Of all the people she expected in the gardens in the middle of the night, Laris was not one of them.

She didn't realize it was him until she was upon him, and if she had seen him sooner she may have avoided him completely. True, yes, she didn't want to be alone, but she also didn't expect it to be Laris to fill that void.

He had seen her though- maybe, by the look he gave her, he had sensed her arrival before she even saw him. In the torchlight, his eyes almost glowed as they focused on her, but that was the only part of him that seemed to exude any light.

Much like her, Laris looked as if he was roused from a terrible night's sleep. His hair was tousled and his clothes wrinkled as if he had slept in them. He held his head in his hands, and in the silence of the evening, she thought she heard him whispering to himself, not unlike what she heard when she first came across him in the library.

And just as in the library, he knew she was there even when she wished he hadn't. She stepped into the small garden clearing, an alcove surrounded by rose bushes on three sides, with a low stone bench along each. Laris sat in the one directly across from her his face shadowed and haunted.

She was certain she looked the same.

"I wasn't expecting someone to be out this late," he said by way of greeting, almost echoing her exact thoughts. His voice didn't have the jovial intonation as it did during the ball. It sounded hoarse and strained.

"Do you mind if I join you?" It sounded more pleasant than 'pretend you didn't see me' and walking away.

In answer, he moved aside on his bench, and Maize silently approached and sat next to him.

"I used to come here when I was a child," he said without prompting. "I would have nightmares and end up falling asleep on the benches. I remember my mother stopped trying to lock me in my room and instead left a pillow and a blanket out for me."

"What brought you out here tonight then?"

"Still nightmares, though without the blanket or pillow any longer."

"That seems to be a common occurrence these days," Maize admitted, letting out a sigh.

"Sleep doesn't seem to come easy any longer," Laris confessed. "Not since my mother died."

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "I lost my parents too. As well as sleeping easy, it seems."

"My condolences then." Laris gave her a glance. "Is that what brought you to Dreduor?"

"In essence, more or less." She looked at him. "Is that what caused you to leave Dreduor?"

He huffed a laugh, a small smile cracking. Everyone who knew the history of the royal family's drama knew that Laris was sent away after Lusciana died because King Silas blamed him for her death. Details of her passing, however, were never disclosed to the people of Dreduor, and Maize felt she was tiptoeing along a treasonous line just for asking. But there in the gardens, with only the two of them at their most vulnerable, Maize dared to that line.

"My mother's death was... unexpected. And because of that, my father needed someone to blame other than himself. My mother and I always had a closer relationship than I had with my father, and often I felt he resented it. Once I was born, my mother's time was devoted to someone other than him, and I suppose that explains why they only had one child before her passing."

"So you believe he sent you away because he couldn't handle raising you on his own?"

"He sent me away because he blamed me for her death. And because if I remained, he'd be constantly reminded of what he had that he lost. And I was happy to leave- remaining only reminded me of what I had lost as well."

"If he didn't want to be reminded, then why host Remembrance Day every year?"

"Other than making a spectacle of himself? To show Dreduor he actually cares for someone other than himself? It's politics. My mother was the diplomat, not him. My mother brought the people together- my mother was the one that was loved."

"Then why come back now?" she asked carefully. "Of all Remembrance Days, why this one?"

"Because it's been ten years," Laris said with a sigh. "And I'm no longer at an age where my father than control what I can or cannot do."

"He wouldn't allow you to return any other year?"

"Outright refused. Commanded my school to keep me within its walls until he advised them it was time to let me roam free once again. I may as well have been a prisoner."

"That's horrible." Maize frowned.

"It gave me plenty of time to make my plans for once I returned." He flashed her a devious grin, so unexpected her heart skipped a beat. "Convenience or chaos, I promised on my mother's name that I would not allow her death to be in vain."

She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. "And now that you're here?"

"Perhaps we can make some chaos of our own."

"Me?"

He turned his body to face her, their knees just touching as they shared the small bench.

"Of the courtiers my father assigned to me upon my arrival, you're the only one I feel that is not in the castle for the main purpose of spying on me. I know he doesn't trust me, and that's fine- I don't trust him either. But while I'm here for the next few weeks, let's make him wish he never sent me away in the first place."

Maize didn't know how to answer that. Not that she wasn't one for a little chaos, especially in the face of the royal family, but she needed to tread carefully. The reason Laris didn't believe she to be like the others was that she wasn't like the others, and his father most likely had no idea she was there unless Forge was able to manipulate the record-keeping, but that would also insinuate the king paid attention to his own records...

