"Gregory!"

The blonde sat up quickly in his bed at the shriek that sounded from down the hall, as did Christophe in his. The brunette seemed a bit more panicked as he took in several rapid breaths and looked around as if he didn't recognize his surroundings for a moment. He barely had a chance to calm down when the bedroom door was slammed open, hitting the wall behind it harshly. In stepped a rather pissed-looking, adolescent girl.

"Gregory, where is Philip?!" She demanded. Gregory rubbed his eyes as he sneered at her.

"Would you watch the paint on the walls? You'll chip it if you slam the door too hard." He scolded.

"Do I look like I care?! I told you to send Philip after me last night, and he still hasn't returned!" Gregory lowered his hand and looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"He hasn't?"

"No." She growled, crossing her arms. "So, where is he?" Gregory looked to the side in thought, and his eyes caught Christophe, who was huddled in a fearful ball against the wall by his bed. The blonde furrowed his brows and slid off of his bed.

"Oh, look, you scared Christophe..." He huffed, moving over to crouch beside him and place a hand on his back, but the boy jerked away from his touch.

"Oh, boo hoo, at least you know where your servant is!" She hissed. Gregory smirked at her.

"What, do you miss your little servant boy?" He purred.

"No, dimwit, I just shouldn't have to do everything myself!" She grabbed the door. "You'd better find him, and soon. You lost him, you find him." And, with that, she slammed the door closed. Gregory stuck his tongue out before looking back at the shivering boy.

"Christophe, it's okay..." He murmured softly, trying to touch his shoulder, but his hand was simply slapped away. The blonde sighed and sat down next to him, unsure of what to do. "I'm sorry she had to barge in like that, but she wasn't yelling at you." He knew the boy wouldn't understand a word of his, but he figured talking soothingly to him may calm him down. "If I was able to, I'd beat her up for even looking at you funny." He smiled to himself. "She's always mean. Always bossy. Sometimes, I think she wishes she was the princess or queen or whatever, and that's why she bullies me. But she can be nice, too. She has good and bad days, but the bad days definitely outweigh any good ones." As he rambled about the intricacies of Estella Havisham, he hadn't even noticed that Christophe had long since stopped shaking, and he was caught off-guard mid-sentence when he felt a weight on his side. He looked over to see the boy had leaned on him with closed eyes, his head nearly resting on his shoulder. Gregory smiled as he felt his heart leap at the thought that he had done as intended in calming the boy down and, perhaps, made Christophe like him a little more. He took note that it seemed the boy only liked contact with others when it was on his own terms, and Gregory could respect that. Still, he wondered if maybe, since Christophe was already leaning on him, it'd be acceptable for him to reach up and lightly pet his head. However, when he tried, the boy let out a small sound of discontent and jerked away from Gregory's side. Right. Noted. "Maybe we should get looking for Philip. He can't have gone far." He offered. Christophe simply looked at him and cocked his head, so the blonde stood up and motion for him to follow. He did as he was told and followed Gregory out of the room.

This was Christophe's first time actually going around the castle. He could only look around in awe as he mindlessly followed Gregory from room to room, trying to find the 6-year-old, blonde servant boy. He called his name over and over for what felt like hours. After exhausting every possible place he could be, they came to a door that led outside to a stony pathway. Gregory motioned for the other to follow as he made his way out and down the path, eventually coming to a large, white and gold structure. And, sure enough, in the field, he spotted the small blonde petting the snout of a horse and giggling.

"Ah, Philip!" Gregory exclaimed in exasperated relief, running towards the fence. "Finally, I've found you!" Philip turned his head and looked at the two, smiling widely and waving at them. But, before Gregory could open the gate to the pen, a hand grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him back.

"Ah, ah, ah. Not so fast, my prince." When he was released, he turned to see a 14-year-old ginger boy.

"Herbert, don't grab me like that." Gregory scolded. Herbert put his hands up defensively.

"Sorry, sorry, but I just couldn't let you open the gate. The animals could get out, and if my mentor saw that, she'd flip." He then casually pointed at him. "And why are you still in your pajamas?"

"I wasn't going to let them out. And that's none of your business." The blonde huffed. "Also, were you just keeping Philip here or something?"

"Not at all, dear prince. He meandered out here not an hour ago and insisted on playing with the animals, so I let him. He said he had special permission from you." Herbert smirked as he cocked an eyebrow.

"I said he was free yesterday, not forever." He grunted.

"Why do you need him so suddenly?"

"Estella came barging into my room this morning and nearly scared the life out of Christophe!" He snapped.

"Christophe? Who-" He began before cutting himself off as he turned his head and noticed the brunette boy standing off to the side awkwardly.

"Oh, right, I hadn't told you that I got a servant of my very own."

"Oh, how splendid!" Herbert grinned as he approached the boy. "Well, hello there!" He greeted kindly, walking up to him with a hand extended. Christophe quickly tried to back away as the stranger approached, but didn't realize the fence was right behind him, so when his back hit it, he panicked and suddenly lashed his hand out, slapping Herbert's away. The ginger boy quickly pulled back his hand and rubbed it.

"Oh, right. He, uh...he doesn't like to be touched."

"Yes, I can tell."

"Sorry, but he can be rather friendly if you just give him a chance. This is only his second day, and Estella told me that he was...for...foreign?"

