There was once a beautiful young girl trying to be fashionable, that titanic task required an enormous amount of money and time but above all: patience. Which she did not have much. Without patience, no friends and no butlers to do her shopping, she had no choice but to put aside her apparent fragility. Celeste did not bear the thought of people labelling her as "not cute" for what she was doing. But she even bear less the fact that her clothes were all of past season. So far she had traveled two stores, shouting to all the employees. Two stores, fifteen employees with post-traumatic stress, two bags to carry.
But she would not carry them, of course not. It would be inappropriate for someone of her class.
Looking around. No one seemed worthy of the task. Simple peasants. Where can I find a knight? At least a squire ...
Found it. "You, take my bags."

As predicted less than a week after entering the academy Sam found himself back in uptown New York. He had debated long and hard about where he was going to go and buy clothes and his final decision had brought him to one of the more up market part of the city. It was not that he was rich but he based himself on the principle that a few good pieces were better than half a dozen ill fitting ones.

The weather outside was particularly cold today so it made the whole hot/cold temperature change, between the stores and the street, so much worse. So he tried very hard to pick a store that looked promising so that he could avoid unnecessary blasts of cold wind. He had to admit that New York was a bit like London when it came to shopping. They had those stores with five or six floors where you could buy high quality anything and everything.

The one he chose was packed. Well they usually were in the winter months between Christmas and the sales people seemed to think shopping was a very good pass time. He didn’t particularly like or dislike it, it had to be done and to be honest everyone liked getting new stuff. So far he had bought one polo neck shirt and a branded hoody. He tried his best to dress well; somehow it comforted him to know that whatever happened no one could accuse him of neglecting his appearance.

He had finally decided that he would find nothing else here and needed to change stores, when something bizarre happened. He had been walking up to the doors when a petit blond girl thrust her shopping bags at him.

"You, take my bags."

The way she said it made it seem like the most natural thing in the world, like he had always been destined to take these bags. For a moment his hands almost acted on instinct, it had after all been a command. Then he realized how ridiculous this was and that he was almost a full grown man, he should not be taking orders from a child he didn’t even know. He looked down at her expectant face and decided to try and get out of this in the most diplomatic way possible.

“I’m sorry you must have me confused with someone else.”

There that should do it. She would realize her mistake and he could go back to his shopping in peace.

Tall. Nice style. Asian? Not according to his accent. Interesting. Clearly his features stand out from the crowd. She was right. Although he refused to accept the honor of helping her.
"How dare you?" She shout in her mind filled with rage. Then breathe deeply. It was not her fault that the boy did not recognize the magnificence when it was in front of him.
Again she spoke calmly but determined to not accept another negation. She pushed her two bags of clothes toward him one more time. "Take my bags." Authoritarian. Angry. Impatient. She looked at his squire again, a look full of need and supplication. Hidden behind her cries and orders.
Celeste analyzed him from head to foot, trying to find a single reason not to use him as a Butler for the rest of the afternoon. She sighted, there was no reason to let him go. She liked his style, his clothes but there was something wrong... he lacked a good incentive.
"Follow me. If you like something, I pay. "
She was not being a nice person, not on her mind. She will never admit it. Perhaps, just a little. She just needed a pawn who could look good enough to walk at her side. Yes. Although she was feeling... Generous? Maybe.

The girl just blinked at him. Once, twice as if trying to figure out what he had just said. Then after a sharp intake of breath she pushed the bags at him once more.

"Take my bags."

So much for the diplomatic approach, he looked down at her once more and almost had to hide a smile. She was staring at him with such a put out expression on her face that he thought for a moment that she might cry. Although he reckoned that they would be tears of rage rather than tears of sadness. All that was missing from this scene was the stomping of a small foot and he would be faced with a full blown tantrum.

When he made no move to either take the bags or say anything, she decided to change tactics. She looked him up and down in an upraising manner. What was she looking for now? Whatever it was she seemed to have found it. With one last squint at him she turned and made an unexpected statement.

"Follow me. If you like something, I’ll pay. "

What? Wait a minute, how weird was she exactly? One minute she was trying to make him her servant now she was offering to buy him things… It took a minute for him to get things straight in his head. Small blond rich girl, out shopping alone, she must be looking for company. But he did not think that she was looking for human company per say. He reckoned that she viewed him more like a kind of pet. Something handy that kept her company and that she could take care off without it ever complaining.

He sighed; there was no easy way out of this. He could just turn and walk away but then he was pretty sure that she would just break down and cry in the middle of the store. He could follow her whim and get a whole new wardrobe for free or he could do the right thing and offer to see her safely home and hope that she left it at that.

