It was a relief to be outside. The air inside the ship had been close and heavy, hanging with tension. It was too hot to work on her embroidery and definitely too hot to listen to Nyawe’s complaining. It was not that she did not pity the woman, it could not be comfortable carrying such a large belly through the hottest days of summer. It was just that she always felt that Nyawe was trying to make her jealous, rubbing her belly with a sly smile on her face and patting Lyiss’ arm and telling her in a patronising voice that she was sure Lyiss would find a husband too.

And then there were the times when her brother would come into the room and Nyawe would try to touch him or kiss him. It was so awkward to watch his body cringing away from her pawing hands, his face flushed with embarrassment. She knew that it mirrored hers as she gazed down at the tiny flowers she was stitching, feeling the thread catch as she yanked it through the material. At these moments she wished fervently she was anywhere else. She would often stumble from the room with a muttered excuse of going to check on the Crown Prince. But today the Queen had been playing with Kendrick so she had gratefully left to take a walk.

She felt sticky and hot, her dress clinging to her damp skin, her hair hanging limply against her flushed face. And she felt miserable. Every day as she watched Nyawe’s belly swelling beneath her gown she was reminded of what was lacking in her own life. She rounded the corner, running her hand against the rough underside of the ship, sharp ridges of barnacles scratching the soft skin of her fingers. If only she could…

Her mouth dropped open in shock, her cheeks burning hot at what she saw before her. A group of the guards and the ships crew had stripped off to take a swim in the cool sea water.

Lyiss froze, unable to tear her eyes away from the sight before her. They were edging their way gingerly into the foaming waves, the cool waves lapping at their naked calves.

Lyiss’ eyes were drawn inexorably to Kelgar’s body as he carefully waded into the water. His body was lean and muscular, his chest covered in dark hair that continued down his belly. Her eyes followed the line down as it trailed over his flat stomach, below his belly button and down to…

She suppressed a gasp of surprise at what she saw. Somehow she had never imagined… that! It hung lazily between his legs nestled amongst a patch of thick dark hair, somehow powerful and frightening even in repose. Was that really what all men looked like beneath their clothes! Her brother! Nyawe had told her many things she did not want to hear but she had never mentioned this.

No, perhaps there was just something wrong with Kelgar. Her eyes darted to the other men to check whether they possessed something similar but their lean bodies were already streaking through the water.

Lyiss knew she should turn around and leave, they hadn’t seen her. It had been an honest mistake. But somehow she couldn’t, leaning her flushed cheek against the cool water-soaked wood of the hull. The waves spattered hundreds of tiny droplets into the air where they hung for long moments, diffracting the sun’s warm rays in flickers of rainbow. She watched as strong shoulders sliced through the waves sending up large splashes, as muscular backs surfaced occasionally from the water’s foamy midst.

She watched curiously as the first mate emerged from the water, his dark body streaming water, his long black hair clinging to his face and coiling down his shoulders. She quickly glanced down and noted something quite similar to what was dangling between Kelgar’s legs. She had always been a little frightened of him and his sister. Nyawe had told her that they came from the Southern continent, further than she could imagine. His sister, Lekha, the Captain’s wife kept mostly to herself and most of the other ladies did not seem to mind, finding her presence rather awkward.

Then he looked up and his liquid brown eyes met hers.

“Oh… look like we have someone who peek at us”, he purred with his thick accent.

The ship’s Captain grunted disinterestedly and flopped down onto the sand.

Lyiss stared in horror, not knowing what to say as the ship’s mates eyes raked up and down her body.

“She shouldn’t watch. Bad girl”, he shook his finger at her with a smirk, “Perhaps she want to join. The day is heated and her clothes are warm”.

“Oh… oh no please”, Lyiss gasped, “I didn’t mean to… I was just walking… and… oh”.

She was panicking, her face so flushed and red she thought it would burst into flames. The heat was rising off the sand and rushing over her body in waves, her heart beating rapidly. She was beginning to grow faint, the edges of her vision blurring, her ears ringing.

“What you think friend Kelgar?”, he asked with a catlike grin, showing rows of pointy white teeth.

