Book 4: Chapter 14 – Realization [Part 2]
Book 4: Chapter 14 - Realization [Part 2]
“Milly,” she called, while little Tia had already begun to circle the crate with an air.
May I eat it? came Cornelia’s inquiry through the amulet.
“No, you may not, you ridiculous creature,” Seraphina murmured.
The blonde girl turned to her maid, eyes narrowing. “See to the contents and have them stored suitably,” Seraphina said. “It is an eyesore at the door.”
“At once, milady,” Miriam replied, rushing off to find some tools from the shed.
Seraphina entered the dorm, nodding her head politely and giving a quick greeting to those who had come to see who the latest arrivals were. Entering the room she shared with Eloise and kicking off her shoes, Seraphina dove into the bed in a most unladylike fashion.
Moments later, Eloise followed suit.
“I am excessively tired of travelling,” Seraphina declared into her pillow. “Could we not employ a Gryphon and be done with roads?”
“We could… that is to say, we might… however…” Eloise began with a gentle hesitation.
Seraphina turned a languid eye. “However?”
“Even the largest Gryphons can only bear the additional weight of a small child,” Eloise confessed; “and, please pray forgive me, Lady Seraphina…”
“Yes, yes,” Seraphina sighed. “Yes, I am no small child. It was just a bit of nonsense and a release from the vexation that has claimed me recently.” She lightly punched the mattress with her small fists; the frame creaked, as if in protest. “I am undone by the travails of the road.”
“Then you must rest,” Eloise said, with a soft laugh; “but not, if you please, before you change.”
“Oh, very well.” Seraphina sat up with the air of a martyr reconciled to a modest sacrifice. “Attend me.”
“Of course, Lady Seraphina.”
She set a drowsy Cornelia upon the coverlet. The creature hissed softly before coiling around herself. As the young ladies exchanged travel dress for light shifts, their conversation wandered—family particulars, boys, and assignments—until it reached that grim certainty.
“Are you quite sure that classes commence next week?” Seraphina asked, with the air of one willing to be contradicted.
“Quite sure,” Eloise whispered. “And I have heard we are to enjoy the addition of two further periods each day,” she added, shaking her head.
“Two!” cried Seraphina. “Pray tell, whose felicitous wisdom decreed that?” the young girl said sarcastically.
“My mother informs me it was in fact the Lady de Sariens, your good mother, who strongly urged it,” Eloise replied with due gravity. “She observed that youthful minds, if indulged to sloth and idleness, cannot find their potential. As a member of the board, your mother is quite influential.”
Seraphina ground her teeth with indignation. “That dreadful witch!”
“You must not say so of the Lady Anaselena,” Eloise protested; and then, with a conspiratorial sparkle, added, “Though your witch of a mother has likewise suggested an extra day of schooling.”
“You are aware,” Seraphina said in a mock-solemn whisper, “that her Sight bestirs itself at the mention of her name?”
Eloise’s mouth rounded into a perfect O, and her eyes, like well-placed teacups, threatened to overset.
“Oh, do not look so alarmed,” Seraphina laughed. “She is undoubtedly occupied… probably with my father,” the girl muttered. “I would not worry about it overly much.”
“But, Lady Seraphina—”
“I am decided upon a bath to wash thoughts of extra and unnecessary schooling,” Seraphina said, a portion of her smile restored upon teasing Eloise. “My true mistake was throwing myself upon the bed. One ought first to remove the journey from one’s person.”
***
Unfortunately for Seraphina, even at that hour, several girls were already in the baths. She felt their glances—some coolly appraising, some edged with envy, others turned away as if from too bright a light.
“I shall have to arrange a private bath constructed for us,” she murmured to Eloise.
“I’m not sure that would be well received, Lady Seraphina,” Eloise replied. “Bathing is considered a social activity.” The doll-like girl offered a polite greeting to a mousy girl nearby, who only nodded and went on scrubbing in silence.
Eloise guided Seraphina to a low stool and set out a basin, a ladle, and a bar of floral soap. This was a familiar routine for both of them. Seraphina sat forward without prompting, hands resting on her knees, and let her shoulders loosen. Eloise worked the soap into a light lather and scrubbed her back in steady, circular strokes. The exfoliating cloth lifted the grit of the road; the warmth eased the stiffness in her neck. Seraphina closed her eyes and breathed in the soft scent while steam gathered around them.
They moved on to hair. Eloise massaged the lather gently into Seraphina’s scalp, slow and thorough, then combed through the gold strands with practiced care. The touch was comfortable and unhurried; Seraphina felt the last of the road fall away with each pass of Eloise’s fingers. A careful rinse followed, water slipping warm and clean down her back.
When they were done at the stools, they stepped into the main pool. Hot water poured from a bronze pipe shaped like a fish head, the stream steady and clear. Seraphina sank to her shoulders, let her head rest against the smooth stone, and exhaled.
A few girls drew closer, conversation starting with simple questions.
“Long trip back?” asked the mousy girl from earlier, still rinsing soap from her arms. Seraphina was far too tired to try and dredge up her name.
“Long enough,” Seraphina said. “It’s good to stop moving.”
Another girl, freckled and direct, said, “They say we’re getting two more periods a day. Is that true?”
“That’s what I’ve heard,” Seraphina answered. “We’ll manage. We will have to.”
“Was that crate outside for you?”
“It was,” Seraphina said. “Milly’s taking care of it—tea, I believe, from the Orange Hills of the Empire.”
Soft oohs and ahhs followed, and Seraphina invited them to share some when it was brewed.
The talk stayed easy: teachers rumored to be strict or kind, letters from home, and which boy had the nicest smile—a question that sparked a small debate. Seraphina listened, added a word where it fit, and let the heat do its work.
Eloise leaned closer. “Not so bad, is it?”
“No,” Seraphina replied, looking at one of the high windows. “You’re right. Bathing like this is not so reprehensible… actually, it’s pleasant, I suppose.”
The young girl’s mind turned to the lifestyles of the extremely wealthy. She had almost made one of their common mistakes: the quest for even more privacy. They built up walls, so many walls between them and the rest of the world. Exclusive areas, private this and private that, and then ultimately complained that they were lonely.
She would not make that mistake here.