Psyche and Eros

First Morning

My eyes pry open, completely disoriented until the memories of the previous day flood back. I thought of being scared. I only momentarily clutch the sheets in panic before I shoot upright, finally seeing the room that I have been put to sleep in. 

I look beside me, laughing at myself immediately. As if I expect to see him sleeping beside me. I know logically he wouldn't have stayed here last night anyway, visible or not.

I know I'm alone. The room is absolutely silent and of course, absolutely gorgeous. I don't care too much for the riches, the gold-trimmed pieces of furniture, or the satin red sheets...but they are certainly beautifully put together. I can appreciate beauty wherever it is presented.

The monster has taste, what can I say? I haven't seen a single servant around here, maid, or groundskeeper. Yet at least. Does he not need any? 

I'm silently impressed he actually takes care of things himself. Did he prepare that entire dinner? That unbelievable bread?

I pull myself out of bed, and head to the vanity. A hairbrush would come in handy right now. I can feel multiple knots forming. I'm absolutely embarrassed how wind blown it must have looked last night and all I was concerned about was eating.

The reflection in the mirror shocks me to say the least. Forget hairbrush...I need to bathe, and get into some fresh clothes. Pronto.

Almost an instant later, the door creaks slightly open, almost as if it is merely the wind showing me the way.

"Hello?" I call quietly.

No answer, but the door blows open more. Showing an adjourning bathroom.

A claw foot tub sits in the middle of it. Before my eyes a bucket lifts from the ground, pouring steamy water into it, bubbles filling it on their own. It stops only once it's reached the perfect amount, placing itself right back on the ground out of the way.  

In another moment a fluffy robe, a white towel, and slippers all draped over a nearby chair. I step forward in disbelief, hesitantly dripping a finger into the water.

"Oh, yes...please." I whisper to myself. I couldn't have asked for anything better.

The moment I've sunk underneath the bubbles I can't help but sigh out loud. I have to take a moment to enjoy it before bothering to clean up, but eventually I dunk my head below the surface, lingering there for just a second too long -

A knock on the door shakes me out of it. In a panic, I burst out of the water, hair drenched and covering my face.

"Y-yes?" I sputter.

A light chuckling can barely be heard from the other side of the door. "I'm announcing my presence." 

I flush immediately, looking around for my robe. 

"Don't rush. Finish up, I won't open it." He insists first, letting the sound of leaving footsteps trail behind him. "I'll be downstairs when you're done!" I hear him call from farther, already on the way down the stairs. 

I stay frozen, my hand mid-air towards the robe, water dripping down my arm on the marble floor. Even still, it doesn't take me long to decide to do exactly as he suggested. Not rush. Not face the day without taking every second of peace I can first. 

It feels like so long since I've had this. The ability to lay back and take as long as I'd like. Without my sisters standing on the other side of the door demanding I hurry up. Without my mother scolding me through the door, or telling me I'm late for whatever event I've been obligated to attend. 

Things never felt peaceful. Even before a powerful Goddess began to despise me, and it became clear that I was not marriage-material and therefore useless to my family. 

I let that thought sit with me as the water stills around me. The thought that I will still never see my bedroom again. Maybe not even my sisters...even if I am on and off tired of their presence that doesn't mean I never want to be see them anymore. I don't want to cease to exist anymore. Not to them, not to my parents. I couldn't care less about the Kingdom. 

I had no friends, no political interest in the Kingdom or holding any power. Only family. A family that gave me away, expecting to never see me again.  They gave me to all that I have now. The only thing I will have for the foreseeable future...

I look back at the door, wondering if he's still anywhere near. I have no way of knowing for sure. Only his word, and I don't necessarily trust him yet. Even as nice as he is. As foolish as I have acted so far, he surely has assumed I am gullible. Overly trusting, painfully naive. 

It doesn't take long for me to grow sick of my own pesky thoughts from there. I pull myself out of the bath and pull the robe around me tightly. I am painfully nervous on for what comes next. 

A true conversation with my husband-to-be, who may or may not have much he's waiting to reveal to me. A possible wedding...which is no doubt pending. 

A lonesome wedding. Hidden away in a mansion in the middle of nowhere. Unseen. Unheard. Would it even count without guests? Without an officiant? 

What does it matter anyway?

I go back to my bedroom, still looking from each side of the room to the next. I'm so unused to the quiet, it's suspicious. 

I'm sure I'll learn to trust. With time. 

I get dressed in silence. The closet is stacked full for me, but I pick the dress on the top. A light lavender. A colour I never got to dress in very often. I don't often see it at all.

Where on Earth did he get it?

I am soon stepping down the stairs, recalling the beautiful entrance I first saw last night. In the kitchen I hear movement. The subtle clashing of dishes. In the dining room, I also hear the small thud of something being set on the table. Water pouring into a glass from another direction. 

"Hello?" I call, waiting to see which direction his response comes from. 

"Psyche." He's in the kitchen. 

I storm into the room, hoping to maybe catch a glimpse of him. 

He chuckles when I come to a stop. He knows what I was trying to do.

I don't know what to say. I feel a tad furious I still haven't been able to see him. Will I ever get to? I don't think I can resist asking. It's the most imminent question on my mind. 

"Come sit with me, and we'll talk about what's on your mind." He continues for me. I feel the air move beside me as he passes me. I nearly wish he would have bumped into me to gain some sort of sense of what he is. I barely picked up on anything last night. I was completely out of my mind apparently...Delirious.

I sit stiffly, barely looking at the food served. I have no appetite just yet. 

"Alright. Tell me what you want to know and I'll tell you what I'm permitted to tell you." He is digging into his food while I watch in awe. Utensils moving on their own in the air, food being cut and disappearing. 

His movements appear human. 

"Are you a monster? Or not?" I whisper. I hate sounding fearful, but I couldn't have stopped it. 

"I'm not." He answers simply, pausing.