Doe's POV:

The plaza was a lot busier in the morning.

Despite its size, it appeared that Xander and I got there right as it really began to bustle.

We'd got ready and left not long after we woke up and headed out, right now aiming for a tucked away breakfast nook he liked.

No offense to Lily whatsoever, I think we were just both seeking out a change of pace for today.

Something close to the days we used to have as a break from the welcome changes being here has brought.

They were all good changes, that much I can't argue, but this was something that I needed.

I think we both did.

I ended up about half a step behind Xander, maneuvering our way around the people gathered here to begin their day.

He had the height advantage over me to actually see where we were going, so I just simply followed his move, accidentally bumping into a few people or tripping over the cobblestone bricks that lined the streets.

The chattering voices all around made it practically impossible to hold a conversation without almost screaming at each other.

I'd wanted to grab his hand or something to help keep up my pace, but kept second-guessing and disregarding it for a multitude of reasons.

The fact that he was quite a big deal around here being one of them.

Although with what he was wearing, he specifically made it so that he wouldn't be so easily distinguished, but it was still a possibility with further inspection.

It had never once come up in any of our conversations about his life here that I was expected to treat him a certain way in public, and I knew his image here was very important to him.

I already had it in my mind that with one look, people could identify me as a pet.

I rose my head once that thought crossed my mind, flicking my gaze across the multiple faces that passed me.

My brows rose at the complete absence of something that I was so used to.

No one. Absolutely no one was giving me that stare.

The ones filled with morbid disgust or pity. No scoffs full distaste at my very presence.

At my existence outside the walls of a cage.

Weird...

They just were simply... carrying on with themselves. The ones I did make brief eye contact with responded with a smile and incline of their head.

Just like they did with the others around when they did the same thing.

I hadn't realized the hunch in my shoulders until I felt it melt away, taking all of this new information in.

Well, that feels... different.

There was a tad more pep in my step, reclaiming the inches I'd lost.

Dumb vampire and his long legs.

He'd turn his head to check in every thirty seconds or so before going back to scanning the surrounding area.

I don't think he 100% remembered where it was.

My fingers balled at my side once that urge to grab at his sleeve came again.

I'd gotten... a little bit into the new book and It made me second guess some things.

Both in this book and the last one I'd read the characters were always so nervous to keep a hold on each other, but I couldn't grasp why.

It's always just felt natural. No matter who was initiating it.

Even though it was basically always me...

I never second-guessed myself before because then, there wasn't anything to second guess.

But now... I'd like to think that I'm becoming more aware of how little I knew about what was considered 'normal interaction' to most other people.

Was I doing something incorrect because of this?

Even that didn't sit right because none of it ever felt it wasn't what I should be doing.

It couldn't possibly be more complicated than that, right?

No... No that wouldn't make any sense.

Why not just try it then?

If he doesn't want me to, then he'll tell me and that'll be that.

I kicked out the drop in my stomach at the thought of him pulling away after I grabbed him the second it began to show.

His hand was in his pockets to I instead caught up so that I was right by his side, and interlocked our elbows.

There was a stagger in the rhythm of his steps, his head tearing away from scouring the shops ahead to look at me.

Well, switching between me and my hold on his arm that is.

With the high rise of his brows, I almost mistook the look the longer it stayed on his face, and then even more so when he began to move his arm.

That sinking on my stomach was ready to return, but again, never got to get the chance.

All he did was remove his hand from his pocket, and raise it until those large fingers fell between mine.

A skip forced its way into my heartbeat at the boyish smile he sent me with a crinkle in his eyes before they returned to look for the spot.

I was glad that the voices all around meant that he was most likely not engaging his hearing to spot it.

Satisfaction warmed my chest, mixed with a dull thrill.

His hands were warmer than the air around us from being in his pocket and used it to keep me close and avoid bumping into anyone.

I took a moment to talk myself back down from that annoying stress that was building.