“How about, I carry your bags until you get back to your house… or car.”

Even as he said those words he knew that he had just doomed himself. He had said what she wanted to hear and he reckoned that the end of his sentence would probably be ignored.

She took a couple of steps in the opposite direction. Trying to walk away, to turn around prematurely would have been fatal. A clear sign of weakness. With each step she lost little by little all her hopes. How many steps? She did not know, these steps seemed like miles. But she was practically in the same place. Celeste was not sure what would happen. Her heart was beating fast, she would not stand losing. Probably she would end up crying and humiliated. She closed her eyes tightly to ward off that feeling. No. She was going to swallow all those feelings and hide them where they never could get out. But even so, she knew she was lonely, it was hard to admit it.
Steps. Voices. Not his voice. Heartbeats. She was ready to stampede to the next store to drown her sorrows in new clothes. Destroying everything in her path. But then her squire answered to her ultimatum.

She immediately stopped, turned on her heels. She looked at the young man with a stunned expression. Surprised. Relieved. "Thank you." She said. Cheerfully, almost singing. Forgetting for a moment all her anger. At the same time she gave her bags to him again. One last time. The third time's the charm.
Somewhere in the world, a volcano erupted and some other wonder of rare occurrence happened, just because Celeste allowed herself to grin. A slightly less rare event that an eclipse. It was a huge, bright smile. That smile made ​​her look even more beautiful, perhaps more alive. Even though it was a mischievous smile. Victorious. It was a malicious triumph. "I win. I always win." Everything was a competition. Always.

Without another word she went to the next store in her usual tour. Pale faces, hands shaking, confusion, recognition. So many emotions triggered by the simple fact that she entered the store. Her favorite store. In all other stores, she had to shout. They made it feel easy. Made it feel right.
When they made ​​it out of their surprise and overcome their paralyzing fear, all the old employees disappeared somewhere in the store. As if it was a big maze.
Celeste certainly did not look like a demon. Why the fuss?
Beckoning to new employees, the manager came over to greet them. Briskly but determined. He stopped in front of them, adopted an upright posture. He looked like a soldier.
"Welcome Miss Manfrella." The manager looked quickly at her companion before resting his eyes on the little demon. "Everything will be ready in just a moment. Do you need something else? " He looked scared. Shaky. He did not want to ask her. But he knew he had to do it anyway. It was his job.
"Yes, I want someone to attend exclusively to..." Who? She tried to remember. Her black eyes looked everywhere for the name of her partner. Touché. "What is your name?" She asked her squire, barely looking at him.

“Thank you.”

The look of shock and relief that appeared on the girl’s face almost melted Sam’s heart for a moment. She really had been afraid that he might refuse her and leave her alone in the crowd. Though the next thought that came to him was “if she was that lonely why the hell was she out here on her own anyway” … so much for feeling sorry for her.

It did not take long for her forlorn expression to be replaced by the smug smile of victory. She acted exactly as he had predicted: like a small child having just been given a prize pet. Now that he had accepted to take the bags they were presented once. He took without protest, too late now anyway, and prepared to follow her out into the cold winter’s day.

He braced himself as the wind took hold of them. He hated being cold, it seemed to sneak into his bones and sit there. So he was all at once glad and somewhat depressed when she turned down the commercial street and headed to a nearby store. He had known that she would not obediently pack up and go home, but apparently some small glimmer of hope had still lived deep down. Now even that had been crushed. It was just a good thing he had no plans for the rest of the day.

The place they headed too was impressive to say the least. It looked a lot like Harrods in London, somewhere people like him went too to stare at ridiculously overpriced items. He felt his mood fall further as they entered. He just hoped that his little protégé did not decide to have him buy her anything; as it turned out that kind of thing was going to be the least of his worries.
He felt at once like he had entered a hostile place. The staff was looking at them strangely and he wondered what was wrong. He knew that the pair of them might look a bit strange together but it was not uncommon for friends to go shopping together and the age difference was not that great; if they had not looked so different she may as well have been his sister.

It did not take long for his questions to be answered. The store manager came striding towards them like he was going to battle. Sam slowed a bit wondering if they were going to be kicked out. What if his new little friend was in fact a shop lifter and things were about to go from bad to worse? But no nothing like that, something altogether stranger.

"Welcome Miss Manfrella. Everything will be ready in just a moment. Do you need something else? "

Sam looked from the man to the girl and then back again. So she wasn’t a shoplifter… She was an aristocrat or something similar. Well it certainly explained a lot, although he had not really believed that that kind of people still existed in this kind of world. If she was that rich, she must have a butler or something, why on earth had she ended up having to use him as her slave?

