8

Wash Your Back, Wash Mine

“Now say ahh… It’s very easy to do. Open your mouth nice and wide… just a little?”

Tapping a strip of pork to Alais’s firm lips, showed little results.

“Do you not like pork? What else would you prefer?”

“The death of your entire family.”

I frowned slightly but ignored the comment for the most part.

“Alais please eat, what else is there for you to eat?”

“Shit~”

Sister Mary sang as she entered, which earned her my annoyed gaze. She met my stare with a smirk.

“Why are you here?” I asked as calmly as possible.

“I simply wish to see what it looks like when a beast eats something else other than shit. It’s quite amusing really, a living toilet being fed food that hadn’t been… blessed by royalty yet. Why else do you think she has such an odor?”

“You lie!” I barked

“Don’t call me a liar, you toilet lover!” She snapped before marching over and knocking the fork from my hand. “I command you to lie down, for your meal.” I watched in slight shock that Alais willingly did as she said. Though I already knew why, I didn’t seem to understand the specifics of Alais’s punishment. “With a punishment set by the royal family, many years ago, It…” She spat, “Must follow the commands of royal blood.” She lifted her royal gown and removed her bloomers before sitting on Alais’s head. “It… must eat the waste of royal blood.”

I stood watching helplessly as Mary’s urine and filth filled Alais’s belly with a sickening gulp every few seconds. My wide gaze landed on the meal that I brought for Alais and then on the knife. Slipping it into my trembling grasp, my footsteps felt heavy as I stepped closer. At the time I was reliving all the times Mary had taken what little I had. Fueling Alais’s recent request for revenge. Still, I was hesitant nonetheless. After all, this was Alais’s fault for her crimes. I know now that I was simply being selfish, not thinking about the families Alais had destroyed, those she made suffer. A pain I can only imagine… however Mary had wronged me far too many times for me to allow her to treat Alais this way.

“Your Highness, Prince Adam, I brought the supplies you’ve requested,” Elyon said softly, as she stood in the doorway with a basket of bathing utensils.

I ignored Elyon though I did stop in my tracks as Mary’s gaze went from Alais’s eyes to Elyon and soon landed on me. Slight fear filled my sister’s gaze in a way I found satisfying yet painful. She saw the knife I had and while perhaps finding it hard to believe, wasn’t much of a fool that she didn’t know my intentions.

“I’ll tell Mother.” The words trembled from her lips as she went on to say; “I’ll tell Mother that you tried to stab me in the back!”

“I was only making sure she didn’t hurt my big sister,” I said calmly.

This caused her to relax a bit more while her eyes remained locked on me.

“Is… is that so? Well… it’s about time you’ve shown your sister more love and respect than this… filth of society.” She said while looking Elyon in the eyes as if challenging her. Still, like many times before, she couldn’t get a reaction out of the elven woman. Mary finally broke eye contact. “Anyway, I’m surprised, Mother even approved of this unsightly construction.” She finally stood, slipping on her bloomers. “Allowing this monster to sleep in anything but a hole in the ground, is beyond me.”

“Mary, what are her punishments?” I asked.

Maybe if I knew a bit more about how they worked, I could undo some if not all.

“And why should I tell you? What do I get in return? Compared to myself, you literally have nothing.”

I thought for a moment.

“The cake, ill let you have the rest of my ice cream cake if you tell me.”

She perked up at my offer.

“I’m not so sure. It’s amazing yes, but…”

“On second thought, ill just ask Elyon.”

“Wait…” She cleared her throat regaining her composure. “Fine, I’ll tell you. For defying the royal family for so long, causing a seemingly endless war, first, there’s Punishment One. It… must obey all members of the royal bloodline. Next for ruining countless lives, we have Punishment Two. It… must live forever.”

“How’s that possible?” I asked.

“I don’t know, I’m assuming powerful magic, don’t interrupt! For eating countless children alive, there’s Punishment Three. It may only consume shit and piss. There I’m done, your cake belongs to me.” She said, exiting in a bit of a hurry. After she was gone, I turned to face Elyon for confirmation.

“… Punishment Three is actually Alais only eating the leftovers of other royals. Alais only refuses to eat because she’s stubborn and you’ve never once ordered her to do anything.” Elyon explained.

“And I never plan to, because she’s my friend. Elyon, where’s Apple right now?” I asked as I placed down the knife.

“He was moved to the stables to rest.”

“Can you check on him for me please?”

“As you wish, Your Highness.”

“This has been a long time coming,” I said with a bit of amusement, pushing a washcloth across Alais’s “wall” of a back. “You’re pretty big so I had to get the tub custom built. While I was at it, I decided that attaching it to the fireplace can help heat the water. Made of wood and iron straps, the best part about this is, you can flip it and turn it into a bed, so you’re not sleeping on the floor. I think it’s a clever idea.” I said proudly as I dunked my washrag into a small bucket of hot water. “And while we wait for the bath to heat up, you can be bathed right here. You don’t have to worry about the floor being wet, it only makes washing the floor easier. However, draining the tub might be a problem so bathing first would be for the best.”

“Adam… shut up,” Alais groaned.

I suppose all my yammering annoyed her. But can you blame me? I just thought about running my sister through with a kitchen utensil. I’m pretty sure that’s not normal. Silence fell over us until I finally whispered.

“Alais?…” I called out softly, trying not to whimper.

“Yeah, I know what you almost did,” Said Alais.

“How did you know what I was gonna say? Is… is it because, in your years of war, you could feel my blood lust?”

“More like the blood lust of a big fat rat. I’ve got eyes, stupid.”

“Oh… is it easy… you know, to hurt others?” I struggled to ask.

