Snowfall

by Brandon Cornwell

  “Good.” She sighed and closed the book. “It won't be long until he requests my presence. You will go in my stead. He was extremely physical today, so I know that his request will come either tonight or tomorrow.”

  As if on cue, Amethyst heard Giriraj call to her. Her heart jumped in her chest, and she felt a wave of anxiety. If this didn't work, then her time here would come to an end. She had to make sure that it was indeed what he wanted from her first, however, so she directed her golem to stand in the corner of the room that could not be seen from the door. She took a deep breath and entered the main chamber, closing the door to her room behind her.

  She knocked on Giriraj's door then opened it, to see him sitting on his bed.

  “Were you asleep, Amethyst?” he asked.

  “No, Master Giriraj,” she said. “I was lying in bed reading.”

  “What were you reading about?”

  Amethyst blushed and looked down. “I was, uh, reading a book with no title.”

  He furrowed his brow. “A book with no title?” Realization dawned upon him. “Ah. That book.” He looked at her again. “Do you wish to put some of what you've been reading into practice?”

  She caught her breath. “I... can we... do so without that drink?”

  Giriraj nodded. “Of course.”

  “Let me return to my room for a moment,” she said. “I need to change my clothes.”

  Giriraj frowned. “Your clothes are fine.”

  “Please, Master. This will be my... my first time.”

  Sighing, he waved to her. “Do as you will then. Do not be long, I want to sleep.”

  She bowed slightly. “Yes, Master Giriraj.” She closed the door and returned swiftly to her room. As soon as the door was shut, she threw off her clothes, stripping down completely. She tossed her undergarments at the Golem, who caught them.

  “Put those on,” she whispered. “I am going to send you to Giriraj now.”

  “Yes.”

  “No more talking in here!”

  The golem nodded as it dressed, putting its legs into Amethyst's underwear and slipping on her chemise. Once it was done, it stood, waiting for its next command.

  Amethyst walked up to the golem, giving it one final look over. Despite herself, she set her hand on the figure's shoulder. “Do you feel pain?”

  The golem shook its head.

  Amethyst scoffed, looking down. “Right. You're made of clay.” She met the golem's eyes. “Go now. You can speak when Giriraj speaks to you. Good luck.”

  The golem nodded, and Amethyst let it go. When she heard it knock on Giriraj's door, she peeked out across the main room.

  Her doppelganger entered the bedchamber, leaving the door partially ajar. She watched from the doorway, waiting for any sign that something may have gone awry. The lanterns in the main chamber dimmed, as well the ones in her room. She heard some rustling from beyond the door, and the deep tones of Giriraj's voice, though she couldn't make out what he was saying.

  She battled with herself for a moment, then curiosity got the better of her. She quickly slipped her robe and trousers back on so that she wouldn't be naked and crept out of her chamber and into the main room. She kept to the wall where she wouldn't be seen through the crack in the door and made her way over to his bedchamber. She lay on the ground, inching along the floor, and peeked inside.

  Giriraj was on the bed with his back to the door, sitting upright, his feet under his backside, while the golem knelt on all fours, facing him. She couldn't see exactly what was going on, but its head was bobbing up and down in Giriraj's lap. There was a slight sucking, slurping noise, and Amethyst knew what was happening.

  She also knew that she should return to her room, but she couldn't seem to tear herself away. She watched from the floor as Giriraj leaned back, resting on one hand behind him, pushing his hips forward as he rested his other hand on the back of the golem's head, gripping its hair.

  After a few minutes, he gently pushed her away, guiding her to lay on her back. He positioned himself above her and Amethyst could see the golem's backside and center – her backside and center – between Giriraj's legs. He pushed his stem down to nestle it at the golem's opening and entered it with one smooth thrust.

  Amethyst shuddered and clamped her knees together, and found herself thanking the gods that it wasn't her. As he started thrusting against the golem, a light slapping noise filled the room.

