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"Ailes!" I shout. "Hurry up, we've arrived!"
My brother stumbles out of the doorway to his room, struggling with one hand to strap his bag over his shoulder, the other trying to tighten his sandal.
"There's no need to rush, Loraine." He says to me, ignoring his own advice as he hops about on his one sandaled foot, pulling on the leather bag strap going over his shoulder. "Princess Sophia isn't crowned for another week."
"Yes but I'm excited!" I shout, hopping on the spot. "This is my first time in the Commonwealth!"
"Well you should probably put some shoes on." He says to me, pointing to my bare feet. I drum my toes against the wooden floor of the ship. "The floors here are cold and stone - not like the warm sands of home."
"I'll be fine, Ailes." I tell him. I hate wearing shoes. The feeling of being trapped in them just drives me mad.
"You won't." He says to me. "You're going to stick out like a sore thumb."
"Gee Ailes." I say, tilting my head back. Two Desert Elves in a human commonwealth town, and the thing that's going to make me stand out is my lack of shoes. Better get me some boots then!"
"You know what I mean, Loraine." He says. "Anyway, once we get off this ship, we should find lunch, hmm?"
"That sounds good!"

Stepping off the ship is quite the experience.
I've rarely ever left my hometown back in Aelmignon - and I've certainly never been outside the desert. The massive harbour of Rochaffen is more than a little shocking. After all, when you're used to sandstone houses and dusty sandy ground, the towering brick and wooden buildings on a set of cobbled ground is more than a bit foreign. Unlike the warm breezes of home, the air here is cold, wet, and oppressive. Each gust of wind whips up a spray from the cold green water beneath the ship. Perhaps my travelling robes aren't going to be enough over here - the cold spray against my bared midriff is certainly a little unpleasant.
The town itself is a grim looking metropolis of grey brick and black smoke stacks, but the busy movement of people breaths life into the town. In a way, it's beautiful to me that anyone could live somewhere so damp and cold - never mind thrive and build the single largest port in all of Eorthston. Anything that leaves or enters the commonwealth seems to come through Rochaffen, from supplies and traded goods, to secrets and rumours. Dark rumours about the commonwealth have of course preceeded me here, but looking at this city now, I'm too overcome with it's beauty to care.

The grey brick buildings are given life by their designs - spires and spikes line the top of each building, towering over everyone below. Gargoyles gaze outwards from the rooftops of the more important buildings, such as the town center, the embassies and churches - and as Ailes is quick to point out - the inns.
"I hear the food here makes up for the cold atmosphere." He says to me, folding his arms. I can't tell if he's trying to look tough or keep warm. The second I step off the wooding boarding planks of the ship and onto the icy cobbled floor of the harbour I realise he's trying to keep warm.

The people of Rochaffen are typical of the western commonwealth - stocky, tall and blonde. Piercing blue eyes and pale faces, but with grins that could melt ice. Stories of the people of the commonwealth are always set with how friendly they are - it's almost shocking that the government is in such turmoil, considering the nature of the average person.

"I thought you said we were going to stand out, Ailes." I say to my brother. "We aren't so much as getting second glances over here."
"Well." He says to me. "This is a harbour - I bet they get all sorts around here." He appears to be right. All around the shipyard I see people of all races getting on and off the ships. Far eastern Draconians in traditional robes, Dwarves from the frozen north, wiping sweat from their brows - I can't imagine how they could be warm in this freezing place. Imps from the volcanic wastelands seem to agree with me - I can see a small group of them, all with their arms folded and shivering, casting little fireballs to keep warm as they make their ways along. As we walk along the edge of the harbour and into the checkpoint, a whole host of colourful people swarm around us.

"Remind me of the plan again." I say, looking over to my brother. "Inn and then...?"
"After we get lunch, we'll be walking-"
"Walking?" I moan.
"Walking. Toward the northern town of Erstalt, where we're going to stay for the night." He says. "Then we'll probably get a carriage somewhere closer to the border."
I nod, pretending to have paid attention. I lost interest after lunch.

The checkpoint isn't too interesting. We queue for about five minutes behind a feline family in moderate quiet, just listening to the sounds of the city. People talking, laughing and shouting. The waves of the sea behind us are all but drowned out by various noises. When we take our place at the checkpoint itself, the man behind the counter barely looks up.
"Names." He says.
"I'm Ailes, this is my sister Loraine." Says my brother. The man behind the counter looks up.
"Two desert elves." He says, looking back down and writing down onto his book. "Both female. Do you have any ID?" He says, looking back up."
"I-I'm not female." Ailes stutters. The man behind the counter sighs, looks down and scratches on his book. My brother meanwhile hands him our papers. I can't help but worry that our flimsy papyrus documents will blow to pieces in this wind, but they hold together well enough, even when the man takes them.
"That's all fine." The man says. He waves us on. We can hear him talking as the next people behind us take our spot as we walk along.

