Another late evening, another night spent down in the kitchens, but this time Caspian didn't go searching for food. He had forced himself to join his uncle and aunt for supper, and scarfed down enough to be considered polite, he always found it hard to dine alongside his uncle, always paranoid that there was poison in his food or his drink that made it nearly impossible to get anything down past the lump in his throat. But, to maintain some semblance of peace he tried his best to make it to the meals he shared with his uncle.

In contrast, when he shared meals with Alessandra he found himself at ease, nearly even relaxed. She had a presence about her that Caspian found himself drawn to. It was nearly a fortnight since they'd first met and since then he had stopped making excuses as to why he was in the kitchens so late at night, even if he didn't miss a meal he sometimes took it upon himself to go into the pantry and grab a hunk of bread, or a piece of fruit. If nothing else to keep his hands busy while she drew, every so often she'd reach out for whatever it was he had scourged up and he'd happily give her some.

And not for the first time since meeting her, Caspian wished that he'd been blessed with even an ounce of the artistic talent that she had an abundance of. He liked watching her sketch, she seemed so at peace, so far into her own world, yet she was always more than aware that he was there.

"You seem to draw the astronomy tower quite a bit." Caspian pointed out one evening, at his request she had brought one of her nearly filled sketchbooks for him to look through. He could tell how well loved the book was, the pages bound together by thin twine.

"It's much easier to draw something when you're looking straight at it." She explained, at his long pause she glanced up from her latest sketch, her foot rubbing slightly against his calf almost mindlessly. "I can see the tower from my quarters."

Somehow that still surprised him, "Really?"

"It's not much of a view, but it's consistent." she responded with a shrug, "And it does often make me wish I could see them for myself."

"The tower?" Caspian was confused, she just said that she had a constant view of the tower, so much so that she drew it most often from what he could tell.

"The stars." she corrected with a smile that Caspian decided he quite liked the look on her.

"Perhaps I could show you them one day." his mouth had a very bad habit of speaking before his brain told it to, whenever he was around her.

And for once she didn't tease him back, "I'd like that." She said as her smile grew and Caspian vowed slightly right then and there that somehow he was going to get her to see a view of the stars, if nothing else then to see how wide her smile could grow. Comfortable silence consumed them once again as she added the final touches to the piece she was working on. "Finished." she announced and instead of tucking it away like he'd come to expect, she turned the stiff piece of paper around and slid it towards him.

Caspian gaped for a moment, this felt like a rather large milestone between them, and he wasn't sure how, or why but in that moment things definitely changed. He picked up the paper, and was staring down at a detailed recreation of his own image. When he looked at her with a question on his tongue, she was wearing a sly smile as she cut him off, "That's what the Telmarine Prince looks like when he's deep in thought." she told him cheekily.

So she did know, he'd been trying for days now to figure out how to tell her of his status, "How long have you known?"

"I've had my suspicions from the start," she explained, "But rotations are next week, and when I was put on schedule to clean the prince's bedchambers it truly became clear. Caspian is not a very common name."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"I'm sure you had your reasons." she said before sighing, a familiar glint of mischief crawling onto her face, "Besides, I'm sure that his highness Caspian the Tenth is quite different from the Caspian that joins me in the kitchens late at night because he's missed dinner." his title didn't sound right coming from her mouth, and he knew that she was right.

"I assure you, that I am." Since they'd met every touch that they'd shared had been initiated by Alessandra, barely a brush of her hand against his, a touch along his shoulder and more recently rubbing her foot against his calf beneath the table, he was sure that the first time had been an accident but when he didn't rebuff her every time since that had been very much intentional and Caspian didn't mind letting her take the lead, lest he do something that frightened her away. But just this once he took the chance to reach out and cover her hand with his.

"Why me?" she asked softly, looking down at his hand on top of hers, moving one of her fingers beneath his.

He thought for a moment about his answer, "Because I liked you knowing the man who came down to the kitchens looking for companionship, instead of Prince Caspian."

"I like that man too."

From there they returned to their comfortable silence and soon after Caspian announced that he should probably head to bed to try and get at least a few hours of sleep, before they parted at the entrance though she spoke again, "Don't make things too hard for me." she asked him to promise and he did, once again he got the distinct impression that she was referring to more than just cleaning his chambers. Once again he took the chance to reach out and touch her, gently taking her hand in his before bringing it up to his mouth ghosting a soft kiss over her knuckles.

"I'll try my best." was his promise.

Since her change of duty, her day started a few moments later than she'd gotten used to. Since she couldn't go into the room until Capsian had left she had a few rare moments to herself in her shared quarters until it was time to go to work.

In the servant's passage she met Tamara, maid that was a few years her senior known for being a gossip, but she knew mostly in passing, still she greeted her politely all the same. Within moments she had filled both their arms with clean linens, rags and the like and had gestured for Alessandra to follow her lead into the room, which she did without question.

She was looking forward to having a peek at how the prince lived, perhaps she could tease him about it. However the room wasn't what she was expecting, it was fairly well kept, the top sheets already turned down and what she assumed were dirty clothes resting at the foot of the bed other than that there wasn't anything too bad.

