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Authors: Nhys Glover
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clean water over her burning face and arms.
‘More of a disguise. We’re not going to cover as much ground as I’d hoped. It’s going to take us maybe eight days, maybe more, to get to our destination. I’m rethinking the idea of you spending your nights in the open. If we bleach your hair, and take a room in an Inn as a couple, no one would recognise a description of you , if your mother sent out scouts to find you. You’d be safer and more comfortable.’
She s plashed more water on her face, before cupping her hands to drink thirstily. ‘All right. How do I do that?’
‘I’ll show you after we eat. That’s why I bought those citrons. You can do it with wood ash and tallow. That’s what my people used on their beards, but it’s harsh on the hair. This is gentler.’
‘Do your people have beards? I can’t imagine you with a beard.’
‘Where I come from it is very cold most of the year round. Snow and ice cold. So you don’t bother with cutting your hair or your beard. It helps keep you warm. I was too young to grow a beard when I left home, but my hair was half way down my back. I wore two braids here and here,’ he indicated either side of his face.
Her curious expression as she tried to imagine it made him chuckle. ‘A different world, little mi… Lara. You would find it harsh and primitive. But we were happy. Everyone always laughed a lot. Not the cruel laughter of the Romans, in their comedies or with each other. But joy-of-life laughter.’
She smiled at him but said nothing. How could she understand a world so different to the one she had known all her sheltered life? With a heavy sigh, he led her back to the shaded blanket.
He couldn’t contain his ravenous hunger, and polished off what was left of the supplies they’d brought from Rome. Then he started on the bread and cheese he’d just bought. With a little encouragement, he managed to get Lara to eat half of the berries and some of the cheese.
‘Now we’re going to do your hair. I’m going to squeeze the juice from these citrons into the mug, add some water and then soak the full length with it. Then I want you to lay your hair in the sun to let it dry. Doing it now while the sun is still hot is probably the best idea. But we’ll put a wet cloth over your face. You’ve had more than enough sun on it for one day. Does it sting?’
She nodded and shrugged as she began to unbraid her beautiful hair. It was sacrilege to change its colour. But if it meant keeping her a little safer, and allowing her the comfort of an Inn, instead of the ground for her bed, then it would be worth it. It would grow out or fade.
Patting the citron juice into the long skeins from root to tip was one of the most sensual things he had ever done. She sat silently and still throughout, letting him do what he wanted with her, trusting him. By the time he had emptied the mug his hands were shaking. The desire to touch the perfection that was so close was almost more than he could stand. Getting her to lay on her back on the blanket, her hair strewn out above her in the sun while her body and face stayed in the shade, almost undid him.
Finally, he had her positioned just right, although the sun would continue to move, and her face would soon be unprotected. He dampened a new tunic he’d purchased for himself and laid it over her face.
The heat was making them both groggy. ‘Try to sleep, litt… Lara. We’ll get back on the road when it gets cooler.’
Her drowsy voice came from under the cloth. ‘Can we try sleeping under the stars tonight, Vali? I’ve never done it, and I think I’d enjoy it, no matter how hard the ground. I feel free out here. No walls, no roof. Nothing to keep me trapped.’
Her words surprised him. He wouldn’t have thought she needed to feel free. After all, she was not enslaved. But when he thought of her life, how bored and frustrated she’d been when he knew her, he started to understand. She had always answered to
‘More of a disguise. We’re not going to cover as much ground as I’d hoped. It’s going to take us maybe eight days, maybe more, to get to our destination. I’m rethinking the idea of you spending your nights in the open. If we bleach your hair, and take a room in an Inn as a couple, no one would recognise a description of you , if your mother sent out scouts to find you. You’d be safer and more comfortable.’
She s plashed more water on her face, before cupping her hands to drink thirstily. ‘All right. How do I do that?’
‘I’ll show you after we eat. That’s why I bought those citrons. You can do it with wood ash and tallow. That’s what my people used on their beards, but it’s harsh on the hair. This is gentler.’
‘Do your people have beards? I can’t imagine you with a beard.’
‘Where I come from it is very cold most of the year round. Snow and ice cold. So you don’t bother with cutting your hair or your beard. It helps keep you warm. I was too young to grow a beard when I left home, but my hair was half way down my back. I wore two braids here and here,’ he indicated either side of his face.
Her curious expression as she tried to imagine it made him chuckle. ‘A different world, little mi… Lara. You would find it harsh and primitive. But we were happy. Everyone always laughed a lot. Not the cruel laughter of the Romans, in their comedies or with each other. But joy-of-life laughter.’
She smiled at him but said nothing. How could she understand a world so different to the one she had known all her sheltered life? With a heavy sigh, he led her back to the shaded blanket.
He couldn’t contain his ravenous hunger, and polished off what was left of the supplies they’d brought from Rome. Then he started on the bread and cheese he’d just bought. With a little encouragement, he managed to get Lara to eat half of the berries and some of the cheese.
‘Now we’re going to do your hair. I’m going to squeeze the juice from these citrons into the mug, add some water and then soak the full length with it. Then I want you to lay your hair in the sun to let it dry. Doing it now while the sun is still hot is probably the best idea. But we’ll put a wet cloth over your face. You’ve had more than enough sun on it for one day. Does it sting?’
She nodded and shrugged as she began to unbraid her beautiful hair. It was sacrilege to change its colour. But if it meant keeping her a little safer, and allowing her the comfort of an Inn, instead of the ground for her bed, then it would be worth it. It would grow out or fade.
Patting the citron juice into the long skeins from root to tip was one of the most sensual things he had ever done. She sat silently and still throughout, letting him do what he wanted with her, trusting him. By the time he had emptied the mug his hands were shaking. The desire to touch the perfection that was so close was almost more than he could stand. Getting her to lay on her back on the blanket, her hair strewn out above her in the sun while her body and face stayed in the shade, almost undid him.
Finally, he had her positioned just right, although the sun would continue to move, and her face would soon be unprotected. He dampened a new tunic he’d purchased for himself and laid it over her face.
The heat was making them both groggy. ‘Try to sleep, litt… Lara. We’ll get back on the road when it gets cooler.’
Her drowsy voice came from under the cloth. ‘Can we try sleeping under the stars tonight, Vali? I’ve never done it, and I think I’d enjoy it, no matter how hard the ground. I feel free out here. No walls, no roof. Nothing to keep me trapped.’
Her words surprised him. He wouldn’t have thought she needed to feel free. After all, she was not enslaved. But when he thought of her life, how bored and frustrated she’d been when he knew her, he started to understand. She had always answered to
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