Jack was silent as the two men led him to a wagon that was taller than most of the others. He was careful not to lean to either side, realizing that the two men were there to hold control of him as if he was a dangerous animal. When they got to the wagon Jack moved carefully, worried about knocking things over. The woman went inside, tapping a rune carved into stone on the wall of the wagon. At the ceiling three glass globes lit up, the runework on the outside filled with blue fire for a moment before the soft gold light inside the globe lit up.

"Bring him in," The woman said.

The small woman waited until the two men had hooked his leashes to hooks on the wall and withdrawn, bowing as they did so.

"I am Matron Oldami duRestlafut, of the Restlafut Caravan Consortium, little Xue'nghozi," The woman said. "Please wait, you should be bathed so you don't get mud on my furniture."

Jack just held still, nodding slowly.

The woman stripped off her dress and then her underwear, putting the clothing in a wicker hamper, then picked up two basins.

"You'll need washed after having been in the mud," She said gently. Jack watched her put each one under a spigot before setting it down on the counter. The wagon was rocking gently side to side, but she seemed to not even notice it. She tapped some runes on both basins and the water began steaming. While the water was steaming she motioned at him to bend down, and unclipped the leashes from his collar.

"I don't think you need those right now. You can understand me, Xue'nghozi?" the woman asked. Jack nodded and she smiled. "Squat down, and I'll wash you."

Jack tried not to pay attention to the fact that the little woman was nude, squatting down. The woman washed his hair first, using a small pitcher to wet his hair, then scrub in some kind of thick liquid that smelled like strange flowers that foamed up, then rinsing his hair out. Afterwards she washed his face, behind his ears, and his back.

"Stand up," The woman said from behind him. Jack did so, covering his crotch. The woman washed him backside and the back of his thighs, then moved around in front of him.

When she saw him covering his crotch she looked up at him. "Do your people have a nudity taboo, Xue'nghozi?" She asked.

Jack nodded.

"How... weird," She frowned. "Do you sleep wearing clothing of some kind?" Jack nodded. "You remain clothed even in front of friends and family?" Again, Jack nodded, blushing. "Is it because of fierce weather, or is it just taboo to be naked?"

Jack shook his head on the first one, nodded at the second.

The woman shook her head slowly, reaching out and taking Jack's wrists. "You are in my wagon, Xue'nghozi, so you will follow Phaelan customs and not worry about nudity," She looked up at Jack and smiled. "I have born six children, four of them boys, you will have nothing I have not seen before."

Jack flushed and let the woman pulled his hands away. He was afraid she'd comment on his erection, or stare at it, instead she looked at his recently manicured hands closely.

"Your hands are soft, your nails cared for," She said. She looked up. "Whoever owned you before you got lost treasured you. You are pampered."

Jack just flushed looking down and away from her.

He tried to ignore that she bathed him fully before she got a fluffy towel and began drying him.

"Even your feet are soft," Oldami mused, reaching out with strong little fingers and rubbing his feet. Jack tried to pull away, feeling weird about the woman pampering him, but she held tight, her strong fingers working on his feet.

He sighed with pleasure as she began working on soreness he wasn't even aware of.

"You may look at my body. It will become familiar more quickly if you do, and not be a source of embarrassment for you," Matron Oldami said, setting Jack's foot down and picking up the other one.

Jack shook his head, still looking away.

"What should I call you?" Oldami asked.

"Jack," The young man said.

"Jak," The woman said. She looked up. "Is that the name your mother gave you?" Jack nodded. "Hmm, most keep their names secret, choosing another one. Jak is a common name, however."

Thank God, Jack thought.

Jack winced slightly as Oldami cracked the knuckles of his toes.

"Jack, are you unused to seeing female bodies?" The woman asked, setting Jack's foot down and standing up. When Jack nodded she shook her head. "How bizarre to not be naked and comfortable in one's own home or the home of friends."

Jack covered his crotch with his hands and the woman suddenly nodded. "It makes you feel vulnerable. Ah. I have heard Xue'nghozi do not like feeling vulnerable."

Jack nodded at that, figuring it was as good as any explanation.

"Well, as I said, this is my home, and I will be naked if I choose," The woman said, turning around. She moved over to the cupboard, opening it and getting out what looked to Jack like two apples. When she turned around she tossed one to Jack, who caught it easily in mid-air.

"You have good reflexes," Oldami said, sitting down on a cushion next to Jack and laying back. She took a bite of the apple then wiped the juice from her chin.

"I will not have you sleep on the floor like an animal, or on the cushions like an errant child," Oldami said. She pointed at where a pair of folding doors were closed. "I sleep in there, you will join me."

