"Yes? That's sort of what you do in a bath, isn't it?"
He shrugged.
"Don't worry. It's not a sexual thing. It's not even a private thing. No one knows you, so they won't perv on you unless you approach them. I'm probably related to half of these people, and I promise no one would even look twice. It'd be like staring at someone while they ate."
Hmmm. She still looked doubtful. He lowered his voice, pulled her into a hug against his chest; if they were going to play at being married, it wouldn't hurt to give the audience something to believe in. Besides, he could speak much more softly with her so close. If she didn't like it, she'd just have to cope. She could complain later, in private.
"If it makes you feel better...look again. You don't have to strip off."
Maybe she hadn't noticed this bit, but not everyone was entirely naked. Some people had strips of cloth artfully placed, with bundles of herbs tied up in them to steep and help sore muscles; the back, the thighs, old injuries that hadn't quite healed, anywhere that hurt. There were women there - most were old, but there were a few young ones - with their babies splashing happily in shallow corners; a lot of them had draped the same herbs and wet cloth over their breasts.
Granted, it wasn't much. There were a lot more people who WERE stark naked than there were people who weren't. But still, it might help her.
"It's nothing, Mishka. Just...please love, trust me on this one. This is something you will have to do if you want to find your rogue mages. This is where the people go. Unless you want to wait for winter, this is what we do."