"Yes, I want someone to attend exclusively to... What is your name?"

The sound of her voice brought him back to here and now. He looked at the manager with a slightly sheepish look, as if trying to make him understand that he really had no control over the situation. Then she asked for him name while making a little prompting sign with her hand. It’s true they had not even been introduced. It was strange but at least she had not just made up some kind of weird name for him, and for that at least he was grateful.

“Sam. I’m Sam.”

Her beautiful black eyes stared straight ahead, beautiful but malevolent. Full of sadness, anger and impatience. So many feelings buried in that particular blackness.
Her heavy glare instigated the poor manager until he left to find his best seller. The manager hesitated a few moments, trying to resist but eventually his will shattered. He knew what was best for everyone. He did not fear the child itself, but the possibility of losing that big sale. For them, Celeste was a time bomb waiting to explode. But even so, her best customer.
The girl turned to look at Sam again, she felt silly for not asking his name before. Where were her manners? She was forgetting how to behave. With a bow, she introduced to his partner. A feigned smile. After all, good manners were nothing more than a habit. One of the many repetitive tasks without importance in which she was trained. "My name is Celeste."

A quick look at the store informed her that they had not yet finished. Employees ran in apparent disorder, carrying bags from one side to another. It was a strange dance, almost hypnotic. Responding to an inaudible music, impossible music. With its own rhythms. A dance of some distant land. And at the same time it was so common everywhere. All were in motion. In a hurry. Disorderly. It was a chaotic order.
"Choose what you want, we still have to wait for my things."

The manager’s eyes had flicked to him for a second and the panic there had been clear to see. Who exactly was this child? If he had not known better he might well have believed that she was the president’s daughter. Well all that really seemed to matter now was that she was rich and judging by the way the manager was sweating related to some influential people. Which meant that he was now in the hot seat; he would either make a great impression and she would love him or he would put his foot in it and piss off some unknown power house family; neither option seemed particularly appealing.

He watched the manager scurry off to find something and realized that the girl had turned back to stare at him. As politely as possible, he stared back. Then she did something strange, or at least strange for any modern day teenage girl, she curtsied. It was so old fashioned but here it somehow felt quite well matched to the mental image he had of aristocracy. He felt awkward for a moment… if a girl curtsied wasn’t he supposed to bow or something? Before he could make up his mind the moment had passed and she was introducing herself.

"My name is Celeste."

Celeste, yes the name fitted as well. A name that referred to the heavens, stating that even in name she was above the common mortal. Sam sighed; he had a nice common name, one shared by thousands of other. A name that made him part of the crowd, where he would have liked to remain. He watched as the store slowly became a small hurricane of activity with the two of them at the center. He felt sorry for these people; they had been doing just fine until this small blond whirlwind had swept into their lives. God, he even felt sorry for himself.

"Choose what you want, we still have to wait for my things."

He was about to respond that he did not need anything and that he was happy to just wait until her things were ready, when a hand gripped his elbow. He turned to stare at the store cleric that had grabbed him so firmly. She had a smile plastered on her face but it was not a warm welcoming smile. It was more a crazy, bordering on hysteria, smile.

“This way please.”

He knew he should have refused but looking into the poor woman’s eyes, he just couldn’t do it, that and she was now digging her nails painfully hard into his arm. So he followed her meekly enough across to the men’s section. She looked him up and down and took a couple of measurements, and then she disappeared off into the mass of clothing. He did not have to wait long before she reappeared holding a pile of garments. She drifted past him and hung the clothes in the nearest changing room. Then turning to him she gestured for him to enter.

Well there was nothing for it now, he tried to smile as he walked past her but he was doubtful that it looked like anything other than a grimace. The clothes she had picked out seemed like a strange mix. Blue shirt, grey stripped vest and a brown coat over what looked like washed out black jeans. Before he had completely finished changing a pair of blue shoes had appeared along with a blue scarf and a black hat. He had always believed that he was at least slightly fashionable, but this combination baffled him.

Once he had done his best to make it look presentable, it was time to step out and let others decide quite how ridiculous he looked. Pulling back the curtain he braced himself for the verdict.


Picture ^^

Knowing that so many people were in motion only because of her, gave her a malicious pleasure. It was like watching an ant farm, all working for their queen. Without protest, without denying. Putting all their energy in the pleasure of their empress. Being in there was even better. They did not respond to the needs of a primitive six-legged queen, but to her desires. To her refined whims. She suppressed a smile, do not letting it to completely escape her lips. But there it was. It was a crooked smile. Almost with pain. Why his father could not be like his own employees? Helpful, attentive, but above all... there. He never was home. Why would she think of such things? The girl shook her head quickly, then settled her hair trying to calm. To forget.