As we walk toward the inn, I can't help but reconsider Aile's advice. The cold, uneven floor is nothing like the soft desert sands of home. I'm practically hopping along to keep my feet warm, almost envious of Ailes' sandals. This earns me a couple of strange looks from the locals, but right now I'm too shivery to really care. Besides, I'd rather be looking at the sights of the town, than the people looking at me. It's such a strange place...
The inn itself is on the corner of the nearest street. It's windows overlook the harbour, though right now our ship blocks of the sea view. Even with the sails up, it's hard to see anything past it. Ailes crams our papers back into his bag as we make our way to the front door. Two men in Commonwealth uniforms stand either side of the door, with flintlock pistols resting against their legs.

"Evening." One of the two men says to us as we walk along. "New arrivals to Rochaffen?"
"Yes." My brother says as we stand there, with me hopping foot to foot to keep them off the cold ground. "We were hoping to, err, come inside."
"Of course. Just need to do a check for any weapons you might have." The guard says.
"Why would we have any weapons?" Ailes asks.
"Surely you must have heard about what's been going on around here?" The second guard asks. "You can't have come from that far."
"Why, what's been happening?" I ask, hopping about.
"Recent attempts on the life of our mayor from separatists." The first guard tells us. "Seems like every week someone's taken a shot at the poor guy."
"Why would they do that?" I ask.
"Our mayor is a devoted Unionist." He tells us. "Turns out, most of Rochaffen isn't on the same level."
"Anyway, these two don't have any weapons." The other guard says to the first. "Look at those robes, they're barely covering themselves, never mind any weapons. You two girls can go on through - oh, and the toilets to the left." He says, pointing to my hopping. I blush a little at having something so vulgar suggested to me so casually, and we make our ways inside.

The inside of the inn is much warmer - and much louder - than outside. The warm wooden floor is a welcome change from the steps outside, and I can finally stop hopping. We both march on down to the far end of the inn and find a table for two. We sit down, and Ailes drops his bag under the chair, right onto my foot.
"Ow!"

"What do you think of Rochaffen?" I ask Ailes, as he paws over the menu. He looks up at me.
"It's very cold." He says, before looking back down.
"Anything else?" I ask after waiting for a response.
"It's nice." He says, trying to ignore me.
"Oh isn't it just!" I almost shout, slapping my feet on the wooden floor below. "The people seem so happy, the buildings are so nice, the air is so brisk, the-"
"Everyone thinks I'm your sister." He says, putting the menu down. I can't stop myself giggling.
"Maybe if you didn't tie your hair back in that ridiculous pony tail!" I say to him, prodding him in the shoulder. "Beside, us elves all look feminine to humans. Human men are so masculine..." I say, trailing off. I've always had bit of a crush on human boys - every time there are humans in our little town of Ailmignon I can't help but stare... There's this one boy who works at the tannery nearby, I've always-
"What'll you ladies be having today?" Comes a new voice. We both look over to the source. A large busty blonde waitress stands next to us, grinning ear to ear. My brother clears his throat and puts on his deepest voice.
"I'd like to try the grilled boar." He says. He sounds like a teenager trying to buy drinks. "A-and an ale to go with it."
"O-oh!" The waitress starts. "W-which ale would the gentleman like?" She asks.
"Which ale? You have more than one?"
"Of course!" The waitress laughs. "I thought our ales were famous world wide! We have the Erstalt ruby, the Rochaffen brown, and - just in time for the coronation - the Hauptstadt Royal gold!"
"I-I'll have the Rochaffen brown..." Says Ailes, trying to look like he knows the difference.
"Can't go wrong with the home brew!" The waitress sings. She jots it down on her little notebook with her sausagey fingers. "And for your....brother?"
"Sister!" I say, leaning forward. "Can I have the Harbour fish, and the same drink as my brother!"
"Of course!" She says, jotting it down. "Sorry for getting you confused, all you elves look the same to me!" She says with a smile, before waddling off toward the counter.
We both watch her walk away for a bit, before Ailes turns to me.
"She was quite casual about saying that." He says. "I don't know if I should be offended." I can't stop myself giggling again.

