The night passed in slow breaths, leaving a dreamless blackness that woke Soleil again and again. Sometimes she thought she saw coloured spots of light behind her eyes, then cold, black eyes stared at her, so large and haunting that running away seemed impossible.

Sometimes the slender figure of Illumi appeared in her mind. Never with a smile, but always with those sharp, ugly needles in his hand, threatening to pierce her throat. And whenever that bloody assassin didn't appear in her mind, it was Chrollo who simply looked at her – with that expression of a man who had already seen the world from so many angles that his posture whispered loneliness.

The knowledge that they would play a couple for a short while kept squeezing her chest. It spurred something in her, made the hours restless, though her eyes fell shut constantly.

The fact this man seemed mysterious in his own special way and yet terribly clear and open made it hard not to think about him. Simultaneously, there were still those impressions; the smell of his body and also the friendliness that knew how to punish even in silence. To simply push all these things aside and fall asleep peacefully was an impossibility and although Soleil had known that peace wouldn't catch up with her after meeting Chrollo, she had still believed in sleep. Only for a fleeting moment before it had all collapsed.

By now, the late hours had passed, and the sun gleamed high in the firmament while shallow draughts of wind whistled through the cracked window. No one had fixed it because she hadn't told a soul. A little fresh air amidst constricting fabrics was the only fair thing they let her have.

Her eyes burned as if she had used dishwashing soap to wash them out and her eyelids weighed heavy as lead. Exhaustion throbbed behind her temples, and part of her skin felt so tense that Soleil couldn't help rubbing her face. The last time she had gone through this was on a double night at the club to please the customers over the Easter holidays. Disguised as sexy bunnies and innocent lambs, they'd made a lot of extra money – but it had sent the world into constant turmoil and Dragon had just collapsed at one point. Not that any of the customers had cared. They had all been expendable. Here, at least, she was in a bed, surrounded by cool air and warm sheets that held her firmly under its protection.

Only slowly did she push her tired bones away from the mattress to glance at the nearest clock. The hands were close to ten.

Barely noticeably, her eyes wandered from the clock to the bathroom door, which seemed only half as far away as the door to the hallway, where no one awaited her. And this despite that breakfast would start in a few minutes. She had to be on time. Mustn't arouse suspicion. Everything about her had to be the same as on all the other days. Almost as if Archihilles had never been murdered – as if this day was as trivial as all the others before it.

So Soleil gathered what little motivation was playing hide-and-seek somewhere in her body and peeled herself from the warmth of her forgotten dreams. Her legs, however, only carried her staggeringly to the bathroom door, where the cold metal of the handle burned treacherously in her fingers. Still, she overcame the obstacle and moved all the sensation and perception aside so that her body simply followed the routine.

A shower, to wake up. Heavy clothes, to fit into the picture. Torn moments that turned minutes into seconds. The hallway that lay lonely before her. The stairs whose steps swayed. A headache that accompanied her all the way to the table, where she dropped into a chair that felt like an endless fall into nothingness.

The food on the table had no appeal this time, appearing like unwanted by-products of a world she didn't want to devote herself to. All Soleil could do was close her eyes, drift off, envelop herself in blackness and surrender to the eternity beyond. Rest seemed to be a constant companion all at once, tiredness that she could no longer push away when she should have been doing otherwise.

Tension eased from her shoulders. The world became kinder and the certainty that this time neither Illumi nor Chrollo would reach for her was the slight yet positive substance of a distant dream. With that, the throbbing behind her forehead subsided. Her body went numb.

And sleep settled on her for a short time.

But the blackness didn't hold on to her for long before she opened her eyes again and stared at the same food she had left behind.

How much time had passed?

"Is everything all right?" Cautiously, one of the silver masks turned to her. It was a voice Soleil didn't recognise, so she ruled out Chrollo and his assistant. Instead, she leaned forward a little in her chair, only to wrinkle her nose at the food. It was still far too much.

"I ... am just a little worried," she finally replied. She needed to lay the groundwork for an easy lie, and this moment was the perfect opportunity. Her fingertips tapped together as she raised her brows. "Archihilles changed his appearance yesterday, and I complained about his face changing so often. Now he wants to wear it a little longer for my sake, since he has nothing planned for the near future. But I'm not sure if it wasn't silly of me." She shrugged. "Am I not completely out of place?"

