What was out of Celeste’s expectations was that Steven decided to go out of his own way to stay away from her now.

If she ate at the kitchen table, he’d either wait until she left or just take his plate elsewhere, stating that he didn’t want to stain her with his presence.

She hadn’t known what to say to that, but it felt like she was getting anxious or something because whenever it came to Steven, she seems to be having trouble breathing again.

It was getting bad…

Looking for Steven, she could find him, yet having him next to her never happened anymore…

What was worse, was that even though she found this problem, it wasn’t the biggest…It wasn’t what she…

Steven seemed to be in a daze, or in a strange type of mood, and that is what seemed to make her hold her own clothes.

 

It was three days after returning from the village that she finally understood why she was so anxious…Steven was like…He wasn’t even there…

He did everything normally, he did talk, just not very much but…His eyes were…Dead…

Nothing…

Stop it! Celeste thought over and over again. Often, she had to stopped herself from crying!

It got to her so much that she found herself slapping him the next day, “Stop it!”

Steven looked at Celeste, automatically putting a hand to his cheek, “I’m sorry.”

“Stop it!” Celeste repeated, a tear falling down her cheek.

Steven stared at the Princess in a stunned silence. Stop what?

What had he done now?

 

Through her tears, she hit him, “Stupid man!”

She was crying…Why was she crying!?

Not sure what to do, Steven took her into his arms, “I’m sorry.”

Celeste stopped hitting him and hugged him back, crying into his chest.

It was the first time that she cried for…Well, she wasn’t even sure how long it had been. To cry so loudly and so much was embarrassing but she didn’t know how to stop!

To have Steven so…Closed off…He had been unapproachable!

Clenching his clothes into her hands, she wiped her face against his dirty clothes, not caring that he smelt.

It was just another thing to cry about! Why wasn’t he clean? She mumbled to him that he should bathe!

What was wrong with him!?

It was wrong! All of it was wrong!

 

Steven put a hand through her hair and put his cheek on the top of her head. He didn’t know what to say, so he stayed quiet.

Why was she so emotional all of a sudden? Why was she calling him stupid?

Taking a deep breath, Steven didn’t want to let all these questions and thoughts into his head, but he couldn’t stop them…

Why did it seem like suddenly things were different?

Did he miss something?

“Princess?”

“You’re dirty!” Celeste muttered, trying to no longer cry.

Steven nodded, “I am. I’m so…”

“Stop it! Stop it! No more sorry’s! I can’t take it!” Again, she couldn’t help a sob escaping.

“What did I do wrong, Your Highness!” Steven asked, somewhat taken aback. He was sure that he had tried to just stay out of her way…Did he go wrong? He could barely remember but…What happened!?

 

Hitting him lightly, Celeste still didn’t remove her head from his chest. “Celeste!”

Steven sighed, “I can’t call you Celeste, you are royalty!”

Celeste looked up at him, with tears falling down her face, “Royalty? Ha, do you know how much I disdain my own family?”

Steven put a hand to her face and whipped away the tears. She really was too pretty to cry like this!

After wiping her cheeks, he then wiped her lips.

Stopping, Steven widened his eyes to the sudden want to kiss those lips.

They had a natural, slight red tint to them. They were soft…They were practically like every other lips he’d ever seen but they, for some reason, had invisible writing over them, or a spell!

‘Kiss me!’ They screamed at him!

Suddenly, he tried to get her away from her, as he stumbled on his words, “Ah, Your…Your Highness.”

“Celeste!” Celeste yelled at him.

“Celeste! I…I have…A floor to mob…” Steven rushed away.

Just through the door and closing it, Steven stopped.

This wasn’t good…

He couldn’t even close his eyes without seeing those lips!

 

Before he knew it, he was pushed to the floor.

“Oh…I thought you’d left…”

Steven looked at the lips of hers and moved away from her, even though he was still on the floor.

“What’s wrong with you now!?” Celeste asked, frowning.

Steven shook his head vigorously, “Nothing!”

He was a man, having wanted to kiss girls before was nothing knew, but this feeling was a bit too strong for him!

Celeste bent down to him and put out a hand, only for him to push himself more away from her.

“Am I…Do you hate me that much?” Celeste asked, dropping her arm.

Steven saw that she was sad, and he shook his head again, “No! I don’t hate you!”

Celeste could feel like his words were sincere…So then, “What’s wrong with you!?”

“I wanted to kiss you!” Steven said suddenly. It was too much! He wasn’t one for torture, hell, he wasn’t being tortured! Or was he!?

Steven pushed himself further away from her, then got up and ran away.

 

Celeste watched him with widened eyes and then finally stood up.

Ah, so he’s finally figured out that he was a man after all!

Letting out a small smile, Celeste then let out an even bigger smile.