Our food arrives, delivered by the same waitress, who gives us another massive smile as she drops our drinks down. The drinks here are huge, each mug is practically the size of my head. Ale slops over the table and splashes on my feet, but before I can react there are two massive plates dropped in front of us.
"Enjoy!" The waitress shouts, smiling at us again and leaving.
I look down at my food with greedy eyes. My plate is covered by what would be three meals back home. The fish spans the width of the plate, and as if it wasn't enough, there are potatoes and vegetables piled high on one side. The smell is delicious, and I can barely wait to dig in. Ailes has a similar reaction to his boar, which is practically spilling over the sides of his plate. We both raise our mugs - struggling under their weight.
"Cheers!" Ailes says, knocking his glass into mine.

We aren't even a third of the way through our food when I sit back in my chair. I feel bloated at the amount of fish in me - and looking over at Ailes, I think he's in a similar situation.
"I don't think we're going to need any more food on this trip." He says nonchaolontly. "This could last us all month."
"But isn't it great!" I say back, leaning toward him again. "We need to come here again some time!"
"Shome time for sure." He says, prodding his food with his fork.
"Shome time?" I ask him. I look toward his mug. It's half empty now. "Shome?"
"Erm, some." He says. "I'm not used to the ale here."
I look into my empty glass. I'm not slurring my words yet. I look back at Ailes, who has a somewhat distant look on his face.
"You lightweight Ailes!" I half-shout, kicking him under the table. "I'll finish yours. You can't be trusted!"
"Hey! That's mine!" He protests as I grab his glass and take a drink. I dodge his limp swipe toward me and drink again. I put on foot under the table onto his bared midriff and push him back into his chair. I slam the empty glass down and smirk at him.
"I can't believe you..." He moans, sulking.
"Oh like you were going to drink it!" I say, wiping my mouth. I drop my feet back to the floor with a slap. He kicks me in the shin. "Don't be such a grumpy boy! I'll buy you another next time we go out."
"That'd make a change." He says, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh I always buy you drinks." I say with a giggle.
"One time." He says, waving a finger at me. "I can think of one time." I push his hand down to the table, getting gravy on his sleeve.
"Would you like any more to drink?" Comes a woman's voice again. The same massive waitress is back, grinning.
"No-thanks." Ailes slurs. "I think we've had enough."
"Looks like someone isn't quite used to our ale!" The waitress laughs. I can't stop myself laughing loudly in front of him. When I stop I can see him trying to glare at me.
"This lightweight here could get drunk on water!" I tell the waitress, pointing at him. He does his best to look un-insulted.
"Ccould we get a back please? For the food?" Ailes asks, ignoring my giggling.
"'Course!" The Waitress sings. She picks up our plates with a smile, and makes her way back to the kitchen. I keep an eye on her, half expecting her to take a pick.
"Sso." Ailes begins, looking at me. "We should start our walk to Erstalt. We wan' to get there b'fore it gets dark." I giggle at him.
"That sounds good." I say.

We leave the inn with a paper bag containing to paper boxes, which in turn contain the rest of our food. The bag's quite heavy, and Ailes dumps it on me.
"ooooh I've got the baaaag ooooh that means you carry the foood." He moans. Well, not quite like that. But words to that effect.
The walk down the streets seems warmer now I've got at that ale in me - I don't need to hop around quite so much. Which is good, because with all that food in me, it could be a recipe for disaster.

The deeper into the town we get, the more we seem to stand out. The diversity of races on the shore-front begins to wilter, and soon we're the only two non-humans I can see. Us two stand out quite a bit among the humans of the town. The people here are short, stocky and pale, where we're almost the opposite - tall, tanned and feminine. Yellow eyes, among a sea of blue eyed folk. I can feel the eyes of the heavily dressed people looking at us with our robes and bared feet - even Ailes' sandals get a second glance or two. Our desert robes really aren't suited to this cold - my hairs are standing on end all over me. At least now the grey clouds have given way to some blue sky, and a little sun to go with it.

"How long until we reach Erstalt?" I ask.
"Loraine. We haven't left Rochaffen yet." Ailes says. "We've got a short while left."
"Can we get a move on?"
"Why? What's the rush?"
"Nothing." I tell him. That's not entirely true though. I can't help but think as we walk along that maybe finishing Aile's ale wasn't my smartest idea. I don't mean to be vulgar, but I'm quite starting to need the toilet...

