“Are you certain you do not want us to take care of this?â€
The two servants, Aldwyn and Estrid, hovered near him. They were in their usual subservient hunched pose, hands clasped in front of them... but the look they gave Marius was one of bewilderment. After all, cleaning the bath and emptying out the bathwater were a part of their duties. No Imperial soldiers would ever deign to clean up after the dignitaries have taken their leisurely soaks.
It was true that soldiers were also never asked to deliver the bath water before Marius came, but the servants never mentioned it again after Justus dismissed them that first time. Ever since, Aldwyn and Estrid just lingered about nearby, waiting for a command from Marius to do whatever was necessary. But such orders never came from him. Marius preferred to do whatever he could himself.
The two Hyurs, who were much older than he--perhaps in their fifties, had been serving the Consulate for years. They carried out their duties without complaint and did all that was ordered of them punctually and efficiently. At first, Marius thought they would be relieved that certain duties had been lifted from their shoulders. He would happily let them do as they pleased as he went about completing whatever Justus had ordered him to in their stead. But soon, Marius began to realize that they felt a certain measure of unease when one their duties was being performed by another. They held to the belief that their worth was measured by their work.
So Marius stopped dismissing them, instead accepting their help with quiet gratitude. And they, in turn, seemed more content in carrying on about their day.
But in this task, Marius refused their aid. “Only on this particular occasion, I must insist.†Marius gave an apologetic smile as he lifted one edge of the tub, to drain the water back out. Instead of emptying it through the usual drain into the sewers, he was pouring the water back out into large barrel. This seemed to confuse the two servants greatly.
“Perhaps he has become addled from the heat,†Marius heard Aldwyn whisper to Estrid.
“Too much work,†Estrid nodded back with a deeply concerned look.
Marius stood after the last of the water was poured into the barrel. He chuckled and gave them a bright smile. “You two worry too much. I am of sound of mind. It’s just that... this particular bath water, I would like to take care of myself.†He waved them off. “Do go on. I am certain you have other things to tend to.â€
When the two shuffled off, still wearing matching worried looks, Marius heaved the barrel into his arms, and began to make his way out of the manse. It was true that Justus did not order this of him, but it was a task he felt he needed to attend to himself.
“The water at this spring is cheerful. It is well-loved, and knows it,†she had said.
What a peculiar sun it had been. He had broken his own streak of thirty suns without any incident in delivering the bath water until earlier today. He had the misfortune of crashing into a foreign Hyur woman in the middle of the street, and rather tragically soaking her to the bone with the barrel of water he had been tasked to deliver.
He still remembered clearly the woman on the ground, the water sinking into the dirt around her. Her deep red hair clung to her face, as rivulets of water traveled alongside her green eyes, with a few droplets lingering on her lashes. She seemed more surprised than anything that the water was warm.
But not only had she shown no anger, she proceeded to show him something strange and miraculous. She spoke to the next barrel of water he retrieved and told him that the water had agreed, as a favor, to stay warm for many bells. Or until it touched the sea.
Marius was slow to believe it, even though he had read about Hearers long before coming to Kugane. Reading was his love, and learning about foreign tales and histories had always fascinated him so. And yet, when he read about the strange creatures of this place called the Black Shroud, he had imagined both Hearers and the Children of the Forest as miniature childlike people with horns. At least that was what he allowed himself to imagine.
Liadan was the furthest thing from a horned child. Her face actually reminded him of another, a childhood vision that had long been absent from his mind. He had stared at her, rather shamelessly so, at first. She did not seem to notice. Instead, she spoke of her teachings.
“We are taught to seek balance in all things, that to know how to mend, you must know how to break.  But I did not journey this far from home to break others. I came to calm storms and heal wounds.â€
Her words held a certain poetic beauty that still moved him. All he could do was to invite her to dine with him before she left the port city.
The sounds of the ocean returned his attention to the scenery before him. He had reached the end of the pier, and the moonlight shimmered over the deep blue horizon.
“Now, into the sea you go,†Marius whispered into the barrel as he kneeled at the edge and poured the contents out. Steam rose and warmed his face as the hot spring water descended into the ocean. As she had said, the water kept its promise and did not cool until then. He could almost imagine it swirling happily before scattering into the sea.
Marius smiled, and made his way back to the Consulate. It had been a peculiar sun indeed.