Though the masks hid any expression, Soleil thought she saw out of the corner of her eye two of the servants nodding to each other before the silver mask at her side spoke up again. "My Lady, it may seem hard for you to live in this world. But believe us when we say that we are all delighted to know you are here. You are an important pillar in our Master's life and thus indispensable to us." Without further ado, the stranger folded their hands in front of their chests. "You will certainly, given enough time, settle in here."

They all seemed to possess a measure of goodness – the kind assurance in the middle of lazy days when they all did the same thing and yet lived completely different lives. The years had pressed them perfectly into the role Archihilles had given them and it helped to lay the foundations for Chrollo. Still, there remained a whiff of bad humour. They all seemed too friendly for their own good.

"Thank you." Lowering her eyelids, Soleil caught herself before breathing a sigh of relief and pulling herself together. Breakfast had no appeal, hunger was absent, the last few hours had thrown her into various situations and the end was still out of sight. So she detached herself from the table. "I will return to my room and get some rest. Archihilles is nowhere to be seen either, after all." Once more she let her gaze slide over those present. "I will be back down for lunch. Away from that, I do not wish to be disturbed, please."

Her own words sounded like those of a stranger as Soleil turned away and left the dining room behind. Pompous phrases had never really suited her and yet, in this situation, they were the best attempt she could make to prove that she wanted to fit in. At least somehow.

The tiredness still hadn't left her bones, which made the ascent of the stairs a miserably long journey to the next floor. Now and then she even thought her legs were giving way, so she clung to the bannister as if her life depended on it.

It wasn't until she reached the top that a new sense of security sprouted, taking her all the way to the bedroom. She would sleep away the hours until lunch. At least it had the pleasant ring of a plan that could work – had it not been for the problem within the sleepy four walls, already waiting for her with a book in its hands.

As the door slammed shut behind her, Chrollo lifted his gaze and eyed her briefly before closing the book. His forehead covered by a headband, he looked almost as he had that evening when he had approached her. Only his clothes were simpler, composed of a light jumper and a simple pair of black jeans that only half matched his formal shoes. The blue pearls of his earrings shimmered in the daylight, adding at least a little colour to his pale appearance, while his grey eyes stayed silently on her.

He was the last she needed to see.

"How are the preparations?" The first thing that crossed Chrollo's lips was mild curiosity about her progress. No questions about her well-being. No interest in what he should do first.

And yet he remained lovelier than Archihilles.

"All is well. The foundations have been laid. I guess you're free to move inside the house now."

"And how should I act?"

A simple question that Soleil could hardly answer. Archihilles was an idiot and there was something ridiculous about imagining Chrollo in that role. Almost like dressing a raccoon in royal robes.

But they had to be convincing.

"How can I put it... you must be a pretentious asshole. You're the smartest person in these four walls and you see others one step below you all the time. The only thing more important than yourself is your guinea pig Sherry – hence all the ugly pictures. So you should pay some ... attention to them." Thoughtfully, Soleil put a finger to her chin. "Besides, you take what you want. No questions asked. You probably don't even know question words. Added to that, you may think I'm a stupid country bumpkin, but you can't deny that you like me. This, of course, suits your child planning very well, which is why you keep trying to get me to sleep with you. You skilfully ignore a 'no'. You're probably deaf." In the end, it was easier than expected to put Archihilles into words. "In short, you are pushy, arrogant, selfish, with a soft core and great interest in hideous art."

Only slowly did Chrollo rise from his position to bridge the gap with a few strides and, out of nowhere, grab Soleil by the hips. The sudden closeness brought with it the smell she had already noticed the night of the dance, and the heat of his skin jumped right to her. It was obviously just a test to see how pushy he could be, but when Soleil's body brushed against his, there was a lack of disgust to push him off.

They probably presented a completely different picture than had been the case between her and the original. But perhaps it was just as well. Chrollo's pushiness was just a spectacle, nothing to be afraid of. Nothing she needed to think about any longer than necessary. Only the palpitations remained.

"That shouldn't be a problem." His hands loosened barely a moment later, releasing Soleil and sending her stumbling back two steps.

"Probably." Her weak assurance still didn't fit the picture, kept his eyes on her as she averted her gaze. There was no value in sinking into his silence when there were more important things than closeness to a man she didn't know.

She had to complete this mission with success. No matter what the cost.