I awoke the next morning with hands stained black from ink and charcoal and a soreness in my arms brought about by the completion of five separate designs made in full detail and explaining how they would work on the sidebar. These aren't actual schematics, more of a completed picture of what I would be making and what it would do. Who knows, maybe I might take up a different job and leave behind just enough info for someone to cobble together a working device that vaguely resembles my drawings. Some people have done more impressive feats with less available resources, maybe my designs might give rise to a Nikola Tesla kobold. That’d be something.

I went out into the main den to clean myself up, though if truth be told I was actually just going to grab something to eat and make a break for the writing table again so I could jot down some more of the backlogged ideas. Much to my favor, the only other person up and about was Juaki, who was already scouring the pantry for something tasty. Maybe we still had a chance for the two of us to get out while it was just us. That idea is the pitch I made to her as she dug through the vegetable bin, though I noticed her eyes lit up when I mentioned that we could get something to eat at a little bakery just under the marketplace. I barely had time to get some more money and secure the strap of my bag before she was practically pushing me out the door.

Needless to say, this shopping trip was something we both had been starved for. The bakery was just setting up for the morning when we arrived, which meant we got the first batch of goods straight from the oven. After our treat we went up to the bazaar and actually tried on something that was considered fashionable for kobolds: horn decorations. Mom had two long sweeping horns that went from over her eyes to the back of her head, which gave her plenty of room for a pair of plated sleeves to fit over. I, on the other hand, had four horns that were still growing. The bottom two were perhaps the length of a finger and arched from the side of my head back, while the top two were half as long and had yet to curve. Despite my protests about how silly I felt it would look, my mother convinced me to get a pair of bright gold horn rings and a deep red ribbon tied to my right side. The merchant was at least polite enough to give me a discount for my troubles, which I could only show thanks for by giving a small bow of appreciation.

The next place that Juaki insisted we visit was the stall selling what must be beauty products. Small tweezer-like implements for pulling loose scales, a hard bristle brush, a buffing rag, and a vial of something vaguely floral scented. This smells a bit like shampoo minus the chemicals. As the vendor explains it, this is shampoo! I didn’t know there was a bathhouse in the city, but now I know where our next stop is. I didn’t get any say in the matter since I was now jogging after Juaki on her way to the lift.

It was a long ride on the elevator to get down to the floor it was on, but while we were going down I was given an explanation as to why we never visited it. It turns out that the baths were a rent-to-use kind of place, required a lot of magic to purify the water after, and were considered a luxury for the richer kobolds. Us scaled variants don’t really need to bathe since most of the time a wipe off would get just about everything off of our scales, and most kobolds actually disliked how their skin felt in water. I guess that checks out, we are desert acclimated people after all. I was worried that she would drop some kind of bomb about getting moldy whenever water got under our scales or something, but she said that the shampoo was made specially to prevent that while being a good waxing agent.

We stepped off at floor forty two and made our way to an unassuming passageway that led to a little storefront run by a shorty and energetic little kobold that referred to himself as Soapy Poka. Apparently this place was one of the oldest businesses here and was a family run place that could handle just about any request, even mud baths. When he heard that we just wanted a small tub for two he happily led us down a hall of doors to a room with a rectangular pool of water that would be big enough for four people. Damn, six Draks for a bath this big was a bit of a rip-off, especially since we were getting this for half price if we could clean up after.

Well we already paid for the room, so there was nothing left to do but actually get in and see how this reptile body of mine reacted to water. I was slowly stepping into the water to give myself enough time to acclimate to it, but mom had no such reservations when she just walked in and took a seat as if it wasn't a bother. I tried to do the same, but almost immediately I could understand why some people would be uncomfortable with this. My scales were quite a bit bigger than Juaki’s and had a small gap between the surface of the scales and the skin underneath, which caused some bubbles to form in the empty space and slither along my skin in an uncomfortable snaking pattern that made me think of spiders. From the shape of my scales and the way they were oriented, I would have to dive head first into the water to avoid this issue in the future. With a little shimmying around under the water to get rid of the lingering bubbles I could now really enjoy the bath.

