A Conflict of Duty and Heart

Progress

Constance closed her laptop and breathed a sigh of relief, glad to finally have this week's report out of the way. The cool, night air filled her lungs, steadying her nerves a bit. It had been roughly a week since the incident at the archives and things had begun to settle down. No further action had been taken by the rebellion, much to Constance's relief. In spite of all this she couldn't seem to shake the lingering sense of unease that tugged at the back of her mind. Lucky's words still rang through her ears when she was alone, keeping her awake at night.

That wasn't the only thing troubling her though. As much as she hated to admit it Constance had developed a certain....fondness for Capper. His presence in her life had begun to feel more comfortable, natural even. She was starting to view him as a friend of sorts instead of an assignment. Lately she'd found herself genuinely enjoying his company and she'd noticed that she was spending a lot more time with him. She honestly wasn't sure how she felt about that.

She glanced through the balcony windows and quickly spotted Capper watching tv on the couch. Noticing that she was once again staring at him, Capper shot Constance a soft, playful smile. Constance caught herself smiling back as a warm feeling began to spread throughout her chest. As Capper turned his attention back to the tv Constance began to pack up her things. In doing so she happened to catch a glimpse of Sekhmet's palace. Instantly the warmth she felt was replaced with shame as if the building had stolen it from her the same way it absorbed the city lights around it. She was letting herself get too attached to her target, how unprofessional of her. If Queen Sekhmet ever found out about this she would be disappointed.

Constance finished packing up her things with a sigh before stepping back inside her apartment. The warm air within enveloped her but was unable to chase away the icy sense of dread tugging at the back of her mind. She couldn't afford to let her emotions get in the way of her job. She was already progressing too slowly for her own liking. The sooner she got this mission over the better. She had to figure out a way to determine if Capper was part of the rebellion. The only problem was she didn't know how.

Constance was still trying to figure that out when she remembered something. The beginnings of an idea began to form in her mind as she briskly walked to her room. After quickly putting away her laptop Constance began to rummage through the drawer of her nightstand until she spotted the thing she was looking for. With a sense of triumph she pulled out a red envelope and held it aloft, briefly admiring the delicate gold leafing that decorated the edges. Inside was an invite to this year's celebration of the anniversary of Queen Sekhmet's rule. The celebration was to be held within the palace itself. It was a luxurious affair that only the social elite and trusted members of the Queen's court could attend and it just so happened that Constance was in need of a plus one.

No rebel in their right mind would turn down an opportunity to slip past the palace's defenses and gain access to the secrets within. It was the perfect opportunity to test where Capper's loyalties lied. Of course a plan like this would require approval from Sekhmet herself before Constance could even consider putting it into action. Without a moment's hesitation she retrieved her laptop and began to type out an email detailing the specifics of her plan and asking for permission to proceed. With one final click Constance sent the email on its way.

Constance was practically buzzing with excitement at the prospect of finally making some progress with this case. She was one step closer to finally being able to visit her family again. She could barely contain her enthusiasm as she flopped back first onto her bed. An audible ding sounded from Constance's laptop causing her to jolt back upright, she hadn't expected to get a response that quickly. She opened the email and was thrilled to see that her request had been approved. All she had to do now was convince Capper to go to this fancy shindig with her. Considering how much he seemed to enjoy flirting with her that wouldn't be hard.

After taking a minute to compose herself Constance made her way into the living room envelope in hand. Capper was still on the couch trying to decide what movie to watch now that the previous one had ended. Constance nonchalantly plopped herself onto the spot next to him, pretending to be interested.

"Someone's in a good mood." Capper remarked, noticing the smile that still lingered on Constance's face. "Did something happen?"

"Oh nothing too exciting, just work stuff." Constance replied.

"That's a first, you usually get upset after you finish staring at your 'laptop' or whatever it's called."

"We'll this time I've finally started making progress on a project that has been plaguing me for almost a month now."

"That's good, what's been holding you back?"

"A certain....coworker of mine hasn't been contributing enough on his end." Constance replied, refraining from shooting Capper a pointed glare.

Capper turned the tv off, seemingly unimpressed with any of the available movies. "Well that is unfortunate, hopefully he'll get his act together soon."

"That would certainly help." Constance agreed.

Capper turned to her, a playful gleam in his eyes.

"Don't think I didn't notice you staring at me again. When are you going to stop making eyes at me and let me take you out on a date?"

Constance felt her face turn red, caught off guard by how forward his request was. Capper chuckled softly, amused by her reaction.

"Relax kid, you know I'm just playing with you. I know you're not into me like that." Capper reassured her, taking Constance's lack of response as a no.

"Actually," Constance fiddled with the red envelope, surprised by how nervous she was, "I wanted to ask you something similar."

Capper's ears perked up, a look of genuine surprise on his face.

"Really?" He asked.

"Well you see, I received an invitation to attend Queen Sekhmet's anniversary celebration in a few weeks. I was wondering if you would like to go with me. I know it's a bit extravagant for a first date so I won't be offended if you say no."

"You're right, it is a bit over the top for a first date. How about I take you out for coffee first and make it our second." Capper inquired with a grin.

"Rather bold of you to assume I'll want a second date Mr.Dapperpaws," Constance replied teasingly, "but sure, coffee sounds nice."

"Perfect." Capper purred, draping his arm across the back of the couch as he resumed his search for watchable content.

Constance leaned into the indirect physical contact and scooted a little closer to him. Close enough that Capper definitely noticed but not so close that they were actually touching. Although he hid it well Constance could tell that Capper was excited that she appeared to return his attempt at affection. Constance had to admit she was a little excited too, albeit for an entirely different reason. She smiled softly to herself, the trap had been set now all she had to do was wait.