Fiona and I had been planning on leaving for the safe zone a while ago to get some shopping done, but I just couldn''t seem to bring myself to go.  I''d baked an item box full of food to trade and sell though, so we really should get going.


    I knelt down, hugging as many slimes as I possibly could.  Matcha rested on my shoulder while I leaned against Boss and cuddled the little dirt slimes too.


    "I won''t be gone long," I promised them, patting their little slime heads.  "I hate that I can''t take you with me, but monsters aren''t allowed in safe zones.  You''ll be fine here though.  Boss and Mossy will take care of you."


    I glanced up at the two biggest slimes, the only ones high enough level to actually protect anyone here.  They stared back at me, nodding slowly in agreement.  There were more dirt slimes than before, like they''d been multiplying, and it was so adorable watching them leap in and out of the garden.


    "You''re sure they''ll be okay?" I whispered to Fiona.


    She sighed.  "We''ve already tried to attack each other all over the place and just keep bouncing off.  The cafe is definitely a mini safe zone like Dave said, so as long as they''re here, they''ll be fine."


    The protection only seemed to reach so far, but it covered the gardens and the front yard too.  They''d be okay as long as they stayed nearby.  Matcha pressed up against my cheek, his new tea body warm and comforting like a hot water bottle.  I ran my fingers over his side, petting him.


    "You''ll be okay," I murmured again.


    "Do you think that maybe you''re the one who isn''t okay?" Fiona knelt to join us, playing with the slimes as she studied me.  "You said Matcha''s been with you since you got into the dungeon, right?"


    I nodded.  "From the very first few minutes, that adorable little bouncing slime has been by my side.  He''s the only reason I didn''t have a total breakdown when the door to the clearing disappeared and Dave was gone.  He also got me through that horrible chicken fiasco.  Matcha''s kept me going, kept me sane.  I don''t feel right leaving him."


    He chirped, nuzzling against me.


    "See?  He doesn''t want me to go either."  Tears pricked my eyes as I tried and failed to pull myself away from the slimes.  "Maybe you could shop for me instead?"


    "No way."  Fiona stood up, shaking her head.  "This is your cafe, so you need to be the one to furnish it.  You also need to meet other adventurers and show them how good your food is.  Otherwise nobody will show up to your cafe.  You need to do this."


    I sighed.  Everything she said made perfect sense, but I just didn''t want to.  What was so wrong with staying inside with the slimes and baking my worries away?


    Matcha pressed up against me one more time before hopping off my shoulder and bouncing over to the other slimes.  They chattered and chirped, nodding and swaying like they were having a whole big conversation.  Then a few of the slimes hopped toward the cafe, jumping inside the protection of the building.


    "Oh, you don''t need to do that," I said, knowing they preferred to be outside.  "It''s fine.  I''ll go to the safe zone and come right back."


    Matcha hopped outside, bouncing into the back of my legs until I got moving.


    "Okay, okay," I said with a laugh.


    Fiona grinned at the slime.  "Thanks for the assist.  We''ll bring you back a treat."


    Boss'' eyes widened as he poked his body out of the cafe just as Matcha started bouncing excitedly.  Trills sounded from the garden as the little dirt slimes cheered when they jumped out of the dirt, but were muffled once they hopped back in.  It was all so warm and happy, lifting a weight off my shoulders.


    "Thank you," I told Fiona.  "Treats are a great idea.  Let''s head out and find something good."


    She pulled a key out of her item box, holding it in the air until a door appeared around it.  She turned the key and the door opened, revealing stairs that led up.  I turned back one more time to wave goodbye to the slimes, only stopping when Fiona dragged me inside.


    "You''ll like the safe zone," she said as we walked upstairs.  "You wanted new clothes, right?  Not to mention tables and chairs for customers.  Not sure we''ll be able to afford all of that, but it doesn''t hurt to ask around."


    The allure of new clothing and slime treats had me rushing up the stairs.


    "That''s the spirit!" Fiona shouted, racing up with me until we reached the other door.  It flung wide open as bright light filtered into the stairway.  "Welcome to floor 5''s safe zone!"


    I blinked, adjusting to the bright light.  The cacophony of lots of people talking at once pressed against me as people milled about a wide open street full of stalls forming a marketplace.  Larger buildings that looked like permanent shops stood behind them with people coming and going frequently.  I kept close to Fiona as she confidently strode into the throng of people.


