I WILL FIND YOU.

Chapter 15: Bath

"Pass me your dirty clothes I'll help you wash them." Minda said when they reached the well in the side garden. Kai did as he was asked and gave Minda his dirty clothes. He also took off a few layers until he was only wearing a thin almost translucent shirt and underpants.

"What are you doing?!" Minda asked looking around the area for anyone who might be watching.

"I haven't been able to wash in several days. If you lend me a towel I'd like to wash up everything at once." Kai said.

"If that's what you want we have a bath. It will feel a lot better than just wiping down with a towel." Minda offered.

"I don't need..."

"Trust me you'll feel great after a nice hot bath." Minda insisted.

Kai had spent most of his life on the battlefield. They didn't have baths and he never thought much about them. But Minda seemed to really want him to take a bath so he agreed.

"Okay. What do I need to do?" Kai asked.

"It's easy. The bath house is just over there. you only need to light a stove and let the water heat up. While we wait for it to warm up we can finish washing the laundry. It will be perfect." Minda said.

When they reached the bath house Kai was surprised to see a large bath that could easily fit several people already filled with water.

"Over there is the stove to heat the water. It takes a while but it's worth the wait." Minda said.

Kai looked over and saw a pile of wood next to the stove. He also saw another tub that looked large enough for a single person to use.

"Why is there another tub?" Kai asked.

"That's the one I use. The doctor has me taking medicinal baths. This one is too large so Syaoran fills this smaller one with water for me." Minda explained.

"If you aren't using the large one, why is it filled with water?"

"That's because the large tub is connected to a spring. We remove the water periodically so it's always fresh and it refills itself within a day thanks to the spring." Minda explained. Kai was a little surprised at how convenient it was for them to have a large bath. He bent down and felt the water with his hand. It was cool to the touch but felt nice and looked clear.

"You can use it when its cold but taking a hot bath is much better. you'll feel cleaner and all the stress and attitude just melts away." Minda say thinking Kai might just jump in. Kai listened to Minda and headed for the stove to light a fire.

"Perfect. While the bath warms up we can do the laundry. Theres a basin over there and we can use the water from the bath." Minda said.

Kai saw what he meant and agreed it would be easier to wash the laundry where they were. He grabbed the basin and quickly filled it with water. While he did that Minda took the clothing out of his bag and placed each piece of clothing on the floor.

"I'll go back to the well and get the soapnuts." Kai said.

"There are soapnuts in the cupboard over there." Minda said.

Kai walked over and sure enough he found some soapnuts. He also found several pots of different oils and bars of expensive soap. They were the type of things he had seen nobles use but never had the chance to use himself.

Holding the soapnuts Kai returned to Minda's side and knelt down to start washing the laundry. Kai wanted to help but he couldn't get down on the floor.

Kai didn't mind. He hurriedly washed the clothes without difficulty. Minda was surprised by how fast he was at scrubbing away all the stains. While he washed the clothes he would periodically stop and take care of the fire.