I took off my horn accessories so I could lean back and just float in the water. The warm feeling that spread through me was wonderful, and as I closed my eyes and just took in the feeling of relaxation. I was also able to sense my mana source was also feeling at ease. Something was tugging at my magic, though I was able to track it to a metal plate at the bottom of the tub that had a modified heat rune and mana collecting runes. I was curious about how it was drawing mana from the distance between us, which intrigued me enough to make a sensor rune to tell me why. Water has some okay mana conduction, and the rune before the heater seems to be a rune that draws in mana from the water. Hold on there brain, this is supposed to be a relaxing bath, not a deep dive into rune craft. Just make a mental sketch of it and save it for later.

Shoving the pesky analysis aside, I allowed myself to sink until all that was above the water was the tip of my snout. My vision was unimpeded under the surface, allowing me to look up at the ceiling through the ripples. I wondered how long I could hold my breath right before I took a deep breath and submerged myself. Mom adjusted herself until she was under the water completely, though she was noticeably more serene than I was. This was undoubtedly the most at ease I had ever felt.

The minutes stretched on, but eventually my supply of air dwindled enough that I had to return to the surface after five minutes. Mom congratulated me on my time before pulling me around with my back to her so she could pluck and polish my durable layer of scales. She rambled on as she worked about how the different size and shape of scales meant different cleaning routines, and how me having very hard diamond shaped scales was akin to having a set of armor on all the time that could cut me if I went against the pattern. Once she had finished with my back it was my turn to help her with hers as she explained how there could be hundreds of variations in scales from the size and shape to the harness and thickness. Her own scales were round and almost flush with each other, which made the process of getting between them for a thorough polish a chore even with the aid of a brush

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Eventually she was shiny in the area she couldn't reach herself, leaving me with the brush to get at my own scales. She was right, my scales really could act as tiny knives if you pushed against them. Most of the scrubbing went well, but I hesitated when I ran the brush across my left forearm. The scar had faded for the most part and the scales had grown back to conceal it. I could still remember every emotion from that day clearly. The fear, helplessness, and overwhelming pressure in my chest from that moment flicked at my mind, and a feeling of guilt for my brother Tokols flashed by me. He didn't need to see that.

Soon enough I was fully scrubbed and buffed like a shiny new car, and the smell of flowers clung to me even after I drifted in the waters propelled only by my slowly wagging tail like a crocodile to wash away the excess suds. It was silly, but being a little absurd helped push those dark thoughts out of the way. Getting dry after the bath was a lot easier when I created a wind rune blowing against my scales from my feet up. Juaki was a little jealous, so I volunteered to be her kobold scale dryer for a minute. Degrading, sure, but it saved us the time of her having to towel off.

Alright, so how do we clean this tub? Soapy Poka had said that there was a tool for it on the edge of the tub, so I guess he meant this brass contraption built into the edge. Juaki explained that it was the water purifier, and all you had to do was stand on it to make it run. Most rich kobolds didn't use it because it took too long and drained a lot of mana, so they would just pay the cleaning cost and leave. Well, since I have such a vast well of mana I should be the one to clean up. I stepped onto the plate to feel the slight tug on my mana core begin, and below I could see the water being sucked in from the top and blown out the bottom to clean the water. Ah, so that's why it takes so long. The filter device just pumps the cleaned water back into the dirty bath until it's reached a clean state.

That was too inefficient for me. I closed my eyes and observed the mana flowing through the device below me, allowing me to create an accurate depiction of the two runes being used: pull water and filter. The water rune was just like the air runes that pulled and pushed, but only the intake was on this device. The filter rune was odd: it made a hoop that would allow the water to flow through, and anything that wasn't pure water would be sucked onto the surface of the tube. Well, I didn't need all of that wasting three hours of my life.

I created a new array, one that would hopefully compact all of the impurities in one space. The usual limiter system would feed into a set of water pull runes focused on pulling water from every direction, and for every direction there would be a filter rune collecting the impurities directly above my palm. This system was just like the one used to show Tuleni my magic power, but in the complete opposite direction. Just for reference I will add a sensor that will set a baseline for a before and after. Alright, let's put this dinky filter to shame.