See? It truly was that easy.

~~~

Xander's POV:

I took her to a spot that I remembered fondly.

After finally finding the place I was looking for, and grabbing some food we took it over to a spot that bordered the park.

There was a willow tree atop a slight hill that's been there for as long as I could remember, the branches keeping the ground free from the light cover of snow.

I had the idea early enough to also purchase a plastic cover for the grass that we could sit on and not get wet.

The cafe I took her to wasn't large, and thus it was almost always expected that people were taking their food to go. So they also stored up on items for people who didn't plan too far ahead.

Like me.

We never planned too far ahead on the days that it was just her and I, just let the flow of the day take us.

And holy shit, I did not truly realize how much I missed spending time with her like this.

Just... Us. No stress from anything else. No familiar distractions, just the aimless destinations, and random conversation topics. whilst we munched on our food and hot beverages, watching the people pass.

Let things come as they happen, don't worry about anything else as much as my thoughts like to make me.

I wasn't worried much about people spotting me as a prince along with her. I know that after my identity is discovered, there's a level of respect that comes in and most of the time leads people to keep a decent distance if it looks like we're in the middle of something.

From their standpoint, the first thing that they'd assume is that Doe is just another vampire, and that's the thought process I planned on playing with.

I didn't want to hide the people important to me.

This time, Doe talked about how much fun she's had since we've been here. Spending her time getting to know Khloe and how quickly they hit it off.

How she thought that she was getting a better hang on the castle's layout, and brought up a few of the family portraits she's seen.

Just catching up on the more minute things that we don't discuss in our day-to-day lives.

"What about you and Nico? How have you guys been doing lately?"

She sipped at her latte, cupping it with both hands and tilting her head up to look at me with those wide eyes.

"It's been amazing lately," I divulged with a sigh, "Dad's got us working on some of his stuff every other day. Well, it's mostly Nico, but I like to jump in when I can."

She doesn't get to see us interact that much since I only see him during the family meals and while doing work.

Sometimes during other meals, but most of the time we ate those in our respective rooms just for privacy sake.

"It's nice acting like brothers again. Kind of going back to the stupid things we used to do before we left."

I loved every second of it.

"I don't think I've ever seen that man smile until you two made up," she spoke blatantly, stirring a laugh out of me.

Because I couldn't even disagree with her.

"Yeah, I think you need to get to know him under some different circumstances too. Not just me and Khloe."

Nico was a difficult person to truly get to know just because of how guarded he had to be growing up.

He learned very early that people's relations with him were often conditional due to being the next in line, and grew a very deep hatred towards those who used his status and friendship for selfish reasons.

He became close off and standoffish towards everyone else, and I feel like that's the only part of him that Doe had seen.

He kind of reverted back to that during my whole Layla thing...

And if here was where we were planning on knowing each other for who we really are, I wanted her to know Nico properly as well.

She mulled that over, tapping a finger against the lid.

"I dunno," She sang, "He's kinda scary."

I could hear the sarcasm behind her tone.

"That's what he wants you to think," I began, nudging her arm, "Just like how Khloe thinks that I'm scary."

"We actually talk about that a lot."

I blinked at her.

"What, me being scary?"

She gave me a cute little giggle, "Kind of. How we believe that our respective brother is the nice one and the other one is a little scary. Though I probably think Nico is scarier than Khloe thinks you are. Just from an appearance standpoint."

'Our respective brother'...

I know it wasn't her intention but that got a strange reaction out of me, tugging at the possession rooted in my brain.

My jaw tightened, that mixed with the need for fresh blood I hadn't sated yet.

"You don't think I look intimidating?" I pushed with a fake snarl, flashing one of my fangs, and leaning in close.

I don't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't how she reacted.

Round eyes, the hitch in her breath, the blush blooming over her entire face.

The way she looked at me nearly caused the same thing to cover my features.

Even she looked surprised by her own reaction, and yet played it off like It didn't happen. Whether it was intentional or not.

"You? Not a chance," She elbowed my arm and returned her attention to her drink "You do certainly have your moments, but when they're not directed at me, I wouldn't exactly say 'scary' is the right word."

"My moments?" I repeated.

"Yeah. Like the last time we saw Layla. That was not a side of you I'd seen before."

The last time we saw Layla, huh?

I felt the spark of anger at the memory, that specific part of my back tingling along with it as I recalled everything that went down.

Doe had been focusing on that spot of my back a lot lately...

