10 Bath and Bags

Oribella and Poppy enjoyed their time together in Bear Castle. Oribella had been to visit Starlight and River a handful of times. The two gifted Oribella some hand me down boots, and a proper fur coat. Both told Oribella to make sure Poppy provided her with all the garments she wore as soon as they mated! Mother and daughter were extremely eager for Oribella to take Poppy 'officially.' Oribella reassured both that she wouldn't reject Poppy. She was waiting for it to feel JUST right. Although Poppy's mother and sister were overly excited about Oribella's love for Poppy they understood wanting to be extra close to the first male one takes.

There were many things to look forward to! River was soon going to give birth to her female baby. She had begun making plans for her recovery, such as stocking up on fatty foods to aid in her milk production. River promised Oribella that she may hold the baby soon after its birth, and Oribella looked forward to seeing the cute little girl!

River and Starlight also showed Oribella a public feature of Bear Castle where all the females in the Kingdom gathered to socialize. A bathhouse!

The Bottom floor of the 'Sunrise Wing' in Bear Castle was dedicated as a bathhouse. In warm months females would usually wash themselves in the river that runs through the Kingdom, in the cold months however the females still needed to clean their bodies without freezing so they'd bathe at home.

Oribella learned that 'Seven Kings Ago' the Bear King's spouse was quite sickly, and needed to bathe in hot water all year round, to avoid succumbing to her illness. But she grew lonely without the usual socialization the females of Bear kingdom had when bathing in the warm months. So the King had the bathhouse built in an otherwise unused section of the Castle! He then opened the Castle doors to all Females in the Kingdom to take hot baths in the Castle, so his spouse wouldn't feel separated from the other females of the Kingdom.

Oribella was nervous at first about being publicly nude even among only women. Once inside she saw a lot of faces, body types, and skin tones in the bath and Oribella felt more at ease. The unfair beauty standards of her old world clearly didn't apply the same way here, as she saw unconventionally attractive women with 7 to 9 spousal marks! It made the baby-faced, clubby Oribella feel less pressure to change her looks, or try to lose weight.

However... the chitter chatter of conversation stopped when Oribella entered the bathhouse with River and Starlight. Oribella wasn't sure if she was being judged poorly or kindly. No one was avoiding her physically... But the only sounds were of running and dripping water. And the silence was starting to weigh on Oribella.

River and Starlight wanted to break the silence but neither knew what to say without sounding rude. It wasn't until a younger female, maybe 10 or 11 years, aproached Oribella.

"I haven't seen you before, what's your name? My name is Fiona!" Fiona was very sweet and kind.

Oribella smiled, genuinely happy to speak with someone, "my name is Oribella Rossi. Please call me 'Oribella' though. It's nice to meet you, Fiona!"

Now that Fiona had broken the seal, the bathhouse erupted in questions for Oribella! The others weren't trying to give her the cold shoulder, they were just embarrassed to be the first to approach her!

Most of the questions pertained to how she had met Poppy. Oribella told the story of how Poppy found her in the snow. He was honest, and kind and he loved her, and she was waiting for the perfect time to take him as a spouse.

Some of the older females gave Oribella warning about Poppy's Father. Oribella explained that she knew about Poppy's past the day she met him. She understood why the females born in the Kingdom would be nervous about accepting Poppy but Oribella in particular had no worries in that regard.

The native females of the Kingdom didn't try to convince Oribella further. As long as Poppy wasn't THEIR spouse or trying to court their female children all was well!

Oribella continued going to the bathhouse, every day, or every other day, slowly learning the names and faces of the Kingdoms females. She felt it was necessary to wash herself daily when she could, as soap didn't seem to have been invented in this land yet.

Before Oribella knew it, ten days had passed! She had begun to grow used to life here. Socializing with River and Starlight in the bathhouse, eating and playing in the snow with Poppy, and planning what she would make first once she got her hands on some cotton or wool.

She couldn't help but wonder where Bailey was. Poppy said that Ram Village was only a day's travel from the Kingdom. Bailey should have long been back by now. Oribella's concern for Bailey's saftey grew with each passing day.

While watching the sunset together from the branches of Ancient One Oribella asked: "What if Bailey got injured out there, Poppy? I don't LIKE him but I don't want someone to die because of me..."

Poppy ran a hand over Oribella's wavy hair to comfort her "Bailey may not be as strong as I am but he can handle himself out there. I'm sure he'll be back in the Kingdom soon, you-."

"ROSSI!!!"

Speak of the Devil and the Devil shall appear! Oribella and Poppy looked down to the courtyard of Bear Castle to see Bailey with two massive bags, each taller than Bailey himself, being dragged behind him. He was bruised and roughed up but he was alive!

"ROSSI! I DID IT!" His eyes shown with the pride of a job well done. "AS MUCH WOOL AND COTTON AS I COULD ACQUIRE!" Oribella couldn't help but feel flattered. He'd clearly been through quite an ordeal for her.

Poppy carried Oribella down to the courtyard to retrieve the apology gift. She inspected both bags and sure enough it was pounds and pounds of unprocessed wool and cotton!

The wool was surprisingly clean, in an assortment of coarseness and natural colors. It was slightly greasy from the oils of the sheeps' skin, but it seemed to have no twigs, bugs, or fecal clumps that Oribella had seen in raw wool before.

