Book 4, Chapter 26: Spring Bathing
“Hey, I have something to tell you and you’re not going to like it.”
Brin was on her tippytoes, tugging on the thick leather strings of my upper gambeson. The under-armor garments were basically padded leather pants and shirts now that they had to fit under plate mail. You’d think it’d be easier to take them off. I’d have to speak to the armorer. Get them reshaped or something. My kingdom for the invention of zippers!
“How on earth did you grow so much over winter? I have to look up to you now.”
“I’m flattered, Brin.”
“Oh!” She stopped, “Not like that. Pfft! Just, I don’t know, can you bend down a bit?”
“You know what sucks about getting taller?”
“It sucks, does it?”
“Growing pains! And the itchiness of it all.” A damned growth spurt over winter shot me up. My advice to anyone who’s going to be reborn: skip childhood and puberty. Couldn’t remember the first time, but the second time was super not fun. If I could, I’d slap whoever decided I’d be reborn as a pre-growth-spurt teenager.
“Where are you itchy?”
“Oh, uhm, you know.” I turned around, pulling at the gambeson myself.
“Cayce, you were blushing there.”
“I was not! I wasn’t. Of course not.”
“Your suitors will be so pleased. Finally,” I heard her eyes roll, even turned around, “your breasts are getting bigger. Not quite as full and womanly as-”
“Shush, you!”
“Here, let me help you with that. You’re being foolish, tugging and tugging on that thing when I’m right here. These are made for men, you know. That’s why it’s caught on your breasts.”
I sighed. “You really don’t have to help me with my armor, come on, I can seriously take my own armor off. I’m going to have to do it in the spring campaign anyways.”
She stopped, backed up, “What’s that? Why would you . . .”
“Ah, fudge.” I finally yanked the top part of the gambeson off and turned to face her, “Uh, this is what I wanted to talk to you about. Maybe we should get in the bath first?”
“Of course I’m coming with you!”
“Brin, your father, it’s part of our deal.”
She narrowed her eyes. “What deal?”
“Let’s get into the bath.”
“Ok. But let me get the rest of your gambeson off.”
“It’s just the pants part now. I can manage.”
As she stripped, I glanced in the mirror. I was no longer the cute, little princess, but the cute, taller princess. Approaching five foot eight, if my guess was correct. A lot for a few months. Kind of too fast for the reality I’d come from. Maybe it was part of being Bechalle’s deity carving. How much taller would I become? It wasn’t bad becoming taller, even good since it made my appearance more adult-like, but the extra height sometimes tripped me up. The second clumsy childhood.
And all my dresses, all my armor, had to be constantly remade. Even my weapons had to be reforged, which used up almost all the perseidian iron from my former chainmail, originally made for backstory twin who died long before I entered this world, a twelve-year-old boy. Remade, my spear was heavier, longer, my sword now a greatsword. Real weapons now instead of a child’s shiny toys.
“Hey, speaking of growing-”
“You’re changing the subject.”
I didn’t sigh, but sort of shrunk a bit, curled my shoulders inward, “Yeah. Ok. I agree with your dad, that you should stay here.”
“But, Cayce-”
“Brin, our forces, we don’t have half as many troops as the Ketzillians. And we may have to fight the Barclay forces first. And then there’s me.”
“What about you?” She turned in her seat to face me, soap up and down her arms.
“Tread’s staying, too. You’ll have Tread to court, keep you company.”
She gave me a stern look, “What about you?”
“Come on, you guys like each other. Give him a chance! He’s a knight now. A noble.”
“Cayce.”
I sighed. “Listen. I think, well I am, really . . . Like, it’s-”
“Just get it out. What?”
“I’m a danger to everyone around me! Ok. Seriously.”
“Aren’t you getting better at constraining yourself?”
“Yeah. It’s not that. It’s the mages. It’s just a matter of time before they find out. And when they do everyone around me will be in danger. Morry can take care of himself. But you and Tread, I want you guys safe.”
“Morry can fight other men, but not even he has a hope against a mage. You need to talk to Grand Magister Tye. The same way you talked to Etienne. He’ll see reason! Ask him to remove the power.”
