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"No, Amet, for the last time we will not travel nearly 300 miles from our planned course because you hear that Baineth is the new fashionable spa town!"
Amet rolled her eyes, and her breathing just skirted the acceptable edge of a frustrated sigh. Skein looked equally infuriated, her mouth tight as though holding back some choice phrases of her own.
Talen raised his hands as he stepped between them, throwing a pleading glance to Skein before addressing Amet.
“We talked about this before we set out, didn’t we?”
He chose to interpret her closed silence as agreement seeing as they had, in fact, discussed the issue at length and some volume.
“So what’s changed?”
“Oh Talen – listen to yourself! We didn’t talk about it! I suggested it, Jarret had never heard of the place and backed out, and you three dismissed it out of hand!”
“Bullshit!” Skein exploded. “Amet : if you can make the figures balance, then great, but until then, it’s not even a choice girl. The season will be half over before we can get there by cart, and if we travel by train the season won’t be long enough to make it worth our while, especially with the Association taking a cut.”
“Says you.”
“Amet!” Genuine loosing-my-patience anger was threaded through Skein’s voice,, before the older women iced it down. “Would you like me to fetch the ledgers?”
Amet bit her lip and the pointed reminder that, numerous though her skills were, double entry book keeping and budget projection were not among them.
“Fine.” She snapped.
Talen had to bit his own tongue not to snap back. The long monotonous journey was wearing of all of them, and having had Malk hired out from under them had just added to the workload and the friction.
“You really want to add another month of ox-driving before we get anywhere half way civilized?”
H tried to make his voice teasing, trying to make it a joke, to lighten the mood. It almost worked. If nothing else it was the one thing they could all agree on as a benefit of sticking with the current plan : only a week or so to go before Jessa, and the next hot bath house.
He looked around their campsite for the night. Plenty of space, a stand of trees old enough to provide some dead wood to get the stove going and save on charcoal, and the river they had crossed a short while back only a few meters away. It had been glistening clear and clean and cool for the last hour or so of their mileage, so very tempting after day on long dry day of sun and endless grain fields. A significant improvement on the previous few spots he concluded.
By the time he had got a fire going in the belly of the stove, and was assembling a batch of syrupy aniseed tea, Skein had got her make shift kitchen set up across the wagon back, and Amet had the bannocks up. He could hear the others coming back up stream having settled the animals.
Amet and Skein’s snipping was like showers before a thunderstorm : they did nothing to break the heavy lowering atmosphere. Talen could almost count down the seconds between Kes falling silent and him reaching for Talen for reassurance. He had reached minus two when soft arms reached around his waist from behind. Maybe the lad was settling in after all. He stilled his hands and leaned back a little, encouraging Kes to rest his head on Talen’s back, pressing the two of them together while his own larger hands clasped over the boys.
Even in the fading twilight so close to the river the heat soon drove them apart again. Kes came around to Talen’s side, crouching to busy his hands snapping kindling and laying it to dry near the stove. Not that they could expect rain, but at least the boy’s hunting tutors had taught him something. He looked up, worrying at his lower lip with his teeth while he tried to gauge what the right question might be.
“Baineth. Again.”
Talen offered, and Kes’ frown eased. Kes’ frown. The traveling was getting to his boy too. He looked exhausted; dusty, sweaty, and wilted. Like enough the only reason he wasn’t more fractious and argumentative was that he was just too tired to express it. It didn’t suit him. Despite his best efforts and Skein’s best creams, the sun had caught him, reddening and peeling the bridge of his nose. His hair was dull and knotted, he moved stiffly, and that frown still creased his forehead.
To be fair, the boy was far less used to travel than the rest of them, and this particular two week marathon was stretching all of them. Only Jarret seemed even partly satisfied with their current lot, and Kes was yet to actually complain, and had done all that had been asked of him.
Talen couldn't help but worry.
“Come help with the water?”
Talen made it a question, but Kes just shrugged acceptingly and straightened, pushing himself up on his own knees. He waited for Talen to take the lead.
Talen reached for the galvanized pails and with his other hand, ran one finger down the lacing in the small of Kes’s back. His boy twisted away, uncomfortable. A second later a blush added color to his already reddened cheeks. He looked stricken.
