Maka is quiet at his side for a while, simply just admiring the scenery in front of her like a child would admire a candy store. It's cute, he decides, how Makas bottom lip is sucked in under her top teeth just the slightest, her eyes wider than saucers, her face flooded in the golden morning light.

With a heavy breath, Maka finally looks his way, a small smile curling on her face. "You think it's scary out there?" She motions towards the edge of the balcony extravagantly as Soul processes the question.

There were a few ways Soul could answer that, he decides. Those walls were the only thing that has kept him safe from what was out beyond them, something he was eternally grateful for. Venturing outside of those walls was a death trap for him for a multitude of reasons, reasons that Maka certainly did not need to know. Ever.

"Yeah," Soul settles with, turning to take one last glance of the mountains beyond the gates. "Absolutely terrifying."

For whatever reason, Maka seems satisfied with his answer. With a small nod and hum, Maka is ducking back into her room, hands clasped to her dress skirt. Soul follows after her, closing the glass doors behind him with care.

By the time he's turned around Maka is already standing in the corner of her room in front of a bookcase that stretches from the floor to the ceiling, a multitude of colored books poking out from the shelves.

Short attention span much?

"Do you read, Soul?" Maka questions with care as she pulls one of the books out by its spine.

"Couldn't say i have a lot of time to read," He replies. Thinking back on it, during his time as a guard, he's barely picked up two books. All of his spare time was spent at the village shops gathering new equipment for gear, food, and whatever else the other guards had asked for before he slipped out for the day. It was rare he truly got a "day off."

Maka turns on her heel, her cape wrapping around her legs before it straightens itself out behind her. "Say you did read often, what would your favorite genre be?"

"Don't tell me you're a bookworm," Soul groans, almost immediately regretting the question. He should really watch how he talks around Maka, and quickly at that. He had no idea how Maka would perceive his humor, let alone if she'd get him fired for it. He's heard royals being stuck up enough to get guards and servants fired over the smallest things, and truthfully, Soul couldn't afford getting fired.

There was nowhere for him to start over if he was.

"You gain a love for books when that's the only thing you have to do all day," Maka insists before extending the blue covered book in her hand towards him. "You're going to want to have something to keep you busy. My life isn't as fun as it seems."

Soul almost laughs as he takes the cold leather book into his hands, examining the gold lettering on the cover.

"Pride and Prejudice."

"It's one of my favorites," maka explains. She taps the book a few times before turning right back around to her bookshelf. "You might like it. If you don't, there are at least another thousand books to pick and choose from. Feel free to look through them."

Soul, as confused as he is, decides to skim through the book while he stands, thumbing the pages slowly.

When Maka has picked out her own book, she sits on the edge of her bed. "You can sit at my desk if you'd like, unless you want to stand, seeing as you somehow enjoy that."

"Thank you," Soul politely does take her offer this time, making his way to Makas desk that was right across from the bed. When he pulls out the wooden chair, he finds the back is padded with a dark red cushion suited for a king, very unlike the old rickety chairs in the guards quarters. With an almost sad sigh, he situates himself on the seat, remembering just how much he hates sitting down with his armor on.

When Soul turned his head over his shoulder, Maka was already hunched over the book she'd picked out, legs hanging off the edge of the bed like a child. Content with the scene, Soul turns back to the desk and opens to the first page of the worn book.

The hours ticking down to the afternoon go relatively fast as the two sit in silence. Normally, Soul would hate sitting in silence, especially with someone he didn't know too well. However the silence that stuck in the room was almost comforting.

He could hear the wind rustling the trees just outside of the balcony, a sound that had replaced the once chirping birds of the summer. The sound was soothing honestly, better than listening to the screams and shouts from those in the village.

Every once in a while, Soul would peer over his shoulder just to make sure the Princess didn't just drop dead on his watch, and each time he did, Maka would glance up from her book and send him a warm smile before returning to her book in stiff silence.

All in all, it was nice just sitting around. It was a pleasantry he didn't indulge in often.

"It should almost be time for dinner," Maka says some time after the sun begins to set. Having gotten through a good few chapters, Soul tucks the provided bookmark in the page he'd just finished before shutting the book. When he stands, he doesn't mind the slight ache in his legs from having not moved in a couple of hours.

With a spunk in her step, Maka is quickly on her feet, already heading straight for her bedroom door. "When do the guards usually eat?" She asks as she opens the door, holding it out for him as they start their way down the staircase.

"Depends," Soul answers as he grasps the cool brick wall at his side. "I will probably eat once you go to bed for the night. Usually, the guards at the gate eat once shift change happens. There's no set time."

"Does that mean you eat alone?"

"Yes, a good portion of the time."

Maka hums as they make it to the bottom of the staircase, opening another door that would lead them to the main hallway of the castle. Once they make it into the hall, Soul follows after Maka just a few steps behind her, taking notice of the many servants that littered the hallway now.

They all bowed as they passed, Maka simply waving them off as they went along.

Maybe Maka truly wasn't someone who valued formalities.

When they finally do make it to the dining hall, a thought hits Soul like a freight train. He was about to meet the King and Queen for the first time.

God, he hoped he didn't mess this up. He never signed up to be a personal guard. This "upgrade" was still something he was trying to wrap around his head. It didn't help either that they just kind of threw him into this position without any explanation or more training. He's never interacted with any royals around here before, and yet, they were just trusting him to do his best without training?

How awful.

Maka makes it into the room first, greeting the two guards that stood on either side of the entrance happily. Both guards were wearing face shields and helmets, a uniform Soul didn't normally see.

Greeting the two with a nod, Soul stepped into the golden lit room with a held breath.

"Maka, honey how was your day?" A gruff voice echoes in the room.