Kelgar was just emerging from the water and had not yet noticed Lyiss.

“What’s that Mahavir? Oh God Lyiss!!”, he looked over at her in stark horror and then his hands flew down to his crotch desperately trying to cover his nakedness.

Lyiss was frozen to the spot as surely as if the gritty sand beneath her feet was sucking her slowly down, the small particles tumbling against one another her weight pulling her lower until her legs were held fast. All she could do was gape in dismay watching Kelgar’s face turn as red as she knew her’s was. A broad flush was spreading from his cheeks, down the thick corded muscles of his neck and even as far as the top of his hairy chest.

“Mahavir… for God’s sake man! Cover yourself”, he snapped from his crouched position.

“I have no thing to be ashamed from. Only body that by the God’s graces I have been gave. It would shame me to cover myself”, he replied with a grin, still gazing boldly at Lyiss.

“Come back in the water with me then… leave the poor girl alone”, Kelgar pleaded inching his way back towards the relative safety of the water.

“I’m sorry Lyiss”, he yelped, not daring to meet her eyes and then he dove for the water.

“You no want a swim girl”, Mahavir asked again in his broken English his voice soft, “My wife, she did sometimes come. She no ashamed”.

“No… oh no… oh dear I’m very sorry”, Lyiss cried, her lips caught between her clattering teeth so that she could taste blood.

She heard the rustling behind her, the crunching of tiny pieces of shell and rock beneath sure feet. Lekha, the Captain’s wife strode along the sands toward her. She came to stand between Lyiss’ trembling body and those of the naked men. Her thick dark gown hung heavily from her body, not stirring in the hot breeze that was playing at the hem of Lyiss’ dress. Her head was covered with a shawl of the same intricately woven material, every strand of hair carefully tucked away so that it was difficult to imagine she even had any. Only her brows curved thickly above her dark heavy-lidded eyes.

Despite the heat and her heavy robes there was not a drop of sweat on her brow. Lyiss felt damp all over, her dress clinging unpleasantly to her hot skin, tiny droplets rolling from the back of her neck and down inside her bodice.

“What is going on here?”, she snapped, the corners of her mouth sourly turning down.

Lyiss hung her head in shame.

The Captain hoisted himself to his feet, his bearlike body stalking over to where they stood.

Lyiss dared not look up, terrified to see more, especially with the man’s own wife standing before her.

Lekha crossed her arms and stared angrily at him.

“Hallo wife!”, he boomed, “Come to see your dear husband then. Perhaps you too wanted to strip off and come for a swim, the steward’s young sister here was thinking of it”.

Lekha bristled, “You would have me take off my clothes and show my self to your friends?”.

“My hair!”, she spat, “They are not fit even to gaze on the boots I walk the earth with yet you say these bad things. Perhaps you also shall not be allowed to see”.

Rasmus replied with a great booming laugh, his eyes lighting up with mirth, the scar that ran down over his left eye pulling tight, “Oh wife, you cause me great mirth. It was only being a joke is all. I would not share a woman like you with the very best of friends”.

He thought for a moment and then laughed even louder, “Particularly since the best of my friends is being your own brother!”.

“My brother!”, she hissed, “Mahavir, have you no shame?

She spat out a string of words that Lyiss did not understand but which did not sound flattering. Mahavir did not answer, looking into the distance with his hands planted insolently on his bare hips.

“We meant no harm wife, Mahavir was just having some fun with the girl is all. It would have gone no further. Perhaps you should be asking her why she was staring at us in the first place. I think she was liking what she saw here”.

Lyiss cringed in humiliation tears filling her eyes and threatening to run down her cheeks, “No I…”

“Come now”, Lekha said, gripping her arm firmly, “They are not fit for tears of you. You will walk with me and we walk the other way”.

They trod carefully along the hot sand away from the men. Lyiss could feel tiny grains of sand working their way inside her boots, scratching at her feet.

“I am sorry for what you see. My husband and brother have not been kind”.

“It’s just I…”, her face flushing red again, “I never expected it would look like that“.

“No woman ever does think it look that way. Best you forgot and not worry about it until you have no other choice”.

Elmvarn, Shildfrith