"From an outsider's perspective, I'm sure you looked terrifying, but for me, it was more..." She faded off for a moment, "I don't know the right word..."

Her eyes narrowed as she battled for the word, but couldn't quite grasp it.

"Not... scary...Relieving in a way," She begrudgingly settled with.

I smirked at the display, "Good to know."

"But anyway," She continued, "I'll give Nico a shot. I'm giving Khloe the rundown of your whole deal here soon."

I guess they finally settled on a date for that.

Her hands rose above her head in a stretch after she finished speaking.

That purple jacket I'd got her mostly prevented me from seeing the stretch reach her entire body.

My tiny disappointment didn't get a chance to grow when she leaned her head sideways onto my shoulder at the end of it.

My purr started up immediately, thankfully being quiet enough to hear the words she spoke right above a whisper.

"I have missed you though. It's been nice getting to know all of these people and always having something to do but...," I could feel some tension building in her shoulders.

My heart was going wild in my chest, and I was glad she currently couldn't see the heat on my face that battled against the cold at how she spoke.

Those first four words caused something I couldn't begin to explain, but didn't want to disregard.

She never felt like the type to so easily divulge something like that.

"I've missed you too. And I'm glad that you're finding other friends here. But Dad doesn't have me doing a whole lot alongside Nico, so if you want, we can have a day like this I'd say... once a week?" Something caught in my chest, "If you want?"

"Really?!" Her enthusiasm caught me off guard, "Yes let's do that!"

Well damn, how was I supposed to say no to that even if I'd wanted to?

I wanted to spend so much time with her. I just didn't want to steal her from the relationships she never got to form until now.

But as much as I wanted to second guess, I couldn't mistake that tone in her voice.

"Sounds like a plan then," I said, sneaking a hand over to her shoulder and leaning back against the tree.

She pressed her ear further into me, basking in this moment along with me with her cup in her lap.

The day was nice, showing the signs of winter coming to an end.

The springs here were beautiful, especially deep in the forest behind the castle.

That and all the festivals my mother likes to organize as the weather starts to get warmer.

My purr was still present, but stayed on the quiet side the more I thought about it, wondering if Doe would still be with me by then.

"Why do I feel like the only times I've heard you purr is when I'm involved?" She asked, yanking me out of my train of thought.

My lips pressed together tight, knowing that she was unaware of the very direct call-out she'd just given me.

"It's uh..." I hurried to try to come up with something.

I wasn't going to just lie to her...

"You make me happy," I simply told.

And simple as it was, I swear I heard her suck in a quiet gasp.

Her heart rate picked up a bit too.

She did. In every way possible she made me happy.

"There's no way I'm the only one who makes you happy," she spoke up.

"That's true. It's... a different kind of happy."

One that dug deeper than simply enjoying someone else's company.

The purr comes from that deeper part of us, and it doesn't just offer itself to anybody.

Vampires were very dominating creatures. It's hard for us to commit fully to the trust of another being.

It's the closest thing other than words themselves you're gonna get from a vampire saying 'I trust you. I'm yours'.

Except of course when we drink live blood... the greedy little thing.

"Different how?"

I swear her innocent curiosity always chooses the hardest topics.

Which is why I had to think on how to answer this properly.

"It's less of something that you're just feeling, and more of something you know to be true. It's everything positive you could experience all tucked away nicely into something."

It was comfort, it was pleasure, it was everything in between and then some.

She makes me so unimaginably happy, and that's why it hurts so badly knowing the situation I was in with her.

No... Don't focus on that. Not right now.

Right now I just wanted to focus on her.

"And that something is me?" She sounded shocked, turning her head up again to see my face.

I just smiled at her.

"Well, yeah. Why wouldn't it be?"

I don't know how she manages to always seek out the best in me after everything that's happened. How she knows just how to handle something and knows exactly what to say.

She was perfection incarnate, and I wasn't afraid to remind her of that.

She drew in a long breath, fingers fidgeting with each other on her lap.

I could see she was looking for words but again couldn't manage to find them, instead turning to actions.

All of these new feelings were still very new to her, so I didn't blame her one bit.

Leaning forward so my arm fell, she preceded to sneak hers under it and intertwine our fingers like she did during our walk here, rubbing her face against my sleeve.

Her grip was tighter this time around, bringing her other hand into the mix to set near my elbow.

Just... holding me. Tight.

The silent, almost desperate hold brought back memories from when she had that nightmare.

I leaned down till I could place a quick kiss atop her head, falling back into peaceful quiet before readying ourselves for whatever else this day has planned for us.