Cursed Times - Only Yesterday! Sequel to Wattys 2015 winner!

Chapter 39: Trueth - Autumnworld 2

OK, FINALLY! XD This is maybe not the climax chapter of the novel, but for our two shippers it is quite, ehem, climatic. So I thought you should benefit from WP's new features, with a bit of music and some extra imagery to fire the imagination. Of course - 'Seisi' has way too much hair!

AND - TATAAA - The Cursed Times series has reached its anniversary - the first chapters of CT1 were posted on 1 Jan 2015!!! Enjoy!

End of last chapter:

'Have these, I know you like them. And tell your man that I'm sorry for my outburst earlier. I'm not like that normally.' With that, the landlord pulled a hood over his head and splashed through the downpour towards his new pub.

Wonders never cease, thought Trueth as she shut the door on the deluge and went to seek out her man. And her bath.

***

From the open door to the kitchen, a pleasant warmth was seeping into the front parlour. Trueth found Seisi kneeling in front of the fire where he had stacked up a pile of logs and was feeding the flames. When she entered, he was checking something that resembled a scrawny bird roasting on a too-large spit. He nodded to himself, juggled a couple of potatoes from one hand to another, then tossed them into the charcoal at the fringe of the fire. A heavenly aroma of roasting fowl came from the fireplace, mingling with the soapy steam of the vat that sat right in front of it. Trueth placed the tankard on a sideboard, grabbed a pewter mug, poured and downed two cups of coffee in swift succession. It tasted slightly odd, more bitter, a roast different to what she was used to. But coffee it was, and the world was looking better already.

Seisi pointed at her. 'I want you out of this wet clothing and into this tub. Now.'

'Uh, maybe you wish to turn around first?'

'Do not—don't be silly. I can see you whichever way I direct my gaze, and it doesn't matter. Or does it?'

It did not. He was right. At some point she had to take the plunge and it might as well be here and now. Straight into the tub. She threw away the blanket, stripped her ripped pyjama top and kicked aside the damp and muddy trousers. Gingerly, she stepped into the tub, only to withdraw her leg on a sharp intake of breath.

'This is boiling!' Trueth called up her soothing powers and submerged her hand in the sudsy water, thus reducing the ambient temperature of the tub from lethal to merely hot. With a sigh, Trueth sank into the relaxing embrace of her bath.

'You seem to be quite the cook. And with unusual ingredients too.' Trueth was addressing Seisi's back as he was slicing bacon into strips. Languidly, she raised one leg from the foam, stroking calves that were glistening with moisture.

'I have learned to forage on whatever is available. And this is a feast. Your ancestors took great care to protect the content of their homes. It makes me wonder why.' He placed the bacon on a griddle, before hooking it to a chain dangling above the hearth. Then he turned around to observe Trueth splashing about in her tub. A smile played around his mouth; it did not quite match the predatory glimmer in his eyes.

Trueth flipped some foam Seisi's way. An indignant yowl indicated she might have hit the dog instead. 'Hold the lascivious grin, chef. Do you think you can leave dinner alone for a moment and join me?'

Without a word, Seisi pulled his shirt and vest over his head, before dropping his jeans. He was not wearing boxers, but some tighter underwear molded to his thighs, displaying what was on offer—and keen, from the looks of it.