It was cold. How did anyone survive in such weather normally? It felt impossible! Since she had grown up in tropical islands, Pounamu truly wasn’t experienced with such weather and could not stop shivering no matter how much she tried to avoid it. At least she wasn’t in the line of sight of her employer but simply trying to help sort through her daughter’s closet. The place was nearly a palace in its own right and Arunika’s room had adjoining rooms simply for her belongings. A giant bedroom with a large canopy bed that had warm rocks brought to it to try to fight against the bitter cold that had taken Sulburi by surprise, the marble floors steaming from the heat as it fought against the freezing air. Along the side of it was a desk for studying with bookshelves of books on etiquette and fairy tales, the young woman’s favored stories there instead of in the manor’s main library since she preferred to hide away here from her siblings and other relatives who lingered in the estate. Her personal bath was next to that with servants currently filling the stone lined chamber with hot water there to heat the room so that Arunika could bathe in peace despite the bitter temperatures outside. The room itself was large enough for at least four people to bathe at once, the luxury noted by the servants who lingered with envious gazes on Pounamu as well before they finally left the room to continue their work to fill the tub. Usually the bath was easily filled with cooler water to fight against the desert heat but today it was specially heated by those who could do such things, the water steaming as it came up in carried buckets for once instead of through the waterways within the estate. While they waited on the bath to be filled Arunika had dragged Pounamu into the secondary room which was basically a closet full of outfits and accessories for her to enjoy. “What do you think about this one, Namu?” An endearing nickname from the dark haired beauty who had opted to take in Pounamu as her own personal servant, a bold request to her mother whom most feared. Pounamu was basically a wedding gift at this point, someone tied to the young mistress until she left the estate to marry some wealthy merchant’s son in order to keep their families tied together. It didn’t stop Arunika from pampering Pounamu though, especially not once her mother had agreed to allow the girl to use the Kahi hybrid as she wanted. As long as it didn’t interfere with any events that her mother needed Pounamu to work at then it was fine, a relief from the things that Pounamu once endured since now she could easily hide in Arunika’s chambers to avoid any wandering eyes. All Pounamu had to do was be supportive and kind towards the young mistress, something that was easy enough even though the smile truly never reached her eyes. Today though she felt especially weary and could not put on the normal smile since she was too busy shivering from the cold, something that the young Oban hybrid actually noticed. “The cold is bothering you as well, it seems.” Arunika noted as she held out a sheer dress towards Pounamu. “Take this one.”

“Are you certain? It’s a bit…” Well, most of the Oban style was revealing based on what she had to wear at events around the manor. Pounamu wasn’t certain what was customary anymore or just simply natural to this type of lifestyle. Everything here was so lavish and so appealing, it made others want them so that they could offer whatever they had to appease the mistress of the estate and do her bidding. The very thought made Pounamu’s stomach curl. “Is there something warmer perhaps?”

“Ah, I suppose. That one would look lovely on you though.” Pouted Arunika as she opted for something a bit more layered instead for Pounamu. “You’ll just have to wait until you bathe and then try this on. We can warm up together in the water and have some tea to try to fight this cold.”

”I….alright.” Pounamu simply bowed her head, accepting that pampering the daughter was a much better option than her previous roles. A warm bath wouldn’t be so bad either, even if she had to adjust to sharing the space instead of simply enjoying it on her own. It was too cold to think otherwise and so once more Pounamu placed a smile on her lips, trying her best despite how heavy her body felt as the bitter cold settled in even more over the city.

[787]