He was devastatingly beautiful.

Beneath the dark brown hair that refused to get out of his face were eyes bluer than the afternoon sky. His nose had a crooked bump that looked like it had been broken once and his almost perfect face was marked with a scar, white on his tan skin that ran from his left cheekbone to his jaw.

He was leaning against the bookshelf in such a manner that Maize would need to brush past him to continue on her way and she wasn't sure if being that close to him would leave her wanting to tear off his clothes or give him a scar to match the one he already had.

"Can I help you find something?" he asked, though his intonation insinuated he most likely wouldn't help at all.

"I was just looking," Maize said cooly before adding, "for a book."

"Being in a library I'm sure you'll find one."

"You're most definitely right."

"Why were you watching me?" he asked just as smoothly.

"Why were you talking to yourself?" Maize blurted.

He gave her a slow grin that neither confirmed nor denied her accusation. He did, however, keep those blue eyes trained wholly and completely on her. Mustering up years of training, Maize didn't flinch, didn't try to meld into the shadows. She matched his gaze.

His smile broadened.

"Are you here for the celebration then?"

"I'm a courtier to Prince Laris," she corrected, the lie becoming truth the more often she said it.

"You and half the people in the castle at the moment," he mused. "I wonder if he knew how many would be so willing to lay their service at his feet if he would have come home sooner. Did he choose you himself or were you assigned?"

"I have no input into the selection process." Not a lie.

"I'm sure you don't." His voice purred as he maintained her gaze, but it was almost like he was assessing her, trying to take her in for who she was. She didn't feel threatened by him, but there was something about his presence that Maize felt drawn to, and she didn't like it.

"What about you?" she asked, trying to deflect the focus from her purpose in the castle. "Or are you just here to talk to the books so they don't feel lonely and misused?"

A chuckle. "Oh, I'm here for the Prince as well."

She arched a brow. Something in her didn't think the King would deem men to make courtiers in a conservative royal family— Ress' treatment by his own family on the common level made her all the more defensive if it. "Then, I assume we'll be seeing much of each other these next couple of weeks."

"I expect it."

They stared at each other a few moments longer. Nothing in Maize sparked the fight or flight reaction. That concerned her more than anything. There was nothing extraordinary about him, and yet something in her yearned to want to know more. A notion the stored away for a leter time, Perhaps, since he seemed to know his way around the library so well, she could use him to assist in her research for the Legacy. Maybe...

"I shouldn't delay you any longer then," he said after a few more unawkward moments of silence. "I'm sure with the arrival of the Prince, you have much to do to prepare for the ball tonight."

"I— yes," she stammered, though even she was uncertain what she'd need to do to prepare. "As I'm sure you will have plenty to do as well. For the Prince. To get ready for the ball."

"Of course."

Despite his dismissal, he didn't move to let her pass. Nor did she move to leave. One of them would need to waver but neither seemed to want to be the first. A challenge of wills, or maybe more...

Do it.

"Do what?" the man asked, the look on his face shifting.

Maize didn't say anything out loud. In fact, Maize didn't say anything at all.

Do it.

The confidence was cracking from his expression, and Maize used the distraction to make her exit. She was able to maneuver herself around his strong form, but even doing so, her hand brushed against his.

It was like fireworks. A burning spark of recognition.

She spun to face him, and he was already looking at her. His eyes wide- had he felt it too?

Do it do it do it do it

She didn't wait around to ask.

"It was like he could hear it," Maize informed Ress quietly when they found a low stone bench to sit on during their walk in the castle's gardens. She didn't go back to her room after the encounter in the library. She ran right through the doors and towards the rose bushes and remained there until Ress was able to find the time to meet with her before the ball like they originally planned.

Like Maize, Ress spent his time cleaning up and changing into garb more suitable for the castle life. Changing his gear for a more casual shirt and pants, he wore a longcoat customary to that of a footman for a courtier. Maize has smirked when she saw him, thinking of all the ways she'd be able to take advantage of his alleged position.

"Maybe you did say it out loud," he offered, resting his arms on his thighs. "You took the herbs before you left, so there's no way that the effect could be wearing off already."

"Maybe there was something wrong with the dosage. Maybe the potency was lower, or the quality compromised-"

"And we'll never be able to ask Josue again." Ress sighed. "Will you be alright tonight?"

"I'll have to be. But it's also all the more reason we finish this mission and get as far away from here as we can."

"Because of him?"

"Because of everything."

Ress only nodded in agreement.

"The library is a good place to start," Maize went on. "And there must be some hidden archives within the castle- putting all of Lusciana's belongings on public display is one thing, but where are they stored the remainder of the year?"

"Do you think there will be items that the King doesn't show on Remembrance Day?"

Maize shrugged. "There may be more personal items. Love letters perhaps?"

"Insinuating they actually loved each other."

"You've never written me a love letter- does that mean you don't love me?"

"That's not what I meant!"

She nudged him playfully. "You may question it when you see who I saw in the library."

"So, we're not going to try to bed the Prince then?"

"Maybe we can seduce both of them."

Ress snorted, looking up at the darkening sky.

"You're thinking about it."

"Maybe."

Maize snorted as she followed his gaze upward. The sun was setting, which meant they would need to begin preparations for the ball. And though Forge deemed him a servant for the evening, he was still tasked as her footman, and would have the excuse to be in her rooms to assist her getting ready. Maize was more than ready to take advantage of him helping her get undressed... it would be a welcome distraction and clear her mind for the evening ahead. But they did need to focus, and there were already too many distractions.

"I'll make a deal with you then," she offered, standing from the bench. "I'll introduce you to him at the ball tonight, and you can make nice while I'm forced to play the part of courtier to the Prince, and if you can convince him to join us in my rooms tonight I'll let you have the first taste."

Ress rolled his eyes as he stood and started walking with her back into the castle. "Let's not forget we are here on mission. That we still need to not only discover the true identity of Lusciana's Legacy but also steal it, all while trying to find something to compensate for your missing herbs, all while trying to pretend we actually belong here..."

"We belong here as much as anyone else does," she reminded him. "So long as we don't do anything to bring question to it, we will have that task resolved."

"Luring courtiers to your rooms at night doesn't raise any questions?"

"On the contrary," Maize hummed as they walked through the doors of the castle's foyers. "I think the court would be suspicious if we didn't."