Chapter 108: Disrobing

Camilla and Kagriss stood in front of the large wooden tub, big enough that Kagriss could sit in it and fully stretch out her long legs with room to spare. It was tall enough that when filled with water, the water would go up to Kagriss’s shoulders.

Now, that tub was filled almost to the brim with water. Steam rose from the surface, curling in the air and making the air humid. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

The room they were in was illuminated by lamps. Originally brightly lit, the room was now dark since Camilla had blown out several, leaving the walls tinted by a dancing orange glow near the lamps and black everywhere else, including the bathtub.

If it was too bright, she would be too embarrassed to undress in front of another person, even if that person was Kagriss.

“The bath is ready, Kagriss,” she said, as quiet as a whisper. She always spoke like that when she and Kagriss sat together in the forest, wanting to hear each other’s voice yet afraid to break the beautiful silence of the night. “You were looking forward to this, so you can go first.”

“But you went to all this trouble,” Kagriss protested.

“It’s fine. Come on, take off your clothes and get in.”

Kagriss bit her bottom lips and after staring into Camilla’s eyes for a while, searching for something, she finally nodded. “Alright. Thank you, Camilla.”

Before Camilla could say anything else, in front of Camilla’s very eyes, Kagriss began to undress. Although she had been the one to suggest it, even demanding Kagriss do it first, the action stood caught Camilla off guard. Her hearting quickened along with her breathing, and she felt as though she couldn’t get enough air.

Although she had seen Kagriss naked before, she had never actually seen Kagriss undress. The only other time was in that stream, and at that time Camilla had simply called back the dress with the blood bond.

Things were different now that the moonstone was in Kagriss’s possession.

Kagriss reached down behind her at the same time as she lifted a foot. It peeked out from under her dress. She hooked a finger onto the shoe and pulled it off, leaving her feet covered only by her thin silken stockings, almost sheer enough that Camilla could see her toes. When both shoes were off, Kagriss picked them up and set them neatly on the ground beside her. She reached up.

Camilla’s heart pounded, and she just closed her eyes as Kagriss pulled on the shoulder straps of her dress.

The rustling of smooth, silky fabric sliding across skin reached Camilla’s ears, and despite herself, she opened her eyes a tiny crack, just big enough to barely see through.

Kagriss was facing away from her now, one of her shoulders completely bared. The right strap hung limply on her arm, and now she was working on the left strap. Camilla’s breath caught in her throat, unable to breathe. There was a lump she couldn’t swallow.

The beauty before her, dimly lit by the lamps, finally pulled the strap off her shoulder. But this time, she pulled her arm out of the loop and did the same for the other. The dress, free from its supports, slid down Kagriss’s body, catching briefly on her hips before it fell to the ground completely.

Kagriss stepped out of the dress, and as she did so, brighter light fell upon her. The flickering lamplight was contrasted by the darkness that cloaked most of Kagriss’s form, allowing only the meager warm glows to reflect off her skin, the reflections defining her form.

Her small shoulders and torso. Her thin waist. The wider hips that led to Kagriss’s soft looking thighs and the rest of her long legs. Just her underclothes was left. It was red like her dress, and of lace.

The silken stockings were black, reaching up to the middle of Kagriss’s thighs, held up by garter belts fastened to two bands that were wrapped tightly around Kagriss’s legs, sinking into her skin.

With smooth familiarity, Kagriss reached behind her, slipping her hands into her long black hair, and undid the buckles that secured the bra to her body. As she took it off, her large breasts that had been contained spilled out.

Camilla swallowed as she realized that she could see the sides even from behind Kagriss. She…really shouldn’t be watching this. Even if Kagriss probably wouldn’t mind, it was still wrong to look without permission.

Making up her mind in an instant, she squeezed her eyes shut again and turned around so that even if she couldn’t control herself and opened her eyes, she could still see nothing.

There was a moment of silence before she heard the hiss of silk sliding across skin, sounding twice before she heard the clear sound of water rippling against the wooden tub.

A small sigh of satisfaction rang out, innocuous, but to Camilla’s ears, it was sweet, whispery, luscious, and seductive, full of Kagriss’s charms.

A loud splash, followed by the pitter patter of water droplets returning to the water in the tub. Wet skin rubbing against skin, and another splash. With each sound, Camilla’s heart jumped and she huddled slightly, hugging herself as shivers rippled through her body.

There was another sigh, before the sound of something big rising from the water with all the accompanying ruckus came from behind her. What was Kagriss doing…?

“Camilla, I’m done.”

“H—huh? But you just got in,” Camilla said, puzzled. “You normally stay in for at least a dozen minutes…”

“No, this is enough. I just wanted to experience it to see how it felt. It’s your turn now.”

“Are you just saying that because of me?” Camilla asked. “I know you like it in there; I could feel it.” Part of the reason why she was shivering was because she felt a bit of the sensations from Kagriss’s body in the bath. The hot water splashing against her, soaking into her. The sudden relaxation.

