Royals and Rule-breakers

Byron and Belligerence

The following night, Klaus awoke to a dream that had not plagued him in almost a year- it was always the same, the gunshots, the fire, the screams...

He shook his head to clear it, picking up a flashlight and quietly making his way to the most comforting room in the palace. As he passed Y/N's room on the way to the library, he was pleased to see that the slice of Shepard's pie he had left for her was gone.

Once in the library, he slowly perused the library shelves, the familiar scent of old pages and oak calming his mind; he began to reach for a leather bound novel on one of the shelves, pausing when he noticed someone pulling another book from the opposite side.

"Hello ma'am." He whispered, and Y/N winced as he shined the flashlight in her face. "Oh, I'm sorry..." he quickly moved the light from her face as it formed its all too familiar frown.

Y/N silently took the book from the shelf and added it to the stack in her arms before turning to go, and this time Klaus tried to stop her.

"Wait, don't go!" He raced to the other side of the bookshelves to cut her off, and she sighed.

"Thank you for returning my things, but I really don't need your help." She said quietly, to Klaus' surprise, before trying to push past him. As she quickly strode towards the entryway, Klaus shook his head and ran after her again.

"Why do you hate us?"

Y/N stopped in her tracks, but didn't turn to face him, slowly responding with a half-hearted, "I don't hate you."

"Well, you never smile or greet us when you see us, and you've never joined us for any meals."

Y/N shrugged her shoulders a bit. "It's not my place."

"Not your place? Ms. L/N, you're going to be with us for over six months- are you planning on ignoring us for the entire duration?"

"It would be easier if you would just ignore me like the rest of them your Highness." Y/N snapped, turning around to finally meet his gaze. "And soon you shall probably see even less of me, so it shouldn't be too hard."

Klaus was taken aback slightly, and Y/N sighed and bowed her head. "I apologize." Her face softened a bit as she added, "Thank you for the food." Then she was gone once again.

***

The following night, Klaus found himself back in the library, but this time not from insomnia. He glanced around a bit until he made out a figure in the dark curled up in a chair, a flashlight illuminating an open book.

"What are you reading?" He asked softly, and Y/N, startled, closed the book and turned off the light. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you..." he waited for a moment, and she eventually turned the flashlight back on, shining it at the book cover.

Selected Poetry of Lord Byron.

"Oh! I love Byron." Klaus smiled a little, but Y/N only offered a blank stare in return. "Er, do you read John Keats, Percy Shelley?"

She slowly nodded.

"Both?"

Another nod.

"Who's your favorite author?"

Y/N hesitated for a moment. "Mary Shelley. You talk a lot."

"Oh," Klaus felt his face heat up, "I'm sorry Ma'am. I just haven't talked about literature with anyone for a while."

Y/N nodded once more, then added, "It's quite late."

"It is. And for someone who begins work at sunrise, perhaps you should be getting rest."

Y/N shut her flashlight off to hide the slight blush creeping into her cheeks. "I don't have much time during the day." She whispered. "I make time wherever I can."

"Mr. D'Angelo works you pretty hard, doesn't he?" Klaus questioned sympathetically, and he could see Y/N shrug her shoulders in the dark.

"It's alright." She stood up, collecting her stack of books and beginning to walk away.

"I apologize if I'm bothering you too much-" he stopped as he bumped into her in the dark, blushing.

"It's alright." She repeated, pausing for a moment before offering, "Goodnight your Highness." Her last words seeming tainted with bitterness, but Klaus still took them.

"Goodnight Ms. L/N."

***