The second that Make steps out from in front of him and makes her way around the table, Soul is faced with the king who sat at the head of the table. He could see the similarities in Makas features. And suddenly, he knew where her good looks came from. At the King's right side, a woman dressed in a dark green silk dress with the same ash blonde hair that ends at the middle of her back turns and meets eyes with him.

"It was good," Maka replies, taking her seat on the left of her father.

Now, honestly, Soul is good at faking confidence. It wasn't that hard, especially as someone who faked being a lot of things. But right now, he was feeling the most intimidated he has ever felt in his life.

"This must be Soul, right?" The woman suddenly asks and finally, Soul just feels the whole weight of the world crash onto his shoulders.

Remembering his place in this world, he quickly bows, clearing his throat rather quickly. "It's a pleasure to meet you, your highnesses."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well," is all the king says when he rises.

That's it. That's all that's said to him. In an instant, their attention is being pushed back onto Maka and he can finally feel like he can breathe again. When he averts his eyes from them, he catches eyes with a familiar guard situated in the back of the room. At his side, another very familiar face stands with him, looking stiff and uneasy.

Liz and Patty?

With his arms folded against his back, he makes his way around the table and situates himself beside the fellow personal guards, feeling some tension from his shoulders ease.

"Soul," Liz all but hisses through her teeth. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Posts got changed," he whispers back frantically. "The Princess's other guard went awol apparently."

"Crona went awol?" Patty whispers from the other side of Liz, finally peeking over the other to look at Soul. "Am I hearing that right?"

"Guess so," Lis comments back. "Wouldn't surprise me. Crona always complained that being in this castle drove them nuts."

Soul doesn't recognize the name, but he nods solemnly. "Wouldn't blame him."

"How are you holding up so far?" Patty whispers earnestly. "Do you like the castle so far?"

"Absolutely not," Soul sighs, shaking out his shoulders. He keeps his eyes trained on Maka who sits a good twenty feet in front of him as she animatedly speaks to her parents, a happy smile spread across her face. "The Princess isn't so bad, It's more of the fact that she lives up in a huge ass tower that has like a hundred stairs."

"Awe, sharktooth, are you out of shape?" Liz coos from his side, nudging him just the slightest. The royals in front of them don't seem to notice their banter, thankfully, too indulged in their own conversation.

"Oh, fuck off. I could outrun you any day."

The rest of the dinner goes well. The royals don't even bother them, thankfully. If Soul had to interact with the King and Queen much longer he may as well just die right on the spot.

After about an hour, when the sun has fully set, they're finally dismissed from the table. As Maka pushes out from her seat, she pauses, turning towards Soul and waiting for him.

"That's my cue, I think." Soul whispers, tilting his head to the sister guards beside him. "I'll see you two later." The two nod to him as they all go in their separate directions. When Soul makes it to Maka's side, she finally starts her way out of the dining hall.

"Did you know those other guards? I noticed you guys talking."

"Well, you're observant, aren't you," Soul chuckles nervously.

"Pretty observant, actually."

"Noted." Soul sighs.

God, he was going to lose his job fast if Maka was actually really observant. What if she wasn't as chill as she seemed? What if she found some way to get him fired?

Thats probably a stupid way to think.

When they make it to the door of Maka's tower, the two pause.

"You can make your way back to your quarters now, I'll probably be going to sleep soon."

"Are you sure?" Soul quickly questions, watching wearily as Maka opens the door.

"I'll be fine. Goodnight, Soul."

"Goodnight, Princess.'"


When Soul makes it back to the guards quarters, it's packed inside. He pushes through his fellow guards, mumbling and apologizing until he makes his way to the small empty kitchen. He fixes himself a small cold meal with some leftovers that were left in the cupboard and sits by himself at the small ricket table.

The small dining room was very different compared to the castle's dining hall. The royals were fed fresh warm food as they sat together at an elongated table. Their room was filled with bright orange lights that gave a warm and welcoming feel to the room.

The small dining room of the guards quarters had a small simple table with six chairs, a single broken window in the middle of the room, and was lit with one candle that sat in the middle of the table.

Soul wasn't complaining though, this was the life he chose to have, after all.

He's halfway through eating the cold mash potatoes when he feels a hand clap down onto his shoulder, shaking him slightly.

"Soul," a voice greets him as the chair beside him is pulled out. "Kilik told me you got switched to being a personal guard. You're kidding right?"

"I wish i was, BlackStar," Soul answers after having swallowed a mouth full of the cold food that left him feeling as hollow as he did before he started eating. "I love how they just threw me into the job without a warning."

"Was it bad?" BlackStar questions and Soul doesn't fail to notice the way he cringes in on himself.

"It actually wasn't," he answers truthfully. "I haven't really figured her out yet, but the Princess seems nice enough. All we did was sit around and read today. What a nerd." He laughs, shoving another spoonful of cold food into his mouth.

"She's going to domesticate you, god damn it!" Blackstar shouts, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him. He almost chokes when he grabs Blackstar's arms in return, attempting to push him away as he swallows.

"Am i witnessing a murder?" A familiar voice enters the room, and when Soul turns to see who it could be, he's met with Kilik holding two rolls of bread in his hand.

Blackstar lets go of him quickly, standing in a moment's notice. "Don't tell me you stole food on your first day."

"I didn't!" Kilik gasps offendedly before shoving one of the rolls towards Blackstar. "One of the cooks gave me some extras on my way out! She was really nice and said she didn't want them to go to waste."

With greedy hands, Blackstar snatches the roll and takes a bite, humming almost immediately.

"Oh my god, it's still warm."

"You're kidding," Soul accuses when Kilik extends the second roll to him. Too happily, he pulls the roll apart and watches as steam emits into the air.

"Kilik, have I told you recently how much I love you?"

"Yes, but another reminder would be nice."