Chapter 512: Coming Clean
Stripping out of his tunic and breeches, Ollie shivered for a moment while he folded his clothing and set it neatly to the side before plunging into the deep pool. The moment his body slipped into the frigid water, he let out an explosive gasp as the chill penetrated all the way to his bones. The next instant, he slipped beneath the surface of the water, surprised at the depth of the pool and completely forgetting to hold his breath or close his eyes before the water enveloped him completely.
-GASP-
It felt like he’d been underwater for minutes even though it had been only seconds as Ollie struggled to the surface, splashing and flailing around for the edge of the pool to steady himself in the water.
"It’s shallower on the other side," Milo pointed out, concealing a friendly grin as his whiskers twitched in amusement and his tail slapped the ground with the force of the laughter he dared not let slip past his lips. "I was about to warn you but..."
"Sure you were," Ollie said, swimming across the pool to the shallow end and finding his footing in waist deep water. "You can laugh, I know you want to laugh," he said, holding out a hand and gesturing for Milo to toss him the block of soap.
"No, no, if I laugh now then I’ll pay for it when you’re a powerful witch," Milo teased, tossing the soap to the shivering young human. "You have to remember my kindness when you become the Cypress Witch," he insisted.
"Pfft," Ollie snorted, catching the soap and beginning to scrub himself clean. Here again, Thane held to the old traditions. The soap was coarse, packed with fine sand that scoured away not only dirt and grime but what felt like the top layer of Ollie’s flesh as well.
A knight was supposed to be a symbol of purity and the filth of the world was said to seep into a person’s skin until they were mired in debauchery and sin. To become a knight, one had to strip away any of those worldly obsessions and face their vigil with skin as pure and untainted as when they were newborn babes.
For Ollie, the process wasn’t just uncomfortable, it took an excruciating amount of time and for the first time in his life he wished he’d been born just a little bit shorter. More than that, however, he realized just how much dirt and grime seemed to have embedded itself into his flesh over the years.