“I’m sorry” he began, then looked away and reached for some buckets of his own in silence.
Talen followed behind until they were at the river side, and out of earshot of the others.
“Kes?” he prompted
Kes let out a long breath, shoulders sagging a little. He scrubbed his hands through his hair, leaving a smudge on one temple..
“I am sorry Talen.” He began seriously, speaking slowly until emotion started to break through his control. “I’m just so tired, and believe me, you can’t want to touch me right now. I’m nasty - I didn’t … I don’t …”
“Shhhh.” Talen comforted. He took his boy’s wrist firmly in his hand, and tugged until he was sitting on the bank. Without a word he crouched, unlacing Kes’ tall boots quick economical movements. Kes squirmed a little, avoiding his eye when Talen winked up at him, starting to tug them off, but he didn’t resist. His ankles had swollen a little with the heat and the long day’s ride. He hissed when the damp sticky leather finally gave.
Talen leant to dip his hands in the river, and stroked gently of his boy’s foot and ankle with cold fingers. Talen repeated his actions with the other boot, pinching down the hot tendons. This time the breath was more relief than complaint.
“We should bath before we eat.” Talen offered to break the silence, holding his voice low and inviting. The river would be cold, but after a day slow roasting in his clothes, cold sounded too good to resist.
Kes glanced back towards the camp and gave Talen the first smile he’d seen all day.
“We should.”
He shifted his hips, turning his back on Talen, reclining on the bank.
Talen felt something loosen in his chest, and smiled at the easy trust of the gesture. He ran his fingers lightly over the lacing once more before tackling the knots. True to his nature despite the fretful heat, Kes arched into the touch as the laces loosened. Talen smoothed his hands over Kes’ waist, squeezing apart the front fastenings with a practiced motion.
Kes mad another small noise when Talen’s fingertips brushed against his thin cotton shirt, tugging it away from his sweaty skin.
“Too many damn clothes” Talen grumped, teasing all the while he enjoyed the unwrapping.
It was an old argument.
********
[originally posted in two parts 21/3/03 and 31/3/03.]
Amet rolled her eyes, and her breathing just skirted the acceptable edge of a frustrated sigh. Skein looked equally infuriated, her mouth tight as though holding back some choice phrases of her own.
Talen raised his hands as he stepped between them, throwing a pleading glance to Skein before addressing Amet.
“We talked about this before we set out, didn’t we?”
He chose to interpret her closed silence as agreement seeing as they had, in fact, discussed the issue at length and some volume.
“So what’s changed?”
“Oh Talen – listen to yourself! We didn’t talk about it! I suggested it, Jarret had never heard of the place and backed out, and you three dismissed it out of hand!”
“Bullshit!” Skein exploded. “Amet : if you can make the figures balance, then great, but until then, it’s not even a choice girl. The season will be half over before we can get there by cart, and if we travel by train the season won’t be long enough to make it worth our while, especially with the Association taking a cut.”
“Says you.”
“Amet!” Genuine loosing-my-patience anger was threaded through Skein’s voice,, before the older women iced it down. “Would you like me to fetch the ledgers?”
Amet bit her lip and the pointed reminder that, numerous though her skills were, double entry book keeping and budget projection were not among them.
“Fine.” She snapped.
Talen had to bit his own tongue not to snap back. The long monotonous journey was wearing of all of them, and having had Malk hired out from under them had just added to the workload and the friction.
“You really want to add another month of ox-driving before we get anywhere half way civilized?”
H tried to make his voice teasing, trying to make it a joke, to lighten the mood. It almost worked. If nothing else it was the one thing they could all agree on as a benefit of sticking with the current plan : only a week or so to go before Jessa, and the next hot bath house.
He looked around their campsite for the night. Plenty of space, a stand of trees old enough to provide some dead wood to get the stove going and save on charcoal, and the river they had crossed a short while back only a few meters away. It had been glistening clear and clean and cool for the last hour or so of their mileage, so very tempting after day on long dry day of sun and endless grain fields. A significant improvement on the previous few spots he concluded.
