A Shot Over the Bow

Writers: Yvonne
Date Posted: 16th July 2014

Characters: Alina
Description: Alina encounters an uncomfortable situation in the bathing pools
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 7, day 18 of Turn 7
Notes: Notes: The Game: 1

Alina

The water swirling around her was white with sweetsand suds as Alina scrubbed furiously at her arms. This time in the morning the water was fresh and cool, and bathing pools nearest the Candidate barracks were pretty well empty save for a pair of older women washing each other's backs at the other end of the pool. And thankfully there were no men.

Angrily she dunked her shoulders to get rid of the sweetsand, then scraped her long black hair away from her eyes with raking fingers. Even after all these months, having no privacy to bathe was still the absolute worst thing about being at the Weyr. The Weyr _knew_ its Candidates were holdbred, and yet it still didn't feel the need to separate the bathing chambers. It was bad enough to have to slip naked into the water when a bunch of women were around, but when there were men...

She dunked her head to wet her hair, then froze as the door to the pools swung open and a trio of young men stepped inside, their towels over their shoulders as they laughed at something the blond man in the centre had said. Alina quickly turned her back and crouched, curling her arms protectively over her breasts as her hair swirled in the water around her.

"--so that was bad enough, but then he told me that if i didn't show up the next sevenday, I'm out," the blond boy continued. "Can you believe that? As if my parents would let him kick me out of class when they're paying hard-earned marks for my education. I think he's envious that I spent the last few months at the Harper Hall instead of toiling away here as his personal slave."

"So are you going to go?" one of the other young men asked. His voice was deeper, but it seemed rough around the edges compared to the blond boy's.

"Nah. Why bother?" The three of them laughed again, and Alina could hear the soft sussurus of of cloth against skin as they undressed. Her cheeks flamed and she did her best to ignore them, reaching instead for the sweetsand and attacking her hair with it. Cool water lapped at her earlobes and her hair kept escaping into the water.

She ducked under the water to rinse, staying there as long as her lungs would let her before reluctantly rising to the surface in a halo of bubbles. Her hair was still sudsy so she did it a second time, then a third, until the water ran clean and her hair floated like silk thread around her.

A burst of laughter from nearby caused her back to stiffen uncomfortably. They-- the young men who'd come in-- were in the water with her. Alina shook her head so that her hair fell over her shoulders, affording her as much privacy as the stupid Weyr would allow, before turning to the steps to leave. The three men were half way between her and her escape. The blond boy chose that moment to glance in her direction, and Alina sank into the water until it covered her up to her chin. He looked away, then stole another glance in her direction, so she turned her back.

There was no way she'd walk past them now. Instead she waded to the edge of the pool, then took a deep breath and heaved herself over the edge and onto the rock. Her hair clung damply to her curves and she felt the boys' eyes gaze crawling over her as unwelcome as trundlebug feet. She hunched her body and scuttled to the half-secluded nook she'd left her things in, wrapping herself in her towel as soon as it touched her fingers. It helped, but not much.

She dressed in a hurry, fingers fumbling on buttons and cloth sticking to wet skin, but Alina pulled on her underthings and dress in record time, doing her best to keep her skin protected from prying eyes as she did so. Her hair soaked a large wet patch down her back before she had the chance to sweep it into a braid and pin it into a coil around her head. Her dress would be dry before breakfast was over.

With clothes on she felt a little more confidant as she marched across the bathing cavern. She stuck her nose in the air as she passed the three young men in the pool, but her gaze slipped sideways anyway. The blond boy was still watching her, the water glistening on his chest and arms as he lounged against the side of the pool. He winked.

Alina flushed and nearly ran from the cavern. Humiliation and hate lodged themselves beneath her breastbone, searing her lungs and making it hard to breathe. How dare he! How dare _all_ of them! How could the Weyr _do_ this to her?! Even with the bath she felt dirty.

The knot eased a bit as she left the oppressive weight of the stone mountain above her and stepped into the sunshine. The air was that perfect cool that signaled a hot day ahead, and the light was clear and liquid against her face. Alina took a deep breath, tilting her face toward the sun. The scent of flowers surrounded her, and beneath the rustle of leaves in the wind she could hear the sea.

Her misery faded a little with each breath until it became bearable once more. Breakfast was soon, and then chores and lessons. And with any luck, she'd never see that beastly blond boy again.

Last updated on the July 28th 2014

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A Shot Over the Bow