sure to be honest. I say as much.

"Maybe. Grinding up those shells is a chore like no other. First you have to dry them after the cooking, until they crack. Then you have to crush them in a mortar until you have handy little pieces and last but not least you need a really good mill to grind them down into a fine powder. I'm not sure my mills are up to the task. I could keep crushing them into a fine powder in the mortar, but that is even more troublesome. Maybe I'll take a few pieces off their hand just to have them in store though."

Finally we are done and head down to the inn. The smell wafting our way on the breeze is already mouthwatering. It seems to have a similar effect on little Ulryk too, as he wakes back up and promptly starts to help himself to a meal of his own, much to our amusement. We don't let that stop us. It's not like anyone minds.

And the crab boil really turns out to be as delicious as the smell led us to expect. Spicy but not too spicy. And, of course, it's very filling with all the extra potatoes and sausages that are in it. The onions and other vegetables are worth mentioning too. And Maryla and Patryk haven't skimped on the butter either. And I think they might have used both beer and broth for it. It's both sweet and spicy as well as incredibly creamy. A heavenly treat overall.

Judging by how packed the inn is tonight, just about anyone else seems to agree with us on that matter too. This really goes well beyond what I expected, knowing crab pot only from the academy canteen. Two bronze crowns for each serving is a price I'm more than willing to pay for such a treat. And the same is true for just about everyone else too.

Afterwards we return home at a very leisurely pace. Full as we are, we couldn't hurry up any more even if we wanted to, and right now neither Elzbieta nor I want to anyway. We grab our bath supplies and go right on to the bathhouse though instead of turning in for the night, even though Elzbieta's little boy is getting quite tired already.

The bath gets the little man to wake back up though. He has more than enough energy to play around a little in one of the low wooden buckets. It's not even half filled with warm water and Elzbieta keeps a very close eye on Ulryk, but he greatly enjoys it anyway. Or maybe he enjoys it so much exactly because his mother is showering him with attention. Well, in the end it doesn't really matter. He has fun and by the time we return home he is exhausted and fast asleep.

Maybe he'll enjoy our little trip along the creek tomorrow too. I hope as much anyway, as we all turn in for the night.

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