Dark brows raised up slowly, first in mirth and mischief but then they stayed as they were for another reason entirely. Everleigh hadn’t realized before that there was something intimate in watching another undress. Perhaps there had been a sense of it with
Henk, but then again, that whole night of debauchery was more like a fever dream to her that she tried not to linger on.
Liliana had tossed away her clothing without a care, as if they were a hindrance, strutting out about the underground hot spring like she were some goddess that didn’t need mortal threads. Zael hadn’t realized that as he moved around the tub in Arnim, making his water hot, that Everleigh had peeped through one of the many holes to catch glimpses of his form— and while that had been fascinating, she couldn’t get the whole picture of the lines and contours that made him. Erland never seemed to wear anything other than pants when Everleigh did go to the brothel, but the way he undressed had never been alluring.
Perhaps it was because
Ralene had stripped herself of her armor first and neatly put it away. Or was it the fact that as she took off the tunic, Everleigh’s gaze quickly caught on the chestwrap that was very much like her own but not. Most likely it was from the plethora of of stories that seemed to cover her skin, overlapping with perverse harmony that made Everleigh realize a new symbol or scar every time she looked.
Ralene came back to the fireplace, momentarily facing her and the sheer shock of Ralene’s body reflected in every aspect of Everleigh’s face: Ralene’s back and arms, yes, that had been expected. Somehow, Everleigh had never once considered that Ralene to carry soft femininity. She wasn’t sure why she expected Ralene’s chest to resemble a man’s, other than it being the armor she wore and the deepness of her voice. It was hard to look away, even when Everleigh realized she was gawking too many seconds too late.
“
Ah.” She said finally. “
That one.” Her eyes found the tattoo, glancing down once more to appreciate and compare. In this moment, she wished she could get drunk, or even just a little bit so as to keep her cool. Her face felt hot and not from the warmth of the fire behind Ralene. Her violet eyes lingered where they shouldn’t, only able to look away as she distracted herself by the dreadlord taking another drink of mead.
“
I hope it doesn’t mean anything silly like limp-cock. You know Titus? He got a tattoo in Elvish, thinking it meant ‘I came, I saw, I conquered.’ Something like that.” There was an ache now that suddenly became noticeable to the purple proctor, in her back and shoulders and neck. She ignored it, forcing her gaze not to leave Ralene’s face. “
Someone who had actually studied the language pointed out that it really said ‘head empty, ass wide, small man.’”
Samantha Black