“Yeah, ok. And if he can’t? Or doesn’t want to?”
“Well, we’ll need a new princess then.” She winked at me.
“See!” I flicked soap at her. “Come on, let’s rinse off and get in the tub, it’s cold.”
“Tub?”
“Bath. I misspoke.” Below our seats, off-white bubbles, some shining with little rainbows on their surface, bumping around, hanging out with each other, washed down the drain together. “Want to see something cool?”
She sat on the ledge of the pool, “Gods, you and language. You don’t mean cool, you mean interesting. Sure, let’s see it. But you already showed me the light trick.”
“This one is different.” I entered the bath and took the bracelets and rings off my naked arms, setting them down on the stone nearby. Willing the energy to form around me, it flowed lazily around my arms like a stream down a mountain. I touched my hands, drew them apart, balls of blue light forming between, and tossed them into the air. They rolled up near the vaulted stone ceiling, then circled, setting a moody and slowly moving light against the stone ceiling.
Brin arched her neck, watching the balls spin around, “Wow. Did Etienne teach you this?”
“No, he hasn’t taught me how to use magic at all. Only to control it. I don’t really need the iron anymore, see?” I took off the earrings, placing them near the other jewelry, lifted my legs up to get my anklets.
“Maybe,” Brin tilted her head, eyes glaring at me, “maybe you should just leave those on.”
“Ok, sure.” I centered myself, the streams slowly faded into whisps that evaporated into the air. “And, gone.”
“That’s wonderful, Cayce. Can you keep them in check when you’re angry?”
“I don’t know. Kinda, I guess. I haven’t killed any earls yet.”
“I think you get all the suitors because you’re the princess.”
“What do you mean?”
Brin’s eyes fell to my breasts, “Only because you’re the princess,” then she shrugged her shoulders, eyes rolled up.
“Oh!”
“I didn’t say anything!”
I grabbed her hands and pulled her into the water with a splash. “You didn’t have to!”
Her laugh was close to giggling, spluttering a bit of water, “Ok, ok, you win. Stop, stop! You didn’t even light up, that’s great.”
“Jokes would hardly be enough to get me riled up.”
“Who says I was joking?” She laughed, “And I’m not sorry!”
“Oh, you will be!” I chased her around the pool, splashing water at her.
***
“Seriously, though,” Brin said as she dried herself off, “I think you should bring me and Tread along.”
Toweling down my hairless legs, “I know, I know, and I’m sorry. I just, I want you guys to be safe.”
“Come on, Cayce, we’d be safest by your side.”
“I don’t think so. The rumors about the Barclays amassing a huge army. And then the grand magister. He’s sure to seek me out and, well, who knows? It’ll be very dangerous for anyone to be around me.”
“Maybe you could give us some of that perseidian iron? For jewelry.”
Moving the towel up to my stomach, I paused, “Brin, that’s a great idea! There’s extra from the chainmail. Do you think there’s enough to make necklaces for my military councilors?”
“Yes, but what about Tread and I?”
“Even with that kind of protection, you’d be in so much danger.” I put my hand on her arm, “Tread’s a lot safer running a castle than fighting a war. And I need someone I can trust to keep the duchy here running and free from the earls. You and he are the ones arranging for the food to be delivered, taxes on time, and keeping the smithies running. Also, you have to keep your father in line.”
“Alright. Fine. Fine.” She shook her head at the ceiling, then puffed up her lips, looked me in the eyes and nodded. “Yes, there’s probably enough of the iron left. I’ll ask the weaponsmith tomorrow. Whatever is left, I’ll take it to the jeweler’s and have some necklaces made.”
I turned my back on her, started tossing some clothing on. “Thank you. That’ll be great.”
“You’re going to keep growing over spring, you know.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Gods, Cayce, you better hope some more of that growth is in your bre-”
“Brin!”
“Well, I mean, think of the suitors.”
“I’m going to toss you back into the hot tub.”
“Now, now. It’s a bath, Cayce.”
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