The cotton however had a good amount of twigs in it. Although in need of some picking, it had a lovely uniform color and consistency. Oribella was so excited. She didn't want to wear the stiff animal skin clothes common in this land, but her nightgown and cotton dress were beginning to get over used. She wanted a change.

Now she could (relatively) easily make herself some wool and cotton tunics! She'd only need two squares, thread to sew the shoulders, and a belt!

Bailey couldn't help but feel happy. His actions had pleased a female! All he had to do was what she said. He was finally understanding that his failed courtships from the past were because he never truly listened before.

"Is this... satisfactory?" Bailey went down to his knees. "Am I forgiven?"

"Yes. All is forgiven, Bailey." Oribella was shoving her hands into the bag of cotton and feeling the texture thinking of ways to clean the fibers before spinning it.

"Then... do you..." Poppy knew what Bailey was about to ask Oribella. "May I... If you allow it... do you..."

"Goodness," Oribella too felt what he was about to ask, "when I taught you to hold your tongue I wasn't expecting you to lose your ability to speak clearly."

Bailey spoke more confidently: "Do you like me now?" Bailey smiled and gazed up to Oribella. "Can I... please court you too!?"

"No. I don't hate you but I don't like you either." Bailey's Heart Sank.

Oribella gestured for Poppy to pick her up, "I know you're my responsibility after sparing your life but you may not court me the same way Poppy is."

"I understand." Bailey was overwhelmed with heart ache. "I'll take my lea-"

"Bailey, wait." But his heart quickly bounced back into place. "You may not court me the SAME way Poppy is courting me. However I do have three tasks for you. If you complete all of them then I promise to take you as a spouse."

Bailey wanted to accept these terms right away but waited when he saw Oribella's hand haultng him.

'So he really can learn,' thought Oribella.

"These tasks are extremely difficult. Don't agree to them before you know what I'm asking of you." Bailey nodded. "And should you begin the tasks only to find they are TOO difficult, or you meet another female while working on the tasks, you may stop. You do not even need to tell me that you've stopped. You only need to tell me if all three tasks have been completed."

Bailey nodded.

"Firstly," Oribella proclaimed, "I want a large bathtub, carved from stone. But the stone must be pink. The finished bath must also be wide and deep enough" Oribella placed a hand on Poppy's cheek and turned his head to look in his eyes, "for Poppy and I to bathe together."

Poppy smiled and gazed at his female. He didn't want Bailey to fully complete the tasks but he hoped Bailey would at least give Oribella a bathtub that he could share with her!

"A pink stone bathtub, large enough for both you and your first spouse!" Bailey abbreviated.

"Second, I want you to build me a large garden. With every fruit, soft grass, and wild vegetable known in the Kingdom."

"A garden with every known edible plant."

"Lastly, in order for me to take you as a spouse..."

Bailey was on the edge of his seat. Poppy was curious what Bailey's final task would be.

"You must become the next Bear King!" Bailey thought this impossible! He was a right hand to King Joseph! He could never challenge him!

"However" Oribella continued, "do not overthrow Joseph! If you were to do that Starlight and River would likely have to move! And furthermore the Kingdom would dislike you!" Oribella was taking the knowledge from the bathhouse and starting to apply it to her life.

"My third task... Is to Become the next Bear King. Not immediately... But when the time is right?"

"Yes." Oribella answered. "That's accurate. A specific example would be if Joseph were to step down from his role, YOU would need to do your best to take his place!"

"And do I need to compete the tasks in a particular order?" Bailey was already working smarter over harder. If he first became Bear King he could quickly use his influence to complete his other tasks! He had insider knowledge that Joseph was hoping to step down as King in a years time. He would just need to get Joseph's approval. And train to greaten his strengh!

"No, complete the tasks in any order. But do tell me when ALL three tasks are complete."

"Yes, Rossi." Bailey stood and walked back into the building. With a drive he'd never felt before! Joseph would soon know of Oribella Rossi's request for Bailey to become the next Bear King. With Jopesh's approval and guidance Bailey would be able to change the Kingdom's view of him. And with Jopesh's training Bailey would decisively win the tournament to choose the next Bear King!

Oribella, now knowing Bailey was safe, and thinking that she wouldn't have to deal with him for a while, let her excitement truly shine and she jumped out of Poppy's arms to hug the bag of wool!

"I want to make myself a new outfit!" Oribella beamed! "I want to make you a new skirt too, Poppy!"

Making eachother clothes is usually a task that true spouses do for one another. So Poppy was thrilled that he may be gifted some new clothes. He wanted to make something for Oribella too, but she'd shown displeasure in the idea of animal skin clothes, aside from boots and coats. Unfortunately for Poppy he didn't know how to work with cotton or wool.

"But..." Oribella continued, "it may still be too cold to turn the wool into clothes." The reality sank into Oribella's mood. "We have to wash it first... It's too cold to wash it outside. But there's too much of it to wash it indoors. And even if the water gets changed, washing it in the bathhouse would leave the rooms smelling gross!"

"What about the cotton?" Poppy asked, trying to make Oribella feel better.

"We need to pick out all the twigs. And if there are any bugs we'd need them gone too..." Oribella was sad that she'd have to keep waiting to play with her new supply of fiber. There were so many steps to take before she could begin spinning herself yarn and thread!

Poppy wasn't sure how to cheer up Oribella. He simply offered, "why don't we go to our room and start picking then?"

"Yeah," Oribella gave a weak smile, "I like that idea!"