Soul allows Maka to lead him through the crowd with poise, keeping him tucked closely at her side. People they pass bid them quick hellos but Maka is quick to wave them on, uttering a quiet apology. Blackstar follows up behind them, looking a little startled at all the unfamiliar faces as his finger hovers over Soul's elbow. He's a hair away from reaching out, but upon realizing his arm is linked with the Princess, he retracts his hand with a warm smile.

Soul couldn't help but wonder why the King and Queen were looking for him as his arm tightened around Maka's, but he tried not to dwell on it, too busy bathing in the warmth that radiated from his Princess.

At some point, they break through a dense crowd of tailors and caterers only to find the King and Queen standing amidst them, smiling cheerfully as they raise their respective wine glasses. It takes them but a moment to realize the break in the crowd, but nevertheless their eyes land on them with glee.

"There you are, Maka!" The Queen had called out. "Ah-Soul?"

With rosy cheeks, Soul is unlinking his arm with the Princess, giving the King and Queen a curt bow, "Your majesties," He greeted carefully, his eyes scanning the aluminum floor beneath him. His mind ran back to earlier, thinking back to Blackstar and Kilik's conversation about how they were nervous to meet the King and Queen. Despite having a good amount of encounters with the two of them by now, Soul still found himself nervous. This encounter seemed more personal. It wasn't just a passing 'hello, how are you' before dinner.

There's a small push at his shoulder and he realizes that Blackstar has followed his lead, bowing before the King and Queen. They locked eyes for a moment, Blackstar rolling his eyes before they both stood.

"It's a pleasure seeing you two again." Soul finds himself saying, despite how forced it sounds to his own ears. The two give him an odd glance before the Queen is handing over her wine to her husband.

"Oh, Soul, it is you! I almost didn't recognize you." Suddenly, the Queen's gloved hands are reaching out for one of his. With both hands wrapped around one of his, she shakes it excitedly. "You look dashing!"

With wide eyes, Soul turns slightly to catch Maka's eyes. They share a quick glance before he returns his attention to the Queen. "Ah, thank you, your majesty. You look extravagant tonight."

Letting his hand slip from her grasp, she laughs. It's a quiet bubbly laugh, one that reminds him of Maka's. "Thank you, dear! We had actually just sent Maka to fetch you." Behind her, the King shifts, taking a step closer to his wife.

Faintly, he feels intimidated.

"We just wanted to thank you dearly, for all the work you have done. We know that you were pushed into this position rather quickly, but it seems that you have adjusted quite well. We truly appreciate you looking out for our daughter." He's taken back by the sudden compliment, a silent 'oh' escaping him rather than a coherent thought. "It's quite different being in the castle, isn't it?"

Clearing his throat, he finds himself linking his hands together at the small of his back. "Ah, it is quite different, but in a good way." he replies, hoping it sounds earnest enough. "There truly is no reason to thank me, though, your majesty. I am just doing my job."

The Queen squints at him with one eye, her grin growing bigger. "Oh, don't be silly! You have done more than just your job. You make Maka rather happy, too."

"Oh, mom, don't be so sappy," Maka groans from his side.

The Queen turns to her, hushing her quietly. "Don't be silly, your guard deserves the recognition, Maka!"

Soul can feel his cheeks heating. What on Earth did the King and Queen have to thank him for? He was just doing his job, after all. It wasn't like it had been much so far, just following after the Princess day in and day out around the castle. There had been no threats yet, so all he'd really been doing was poorly 'babysitting' the Princess. It wasn't a lot. It was barely anything, actually.

"Soul, we have heard nothing but good things about you. You are truly an esteemed guard and we are glad to have you around the castle. We hope that you feel welcome here, as we all plan for you to stick around a while, I hope?"

Soul can't help but blink down to the Queen. "I- thank you so much. I do feel very welcomed here, actually! I plan to stay as long as Maka wishes for me to."

At the Queens side now, Maka rolls her eyes and slightly pokes her tongue out at Soul, who cant help but give a small huff of laughter.

Finally averting their attention off of him, the King and Queen finally address Blackstar. "You must be Blackstar, if I am correct?" He drowns out their conversation, his attention solely set on Maka.

He watches as the Princess's gaze lands on Blackstar carefully- watches the way her long eyelashes bat against her cheeks- watches the way her lips part with a smile. The sound of the party around him turns to static and white noise as he finds himself caught in Maka's presence. Eventually, Maka's lips start to move as she talks, but the words don't land on his ears. He's not broken out of his trance until he sees a glass of wind being pushed into Maka's hands by a servant and the Queen is telling them she will see them soon.

As the two walk back into the crowd, Maka stands in front of Soul and Blackstar. "Are you sure you're no longer a drinker, Soul?"

"Very painfully sure," he replies as Blackstar's hand claps him on the back with a laugh.

"Count me down for a drink though!"

