Head outside to the well
From Create Your Own Story
'A drink from the cellar is all well and good' Jezzi thought to herself, 'but from the well outside would be so much fresher'. Picking up a pitcher jug, she made her way over the chilled flagstones and towards the bolted kitchen door. She could already feel the breeze from outside seeping through the cracks of the door and gently caressing her skin, tantalisingly hinting at the relief from the stifling heat that she would gain should she throw open the door and let the fresh air rush in. The fact that she was only in her underwear was only the briefest concern for her as she rationalised going outside in her current state of undress in two ways - first, it would cool her off far better than if she were clothed, and second that nobody else should be up and about to witness the event.
With a smile on her lips, she drew back an unruly strand of sweat-slicked hair that had fallen across her face and slowly slid back each of the thick iron bolts that held the door closed. Each slid freely out of their respective latches, leaving only the iron ring of the door handle. Grasping it firmly, Jezzi felt the cold of the metal rush up her arm and into her chest, the wind outside making the linked handle even cooler than the others of the house, and gave a twist.
The door creaked open slowly as she tried her best not to wake up anyone else in the house, and was rewarded with an onrush of chill night air lapping against her face, chest and legs, bringing an instant relief to the heat, as well as a stimulus that she had grown to recognise in recent times as the result of something cold kissing her warm flesh. With eyes half-closed, she relished in the feeling for w few moments before stepping outside into the full embrace of the night, slowly losing the door after her.
The wind outside was not exactly strong, but it was strong enough to be noticeable, and to disturb her hair in its matted clumps as she turned to look back up at the house. 'Good. No candles have been lit, so no-one has gotten up' she though. A stronger breeze hit her full in the back making Jezzi shiver slightly before she turned around and set off down the cobbled path. The stones themselves were somewhat uneven, having not been laid that long ago, but were smooth enough for her to easily keep her footing, and the cooling of the wind was soon joined by a creeping chill moving up through her feet at each stone they touched, the previous heat of the day having been absorbed by the earth to leave none in the stone pathway.
More and more, Jezzi became acutely aware of how little she was wearing as she hurried along to the well. Most of the heat that had stuck with her from the house had been blown away in the night air, and she was starting to get almost uncomfortably cold. Her nipples were stiffening noticeably to the temperature change and pushing against the fabric of her bra, while the air that bushed past her exposed skin elsewhere was starting to feel... uncomfortable.
Hurrying along, she quickly reached the well. It was of simple construction, being a compressed stone ring base around a wooden frame and roof, complete with a winch and bucket. The bucket itsself was heavy, so that it would sink through the water rather than float on top, and right now it was resting on the ground. It struck Jezzi as strange, as she always put it on the stone ring herself, and the wind was not strong enough to knock it over. Perhaps someone else had put it there after she had last used it? Shaking her head to clear the thought, she placed down her pitcher and lifted the bucket, lowering it carefully into the well by its winch. The well went deep, but recent rainfall gathered in various spots around the farm had been used to raise the water level. As such it was not long before it had reached the water level, gathered a sizeable amount, and been winched back up.
As quickly as she could, Jezzi poured out the water from the bucket and into the pitcher she had brought with her, some of it splashing out onto the ground and across her feet and legs as she hurried to empty its contents. It wasn't worth brushing it off at this stage, as it would probably be absorbed by her skin by the time she got back to the house.
With her task complete, Jezzi made ready to...
