Y/N sat at her desk, staring at the infernal piece of paper lying on the top.
One of the jobs that she had been given upon accepting her position as the prince's advisor was having to filter through the piles of letters that were dropped on her balcony every morning. Admittedly, there was a part of Y/N that wanted to set some sort of deterrent on her balcony so the blasted crows wouldn't deliver the prince's mail. But, at least it gave her a break from attending classes with the boys of this school.
She had already reviewed the letter a multitude of times, and every time she did, she felt her anger start to bubble to the surface, getting closer and closer to overflowing.
"What an absolute menace," she muttered to her empty room, falling back into her chair.
'Of course, she is!' Nox was also incredibly irritated about the letter that Y/N had received.
'I think it's sweet.'
'You think everything is sweet, Loon.'
"Ease off, Nox," Y/N hissed. She wasn't particularly in the mood to listen to the two arguing, especially when she had to focus on the letter in front of her. Sometimes, it was annoying having two other voices in your head, especially when one was the peacekeeper and the other was opinionated about anything and everything.
The subject of their anger was the letter. As the prince and heir to the throne, one of the most common sorts of letters were proposals of dates and, more irritatingly, proposals of marriage. Both of these letters made Y/N sick, and Nox even more so. And though the letter in and of itself was annoying to read, listening to Now and Luna argue was even more so.
"Please be quiet," Y/N sighed, folding up the parchment. She lifted her hands to her scalp and tugged at the roots of her h/c hair.
"Lady Y/N?"
Y/N turned and peered over the back of her seat, smiling when she saw Silver standing at the door.
"Silver," Y/N said with a smile, straightening her back as she got to her feet. She stepped out from behind her desk and curtsied to the boy. He returned the gesture with a graceful bow. "How are you today?"
"I am well, Lady Y/N," Silver said. "Father wished for me to tell you that Malleus wishes to meet with you shortly before he leaves for breakfast." He pulled out a simple silver pocket watch and ran his thumb over the carved surface. "You have ten minutes before he expects you."
Y/N sighed and turned back to the paperwork on her desk, starting to pack everything up into her briefcase. She slid the papers back into their proper files and shut the flap on her black briefcase. Silver left the girl to get ready and shut the door behind him as he went to wake Sebek.
Y/N glanced over at the pile of marriage proposals that she had sorted through. Many of what had come she had disposed of, deeming them too unreasonable for the prince to even consider, according to the specifications that she had reviewed when she studied when her father brought her to council meetings. She had narrowed down possible proposals to about a third of what the pile had been that morning when she first woke. Still, many of them were absolutely absurd, to say the least. But there was one that rose above the rest.
"Lady Ruby of the Shaftlands," Y/N muttered. She picked up the letter that she had been reading when Silver had entered the room. Along with the letter, she had sent a portrait of herself that nearly made Y/N vomit. She wasn't unattractive by any means, but it was more her scantily dressed figure and intended seductive position of lounging on a chaise that had made bile rise to her throat. Y/N wondered how Lady Ruby's parents, or guardians, had let her send that portrait.
'May Maleficent curse her,' Y/N thought sourly.
She straightened up the last few pieces of paper and set it all in a small pile on the desk. She walked over to the mirror and adjusted her uniform, making sure that everything was in place. Her uniform was somewhat similar to that of the boys, as it came with a blouse, a pair of trousers, and the Diasomnia band and pin. The only difference, however, was that while the boys were given blazers, Y/N had been given a cloak coat.
Once she was satisfied with her uniform, she returned to her desk and picked up the photograph of Lady Ruby. She wrinkled her nose at it, but she decided to humour the lady, as marriage proposals were one of the things that Malleus had been ordered by the council to review. So, she tucked the portrait into her pocket and the letter with the rest of the proposals. Then, she picked up everything she would need and left the room.
Malleus was already waiting for Y/N when she got there, casually reclining on the chair behind the desk. He gave her a soft smile when she poked her head in.
"Forgive me, Your Highness," Y/n said, dropping into a curtsy. "I would have knocked had I known you were in here."
"Y/N, please, drop the formalities. You know that I don't care for them."
