Aria sighs as she paces slowly about her balcony. It's been a long and trying day, but at least, under the moonlight and with a cool breeze in the air, being out here calms her down somewhat, so that's a plus. And the fact that Phantom may appear anytime - as he's wont to do recently - is definitely a plus. It's been weeks since their first meeting - and Phantom has been nothing but persistent.

He visits her every night - and of late, their meetings have been getting longer and longer. She doesn't know why she's meeting him in secret, doesn't know why she hasn't raised the alarm that Phantom has been stepping foot in the palace grounds nearly every night. But after the dinner incident, Aria likes to believe that it is useless increasing the security of the palace anyway.

Or so she tells herself. Deep down, she knows it's because she enjoys talking with Phantom, and wants to meet him. Their conversations have also gradually shifted from the more mundane to the more personal. Phantom's a charming conversationist and Aria finds herself surprisingly blunt with him in a way she's never expected. It probably doesn't help matters that Aria finds herself attracted to him; she's frightened of her growing feelings for the thief.

But for tonight, she has more on her mind than her handsome paramour.

That is, until a slight sound jerks her back to reality.

"Who's there?" Aria gasps as she turns around, even though she's been expecting him.

"Don't tell me you've been out here waiting for me all night." Phantom chuckles as he walks toward her.

"You're really persistent." She refuses to face him, and keeps her back to him instead. "Shall I summon the guard?"

Phantom just chuckles, his laughter light and airy.

"I'll not hand over our treasure, no matter how charming you try to be." Aria crosses her arms.

"Charming? You're finally coming to your senses." He begins walking toward her, and Aria sighs softly. There's just so much on her mind right now, and the last thing she needs is a charming diversion. Or maybe that's what she needs: a momentary distraction in the form of a blonde-haired man with amethyst eyes.

"I have invited an envoy from the Black Mage to Ereve," she begins, twisting her fingers slightly in her dress. "I hope to negotiate terms of peace."

Phantom's silent, and for a moment Aria wonders whether he's judging her for being so careless - as Elena had said when she had first mooted the idea. Black Mage and peace are surely incongruent concepts. Still, peace is the only option, and negotiations are the only way forward. She feels a surge of conviction rise in her. But yet she swallows, and in the silence, suddenly feels the need to explain herself.

"The Black Mage intends to invade Ereve. Peace talks with his envoy are the only way out."

"I know, Aria." Phantom says, resigned, and it feels like he's saying more. Aria looks up at him. News of the impending invasion has reached him, then.

"But?"

"I'm not comfortable with the idea of peace talks." At his words Aria flushes, lips pursed in a line. Phantom continues. "But I believe in you, Aria. I trust you. And so I'll accept your plan, if that's what you prefer."

"Then what do you prefer?" Aria can't keep the slight edge in her voice. It's not Phantom's fault and they both know it, but after a long day of bickering with Elena and the other advisors -

"I'll prefer more action and less talk. We can't trust the Black Mage to uphold a peace treaty." Phantom replies simply. He doesn't meet her eyes as much as she seeks his.

"We have to try." Aria presses, and it's like a rehash of the afternoon's conversation again. "I have to try."

"I don't feel safe. Let me go with you." Phantom offers quickly as he grabs hold of her hand.

"No." She wrenches her hand free slightly. "I won't let you."

"Why not?"

"Because this - this is my responsibility. It's something I alone must undertake. It is my duty as Empress to protect Maple World."

"That doesn't mean you must deny help where offered." Phantom says. "Let me come with you. Or at least let me be your bodyguard."

"The Black Mage has specifically requested only for my presence and that of my advisors. I am afraid that if I were to bring more people, the envoy may refuse to talk terms." Now it's Aria's turn to avoid eye contact.

"I'll be nearby." Phantom insists. "Or I can pretend to be an advisor."

"Phantom, please. I don't wish to drag you into this."

"I'm already involved by simply being here. Let me help you."

"I envy your position." Aria says suddenly, changing tact. "I wish I weren't burdened by so many responsibilities."

"When is the envoy coming?"

"Within the month." Aria sighs.

Phantom inclines his head slightly, clearly amused. "All this worrying is going to make you older." Grinning, he proffers a card in one hand. She's confused slightly, until a rose materialises in that very hand.

He holds it out to her, and her cheeks immediately turn pink.

"I prefer a woman with a smile on her face."

Blushing furiously, Aria accepts the rose.

