"Should I prepare the bath for you?" Irina asked the queen who sat the edge of her bed after the lunch and nodded her head, removing the head dress and tossing it aside on the floor. Irina heated the water in the baths, through the steamer and poured fragrant oils in the ground-built hot tub, getting clean robes for the queen and folded them neatly on the floor near the tub.

Irina returned to the room to tell the queen that the bath was prepared. Averinka was stripped down to nothing but a simple robe and followed the girl inside the baths, untying the knot and let the robe drop on the floor near the tub. Irina Immediately averted her gaze away flushing at the Queen's nudity and turned her back to give the other woman privacy. Averinka entered inside the tub, tying her hair back in a bun and sank into the water resting herself against the edge of the tub and sighed as warm water worked itself into her aching muscles and breasts. She opened her one eye and peeked at the girl who was standing facing away from the queen.

"Join me in the bath." Averinka spoke and Irina choked flushing red at the queen's command, who waited for the girl with an arched brow.

She wondered if gods wanted her to die.

Irina turned her back and slipped out of her uniform folding her clothes on the shelf. She gathered and tied half of her hair on the top of her head and got inside the tub sitting opposite to the queen.

"It is nice, isn't it?" Averinka asked smiling and Irina nodded silently drawing knees to her chest.

"Can you wash my back?" Averinka shifted to turn around and sat with her back to Irina looking over her shoulder at the girl. Irina remained frozen, mortified wondering if she was being punished for kissing the queen last night and now was being tortured for her sin.

Averinka handed her washcloth and Irina soaked it in water gently working on her back and neck, and rubbed her shoulders to work on her sore muscles. Averinka sighed and leaned against Irina, pressing her back into her front and Irina momentarily died of her shock.

"The letter is to be sent to Iakov."

"Has it been prepared already?" Irina questioned feeling grateful for the change of subject between them for her to focus on anything than their naked skins.

"I have asked uncle to write it. He knows how to handle such things." Irina made a humming sound in understanding and continued washing the Queen's back. Averinka raised her hand to touch her breast and then winced again.

"My breasts are still sore." Irina flinched behind her and almost teared up in frustration. All she had wanted to forget the last night why it was keep happening to her.

"You should massage them with oils to soothe them." She suggested for it was the only answer she could give the other woman who kept complaining about her sore breasts.

"Oh, haven't thought about it. How about you massage them for me?"

"What?" Irina shrieked jumping out of the water tub on the floor, and Averinka blinked at the girl's sudden outrageous behavior.

"I asked you to pass me oils. What did you hear?"

"N-NOTHING." Irina reached for the oils placed on the stone shelf and picked one of it which was for the sore muscles and slipped back inside the water handing vial to to the queen, but Averinka grasped her hand instead and pulled her closer coming face to face with Irina.

"Why don't you do it?" Averinka spoke coyly smirking at the girl who was staring back at her in bewilderment.

"M-Master?"

"Did you think I wouldn't remember?" Averinka scoffed noticing how the girl's breath shortened and blood drained from her flushed face.

"Did you think your spell could work on me and I wouldn't remember any of it?" She smiled up at Irina who's looking up at the queen with wide eyes. Averinka could see flecks of red in he deep brown irises that always had entranced her in frenzy, even without knowing it.

"M-Ma...h-how did you?" She looked Averinka up and down in confusion since it didn't make sense to her how could her memory spell not work on her. The queen had been fine since morning, but then Irina thought what could have happened to trigger back her memory, making her remember ?

"There's nothing you do on others could work on me." The panic and horror struck Irina who hung her head, waiting to receive her punishment for kissing her Master, let alone the Tsarina.

"Forgive me, master!" The girl whimpered apology. "I must be carried away by the blood haze. I will receive any punishment."

"Any punishment?" Averinka teased swiping her thumb across Irina's lower lip and leaned closer to her, "Then how about getting fair here?" She pecked on her lips through her thumb between their lips, howled out a laughter when Irina blushed hiding her flaming red face behind her hands. Averinka removed her hands from her face, taking them in hers and then pressed another kiss under her chin and then side of her neck.

"Don't hide your real self from me, either it's the one I know or it's a dark side which I don't but there's nothing in this world that could hurt me than you lying to me."

"Yes, master." She inhaled sharply as Averinka pressed a kiss on the hollow of her throat and the queen pulled back to see the girl's face with a gentle smile on her face.

"You should start calling me by my first name, Irina."

"If this is what Averinka wants." This time, Irina smiled aware of her own erratic heartbeat in her chest.

"Now, let me wash your back since it's already been healed after feeding on my blood."