My gaze followed Kaele and Quu'za for a moment as they left the bath, obviously in high spirits. The harpy had nabbed one last slice of bread from the low table the servants had set up next to the bath as well as one last slice of ham as she left. Other people had been coming and going as well, but most had left us alone. They probably didn't feel like intruding upon a group like ours. With my sister and our new friend gone I was left alone now though. Alone with my thoughts and the leftovers of our meal.

Maybe I could soak some more in one of the hot baths? We had spent most of the time we had been soaking in one of those of a more moderate temperature after all. Not that we had spent all the time in the water. I for my part had only dangled my feet in the water while eating for one. Otherwise I probably would look like a shrimpled up prune already. The thought had me laughing although the mental image was not actually all that pleasant.

I grabbed the last two untouched bottles of sweet wine and signaled one of the attendants that they could clear away the rest of our meal. I in turn strolled towards one of the hot baths, steam rising from its surface, with the two small clay bottles dangling from my fingers by their handles. I set them down in a small bucket filled with colder water next to the bath and slipped into the hot water, submerging myself up to the shoulders before leaning back against the basin's edge with a content sigh.

I half closed my eyes to enjoy the warmth seeping into my body. How had my life changed so much in such a short time? The idea alone was mind boggling yet it had happened. I was still lost in thought when I heard someone approaching. The sound of bare feet on the wet stone floor was unmistakable. At first I thought that it might be a bath attendant but as I opened my eyes and looked up that misconception was dispelled.

The gorgon lady was most certainly not one of the inn's employees. That was just about the only thing I was really certain about though. She was obviously older than my friend Eld'tide but I couldn't tell by how much exactly. What really set her apart from any other gorgons I knew was her seemingly living hair though. Sure, they all liked to wear it long but this woman took this to an entirely new level. Although it was braided it almost reached the floor. And as if that wasn't extravagant enough each of her braids ended in an ornate, gilded and bejeweled hair ornament.

“Would you mind if I joined you?” Her question surprised me and I realized that I had been staring. She apparently had noticed as well but her smile suggested that she didn't mind. As I meekly signaled my agreement with a nod she lowered herself into the water across from me. As she did that, her hair started to loosely tie itself into a large bun atop her head. Once more I could only stare in amazement. With Eld'tide I had never seen that degree of fine control. Even when she used her hair to draw arrows from her quiver she didn't come close.

Once more I started open mouthed and as I did so I almost missed another detail. The woman had stretch marks. Due to her dark skin they were not very prominent but they were there. That would make her a mother of at least one. I blushed hard and lowered myself a little deeper into the water as I finally realized that I was staring again. And once again my little indiscretion hadn't gone unnoticed.

As I finally looked away she burst out into laughter. “I heard rumors that a warrior of great skill must have come to town. She supposedly even had a weapon like the ones wielded by heroes of legend. Crafted from the bones of her vanquished foes.” She paused briefly, still chuckling. “I didn't expect her to be a shy little virgin.”

I blushed even harder now. I was no shy little virgin! Well, maybe I was but that didn't mean I appreciated being told to my face like that. I shifted about a little in embarrassment. Why would a beautiful woman like her come to see me? Just because I had become a hot topic of the local rumor mill? Those rumors couldn't have been that juicy, right? Sure, I had some fancy armor. Sure, my weapon might look like something the heroes of ancient times might have wielded. But that wasn't anything that special.

I blinked. Suddenly another thought occurred to me. Her elaborate hair. The precious hair ornaments. Her lush body. Her playful nature! I glanced her way but looked away again pretty quick. The way her luscious breast were buoyant in the water was quite distracting. It took me some effort to work up the nerve to address her. I cleared my throat and glanced her way. “I'm not sure what you might have heard but I don't think I can afford your attention.”

She blinked in surprise. Oh, dear Moon Maidens, hopefully I hadn't insulted her. Maybe I had been too direct? Or worse, had my assumption been wrong? I sunk deeper into the water once more until it reached almost the way up to my nose to hide my embarrassment. I was getting a little dizzy.

She blinked again and shook her head. A wave of relief flooded through me as I noticed the smile upon her lips. That meant that she wasn't mad, right? Right? “Well, well, that was a little more straightforward than most people are comfortable with.” She rose from the water and I might have twitched a little, afraid that I might have scared her off but she extended a hand to me. “But you aren't be entirely wrong either.”

