Chapter III. "Unhallowed"

The chamber pots smelled of roses and tangerines after Leanne had scrubbed them, and when that was done she scrubbed her hands as vigorously. Her fingers were shriveled like raisins from the water, and they felt a layer’s worth of skin lighter, and so did the rest of her, in a sense. It was time to roughen these hands up again, she thought, and spent the next couple of hours pushing the mill. The wheat would be enough for a small household as theirs, and they would have fresh bread for whenever the prince arrived. It felt as if there were a parasite within her when she thought of that prince coming here. He would take Shani away from her. It was an ugly truth, one that the parasite hungered for, and drank away her insides whenever she tried to face it. It hurt like the pain that came when she bled every month, like how she imagined it would be to bear a child, but unlike with childbirth there was no bright future to hope for here. She could not imagine what her life would be after Shani married, and only hope that she might be allowed to serve at her new home, wherever that may be.

She found Shani’s mother in her personal study. Ah’zuli was poring over a ledger. Leanne couldn’t recall the last time she had seen the woman with her hair in any sort of messy state, but her beauty was still as profound.

“Leanne, darling, how much grain have we ready for the kitchen?” She did not look up when she spoke, only dipped a red and purple quill into an inkwell.

“About ten pounds, I should say, Madam.”

“Excellent.” She scribbled a note in the book. The only sound in the room was the scratching on paper, and Leanne thought she could hear Ah’zuli breathing. “Gods preserve me, now that we have more time before the prince’s arrival, I am noticing more and more things that we should do to prepare. And it’s clear that Renoa was planning her little escapade well in advance of her disappearance: there are half a dozen chores I entrusted to her since over a week ago, none of them done in their entirety.”

“I’ve cleaned the spare chamber pots, milady, and those used this morning.”

This seemed to placate her well enough. “Wonderful. That should free you up for some time on the mill...”

“I’ve already worked the mill today. We had eight pounds yesterday.”

“My goodness, you’ve been busy. That explains the pungent stench, I suppose. Go and wash up girl, you’ve earned it.” As Leanne was turning to leave, Ah’zuli added, “actually, run a bath for both yourself and my daughter. Shaniera didn’t bathe yesterday and she’s been practicing her dancing all morning, so I can only imagine she stinks as much as you. And do make sure the girl scrubs thoroughly. I want her to keep herself at her freshest each day, in case that boy decides to spring himself upon us early.”

It was all Leanne could do to mumble an affirmation before she hurried from the room, her face red-hot. She bathed Shani on occasion, but it was rare to be ordered to bathe herself at the same time. Then again, it was an abnormally hot day for late Hearthfire, so a bit of sweat was to be expected, and it was always best to conserve fresh water wherever possible.

That gave her an idea. And she was loving it more every second.

“Hey, sweaty. Time for a bath.” Leanne leaned on the doorframe of the dancing room’s entrance. It was a haven of sky-blue walls and marble columns, decorated with murals of painted vines, exotic birds, and wildflowers. A massive mirror hung on the opposite wall, and adjacent to that a set of windows, altogether almost as large, were open to let in the soft breeze to fight back the warm humidity. Shani was seated on the floor, her legs stretched out to either side of her. She wore a blue outfit of light, flowing silk that covered her arms, legs, and chest, but left her shoulders and stomach exposed. Leanne tried to seem casual with the orders she was bringing, but seeing Shani in her revealing dancing garb was enough to bring the blush back.

“Look who’s talking,” the princess-to-be said, smirking. She bent her hip, bringing her torso down towards her leg as she grabbed onto a bare foot. “Your hair’s a travesty, sweatheart.”

“You mean sweetheart, sweetheart.”

“Pfft, I know what I said. It was funny.”

“Yes, your humor is sharper than Gro’shuba’s tusk. But your mother agrees, we both need a bath. Which is why we’re taking one together.”