By the time he had got a fire going in the belly of the stove, and was assembling a batch of syrupy aniseed tea, Skein had got her make shift kitchen set up across the wagon back, and Amet had the bannocks up. He could hear the others coming back up stream having settled the animals.
Amet and Skein’s snipping was like showers before a thunderstorm : they did nothing to break the heavy lowering atmosphere. Talen could almost count down the seconds between Kes falling silent and him reaching for Talen for reassurance. He had reached minus two when soft arms reached around his waist from behind. Maybe the lad was settling in after all. He stilled his hands and leaned back a little, encouraging Kes to rest his head on Talen’s back, pressing the two of them together while his own larger hands clasped over the boys.
Even in the fading twilight so close to the river the heat soon drove them apart again. Kes came around to Talen’s side, crouching to busy his hands snapping kindling and laying it to dry near the stove. Not that they could expect rain, but at least the boy’s hunting tutors had taught him something. He looked up, worrying at his lower lip with his teeth while he tried to gauge what the right question might be.
“Baineth. Again.”
Talen offered, and Kes’ frown eased. Kes’ frown. The traveling was getting to his boy too. He looked exhausted; dusty, sweaty, and wilted. Like enough the only reason he wasn’t more fractious and argumentative was that he was just too tired to express it. It didn’t suit him. Despite his best efforts and Skein’s best creams, the sun had caught him, reddening and peeling the bridge of his nose. His hair was dull and knotted, he moved stiffly, and that frown still creased his forehead.
To be fair, the boy was far less used to travel than the rest of them, and this particular two week marathon was stretching all of them. Only Jarret seemed even partly satisfied with their current lot, and Kes was yet to actually complain, and had done all that had been asked of him.
Talen couldn't help but worry.
“Come help with the water?”
Talen made it a question, but Kes just shrugged acceptingly and straightened, pushing himself up on his own knees. He waited for Talen to take the lead.
Talen reached for the galvanized pails and with his other hand, ran one finger down the lacing in the small of Kes’s back. His boy twisted away, uncomfortable. A second later a blush added color to his already reddened cheeks. He looked stricken.
“I’m sorry” he began, then looked away and reached for some buckets of his own in silence.
Talen followed behind until they were at the river side, and out of earshot of the others.
“Kes?” he prompted
Kes let out a long breath, shoulders sagging a little. He scrubbed his hands through his hair, leaving a smudge on one temple..
“I am sorry Talen.” He began seriously, speaking slowly until emotion started to break through his control. “I’m just so tired, and believe me, you can’t want to touch me right now. I’m nasty - I didn’t … I don’t …”
“Shhhh.” Talen comforted. He took his boy’s wrist firmly in his hand, and tugged until he was sitting on the bank. Without a word he crouched, unlacing Kes’ tall boots quick economical movements. Kes squirmed a little, avoiding his eye when Talen winked up at him, starting to tug them off, but he didn’t resist. His ankles had swollen a little with the heat and the long day’s ride. He hissed when the damp sticky leather finally gave.
Talen leant to dip his hands in the river, and stroked gently of his boy’s foot and ankle with cold fingers. Talen repeated his actions with the other boot, pinching down the hot tendons. This time the breath was more relief than complaint.
“We should bath before we eat.” Talen offered to break the silence, holding his voice low and inviting. The river would be cold, but after a day slow roasting in his clothes, cold sounded too good to resist.
Kes glanced back towards the camp and gave Talen the first smile he’d seen all day.
“We should.”
He shifted his hips, turning his back on Talen, reclining on the bank.
Talen felt something loosen in his chest, and smiled at the easy trust of the gesture. He ran his fingers lightly over the lacing once more before tackling the knots. True to his nature despite the fretful heat, Kes arched into the touch as the laces loosened. Talen smoothed his hands over Kes’ waist, squeezing apart the front fastenings with a practiced motion.
Kes mad another small noise when Talen’s fingertips brushed against his thin cotton shirt, tugging it away from his sweaty skin.
“Too many damn clothes” Talen grumped, teasing all the while he enjoyed the unwrapping.
It was an old argument.
********
[originally posted in two parts 21/3/03 and 31/3/03.]