It's strange. Around here, people seem to be quite casual about things we wouldn't be at home. The bathrooms are practically advertised with signs on the walls in the inn, and out here, I've seen at least one sign talking about a public toilet. Why on Eorth would anyone want that? Back home, toilets are a private affair - you don't share it, you keep it to yourself, and you'd never talk about it. But here, I was offered a bathroom on the way into the inn. Crazy! That's culture shock for you. I suppose we're equally strange though - I've not seen a single barefooted person in the entire town. I suppose the ground here isn't so soft and warm as it is at home, but even in the inn, people had shoes on. Sure, the wood isn't exactly soft, but can shoes really be more comfortable? They're so restricting!

"Hold on." Ailes says, snapping me back to reality. He pulls the map out of his bag and unravels it. "Where are we going?"
"Are you lost already?" I ask him. "Come on, let me see that." I say, snatching the map from his hands. I look down. I look up. I look to the right and see something concerning. The compass.
"Ailes. Are you aware that the compass is meant to have north pointing up?"
"W-what?"
I tap him on the head with the map. "You've been reading the map wrong this whole time!"
"T-that explains why we aren't at the Rochaffen park yet..."
I open the map again. It takes me a while to figure out where we are, although it's made a bit easier by the massive building a few hundred yards down the road. The Commonwealth barracks tower over the other houses, and even this far away I can make out the deep blue banners draped down the side of the building, adorned with the Commonwealth Eagle.
"Alright...." I say, pawing over the map. "If we reach the barracks there, it's a short walk north until we're on the road out. It's a nice little country road, shouldn't take too long."
"Yeah." Says Ailes, reading over my shoulder. "Maybe half an hour or so?"
"H-half an hour..." I repeat, not wanting to have heard a time so long.
"Yeah, half an hour, if we're quick." He says. "You sound disappointed, are you in a rush?"
"N-not quite..." I tell him, hoping he'll catch the look in my eyes. He doesn't.
"Great! Let's get going."

The street toward the barracks is typical of Rochaffen - cobbled roads, with iron poles in the floor, jutting out the ground every few feet. I remember hearing about them at home - streetlights - gas powered fires that make is possible to see at night. I don't know why you'd want to see at night - night time is for sleeping. These Rochaffen's are crazy. It's a long walk though - even the strange streetlight poles aren't enough to distract me from the length. I've got a pressing need that's making me very aware of the distance. At least the street is quiet over here - there aren't so many people to stare at us as we wander down. I can't help but realise how different we are to everyone here.

We're halfway to the barracks now, and I have to say something to Ailes. I'm getting too uncomfortable now - I don't want to be all gross, but I have to tell him. He's walking so slowly that if I don't say anything then...well, I'll just say, I might not make it. Those strange public toilets don't seem like all too much a bad idea to me right now.
"Umm, Ailes?"
"What's up?" He says, turning to me. "Everything okay?"
"Y-yeah." I say. "Well, err, no." I lean toward him, hopping a little closer. "I need a bathroom." I whisper. We both blush.
"We could find another inn?" Ailes suggests. "You could go there?"
"Where are we going to find an inn here?"
"Should we knock on someone's door and ask if we could use theirs?"
"What? No, that's insane. I'm sure the people of Rochaffen aren't that strange."
"Good point..." Ailes says. "Well, I'll keep an eye out for something."

Ten minutes later and we finally reach the entrance of the barracks, at which point I'm practically hopping again, though not for the cold this time. I barely keep myself still enough to be decent, but Ailes seems to see right through me.
"Look's like you're in quite the state, huh?"
I nod.
"I'm sure there'll be somewhere you can stop off on the way out of town." He tells me. This reassures me a little, but not enough. What was I thinking, finishing his drink at that inn? Why can't I have any forethought about these things!

I'm too preoccupied to really pay much attention to the barracks as we pass - but even still, it's a strange building. It stands out, even compared to the other buildings of Rochaffen. While it's made of the same grey stone as the other buildings, it's style is very different. A wall surrounds the building, with rounded turrets at each corner. The building inside is much taller - more like a castle than anything else. One corner is dominated by a round tower, with square brick teeth lining the entire roof. We can just about make out movement inside the tiny slit windows and over the teeth of the wall.
But like I said - I've got a more pressing issue at hand.

