It was the Middle Ages. She was a seventeen-year-old maid, and he was a 19-year-old carpenter and locksmith. They were poor, but they were in love. He wanted to give her the world, he wanted to marry her, but in between taxes and trying to take care of himself, he couldn't afford a ring, let alone a marriage license. If he got a marriage license, then their households and taxes could become one and then he could take care of her. He hated the fact that she had to pay taxes on her own, and take care of herself; he wanted to do everything for her. Even through her financial problems, she still invited him over every evening so that she could cook for him. She was so sweet, always giving even though she didn't have enough to give, one of the reasons he had loved her so much.
He was always at her home, every evening. More than once he had almost taken her, but he had always stopped himself, sometimes feeling ashamed of his behavior. But she never allowed him to feel ill; she told him that he was not wrong for feeling the way he felt. She repeatedly told him that even though they were not married, in her eyes they were one; they could make their own vows before God, and that being married in front of man and under their law didn't matter. But he had stood his ground and said that he wouldn't take her unwed, that he would marry her. She felt bad for him, she knew that he was determined to save enough money to marry her, and she knew that it was something that he felt strongly about; but she also knew that they couldn't afford it, he'd have to save for a long time to afford it between their earnings, and knowing him, she'd hate to think that he was starving himself so that he could do this for them. He was already working two jobs; she'd hate to think of the strain he would put on himself if he were to do this. But that was what she loved most about him, he was so determined; he would do anything for her.
They had talked of many things, from love to even children. On that matter she expressed her deepest fears, to bring a child into a world in which she could not financially support him or her. He would repeatedly reason with her, try and assure her that if such a thing were to ever happen, even if it were not his child, he would take care of her.
He was very weary of the Lord of the manor whom she worked for, he knew that although the man was married, he was still known for taking some of his maids into one of his many bed chambers and claiming them for his own. How many times had he made her come to his place early before she left for work so that he could dress her down and make her not look appealing? Too many more than he could count; even after dressing her down she still looked beautiful to him. Sometimes he wondered if other men in the town had realized how beautiful she was; perhaps not, he had been the only one to see her in all her beauty for a long time. From her dazzling blue eyes that sparkled with merriment whenever she was caught in mischief, to her soft sun golden hair that only he had privy to look at, to feel. He would hate for her to be taken from him, which is the main reason why he wanted to marry her by law. He could finally take her to his own home, and he would not let her work again. He knew it would raise a quarrel, stubborn woman that she is, but even if he had to tie her up to the bed in his cottage before he went to work everyday, he would not let her go back and work at that manner again.
But things got quite harder for him, when the emperor, Claudius II, outlawed marriage for young, single men. He was outraged. He knew that the emperor had only done this as way to keep a crop of potential soldiers. Stupid man reasoned that a man who was single was better than a man who was married when it came to war.
But alas, how could he marry her now? All seemed so hopeless until he heard some rumors from some of his fellow carpenters. When the rumors he heard were confirmed as true, he decided to take action. Unbeknownst to him, she too, was making plans of her own.
***
With careful hands she placed the cake pan in the old rusty stove and closed the door. She had just come home from the manor and was slightly tired but was determined to keep herself energetic for him. She wanted to surprise him with her arrangements and had been saving up for this day, and only hoped that her planning wouldn't go in vain.
She still remembered weeks ago when he had came to her, tears in his eyes, and collapsed at her feet. She immediately helped him up, as a mother wood, and brought him to the fireplace so that she could warm up. She knew it was cold, but she hadn't realized it had gotten so bad until he came in, the breeze forcing itself in after him. She brought him a couple of blankets and held his head in her lap before he told her the terrible news.
He couldn't marry her.
All his dreams had melted away and he wept like a child as he told her the new law that was set out by the emperor. It was then that he told her that he had been saving to marry her, for years he had been, but now he couldn't because of some stupid law. It took her a long time to calm his fears, telling him that they would find a way, that God would help them.
For a while he would come to her home with a forlorn look about his face, and she had wished so much that she could bring back the light into his dark midnight eyes, but even she couldn't make him feel better about their predicament. She could only hold him by the fireplace, gently stroking his face and pass her fingers through his ravenous strands as she hummed a little tune. It was on a night like this that she had made her decision; she knew what she would have to do.
She turned to the meal that she was preparing on the stove and almost jumped as she felt warm arms encircle her. She allowed her hands to caress the arm's lengths as she called out a greeting.
"Evenin' love." She said lovingly with a smile.
"Evenin' beautiful." He replied as she turned herself in his arms, leant up, and gave him a kiss. When she would have ended it, he followed her causing a low murmur to escape her lips. When he finally released her, she spoke softly, as if almost out of breath.
"You seem to be in a lighter mood today. How was your day?" She asked him sweetly.
"The best." He replied breathlessly.
"What happened?"
"Guess."
"Did you make extra money today?"
"No."
"Did you get a raise in your pay?"
"No."