“Oh, is that so?” Even as she said it with her head bowed down and her hair draped over her face, Shani revealed herself all too well. Leanne could see the edges of her nervous smile, and how her fingers curled up as if holding a pinch of sand.

“Come on, princess.” Leanne reached down for the basket of towels and soap. “I’ve got an idea.”

No one paid them any mind on their way through the garden. Yet as Leanne walked, her hand in Shani’s as she did a silly little skip, a chill found its way through the heat of the day to bore underneath her skin. It was a hunter’s instinct, her father would say, but somehow Leanne felt as if she were prey, oblivious in the thin veneer of the garden’s safety as to whatever lurked just beyond the familiar crops. As she passed the great pumpkin, she thought she glimpsed flies buzzing around it, and jerked to look in fear that her father’s prized beast had expired too soon—but it was only a trick of the light, or her own mind. The pumpkin was as healthy as it had ever been, as was Shani, and herself ... so what was this feeling?

By the time she had convinced herself it was nothing, they were at the river. She set the basket down and laid out the towels on the flat rock, and took out a glass vial filled with a light purple liquid. “For the hair,” she said, giving the bottle a jiggle.

“Your mother’s recipe? My favorite.” Shaniera slipped off her shawl; underneath she was still wearing her dancing clothes. “You’re trying exceptionally hard to seduce me today, aren’t you?”

“As per your mother’s instructions, I am making sure you are at your freshest.” She set the bottle down in a mound of soft dirt, then rose to undo the laces of her shift. She hadn’t gone through a single knot before Shani was there, grasping her hands to move them away.

“Let me,” she whispered, and worked at the knot with delicate fingers.

“I can undress myself, my lady,” Leanne protested, her courteous training kicking in. It was incredibly uncouth for a servant to let a noble lady do a menial task on her behalf.

“So can I,” Shani said. “And I can bathe myself too, but I’m going to let you do those things for me anyway.” She unwound the double knot at the base of Leanne’s throat, and moved on to the knots at her wrists. “When was the last time you let someone do something for you?” Leanne had no answer, so she took in a breath and relaxed herself. Shani loosened the sleeves and returned her hands to the neckline, parting the flaps of the cotton dress until they hung far to the sides, tips reaching her shoulders. She unfastened the belt at her waist, and after that the shift came down with only a tug. Leanne stepped out of the dress, and Shani rolled it up and threw it aside. Leanne was blushing already, and still she had her undergarments. Shani stepped in close as her fingers slipped around the wide strip of wool around Leanne’s chest. Her breath tickled her chin, and butterflies fluttered in her stomach. Shani lingered there, the two of them somewhat like different versions of the same dress, one ornate and refined, the other rustic and simple, and between them a softness that went beyond the borders of station that separated them, a warmth from Aetherius itself. Do Mara and Dibella smile upon us? Leanne wondered as her friend slid the strap down her body, and the warm air brushed her chest. Dibella must, certainly, for when the last garment came away from her hips, she felt the breeze shift a bit cooler down below, like it did on skin coated in cold sweat. Her skin was indeed wet, but not from the sweat, and the realization suddenly made her bring her hands down to shield that which was most private to her.

“Come on, Leanne. You were never made to wear timidity. It’s nothing I haven’t seen.” At Shani’s words, she moved her hands to her side, and let her princess look upon her as the divines did. Nude, yes, but naked as well. Shani lifted her hands up to remove the last of Leanne’s textile ornaments, the little length of yarn holding her hair in a bun. Auburn locks fell like curtains at the edge of her vision, and then Shani’s hands, and soon her face closed in to fill the space between. Leanne tilted her head, accepting the kiss with a firm consent. She was vulnerable before her lady, who was above her in all measures (save height and age), but she knew she was as safe as she ever could be. When Shani parted from her, Leanne’s eyes lingered closed for a second more, and opened to the sight of Shani’s hair shining in the sun. Greasy, she thought. We really do need a bath.