"Phantom -"

"Come, let me take your mind off these matters for a while."

"Phantom, I really -"

"I insist."

"Alright." The fact that Phantom has been meeting her almost daily hasn't escaped her mind, but she enjoys talking with him, so she suppresses that part of her that says no.

"Come with me to the Lumiere? I'll like to show you something."

Blushing and holding onto the rose, Aria nods. She places a timid hand on Phantom's outstretched gloved one. He pulls her to him, and he teleports them in a flurry of cards to the Lumiere.

Aria opens her eyes and looks about. They're on the deck of the Lumiere, and with clear skies about them, she can almost make out the stars. She flushes red as she looks at Phantom, who sidles up next to her as she leans against the railing.

It's peaceful, almost, as Aria looks away from Phantom and out upon the night sky. She shivers slightly in the cool breeze, and vaguely remembers she's left the palace without a coat. This close to Phantom, however, she definitely feels much less colder. So she's surprised when Phantom places his coat on her, fingertips barely grazing her skin as he fastens the coat neatly around her.

"Thank you," she tucks her chin in slightly into the top of the white coat, suddenly grateful for the shadows of the night. At least her blush isn't so obvious; she's come to care for Phantom, so she's afraid that his proximity to her will reveal things she doesn't want others - not lest the man himself - to know.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Phantom asks.

"Yes." She nods. The stars twinkle and she can make out her favourite constellations.

"But it can't compare to you. You are as radiant and beautiful as a thousand suns, my lady." Phantom says suddenly.

"What -" Aria turns to face him.

"You like the book a lot. The Knight and the Empress."

"How did you - wait. Have you been spying on me?"

Now it's Phantom's turn to turn red.

"You've been spying on me!" Aria all but wails, suddenly mortified.

"I -" Phantom holds his hands up in the air. "Yes."

Aria mumbles something unintelligible and incoherent as she crosses her arms and ignores him.

"Aria -"

"Go away."

"Now you're just being childish."

"At least I have the courtesy not to spy on people."

Phantom chuckles, earning him a reproachful glare from Aria. "My lady, would I - I dare not violate you with my unworthy lips." He's earnest, continuing with his scripted monologue. And then he takes one step towards her.

Aria blinks, face even redder, for she knows what happens next in the story.

"You can't be serious." She tries to laugh, but it comes out garbled and weak. She pulls his coat closer around her.

"Have I ever not been serious?" Phantom asks.

"No." Aria says quickly, but only because it's true. Her heart pounds as Phantom slides a gloved hand along her arm and she feels warmth unconsciously pool in her at the mere thought of what is to come.

"Aria, and here I was thinking I was the thief."

"Aren't you?" Aria manages out.

"You're a thief as well."

Aria looks slightly taken aback, her face flushing. "Me?"

"You've stolen my heart, Aria." Phantom says suddenly.

"Phantom -"

"Phantom was what the people called me when I first began my thefts. I hated that name, at first, but in the end I took it in jest. But, you, my dear Aria, for you, I'll let you call me that." He holds both of her hands in his.

"Phantom -" Aria shivers, and it's not from the cold.

"If I were a King - or even a Prince - I'll court you openly, my Empress." Phantom lifts her hands to meet his lips, and he plants a soft kiss on them as he looks at her.

"You can still do so, now."

"But I am a thief. A Master Thief, no doubt, but a thief regardless. And you are the Empress of Maple World." He draws her close until their bodies are touching and Aria feels heat course through her at his proximity.

"You're second-guessing yourself. That's definitely a first." Aria laughs.

Phantom chuckles and she can feel his chest moving against hers; he releases her hands and trails a hand along her arm. She stifles a slight gasp as his touch draws goose pimples on her skin.

"My Empress, you look beautiful tonight." At his words, her heart stutters.

"And every night." He whispers, and at that, her heart stops. He runs a hand along her temple, gently tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear. She shivers as she looks up at him. He's smiling, cheeks dimpling slightly and purple eyes crinkling as he looks right at her. The moment drags as his eyes remain on hers, amethyst meeting cyan-blue. She's blushing furiously, cheeks positively red at the sudden turn of the conversation. Her next words, she knows, are not retractable.

"Your words are sweeter than sugar," Aria echoes in an almost inverse simulacrum of the words in the book, this time reality based on fantasy. Phantom breaks into a grin, amused as he grabs her hands in each of his own and intertwines their fingers together. "My dear Phantom," she breathes as she looks up at him. "It is but a prayer. From one sinner to the other."