  Again, she got the urge to back away from the room, but she stayed, watching as Giriraj had his way with the golem. After a few minutes, he pulled out of it, his member stiff and standing erect, and gripped her doppelganger's leg, rolling it to its front. Obediently, the golem hoisted its backside into the air, and Giriraj was back inside, seizing the golem by its shoulder, straining as he thrust into it. She heard the golems voice – again, her voice – panting and letting out small moans as Giriraj neared his climax.

  His thrusting became more vigorous, and he pushed hard against it, gripping her tightly, pressing it against himself. He moved his hands to its waist, thrusting twice more before pulling out and laying down next to the golem, his erection standing above him as he lay on his back.

  “Clean me off,” he said to the golem, gesturing to his member. Again, the golem was quick to obey, turning to his lap and taking his trunk in its hands.

  Amethyst squeezed her eyes shut, shuddering again. She carefully backed away from the door and climbed to her feet. Now that Giriraj was facing the door, he might see her. She silently crept back to her chamber, slipping inside and shutting the door most of the way behind her. She leaned against the wall next to the door, her heart pounding in her chest.

  The door to her chamber opened, making her nearly jump out of her skin. Her golem closed the door behind itself and stood, waiting for more directives. It was naked, holding Amethyst's chemise and underwear in one hand.

  Amethyst's throat was raw, her scalp tingling from the adrenaline rush, and for a moment she thought she might faint, but she was able to steady herself against the wall. She beckoned to the golem.

  “Is it done?” she asked quietly.

  The golem nodded.

  She fetched a rag and cleaned the doppelganger, wiping off its lips and chin, then instructed it to clean itself between its legs. It did so immediately, squatting on the floor in Amethyst's chamber. Once she was satisfied that it had cleaned itself out enough, Amethyst wiped up any remaining substances and collapsed the golem back into clay.

  Despite the care she took with cleaning the golem, when it returned to its original clay form, there were several large drops of Giriraj's seed on the surface, and she had to wipe it away before putting the clay back into its pouch. Perhaps it pushed anything inside of itself out when it collapsed? She would have to have it swallow something before collapsing next time to test that theory. Maybe a mouthful of water.

  She put the stones and clay into their pouches, and hid them in her drawer, behind the book she had brought from Castle Lonwick. She took off her robe and trousers and put her undergarments on, climbing into her bed.

