Royally F**cked

XVIII:Duodēvīgintī

Oddly enough things had returned back to normal and that was the worst part of it all. Delvin had made no effort to acknowledge or even treat her any different after the kiss they'd shared.

He'd seen her naked, for god's sake. And he was acting like nothing even so much as phased him. The Queen's word's echoed throughout her head. Had he really just gotten bored of her? Lavinia stood awkwardly by the door of the Prince's office, holding a tray of tea.

The man liked having tea in the afternoon, he was particularly fond of jasmine. It was hard to get hold of in the Vespertine Kingdom, so she had secretly bought a stache when they were in Havenvale. She tried to convince herself that this was just a favour, and that she wasn't trying to get his attention.

Lavinia didn't need it.

"Are you going to keep standing behind that door, Lavinia?" Delvin called from the office. She blinked, how had he known she was there? It was probably not worth thinking about. Before she could open the door, it was opened for her. The Prince was still sitting at his desk, his hand poised in the air towards the doorway.

Show off.

Nowadays he would always use magic for stupid small things, from opening doors and windows, to getting a pen to write for him. Whenever Lavinia was there, he always made some sort of excuse for it.

It was kind of cute.

He looked up from the paperwork he was drifting over, his eyes catching on the tea cup's she held on the tray.

"Is that jasmine?" Delvin asked, tilting his head. A stray strand of silver hair caught by his eyes, and her hand itched to move it. Lavinina moved forward to place the tray on his ebony desk, sooner than she had the time to blink, the tray magically lifted from her grasp.

It floated down to the desk, and Delvin greedily snatched up a cup. She placed her hands on her hips, looking down at him disbelievingly. "What?" The Prince asked, cocking an eyebrow at her even though he knew the exact reason she was annoyed.

"I can hold a tray perfectly fine you know," Lavinia retorted, flopping down onto the seat opposite him. He hummed into the teacup as he took a sip.

"But then i wouldn't be able to see your adorable facial expressions," He snarked, putting down the teacup. The Prince waved his hand, and with that the second teacup was in her hands. Lavinia stifled a sigh, there was no telling Delvin right from wrong.

Even though Delvin had made no effort to acknowledge what had happened between them, since that night the dynamic between them had shifted. His taunts no longer held any bite behind them, he was more attentive of her and always made sure there was enough food for them to share at meal times.

Lavinia gazed into the warm liquid, staring at the reflection she was there. It was hard to sleep these days, and it was beginning to show. Dark purple bags haunted her eyes. She was paler than normal, and her hair was flat and lifeless. No wonder Delvin hadn't initiated anything after that night.

So lost in thought she was unaware of Delvin's beseeching eyes. The teacup gently lowered from her grasp, shaking out of her reverie Lavinia looked back up.

"Are you okay?" Delvin asked, narrowing his eyes at her as though he could read the answer from just her face alone. And maybe he could. There was never any use to lying to the Master of the Magic Tower.

Lavinia pondered on what to say, dropping her head back into her seat to stare at the ceiling. There was so much she could say and yet so little at the same time. What were they now, she and Delvin. Did it matter as much to him as it did her? Such simple thoughts were hiding something worse.