"I could use some new cologne for tonight..."

"Elowyn will be fine," Moris muttered to himself as he made his way back to the castle's interior. If anything, she'd give him another punch in the ribs later, and that'd be the end of it. For now, making himself as presentable as possible was the most important task on his schedule. Moxie should be able to help him out in that regard. Her lab was located on the far outskirts of the castle, a decision meant to minimize risk to their king, should any experiments go awry.

Moris was making his way towards the lab, but was halted as he turned a corner and crashed into another body. While Moris was barely nudged by the impact, the other party was not so lucky. An androgynous looking maidservant had fallen flat on their ass, spilling a basket filled by a dirty sheet stained with wine and who-knows-what across the floor. Shock and horror was upon the maid's face as they realized what they'd just done. Without much time to react, Moris watched as the servant clumsily scrambled from a supine position to a kneeling prostration.

"I'm so sorry for that, milord!" They blurted out, continuing with a manic stammer. "I-I'm new, and I'm usually really good at avoiding attention from people like you! Please don't tell anyone about this!"

Moris squatted down and reached out to put his hand on the maid's shoulder. While this section of the castle was mostly empty, a handful of onlookers had turned their attention towards the outburst. "It's alright, it's alright. Are you hurt at all?" Moris asked with genuine concern.

The calming tone of Moris disarmed the maid, and dragged them back from the verge of tears. Taking a few deep breaths, they collected themselves enough to answer Moris's question. "I'll be okay, but I might get a bruise." With a little assistance from the knight, they clumsily lifted themselves to their feet, but not before stumbling into Moris's chest. After finding their footing, they looked up into "What is your name, milord?"

"Sir Moris, humble knight of our King. And you?"

"My name is Casey, milord. I'm new to the staff, so I'm still learning things." They looked around the hall, and a look of stress and confusion washed over their meek expression.

Moris saw this, and offered Casey a soft smile and a pointing finger. "The laundry room is over in that direction. Would you like me to walk there with you?"

Casey was sent stammering at the offer. "I-I couldn't possibly take up more of your time, sir. A lowly m-maid like me is unworthy of your time." Casey's voice cracked as they tried to deny him, letting a deeper voice slip out for the briefest moment.

This made Moris raise an eyebrow. Was the maid he'd met actually a man? He began to vocalize this question before being interrupted by Casey's finger pressing on his lips.

In a show of assertiveness that hadn't been there before, Casey grabbed Moris's arm and pulled him around the corner to a more private section of the hall. That is where he explained it all. Casey had been raised by his grandmother, and when she had gotten sick, Casey came to the castle looking for work. Fortunately, there was an opening available, unfortunately, it was a position for a maid.

"So that's how it is, sir. Please, don't tell anyone I'm a boy. It's..." Casey let a sigh escape his lips. "It's embarrassing."

Moris, never one to let others down, placed a hand over his heart and swore to keep Casey's secret. Casey looked up st him in admiration, and his nervous energy suddenly returned. He cast his gaze to the floor, seemingly to avoid matching his co-conspirator's gaze. "I umm... I think I should get back to work now!" As soon as those words escaped his lips, Casey grabbed his basket and ran off... in the wrong direction.