18 — Anneliese's Hands

"Wait!"

Joezand exclaims as Lorelai and Anneliese are about to lower him into his bed.

"I'm all sweaty and dirty. I'm not going to bed in this state." Joezand says.

"Seriously?" Lorelai sighs. "That's your priority instead of resting?"

"Prince Joezand has a point." Anneliese says. "I sure wouldn't want to be the one to wash his sheets and blankets if he lays on them in this condition. Except I would be. Because I am his maid." She looks at Lorelai with a pleading look on her face. "Pretty please, let's lead him into the bathroom first. I hate washing bedsheets."

"Fine." Lorelai grumbles. "Damn fussy royals and lazy maids..."

The two girls carry him to the bathroom and lay him into the dry bathtub.

"Ughhhhhhh..." Joezand groans as he sits up. He reaches back to remove his cape, but stops as feels a strain in an arm muscle he didn't even know he had.

"I know how you feel. The post heavy workout baths are really the worst." Lorelai says. "Don't be a baby about it, though. You can do it. It builds character."

"I-If you want, Prince Joezand," Anneliese starts, her face reddening up. "I c-could help you undress. J-Just to make sure you can take your bath."

"Don't lay it on that thick, Anneliese." Lorelai sighs. "Young people. Alright, I'll leave you two alone before I become a voyeur."

"Oh, shut it." Joezand complains, still struggling to take off his clothes, gritting his teeth. He fails once again and lets out a frustrated groan. "F-Fine. You can help, Anneliese."

Lorelai smirks at him while he rolls his eyes at her. The knight exits his room, before Anneliese gets closer to him, blushing.

"D-Don't worry. I'm not doing it because I want to see you u-unclothed or anything!" Anneliese says, flighty. "I sure w-wouldn't want to m-make this weird or a-anything, haha..."

"You're making it a bit weird." He says, although he's blushing just as much as her.

"I-I'm sorry. I will be quiet now."

She starts slowly undressing him. First the cape off his shoulders, then his shoes. She unclasps the gold chains from his shirt and takes it off, and pulls down his pants. And each time, each piece of clothing... Her touch lingers. A lot longer than necessary. His body is exposed, save from his underwear. All over his skin he can see dark purple bruises and a few cuts that still haven't healed from previous training sessions. His muscles are a lot more pronounced now compared to the beginning. He still is rather thin, although he supposes that's just genetics. Anneliese's hands slowly start rubbing the muscles on his upper back.

"Weird." Joezand says in a playful tone. "I don't remember asking for a massage."

"I just thought you might need one." Anneliese says in a rushed whisper. He can tell her breathing is a bit quicker than before. "Do you want me to stop, Prince Joezand?"

He really should ask her to stop.

He's not that stupid.

At first he didn't realize it, but she's really into him.

Or rather, she's really into Joezand. The old one. The one who doesn't exist anymore.

Every time she talks about how different him and the old Joezand are, she gets a bit sad. It's clear she's disappointed that the old him wasn't the one that came back.

The crush she has on him now... It's probably just the remains of the crush on the real Joezand, that are still manifesting now.

But still...

"No, keep going."

It's just a massage, right?

There's only something more to a massage if he chooses to make it that way.

He gives another soft grunt as she slides her hands from his back into his arms. His very, very tired arms. Probably the most sore part of his whole body. Those limbs have been under so much stress with the constant training. Every tender touch from her relaxes him more and more.

As her fingers move across his skin, he can't help but think about Cecilia.

But this is different. Even when they are both... interested in his body.

Cecilia's hands all over him felt invasive. Possessive. Anneliese's feel soft and soothing.

She keeps working her magic across his body. She then moves to his front, kneading his chest. She absentmindedly bites her lower lip as half-lidded eyes look at him. Her hands move towards his abdomen, but her movements become a bit more erratic. Still, it was still feeling great. His muscles did feel a lot better.

And then she kept going lower.

Her hand reached the band of his underwear. She looked deep into his eyes, silently asking for permission.

This is bad.

His body is urging him to continue. To allow her to pull it down and see where it leads.

"I..." He murmurs. "I think that's enough for now, Anneliese."

But it wouldn't be right.

Again, he's not the person she thinks he is. She doesn't have a crush on him, just on the other Joezand.

She blinks once, then twice. Like she didn't understand what he said. She then takes her hands off of him and straightens himself up.

"I-I see." She says. "I'm sorry for overstepping, Prince Joezand."

"It's fine." He replies. "I really enjoyed it. It's just..."

"Y-You don't need to say anything." Anneliese says. She has a slightly disappointed look on her face, but that's a given. "Should I leave so you can go on with your shower?"

"Yes, that'd be for the best." He says. "Before that. Could you, uhm... get the water for me? A-And I might need some help dressing after the bath, too."

Why did he let this go on for so long? Now it's just awkward.

"Yes. As you wish, Prince Joezand." She says, slowly returning back to the 'dutiful maid', although her face is still red and her breathing is still ragged.

He really should just take his bath and go to sleep.