"Are you familiar with Lawson Forge?"

Again, she hated feeling as though Laris could read her mind. It caught her off-guard, and she didn't like being caught unawares. Truths and lies, lies and truths. Only tell as many as can be remembered.

"Lawson Forge recruited me to come to the castle." Not a lie.

"That would explain why I saw you together before the ball."

"You were watching me?"

"I wanted to make sure you were wearing the dress I gave you."

"Or that you wanted to make sure you left it in the correct room?"

"That, too. It would have been sorely disappointing if the wife of an elderly diplomat from halfway across the world chose to wear the dress instead of you."

"Maybe you would have danced with her then?"

For a moment, Laris almost looked embarrassed. "I am sorry I disappeared at the ball."

"Don't be- there was a lot going on."

"I truly would have danced with you."

"I doubt that- I'm sure it's something you said to all your courtiers."

"Only the ones who wear the dresses I gave them."

Maize sighed. "It... was probably for the better anyway. I wasn't in much of a dancing mood."

"I hate to say it, but I don't think anyone there was. Despite it being a ball in my honor, and how much I do enjoy music and revelry, nothing was done to even encourage it. Too many people were there, too busy trying to get their fill of the long-lost son."

"There was some music. I remember seeing a small band."

"Whose lives were probably threatened with torture or worse if they played anything upbeat enough to get a dance line encouraged."

Maize snorted, though believed there was some truth in Laris' words. "Was there even a dance floor?"

"I'm sure we could have found one somewhere."

Laris stood unexpectedly, and the warmth of his body suddenly disappearing allowed the chilled night air to penetrate through her thin shirt. She shivered as she watched him take a few steps away.

"This should do," he said thoughtfully.

"For what?"

He spun, rather gracefully, around to face her. "Our dance."

He held a hand out, motioning for her to join him.

"You mean, right now?"

"I agree, it's a rather late hour, and there's not much music to keep the beat, but at least we know no one will be staring at you in that gorgeous dress."

"It really was a nice dress," she admitted, finally standing.

"I'm not going to ask for it back, I promise." His smile seemed brighter, even as he stood there with his arm outstretched.

She hesitated, only a moment. Glancing around, she knew if anyone looked out through any of the numerous windows they'd see them, but what harm was there really? It's not like they were fucking in the gardens... yet.

Her cheeks heated and she was grateful for the shadows.

"One dance," she conceded, closing the distance.

"Just one," he agreed, though there was a gleam in his eyes that told her he begged to differ.

One dance turned into two, and then three, and soon the sun was beginning to rise over the city in the distance. They only danced, but still, time seemed to slip away while Laris led her in various waltzes and two-steps.

It kept Maize occupied. She forgot about the nightmares that sent her down there in the first place, or the pounding over the pain within her skull every time she tried to ignore the voice threatening to kill everyone she cared for. With Laris, everything seemed to stop. It was peacefully quiet and serene in his arms like neither of them wanted to say a word out of fear of disturbing the peace.

They had just finished a quickstep, smiling and catching their breath when the rustling of a nearby bush reminded them they were no longer alone in the castle's garden.

"I should try to get some sleep," Maize mused as she smoothed and retied her hair behind her head.

"It does seem a little late for that," Laris reminded her as he glanced towards the rising sun. "But I will have some coffee sent to your rooms, along with chocolate pastries and yogurt parfaits."

"I'm sure I can manage to rummage my own food."

"Yes, but these are from my private menu, and I insist after you spent the night distracting me."

"If you insist then," she said with a playful bow. "Who am I to deny the Prince?"

"His courtier, if I remember correctly." He winked. "Shall I walk you to your rooms?"

Maize glanced up towards the upper floors where she knew her rooms were situated. She wondered if Ress had yet awoken, or if like she was damn to a sleepless night. "I'm sure I can find my way back."

"Fair enough," the Prince conceded, stifling a yawn. "Then I look forward to our next chance encounter in the library, Maizelyn."

With his own playful bow, the Prince exited the garden alcove. Maize watched, and though he appeared as tired as she, there seemed to be a weight that was lifted from his shoulders. Perhaps she had helped keep him distracted as much as he had helped her.

Only once he was out of sight did she let her own shoulders slouch and ran a hand over her sleep-worn face.

Keeping the truth from him was going to be just as bad as stealing from him.