Victoriously Yours,

Naturally Manly

Dawn dusted in like a call and instantly her eyes fluttered open, taking in her surroundings. Remembering the details of what took place last night, a scowl and sense of nausea filled her.

Slowly she got up. On seeing a quilt thrown over her body to keep her from the cold at night, she looked at her side to see him sleeping with an arm thrown over his eyes.

His body were robust and big beside her. She quietly saw the line of his abs like staircases heading straight down to another quilt covering his dangerously low hips.

Did he had to be very...Urgh!

She couldn't believe she slept with someone in the same bed.

The knowledge cut her and just like that bad thoughts of her past that she buried deep inside her threatened to emerge.

A man's hand touching her, grabbing her while she had slept, innocently.

River shook her head, cutting them. No. Don't think about him.

With cat like steps, she moved to her backpack. Taking in her toiletries, a towel and set of fresh clothes along with the dirty ones from yesterday, she exited from the tent.

Few of Iborians women were out, moving around and she wanted to ask them if there was someplace secluded and private to have a bath but at first she hesitated.

She knew they welcomed them but she wasn't sure how friendly were there. The only way to discern that was to just ask.

So River went up to one, asking her the question through the language of signing. She made notions of bathing herself and the woman just blinked.

Irritation flared in River when she got nowhere and she was about to go and search for a damn spring herself when a small boy trotted to her.

He wore white skinned pantaloon and his chest bare with white markings like some tribal tracery.

He waved his hand, and babyish English syllables broke from him. "Hi-hi. You-gi-girl who-who- my brothers-"Unable to say the word 'tent', he pointed back at Yisrael's pavilion.

River didn't have much an appreciation for small children. It reminded her of helpless little insects who were brought deliberately into this cruel world.

Chin tipped, she asked the little man. "You are Yisrael's brother? What's your name?"

"Yori."

"Why do all of your names start with Y?"

The boy simply shrugged his shoulders, as if he was tired of the conversation. He looked at her bag of toiletries and then his baby violet eyes brightened intelligently. "You-wash?"

Bending down at his height, River asked. "Yes,I want to take a bath alone. Where can I go?"

Taking her by her hand, he dragged her down the green narrow pathway in the corner. Bushes of leaves and branches brushing by her face, she tagged along behind Yori.

When they emerged from the riots of trees encompassing them, she heard the distinctive sound of a water falling.

The boy wavered her attention into small cavern where the sounds grew louder.

Her eyes widened when she entered the cave.

A subterranean natural stream flowed from a retaining wall at the end of the cave into a small bowl depression brimming with frothy water.

It was like a small pool and at its edge it had a thin fissure which lead the excess water outside. Which makes the pool always filled till it's brim and the water seemed to head out into the stream which guarantees no waste.