    There were just so many people!  Adventurers decked out in full plate armor clinked and clanked their way down the road as ones wearing simple leathers or cloth were more silent.  Almost everyone had weapons of some kind, ranging from bows to swords to maces even.  The only people without something deadly looking were the ones with magic books strapped to the small of their backs.


    It was all just so jarring compared to my quiet, secluded, slime-filled life up until now.


    "You doing okay?" Fiona turned back with a smile.  "It''s a little overwhelming at first, I know, but you''ll get used to it."


    I nodded, trailing after her as I tried to avoid bumping into anyone.  There were so many stalls!  Where should we start first?  Avoiding all the weapons sellers and armors was an easy answer, but that ruled out over half the market.  Nothing screamed come here for baking pans either.


    "Any ideas?" I asked Fiona as she stopped in front of a shop full of vibrant clothing.  A smile stretched across my face as the colors drew me in.  "Okay, we can start with the clothes, sure."


    She laughed.  "Figured it would be an easy win.  We might need to get creative with the rest of your list."


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    A bell rang as we opened the door, stepping into a world of cloth and leather.  Fully made outfits were displayed in the window while bolts of cloth scattered all over made it seem like they made custom designs too.  As we carefully made our way through the maze of fabrics, a woman called out from the back.


    "Welcome to Stitch and Spell!"  Her voice was cheerful, but the closer she got, the stranger she appeared.  Her body was made of fabric, smooth silks and intricate brocades.  Her thread smile beamed.  "How may I help you?"


    Fiona smiled back as if talking to a living doll was totally normal.  "We''re looking for a few new outfits that are more cozy than armored.  Something my friend could use as a cafe uniform with an apron too."


    "You''ve come to the right place."  The living doll spread her arms, shimmering blue sleeves swaying in the air.  "Here at Stitch and Spell, we imbue all our fabrics with the best enchantment spells.  I can have a fireproof apron made for you in a jiffy.  What else can I make for you?"


    "What is she?" I asked Fiona softly.


    Fiona shrugged.  "Nobody''s really sure, but all the shopkeepers are like that.  Some have a lot more personality than others, but none of them are human.  They seem willing to help us though and people trust them."


    The tailor kept staring at us, patiently waiting with eerie button eyes.  Fiona hadn''t led me astray so far, so I should at least try talking to the doll.  Especially if it meant getting out of this suffocating chef''s coat.  It really wasn''t ideal for a jungle floor.


    "Hello," I said, forcing as normal of a smile as I could.  "I''m looking for a half apron that goes from the waist down.  Maybe in a warm brown or green with clothes that look good with it too.  Something flowy so it''s not as hot on the dungeon floor I''m on."


    "I can accommodate that."  The doll held up a tape measure as her buttons sparkled.  "Time to get your measurements and make you the outfit of your dreams."


    In a tornado of measuring tape, thread, and lots of fabric, the doll spun me this way and that until she stood back with a pleased smile on her face.  A white shirt with long billowy sleeves hung on a nearby dress form along with a beautiful green skirt that had a golden floral pattern on it.  A frilled brown apron tied it all together.


    My eyes widened.  "How''d you make that so fast?"


    "It''s my job, dear," the doll said.  "What else can I make for you?"


    I was still hung up on the first thing she''d made.  The fabric was softer than anything I''d felt before, smooth and airy.  The golden flowers on the skirt were intricate, like a garden blooming from the bottom of the fabric.  This was exactly what I''d been hoping for in a new uniform, but I had a feeling dolls didn''t eat, so my whole bartering system was about to break down already.


    "Umm, how much is this going to cost first?" I asked.


    The doll tapped her chin.  "Ten coins should suffice.  If you plan to order more, I could bundle them together at a discount."


    Was ten coins a lot?  I glanced at Fiona, who''d wandered off on her own to shop.  Guess I was on my own.


    "Ummm, do you happen to like grilled cheese?"


    The doll cocked her head to the side.  "What is grilled...cheese?"


    I pulled a sandwich out of my item box and offered it to her.  "It tastes buttery and oh so cheesy."


    "Apologies, dear, but I only accept coins."


    "That''s all right," I said, pulling out the five gold I''d gotten with my starter gear.  "I''ll just take the shirt and the apron if that''s okay."


