midnight munchies

[dede]

Odette’s presumptuous threats made him flinch. Perhaps she did hold secrets to the undoing of Prince Rian, but the more she slaved her knowledgeable fortune, hardly enough to balance upon the tip of a fine needle he was sure, their combined and feeble fate dimmed continuously.

Nonetheless, there was little reason to slip in front of Prince Rian, so Berlus maintained his stoic expression, which trembled heatedly under the passing kiss Odette left him before exiting. Instead, he focused his fleeting determination on the source of forcing their brief altercation down to size, and nodded calmly in response to the nobleman’s humble apology.

“We've just finished, correct, Prince Berlus?"

But to Prince Rian, he mustered his indifference against his seething tone and gave him a small and unremarkable smile. “Yes. Very much so, Prince Rian.”

He was not an incompetent child. He could very well read between those lines. Keeping his mouth clamped shut; he was extremely good at that. If anyone encroached upon specifics, he had no qualms with offering some truths in place of others. There were no falsehoods there, up to a point, of course.

Berlus finished adjusting his coat, frowning slightly at the bright pattern as if he were stumbling upon its hideous display for the first time. “Then, if there is nothing more you have or wish to say, Prince Rian, then I suspect this is where we part ways for the night.”

ooc; Yep! Broken like a horse. xD
And sorry for the shortness! :P

[Nessie]

Nathan looked up in time to see one of the nobles cross his arms across his chest and then wave his hand in a dismissive fashion.

"No need to apologize, Sir; your interruption came at the most appropriate time. We've just finished, correct, Prince Berlus?"

Ah. So this must be Prince Rian. Nathan surreptitiously looked the young man up and down from where he stood, having taken the man's wave of the hand as a cue to stand up straight once more. In Nathan's opinion at least, the prince was quite handsome while the other, whom he now knew to be Berlus, looked somewhat awkward for his height.

Then again, he wasn't really one to judge, considering his own appearance, not to mention his status.

It was then that Prince Berlus made his reply. Nathan was not yet sure whether he should move to get the wine for the duke or wait until both princes had left the kitchen. Instead he simply stood there, well aware that he was intruding on something he probably shouldn't have. His gaze flicked from the princes to the steps that led from the kitchen down to the wine cellar and back again.

No...he should wait until both royals had left. That was what was expected, it was courteous and polite.And if there was anyone for whom he wanted to make a good first impression it was Prince Rian. If the rumours he'd heard around the court recently were to be trusted, the Silian prince seemed like a man Nathan would get along with.

(ooc: Sorry it's short. D: Gaah.)

[Mimi]

Rian tilted his head ever so slightly to the right, observing the Helion Prince with quietude and yet with something smoldering behind his gaze. Something that made his stare all the more unnerving and unforgiving. Whether it was mischief or simple confrontation, Rian couldn't say; all he knew was that their little slip wasn't going to be so easily forgotten. After a moment's pause, he offered Berlus a slight smile, not exactly sincere but close enough.

"No, nothing else," he agreed, nodding.

Then, following some mock contemplation, "...Except I do hope you will bear me no grudge. Aside from that, good night and pleasant dreams. Though...with your luck, I'm sure you'll have more than just pleasant dreams."

He kept the smile plastered on his face and managed, surprisingly, to keep it from evolving into a smirk. They both knew what he was insinuating. Even the outsider could have picked up on his meaning, and speaking of him...

Rian watched the noble from the corner of his eye. He seemed the gentleman - quiet, mannerly, unpretentious. And thus, all the more suspect. Why be so quiet unless you've something to hide? Rian didn't need a lifetime at court to tell him that (though it helped). Sometimes, he even wondered about Christian. He was his brother but also the second in line; who knew what brewed beyond that happy facade? Murder? Betrayal? Envy? Anything was possible.

...or perhaps --- perhaps he was just being paranoid. War could do that to a man - paranoia followed closely by insanity. Hopefully, he hadn't reached the latter yet.

Rian flicked his eyes about the room restlessly before discreetly resettling on Nathan. He reconsidered the man, keeping his demeanor casual lest he felt scrutinized. Perhaps the noble was all he seemed and nothing more. Pity, it would have been useful to have someone at his disposal - someone who could lurk in the noise undetected and uncontested.

outofchocolate; lol, it's REVENGE OF THE SHORT POSTS! because we neglect them /patpatpat

[/size]

[Nessie]

"No, nothing else...Except I do hope you will bear me no grudge. Aside from that, good night and pleasant dreams. Though...with your luck, I'm sure you'll have more than just pleasant dreams."

To say that Nathan was intrigued would be an understatement. Despite the fact that the Duke was waiting for him upstairs and undoubtedly growing impatient, Nathan was burning with curiosity to know what had occurred here before his arrival. He knew it wasn't his place to enquire into the situation, but he could think about it and try to riddle it out, he assumed, as long as he wasn't detected doing so. Then again, Nathan was near an expert at hiding his true thoughts, not to mention himself.

It was then that he noticed Prince Rian's gaze coming to rest on him. The man's demeanour was casual, yet Nathan knew his every move was being closely watched. He had the sudden urge to display some of his talent somehow, as though to impress Rian. The it occurred to him not only was displaying ones skills in illegal and un-gentlemanly departments impossible at present, it was also best not to do so in front of a prince.

This having been thought, and recalling the waiting Duke, Nathan made his way towards the wine cellar with a final bow in the princes' direction, making nary in a sound as he walked.

ooc: INDEED. D8

[dede]

For a passing second, he followed the fervid gaze of the Silian Prince to the Nobleman shuffling with the utmost care around the kitchen. He watched, partially out of curiosity, but mostly for the sake of distracting his growing temper from exploding over the obvious connotations bursting from the nightly well-wishes Rian offered. Berlus was never one to act out in rage, but the lethal concoction of fear –for Odette, for the situation, for himself- and anger that spawned from the current predicament was enough to coax him past the limits of polite civility.

The corner of his mouth twitched threateningly, but the Helion Prince managed to swallow back an array of nastier retorts before settling with a slight sigh as he tugged at the front of his colorful coat again, flattening the wrinkles with more enthusiasm that he naturally intended. “Only with your permission, Prince Rian.”

Rolling his shoulders with firm definition, Berlus straitened rigidly.

“And as your friend, I can only wish the same for you.” He finished sharply, the venom in his voice seeping past the calm sentiment.

"Good night, Prince Rian." Offering the Silian Prince a final bow, he stepped past him and turned towards the staircase that led back up to the halls of the castle.

ooc; SOBCRYSOB so short. ;n;