I could only blink in surprise as she helped me to my feet. “Here.” I was even more surprised when she handed me one of the cooled bottles of wine. I didn't protest though. I didn't either as she picked up the other one for herself. Instead I took a quick sip to occupy my mouth. That way I wouldn't say anything else stupid. Hopefully. She took a sip of wine as well.

Then she rose to her tiptoes and motioned for me to bend down towards her a little so she could whisper into my ear. “I did earn my money like that for a while when I was younger. But that is in the past.” I almost chocked on my wine at her whispered confession. The way one of her hair tentacles brushed against my horn, as she leaned in close didn't help either. The casual touch sent shivers down my spine. “Nowadays I only spend my nights with people that I have come to take a liking to.”

With those words she stepped out of the bath, not letting go of my hand and pulling me along. I followed her, a little unsteady on my feet. Maybe the heat was really getting to me despite our people's natural resistance to it. Or was it the wine? I might have emptied that bottle a little too fast. Or was it just because my heart was beating so fast. Almost as if it wanted to jump out of my chest. I could only stare as she started to towel herself of very deliberately and slowly.

I barely had enough presence of mind to get a towel myself. That I was still lightheaded didn't exactly help either. I was starting to suspect that she might be a little older than I had estimated at first but if that was the case time had been pretty kind to her. Finally, when we were done she extended a hand towards me and as I accepted it she intertwined her fingers with mine. I almost stumbled as she pulled me a little closer.

Her other hand reached up to caress my cheek and pulled my face down towards hers again. Only now did I become really aware of the differences in our stature. I stood easily two heads taller than the gorgon but that didn't stop her. It didn't even slow her down. As her fingers brushed against my horn once more another pleasant shudder ran down my spine. “Should we head to your room or to mine? That is if you wouldn't rather spend the night alone?”

Before I had a chance to answer her lips touched mine and her tongue darted inside my mouth as her body pressed up against mine for the briefest of moments. My eyes widened and my knees almost gave out on me. My heart might have missed a beat or two as well. Did I want to spend the night alone? My head was spinning as I considered that question. I didn't have a lot of time to think about it as she pulled away again but it was enough. I really didn't want to be alone. “Mine?”

My words were half answer half question, my insecurity clearly audible to anyone. She accepted my decision with a nod anyway without questioning it. I had made a decision, even if it wasn't a big one, and she had accepted it. It was funny how that put my mind at ease. She gave my arm a little tug in the direction of the guest rooms. “Lead the way then.”

And that is just what I did. It wasn't far and yet I was very aware of her hand in mine with every step. Getting all worked up about holding hands. How very silly. Right? Well, it still happened. I imagined that I could feel everyone's gaze on my back as well but that was probably just my mind playing tricks on me. Sure, some people might have looked but most probably had better things to do with their time.

It didn't take us long to reach my room. It was dark. The magical lamps had long since gone out and we didn't reignite them either. We didn't really need them either. There wasn't much furniture after all and the way to the bed was clear. My gorgon companion finally let go of my hand. Instead she placed her hands on my backside, giving me a little push towards the bed. “Lie down, dear.”

I did and only a moment later I felt her lips on my body again. She started by kissing the soles of my feet and I had a hard time not to wriggle them away from her her as I discovered that I was ticklish. She didn't linger there though. Instead she started kissing her way up my body as she crawled onto the bed herself. Sometime halfway up my back her fingers joined her lips in exploring my body.

Her fingers lingered at the scar where the ghoul king had run me through in the side. “Ghoul King," I whispered breathlessly, my voice hoarse.

“Oh my! Maybe you are really on your way to become a hero of legend.” She seemed genuinely surprised and resumed mapping my body and whenever she lingered on one of my scars I would tell her about it. Most didn't come with fancy stories though. A few were even rather embarrassing. She didn't mind and kissed them anyway. And for a while we played a game of feather light touches, gentle kisses, sweet whispers and breathless moans.

I tried to return the affection she showered me with but that was easier said than done. Where her fingers were small and delicate mine were clumsy and coarse from all the weapon training. And my kisses probably were nothing like hers either. My lack of experience didn't do me any favors either. In the end she took my hand in hers and started guiding me with whispered instructions, not letting up on her own efforts to show me pleasure in the slightest, until we both found release.

In the end we both lay upon the sheets all sweaty again. We probably would need another bath in the morning. Kela'oz rested her head on my belly and had an arm wrapped around my legs. I in turn ran a hand through her hair. The braids playfully wrapped around my arm to keep it in place to gently pat her as we were about to finally fall asleep. I closed my eyes and decided to simply enjoy the warmth of her body against mine.