  Well now, she thought to herself. That was... different.

  ~~~

  1st Waning Sap Moon, Year 4368

  Amethyst awoke to a knocking at her door, and Giriraj calling her name. She leapt out of bed, put on her apprentice garb, and left her room to find him sitting on the couch with a platter of food next to him.

  “I am sorry, Master, I should have gotten us breakfast.”

  “After last night, I can understand that you'd be tired. It is alright this time. Come, sit down.”

  She took a seat on the couch with him, the platter of rolls and sausages between them. There was a bowl of some sort of thick, peppery white gravy between them, as well as two empty bowls with forks.

  “What did you think about last night?” he asked, tearing several rolls into small pieces and dropping them into his bowl.

  “It was... something I had never done before.”

  “You perfor
med admirably, I'll tell you that much,” he said, chuckling. “I found myself doubting if that was really your first time. That book you were reading must have left an impact.”

  She bowed her head, blushing. “Thank you, Master,” she said. Even though it wasn't her that was in his chamber last night, the way he was speaking to her made her self-conscious.

  Giriraj laughed and leaned over, setting his hand on her thigh. “Don't worry, Amethyst. In time, you will become used to this part of our relationship. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.”

  She looked up, forcing a smile. “Of course, Master Giriraj.”

  They finished their meal, and he wiped his hands on a towel. “Now, for the next few weeks, I will be meeting with the other Masters, sometimes here, sometimes in their quarters, sometimes in the meeting hall at the top of the building. During this time, you are to continue your studies in my personal library, as well as the library of the Citadel. What I want you to focus on is the direct manipulation of stone into form.”

  She nodded again. “Yes, Master.”

  He turned to walk away, then paused. “One last thing. You should take the opportunity to bathe, especially after we share a bed, either here or in the main bathhouse. Cleanliness is paramount.”

  After he left, she went to the bath chamber that was connected to the main room and examined the tub there. She couldn't seem to figure out exactly how it worked... all she saw was a metal tube that she presumed was where the water filled the tub, but there was no readily identifiable way to activate it. It looked like she would have to use the public bath until she could ask Giriraj to show her how to use it.

  Amethyst made her way to the communal bath, pausing at the hallway that split before entering the bathing rooms. She took the passage to the left, following the turns until she came to a very simple, sparsely furnished chamber. There was a basic wooden bench in the middle with a drain underneath it, several shelves along the wall, and a small chest of drawers.

  On the bench sat the Apprentice of Fire. She was bare-chested, wearing only a loincloth, with a wooden pail of hot water sitting on the ground between her feet. She was washing her legs with a rag when Amethyst came in.

  “Oh, my apologies,” Amethyst said, starting to back out of the room.

  “There's room for two,” the woman said, sliding over on the bench. “My name is Myrene. What's yours?”

  “Uh, Amethyst,” she said, hesitantly entering the room. “My master sent me to bathe.”

  Myrene snorted, dropping the rag into the bucket. “You'll get to a point where you'll do it yourself. Titus only has a copper tub in his castle. Bathing here is infinitely more pleasant.”

  “We used a tub where I am from as well,” said Amethyst, slipping off her sandals. “Giriraj has a large bath, though. It is much nicer.”

  “Probably not as nice as this one,” said Myrene, standing up. She was very tall, at least six feet, with a firm, muscular torso. Though she was slender in the waist, with wide hips and a large bust, her body was very defined, with clear distinctions between the muscles of her arms, legs, and back. Usually, Amethyst would have considered a muscular person to be masculine, but as strong as she was, Myrene was still very much a woman.

  She flipped her bright red hair over her shoulders, tying it back with a leather thong. “Once you go in, you're in for a treat.” She glanced back at her as she undid the tie that kept her loincloth in place. “You didn't bring a bucket.”

  Amethyst spread her hands. “I didn't know I needed to. This is my first time here.”

  Myrene's loincloth dropped between her legs, revealing a shock of nearly scarlet pubic hair. “Well, you can use mine this time. Next time, either bathe in your master's chamber first or bring a bucket to wash up here. Farrokh and Nasrin get very grumpy if the bath gets dirty.”

  The redheaded woman tossed her loincloth onto a pile of crimson robes and left through a door, presumably to the bath. Amethyst quickly disrobed and washed with the bucket of water Myrene had left behind. She folded her clothing, setting her garments on the shelves instead of leaving them in a pile on the floor, and pushed the door open, stepping into the bath.

  The rough sandstone floor of the washroom gave way to a mosaic of tiles that formed an intricate pattern of varying shades of blue and green, reminiscent of the sea on a clear day. Large slabs of white porcelain surrounded a wide, rectangular pool that stepped down from the edges into the middle, much like the bath at Mount Stromgard, but larger. Fragrant steam, smelling of lavender and jasmine filled the room, making the air somewhat hazy. The water of the bath was slightly cloudy, though it did not look dirty. Perhaps the oils they added to the water made it opaque.