"Ah! An outlander!" He smiled. "Well, that would explain why he didn't see my approach as a greeting." He chuckled, looking back at the cowering brunette. "Hm..." Herbert walked over to him and knelt down so he was more level with the boy. "Hey, there." He cooed softly. "Christophe, was it?" Hearing his name, the boy looked up, his eyes wide in anxiety and his body tense as it fought between fight and flight. "I'm not going to hurt you." He slowly reached out a hand to him and stopped it halfway between them so Christophe didn't feel like his personal space was being invaded, a smile on his face to show he wasn't a threat. Quickly, Christophe's gaze flickered between Herbert's face and slightly outstretched hand.

"You're not going to get through to him." Gregory shook his head and crossed his arms. "He won't even let me touch him, and I'm his master!"

"Perhaps you came on too strong right out the gate. It's like training an animal, Gregory. It just required patience." Herbert purred, his voice soothingly smooth and soft. Gregory was about to retort when his eyes widened in surprise as he watched Christophe slowly raise his hand and place it in Herbert's tenderly. Herbert smiled, deciding not to shake his hand as such an action might spook him, so he gently stroked the back of the boy's hand with his thumb. "That's it." He cooed, his expression one of satisfaction. "Now, we're gaining some trust."

"H...How did you do that?" Gregory asked in disbelief. Herbert looked over at the blonde with a smile.

"I've been training animals for five years now, which means I know how to calm one if it's spooked. Children are no different."

"That's rude." Gregory pouted.

"Yes, but results don't lie, do they?" He smirked, motioning with his head towards Christophe who'd since closed his eyes as Herbert lightly stroked his hand.

"Whatever." He grumbled, crossing his arms tighter. A sharp spike of jealously raked through him as he saw Herbert getting through to Christophe far quicker than he had. Maybe...he had been too pushy on the boy's first day, but...he'd just been excited to finally have a playmate his age. He sighed and looked out towards Philip, who was now sitting on the dirty ground and playing with a foal. "Philip, come on, let's go!" Philip turned to look at him before letting out a sigh of disappointment and standing, brushing what dirt he could from his clothes. He ran to the gate and walked through before locking it back in place. Gregory walked up to the little blonde servant. He liked Philip because, not only was he probably the nicest person he'd ever met, but also because he was also the shortest in the castle since he was only six, so Gregory got a sense of power from talking to him because Philip was the only person shorter than him. He placed his hands on his hips with a frown. "Philip." He began sternly. "I said you could have the rest of yesterday off, not today. You made Estella come into my room and scare my servant!" Philip wasn't one of many words. He rarely ever spoke, and when he did, it was in very short sentences. So, he was pleased that Philip had enough respect for him to actually answer this time.

"Sorry, my prince. It won't happen again." He bowed his head slightly. Gregory nodded.

"Good. Now, go inside and find Estella."

"Right. Good day, my prince." He replied as he ran up the stony path that lead to the castle. When he turned back, he saw that Herbert had finally let Christophe's hand go, and the two were sitting on the ground. Upon further observation, he saw that Herbert was showing the brunette a golden horseshoe.

"This is very special. If you keep it on you, it'll bring you good luck." He slowly proffered it to Christophe, which the boy took and examined it curiously. Gregory felt that sharp feeling in his insides and grimaced a bit. They're basically best friends already, and the blonde could feel his chest twisting in envy. He decided to walk over and sit down on a nearby tree stump so he could be part of this, too. Though Christophe couldn't understand what Herbert had told him, he clutched the horseshoe close to his chest and looked up at the ginger teen.

"Mien?" Herbert could speculate that he was asking if it was now his, so he nodded with a pleasant smile. Christophe looked back down at the object he held against his chest, and for a brief moment, Gregory could swear he saw the boy smile first the first time since he'd arrived.

~o~O~o~

"No, Christophe, it's green."

"Gren..."

"Green."

"Gr...eeeen."

"Yes! Very good, Christophe!" He smiled proudly. It was later that same day and Gregory currently had several colored blocked littered around them. Gregory set the green one down and picked up a red one. "What's this one again?"

"Rouge...eh...um...r...red?"

"Yes! Very good!" He set it down and picked up a blue one. "And this?"

"Eyes." He responded immediately. Gregory looked at him, puzzled.

"Eyes?" He questioned. Christophe nodded and pointed at Gregory's face.

"Eyes." He repeated. "Jolis yeux."

"I-...yes, my eyes are this color, but what is it?"

"Bleu." He answered with slight enthusiasm.

"Yes, very good, but it's pronounced 'blue.'"

"Blue."

"Wonderful! You're making a lot of progress, you know." He smiled widely at Christophe. He was pleased to see that the brunette was actually trying, almost like he had an actual desire of his own to learn. He already had most of his colors down, despite a few slips when it comes to pronunciation. "Well, I think it's lunchtime, now. Servants aren't allowed in the royal mess hall, but I promise I'll bring something up for you." Gregory said as he smiled at him. He then held up a hand. "Stay." Christophe gave a curt nod as he got the message, and once Gregory walked out of the room, the brunette stared down at the blocks on the floor, his eyebrows furrowing a bit.

"Je promets d'apprendre, mère..." He murmured to himself. "Comme tu me l'as dit..."