And so; the party goes on. Soul is pushed and pulled around by Maka and Blackstar as they idly chat with the castle servants. He adds to some conversations, ignores others. The air around him was starting to smell distinctly of wine and other drinks he couldn't be bothered to name. The more drinks that are thrown into Maka and Blackstar's hands, the more the two start joking with one another. Soul kind of finds it endearing, watching what he could only guess as friendship budding between the two of them.

"You look like you're ready to smash the glass-"

"I'm going to smash it over your head if you keep stepping on my toes, Ms. high heels."

"Do you talk to all royals this way, idiot?"

"What the hell did you just call me-"

Soul couldn't help but laugh as he pushed the two away from one another.

At some point, they run into Kilik and Kim, who are thankfully very sober. Soul chats with the two of them, feeling a bit safer in their company than he did with Maka's and Blackstar's.

"Oh, did I forget to tell you that Maka loves to drink for occasions. Not only that, she's such a lightweight," Kim informs him somewhere in between their conversation. "A couple drinks in her hand and she's out for the night."

"Wow, thanks for the heads up, Kim"

Eventually, everyone is called together at the dining table as a servant clanks a spoon against a glass. Soul visibly relaxes when he hears the sound, knowing that the party would now settle as they gathered to eat.

The seating went as such: The Queen and King sat at one head of the table, Maka at the other. On Maka's right side sat Soul, with Blackstar on his side. On her left sat Kim, Kilik on her other side. Liz and Patty had managed the snag seats beside Blackstar, the rest of the table cluttered with people Soul couldn't really put names to.

Soul, Blackstar and Kilik seem all too overwhelmed by the stuffed plates in front of them with warm food to catch Maka and Kim's conversation with Liz and Patty.

"How did things go with Christine, Liz?" Maka laughed for a moment before hiccuping, looking awfully surprised and scared by the sound.

Liz wheezed, slamming an open palm onto the table. "I wouldn't know, I didn't actually follow her. Late twenties is too old-"

"She actually was going to go after her, we just got sidetracked by some of the other caterers," Patty interjects. "She was disappointed bu-"

A hand is slapped over Patty's face. "No, don't finish that."

There is another hiccup from the end of the table. This time, it does catch Soul's attention. Maka sits beside him, staring at her now empty glass.

"Don't tell me," he groaned, catching the Princess's attention. "You're already drunk, aren't you?"

With an offended gasp, Maka placed her glass back onto the table with care. "I only had like, three drinks. I feel nothing."

"Your hiccups and your flushed cheeks are telling another story," Blackstar teased, raising a fork accusingly at the Princess. "I had like five and I am perfectly fine."

Their conversation dwindles down as they all begin to dig into their dinner. As Soul had expected, the party became quiet, only the hushed whispers between the servants between bites could be heard.

His palpitated heart finally eased as he ate in peace.


Needless to say, Soul thinks the dinner party goes well. Eventually, the guests begin to bid their goodbyes to Maka as they left. The Princess half acknowledged them as she sent them a happy, yet dazed smile and waved them on.

Kim, sadly, was right. Maka was totally a lightweight. If she had to guess, the blonde barely took three drinks that whole night. Three drinks wasn't a lot, especially compared to the six Blackstar had, but nevertheless, her pale cheeks were flushed.

It hadn't been until the rest of the guests flushed the room, the King and Queen gone as well, that Maka finally stood from her seat with a yawn, her only company being Soul and Blackstar.

"I'm tired," she grumbled, stretching her arms over her head with a yawn.

Soul couldn't help but scoff as he stood as well, motioning for Blackstar to follow. "Lucky for you, the party's over."

With dead eyes, Maka stared him down. "Really, I didn't notice. God, I thought we were still mid-party."

Soul bites his lip, urging himself not to laugh, but behind him Blackstar crackles at the joke as if it were the funniest thing in the world. With a weak hand, he turned and slapped Blackstar's shoulder, telling him it really was not that funny. The tipsy man did not listen to him, though, at all.

"Let's just get you to your tower and call it a night," Soul sighed, rubbing his temples as he pushed his seat back in, motioning for the two to follow.

"A tower. You live in a tower, Maks? You really are a Princess!" Blackstar cheered as he draped himself over Soul's arm with a smile. "Princess Maks."

"That's enough from you." Soul pushed Blackstar off of him, feeling his own cheeks heat in second-hand embarrassment. "Let's go, please."

His original plan was to have the tipsy two follow him back to Maka's tower, bid Maka a good night, and then drag Blackstar back to the guard's quarters. It seemed simple right? It had just been a dinner party after all, nothing too big and extravagant to get wasted for.

Soul thought it was a good idea. Though it was a brilliant one, actually. Thought it was the most basic idea in the book, you know, until he watched Maka stumble away from the table and land into Blackstars arms with a huff, her head rolling on the guards shoulder as she mouthed a quick 'ouch'.

"Okay, okay great," he grumbled out to no one in particular. Clicking his tongue, Soul scooped Maka off Blackstar, forcing her to put an arm around his shoulders. Shakily, Maka complied, standing a bit straighter. "Blackstar, you can walk, right?"

