Bound in Spirals Ch. 10

"Please stay here while the governor finishes her prior business. Would you like some tea while you wait?" The butler said with an amiable smile. She at least seemed to hold no prejudices. Well, it didn't show on the exterior anyway. To Sam she said, "I will take your cloak, milord."

"Yes, that would be delightful." Dettella responded, returning the smile. She sat down in one of the chairs, Sam sitting to her left a moment after. Giela bowed and left the room after hanging his cloak on a hook.

'I don't like being served like this...' Sam thought, fidgeting in the chair. "I... I don't like being here. Feels like we're wasting time."

"Nor do I, but it is necessary. Besides, it is still far more efficient than trying to navigate off-road. We're cutting our travel time by a day coming through here." Dettella explained, straightening the pale green dress over her knees.

When it was put that way, he felt a little better. But he still had a strange feeling in his gut, an uncomfortable feeling. He couldn't say exactly what it was, but even having not met her yet he didn't like this governor. Perhaps it was just the blinding colors she seemed obsessed with. No, something about the situation felt weird. He just couldn't pick out what it was. Frowning slightly, he rubbed his chin, feeling the prickly whiskers against his palm.

"Samson?" He looked up quickly when Dettella spoke. Giela had returned apparently, and was holding out a small glass plate with a teacup atop it toward him.

"A-Ah, th-thanks." He said sheepishly and blushed slightly. He gently took the plate from the butler.

Giela gave Dettella a knowing smile and a small chuckle. "Ahh, so you're one of those types."

Sam glanced between them, not quite understanding. The princess's cheeks colored a light pink, he wouldn't have recognized it for a blush except that he'd seen it before. Her demeanor gave away none of her embarrassment however.

"Aren't you being too familiar for a servant?" She asked the butler, her expression unreadable.

Giela stiffened slightly. "O-Oh, yes I was. My apologies milady, I meant no offense." She bowed. "I ask you forgive my behavior, this is my first week here."

"Very well, but do not make the same mistake twice." Dettella said, her tone chilly. Sam shivered.

"Please excuse me." The butler said and left the room in a hurry.

"...She will be my new handmaiden." The princess said a moment later as if it was a certainty.

"Uh-What...?" Sam blinked, unsure of what just happened.

"Darrel, please make the arrangements."

"Of course, princess." He said and left the room.

Sam tried to formulate some sort of response to the occurrences, but his mouth just opened and closed wordlessly. 'What the hell was that about?' Eventually he managed to stutter out some confused sounds, "Eh, uh...? Huh...?"

Dettella looked at him over her teacup as she took a sip. "That girl's smart, and I don't really like servants that are stiff and formal." She explained as if it was obvious.

"I... can... can you really just do that? Like, just pick up a new servant?" He asked, absolutely baffled.

"Of course." She said, taking another sip. "I need a new one after firing Yalene. I planned on getting one in the capital, but Giela is too good to pass up I think."

Sam just didn't know how to respond. It seemed really strange, but Dettella just acted as if it was a normal occurrence. He looked down at his steaming cup of tea. The white porcelain looked delicate. A thin line of gold traced the rim, even thinner lines wove images of trees along the outside of the cup. 'Pretty.' He carefully picked up the cup by the handle and took a hesitant sip. It was hot, of course, and had the bitter taste of herbs mixed with a faint sweetness.

"Mmm, this is really good quality tea. Delune isn't my favorite, but this quite a nice brew." Dettella said. "Isn't it?"

'Uh... is it?' He suppressed a frown. 'I don't know tea much. Except the apple cinnamon one Ms. Albright always drank...' He thought, looking into the dark, reddish liquid. "Uh, yeah... It's good."

She looked at him, observing his expression as he took another sip. "There's sugar right there if you want some." She said, gesturing with her cup towards the tray on the low coffee table.

"Oooh..." He said, then placed his cup on the table after a moment of thought.

He pulled the lid off the matching porcelain container, revealing an assortment of colored sugar cubes. He briefly wondered if they were meant to be different flavors, but quickly remembered the governor's odd taste for color. He dropped in six cubes and stirred it in with one of the gold teaspoons left on the tray. He took another sip. Now it was too sweet.

"I don't really drink tea often..." Sam explained at Dettella's odd look.

"I see... You're really not a nobleman, are you."