"The prince does try to be tidier than most," Tamara explained like she could read her mind, "Doesn't like making too much work for us. The bedroom usually only requires one set of hands aside from the bed itself. Then we can split between the study and the bath and be out of here in no time."

Alessandra nodded and they set to work, indeed the bed was the only thing that required both of their hands, the sheets were soft, much softer than the ones she slept on, but that was to be expected. Can't have royal skin touching something so rough and scratchy. Though she was surprised to learn that Tamara actually preferred to clean the bathroom as opposed to the study, it would never have been her first choice but she wondered why so many maids had such an aversion to cleaning the study.

Caspian's study was similar to that of the professor's being that it was cluttered, it held much less books than the professor's did, understandably but the collection that he had was quite impressive, peeking back into the room to make sure that Tamara was still in the bathroom before she closed the door slightly to take a closer look.

There was a desk piled high with papers and books that she could make sense of if she truly wanted to, but she wasn't afford that kind of time. One thing she'd learned from her time in the palace was that sometimes certain rooms could tell you more about a person than their mouths ever could. Since Caspian's bedroom was most meticulously kept, she could safely assume that that was the version of him he wanted to be seen as. But his study showed more of the Caspian that joined her in the kitchens.

It wasn't that his study was particularly messy, however there were little things tossed about that showed more to his character then his bedroom did. The books that were strewn about his desk were ones he was reading for academic purposes, that much she could tell from the swirly titles, but there was one just in front of the chair that looked more worn than the others, she couldn't even make out the title from where she was. Instead of trying to take a closer look and possibly disturbing his notes and books she ventured closer to his impressive bookshelf.

Similar to the professor, many of the spines had those swirly words that seemed so useless to her but what did she know? A finger came up to tip one of the books outwards only enough to see that it was fairly dust free which meant that it was recently used, "Finish up in there girl!" Tamara's pounding at the door caused her to jump and she snatched her hand back so quickly that the book fell from the shelf, at least the knocking at the door covered up the sound of the book hitting the floor, "I'm going to take these linens down to the laundry."

"Alright." It took her a few tries to get the word out but she did, her hands were shaking so bad that she nearly couldn't get the book back onto the shelf. But she did, then finished her duties and left in a haste. She could pray that Caspian wouldn't notice.

He noticed.

Caspian noticed straight away that one of his books had been disturbed, mostly because it was upside-down on the shelf which was most certainly not how he'd left it. He glanced around his study to see if anything else had been touched but found everything to be exactly as he'd left it.

Save for that book, he took a closer look at the title after turning it right side up and found himself even more confused. It was a fairytale book, one that he tended to reach for as a means of relaxation after a particularly gruelling day.

He tried very hard not to jump to conclusions, tried very hard not to let his growing yet confusing feelings for Alessandra cloud his judgement. Taking stock of his bookshelf it didn't seem like anything else was amiss, the book in question was nestled in between another fairytale book and one on Telmarine history respectively.

Abandoning the shelf he took a seat at his desk and took stock of what was present, aside from it now being dust-free nothing seemed too terribly different or missing. He sat back in his seat and thought long and hard about his late nights with Alessandra, pushing past the haze she'd the effect she had on him, he tried to recall if she had ever given him any indication of being anything other than what may or may not be brewing between them.

There was no way she could be a spy for his uncle, could she? She didn't even know who he was until she was assigned to his chambers, or so she said. But to what end? If she was a spy for his uncle what information did she seek from him, or was she just sent to keep a close eye on him?

But, Alessandra of all people, his Alessandra? He couldn't wrap his head around it. And he did try, he sat in his study until late into the night, electing not to go down to the kitchen despite the fact that it had both become routine and he had missed dinner. No, he couldn't face her just yet with these thoughts running through his head. He would have to confront her another time.

Caspian didn't show up to collect his dinner, Alessandra tried not to worry too much about it because it wasn't unlike him to miss a night. But her fumble earlier in the day in his study had her emotions high, to the point where she nearly bit her thumbnail until it drew blood. Then she did draw blood when her knife slipped as she was prepping the herbs for tomorrow's stew and her attention wavered. She didn't even need to be in the kitchens since her duties changed, but slicing a few herbs and vegetables was preferable to being questioned by Steph as to why she was so jittery. Also she had secretly hoped that Caspian would show up.

She wrapped her hand and was struck with a sudden thought, did she put the book back in the proper position? She was almost certain that she did, but there may have been a moment where she got confused by the title. Perhaps she should creep back to be sure? If Caspian wasn't here yet, then he was probably caught up in his studies so there was a chance that he wouldn't be there. And it was possible that he'd missed dinner.

She sighed and pulled the cloth tighter around her hand before grabbing another clean one and putting Caspian's usual in it. She would be in and out quickly, just long enough to ensure that the book was as it was meant to be, leave him the food and be gone just as quickly.

Caspian heard the door to the hidden passage in his study creak open and his heart leapt into his throat, he stood reaching to his hip but his dagger wasn't there, he must have left it on his bedside when he changed into his nightshirt and his study didn't offer much in the way of protection or defence. Very well, he'd have to make due with the heavy books.

