Bits and Pieces

The Plan

"Oh, you two are simply adorable."

"They are, aren't they?"

The young maid and butler giggled to themselves as they exited the room, closing the door behind them. The sound of their footsteps receded down the hallway, eventually disappearing from earshot altogether. After a few moments of tense, uncomfortable silence, the pair's romantic masks fell.

"Are they gone?"

"I hope so."

"Did they buy it?"

"It's likely."

Al pushed away from Akayel and wiped his gloved hands on his vest, grimacing at the terrifyingly large amount of glitter staining the cloth. As he began to wipe at his vest again, this time to brush off the ungodly coat of sparkling dust, Akayel wiped her hands against the sides of her dress. Her dark brows were also set in a grimace, displeased with their circumstance.

"I cannot believe I have to be this close to you for the plan." She spat, now furiously wiping her mouth with the hem of her dress. She could still feel the disgusting sensation of the kiss they had to endure while in the ballroom. That sensation...of the lips of someone she considered a stranger, a ruffian, a thief pressing against hers. "Thank you for keeping yourself from making it any messier than it needed to be."

"No problem at all." He answered, inspecting his hair in the rectangular mirror affixed to the wall on the opposite side of the room. The ridiculous neon dye was holding very well, fortunately unfortunately. "Even I won't go so low as to display something that extreme for a simple disguise. You are entirely too young for me."

"A madman with standards!" Akayel cried softly, dramatically laying a hand on her forehead. The wide-brimmed hat fluttered comically off of her head, landing on the floor with a sad flop. "The world is surely ending!"

"Must I remind you that that is exactly what's going on right now. Come here and assist me with this-?"

"Keep it on, Alabaster. It suits you."

"Oh har har pun I get it- it is choking me."

A vest with fancily sewn patterns of gold string was tossed onto the bed, the glitter inhabiting the fabric migrating onto silken sheets. A fine jacket made its way to the mess of cloth and glitter not long after. Al breathed a deep sigh of relief, stretching out his arms and rolling his shoulders with newly acquired ease. Ah, how good it felt to be out of stiff clothing. Extravagant wear had its aesthetic advantages, but he didn't enjoy the torture it came with just to fit into it. Never mind them being simply just vests or jackets, they might as well have been strangling weapons instead!

"Thank you. Now, we have a room to inspect, yes?"

"Not yet. It is Ussor custom for the host's servants to check on their guests at regular intervals. First, we establish their times. Then, we move."

Al threw his hands into the air, letting them dangle ceiling-wards before bringing them down again to cover his face with his hands. A second deep sigh escaped him, but this time, it was thick with exasperation.

"So you are saying that-"

"-that we are to be together for a little longer than planned, yes."

"<Heavens above...>"

Looks of discomfort were shared between them, frown to frown. A stare that told exactly the same message and held exactly the same understanding for each other's unease.

They trudged toward the bed to sit side by side, practicing their most genuine-seeming smiles as they whittled the minutes away. Their plan depended on it.