‘What’s Avorna like? Weather-wise.’
‘Temperate. Pretty much all year round. We don’t really get seasons, but we do get a long growing season.’
‘Sounds nice.’
‘Yes, it is. Oh!’
The exclamation came as the new entrant to the baths stepped over the edge to join them. Nava turned her head to look at the newcomer and it was quite a sight. The legs doing the stepping were long. She pointed her toes as she slipped her foot into the water, an elegant action which seemed to fit with the woman’s demeanour. She looked aristocratic, important, but in a terribly simple way. A country countess, stepping lightly into her bath. Her figure was slim and she was tall, easily ten or twelve centimetres taller than Nava. She had high, pointed breasts, not especially large, but that fitted with the catwalk-model impression she gave. A long face came with a pert, slightly snubbed nose, a small mouth with full lips, and high cheekbones. Her eyes were dark brown, almost black in the subdued lighting of the baths, and her hair was jet black. That was wound up into a bun behind her head, but from the amount of hair on show, it likely fell to her waist.
She settled into the water with a sigh, sinking down until her breasts were submerged and closing her eyes. Then she moved, sitting on the seating which ran around the side of the bath and coming to a relaxed sort of rest with her nipples just visible above the waterline. Dark eyes regarded her fellow bathers briefly. ‘Good evening,’ she said.
‘Evening,’ Nava replied.
The newcomer’s pupils were dilating. Nava detected slight colouring of her cheeks, more obvious since this was a pale woman. And her nipples were starting to stiffen before Melissa’s motormouth started going.
‘H-hello, I am Melissa Connelly Avorn. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.’
Inwardly, Nava sighed. Melissa had introduced herself in the kind of overly formal manner which indicated a nervous speaker. Nava would have to do the same. ‘Nava Ward.’
The woman’s eyes flicked away from Nava’s. She looked… conflicted. She bowed her head and, when she raised her gaze again, she said, ‘I am Mitsuko Trenton Sonkei. The pleasure is all mine.’ She had a soft, velvety voice, dark and melodious and easy on the ear.
Melissa let out a little gasp and tried to sink even lower in the water. Unfortunately, that would have meant holding her breath, so she was out of luck. Nava could understand the reaction, to some extent. They had been joined in the bath by a member of one of the highest-ranking clans in the Clan Worlds, never mind the fact that the Sonkei clan ruled the planet they were on. ‘We’re first years,’ Melissa blurted before her brain could catch up with her mouth. ‘Support stream.’
‘I see. That would be why I don’t recognise either of you. I haven’t had time to familiarise myself with the support stream students. I’ll have everyone worked out by next week, at least well enough to recognise.’
‘You aim to memorise everyone in the year?’ Nava asked.
‘The school. I will be running for student president next month. Knowing who I’ll be representing is an important part of the job.’ Mitsuko’s gaze swept over the only visible part of Melissa. ‘You’re nervous. There’s no need to be. I may be a Trenton Sonkei, but I’m still a perfectly normal girl.’
‘Mel is just nervous,’ Nava replied for her friend. ‘She’s a little shy and you are intimidating.’ Melissa gave out a little squeak, though whether it was in protest or horror at Nava’s blunt statement was unsure.
‘Intimidating?’ Mitsuko asked.
‘And far from a “perfectly normal girl,”’ Nava added in her usual uninflected tone. ‘You are both subjectively and objectively a beautiful young woman. Your family name gives you power and influence. We have only just met you and know nothing of your temperament, but you have just stated that you have considerable political ambition. I believe it is unusual for a first-year student to become student president, but you intend to take the position. Your name suggests that you could achieve that goal. To sum up, you are a beautiful woman with a strong, dominant personality and the capacity, should we somehow offend you, to make our lives a misery. That would be intimidating to anyone with a working brain.’
Melissa whimpered, presumably at the thought of what Miss Intimidating was likely to do because of Nava’s blunt appraisal. Nava just watched Mitsuko, her gaze unwavering. There was an avalanche of expression flickering over Mitsuko’s face. Anger was in there. There was still more than a little attraction. The anger faded very rapidly to be replaced by a quirk in Mitsuko’s brow which suggested curiosity or intrigue…
‘And you say you’re studying support sorcery, Nava Ward?’ Mitsuko asked. ‘You have the self-confidence of a combat student. I clearly don’t intimidate you.’
‘The support and academic courses appealed to me more than the combat courses. You’ve done nothing to intimidate me, Mitsuko Trenton. I don’t wish to imply that you are trying to, simply that your very nature is likely to make a shy person of lower social standing uneasy.’
A slow smile spread over Mitsuko’s face. Not the smile of a politician in the making, but a genuine smile with just a hint of curious interest. ‘I apologise if I am, inadvertently, intimidating, Melissa Connelly. That is not my intention. Please be at ease. I am not even slightly offended. Frankly, I find Nava Ward’s bluntness refreshing. I should make you an advisor, Nava Ward.’
‘An advisor?’ In the corner of her eye, Nava could see Melissa relaxing some. Her shoulders broke the surface of the water for one thing.
‘Yes. Have you ever heard of the court jesters of ancient Earth?’
‘I’m not well educated