I've stopped paying attention to the walk by now, though I can see Ailes gazing side to side as we walk along, looking for somewhere we could stop. The more we walk though, the less likely this becomes, and by now my bladder feels fit to burst. It's been a long time since I let myself get this desperate, and I can't say I've missed it. Each step is pushing pressure on my bladder, and I know I've moaned once or twice - I've seen the way Ailes has looked at me when I did, too.

This is so embarrassing right now.
I'm practically holding onto myself, and we're still getting nowhere near a bathroom.
Each step now almost hurts, and the busy streets of houses have become somewhat barren, with only sparse huts alongside the side of the road.
"Y-you're sure there's going to be somewhere for me to...go?" I ask. Even talking now distracts me from my bladder. I'm putting in even more effort to hold - my bladder feels solid!
"There's got to be somewhere..." Ailes says. "Maybe an inn, or a cafe, or-"
"Hnnn!"
"You okay Loraine?" Ailes asks me.
Is that a trick question? Do I look okay?
I-I've just bent over double - I don't think I've still got control of myself.
We've been walking for what feels like weeks, and I've been holding. I can't stop myself - I have to hold on. With both hands.
I stand in the middle of the street, toes pointed inwards and bent at the knees, moaning and trying my best not to have an accident where I -
Whoop!
Oh goodness....
I-I can feel something warm against m-my skin, a-and it wasn't there a moment ago....
I-it's happening, isn't it? Am I about to wet myself?
L-like some sort of child?

"Loraine? are you there?" Ailes voice comes to me.
"A-ailes....I'm n-not gonna make it..."
"What?" He asks. He looks at me. This is so embarrassing - I'm only thankful now that there's noone around to see. I f-feel another warmth grow underneath me...I can't believe this is really happening...

"J-just hold it, Loraine!" He advises me - ever the genius here.
"I c-can't!" I shout - and I'm right. I fall to my knees, the shudder of my body hitting the ground sends another warm squirt out of me.
I look up to him with tears in my eyes.
"I-I....can't..."

I don't get to say anything else. My body interupts me. I bend over again at the waist, just in time to see a yellow jet of liquid burst from under my skirt and crash onto the cobbled floor beneath me. The splash is deafening, I can see Ailes recoil in my peripheral vision. I sob once, but the shudder my body makes as I does just causes more to shoot into my underwear.
I close my eyes - there's nothing more I can do, as my body tenses up again.
Heat erupts from my underwear, and liquid spills out of me and onto the floor. My eyes are clenched shut, but I know there's a puddle already - I can feel it around my knees. Hot streaks of pee cascade down the inside of my thighs, splashing to the ground. I know it's not that loud - but to me it sounds like a waterfall - crashing, spilling - flooding.

I moan again, though this time it's not frustration - a beautiful wave of relief hits me. I can't believe this - I'm sitting here, peeing in my clothes, and all I can feel is relief. I should be embarrassed, I should be ashamed, but it feels so good. I can't stop - and right now I don't want to. I relax my lower abdomen and any pain I was feeling just melts away, as if it's melting through my bladder and down my legs. My knees are soaked, sat in a puddle. My thighs are streaked with hot lines of pee as it gushes out of me. My shins are growing wetter as the puddle grows, and the front of my skirt is wet...
The front of my skirt is wet. Of course it is - I was too busy trying to stop it coming out, that I didn't bother letting go when it did. My skirt is soaked - a huge dark spot trails down from my crotch to the base of my skirt. I let my hands droop to my sides, and I lean myself back to sit on my heels. It's not comfortable, but right now it doesn't matter.
Having sat down, the crashing of pee onto the cobbled floor quietens down to a still audible spilling, but now it's not quite so unbearable. I wrest my eyes open, and through tears I can see Ailes looking at me in shock, mouth agape.

"I...I guess I shouldn't have drank your ale b-back then..."

I sit where I am for what seems like an eternity, waiting for my bladder to finish draining itself onto the floor below. When it finally does, I force myself to my feet, splashing them in the warm puddle by mistake. At least it feels better than the cold stone.
What am I saying - I'm standing in pee - I shouldn't be enjoying this at all!
So....
Why am I? What is-
"Loraine?" Comes Ailes voice. "Are you okay?"
I look up at him and sigh.
"C-can we just get moving now? I-I don't want anyone to see me like this..."
"Y-yeah, of course." He says. "I still think we should hurry a bit?"
"Why?" I ask him, stepping slowly out of my still warm puddle. My wet skirt clings to my thighs.
"I...also....need to-"
"Got it." I interrupt. I sigh once more. "Let's go."

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