And now Kagriss was wanting to get out, all so she could have a turn?

“Just stay in there. I’m fine. It’s not like I’ve never had one before so just enjoy it today. Chances are rare!” Camilla raised her voice, making it sharp so that Kagriss would not argue.

And Kagriss didn’t, at least not directly.

“Then come in with me.”

Camilla thought she heard wrong when Kagriss’s voice came from behind her. “What did you say?”

“I said, then come in with me. Let’s soak in the bath together so that we don’t have to take turns.”

That wasn’t a bad idea, if it wasn’t for one obvious thing. “But we’d be naked in there!” That would be way too embarrassing, for some reason.

It wasn’t as if she had never bathed with other people before, but the last time had been in a public bath in her male body with her colleagues. There was a lot of distance between each person then, which was completely different from now. The size of the tub would force them into tight quarters.

Kagriss’s voice carried a hint of confusion. “Yes, that’s how bathing works, right? Is that a bad thing?”

“Yes!”

“Why?” Kagriss asked.

“Because…because…” Camilla fumbled around for the reason. It was right there; the obvious answer was right in front of her. But no matter how much she felt around, she couldn’t find it. Why was it a bad thing, and what exactly was the source of her embarrassment?

She didn’t know. All she knew was that the mere thought of being in the same bathtub with Kagriss forced all the blood to her face and turned up the heat. It must be the steam making her lightheaded…

“…I don’t know.”

Camilla licked her lips. With no good reason to refuse, afraid that if she continued to be so stubborn, Kagriss will simply come out. In recent days, Kagriss was thinking for herself way more, which wasn’t a bad thing, but sometimes Camilla wished for the days when Kagriss simply listened to her without question.

Still turned around, suddenly aware of Kagriss’s eyes on her, she began to slowly unbutton her shirt. With each button undone, Camilla thought that Kagriss’s gaze turned hotter, making the skin on her back tingle. “Don’t look!”

She was so distracted that when she tried to take off her shirt, she realized that the ribbon around her collar was still fastened. It seemed so tight, choking her, and she fumbled as she tried to undo it.

It didn’t take long for her to take off the rest of her clothes until she was naked with her clothes in a pile next to her. Her back was to Kagriss, reluctant to turn around.

It wasn’t the first time that Kagriss had seen her naked, but the context was different. That time at the stream felt…utilitarian, but the atmosphere right now was so intimate. So hot, yet so cold; cold enough for her to shiver when the steam made her skin wet and the air flowing around the room stripped the warmth from her.

“Camilla?” Water splashed.

Slowly, Camilla turned around, seeing Kagriss in the water, submerged up to her chest. Thanks to the lighting, Camilla could see nothing below the surface, which calmed her somewhat. For some reason, Kagriss held out one arm over her chest while the other gripped the side of the tub.

As Camilla approached the wooden tub, Kagriss pulled back her legs up to her chest, making room for Camilla on the other side. Since the sides of the tub were a bit high, Camilla clambered over the edge, briefly using the magic of her wings to stop herself from causing a splash, wasting the precious hot water. With her addition, the water level rose, reaching Kagriss’s shoulder.

But now that she was in, she couldn’t sit down or the water would go up to her chin, uncomfortably close to her mouth. It wasn’t that she was afraid of drowning, but it would be uncomfortable to have to keep her head up all the time. So she knelt, sitting back on her feet, which made things slightly better.

The hot water caressed her body, chasing away the chill within her. She closed her eyes, imagining the water seeping through her skin, soaking into her muscles, warming up her entire being. A quiet moan escaped from her lips, but Camilla was too deep in her state of bliss to notice.

She felt like she could stay in here forever. Two years. Almost three, perhaps. It’s been years since she last soaked in such a satisfying bath, and now she finally did it. It was as if she was revived.

But before she could sink deeper into that state of nirvana, something brushed against her knee and her eyes fluttered open to see Kagriss with a guilty look on her face. “Ah, sorry, I was moving my legs into a more comfortable position and kicked you by accident…did I disturb you?”

Camilla shook her head, about to close her eyes when Kagriss spoke up again.

“Isn’t it uncomfortable sitting like that?”

“Like this? Not really,” Camilla said. She didn’t like sitting like this for too long, but just a few minutes before she got out was fine. In the baths, all discomfort melted away. But Kagriss still had a doubtful look on her face and she shook her head.

Without another word, she sat up and reached forward. Before Camilla could react to what Kagriss was doing since she was so confused, Kagriss had her arms around her. She handled her as if she was as light as a feather, though much more cumbersome.

Camilla found herself being turned around and pulled to Kagriss until she sat in Kagriss’s lap, her butt pressing on Kagriss’s lap and with Kagriss’s large breasts on Camilla’s back.