Jack shook his head, worried about embarrassing himself if he slept in the same bed as her. It had taken everything he had, multiplication tables and video game statistics, not to orgasm when she'd gently washed his genitals.

"Your culture may have a taboo against nudity, but the Phaelan way is to sleep in the bed with trusted guests, family members, or visitors," Oldami said. "Our cultures are very different, but you will have to come to accept the fact that you will obey me."

The last was said with such firmness and Jack nodded, remembering the pain of the electricity that some of these small people could use on others. He wondered, for a second, if they were like electric eels or electric cat-fish.

"Eat," Matron Oldami ordered.

Jack took a bite, unsure of what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised by the taste. It was a lot like an apple, with a hint of honey sweetness to the rind.

"No tattoos or brands, pampered and soft," Matron Oldami mused, watching Jack eat the fruit. "Enough war-fire, mage-fire, and titan-fire in your blood that you kept flickering around my touch as I washed you."

She rolled on her side and stared at him, coking her head. "Are you mature, Jak?"

Jack nodded, blushing, one hand going down to cover his crotch.

Oldami laughed at that. "That, Jack, is normal even for immature boys. Are you considered a mature male of the Xue'nghozi?"

Jack nodded slowly. He realized his eyes had drifted from her face to her breasts again. When he looked back up at her face the older woman was smiling.

"It's all right. You're obviously young, even if you are mature, and the young have a tendency to look," She laughed.

There was a knock at the door and Oldami sighed dramatically. "Now who is at my door at this hour?"

To Jack's surprise she got up and went to the door, opening it without bothering to even cover herself.

"Good evening, Oldami," A male voice said.

"Chakarta," Oldami said, her voice full of affection. "Come in."

The man was small, only an inch or two taller than the woman, and gave Jack a suspicious look as Oldami leaned forward and kissed each of the man's cheeks. The man kissed each of Oldami's cheeks, then went back to staring at Jack.

Oldami walked back in and laid down on the cushion next to Jack.

The man that came in hung up his cloak on the stand next to where Oldami had hung up her cloak and Jack's blanket.

"I see you aren't staying," Oldami said.

"I just came to check on you, make sure you were safe," The male said, looking at Jack suspiciously.

"He is well behaved," Oldami shrugged. "You worry over nothing, little brother."

Jack could tell the small man wanted to say something else, but Oldami sat up, staring at the man.

"Did our mother send you?" She asked accusingly.

Chakarta shook his head. "I came to check on you because I wished to."

"As you can see, I am in no danger from him," Oldami said, reaching out and putting a hand on Jack's stomach. "I think he will not be violent or dangerous unless someone provokes him."

The man stared, obviously trying to figure out a way to argue.

"Now, is that the only reason for your visit, or do you have other errands to attend to," Oldami asked. Jack was surprised by the tone of her voice, challenging and almost rude.

Chakarta grabbed his wet cloak, putting it on. "Be careful around him, Oldami. You may trust him, but don't forget he is a Xue'nghozi, and Xue'nghozi are among the most dangerous of humans."

"Tell mother that I'm safe," Oldami's face grew stern.

Chakarta left the wagon, without any other rude words of gestures.

Oldami turned to Jack, shaking her head. "You must pardon Chakarta. Because we have the same mother he thinks he needs to watch over me as if I was his daughter rather than his older sister."

Jack's eyebrows raised, the idea of being naked in front of a family member repulsing him.

Oldami shook her head. "It is not taboo. If I had been dressed, I would have been saying I do not trust him and wish him to leave my presence. You Xue'nghozi are a strange people, Jak."

Jack looked around, not bothering to ask a question after having heard that the little people, the Phaelan, couldn't understand what he or his two friends were saying.

"What are you looking for, Jak?" Oldami asked.

Jack thought for a second then sighed in frustration. He pointed at himself, then around the comfortable interior of the wagon.

"Yes, Jak, you will be staying with me," Oldami said.

Jack shook his head. He pointed at her, then at himself.

"Yes, you will be staying here with me," She said.

Jack sighed again. He pointed at her, then at the door, then at himself.

"You want to go outside?" Oldami guessed.

Jack pointed at her again, then held up two fingers.

Oldami's face lit up. "Oh, no, I am alone in here," She said. "This is my wagon."

Jack reached out and pointed at the stretch marks beneath her belly button.

Oldami shook her head. "No, my children are grown, and they don't really stay with a parent once they can run around. They usually stay wherever they get sleepy. Phaelan view all children of the caravan as everyone's children."

Jack nodded slowly. He pointed at her, held up two fingers, then pointed at himself.

"I don't know what you're asking," Oldami said.

