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Celestia Ludenberg was making the best out of what she was given in life, but it was never enough. Her origin was not enough, completely unromantic and unbefitting of the beautiful elegant dame she knew herself to be. She moved out as soon as possible and decided to make it big in the only way she knew how – gambling. It being technically illegal, especially for a minor, never bothered her. She knew how to be stealthy, and how to manipulate the people around her. Truthfully, she should have been paid for that alone.
One of the advantages of moving to the city was that she could build her identity from the ground up, with no baggage, no embarrassing past anyone could know about. She changed her appearancec, for a start, spending her money on dresses she could only dream of having in her youth. She also got to leave her birth name behind, the final step to her transition into Celestia Ludenberg, the intimidating and beautiful gambling queen of lies, instead of the sad, plain Taeko Yasuhiro, born in the wrong body, at the wrong time, in the wrong place, to the wrong parents. She abandoned all of the above things as soon as she could and never looked back.
Celestia had big dreams, and moving to Tokyo was far from the goal. It was simply the first step in her grand scheme of becoming European royalty, living in a castle with a horde of manservants she could order around to step on. Men didn't give her any pleasure otherwise, and in fact she tended to find them extremely unappealing, partially because they reminded her of the past, and of her beginnings as a gambler, surrounded by disgusting, sweaty drunk men who were too loud and crude for her taste.
Luckily for her, she got to enrol in the academy, guaranteeing succcess in life upon graduating. In theory, at least.
Yet despite that, Celestia Ludenberg, a graduate for over a year now, did not, in act, own an European castle with a dozen manservants, and she was not, in fact, successful in her own opinion.
She sighed dramatically and stretched out her legs.
To be fair, her situation could have been way worse. The apartment was relatively spacey, and she could deecorate it however she wanted – which in practice meant that her room was usually lit by candles rather than lightbulbs, and it was decorated with black, white and red furniture. Her bed in particular, having a set of blood red and raven black bedsheets, and multiple bat-shaped decorations. There was also her closet, filled with pairs of fancy shoes, dresses, and accessories. Even her casual clothes were part of the aesthetic – the white blouse with a black skirt and red ribbon on her neck being a good example. Her drill-like pigtails were resting on the shelf, her actual hair cut into choppy bangs that framed her pale face nicely.
Celestia had changed quite a bit during her time at the academy. The dreams from her teenage years proved to be unreachable and ridiculous in hindsight. She never forgot about them for good, but over time she gave up on them, instead settling for something less fantastical and more tangible.
Truly, she was lucky to have met Toujou Kirumi.
Toujou was Celestia's underclassman at the academy, and everything she ever needed, with no hint of exaggeration. The two bonded over their sense of style – the first thing that caught Celes' attention – and from there, they became acquaintances. Toujou being a maid filled the hole left by fantasy manservants, and she was perfect in every way Celes could imagine. One day, she made her the perfect royal milk tea, and that sealed the deal. Celestia asked Toujou to be her maid after school ended, and she agreed without much hesitation.
'Celes-san,' Toujou's calm voice called out from the hall, 'I'm bringing in the tea.'
'Thank you so very much,' Celes said sincerely, playing with her hair, watching Toujou set the tray down on her desk with so much grace it didn't seem achievable by a human being. Celestia's pale pink lips subconsciously curved into a small smile.
'Is there anything else you need my assistance with, Celes-san?' the maid asked, straightening her back. Celes brought her slender finger up to her lips, considering the question. Finally, she shook her head, benevolently waving her hand at the other.
'No, I'm good for now. I'll call you if I need anything, darling, you're free,' she decided, 'I suppose I'm going to take a nap after I finish my tea,' she added, taking a sip. 'It's lovely as always,' she praised Toujou, who bowed her head, accepting the compliment.
'I hope you will enjoy your rest, Celes-san. I will try my best to be quiet,' she assured.
'Don't worry about it, dear,' Celes waved again, 'I won't get mad at you.'
Toujou bowed again and left the room while Celestia sipped on the tea, savouring every drop. Before she had met Toujou, she kept trying and failing to find someone who could make the perfect royal milk tea, so she had to settle for the expensive cafe version. In that sense and many others, Toujou was like a gift from high heavens, the one bright spot in her life.
She found herself having a soft spot for the younger woman, and now she was starting to wonder about the extent of it. They had been living together for a few weeks now, before which Toujou would visit her apartment whenever possible until she finished school. And for those past few weeks she found herself experiencing appreciation for the girl on more levels than simply being grateful for her hard work.
Celestia's sexuality was complicated. Above all else, she was attracted to the idea of herself as she constructed it in her head. She loved everything about Celestia Ludenberg, the beautiful demigoddess, above earthly needs and worries. However, a part of her was attracted to certain women as well because, unlike men, they managed to impress her sometimes, and a lot of them happend to be quite pleasing to the eye.
She never experienced such tender feelings before now, thought, and she didn't want to because, in the end, Toujou was simply a maid, even if she was sharp, hardworking, and gorgeous.
Celestia took of her blouse and skirt and changed into a fancy nightshirt before jumping under the bedsheets. She closed her eyes, but couldn't sleep, even though she was rather sleepy. After staring at the ceiling for about 10 minutes, she spontaneously rang the bell that would call on Toujou. She got back under the bedsheets, watching the door. Soon enough, Toujou opened it without making a sound, just in case. She closed it behind herself and approached the bed.
'You called Celes-san. Did something happen?'
'I can't seem to be able to fall asleep,' Celes complained with a sigh.
'That's unfortunate. What can I do to help?'
'It may be bold of me to ask, but would you lie down next to me?'
'...Oh,' Toujou blushed noticeably but immediately regained composure, clearing her throat, 'is it really fine?'
'Absolutely, dear. I wouldn't have suggested it otherwise,' Celes smiled sweetly, patting the bed with her pale hand. Toujou went around the bed and sat down on the bed, twisting her body to face the other.
'I promise it is fine for you to lie down next to me, if you want to,' Celestia insited, and Toujou leaned back hesitantly. Celes turned her body towards her, resting on the side, the shirt falling in a way that revealed her shoulder.
'Toujou-san,' she requested sweetly, 'can I touch you?'
'I suppose so, yes,' Toujou turned towards her, and Celes wrapped her arm around her. She shut her eyes, breathing softly.
'If I may have one more request...could you please tell me stories of the people you worked under before me? It might help me fall asleep.'
'I can do that, yes. I hope I wo't bore you too much, Celes-san.'
'Don't worry about it, darling,' murmured Celestia.
Toujou began her story, her smooth, silky voice perfectly calming yet engaging. She watched Celes slowly fall asleep, her bangs falling on her cheek beautifully, her face genuinely calm, the way it never was when she was awake.
Eventually, Toujou's voice lulled Celestia to sleep, and she dreamed of a gothic castle staffed with a dozen maids who looked like Toujou, making her tea and massaging her body.