"Then it will be as the lady wishes." Phantom whispers as he leans close to her.

Slowly, imperceptibly and inexplicably slowly, as if time itself has stopped, Phantom tilts his head slightly as he nears her. And Aria closes her eyes in anticipation of what is to come.

Her heart thuds in her ears, blood racing as she tries desperately to calm herself down. She can feel his cool breath on her face, sweet scent of spice and intrigue. He's here, and he's real, and suddenly that's all that matters. The moment hangs in the air, tension taut like a silken thread stretched to breaking point.

And then everything crashes down as his lips meet hers.

His satin lips are soft and gentle and warm with more than a hint of passion that lies beneath them. This close, his scent is intoxicating, sending Aria's head reeling and her, gasping for breath as she breathes him in. The effect he has on her isn't something she's expected, and now she feels like she's in so deep.

She hasn't realised how much she's wanted this moment - wanted him - until he holds her close. The kiss is more amazing than she's imagined; finally, at last, she finds herself coming to terms with her growing feelings for the thief that until now were kept hidden.

As if by instinct - as if stirring awake the part of her she never knew lay dormant - her hands move to pull him closer, to tangle in his hair as she savours him.

But the kiss is surprisingly chaste given her expectations of the flamboyant man; it seems to last forever, the moment seemingly stretching out to eternity as they stand in the moonlight on the deck of his ship.

And then they pull apart slowly, faces flushed as red as roses, and Phantom smiles at her shyly. Neither of them wish to break the silence, as Phantom loops one arm about her and together, they lean against the railing.

The silence lasts until Aria speaks.

"Phantom - what are we?"

"The Empress and Her Thief." He leans even closer to her, hugging her close. "Now that will make a fine story."

"Phantom, we just kissed." She says, touching her lips.

"It wasn't that bad, was it?" Phantom chuckles against her.

"No." She shakes her head and turns to face him. This close she can actually make out the twinkle in his eyes.

"Was I - did I -" Phantom trails off, face red, unsure of how to continue. "Was that too presumptuous of me?"

"No." Aria chuckles.

"I have come to care for you, Aria. Yet I do not know if you feel the same way."

"I do, Phantom." Aria replies.

"Are you sure? I mean, I -"

"Yes." She interrupts, shushing him with a finger on his lips. The look of shock on his face is definitely worth it. She grins.

"You are amazing, my Empress." Phantom says, trailing his fingers from her temple to her chin. She leans in against his palm until he's almost cupping her face.

"As are you. But tell me - why are you Phantom?" Aria pulls apart to look him in the eye.

"When I was a boy in Ariant, I had a mentor. His name's Raven." And so Phantom proceeds to tell her, in great detail, about his life growing up. About how Raven passed on his knowledge of tricks to him, and about how he eventually outgrew his master in terms of repertoire and skill. And about how he eventually took on Raven's mantle and persona upon his death.

Aria swallows. It couldn't have been easy, and for Phantom to confide in her a tale he's told few others - she feels honoured. And so she listens with rapt attention, her breath catching on his every word, his memories suddenly fully-formed pictures before her based off his descriptions. Phantom has a way with words, seemingly comfortable and always at ease. She admires that about him.

"So. That's about it." Phantom grins when he finishes his tale.

"And here you are." Aria smiles shyly.

"And here I am."

"The night is getting late, although I do not wish for it to end." She confesses.

"We have every night at our disposal, my Empress."

"You are right. We have every night. I should return, before somebody notices I'm missing."

"Come." Phantom hugs her close. "Close your eyes, Aria." Aria does as she is told, and in a flurry of cards, they are teleported back to the balcony of her room.

"Phantom -"

"Aria." Phantom whispers, and brings his lips to kiss her forehead. "I will see you again tomorrow."

"Tomorrow." She echoes.

"Sleep tight, and sweet dreams." He grins.

"Dreaming of you?" Aria giggles.

"Perhaps." Phantom inclines his head slightly. "Although I am certain I am better in reality than in your dreams."

Aria raises her eyebrows.

"Take care, my Empress." Phantom gives her a gentlemanly bow.

"You too, Master Thief." Aria says, and Phantom is gone in a flurry of cards.

Smiling to herself, Aria makes her way to her bed and falls into a blissful sleep. She doesn't think of her troubles at all that night.