He looked at her blankly. "...I've said that several times."

"Hm, yes you did say that. I didn't really believe you." She replied.

"...The tea thing is what finally confirmed it?" He asked, grimacing into the cup of over sweetened tea. He just set it down on the tray, giving up on trying to understand it.

"Yes." She said matter-of-factly. "Any noble knows their teas. They'd be considered barbaric if they didn't."

"Ah, that makes sense." Sam replied. 'That makes no sense.' He thought, mentally shaking his head. She nodded, taking another sip. He spoke again, still staring into his tea. "The only tea I ever really drank was the one the librarian made for me occasionally when I had a break from returning books. It was always apple cinnamon. That one wasn't too bad."

He looked up, surprised to see the intent look of interest on Dettella's face. Her ensorcelling emerald eyes seemed to shine. Sam blinked, trying to shake off the mesmerizing effect they had on him.

"I see, so you were a librarians assistant. That explains your knowledge of the elven tongue, and your literacy for that matter." She paused, "What is apilesinimin? I have not heard of that flavor."

"..." He continued staring at her, the words coming slowly through his ears. He replied haltingly, "Ah, well, uh... apple, cinnamon... what are they..." He shook his head, finally breaking the trance. "Oh...oh, apple and cinnamon are two separate things. An apple is a sweet red fruit, and cinnamon is a spice that comes from the inside of certain tree barks. It's usually associated with sweet foods like apple pie, cinnamon buns, snickerdoodles..."

Her eyes remained glued to his and he caught himself starting to ramble.

"Yes, yes, go on." She urged him forward, eager to hear more.

"I..." Sam didn't want to just list off the random facts he had about cinnamon. He tried think of something to divert the conversation. "Er..."

He couldn't come up with anything with those green eyes on him like that. Unconscious of his actions, he began to rub the back of his head and a tinge of red stained his cheeks. Fortunately he was saved by the return of Darrel and the butler.

"The lady governor will see you now." Giela said, giving a bow to Dettella. It seemed her overcoat had been removed at some point, as she only wore the clean, buttoned up white shirt and pink tie.

"Ah," the princess shook her head as if to clear it, followed by Sam a second later. "Yes, let us be about it then." She said, setting down her teacup on the tray and standing smoothly.

Sam stood not so smoothly, tripping on the coffee table's leg as he moved toward the door too hastily. He crashed straight into Giela, sending them both sprawling to the floor. When he woke from the daze from bonking his head on the wall, he found his head resting on something soft, his left hand right next to it. Pushing himself up, he froze as he realized what that soft thing was.

The former butler, now handmaiden, was lying beneath him with her arms splayed out to the sides. She had a look of astonishment on her face as she looked up at him. Sam's eyes glanced down to his left hand, his body not quite wanting to keep up with his brain which was currently tying to tell his hand to remove itself from Giela's breast. His eyes moved back to the elf's face, taking in the blush that slowly began to creep over her near translucent, white skin.

"S-Samson!" He heard Dettella cry out behind him, and then she was tugging at his arm, trying to get him off of the elf. "Y-You must get off of her!"

Finally, his hand came away from her chest and his motor skills seemed to return. He knelt on the carpet, his blank face mirroring his mind which currently was still stuck back in the moment when his eyes were glued to Dettella's. He looked down at his left hand, trying to formulate some sort of reaction.

The princess still tugged on his arm. "Samson. Samson!"

"...Wha...?" His head turned to look at her, his expression still impassive. With those uncomprehending eyes, he watched Dettella's eyes gleam with suppressed tears. Her cheeks were red, whether from embarrassment or anger he couldn't tell. Sam's eyes definitely weren't deceiving him, her face was as red as the coffee table. Upon seeing his lack of a reaction she ran from the room, her hands clutching tightly at her dress.

Everything had happened so fast. With his brain already working slowly as it was, he didn't understand a bit of what had just happened. He watched as Giela scurried from the room after the princess. Sam looked back down at his hand, wondering what had just occurred.

"What?" 'What?' It was if that word was all his mind could form.

Darrel grabbed him by the shoulder and lifted him to his feet. "You should probably go and apologize." He said.

Sam looked at him, his mind finally starting to form thoughts other than 'what?'. He looked at Darrel's sympathetic eyes, then back down at his hand which was still held out palm up. Then, as he processed what had happened, his cheeks began to feel on the verge of melting off. 'H-Holy shit... I just touched her boob.'