I stuck my hand in the water, and in a bit of bold confidence turned the whole thing on at once set to 5% power. Water dirtiness was just in the range of undrinkable. Just as I anticipated, the water began to swirl around my hand as a vortex formed, from which I condensed all of the pollution we had left behind. In only two minutes I could feel the sensor ding to let me know that the water had reached a stable point and was no longer changing. The icky ball of brownish sludge hovering above my hand was the proof of success, as was the crystal clear water swirling in the stone basin. Mom directed me to dump the impurities in a drain by the door, then helped tie the ribbon back on my horn while I wiped my hands clean, just to be safe. I felt clean, confident, and calm. Using mana, even just a few drops of it, had a tremendous effect on my source.

The proprietor inspected the bath before wishing us a good evening. Was it that late already? Time flies when you're having fun, or so they say. Mom and I left the bathhouse and returned to the main spire of the city with the intent of getting some groceries before returning home. As we made our way home I noticed quite a number of eyes on us, most seemingly entranced by us. Instinctively I tried to avert my gaze and hide behind Juaki, but she had other plans.

"Don't be shy, they are just awestruck. You are a beautiful girl: your size, your color, the way you carry yourself and the adornments upon you. All of this speaks of a strong woman, one that deserves to be respected. Walk proudly at my side."

Easy for you to say, you're a walking slab of violence and muscle that already has a husband and four kids. I'm an awkward teenager with a target painted on her back, one who isn't fond of being watched all the time. Still, she was going out of her way to try to boost my self esteem. Maybe being the center of attention wasn't always a bad thing, perhaps it could even be good. It took a little more persuasion of my own ego to step around her and stay by her side, but even after mustering the courage to do so I was still jittering with anxiety.

Our trip back to the market was immensely nerve wracking with how many kobolds were moving around the city. There were some stares, a few pointing fingers, but overall there weren't many paying attention to us. We stepped back into the lift up, which was thankfully light on passengers. Juaki nudged me slightly, and when I looked up to meet her stare she grinned wolfishly.

"If it makes you feel better, they are probably looking at me. I have an undeserved reputation of being a gorgeous woman with a terrifying personality. The dung head that was shamelessly ogling me was one of the men who thought me a witless beauty he could make swoon with wealth. I actually tied his tail in a knot to shame him after his tactless courting attempt."

I don't know whether to laugh at the absurdity of the situation or pity the fool who tried to seduce my mom based on her looks. I still had no point of reference for what made a kobold attractive or repulsive, but judging people by their appearance was an uncouth action that I avoided. Everyone I knew was unique in personality, and to me that was all that mattered.

My confidence was restored thanks to her story, and the rest of our trip lacked any further nervousness. We returned home bearing a bag filled to the bursting point with fresh ingredients. Humey and Mibata were there to greet us and offer compliments about our new accessories and polished scales. Dad was soon to join them in this once he was aware that we were home. From the hobby room came a distant humming that I recognized as Tokols. I wonder what he's up to.

I stepped into the space and found Tokols working at a table of his own. Needle and thread were strewn about, and a medium length garment of some kind was bunched up in his arms as he meticulously tied every stitch together in a single unbroken line. The repetitive motion of the needle diving through the fabric and reemerging again was somehow hypnotic. Eventually he noticed my presence, and for a brief moment I felt his magic surge as if he were going to cast a spell.

"Damn, you weren't supposed to see this yet."

He held his project out flat so I could understand what it was supposed to be, and I actually had to do a double take. He had crafted a white shirt with long sleeves and ruffled cuffs, much the same as the one Yabtin wore, but instead of a matching jacket he had gone for a deep purple vest with an inner layer containing many pockets of various sizes. The detail he had put into making each stitch was outstanding, almost as if he had a sewing machine available to him.

I bumped his shoulder with a message on my slate.

“That is incredible! Your stitching is amazing, and the details are so fine. This is definitely the work of a professional.”

He shook his head to hide his rising green blush and to force himself to remain a neutral white. He folded the shirt and tucked it into a crate under the table before turning to face me with a sly look in his eye.

“Thanks, but this is nothing. You should see the one I made for you.”

I should see what?