Beastly Desires

Chapter Four

Morning sprung up like budding daisies and with it a gentle layer of frost. Autumn had marched by in a slow ascent this year with winter riding it closely. Colette had covered some of the more tender flowers and vegetables with cloth to keep the frost from killing them yesterday evening. The majority of their food came from their little garden. Once a week she would go into town to the market place and purchase various dried meats and fish. They made an honest living off of their fathers work alone but Colette sought to bring in income as well, doing small commissions here and there. The extra income allowed her to purchase paints and linen for her hobby.

Standing in the middle of the large wash basin, in front of the fireplace, Colette stood shin deep in warm water. She scooped up the water with a wooden cup and poured it across her bare chest. Lavender filled her nostrils and its petals trickled down her abdomen and fell silently into the water. She took the rag hanging off the side of the wash-bin and started at scrubbing her arms and up her shoulders. The cotton rag pulled away the layer of dirt and grime that coated her skin. A bath was a luxury she eagerly awaited each week. It was a surprise every time she stepped out of the murky, water to dry off. She might as well had rolled around in the dirt with the amount that came off her.

If anything, it was only confirmation of how happy she was to till and attend the garden, to feed and take care of the few small animals they owned. Her skin would always be covered in the days work along with the speckled and swathes of paint along her forearms and sometimes even her forehead unknowingly. She worked diligently, holy focused on the task of the day. Their neighbors would watch her over their shamble of a fence, clucking and shaking their head in disbelief as she squatted in the dirt, skirt hiked up her thighs in a makeshift knot, as she toiled the ground.

Colette stepped out of the Wash bin after scrubbing every inch of her skin clean and ringing the dirty water from her hair. She quickly dried herself off and done her only clean shift. She scrabbled to pull her stockings up and over her thighs, tying them off with garters, before binding up herself into her stay. It was a deep blue wool with simple cotton white ties. After, she hiked up her brown linen skirt and fastened a leather belt around her hips. A small cotton sack was attached to it where she kept her coin and other odds and ends. This was her everyday look for the majority of the week. She didn't own very many skirts, just a handful of simple linen ones and a gown she pulled out only for special occasions.

As far as her hair went, she always kept it up and braided around the crown of her head. Her was hair was long and fell past her hips in loose ringlets. It was always bothersome having it sway and spill over her face while working. Her mother never allowed her to cut her hair. She always claimed to cut it would be to kill your beauty. Colette didn't think herself to be ugly, if anything she had to be beautiful for all the male attention she seemed to suck in wherever she went. Her face was soft and round, she had her fathers doe blue eyes and her mothers little chin. From working in the sun for most of her life her skin had a permanent light tan that made her already dark brown hair, even darker, barely on the cusp of black in certain lighting. Beautiful as she was, she never saw it as an advantage like most beautiful women did now and days. The sneers she received from other woman left her pulling her hood further down her face and her stops in the shops quick and never long.

Colette heaved a sigh at the intruding thought and pulled her skirt up, running her hand down her stockings, which were fraying up top. It was probably due time to get some new ones. A trip to the market would be good for her. Keep her mind from worrying for her father. Plus, she always enjoyed the bustle and noise of the marketplace. So, she grabbed her cape from its perch on the corner of their bookshelf and fastened it around her shoulders before pulling her hood up and stepping out into the brisk day ahead.