"You.. you're probably right." He replied, feeling like he should've felt guiltier about it than he did, but then again he still was having a hard time remembering how he'd ended up in the position in the first place. "I feel like I should apologize to Dettella too for some reason... Am I being crazy?"

"Mm, no you should probably say sorry to her too. It isn't exactly your fault, but it might make them both feel better." Darrel answered after a moment of thought. "I'm afraid I don't have a lot of experience dealing with romance, but you should trust your instincts I suppose."

'Romance... Is that what this is?' Sam wondered, '...I should probably consider this more closely, but I don't think now is the time.'

Straightening his back he strode toward the door, grabbing his cloak on the way.

———

'Oh blight... Why did I run out of the room?!' Dettella thought in horror. She sat hunched over the bench in another waiting room, her cheeks damp with tears. 'I completely overreacted. How could I let my emotions control me so? I don't even know why I reacted that way!' She sniffled and wiped away the remnants of her tears. Letting out a shaky sigh, she stood and fixed her disheveled hair and clothes. 'We need to go see the governor still. They're still waiting for us and Samson's friend is in a precarious condition while I sit here crying over an accident.'

Dettella started to head out of the room, and then she realized, 'Oh blight, how could I face them after I acted so?! Oh blight, blight, blight!' She began pacing the room. 'Can I make some sort of excuse?'

Before she could even begin to come up with an answer, Sam walked into the room. "Oh, there you are." He said, the frown of consternation on his face being replaced by a relieved smile. Then a look of embarrassment fell over his features. He looked down and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, a blush crept into his cheeks. "I, uh... I wanted to apologize for embarrassing you in front of the, um, butler. I didn't mean to make you look bad. I just got nervous, and I was clumsy."

He shifted his feet as he waited for her answer. For her part, Dettella was trying to say something, but every excuse she'd come up with in the short time fell away from her mind. Her mind went blank. She wanted to alleviate his concerns, but for the first time in as long as she could remember, no words came to her. The impulse was strong and immediate. In another time and place, under different circumstances, her mind would have refused, but with it as blank as it was at that moment, she acted without thought.

Dettella stepped forward and reached up. Her hands held Sam's head and pulled it down. She stood up on her toes and pressed her lips to his...

———

Sam blinked. 'What?' He looked down. The princess's face was pressed to his and her eyes were closed. Up so close he could see the tiny blonde hairs on her face, every single eyelash, every tiny freckle that sprinkled her nose. 'How did this happen?' He wondered. He could feel her lips pressed against his, yet he didn't understand.

Time seemed to be passing in slow motion and finally, it clicked. 'She's kissing me.' A feeling of exhilaration he had never experienced before swept through him like an electric shock. In the back of his mind he could see the graceful silver swirls of her magic, but his focus was completely on the softness of her lips. Sam kissed back, feeling his own lips caress hers. He tasted the subtle sweetness of the tea she'd just had on her soft lips. His mind just kept going back to how soft her lips were. They were so soft, so gentle.

They felt like the softest velvet, only softer. Sam closed his eyes, and felt his arms wrap around her back. He reveled in the sense of touch, feeling every subtle movement of her lips and the shuddering breath that escaped her nose. His hands gripped the back of her dress tightly, clutching it as if it were the edge of a cliff. He sucked air in deeply, taking in her scent. She smelled slightly of something like jasmine, and also a bit like paper.

Sam felt her hands run through his hair. He pulled her closer, feeling her supple breasts press against his abdomen. He held her like that for another moment, and then she began to pull away. Her hands left his hair, he released her dress from his grip, and finally their lips separated.

Sam's eyes opened slowly, as if waking from a deep trance. What he saw first were the emerald green of her eyes gazing back into his and he shivered. His mouth worked soundlessly as he breathed deeply. Dettella's cheeks bloomed with pink as she took in a trembling breath of air. 'Wh-What?' Looking behind him he wondered who the act was supposed to be for, but no one was there.

"Wha-huh?" He said intelligently.

"I..." Dettella began in a soft voice, "Samson, I-I fancy you. I'm not, er... That kiss wasn't an act, if that's what you're wondering. I, well I've never really courted a man before to be honest, so I'm not sure how to do this."