  The walls of the bath chamber were covered in murals; satyrs dancing in a field of flowers, a couple making love by a river, a unicorn grazing in a forest, and more. Round marble pillars surrounded the bath itself, carved to look like ivy climbed from the floor to the high, arched ceiling. The vines had been painted various shades of green, making them even more realistic.

  On either side of the pool stood a white marble statue, each a depiction of a god of the sea. On the right side was a voluptuous woman standing nude, a pitcher in her hands from which hot water poured, causing ripples across the bath. On the left was the statue of a powerfully muscled man with a flowing beard, also nude, holding a trident and pointing towards the woman, an angry scowl on his face. Both statues were close to twelve feet tall, and though they were unpainted, the detail with which they had been carved added to their lifelike appearance.

  Several people were already in the bath, and Amethyst paused, self-conscious again. There was, of course, Myrene, but she also saw Nasrin and the Apprentice of Chaos. Nasrin was seated on the steps across the pool, sitting in the water up to her waist, her caramel skin covered in a thin sheen of sweat, while the young man she had seen in the dining chamber was off to the right, sitting with just his feet in the water, underneath the statue of the woman.

  Amethyst had known that it was a public bath, but she had hoped it would be empty, or at least with only one other person using it. Quickly, she stepped into the water, wincing at the heat of it as she went to the middle, submerging herself up to her neck. Nasrin looked up and smiled, waving to her.

  “Glad you could finally come join us!” she said in her cheerful tone.

  Amethyst stayed sidelong to the young man at the far end of the pool, who had looked up to watch her as her passage into the bath sent ripples across the surface. “I am glad to have come,” she said.

  The apprentice under the statue resembled Fredrick almost eerily; they could have been brothers. His face was a little thinner, his shoulders were a bit less muscular, yet he still set Amethyst ill at ease.

  “Are, ah, are the other apprentices coming?” she asked, looking around the room.

  Myrene lay back, floating in the water. “Nah. Eira doesn't deign to bathe with us, peasants that we are.”

  “Wait,” interrupted Amethyst, having a revelation. “Eira?”

  “Mmhmm,” said Myrene. “The illustrious Queen of the Northlands, apprentice to Master Cedric, and Mistress of elevated noses and snooty expressions.”

  As a member of the royal family of Lonwick, Amethyst was, of course, familiar with the monarchies of the surrounding kingdoms, but had never met them herself. She had assumed that the man Cedric wanted dead was just some merchant or nobleman, not the King of the Northlands. She thought back to when she met Brynjar, on her way to the mountain six months ago. He had seemed kind enough, if a little rough around the edges. The thought of him being killed over an apprentice being unable to choose between him and her master sat even less at ease with her than it had before.

  “Isaac stays close to Helena all the time, on account of her age,” Myrene continued, “and Eamon only comes here when Ceara does.” She shook her head, scoffing. “I swear, those two are joined at the hip. Or between the hips, as it were.”

  Nasrin chuckled, shaking her head. “When
those two are here, it's best to clear out quick. They put on a scene like no other. I think they're copying the mural.” She pointed at the depiction of the lovers on the riverbank. A fair skinned woman with strawberry blonde hair was arching her back while straddling a man, who was lying down with his hands on her hips, curling slightly up towards her.

  Flipping around in the water, Myrene regained her feet. “No, it's just you, me, Nasrin, and Rowan.”

  “Come, have some wine,” said Nasrin, picking up a pitcher and pouring a golden drink into a goblet. “Our masters are going to be meeting until late in the day. We've got plenty of time to ourselves.”

  Amethyst glanced at the young blonde man, whose name was apparently Rowan. “I think I'll stay in the water, for now, thank you.”

  Rowan bowed his head, not speaking, then stood and started walking towards the wash chambers.

  “No, Rowan, don't go!” Myrene called out. She narrowed her eyes at Amethyst. “I don't know what her problem is, but if she's got a spike in her ass about you being here, she needs to pull it out right quick, or she can go roll down another snowbank.” She gestured for Rowan to come back. “You've been here longer than her!” Turning back to Amethyst, she said, “You might be scared of pricks, but you're the only one in this room that is. Leave your royal prudishness back in Lonwick, Princess. We're all the same here.”

  “For the love of Luna, Myrene, calm down,” said Rowan, exasperated. “She's new. She doesn't know any better yet.”

  “Doesn't matter,” Myrene replied, still angry. “She's not gonna run you off by acting all shy and timid until you go away.”

  “I'm sorry!” exclaimed Amethyst, confused and alarmed. “I didn't mean for Rowan to leave, I just... he looks like someone I knew when I was at my Master's Choosing!”

  “I can assure you, I am not that person,” Rowan said, holding his hands up.