The corner room was spacious, laid out in an L-shape, with windows and porches overlooking the north and east faces of the building. The door sat diagonally at the end of the hallway.
The sunset outside was spectacular.
Through the windows, Felix could see a panorama of antiquated medieval wood architecture, beyond which the distant mountain ranges they had just crossed rose against the horizon.
Felix wondered how something so beautiful could be so violent.
The snow-topped peaks were alight with oranges and that same greenish-purple hue, shimmering beneath wisps of iridescent cloud. Foreign stars were beginning to populate the sky.
He wished he had the maps Lydia had copied for him.
All he wanted in that moment was to rest. It had been an exhausting few days, and he was covered in dirt and abrasions from the encounter with the dire hounds.
“Is there a place to wash up?” Felix asked Jacob.
“You can take that bed there.” Jacob pointed toward the east side of the room. “Come on. I’ll show you the wash.”
Felix tossed his few belongings onto the bed and followed Jacob back out of the room and across the hall.
Inside, the space was large and open, with terracotta tiles and lattice-partitioned stalls. The floor tiles sloped toward the center and drained south, out of the building.
A small wood-coal fire burned in the corner, with a steaming clay pot of water set atop some stones. A barrel of cold water sat beside it. Above the barrel was a shelf containing a bucket and a stack of folded, woven cloths.
Jacob motioned toward the fire.
“What you’re going to do is take the bucket.”
He set the bucket on the floor beside the barrel and grabbed a large cloth. Using it to protect his arms, he lifted the clay pot of steaming water and poured it into the bucket. He then refilled the pot with cold water from the barrel.
“Now you add cold water here until the temperature is slightly hotter than what you’d like.”
Jacob added cold water to the bucket and prompted Felix to test it.
“Then we refill the pot and set it back on the fire for the next person. Grab the bucket.”
Jacob moved toward the far stall, next to the window. Felix followed, carrying the sloshing bucket in both hands.
“So, you see this contraption. Do you know how to use it?”
It was obviously a shower assembly, with another bucket on the floor and a wooden tube running up the wall from the bucket to a faucet about a foot above head height. A handle protruded from the right side of the tube.
“I’m guessing it’s a pump?” Felix said.
“Right. Just dump the water into this bucket and return the bucket to the shelf before you start.”
Jacob carried the bucket over and returned it to the shelf.
“Simple. Strip down. Work the pump. Soap is right here on the rope. Splash down the stall when you’re done. Take the drying cloth back to the room with you and leave your clothes by the door.”
He handed Felix a washcloth.
“I’m going to see if I can find you something more fitting for the next leg of our trip. You need anything?”
“Thank you, Jacob. I appreciate the help. Really.”
“I’ll be back before sundown, and we can have supper in the dining hall. No exploring. There’ll be plenty of time for that tomorrow.”
Jacob turned and left the room.
Felix disrobed and began working the handle until warm water spilled from the spout, wetting his body and the washcloth. He lathered the cloth with soap and began to scrub.
Back in the room, Felix lay down on the bed, clean and weary.
He was asleep within moments.
Artavus Quill 