Jack thought for a moment, then decided to take a bit of a risk. He held up two fingers, then pointed at her. Then he pointed at her groin, then at his own.

Oldami's eyes got wide and she looked down at Jack's crotch. "Oh," She said. "I mean, it's quite large, but..."

Jack suddenly covered his crotch, turning bright red, when he caught her meaning.

Oldami looked at him, frowning. "Wait. Are you asking if I have a mate?"

Jack nodded and Oldami laughed. "Oh, that's... not what I thought you were asking."

Jack felt himself get redder.

"But, no. I could take a husband, I'm rich enough and my social standing within the Consortium is high enough, but I'm not interested in taking a life-mate," Oldami laughed. She got up and went back to the cupboard, opening it and getting out another fruit. She held it up, and when Jack nodded she threw it to him.

When she laid back down, Jack pointed at her belly again, making sure that she could tell he was pointing at her stretch marks and not anywhere else.

"Oh, the fathers?" She asked. Jack nodded and she shrugged. "We don't really pay attention to that."

Jack shook his head, surprised.

"Is it not like that with your people? I have heard the Xue'nghozi women only keep a male for long enough to get pregnant then let him return to the other males," Oldami said.

Jack shook his head.

"So your people life-bond?" Oldami looked surprised when Jack nodded. "How... strange," She giggled. "Well, no stranger than our ways must be to you."

Jack nodded at that. When he finished the apple equivalent he accepted the offered tea, sipping at it. He tried not to stare at Oldami's naked body, but every time he wasn't concentrating on not looking, his eyes kept drifting.

"Jak," Oldami said gently when he jerked and looked away. When Jak looked at her she smiled. "You are young, you are unused to nudity, I am not going to punish you for looking."

Jack flushed, but the next time he found himself looking over her body he didn't look away, just slowly moved his gaze back up to her face.

"Better," She smiled. Jack held out his cup and she refilled it for the third time. The cup was large enough that she needed both hands for it, but Jack was able to easily hold it in one hand.

When he was halfway through the cup he realized he had a problem.

Jack reached over and tapped Oldami's leg. The woman looked over at him.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

Jack tried to figure out how to tell the woman he needed to pee. He thought about it for a second while she waited patiently, smiling at him, then decided to just do the most obvious. He pointed at his penis, then made an arc from the tip away from him with one finger.

"Ah, you need to urinate," Oldami said. She slapped her forehead. "I should have thought to show you where the closet is."

She got up, opening a green painted door. Inside was a little seat along with a few boxes on the side.

"Go ahead, Jak," She said. "It might be easier if you sit down."

Jack nodded, sitting down and urinating. He'd been worried he'd have to go outside and go in the bushes, but sitting there, looking around, he realized that the little people were more advanced than that.

When he finished, he used a piece of soft cloth to dab the end to make sure he didn't drip everywhere, dropped it in the little nook full of dirty rags, opened the door, and went back out to lay down.

When he saw that Oldami was kneeling on the bed, facing away from him, putting extra pillows down, he turned bright red and the reaction he'd been trying to push away came rushing back at the view.

When Oldami turned, she saw Jack standing there, staring at her, and giggled.

"Oh, you young boys," She laughed. She pulled the comforter back. "Come on, get in bed," She laughed.

Jack climbed onto the bed, surprised at how large it was and how soft. He looked around and noticed it was easily the size of a king sized bed back home. He looked at her, frowning with confusion.

"Are you wondering why my bed is so large when I'm so small?" Oldami laughed. Jack nodded as he laid down.

Oldami laid down and pulled the blanket up over both of them. "Sometimes I have friends or guests over that I invite to spend the night with me. A large bed is a comfortable bed when it's shared with friends."

Jack blushed, realizing that she was talking about sex.

Oldami reached up and tapped a rune on the wall and the globes on the ceiling dimmed. After a bit it was dark in the room.

Jack was surprised when Oldami turned onto her side and snuggled up against him. Her bottom was warm and soft again his groin. He tried to ignore how pleasant she felt against him, but his body betrayed him anyway.

"Jak?" Oldami asked quietly into the darkness.

"Hmm?" Jack said, remembering that the sound seemed to work across the language barrier.

"Have you ever been with a female?" Oldami asked, rolling onto her back to look him in the eye.

Jack shook his head, aware he was blushing.

"If we go slow and gentle, give me time to get used to it, we can take care of that so you aren't uncomfortable or poking me with it and you won't be embarrassed about it," She said.

Jack's face felt hot and prickly. He wanted to say no, wanted to tell her that she didn't have to do that, that he didn't expect that out of her.

When she kissed him gently, all of that vanished.