Alice rode toward the Windpeak Inn with a content smile. It was cold today, and cloudy, but relief was mere minutes away. Alice, her little sister Cilla and their sturdy brown draft horse Bill were on their way to the College of Winterhold to begin their education as mages. It had been almost two years since their family was chased out of Cyrodiil by the Thalmor and these had been desperate, broken times. But now things were normal again. They had a home in Whiterun and a new family that loved them. Their father had survived Skyirm's re-admittance into the Empire, the Thalmor were out of Skyrim and as of last week Carlotta Valentia had become their new stepmother. Planning the wedding had taken months, but Alice, Cilla and Mila were eager to help and it had been the best party Whiterun had had all year. Even bigger and better than Jarl Baalgruuf's birthday. Now the Psyrakon girls were able to take advantage of something that they feared was lost to them forever: formal magical education. They were both ecstatic to get to Winterhold.
So far the trip had been fun. The two Imperial sisters had gotten to spend a lot more time together than they usually did, what with Alice and her father being in the Legion since the end of the war. They had also cleared out a camp of brick-headed bandits along the way. None of the five ruffians had expected an 18 year old girl who could easily pass for 16, or her 10 year old sister to be any threat. That allowed Cilla to simply walk up to them, introduce herself and start reading from a Scroll of Mass Paralysis, stunning them all long enough for Alice to move in and cast calm spells on all of them. That gave them enough time to not only take the bandits' weapons and gear but tie them up as well! Cilla knew enough magic to be dangerous and Alice was an experienced Stormcloak-turned-legionnaire like her father, but both girls had seen enough killing to let those fools live. They decided to leave one iron dagger between them and stash all the weapons that weren't worth taking in a nearby bear cave. That way they could at least protect themselves in the wilds until the guards found and arrested them.
They soon reached the inn and Alice brought Bill to a halt, having to calm him down some thanks to the three horses that were already there. Bill was strong as a warhorse and sweet as a pony but he was nervous around horses he didn't know, so it took his nose a few moments for his nose to tell him that they were all okay. Cilla was fast asleep between Alice's arms and Bill's neck, worn out from the morning's adventure and the long ride to the inn. Alice carefully dismounted to the right and gently shook her sister awake.
"Hey Cilla? We've stopped at an inn. We're going to stay here and get some rest okay?"
"M...okay." She said groggily. After taking a few moments to wake up, she dismounted with Alice's help.
"There you go." Alice said, giving Cilla a big hug which she returned. She was such a sweet girl. Alice was usually the baby of any group she was with but with Cilla around she always had someone to take care of. It was a nice feeling being a big sister. Almost...motherly. "In the meantime, how does some lunch and a nap sound? We can get our jammies on and curl up together."
"Okay, that sounds good." Cilla said, ending the hug and smiling up at her big sister. Alice was the coolest person in the world to Cilla and she wanted to be just like her. She had at least tried everything her sister did and loved it when Alice approved of something she drew with chalk or made at the forge. Under their father's supervision of course. They shared a great deal together. Books, resizable clothing, ideas, even makup. "I am pretty hungry and I'm pretty tired too."
"Well we can fix you right up then can't we." Alice said with a warm smile. The little inn looked very inviting, cozy even. She could smell fresh bread leeking out of the cracks in the old oak door and the windows. She was just as tired and hungry as her sister and it was a welcome sight. There was another building, however, that caught both their attention just across the road. A large wooden building with several chimneys with steam rising from them. A sign outside said DAWNSTAR PUBLIC BATHHOUSE. Now THAT looked inviting. A hot bath to soak their bodies and get clean would be a perfect preamble to a good meal, a warm pair of footy pajamas and a soft comfy bed. "I've got another idea: why don't you go inside and check out that bathhouse while I secure Bill. I don't know about you but a long hot bath before some early dinner and a nap sounds great. Do you still have that money papa gave you?"
"Yep! It's right here!" Cilla said triumphantly as she held up a large coin purse from her belt.
"Good job, now go head inside. I'll find you soon okay?"
"Okay! See you soon Alice! Bye Bill, see you later!"
Cilla bolted across the street and into the bathhouse. Alice chuckled at her eagerness and turned to Bill, securing him to a post.
"And I've got something for you too my friend. You've definitely earned it."
She reached into her pack and pulled out two large gala apples. Bill snatched up the first one and then went for the second a few seconds later. Alice chuckled as she mixed a flames and a frost spell at low intensity to create some water in the nearby trough. Inside the bathhouse Cilla went up to the front desk and got the housekeeper's attention. An elderly Nord woman who may work for the inn. "Hello there ma'am." Cilla said, "My sister and I would like a bath and a place to store our gear. She's outside tending to our horse but she'll be in soon."
"Well hello there young lady." the housekeeper said, smiling down at the sweet little girl who's head barely peeked over the desk. "There's a locker room right over there to your left. The bath is on the other side. You can go in the bath completely naked if you want but you don't have to if you're not sure about that. There's about six others in there right now but I just changed the water and it's nice and warm. I'll make sure your sister finds her way. Enjoy!"
"Thank you ma'am!" Cilla said, running off to the locker room to change. When she got the trunk open she stashed her coin purse and sheathed steel dagger, then started to undress. First she took off her fuzzy pink magenta gloves and headscarff, both of them thick, warm, comfy and cute if a little itchy. Then her warm pink coat came off after she undid her waistbelt and buttons and folded it up. That left her short sleeve green tunic that went down to her but, her tough blue cotton and wool pants and the soft brown leather knee high boots that fit tightly over those pants. Her boots came off first, then the tunic, then the pants, leaving Cilla in a pair of white cotton long underwear over her white socks. Warm and comfy under her clothes during the day and a fair stand-in for her footy pajamas if they weren't available. She too them off, folded them up and followed with her bra and underwear, both lacy white. Now the little girl was completely naked, her chubby little body for all to see. Cilla used to be skin and bones, starving and sick when her father and Alice found her in a den of vampires. Now she had gotten back up to a good weight with fair, white healthy skin, rejuvenated shoulder-length brown hair and a bulge in her belly: an undeniable sign that she was well-cared for and got plenty to eat. She wasn't fat or unhealthy. She simply looked the way a ten year old girl should. Plump and healthy.
Cilla put a towel around her chest to cover her breasts and private parts and headed into the bathhouse. It was warm and moist inside and she could already feel the cleansing steam. A large bath of cool water was empty but the smaller heated bath was her destination. There were already several people enjoying its warm waters. A Nord man with his arms across the rim and wet up to his beard. Two elven women with hair the color of snow. A khajiit man soaking up to his neck. A woman with short black hair that was shorter than a Nord but taller than a Breton and looked like a bit of both. Cilla was a little nervous about revealing herself at first but once she saw that everyone else was nude she decided it was okay. Slowly she unwrapped the towel, carefully folded it and climbed into the tub, taking up much less space than anyone else. The bath felt wonderful. It was like being enveloped in a big warm bag of water and it felt so good that Cilla submerged herself and held her breath for several seconds. The water turned her hair into a big wet mop but it soaked her down to her bones and pulled out all the sores and cramps from riding. She came up for breath after several bubbles, causing some splashing. Then she took a seat with a big smile and decided to introduce herself while she waited for Alice.
"Hello there." She said to no one in particular. "How are you all doing today? This bath sure does feel good! Don't you think so!?"