A minute later, Maka is stuck between the two of them, Blackstar and Soul were making their way to Maka's tower.

"You two are so strong," Maka giggled.

"You're like a hundred pounds wet, don't flatter us." Soul replied bitterly.

Soul kind of thought seeing Maka drunk would be a funny sight, but it was far from that. Soul was tired, exhausted from the party and having to interact with others. His bones ached from his sparring match earlier that morning. He really was tired, tired to the point where he felt moody.

It didn't help that Maka was stumbling over her steps, her eyebrows drawn down in mock focus, her tongue sticking out the slightest. Soul really thought he'd think it was cute if the circumstances had been different.

When they made it to the tower and Soul pushed the door open, Blackstar quite literally, dropped to the floor with a cry. With wide eyes and quick hands, Soul was grabbing Maka by the waist, pulling her against his chest.

The Princess only laughed, nuzzling her forehead against her guard's neck.

"Why. Why are there so many stairs?" Blackstar cried from the floor, pulling at his hair. "You walk these every day?"

"Sucks, doesn't it? Am I carrying the Princess up myself, or are you helping?"

Scrambling back up to his feet, Blackstar grabbed hold of Maka again. After a few minutes of readjusting their grips and stumbling over one another, Blackstar and Soul were carefully pulling Maka up the stairs, the Princess groaning as they did.

"It's like dragging a dead body up the stairs," Blackstar jokes, peeking over Maka's hanging head to meet eyes with Soul. "Think we'll get caught?"

Soul mocked a laugh, turning his attention back to the steps under them. "I hope so. Maybe I'll be put out of my misery sooner."

Ten or so minutes later, Soul was pushing the door to Maka's bedroom open, urging Blackstar to let her go. Maka groaned at the loss of contact, reaching out for Blackstar with a tired grumble. Soul just ushered her to her bed without another word, forcing the Princess to sit down.

"You guys are leaving so soon?"

"Yes, it's dark and we're all tried." Soul responded, yawning right after. "Goodnight, Maka. I'll be back in the morning."

Blackstar was already waiting at the threshold of the door for him, gripping at the door tiredly. As he took a step toward his fellow guard, there was a hand grasping at his tunic greedily. With a yelp, Soul was toppling back over his own feet, his back landing against Maka's bed with a thump.

Soul's eyes stayed on the doorway long enough to watch Blackstar shake his head and walk out. With two hard blinks, he turned his head up.

Maka was looking down at him, her eyes half-lidded, her cheeks flushed a pretty pink. The moonlight was sweeping into the room through the balcony doors, illuminating the Princess in the night light. "You should stay," She whispers, her voice hoarse. The suggestion has Soul's stomach knotting with something, something he doesn't like.

He's quick to clear his throat, turning his head back down. "No. I'll be back tomorrow morning."

Maka whines,suddenly slipping down from the edge of her bed to sit on the floor beside Soul. With a shaky hand, she reached out and wrapped her fingers around Soul's wrist. "You'll have to come back anyway, just stay."

Soul stares down at his shoes, his cheeks heating. There was no way he could even consider whatever the hell Maka was suggesting, not with how drunk she clearly was.

"Maka," he breathed out, screwing his eyes shut, "This isn't funny. Get up, please. I have to go."

"But-"

"No, no buts," Soul quickly cut her off, pulling his arm away from her. "You're drunk. Go to bed."

Without letting her get another word in, Soul was standing up, turning to pull Maka up as well. The Princess looked up at him with sad eyes.

"Did- did I do something wrong?"

As he managed to get Maka to sit down again, he shook his head, crouching in front of her. "No, you didn't do anything wrong. You just need to rest," He replied. Refusing to look back to her face, Soul helped her work her heels off, dropping them to the floor beside her bed.

When both shoes were off and Maka scrambled up onto her bed, Soul turned back to the door, refusing to turn around again.

"Goodnight, Maka."

"Wait, Soul!" Soul stops in his tracks, turning his head over his shoulder. He doesn't bear to meet eyes with the Princess, instead, his eyes settling on the balcony doors. "Tomorrow night. Let's sneak out tomorrow night."

A quiet chuckle escaped his lips.

"No, Maka. Your party is two days away, you will be exhausted."

"I don't care," Maka stated, her voice rising a little. "I really don't care, as long as I get to leave with you, I don't care how tired I am. I want to be free for one night- free with you."

As her words sink in, Soul realizes how royally fucked he is. He's rolling his hands into fists, turning to look at the floor. Maka was drunk. She didn't mean what she was saying. She didn't know how her words affected him.

"I'll think about it." he musters to say, not wanting to stay in the bedroom any longer. Pressing his dull nails into his palms, he turns to the bedroom door, "Goodnight. Please, just go to sleep."

Maka doesn't reply. He doesn't give her enough time to.

The moment he steps out of the door, Blackstar is standing there, wringing his hands cautiously. "Is everything okay?"

"It doesn't matter. Let's go."