Chapter 53 - Finally bathing

Although Tanya had slept a few hours during her journey that hardly made her feel well rested. The stress of the encounter with Regulus had nullified any relaxation that might have accumulated on the bumpy ride either way. So it was no surprise that youngest royal candidate wolfed down a late dinner after she returned to the Astrea mansion and promptly fell into bed to sleep off the after-effects of using her cursed Type 95 computation jewel twice in one day.

The next morning (which was only a few hours away due to her late arrival) was a beautiful one. At least to her, for she indulged herself in the rare pleasure to just stay down and observe the clouds through the half-open window. Normally there was always something happening that required her attention, but not in this moment it seemed.

And she was thankful for that.

The birds were singing, the wind was rustling through the curtains, the sounds of the already busy city echoed in the distance, the sun shone warmly upon her outstretched hand and most importantly...

There was no danger to her life. Nobody here wanted to kill her either openly or when she wasn´t looking. For the first time since very long ago did she feel safe.

It was a wondrous feeling.

But perhaps, she conceded, the recent events of unsettling revelations and mortal threats were colouring her judgement. Tanya recalled being similarly awed by the soft beds and the delicious food as well after all. Depriving a human of even the most basic delight would naturally make them thankful for its return. That was simple psychology.

Still it didn´t change how exquisitely comfortable she was feeling. Enjoying a calm summer morning in bed had only been possible for her in the past when she was confined to the hospital. Making the most out of unusually positive situation was the most logical decision, she tried to convince herself.

However all good things must come to an end eventually and so the young woman forced herself out of bed when the maids came knocking to dress her for the day. Initially she resisted, because she could pick her outfit herself, but after a few minutes of arguing it felt petty and pointless to resist any longer. This fantasy world appeared to be in the Middle Ages so these kinds of rituals were most likely expected from members of the nobility.

The upside to being cared for like a baby was also that she got served an opulent breakfast which made her appreciate the efforts of the servants more. Afterwards however the work day began for her as well. She even felt a little guilty by lazing around, because Reinhard had apparently already left the house to inform the council of yesterday's happenings and organize for the remains of the White Whale to be recovered. What an excellent subordinate... How could she reward him if he kept that work ethic up?

Food for thought. For now she had to spread the webs of her small (but growing) social network. For example she started to write a letter to Subaru who had to stay at Crusch´s mansion for his treatment. Unfortunately this would pull him out of her sphere of influence for a while and she could not publicly visit him without arousing suspicion. So she would instead converse with him through letters under the guise of advising him on his training for knighthood. Yes, that would be a perfectly believable excuse that would also make him more dependent on her guidance! Now she was extra glad that she had planted this foolish desire in the boy.

Another letter was addressed at Lady Karsten herself to propose a possible location and date for their meeting. In return for the duchess´s "assistance" against Petelgeuse Tanya had promised her negotiations about a possible alliance and she intended to keep that promise. Crusch had stayed behind at the Mathers estate to talk with Emilia and if their conversation had turned out amiably then nothing should stand in the way of a three-way truce. (Or so she liked to think. Being X regularly dashed her hopes for peace.)

A butler recommended a nice restaurant at the edge of the city to her to serve as the meeting place. It was "neutral ground" so to speak, in contrast to either their respective homes. The man helpfully reminded her that it would send mixed signals if she wanted to discuss conditions on "her territory". Yet she could also not risk letting Crusch dictate the terms of their small conference. Meeting in a public space was ideal.

Before she could begin to draw up lesson plans for her newly formed battalion or educate herself more on the political landscape of Lugnica a servant reminded her that the bath she had ordered to be drawn was now ready. She urgently needed to clean herself from yesterday´s carnage, because dumping a bucket of cold water over herself a few hours earlier did not count.

Yes. A proper bath would do her well.

(Normally there would be a very long scene here, but I am not sure how well this site handles NSFW and I don't want to up the rating for this story so it was cut. If you want to check it out you can read it on AO3.)

Let me instead use the rest of this chapter to respond to some of the comments:

Being X is not a character I like nor respect so he gets a bit "memed on" in this story. Is that stupid? Perhaps? But I really think that Pandora or Satella are stronger than him. (At least in a direct fight and not in the creation of worlds or whatever.) That whole topic is infinitely debateable, so don't take my word as gospel. Canon can be whatever you want!

Roswaal will get his just desserts later in the story (if you care about that kind of stuff).

Thank you for the overwhelminghly positive response! It is crazy that my first Re:0 (and second YS) fic has been so well received. I appreciate that very much!

Tomorrow you will get a real chapter :)
I promise.