***
Ned opened his eyes lazily; he saw a stone-crafted ceiling, rough but elegantly put together, each piece of stone fitting, well-placed. Soft, golden-hued light bathed the room he was in from a wide-arched, paned-glass window which lay half-open. Outside, rows of chestnut tress could be seen with snow-capped mountains in the distance.
He felt the mattress comfortably hugging his body; he felt tired, his muscles aching for stillness. He heard the chirruping sound of birds; it reminded him of lazy mornings. He put his hands on his belly above the soft beddings, and felt content just by being there. He remembered the terrible white that occluded every other sense, and the thought of perhaps being dead entered his head. He stared vacantly at the ceiling for a moment, uninterested in the sparse fittings of the room; there was a simple bedside table where a jar stood and a low wooden table with an empty candlestick. And that was that.
He then heard the door to the room swing open; the face of a woman appeared through it timidly, as if he was being pried upon. He had no recollection of seeing her before, but her face was elven-like in its appearance, a sight to behold. Silver-haired with a face of simple, elegant beauty, she presented herself fully; she wore linen, heavy robes of a dark brown, starkly contrasted with her milky skin. If she had been wearing white, he’d be tempted to think once more he had died and this was what angels looked like. She smiled at him tentatively and bringing her palms together awkwardly, she spoke with a girly voice that made her impossible not to like: “So, Ned. You’re awake,” she said and nodded somewhere past the door.
“I’m not dead, am I?” Ned said, trying to get the question out of his head. He propped himself upwards, resting his back on the bed’s comfortable pillows.
“No. No, you’re not,” she said and smiled. Past the door came Winceham with a playful stride, smoking his pipe fervently.
“Thank you, lad,” Winceham said and grinned, looking past the door behind him for a moment and grinning.
“About what?” Ned asked him and added, “Who is she?” pointing a finger, before reminding himself of his manners and slightly bowing uncomfortably to her, asking: “I mean, who are you, my lady?”
“It’s Bo!” Theo said with a gleaming smile, entering the room with barely enough clearance.
“Bo?” Ned asked with evident confusion in his voice.
“It’s Bo, and you just won me a good amount of coin,” Winceham said.
“I’m probably just as surprised as you are, Ned,” Bo said and shrugged. She looked at her hands for a moment and added, “Alright, maybe more.”
She then looked at her chest like it had never been there before, which was in some sense true, and said as if it begged belief: “Maybe a lot more.”
“Isn’t she lovely? Look, she’s got hair and everything!” Theo said, brimming with enthusiasm.
“What happened, exactly?” Ned asked, blinking while he tried to make sense of things.
“It’s a long story. There’s a short version, though,” Winceham said puffing at his pipe before adding, with a stream of smoke escaping his nostrils, “We won.”
“And we’re alive!” Theo added without being able to wipe the grin off his face, waving his arms like a boy who has just discovered the joys of what bouncing balls must feel like.
“And I’m a woman, now,” Bo said mostly so she could listen to it herself, and twitched her nose as if she was about to sneeze for a moment.
“Now get dressed, lad,” Winceham said as he turned about to leave and added, “you shouldn’t be late for the party.”
“The party? Where are we?”
“Ered Domas,” Bo replied, nodding to herself as if making sure that was the name of the place.
“Which is?”
“A big castle! It’s a lot bigger than a house!” Theo exclaimed and hugged Bo, nearly squeezing her breathless. “It’s even got towers! Isn’t she wonderful?” he said and left the room as well, looking over his shoulder and nearly stumbled on the walls a couple of times.
“Well. Nice to meet you,” Ned said and pursed his lips awkwardly, nodding to Bo who was able to breathe regularly once more.
“Likewise,” she replied and nodded, looking around the room, as if she was still trying to get acquainted with her new size.
“So... Excited, much?” Ned asked her, twiddling his thumbs.
“It’s been an interesting turn of events, that’s certainly true,” she replied.
Lernea walked in the room right about then like she owned the place, which in essence she did, and shot Bo a look of suspicious contempt.
“You’re not wearing anything underneath these robes, are you?”
“Well, I didn’t know how to put those other things on and -” Bo began to answer before being interrupted with a scoff.
“Inexcusable for a lady, walking around without undergarments! Open to interpretations of the worst conceivable kind of a lady’s honor!” Lernea exclaimed. “And you! Not averting your eyes and ogling a young inexperienced girl, taking advantage of her newly-found body, unable to contain your urges in a manner most unbecoming of a gentleman!” she added, pointing a finger at Ned, her ceremonial armor clanking as she jostled vigorously.
“What?” Ned asked plainly, unable to understand why he was being yelled at.
“Get dressed! Both of you!”
“But I’m not naked!” Bo whined feebly.
“You are underneath!” Lernea said and looking at Ned, stepped in front of Bo, as if protecting her from a mortal threat. “Shame on you, Ned Larkin!”
“What did I do?” Ned demanded and slid off his bed in order to protest. He felt a rush of cold air in his nether regions; it was Lernea’s shocked eyes and Bo’s curious gaze that alerted him to the reality of being completely naked.
“Cover your eyes!” Lernea shouted to Bo even as Ned began to feel inadequately embarrassed, his face flush red, and his hands reflexively trying to cover up the offending area.
“What for? I’ve seen everyone naked,” Bo said sounding quite uninterested and left the room with a nod and a weird smile to Ned. “I used to be a bunny, remember?” she said without turning to look back even as Lernea looked at Ned with a sour face and told him: “Wipe that grin off your face. Honestly, get dressed,” she said pointing a commanding finger and left the room, slamming the door closed shut behind her.
Party of Five - A game of Po Page 34