    "Not okay," Fiona called out, carrying what looked like long pieces of fabric that would cover her arms down to her hands.  "I''ll cover it.  Once we sell those cookies to other adventurers, you''ll make it back and more.  Trust me."


    "Can you really afford it though?"  I frowned, realizing I''d completely missed the bigger concept.  "Wait, how do you make money?  I got some when I first came here, but I haven''t seen any since."


    Fiona frowned.  "You don''t get money when you defeat monsters?  I thought everyone earned coins that way."


    "No, I get recipes and ingredients."  Yet another thing that was different between my class and everyone else''s.  "We can think on that later.  If you really don''t mind, I''d appreciate the loan for now.  Thank you."


    "Anytime. I mean, I am living with you rent-free."  Fiona laughed, handing the doll her items.  "Could you add some green highlights to these?  And make another outfit for my friend too?"


    "Wait, I don''t need anything else–"


    Fiona crossed her arms.  "What about all those times you''ve gotten covered in dirt playing with the slimes in the garden and wished you had some better clothes for it?"


    I sighed.  "Fair enough.  I''ll pay you back."


    "Excellent." Fiona nodded to the doll.  "We''ll need something suitable for gardening too, please.  Oh and if you''ve got a futon or something she could sleep on, that would be great.  She''s been sleeping in a pile of slimes."


    "Hey, they''re cozier than they look!"


    The doll blinked. "You sleep with monsters? Are you quite all right, dear?"


    "I''m fine."  The back of my neck warmed as Fiona barely covered up a snort.  "They''re more like friends than monsters anyway."


    "And friends deserve nice beds to sleep on," Fiona said.  "One futon as well please."


    The doll rushed to create the gardening outfit along with the futon, fabric and needles zipping through the air like magic.  The cafe didn''t have any bedrooms, so Fiona had been sleeping outside in a portable tent she''d brought with her while I''d been sleeping in the middle of the guest area.  I hadn''t thought much of it, but she must have felt bad for me this whole time on the floor.


    She really was a nice person, always thinking of others.  I wanted to pay her back, but all I had were cookies.


    "Here," I said, handing her a few cookies I''d made right before coming here.  "I know you''re probably getting tired of them by now, but I appreciate your help."


    She bit into the cookie, closing her eyes as she made a little happy noise.  "I will never get sick of these.  Keep ''em coming, thank you."


    The doll finished up her work right as Fiona ate the last cookie crumbs.  "That will be 25 coins in total, dears."


    I handed her my 5 while Fiona added the other 20.


    "Thank you for your business," the doll said, smiling as she bagged up our items.  "Please come again."


    "Um, actually..."  I held up the new outfit she''d made for my cafe work, not wanting to put it away so fast.  "Do you mind if I change into this here?"


    "Of course, right this way."  The doll led me to the back of her store where there was a fitting room.


    I removed my heavy chef''s coat.  This had served me well up until now, the only real link to my past, but it just wasn''t suited for my new job.  I couldn''t bring myself to get rid of it though, so I put it carefully into my item box with my other clothing from my previous life.  I''d need it one day when I returned.


    The new outfit was as soft as butter, wrapping me up like a cozy blanket.  It was really breathable too and looked beautiful when the light hit it.  I stepped back outside, twisting and turning to see the skirt sway around me and the sleeves fall against my arm.


    "What do you think?" the doll asked.  "Do you like it?"


    "I absolutely love it!" I pulled the tailor into a hug.  "Thank you.  I really appreciate this."


    When I pulled back, the doll just stood there, frozen for a moment before she reached over for a green ribbon that matched my skirt.


    "Here, this is on the house."  She tied it around the bottom of my braid, letting the ribbon hang loose.  "There we go.  You''re all set now.  Do come back again soon."


    "We will!"


    Fiona and I waved as we left the Stitch and Spell shop.  I glanced back to see the living doll in a flurry of fabric and thread again, stitching up a storm.  She might not be human, but she was definitely passionate about her craft.  I hoped I''d see her again soon.


    "Time to find some adventurers," Fiona said with a grin.  "Once they taste this food, they''ll open their wallets wide.  Then we can really work on furnishing the cafe."


    "If you say so..."


    The idea of meeting a bunch of new people was a little overwhelming, but I''d have to get used to it if I was going to run the cafe.  Nobody here had eaten tasty food in ages, so I knew mine would have an effect on them.  I just needed to capitalize on that and get this cafe off the ground.


    Sweet Potato was counting on me.