Aki had not expected lord Zeke to walk out of his newly wedded husband's chambers first thing in the morning, but he could not say he was surprised. They were a couple after all.

Zeke's eyes widened, shocked to see him there, but Aki just smiled lightly, inclining his head slightly to indicate an acknowledgement.

"L...l..lord...Zeke..." Mira stuttered.

Zeke's eyes swept passed Aki to focus on the servant girl and understanding dawned on his face.

He gave Aki a private smile before schooling his face into a mask of disdain.

"Ahh, you must be Aki," Zeke's tone was extremely patronizing.

"OH, forgive me, his highness, Aki Dilherra, I mean," he swept in a mocking bow.

The new Prince consort and the head knight went back and forth in their exchange, taking extreme pleasure in matching wit to wit.

Aki took a moment to compose himself before opening the door, the very picture of a wronged spouse, for the prying eyes.

Yeran looked up from where he was seated at the dressing table, gazes locking through the mirror.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, shooting an annoyed frown at the servant girl cowering behind Aki. With her head bowed, the effort went unnoticed.

"I was hoping to assist you in dressing my lord," Aki's hands were folded together infront of his stomach, hidden inside the sleeves. He bowed his head, slightly, hiding a smile in the fall of his hair.

"No need, you can leave, I'll have it arranged for that to be removed of your duties." Yeran replied, a slight guilt painting over his features.

Aki did not mind, he knew of the traditions of certain kingdoms and had already resigned himself to follow through, even if just for the sake of keeping up the appearance and protecting their cover.

...

"I shouldn't meet him for dinner, the spies have become too vigilant in the face of this new marriage," Yeran's face looked more as if someone died than just missing a date, as he liked to call them.

Zeke bit the inside of his cheek to prevent laughing.

"I'm certain your husband would not mind, Yeran, you did sent him a massage, yes?" He consoled, trying his hardest to not sound amused and on the verge of cacking out loud.

"Yes...but.... do you th..." Yeran broke off, hearing the subtle bird call that sounded exactly like the pet birds he had started to keep in his sitting chambers not few months ago, but different in the tune.

"Shit!" He cursed under his breath, staring Zeke dead in the eyes.

Zeke nodded, catching the meaning lightning fast and pulled on a haughty attitude.

"__so tired Yeran, whatever might be the issue?" He questioned as if they never stopped talking.

"I found that, apparently, beating the shit out of soldiers is a good stress relief," Yeran replied, making a face at Zeke.

"Have you not always done so, why a difference today? Besides, wouldn't your darling husband be expecting you, your highness?"

"If he knows better, he won't, I sent a massage," Yeran was extremely annoyed with all the pretense he had to put upon and his voice showed exactly that.

They conversation continued, them making up extremes threats and bizarre theories, biting back their laughs.

The pests will indeed be gotten rid of, just, not yet, they are quite useful after all.

...

"We need to do something," Yeran said.

Startled, Aki looked up from his book.

"About what?"

"Yor is getting restless, he did asked you to kill me, yes?"

"Yes...?" Aki narrowed his eyes in suspicion, awfully familiar with Yeran's plans.

"How about we start with that? Something small maybe? What about poison?"

"Repeat that, please?" The Prince Consort asked, a brow jumping in surprise.

"You, poison, me," Yeran explained.

Aki released an exasperated breath.

"Not that, idiot, just, who exactly taught you that poison is, something small?"

"It's not?" Yeran blinked, thrown off his momentum after suddenly being called an idiot.

"No! No it's not! The probability of you dying because of a poison is so much greater than dying because of a stab wound. What if there is no antidote for the poison? I can't even...." Aki paused to take a breath.

"..you speak of world domination and yet you not even know such a simple thing? Yeran, I think you  should have some words with your mentors, or is just your ignorance? Are you alright in the head?" He threw his hands up, wide sleeves fluttering like the wings of a butterfly.

Yeran bit back a smile. 'Who was aware that the personification of mystery had such an adorable side when vexed?' He wondered, adding a mental note to explore the new discovery leisurely on a later time.

"Well, not exactly poison, poison, we could make it so that you tried to poison me, and better yet, it was accidentally consumed by someone else."

"How is that going to make it anything of a less threat? whether it is you or anyone else, poison is poison,"

"I would hardly think you would not have an antidote, dearest Aki," Yeran winked.

Aki sighed.

"Fine! Be that as it may, it still doesn't explain how that will convince Yor, or why it need not be you,"

"Well, I could pretend to be really mad and throw you in the jail?"

"Are you telling me or asking me?" Aki questioned, tapping an inconspicuous pattern against the cover of the book held in his hand.

"If it was me, however good the antidote is, it could still leave some lasting effects, I could be bedridden for a few days for all we know, and if you truly were against me, what prevents you from taking advantage of that? Ergo, it need be someone else, so I could be worried and angry and imprison you, making it convincing that now you have a personal grudge over me as well," Yeran explained.

"Very well," Aki nodded, satisfied with the answer.

"It would need to be someone important," he added, leaving not a second to spare.

"Hm?"

"The one who gets poisoned," Aki clarified, "it would need to be someone important, to you, to be specific, someone you care for, if the ruse is to believed. You would not be throwing your new husband, the physical attestation to a very important alliance, in jail for some random passerby, would you, Husband?"

A shiver ran down Yeran's spine, not knowing whether he loved hearing that address, as what he yearned of for three years or loathed it for being only a reminder of being just a title in name only.

He blinked, forcefully wrenching the control back to the conversation from where it wandered off.

"Zeke," he replied.

Aki frowned.

"Are you certain, it is not a slight risk that can be ignored he will have to take?"

"Do you have something that could be deadly, but if treated in time will have absolutely no consequences?"

"I....yes, but.."

"And the antidote as well?" Yeran asked, before he was to lose his nerve.

"Of course, but..,"

"But what, husband?"

Aki's eyes narrowed in some unidentified emotion that passed by too quickly for Yeran to understand.

"You will trust me that much? To willingly lay someone's life on my hands?"

"Have I not already proven that I do?" For a crawling second they stared into each other's eyes, the violent sea and enchanting purple lost to their opposite's charm.

Aki blinked, shattering the fragile moment into a million pieces.

"As I said, after I put up a good...temper tantrum, let's say, and you were released, my mother will certainly come up with a ploy to make us spend time together as I know her and that, will give you time to do a bit of your assassination games. Time it right to have the right kind of audience, Yor will be satisfied for a while and we can lay out more groundwork in peace."

Aki said nothing, staring intensely at Yeran.

"Prince Aki?" Yeran caughed, feeling a little hot under the collar.

Aki smirked.

"I must say, Prince Yeran, you are quite the brilliant strategist, however unhinged might your schemes sound most of the time,"

"Why thank you, I do try," Yeran ducked his head in a casual bow, hiding the red painted over his cheeks.

....

Hey,

Hello, hello, hello, did you miss this author? I hope you did, or author will be very sad.

Apologies for being so late dearest readers, author had life to deal with and absolutely no creativity. Author is not certain if even this chapter contained author's usual flair or is just a mess in general. Author just wanted to write something. Be honest and tell author if it is a mess, yes?

Leaving all that, author is back children,

See ya,

Arkhane.

Aki

Yeran