Imagine his surprise when the very subject occupying his thoughts scurried in, and froze at the sight of him.

His thoughts ran wild with why she could possibly be here at this hour. His only consolation was that she looked just as surprised to see him. Despite himself he let his eyes roam down her figure.

"You didn't join your uncle for supper." Alessandra stammered out.

"How do you know that?" Caspian asked with a slight edge to his voice, he watched her face crumble and felt his heart break a little.

"My roommate she um-," she stammered, slightly shrinking in on herself. Was he mad at her? "She let slip that there Lord Miraz and his Lady were present." She steeled herself and held up the bundle of cloth for him to see, "I was worried that you wouldn't eat." She explained placing the cloth down on his desk and Caspian felt his resolve crumble, there was no way she could be a spy, "But I can see that I've done something to upset you, so I'll leave."

But that was the last thing he wanted, he quickly rounded the desk before she went back into the passage and grabbed her hand, "I'm sorry." She flinched so he released her and apologised again, "I'm not upset with you." He explained gently.

She was unsure, he had never been so cold with her, "I shouldn't be here."

He refrained from grabbing her again, "Please," panic suddenly surged through him, "Please, stay." She still looked skeptical and she wouldn't meet his gaze. He ducked trying to catch her eye and reached out for her once more, taking her hand, pausing when he felt the bulge beneath his hand, "What happened?" He asked in concern, bringing her hand up to his eye.

"My knife slipped." She explained, sounding bashful, his eyes took in the poorly wrapped cloth around her hand, a healer she was not. Without a word he took her hand in his and led them through the study and out into his bedchambers, he felt her stiffen and tried to turn back but he held fast, pulling her with him straight to his bed where he tossed aside the curtains.

In hindsight, having her not only near his bed, but actually seated upon it was perhaps not his wisest decision given his growing feelings towards her along with his body's reaction, but he was more concerned with the cut on her hand. So it was easy to block out the lewd part of his brain for the time being.

There was a bowl of water resting on his bedside table, right next to where he'd abandoned his dagger earlier, he reached for the bowl without thought, pulling it onto his lap before he set about unwinding the cloth from her hand. The cut didn't look too deep, thankfully, but he still cleaned it out with some of the water to be sure.

While he did that, Alessandra tried her hardest to focus on anything other than the stubborn lock of hair that was determined to block part of his vision, it was too short to be tucked behind his ear and it fluttered everytime he blinked. Unfortunately his bland room wasn't the most interesting thing to look at and the falcon perched in his window stared to resolutely out into the night sky that it wasn't very much more entertaining either.

So her gaze went back to Caspian, who was determined to clean and redress the superficial wound on her hand. He really shouldn't be so cute when he concentrated, her heart was in danger of beating stupidly fast like it so liked to do in his presence, and with his thumb pressed against her wrist to help hold her steady, she was sure he'd feel it.

She flinched and involuntarily tried to tug away when he tightened the new cloth around her hand, "I'm sorry." he said sincerely holding her wrist so that she couldn't fully pull away, as he looked up at her, "I'm more versed in tending to my own wounds than those of others." he explained looking back down to examine his work.

"It's alright." she responded honestly, "What's the word, will I keep my hand?"

Caspian smiled at her tease, "You'll live."

"Thank you." she smiled but it faded as she thought of how cold he was to her only a few moments ago, "Have I upset you somehow?"

He sighed, "No, you haven't. It was my own fault," he set his eyes down to the space between them, "I'm afraid that I misjudged you, and for that I am sorry."

He misjudged her? What did that even mean? Alessandra wanted to ask him but he looked so hurt and upset that she decided to just accept his apology and move past it. She reached out with her other hand bringing them up to the sides of his face, pulling him up to meet her eye. She looked into his almost onyx coloured eyes and smiled softly, "You should sleep more," She said, taking in the bags under his eyes, "It's not good for you."

"Then that would mean more time away from you," he said after a beat, "And that is not good for me either."

"You shouldn't say things like that to me." She said attempting to shrink on herself again, he grabbed her wrist gently.

"Why not?"

"I might think you mean it."

"And if I do?"

Caspian smiled, "When you told me your name, you said that your friends called you Les," she looked confused so he gently stroked his thumb along the pulse points in her wrist and continued, "But I didn't, because I don't want to be your friend." He brought her hands to his chest, "I want to be more, if you'll have me."

Alessandra was stunned for a moment, "Those are dangerous words."

She isn't wearing her cap and Caspian can't recall if he'd ever seen her wearing one, surely that's a violation of some kind, even still his hand itches to brush back the hair framing her face but that would mean losing contact with her hands, so he refrains.

"Perhaps," he agrees, "But I've never been one to shy away from danger."

Alessandra smiled, biting her lip as she glanced down at the space between them, small as it may be. This time Caspian moves his hand out to run his knuckle under her chin, gently bringing her eyes back up to his. And like that they stayed.

The playlist for this story:
Everything Has Changed- Taylor Swift & Ed Sheeran
This Love- Taylor Swift
Lover - Taylor Swift
Rewrite the Stars- Zendaya & Zac Efron
Shallow- Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper
Young & Beautiful- Lana Del Ray