25| Take Off Your Clothes

“That should be all,” Mel huffed with a triumphant smile and wrapped her hands around herself, giving the small bag with her clothes a second glance.

“I hope this isn’t too much?” Annie meekly asked, her hand poised at the bag opening, ready to add or remove any more clothing. She faced Mel but subtly glanced at Bjorn, awaiting his approval too. The maid wished the two could agree on things.

Bjorn turned away from his open wardrobe and his eyes narrowed at what Annie had packed. He sighed and rubbed at his temple, trying as much as possible to ease his features. His frown lessened and he turned to Mel.

“That’s too much,” he said.

Mel frowned. “How is it too much? We’ll be gone for over a week or two, won’t we?”

“We’re going into the woods, not to a neighbouring city. You won’t need all those clothes.”

“What if it gets dirty? I’ll need a change of clothing to wear and—”

“They can be washed and worn repeatedly,” Bjorn countered, a little peeved at having to explain such an obvious reason. Just how exactly was she raised? “Besides, if you wear any of your fine clothing, it’ll be in serious disrepair by the time we return. The forest isn’t a comfortable place…” He wanted to add ‘for the likes of you’ but he made sure to stop there, not wanting to say anymore unnecessary words lest Mel felt insulted.

Mel stood still, her lips slightly twisted in thought. He wasn’t wrong. He had heard of Sprites being familiar with the woods, but terrains vastly differed, and he doubted Mel was someone who could even navigate through the woods of her own homeland. The fact that she was packing some of those lavish dresses spoke for itself. It wouldn’t be astounding if Mel’s idea of the hunt was a camping paradise.

“All my clothes are fine,” Mel grumbled, crossing her arms across her chest as a light frown returned to her features.

Bjorn returned his attention to his drawers. “Just take two to three pairs of the most casual clothing you have. Any more is unnecessary.”

Mel frowned and nodded at Annie who started returning a few dresses and folding them neatly back on the bed. She went into the walk-in closet and while returning the fabrics, sifted through for more clothing fit for the outdoors. They sadly weren’t much, and Annie had to add a lovely gown durable enough to be added to the only two pairs of casual dresses Mel had.

Annie straightened and walked back to meet Mel. They hovered near the entrance of the closet, eyeshot away from Bjorn. Nevertheless, he was capable of hearing them.

“I may not be able to come with you, my lady,” Annie softly said, looking at Mel’s face to gauge her reaction.

It had hurt her to say these words, but it was for her lady’s own benefit. Bjorn seemed like a nice man and she was sure he would keep Mel safe. This might even be an opportunity for Mel to mature a bit. But most importantly, this was an open opportunity Annie was going to grasp hold of.

The Orions were welcoming, but it would be important for Mel to solidify her position within the Grime clan. While Mel was away, Annie planned on working closely with Eustace and watching over the manor, along with how certain parts of the clan needed to be operated from the marketing to the upkeep of the districts underground.

When Mel returned, Annie would help guide Mel and assist her since it would be unfair to the old Eustace to put Mel through all this. Mel would also appear far more capable if Eustace didn’t have to spoon-feed her.

Mel wore a vacant look for a few seconds and then smiled fondly at Annie. “It’s alright. It’s good you would want to rest since you’ve been moving about since we arrived. I should have thought of that too.”

“Ah, no.” Annie smiled nervously and shook her head. “Well, it’s part of it, but I want to ensure things are in order by the time you return.”

“Thank you so much, Annie.” Mel leaned forward and enveloped her maid in a warm hug that lasted for several seconds. Annie hugged her back, a little reluctant to let go of the young lady she had assisted in raising.

“I’ll be off then. I need to drop your things amongst the luggage,” Annie said, holding the burly bag to her chest and walking out of the closet. Mel followed close behind her and closed the sliding doors to her closet.

“Of course,” Mel said, following Annie to the door when Bjorn’s words stopped her.

“Hold on.”

They both looked back at Bjorn and he nodded at Annie. “You may leave. Thank you.”

“Why?” Mel’s frown returned.