Covering her mouth, her eyes turned slightly into crescent moons as she smiled beneath her hand.

Why did it feel so good to hear him say that?

He looked so startled to the idea! It really must have been the first time that he’d seen her as a woman!

What a fool!

Shaking her head, she let down her hand and walked in the same direction…She wasn’t sure where her future was at the moment but…She knew that if she didn’t experience something with Steven right now, that she will most likely have regrets…And that was enough to continue towards that silly man.

 

 

Steven was excessively worried about his newfound feelings!

There was no way that they could be in any kind of relationship! She was a princess! She was more deserving! He was nasty and cruel!

But…It wasn’t like his wants would just suddenly stop by thinking of all the reasons why they shouldn’t be there! It was so stupid that he could only run towards the stream at the back of vegetables and jump in…

It helped that the water was freezing, making him think and feel something else but…

“Not good!” Steven uttered, putting his head in his hands.

He knew it now, he fancied her…He had for a while, but never accepted it. He should have continued that way but no, he now knew for sure, and he couldn’t help feeling like he’d now completely lost it!

Holding his breath, he went under the water and stayed there, feeling like the biggest idiot in the world!

 

While under water, Steven heard something and quickly put his head back up, to find the woman that was snapping into his mind…

Seeing her come into the water, then swim towards him, Steven just watched.

“You are really something.” Celeste stated, now stopping in front of him.

“I…I’m sorry.”

Celeste interrupted him, “Stop it! I told you no more sorry’s!”

Steven looked down, “…I don’t know what else to say…”

“You don’t have to say anything at all…” Celeste stated, pulling him towards her and putting her lips against his.

Ah, she really had been wondering…

The fact that she was so attached to this man, it was no wonder that she liked kissing him too.

Especially when Steven accepted her advance.

Taking her into his arms tightly, he put a hand to her face and deepened the kiss.

 

In a moment when their lips detached, Steven uttered her name, before once again placing his lips upon hers.

All their worries and fears of them being together withered up like flowers. All they could think of at the time was that the touch of the other person meant so much more than just getting what they wanted. They felt like they were filling in some type of gap, some type of hole, that they were fulfilling a most important role in their life…A role that seemed to feel like it had to be ventured into. It was compelling, exciting!

Celeste held onto him, just as tight as he held onto her, and they could hardly feel that they were in the cold of the lake for at least a few minutes!

But those few minutes, it was all they needed to know on how they both felt about the other. It was not only obvious, in their actions, but it was like their feelings were burnt into their eyes as they looked at the other…

 

For what felt like forever, they finally emerged from the water, shaking to the cold.

Steven picked Celeste up, without a second thought, and rushed her back to the castle.

“I’m alright.” Celeste said, holding onto him, not making an inch of effort to get out of his hold. It wasn’t the first time that he’d picked her up, but it felt like this was the first time, somehow.

Steven briefly looked at her, while he continued to walk towards the small castle. It was a bit of a walk, so he just focused on making sure he didn’t breathe too hard. This woman probably already thought that he wasn’t up to scratch in the man department, so, he had to make up for lost time!

It wasn’t an action he could stop though, by the time they got to the castle, he was indeed breathing heavy anyway, and Celeste smiled.

She could have walked! She could have but…If he picked her up, then she felt like she had the opportunity to take advantage of not having to bother!

This was nice! His effort, in this small task, already made her feel so good!

 

“Where do I take you?” Steven asked, not sure. Celeste had always worried about her own baths…

“Upstairs. I pull up water with a rope and all I have to do is light the fire.

Steven frowned, “Every time you bathe, you have to pull up water?”

“Yes, when all the servants either left or I forced them out, it was hard because of the stairs. I had baths downstairs but ended up finding another way to get water upstairs.”

By now they went through one of the doors upstairs.

“It was the other door.” Celeste said, not quite ready to leave his embrace.

Steven walked out and then went to the other door to find a bathroom. Seeing the barrel type thing over a fire pit and next to the window, Steven sighed.

“Why did you force out all your servants?” He asked. Why did she do so much work for herself!?

 

Celeste got down and didn’t say anything.

Two years ago, having made her choice to end her life, she didn’t want them here. She didn’t want anyone…

“I’m Medusa remember…” Was all she said, not even looking at him.

Steven moved her head to look at him and raised his eyebrows. “Liar…”

Staring at him, Celeste bit her lip, only to have them covered in the next second.

Never had he felt so attracted to one person! And that small action of going to bite her lip! Gone…He was simply gone!

Normally he liked eyes from a certain lady, the chest of another, the backside on another…But this one, Celeste, she seemed to have quite a number of things that he liked, and she was so overwhelmingly attractive to him now that he wondered how he was going to keep his hands off of her!

