All right. I guess we're going back to Courtney, yet again. Thank you for reviewing, Gage the Hedgehog.
Whenever Courtney wasn't around, the servants were still plotting ways to make her fall for Duncan. They had been getting along better, the more time they spent together, but they were still arguing and while Duncan was pretty obviously flirting with her at times, Courtney's side of the arguments was almost always bitter and angry.
It was DJ who came up with an idea. "Some kind of surprise. If Duncan does something special for Courtney, something she'll love, it'll prove he wants her to be happy here. Although it needs to be something that Courtney would like – not any girl."
Gwen grinned. "I've gotten to know her well. Leave the ideas to me."
She was also the one who approached Duncan. Although he had annoyed her multiple times growing up, they'd actually become very friendly while Gwen was stuck at sixteen and Duncan grew up. Often, she was the only one who saw his softer side.
When Gwen presented the idea, she didn't even have to suggest what Courtney would like. Duncan had been paying more attention to her than she'd expected. "She's always in the library, reading. If I get a bunch of you to make up one of the empty rooms as a library with only the books she's interested in...well, that should work." And although he didn't know what kind of books Courtney liked, Emma and the other librarians he'd hired were surprised at how good he was at guessing.
"He must really be into her!" Emma whispered to Noah, another librarian that she had a "secret" (she didn't know everyone else could tell) crush on for two years.
The witty guy (who had his own secret crush on Emma, but didn't know she liked him) gave a small smile and said "Pretty obvious, Em. Problem is, she's not into him."
But Courtney definitely appreciated the gesture when one and a half months after she got there, Duncan showed her into the room, keeping his flirtatious or witty remarks to a minimum.
Courtney gasped. "All my favourite books! Everything I've ever wanted to read..."
"I thought you might appreciate it." Duncan muttered, trying not to look too happy that it had worked. "I mean, I don't read this stuff, but I guessed that these were your kind of titles."
Not realizing what she was doing, Courtney gave Duncan a hug. "Thank you so much!" She didn't realize until she was practically cuddled up to him that she stepped away, still smiling.
After that, their arguments didn't stop, but it got less bitter. One day, when Courtney was making a dessert in the kitchen, Duncan came in.
"You don't have to do that." he said. "Make Gwen or Cody do it – that's what they're hired for."
"I wanted to make it." Courtney said without looking up. "Besides, I told Gwen to go and take a break, and Cody followed her."
"C'mon, loosen up and have some fun!" Duncan said impatiently. "What are you making, anyway?"
Courtney shrugged. "Custard pastries. See all the bowls?"
Duncan couldn't resist. He picked up the icing bag that was full of custard, and squirted it at Courtney. She squealed as it hit her, and then did something unexpected.
She picked up one of the bowls full of custard and tipped it on Duncan, then burst into giggles. Before long, it had become a full-scale custard fight, the uncooked pastries forgotten.
Finally, they ended up laughing together, leaning against the counter, closer than usual. Suddenly, Courtney reached out with an unscathed fingertip, coated it in some of the custard on Duncan's face, and tasted it. There was a moment of silence.
"It has to be illegal to make that movement look that sexy." The comment was on Duncan's lips, but he didn't let it out.
They were staring at each other for a moment, dark eyes locked on blue. Duncan was just about to make a move, when...
"Ugh, I've got this all over me!" Courtney flinched away, looking at her custard-stained clothes. "I better go take a shower."
"Wait for me!" Duncan teased.
Courtney didn't take offence, this time. "Wait your turn!" she teased back, even though there were several baths, showers and bathrooms in general in the castle.
After that, the servants didn't really need to move things along. Another month passed, and as the young girl and the cursed lord spent more time together, something changed. Duncan still checked out his progress with Courtney every so often.
One night, he pulled out his mirror. "Show me Courtney." he commanded, and as it turned out, she was sitting in the kitchen with Gwen.
Cody set down mugs in front of them. "Hot chocolate, ladies."
"Thanks." the two girls chorused, and Cody left them alone to talk.
"So," Gwen said, a bit of a sparkle in her eyes, "You and Duncan, huh?"
Courtney laughed. "Gwen, you're making it sound like we're dating or something!"
Gwen chuckled. "Well, who can blame me? Guy's totally fallen for you."
"No way!" Courtney protested. "The guy basically locked me up in this place! He can't possibly feel that way about me!"
Duncan's heart sank at those words. He did feel that way about Courtney. He was good at hiding it, covering up by careless flirty remarks and teasing, but it was true. He didn't know if he loved Courtney, but he knew that what he felt for her was so different, more intense than any feeling he'd ever had. And he was happy when Courtney was.
In the mirror, Gwen spoke again. "And what about you?"
"Promise not to tell?" Courtney said softly.
Gwen nodded, and Courtney let it out. "I really don't know what to say! I couldn't stand the guy weeks ago! He's still teasing me and flirting with me nearly all the time, but then he'll do something sweet for me and I'll wonder how I actually feel. I don't want to like him, but I do and I don't know why!"
Duncan wasn't sure what to think, but hope returned. Courtney didn't love him, but she liked him. But a sense of panic emerged as Beth's white rose caught his eye.
The first petal had fallen.
That same night, Duncan looked into Courtney's library, and saw her asleep in one of the armchairs, and a thought struck him. He picked up the light girl, and carried her up to her room. As he closed the door, he caught sight of the goofy smile on his face in the nearby window.
"Am I getting soft?" he wondered momentarily. "Aw, what the hell if I am. Maybe I want to be."
Yeah, that thought is not something that's going to last. This chapter was mostly just filler. I guess you could call it this fic's version of "Something There". And yes, I managed to reference THREE TDI episodes: "The Sucky Outdoors" (Courtney falling asleep – not as romantic when she's not cuddled up to Duncan, but it works), "Phobia Factor" (Courtney catching herself hugging Duncan), and "If You Can't Take The Heat" (Can you say 'custard fight'? That's one of my favourite scenes!)