Y/N bit the inside of her cheek and walked to the desk, setting her briefcase on the edge. She waved her hand and the pile of marriage proposals landed on the desk in front of her. "Here are the latest marriage proposals for you to review before class today."
Malleus said nothing and started looking through the marriage proposals. As Y/N suspected, he picked up Lady Ruby's letter and quickly glanced over the contents of the letter. Y/N knew for a fact that Ruby did not write her own letters, and instead ordered a servant to write them for her. Something about not wanting to tarnish her dainty ivory skin. She could remember that much from the time Lady Ruby had come to visit Briar Valley.
"I trust you still have the picture she sent."
Y/N nodded and withdrew the picture, handing it to Malleus with the back facing up. Malleus quirked an eyebrow as he took the photo, wondering why Y/N was handing it to him face down, but he realised why immediately after flipping the picture over. Y/N had to fight back a laugh when she saw Malleus' face. He had not been expecting... this sort of picture.
"This is the picture she sent?"
"Yes."
Malleus sighed and set the picture down. He would have to deal with that later.
"Have you ever met Lady Ruby," Malleus asked, rising to his feet.
"Once. Though I did not enjoy it in the least."
Malleus nodded and picked up the letter, carelessly throwing it into the fire. Y/N held back a smirk.
"I called you here for another matter, Lady Y/N," Malleus said, drawing the girl's attention away from the embers. "If you will recall what I said last night, you will be in the same class as Lilia and me. You will also be my advisor."
Y/N nodded.
"There is one concern that the Headmaster had considering your new presence at the school. This was formerly a school for only males, but now, you are here. Crowley has asked that you remain by my side for the duration of your time here, and if you should feel uncomfortable with any of the boys, you have been granted permission to use your magic in defence."
Y/N nodded again and smiled. "I doubt that the boys will be much of a problem, My Lord. I find that teenage boys tend to cower in silence rather than approach a girl, but I assure you that should any of the boys pester me, I shall indeed both defend myself and report to you about any issues that arise."
Malleus smiled and got to his feet, slowly walking around the desk and standing in front of Y/N. "Now for the other reason that I asked you to meet with me today." He took a deep breath and shuffled an inch closer as if fearing what Y/N might do to him if he were any closer.
"What is it that you wish to ask, My Lord?"
Malleus reached out and took Y/N's hand in his, cradling it as if it were glass. "I wish to speak to you about what happened. What happened to you that you would so suddenly disappear from my life, and why..." he paused, staring deep into Y/N's e/c eyes. It felt as though he was drowning in the depths of an ocean, stretching for a light that was always just out of reach.
"My Lord?"
The young prince snapped out of his thoughts and sighed, his head dropping slightly. "Please, Y/N... call me Malleus. I have not heard you say my name in years, and I long to hear it spoken from your lips again."
"I apologize, My Lord, but that is inappropriate for a girl of my standing. I am a low-rank noble's daughter. I do not think myself worthy of-"
"Y/N." Malleus cut her off. "Please. Just once."
Y/N sighed and eventually relented. "If that is what you wish..." she hesitated and watched as Malleus held his breath in anticipation. "Malleus."
It took all of Malleus' willpower not to throw himself at the girl and sob in her arms, asking over and over why she had left so suddenly. Instead, he let go of a shaky breath and settled for pressing Y/N's hands against his chest, covered by his own to ensure that she couldn't pull them away.
"Y/N, please, tell me what happened that you would leave us so suddenly. Why you would leave what we had." He reached out and gently stroked Y/N's cheek. He hoped to elicit some sort of reaction from her, but all he was rewarded with was Y/N turning away from him with a look of shame etched onto her face.
"Y-"
"Please, My Lord," Y/N said, tugging on her hands. "Please release me so that I may return to my chambers and finish preparing myself for classes."
"Y/N, please, just tell-"
Y/N turned her head, her h/c shielding her face from Malleus' burning gaze. "I cannot speak of it. It pains me to do so, and I have been forbidden to explain."
Malleus' eyes widened and in his shock, his grip slackened enough for Y/N to pull her hands from his and briskly walk from the room, ignoring Malleus as he tried to call her back.