"Endymion you know that I despise guessing games!" She said with a pout. He laughed with merriment as he lifted her in the air and spun her around.
"God I love you." He said passionately as he placed her back down on the floor.
"Stop stalling." She said as she released herself from his hold and swatted him playfully on the shoulder.
"Is that raspberry cream cake I smell?" He asked teasingly.
"Maybe, maybe not!" She scolded. "Endymion you will tell me what happened today or will I have to go to drastic measures to receive that information!"
"Alright, alright!" He chuckled deeply as he settled in one of the chairs in front of the table. "You've heard of Saint Valentine right?"
"The priest?" She asked as she picked up a spoon and placed it into the pot of food.
"Yes, the priest." He paused. "Well as it turns out, he is against the new law that forbids young men to marry, and for a small sum, he will perform our wedding in secret!" The ceramic bowl she had been holding to put his soup in fell to the ground with a great and mighty crash. She immediately bent down to pick it up hurriedly as what he said dawned on her.
"We...we can get married?" She choked out with tears in her eyes. She looked up to him and saw the joy in his eyes that equaled the feeling in her heart.
"Yes love." He replied to her. She quickly discarded of the broken pieces and went to him; he stood up and swung her around once more before planting a passionate kiss on her lips. When they parted, she spoke once more.
"When?" She asked breathlessly.
"Today, this afternoon." He replied in turn.
"Today?" She squeaked.
"Is something wrong with today?" He asked her.
"N-no." She replied with a soft shake of her head. "Today will be perfect."
"Fine then...we must go now, he said to come this evening to confession and there he would marry us."
"But I am not dressed...I...I look an awful fright." She said to him hurriedly.
"To me you look beautiful." He said to her seriously.
"Thank-you." She replied softly. "But please, I...I want to look my best...so...why don't you go down to the church, and meet me there?" She paused. "I want to surprise you."
"O-okay." He replied softly. "I shall wait for you." He ended before leaving her reluctantly and stepping out the door with his coat to protect him from the cold.
***
It was later that night that she sat in the back of the pew of the old church, her nerves a shot as she realized that they were going to finally be together.
She would soon be his forever.
She tried her best to iron the creases in her simple cream cotton dress with her hands. She only had three dresses, which had been her mother's, and it was the best of the lot. She had spent a good amount of time brushing her hair and making it the way she wanted it to look, fine, curly and luminous, instead of tangled and dingy as Endymion would often make it when she had to go to work. She had tied her soft creamy shawl that her mother had given her for her birthday when she was but 14 years of age before she died around her hair. She had discarded of her old heavy coat on the chair and took a heavy breath before walking up to the second room where normally one would go for confession. She paused shortly before placing her hand on the door and closing it behind her.
***
It was slightly dark and cramped in that small room, but they easily remedied that as he took her by the waist and placed her on his lap. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he approved of her appearance.
"How can you possibly look more beautiful than when I had seen you hours before?" He whispered softly making her blush.
"Are you ready?" She heard a deep voice say; for the first time since she arrived, she acknowledged the slightly broken picture of a man on the other side of the gold rimmed screen.
"Yes." She said to him.
"Y-Yes." He replied at the same time as she. "We're ready father." He could tell she was nervous as he took her hands in his own and squeezed softly to give her reassurance; her body was shivering slightly. When he began the ceremony, she turned her gaze to him to see that he was staring intently at her, with fearful bravery she stared back at him boldly, allowing him to read everything within. They had stayed like that throughout the whole ceremony, and she was vaguely aware of her lips moving to say the words "I do." She hadn't been aware of much of anything until Valentine had come to the point where he was asking about the ring.
"I am sorry, we do not-" She began softly, and slightly embarrassed.
"Right here." Endymion interrupted as he produced a ring from his pocket. She let out an audible gasp as she stared upon the small golden band with a small diamond atop it.
"Endymion this must have cost you more than a few months wages!" She whispered softly in shock.
"I have been saving up for you for years...just for this day." He replied to her immediately, love showing clearly through his eyes.
"But you must have had to give up so much just to pay-"
"Anything for you my love." He replied immediately, silencing any of her protest.
"Thank-you...it is...it is beautiful." She cried.
"Shall we continue?" The priest asked with amusement that could be clearly seen from their side of the junction.
"Yes...yes of course." Endymion replied as he placed the ring affront her finger; his hands shaking slightly as he said the words and slipped the ring on her.
"By the power invested in me...I now pronounce you husband and wife...you may now kiss the bride." He finished; and then it was over. She smiled brightly as he placed both sides of her face gently in his hands before bringing her down to kiss him. They were interrupted by the sound of Valentine's voice.
"You have the documents on your side, you know what to do." He paused. "Sign it and then leave it there."
"And the pay-"
"This one is on me." He interrupted, quickly leaving the two alone in the booth before they were allowed to protest.
***
She discarded her coat before taking his as well and placing it on the rack.
They were married. The thought alone was overwhelming and she still could not believe it had happened.