Sam felt like this would be the moment when he started panicking, or something of the like, but he didn't feel afraid. He felt... attracted to her, beyond the simpleminded crush he'd held for Ms. Albright, and she was now telling him that she felt the same way. And he, like her, had no idea what to do about it.

"I, um, fancy you too." He finally replied, repeating her wordage. Sam tried to say something else, to express his feelings better, but they were interrupted.

"Ahem." Sam spun, seeing Darrel stood in the doorway with his arms clasped behind his back. "Princess, the governor sent another butler to see what hinders you. I suggest you attend her soon. I will finish the preparations for hiring Giela while you are at it."

"Aaahh," she elongated to catch her bearings. "Yes of course. We must get going." Dettella replied, her face instantly returning to the calm serenity she usually held. The only trace of the moment before was the quickly dissipating blush. Sam was still trying to come up with something to say when she entwined her left arm with his right.

She led him back out the door, following behind Darrel. Sam looked down at her, specifically where her arm was wrapped around his. Despite the layers of fabric between them, he could feel her warmth. He continued walking aimlessly, just letting himself be directed. All he could think about were her words, and more than that, the kiss. In that moment, he'd felt something he couldn't quite describe. A moment of excitement, where his heart began to beat faster and he just wanted to be close to her.

Before he knew it, they'd reached to the waiting room where a new butler was waiting. Sam shook his head, trying to clear it, but it wasn't easy with Dettella holding him as she was. The elven man immediately bowed and gestured for them to follow. Then before he knew it, they were at a pair of yellow painted doors. 'I just had my first kiss...' Sam thought, still barely aware of his surroundings. He felt his lips in wonder, as it was almost as if he could still feel Dettella's there.

The doors opened and they stepped in. The cloud that was around Sam's mind a moment before was gone in a fraction of a second. His eyes were wide and alert, his icy blue eyes flicking around frantically. There was something wrong here, but he wasn't sure what. The room was decorated with expensive looking silk curtains, on which were mostly depictions of battles, but on one of them was a short woman lifting some sort of immense gem.

There were three people in the room already. One was clearly the governor, her elaborate, flowing dress lit with so many neon colors that Sam had to strain to see her face. It was like trying to look directly at the sun, to a lesser extent. Her chubby face was plastered with so much makeup there was no way to tell what she really looked like. Her chins jiggled as she turned to look at him and Dettella.

At her feet rested an emaciated elven man, a long, red chain binding him to her oversized chair. His face was downturned and his unkempt sea green hair cascaded over him, obscuring his nudity. Behind the governor's colorful, six legged throne was someone in bright golden armor gilded in green flame-like patterns. On their back was a huge broadsword that looked to be taller than the short knight.

'Looks like one of those Japanese video game characters.' Sam thought absently as his eyes scanned over the knight. 'There's definitely something strange here...'

"Ahh, bwelcome my human fwends! I am bwery exthited to hab you!" The blubbery governor spluttered out in a gravely voice. She gestured to a pair of small chairs before her. "Blease, sit sit!"

"Thank you very much for your hospitality, Governor Tielnin. We greatly appreciate it." Dettella said as she sat gently into the chair after releasing Sam's arm.

That feeling of uneasiness was building in him by the second, and for some reason sitting down seemed dangerous. He was about to just force himself to, when the governor spoke to her knight. "Good, the deadbly one ith not wivf vem. Jusd kill tha man, the pwincesth needth to be kept alibe."

It took him a moment to realized she'd spoken in the elven tongue, he only noticed when Dettella had no reaction to the words. Sam's vision seemed to darken at the corners as the knight moved forward quickly. His sword was in his hands a moment later, and a rush of excitement ran through his body, emanating out from where his hands touched the sword's handle.

Just before the battle lust overtook him he spoke to Dettella in a strained tone as he dropped his cloak, "Get... back..." He didn't get the chance to see what she did, because that was when the knight swung down at him with the oversized sword and his mind went blank...

———

"What?!" Dettella stood quickly, knocking the small chair backward as she did. A few feet from her, Sam tried to block the overhead swing. The heavy impact knocked him down, and he skidded on his backside. Dettella hurried back, as the huge blade arced down again. Sam scrambled away quickly, avoiding the sword as it cracked into the black marble floor. 'What is going on?!'