She accompanied Sam with her eyes as he entered deep into the store. He looked like a explorer advancing through a dense jungle. She followed them closely, not wanting to miss any detail of this peculiar adventure. He seemed uncomfortable, unsure. As a puppy discovering the world. Luckily, Jessica took control of the situation. God, Celeste would not known her name if not for these identifications badges. One thing was to remember the names of their employees, well, those of his father. And another thing to remind all employees´s names of all the stores she usually buy in.

Jessica practically dragged Sam to the dressing room. Celeste meanwhile, sat on the nearest couch. By simply lifting a hand, an employee appeared. That was a good service. She had to make sure to leave a substantial tip. She made her request, and one minute later the same employee was back with what she demanded.
Finally, Sam left the dressing room. Celeste was astonished. She knew she had a good eye for people, but this time she had surpassed herself. The surprise was reflected in her face instantly, though she used all her willpower to close her mouth. She failed. Her face remained frozen in that silly look of surprise for a few seconds, when she come out of it, quickly grabbed the sheet of paper resting on her lap, and with a couple of stylized movements drew a big ten.
Triumphant, she raised her masterpiece for Sam to see it.
"Look at you, I bet you never looked so good. You look like a model. "

The reaction he got from Celeste was not what he had been expecting. He had predicted that she would find something to criticize but instead he watched as her eyes grew wide. Her mouth formed a silent “oh” of surprise. To be honest, Sam did not know if this was good or bad. He had never really had any close “girl” friends, so the intricacies of the female mind remained a mystery to him. But he figured an “oh” was better than being laughed at.

The blonde teenager then grabbed a piece of paper, which had probably been dutifully brought by the store’s staff, and started furiously scribbling. He wondered what exactly she was doing and for a second he hoped that she was not going to attempt to draw him. As it turned out, he shouldn’t have been worried all that was written on the blank paper was the number ten.

"Look at you, I bet you never looked so good. You look like a model. "

He felt at once flattered and a little bit affronted. How could she know that he had never looked this good? To be honest he just felt stupid. Then again he had never been told that he looked like a model. He had never really been told that he was handsome. He knew that it came from the fact that he was more Asian than Caucasian and in London Asians were not seen to be particularly handsome. So he had grown up believing that he was in the norm neither handsome nor ugly and that had worked pretty well for him up until now.

“Me a model? Are you sure you’re looking at the right person?”

He knew he was asking for trouble by contradicting her and that he probably should just have left well enough alone. But for some reason he could not just accept her words, it seemed too farfetched. So as usual he was being stubborn over something trivial.

Her squire was promoted to knight. A pleasant pride flourished on her chest, but that feeling was not strong enough. Her pride was soon devoured by a brutal shadow. Why ordinary people work so hard to contradict her? What good might it bring? None. They were just delaying the inevitable. Making her annoyed and impatient. In the end, everyone did what she wanted. When will they learn? She filled her lungs with the intention of devoting a sigh to the world that did not magically molded to her whims, but at the last moment she successfully held her sigh of protest. Without thinking, she directed all that repressed energy in her answer. "No." It sounded strong and heavy. In that one word she showed her anger and frustration at the refusal of the people to accept her words as reality. He did not mean to make her angry. She realized her mistake and quickly softened her tone, making it sound much nicer. In Celeste that tone sounded really strange. "I'm not really sure of seeing the same person. Are you Sam? " It was a silly joke, even childish but what made it worse was that caramel tone. She could catch flies talking like that.

Hasty, in order to set aside that last meaningless phrase, she continued without waiting for his answer. Using her vast knowledge to fill the gap. "Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on Society ." She recited the words by heart. How many times have she hear that phrase throughout her short life? Many more times than she remembered. Mainly from her fat and boring Aunt Augusta. A cold shiver ran down her back. She sounded exactly like her old aunt.

The spoiled brat attitude was back. He watched as Celeste seemed to puff herself up, ready to attack. He watched as the reprimand built up inside her ready to burst all at once. He had, of course, brought this upon himself but it was not going to be easy to deal with.

"No."

The floodgates had burst. That “no” should have been accompanied by a stomp of a tiny foot. He wondered how she had not developed that habit it made the whole spoiled brat thing look a bit lacking. However in his imagination she did it anyway.
He wondered what exactly she was going to say next.

"I'm not really sure of seeing the same person. Are you Sam? "

Uh… what? Her change of attitude was sudden and it threw him completely. She’d gone from scolding to nonchalant in 2 seconds flat. He had no idea if she had lost her mind or if she was just teasing him. The confusion he felt must have read on his face because she then explained her unexpected comment.