He followed her into the dining area, which wasn't necessarily separated from any other area of her small cottage, and she made him to sit down at the table. She then proceeded to pull the cake from the stove; she had left it in there to keep warm and safe from insects, and made sure to put out the fire before she went to the church.
He smiled brightly as she set the cake down in front of him, his grin going from ear to ear.
"It smells delightful Serenity." He said to her as he took the knife from her hands and began to cut both him and her a slice.
"I-I...I made it for you." She said nervously as she played with the hem of her dress. Noting her actions, he immediately knew something was a foot. She only made those actions when she was nervous or troubled about something.
"What is wrong?" He asked her, his smile flattening out.
"N-nothing." She quickly replied.
She stuttered. That was another thing she did when she was troubled.
"Are you sure...are-are you having second thoughts?" He asked pensively.
"No!" She quickly replied. "N-no...it-it is nothing." She ended softly.
"Then sit with me and eat." He said with a charming smile. She slowly sat down in front of her piece, picked up her fork and shakingly placed it in the cake to eat. With idle eyes she took note of the way in which he ate her food happily and suddenly decided with determination, that it was now or never.
"I-I got a gift for you." She said to him causing his eyes to light up as he immediately looked at her. "It is...it is in the bedroom...I shall go and retrieve it for you." She said before quickly getting up and leaving him at the table with confused look on his face.
Moments later he understood her nervousness as the food stopped short in his throat on its way to his stomach. He swallowed hard to make it continue on its path as he looked upon her. She stood before him shyly with nothing but a sheer cream nightgown on. She flushed greatly as she noticed his preoccupiedness with certain areas of her body; her arms automatically came up over her chest as she turned an even greater shade of red, if that were all possible.
"Today I had...I wanted to give...myself to you." She spoke softly. He had sat there for a good while staring at her before he finally resolved to pick up both of their slices of cake, bidding her to come with him into the bedroom so that they could finish eating there.
They had sat silently for a while, until he finally opted to feed her. She had numbly taken the pieces from him, still nervous about the thought of them together in that way.
Things didn't take a drastic turn until she had begun to feed him. He hadn't retreated from her fingers as she did his own. Each time she fed him he would kiss her fingertips, until finally he was kissing her hand, up her arm, and the arch of her neck. As the passion grew, their clothing fell away, discarded and forgotten in a heap on the floor. He could tell she was slightly apprehensive still, remembering her fears of having children, but more so, he remembered that it was both their first times. When he was right before her, and ready to make them one, he reassured her.
"Do not worry love...I shall take care of you...you know that I do not wish to hurt you do you not?" He asked her softly into the night. She nodded her head in affirmative; tears already brimming her eyes as she gripped his shoulders tightly. "I love you." He cried out as he slowly entered her. He had never felt such a sensation as he felt while being encased in her warmth; he could barely keep himself in control so that he could go slowly for her. He could feel her nails digging deep into his back, her lips and tongue warm against his neck as she whimpered in pain. When he broke her barrier, she cried out, her teeth digging into his flesh as he moaned in ecstasy.
"Serenity!" He cried out as he went slightly faster than he had been before. And then she felt the pain easing away, turning into something glorious and untamable. She closed her eyes tightly and bit her lip as they came together in a blazing release, their bodies moving in tune with one another. She opened her eyes when they fell to the bed, a tear escaped its brim as she chanced a look at him; he was smiling dazedly as if from a dream at her.
"I love you." She choked out before he placed a light kiss on her lips; she fell asleep thereafter, numbly aware of him disentangling himself from her body and rising from the bed.
She awoke at dawn to find herself within his arms and wrapped in clean white sheets. She looked up to him to see that he was awake; his eyes fixed upon her.
"Morning beautiful." He said with a soft smile.
"Morning." She smiled back. "How long have you been awake?"
"All night." He replied.
"All night?" She asked incredulously. "What did you do for so long?"
"Well...I took you to the lake while you were asleep and cleansed you, then I brought you back here and replaced the sheets." He paused. "After that I just took you in my arms and looked at you all night."
"I do not deserve you." She replied softly as she passed her fingers along his arms that were wrapped tightly round her body.
"The truth of it all...is that I do not deserve you." He whispered into her ear and then changed the subject. "We really should find a way to thank Valentine." He told her softly.
"I know...it was so nice of him to let you keep the money." She replied.
"But I just know that he will never except it."
"Perhaps we shall just give thanks every year to God on this day for bringing him to us?" She suggested.
"What day is it?"
"It is the fourteenth...of...of February." She replied to him while trying to stifle a yawn.
"From now on we shall make this a special day in our lives...the...the day of Valentine." He commented.
"That is...that is too long of a name." She replied with yet another yawn. "Perhaps we shall just call it...Valentine's Day."
"Well then...Happy Valentine's Day my love." He whispered to her.
"Happy Valentine's Day."
The end.
This story was based on one of the actual legends that surround the origination of Valentine's Day.