The first time Florencia and Calypse met was before Ellowyn ever arrived at the duchy.

Even as a child, she was all-too accustomed to being called charming and adorable. The duchess endless many compliments about her daughter, as she had inherited the duke’s violet hair and blazing red eyes. There was no doubt she would be the heir.

There was only one instance when someone was not entranced by her in the slightest.

“M-monster!” The young blonde boy had cried as he fell to the ground. “Stop looking at me! Stay back!”

“Calypse!” A striking woman panicked and held onto the boy’s shoulders with her gloved hands. “Duchess, I am so sorry.”

Helda hadn’t wanted to cause a ruckus at their social gathering, so she only pulled her daughter close. “Don’t be, Your Majesty. The prince is at no fault as he’s only a child.”

‘Isn’t he older than me?’ Florencia, even at that age, would never dare try to cause a scene in public like this. But then again, this was the prince that the empress had only recently introduced to society. Before that, no one even knew that she had a second son. ‘He’s probably nervous.’

“This place is going to burn down!” The prince wailed into the empress’ gown repeatedly. “Fire! THERE’S GOING TO BE A FIRE!”

“Calypse…” The empress looked at the duchess in dismay. She only bowed her head once and began to steer her daughter away from the prince.

Once they were out of sight, the duchess stroked her head with concern. “Florencia, don’t heed any of his words, all right? In fact, pretend none of that ever happened.”

She bobbed her head up and down fast. “Okay, Mother.”

Still, in her mind, she could not help but think, ‘How strange.’

It was simply intriguing that someone could react to her mere appearance that way. At least at first.

…

“Hello, Lady Florencia. Greetings, Lady Ellowyn. Congratulations on your official adoption, and may your future be full of light.” A few years had passed, and the empress was already dead. Prince Calypse had come to visit again, as he had grown fond of Whydstell over the years. He’d long learned to quell his irrational fear of her and the duke’s appearance. Florencia had learned to appreciate his fair looks, especially his golden curls that looked the best when left a bit too long. But that was the extent of their relationship, as the prince did not even reside in their manor when visiting the East.

However, everything changed when she and Ellowyn heard several loud splashes at the lake a distance away behind the manor. It was a place where even the duchy’s knights rarely treaded upon, and the girls enjoyed swimming in the clear lake back when they managed to escape from their parents’ watchful eyes. They wanted to know who had gotten there first before them that day, nothing more.

Florencia was the first to notice the familiar blonde hair, now drenched, bobbing above the water. The young prince was futilely keeping head tilted up, arms flailing about. Nearby, smoke rose from an abandoned campfire that was already snuffed out. She rushed towards the edge of the lake, stretching her arms out. “Grab my hand, Your Highness!” She wasn’t sure if he heard her or not, but thanks to his flailing arms, she managed to eventually grab ahold of one of his hands whether he meant it to be or not.

With all her strength, she pulled. She did not remember how long it took, only that it took several tries. It was only until she felt Ellowyn hug her waist from behind to help pull the prince out of the lake that she was finally successful. By that time, the prince had already passed out from exhaustion, pale as a ghost. 

She had no idea why the prince decided to venture out this far alone. What she did know, though, was that for the first time, she realized how human Prince Calypse was. It was easy to imagine members of the imperial royal family as otherworldly. Wherever the late Empress Tersica went, whatever she wore, she would remain the most radiant of all no matter what. So Florencia naturally thought that was a natural talent for her sons as well.

Yet here the second prince was, as vulnerable as a newly hatched baby bird.

Her heart thumped heavily.

Eventually, knights came looking for them. They were alarmed to find a royal prince with the Vestein daughters on a random day like this. He was taken back to the confines of the estate straight away. She never knew the true reason why herself, but she insisted on staying by his side until he woke up. A small part of her wanted to see that slumbering, vulnerable face change to that of wariness and caution she was previously used to.

Contrary to her expectations, the prince only groaned the next afternoon whilst she was sitting by his bedside. He slowly sat up while rubbing his temple firmly. “Lady Florencia?” He asked in surprise at the sight of her.

“You’re awake, Your Highness!”

“Um,” the prince tried to say something but only groaned again. She handed him a glass of water.

“Rest more, Your Highness. I shall call for a physician to check up on you again.”

“Wait!” He grabbed her wrist when she stood. “I want to ask, if you saw anyone else besides me in the lake?”

She pursed her lips, puzzled. “You mean besides my sister and I?” He nodded, but she could not recall anyone else besides them at all. “If you think you saw someone else, let me know what they looked like so that we can send someone to find them.”

It seemed he’d resigned as he let go of her. “No, it’s fine… My memories are still really hazy. I only really remember you pulling me out of the water.”

She curtsied towards him. “Well, then.”

At the guestroom’s doorways, she paused when he called out to her again. “Lady Florencia!” His voice trembled slightly with nervousness. “Um. Thank you for saving me.”

“No need for that, Your Highness.”

As she trekked down the hallway, she pondered. She thought the prince was merely hiding his real thoughts towards her and the duchy before out of formalities, but it seemed he truly wasn’t afraid of her anymore. Well, it wasn’t like they were young children anymore either.

Something felt uncomfortably weird in her chest.

That feeling only grew stronger after the physician left, who deemed him perfectly fine with only the need for added rest. She didn’t know why she remained and considered finally leaving him to his own devices.

What happened next would be implanted in her memories forever.

“Lady Florencia,” the prince began to ask again carefully.

“Yes, Your Highness?”

“Did you, um–” Seeing that she was waiting for him to finish his sentence so patiently, he at last sputtered out, “Did y-you kiss me while I was p-passed out?”

“...”

“I-I!” His ears turned a bright tomato red and he whipped his head away from her. “Forget it! Forget I asked that!”

Florencia blinked a few more times in stunned silence. It finally occurred to her why she was so attached to this situation.

This was exactly like how some of the scenes went in the romance novels she’d secretly been reading! The magical feeling of love–she was made to believe it was only some fantasy to indulge in paper only. Yet here she was, heart racing and her own cheeks turning warm.

“Y-Your Highness…”

It seemed neither of them could find any more words to say to each other. But when the prince calmed down, they faced each other. The look in each other’s eyes was different compared to all their encounters before. Florencia became captivated by the atmosphere of that moment. So captivated, in fact, that she found herself neither accepting nor denying that she’d ever kissed the prince in his sleep.