“Depends, if given the chance I might have bitten your head off years ago without losing sleep. Although… if I did it now, I think I might get sick.” She turned back to give me a demonic glare that was known to take lives. But her intimidation was met with an ear-to-ear smile.

“That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me!” I said. “Because of that… I’m taking you to my first ball.”

She looked away with disinterest.

“Your little balls aren’t big enough, just keep scrubbing.”

“It’s a social event, my first and I get one escort. I want you to go with me.”

“Pass…”

“What?! How come? You’ve been trapped here for years and you still don’t want to get out and see the world?”

“Unless there’s fighting, I’m not interested.”

“I’m scared, Alais…” I said softly while dunking the rag into the wash bucket, before going on to say, “It’s my first time leaving.”

“And what makes you think your Mother would approve of me setting foot outside my… paradise?”

“She said yes!” I blurted out, smiling as I pulled the soaked rag from the bucket.

“If that’s true,” Alais began with a grunt. “Then you have a bigger problem on your hands, boy. Sounds like you’re being set up.”

“I kind of figured out that much.” I walked around to face her to start washing her front. Her eyes were closed. “But if there’s anyone I trust to protect me, it’s the beautiful and powerful Orc Queen Alais, The Merciless.”

As if waking a sleeping giant, her eyes opened ever so slightly and bathed me in her gaze.

“First-time food has ever called me beautiful.”

“Speaking of food… if you ever let my sister feed you… I’ll give you a punishment you’ve never felt before.”

“Oh? And what the hell would that be?” She mused with a raised eyebrow.

“I’ll sing you a song every night.”

“You’re childish,” She snapped.

“I’m doing all of this for you,” I said softly while sliding the hot cloth over her arms. “I’ve still got so much to learn about what’s going on. And… I know you don’t like me very much for the blood in my veins but,”

“I’ll agree to go if you shut up,” She said.

I complied although my face was a twisted mess of annoyance. There I was helping with her bath, scrubbing her filthy crotch like a maid to the elderly and she had the nerve to tell me to shut up, again. I swiped a rough damp rag before pressing it into her face, trying to scrub as hard as I could. I was hoping Elyon would have gone with me if Alais refused but doing so would leave Apple all by himself. I had the thought of taking him with me but I wasn’t sure. As for her bath, It took a bit of scrubbing but I made sure to get every inch before getting her in the tub. Hot enough to boil the filth from her skin I hoped. While she rested, my focus drew to the challenge of untangling her hair; I failed. The need to experience the heated tub I made for Alais bad been calling my name for some time now. So I planned to deal with her hair later. For now, I stripped from my clothing and placed them far to the side. With the tub being large, I struggled to get in before finally splashing into the hot water, head first. Coming back up I gasped for air, cooing ever so slightly.

“This is better than even my bath. The hotter the better,” I said.

“Tell that to the children I boiled and ate,” Alais said.

“I will not let you ruin this for me,” I said while sliding back into her lap.

“I’m not your throne, boy. If you want me to eat you so badly, just give me an order.”

“If I don’t sit here, my head will go under.”

“Your Highness?” Elyon said while standing in the doorway. “I must agree with this… beast. It’s best not to sit there. More importantly, you were bathed after waking.”

Seeing Elyon here, the former Orc Queen’s mood changed. Taking this chance to pester the proud elven woman.

“What’s wrong, Sharp Ear? Don’t like the fact your Master’s body is being pressed against mine?” Alais asked, while placing her forearm across my lap and pulling me closer. “I think I might already be pregnant.”

Before I knew it, Elyon walked over and plucked me from the bath before placing me on the floor, clearly not liking Alais’s jokes.

“I checked on Apple, Your Highness and he seems to be doing well, due to his odd healing.”

“It surely was my inner magic,” I said proudly.

“It wasn’t,” She corrected immediately. “However, Apple does seem to be traumatized. He’s unable to remember anything up to this point.”

“How convenient,” Alais chimed in, causing me to look her way.

“I refuse to forget nor forgive the person who would put Apple, no… anyone in such a state.”

“Back in my prime,” Alais began. “I did such things on a daily basis. A bit of fun if not practice for the day I get to to do the same to your family.”

“You choose now to tell me about your past, Alais?” I asked while giving her an annoyed gaze.

“It’s been a while since I was so relaxed. All I need is food and a drink and I might tell you a few stories better than the ones in your books.”

That made my heart skip a beat. I love a good book of adventure and hearing a story straight from Alais’s mouth was surely the best, in my book.

“What she’s trying to say, Your Highness is that she’s no different than the one who brought about such pain and suffering to Apple.”

“I’ll acknowledge my selfishness.” I turned to Elyon. “Because she not only saved my life but she’s also my friend.”

“I’m not your friend,” Alais said, causing me to glance her way for a second.

“That’s right, she’s my best friend, and I love her. Besides, I need her for my first steps out into the new world. If she’s forced to live forever… then I trust she’ll protect me for a long time.”

Her gaze stayed on me for quite a while. I’d be fibbing if I didn’t say I wasn’t at least a little uncomfortable. I started to feel as if I said something stupid or false.

“Umm, Alais’s hair… is tangled. Can you straighten it please?”

“As you wish, Your Highness,” Elyon said.

“I’m gonna go check on Apple. No fighting… or I’ll make you both kiss a pig.” I said while slipping on my socks and bloomers. I froze, feeling Elyon’s gaze on me, only to turn and see I was right.

“Oh uhm… I’m not going inside the stables… just look through the window.”

My eyes nervously locked with hers before she finally turned back to the tangled mess of Alais’s hair.

“Very well,” Elyon said.