The two servants, Aldwyn and Estrid, hovered near him. They were in their usual subservient hunched pose, hands clasped in front of them... but the look they gave Marius was one of bewilderment. After all, cleaning the bath and emptying out the bathwater were a part of their duties. No Imperial soldiers would ever deign to clean up after the dignitaries have taken their leisurely soaks.
It was true that soldiers were also never asked to deliver the bath water before Marius came, but the servants never mentioned it again after Justus dismissed them that first time. Ever since, Aldwyn and Estrid just lingered about nearby, waiting for a command from Marius to do whatever was necessary. But such orders never came from him. Marius preferred to do whatever he could himself.
The two Hyurs, who were much older than he--perhaps in their fifties, had been serving the Consulate for years. They carried out their duties without complaint and did all that was ordered of them punctually and efficiently. At first, Marius thought they would be relieved that certain duties had been lifted from their shoulders. He would happily let them do as they pleased as he went about completing whatever Justus had ordered him to in their stead. But soon, Marius began to realize that they felt a certain measure of unease when one their duties was being performed by another. They held to the belief that their worth was measured by their work.
So Marius stopped dismissing them, instead accepting their help with quiet gratitude. And they, in turn, seemed more content in carrying on about their day.
But in this task, Marius refused their aid. “Only on this particular occasion, I must insist.†Marius gave an apologetic smile as he lifted one edge of the tub, to drain the water back out. Instead of emptying it through the usual drain into the sewers, he was pouring the water back out into large barrel. This seemed to confuse the two servants greatly.
“Perhaps he has become addled from the heat,†Marius heard Aldwyn whisper to Estrid.
“Too much work,†Estrid nodded back with a deeply concerned look.
Marius stood after the last of the water was poured into the barrel. He chuckled and gave them a bright smile. “You two worry too much. I am of sound of mind. It’s just that... this particular bath water, I would like to take care of myself.†He waved them off. “Do go on. I am certain you have other things to tend to.â€
When the two shuffled off, still wearing matching worried looks, Marius heaved the barrel into his arms, and began to make his way out of the manse. It was true that Justus did not order this of him, but it was a task he felt he needed to attend to himself.
“The water at this spring is cheerful. It is well-loved, and knows it,†she had said.
What a peculiar sun it had been. He had broken his own streak of thirty suns without any incident in delivering the bath water until earlier today. He had the misfortune of crashing into a foreign Hyur woman in the middle of the street, and rather tragically soaking her to the bone with the barrel of water he had been tasked to deliver.
He still remembered clearly the woman on the ground, the water sinking into the dirt around her. Her deep red hair clung to her face, as rivulets of water traveled alongside her green eyes, with a few droplets lingering on her lashes. She seemed more surprised than anything that the water was warm.
But not only had she shown no anger, she proceeded to show him something strange and miraculous. She spoke to the next barrel of water he retrieved and told him that the water had agreed, as a favor, to stay warm for many bells. Or until it touched the sea.
Marius was slow to believe it, even though he had read about Hearers long before coming to Kugane. Reading was his love, and learning about foreign tales and histories had always fascinated him so. And yet, when he read about the strange creatures of this place called the Black Shroud, he had imagined both Hearers and the Children of the Forest as miniature childlike people with horns. At least that was what he allowed himself to imagine.
Liadan was the furthest thing from a horned child. Her face actually reminded him of another, a childhood vision that had long been absent from his mind. He had stared at her, rather shamelessly so, at first. She did not seem to notice. Instead, she spoke of her teachings.
“We are taught to seek balance in all things, that to know how to mend, you must know how to break.  But I did not journey this far from home to break others. I came to calm storms and heal wounds.â€
Her words held a certain poetic beauty that still moved him. All he could do was to invite her to dine with him before she left the port city.
The sounds of the ocean returned his attention to the scenery before him. He had reached the end of the pier, and the moonlight shimmered over the deep blue horizon.
“Now, into the sea you go,†Marius whispered into the barrel as he kneeled at the edge and poured the contents out. Steam rose and warmed his face as the hot spring water descended into the ocean. As she had said, the water kept its promise and did not cool until then. He could almost imagine it swirling happily before scattering into the sea.
Marius smiled, and made his way back to the Consulate. It had been a peculiar sun indeed.
-=Sentry's Wiki=-
(please note that this is still a major work in progress!)
