He's chivalrous and well-mannered, which Marcus can't help but find appealing

The young prince hung shyly back behind Coraline as she followed Castus into the tavern, peeking curiously around her dress despite his nervousness. He'd never been to a place like this before, his Mother would never have let him! In the books he read taverns were always full of adventure and mysterious strangers giving out quests. If it weren't for that stupid, annoying soldier strutting ahead of them, he'd have been so excited to see one for himself!

When he glanced over the large common room though, he felt a flicker of worry that made him bite his lip. Instead of brave adventurers or strong lady knights, this place was full of his uncle’s soldiers, a lot of them wearing the same armor and scarlet cloaks as Castus was. They were sitting together, eating, drinking and chatting to each other or the women they had with them. What if one of them recognized him? The young prince shuffled closer to Coraline, trying to keep her between him and the soldiers. Her hand darted back and grabbed his, holding it quite tight. Apart from that, she still seemed perfectly calm, like she was sure nothing would go wrong with her plan. How could she be so confident? Any one of these men might see his silver hair and guess he was the prince!

"Don't worry, dear." She glanced back, smiling at him gently. "I know seeing all these strange men must frighten you, but, the good Lieutenant is here to escort us, right?" Her gaze flickered expectantly back to the soldier.

"Oh yes, you don't have to be afraid, Marcia." Castus straightened, looking pleased to have the chance to boast again. "These are good men, officers all, not the kind of rabble who'd dare bother a sweet girl like you. And I'm right here to protect you even if anything should happen, okay?" He was so earnest it was difficult to stay annoyed with him, no matter that Marcus kept telling himself he should be. Not to mention the way the older man just came out and said he'd protect them from anything, sounding so brave and sure. The young prince found himself blushing again, his belly fluttering rather a lot. Why was he even feeling this way? Just from a silly promise!

"Thank you, Sir." Marcus murmured shyly, his cheeks glowing hot. He was quite embarrassed for real, but he could also guess from Coraline's lessons that this kind of wilting gratitude was just what Castus would like. Sure enough, the soldier smiled even wider, his chest puffing up under his armor. Was it really this easy for girls?

"Come, I've got us a table in the corner." The soldier waved them forward, turning to stride. Still keeping as close as he could to Coraline, Marcus glanced anxiously over the common room. After what he'd been imagining, it was a little disappointing. There was no raucous shouting or throwing of chairs like in the stories, nor where there any mysterious hooded strangers waiting in the corners of the room. Instead, there seemed to be a lot of couples, soldiers sitting with well-dressed women, sharing meals and talking lightly. His wandering gaze flickered over a pair sitting in a shadowed booth, and he blushed even hotter when they leant over the table and kissed each other lightly. Was that why Castus had chosen this place? Did he want to do that too? "Here." The soldier pointed at a table near the fireplace. He darted forward first and pulled out one of the chairs. "For you, ma'am." He glanced at Coraline.

"Oh thank you." The maid cooed, looking very pleased with herself. "It's so nice to see a young man with such good manners." She stepped forward and sat herself down, leaving Marcus standing alone, his hands wriggling nervously in front of his belly. Suddenly he noticed he was getting a lot of furtive looks from the other men in the room. Only none of them seemed shocked or angry like he might have expected if they'd guessed he was the prince. So why were they staring at him so much? He fiddled awkwardly with one of the ribbons on his dress, wishing he could hide in a corner somewhere.

"And of course, Marcia, you can sit here." Castus moved round the table and pulled out another chair. Biting his lip, the young prince darted forward, eager to get sat down so these men couldn't stare at his legs anymore. He even noticed a woman looking at him across the room now, only she looked very mad! He hadn't done anything wrong, had he? As he sat down in the chair, he felt Castus' fingers touch his shoulders for just a moment, then the soldier straightened and moved to sit down in chair right across from him, just like that couple! If Castus lent forward, they'd be kissing too! Marcus hardly thought it was possible, but his blush just seemed to get even hotter, prickling down to his neck and ears. He must be bright-red by now!

"What a nice establishment." Coraline smiled, sitting beside him with her back straight, her eyes moving over the crowded common room with obvious appreciation. "Thank you so much for bringing us here."

"Not at all." Castus replied, but his gaze didn't move from the young prince's face. Marcus glanced down at the table, wriggling on his chair. It was getting hard to remember any of his lessons about how to act like a girl. Would the soldier realize he was a boy if he didn't play with his hair or smile sweetly all the time? "Why don't I get us some drinks first?" Castus continued, then gave the young prince a warm smile. "Is there anything you'd like, Marcie?"

"Um...I don't..." Marcus stammered, his tongue twisting itself in knots. He really didn't have any idea what people drank in taverns and it was quite hard to even speak right now. Castus just waited patiently though, staring across the table with those warm eyes and an easy smile that lit up his face. Oh...how was he suddenly so handsome? It was getting hard for the young prince to think!

"She'll just have a glass of warm milk." Coraline suddenly spoke up. "And I'll have some honeyed mead."

"Milk?" Castus frowned faintly, his eyes flickering to the maid. He didn't seem very happy about that and there was a slight stiffness to his jaw as her looked at her. "She's of age, isn't she?"

"Yes, but you know she's never been out in a place like this before." Coraline replied. "It's all a little overwhelming for her so I'd rather she didn't try anything stronger just yet. She's such a delicate girl, you know?"

"If you say so, ma'am." Castus sighed. When the waitress hurried over he ordered their drinks. Marcus glanced back at the table, pouting faintly. He felt a little annoyed Coraline had just interrupted like that. Sure, he'd been making an idiot of himself, but he'd have managed to speak if she'd just let him. And why did she have to order milk of all things? It made him look even sillier in front of Castus to be drinking something so childish, no matter how much he usually enjoyed a cup. "Now, Marcia..." The soldier turned back to him, giving the young prince a little thrill as he felt those warm eyes settle on his face again. "I know you're nervous right now, but all I want right now is to get to know you a little better. We can just talk a bit, and I hope you can start to feel more relaxed around me. Is that alright?" His voice was slow and calming, like he might have talked to a skittish doe. Only...it did kind of work, and Marcus felt his heart flutter in his chest.

"Okay, Sir." The young prince breathed. Part of him was very anxious, wondering if he'd be able to keep up this act and pretend to be Marcia even with all the help Coraline had given him. At the same time though, he did really like how patient and kind Castus was being with his shyness, and it made him want to impress the older man. "Um...what do you want to talk about?" The soldier smiled, straightening in his chair.