“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on Society."

Well one thing was for sure he never went anywhere naked. And as for influence in society, he was quite happy not having any; although he would quite happily have done without the whole “mutant” thing. But he did not think that Celeste would be able to understand that he was happy just being average. So he wondered if he should bother to try and explain it to her or not. It would probably be a waste of breath but he tried anyway.


“I like my usual clothes, they make me… normal. I have no need to be influential.”

He looked at her in an appealing fashion, hoping that she would get where he was coming from.

Celeste refused to accept his plea. How could she let him go around with those dangerous ideas? Who wants to be normal? She repeated the word in her head without moving her lips. Normal. Conforming to the standard or the common type. In other words, a mere commoner. Of course, Celeste did not understand it and will never understand these ideas.
With the clear intention of interrupting her thoughts, Jessica nodded and shook her head trying to follow their ideological discussion. How disrespectful of her. No one had asked her opinion. Another simple commoner without influence in the world.
Her growing anger faded away at the same time a feeling buried deep inside made it´s way to the surface. She lost her energy. The change also affected her voice. It was soft and sad. Far from her powerful screams. "Sam, would you like to die without leaving a trace in the world?" Her eyes were clearly wet. "As my grandfather."
The memory of her grandfather always left a bad taste in her mouth, along with a crazy need to leave something behind. To become someone important, like her father. Someone people might remember years after his death. Eternally.

She pursed her lips at him as if to reprimand him again. Then the moment seemed to pass and the anger that had been building just died. Maybe she had decided what he was saying was not so unreasonable; that it was ok for others to have different view points from her own. He found that he was holding his breath, waiting to see what she would say next. When she finally did speak it was in a quiet subdued tone.

"Sam, would you like to die without leaving a trace in the world?"

The question seemed odd and as he had not been expecting it he had to take a moment to think. Leaving a trace on the world? Had he ever wanted to do something like that? Could he even if he wanted to? Somehow the whole thing made him a bit angry. Why would he need to leave a trace on the world, what would it matter if he didn’t. Why did she care?

“I don’t care about that. I do my best to live correctly. I don’t steal or lie and I try and to be helpful. But apparently that’s not enough for you. Do I need to be a hero in order to be someone good?”

He did not really know why he was having an argument with a spoiled teenage girl but she had struck a nerve. He had a hard enough time feeling normal and worthwhile most of the time, so being told that he should become extraordinary was just too much.

“Besides I really do not see how looking ridiculous in these clothes is going to help me achieve greatness.”

He turned on his heel and closed the dressing room door behind him. The poor shop assistant let out a small squeak and looked despairingly at him. He didn’t care; he just wanted to be Sam again. These clothes cost more than any normal person would make in a month. It was just too extreme for him; he was not ready to live in a fairy tale.

Tears began to escape from her eyes, at first slowly and then these damn tears accelerated in a frantic race through her young face. She did not even noticed when he disappeared back into the dressing room. The tears would not stop. Silently. Cold. Relentless. Celeste did not manage to say a single word, not even dare to move for a while. She feared the whole world would fall apart if she moved. Like a sand castle. She saw how it happened in her mind. The walls collapsing around her, first in small pieces, then large parts of the size of a human head crumbled. She imagined how everything was destroyed slowly, without a single sound and an incredible slow speed. Everything following that pattern. Starting with small parts and then increasing in progression. She just stayed there, standing in silence waiting for everything to end. Hoping to wake up.
She did not wake up. It was not a dream. She closed her eyes. More tears fell from them. Then she wished with all her might to wake up. Nothing happened. Everything was in the same place. She needed to get away. Run. To never see Sam again. Or anyone else who could remind her about her grandfather.

She was not crying anymore. There were tears on her face. Her eyes were red. Her sight blurred.
She walked rapidly toward the cash register, the store manager ran hastily to meet her. Without understanding what was happening. Awaiting orders. The queen spoke. "Carry my bags to the car, do not let Sam go away without his new clothes." Her voice still cracking with sadness. Her spirit defeated. The little devil used one of her many debit cards. She paid for everything. Plus twenty percent tips. Then left the store. A man wearing a black suit and sunglasses, waited outside the store. He was Max. Short for... she did not know. Neither care.
He walked her to the end of the sidewalk, where his driver was waiting for them. In a Chrysler 300c limo. "God bless America". He opened the door like a gentleman. She paid for that. Celeste jumped in, delighted to be protected in its luxurious carriage once again.
Only hoping the employees will take all her stuff to the limousine quickly. What took they so long?