“Don’t worry, I won’t detain you for long,” he gruffly said.

Annie glanced between the two of them for a few seconds and then she opened the door. “Excuse me, my lords,” Annie weakly muttered, leaving the bed chamber with the burlap sack containing her lady’s clothes.

The door closed softly behind Annie’s slow exit and Mel fidgeted on her feet and with her hands, not exactly knowing what or how to feel in regards to being alone with her husband in their sleeping chamber.

Bjorn silently rummaged through the monstrous wardrobe where most of his clothing was kept and Mel just stood still, nervous and wondering what Bjorn was up to. Was he going to convince her not to go? No, the timing seemed too late for that.

So what exactly did he want now?

“Take off your clothes.”

Mel froze in stunned silence. Had she heard that right? When Bjorn didn’t repeat himself, her mind burst into shambles, trying to piece itself together and make sense of her husband’s absurd request.

Why? Why was he telling her to take her clothes off? Were they going to do it? Now? That made no sense. Her heart sped and immediately died down. She would have been excited if not for the dry tone of voice with which he had used to utter those words.

“You seriously did not ask me this. What sort of question is that?” Mel wrapped her arms around herself, turning away from him. “You’re dreaming if you think we’re doing anything.”

Bjorn turned his head towards her, the expression on his face stopping her dead before she spoke anything else. His eyes were wide with shock and surprise and his brows were raised. The look of shock shifted to confusion and back.

“I wasn’t implying on any of that,” he breathed, blinking.

What was going through that girl’s mind?

Mel’s cheeks grew hot as she blushed furiously. She slapped herself with both palms, the sound causing Bjorn to flinch.

“Are you alright?” he asked, his face twisting with concern.

“No, I’m not!” she spat. “Why were you even telling me to take off my clothes?!” she screeched, her heart hammering in her chest. She wished to die of embarrassment and for the earth to crack open and swallow her deep within its belly.

What else had he expected her to think when he made such a request?!

“Oh,” Bjorn turned back to his wardrobe as if just realizing how misleading his request had sounded. “I just realized my request was pretty misleading—” he paused, quiet for a few seconds before continuing, his voice lowered, “I’m sorry about that.”

Mel was a little surprised. The offense wasn’t that grave but Bjorn had still apologized, nonetheless.

She opened her mouth to speak but before she could say anything, Bjorn suddenly said, “Here, take this.”

He pulled a dark folded lump of clothing from his wardrobe and Mel stood still for a while before approaching him and taking it from his grasp. Her fingers brushed against his and they both stilled at the contact. Mel’s skin tingled and she snatched the clothes to her chest, stepping a few feet away from Bjorn.

“Why are you giving me this?” she asked.

“I want you to change what you’re wearing,” Bjorn answered, his eyes subtly roaming her body. “It will be cold out there, plus this would provide more mobility than the dress you currently have on.”

“Oh,” Mel breathed, glancing down at the folds of clothing. As she began to spread it out, Bjorn closed the wardrobe and walked to the door.

“I’ll give you some privacy,” he said, turning his back to her.

Mel unfolded the clothes on the bed and paused. Surprisingly, it wasn’t too big for her. It was a well-designed coat-like top and a pair of trousers. Her eyes widened, not sure of what she was actually seeing.

“Is—is this really for me?” she asked softly, stopping Bjorn right before he opened the door.”

“Hmm?” He looked back at her, his brows quizzing in confusion. “Yes.”

Mel is surprised. This was because women back in Sprite had never really been allowed to wear male clothing, especially leggings or trousers like this.

“It’s okay for me to wear this?” she asked again, looking up at him.

Bjorn’s confusion only grew. “Yes?” he asked. “Is something wrong with it?”

“Oh,” she simply said, but she remained standing, glancing coyly between him and the garments on the bed.

“I’ll… be leaving now.” Bjorn opened the door.

“Wait!” Mel ran up to him and stopped short as she was about to grab hold of his arm. She restrained herself and straightened, her eyes darting to the floor. “I… I don’t know how to wear it.”