 

Stopping the kiss, Steven pushed her at arm’s length away from him. “Get warm!”

Celeste looked at him blankly.

“Dammit woman!”

Getting busy at going to the window, making him not thinking of how luscious she looks like at that particular moment, Steven was instantly surprised to the see how the set up was outside. “Oh, that’s great!”

He’d seen a few inventions, and probably would have seen something like this before elsewhere but for some reason, Steven was utterly impressed with seeing the rope and how it was connected to the water downstairs. Not only that but it seems there was some type of cork and sliding thing too, which may very well be to take the water out? He wasn’t sure.

Pulling up the water, losing more then what Celeste would loss, Steven found himself quite happy to do this for her, considering that it was still quite hard work!

To have just sent them all away, to do everything herself…What was she thinking?

 

In no time, before Steven was ready, there was plenty of water in the ‘tub’ and Celeste had started the fire.

He wanted to stay, his body wanted to stay but…There were just way too many reasons why he should go!

Quickly kissing her, then leaving, he sighed as he walked further and further away from the room that would get to see what he wouldn’t be able too!

He was jealous of the walls in that room, of the tub, of water!

Perhaps he needed to go back to that lake!

Finally seeing the mess that was created from having been wet and walking up the stairs and down the halls, Steven uttered a curse and sighed…

He was cold and still a bit dirty, so he cleaned himself quickly and got to work at cleaning the floors.

 

Cleaning kept him occupied, so that he wasn’t only thinking of a woman just upstairs, but that of warming his body back up.

He was probably cleaner than before, having also changed his outfit, but he didn’t do a complete bath, like the princess was doing.

He felt like he should clean up the mess before worrying about himself but…Something else was happening pretty quickly after returning…It was at first just sneezing, but then the sniffling started…

Just an hour or so after returning to the castle from the freezing lake, Steven felt groggy.

Heat flushed around his body and the more he tried to forget how he was feeling and tried to work, the more he felt like he was going to fall over!

Having cleaned the downstairs and the stairs, Steven wanted to do the last little bit but found his world tilting.

Not wanting the princess to worry about him, yet knowing he couldn’t continue, Steven stopped his cleaning and went to his bed. Within just a couple of minutes sitting and slowly getting under the covers of his bed, Steven was out to the world, deep in sleep.

 

 

Celeste had not rushed her bathing, making sure that she was clean and warm when she got out.

Getting dressed and cleaning up after herself, Celeste smiled.

Why, in just a few hours, had everything she felt changed?

Was it because Steven had returned her feelings?

As she questioned herself, she cleaned the bathroom, that hadn’t been clean for ages until Steven was looking after her with her leg. It felt almost like she had to keep upstairs cleaner now, just because he was here…

Maybe she felt so different because she wanted to experience something…

Actually, that would make a lot of sense, she thought.

For so long, she hadn’t felt much want to live. There was really nothing that held her here. She was using Little John, she didn’t even love the one person left in her family and…Well, the people thought of her as Medusa…

Celeste told herself that even the townspeople and Forsuremeet didn’t help her want to stay.

 

Having been told to go to Commorda for the wedding by her grandmother, who probably just didn’t want to go herself, Celeste had just done what she was told.

The rebellion was still needing time and she had nothing better to do.

She had been given one good dress to attend the wedding with but that was it. The carriage that was used was not something of hers, nor the guards…

Everything, even the dress, went with the carriage after they had returned back here to Melya.

Celeste had not expected anything less. It was all a performance, for her to look ‘the part’. Yet, really, she was a nobody. An abandoned nobody…

They might have even wanted her to play up and make a name for herself in another country, Celeste wasn’t even sure. She wouldn’t put it past her grandmother for using her but…What would that do to the country?

Perhaps she sent her granddaughter thinking that another country might actually kill her but…That wouldn’t make sense either! Why make it easy to kill off the only heir?

The only thing that made sense is that her grandmother didn’t want to go, and so sent the next best candidate, and that’s it!

 

‘It is no wonder they call you Medusa,’ Her grandmother once said, ‘With the way you manhandled that maid yesterday.’

‘…She was stealing.’ Celeste had stated back. ‘Your…Your Majesty…’

Her grandmother had raised her eyebrows at her, ‘With what could she steal from you that would make you turn her so red and purple?’

Celeste looked down, holding her dress, ‘It was mother and father’s…’

‘I told you! I don’t want to hear a word about them! Just…Just do what you want, hurt people and make them scared of you! I don’t care!’

‘I don’t hurt people!’ Celeste cried out!

‘Then what is the maid then? Just some dead meat?’ Her grandmother asked.

Celeste remembers how she looked at her grandmother, knowing even at that moment who was the one that had started calling her Medusa! But had never said a word in retaliation…