“Now, me,” her lady beckoned. Her airy outfit was fastened in place by brass clasps and pins. Leanne undid the sleeves, their own separate pieces, and slid them from Shani’s arms one after the other. Her arms were slender, rarely burdened by the weights that Leanne often bore, but there was still refinement to the muscle in her body. It was a dancer’s form, Leanne reflected as she unclasped the buckle behind her back. Slight, but strong and graceful. The chest piece was a backing of tanned leather covered in golden scales, with a wide cut of blue silk wrapped over them. Without the leather and scales, the silk would have hidden nothing of the wearer’s breasts. It made little difference now, once Leanne had slipped the piece down Shani’s arms. She held it for a moment, fearing it too elegant to toss on the dirt, but Shani dismissed her hesitation with a wave. The belt of golden discs around her waist held up the baggy pants, and beneath those she was naked too.

“Hang on, I think we missed a step,” Shani said, lifting her foot. She slipped off the sandals herself, and Leanne did the same with her own shoes. They placed their footwear together, and then Shani gathered up all of their clothes, and with a wink at Leanne, lobbed them into the water.

“Shaniera!” Leanne gawked at her.

“What? Our clothes are sweaty, too. May as well wash them too while we’re here.”

“Cloth dries much slower than skin, Shani. We’ll be here for hours, unless you want to walk back home naked.”

“Well, I guess we have no choice but to spend more time here together.”

Leanne couldn’t help but laugh. Admittedly, it was a pretty good excuse for getting them to stay here longer ... not that spending more time together was something she would mind, anyway. The bank of the water here was a steep slope that allowed them to walk in, pushing their clothes out ahead of them. The place they liked to swim looked much like a lake, but it was merely a wide section of the river that flowed from the peak of the mountain above. A thin curtain of water rained down from a sheet of rock up ahead, and the water here emptied out through a wall of rocks that shielded them from going over the edge of the waterfall, if they chose to swim that close. The current was so minute that it was negligible, though they did have to focus on keeping the clothing that wasn’t in hand from drifting away. They attended to that first, scrubbing the dirt and sweat from the cotton and silk, and stepped onto the riverbank dripping wet to shake out their clothes before hanging them on a nearby tree branch. Shani ran to their basket, snatched the bottle of the hair-washing solution, and bound to a ledge to leap into the water with a delighted screech. Leanne grabbed a sponge and jumped in after her. The water was well-warmed by the Hammerfell sun, but still cool compared to the hot air above, and it seemed to breathe new life into her when she plunged beneath the surface. She opened her eyes, resisting the urge to flinch when the water touched them, and was delighted to find how clear the water was. She swam over to the pair of brown legs and stroked the sole of a foot, nearly getting kicked in the face for it. She burst up to the surface grinning.

“Damn, you can see down there?” Shani asked, amazed.

“Sure can. All I had to look for was that black bush between your legs.”

Shani guffawed, struggling to stay afloat. “Well, in that case it should be no difficult thing finding you underwater. Yours is as bright as a torch. Hey, how is it that the hair down there doesn’t match the hair on your head?”

Leanne sent a splash of water at the younger woman’s face. Shani turned to swim away, but she launched forward and had an arm around her before she could get far, and soon Leanne was bringing them both back to the shallows. “Sit down and enjoy the water, my lady,” she bade, taking the bottle and pouring some of the mix onto Shani’s head. It was made of squashed juniper berries, aloe oil, and honey, and it made you smell like a goddess had kissed your head when you washed your hair with it, and feel it too. Leanne lathered it into the curls of her lady’s hair. It was coarse and thick, almost like wool, and heavy from the water. Leanne imagined what it would be like to run her fingers through that hair, when it and its wearer were dry and warm, in her bedchambers. Why did she feel ... longing? They were here now together, without a stitch of clothing between either of them, and her fingers were running through Shani’s hair, scratching her scalp and making her sigh with satisfaction. What amount of intimacy could I possibly yearn for?