When they reached the palace, Soma was still chattering happily about the beautiful daughter of the man who'd sold them the lemons. The meeting with Neela seemed long forgotten.
Agni was really grateful that the prince had defended him in front of the woman, though he didn't have to. He hadn't yet expressed his gratitude and felt awful. But the prince just would not stop chattering about the young girl ("Oh, and did you see her hair? Wasn't it wonderful? Not as wonderful as mine, perhaps, but it still was a very fascinating shade of brown.") and Agni knew that it was rude to interrupt him.
So he just kept listening and decided to make up for it with the curry Prince Soma had decided on for dinner.
After he had helped Soma with delivering the spices at the kitchen, Agni excused himself to go and help prepare dinner. But the prince held him back.
"I didn't hire you to cook. It's after sunset, you're supposed to help me with my bath!"
Agni was hoping he misheard. He was supposed to bath him? Of course, he had had countless servants helping him with his owns before, yes, but never had he imagined giving somebody a bath. Besides, wasn't the one taking a bath usually naked?
"Are you quite all right?" Soma, who seemed to notice his servant's distress, asked. "You seem a bit out of it."
Agni didn't want to admit how much out of it he actually was.
"My prince, I really don't think I should. No, I…I think I couldn't."
At first, Soma seemed to have really no clue what the white-haired man was stuttering about. But then he realized, and almost started laughing.
"I'm not that ugly, you know? Some people told me I'm a treat for the eyes, and am I not?"
If only that was what Agni was worried about. Truth was, that was the least concern he got. He had to admit that he found the prince rather handsome (What was he actually thinking about?) but he couldn't fathom how that would make up for the fact that he'd see him completely naked.
"That's not what I meant," he quickly answered, "I simply do not think I could touch you, my prince. It would feel…wrong."
Though Soma still didn't really understand why, he didn't feel like arguing this point further. Instead, he assured Agni that it would be all right and that he didn't have to worry.
But then, standing inside the castle's bathroom, the bathtub had already been filled, Agni was the one who had to wait for the prince to enter.
Not, that Soma would ever admit it, but he was suddenly starting to get really shy. He had already grabbed a towel and had wrapped it around himself, but he still felt very uncomfortable. What would the other man think of…Wait a moment.
Why should he care what Agni thought about his body? Agni wasn't supposed to portrait him, he'd simply give him a bath. Nothing that hadn't happened to him before.
"My prince?" he heard Agni call from the other side of the door. It did nothing to ease his worries.
Soma sighed and took a deep breath. He'd survive it. With a shaking hand, he made to open the door and entered the bathroom.
When his and Agni's gazes met, both men quickly looked away.
"My prince, are you sure that…"
"Yes, I am quite certain," Soma interrupted him.
Despite his voice sounding so confident, inside, the prince was a trembling mess. For once, he was grateful that Agni didn't lift his head. Taking a deep, shaking breath, Soma abandoned the towel around his hips and, as gracefully as possible, lowered himself into the bathtub.
Only when Agni heard the splashing of water, did he look up. Soma had closed his eyes and had leaned his head against the rim of the tub.
"Use the yellow soap," the prince ordered, before he let himself be immersed in the steaming bathwater.
Still a little uneasy with the task at hand, Agni did as he was ordered and reached for the yellow soap on the side table. Its smell immediately reminded him of the prince. A sweet mixture between pineapple and honey. It suited the prince's tanned skin, though Agni couldn't really fathom a reason to be thinking about that right now.
He started off with cleaning Soma's torso, because he viewed it to be the safest spot. After a while, both their breathings seemed to slow, obviously both became a little more comfortable with the situation.
When Agni decided that he had spent an awful long amount of time on the prince's torso, he moved to shampooing his violet hair. And Soma, who only now seemed to realize what his servant was avoiding, quickly murmured, "You really don't have to do that."
Agni, too embarrassed to speak, only nodded his head.
And Soma, who wasn't as relaxed anymore and was now fidgeting with his hands, was glad that, standing behind him, the servant couldn't see his tinted cheeks. He'd reached the point where he was sure that this was the worst choice he had ever made.
"Agni."
The man stopped, but only for a moment, before he replied, "Yes, my prince?"
"We'll be fetching you some new clothes tomorrow. As the prince's servant, you can't go on looking like that."
Agni cast a quick glance at himself. It was true, he did not look anything like a prince's servant, but rather still a bit like an ill-fated outcast. He still wore nothing more than what he had worn when the prince had saved him just a mere day ago.
A light layer of dust and dirt still clung to his skin. There was nothing about him that screamed Brahmin or servant of a prince. (Though it did express the servant part.)
"Are you fine with that?"
Smiling, Agni cupped his hands underwater and opened them above the prince's head, letting the water run down the already soaked, violet tresses.
"Did you hear me?"
Soma leant his elbows onto the tub's brim and turned around to look at Agni. Suddenly aware of how close they were to each other, he quickly turned back around and hid his face in between his bent knees.
Agni, not as embarrassed as he had been before, reached out for the soap and, brushing the prince's hair from his neck, put his hand onto Soma's shoulders.
"Yes, I did," he answered, still smiling.
"So?" Soma's voice was quiet, drowned out by the water.
Quietly, Agni dropped the soap back onto the side table.
"Jo aagya."