The Lieutenant is charmed and very attracted

Even though Uncle Gaius had seized the Castle by ****, overthrowing the rightful king, not all that much seemed to have changed for the townspeople living in its shadow. Marcus was a little disappointed to see them rushing about on their usual business, shopping and working, as Coraline led him by the hand through the streets. He'd expected everyone to be furious, ready to revolt in service of their rightful king, his Father! Only, no-one seemed to care very much at all. In fact, they seemed almost cheerful, like his horrible Uncle taking over was a good thing!

The other strange thing the young prince quickly noticed was how many stares he got as he walked beside his maid in his pretty blue dress. Wherever they went, the men walking passed paused to give him these lingering glances, sometimes at his face, but more often down at his stockinged legs or butt. At first, he was frightened they might have recognized him, or noticed he was a boy. Coraline didn't seem worried though, and it didn't take him long to realize there was something rather more than shock in those gazes. Soon he was blushing furiously, trying to hide in his maid’s shadow every time he noticed another man staring. Why were they all looking at him so intently anyway? He was only pretending to be a girl! All the attention made him feel funny, his belly fluttering and tingly.

“Ah, I see he’s early, good.” Coraline commented as she dragged the anxious young prince by the hand out into the bustling town square. "That means he's serious about you, dear." Marcus glanced where she was looking and saw the annoying Castus standing beside the statue of his grandparents at the center of the square. The man was still wearing his stupid armor, like that was supposed to impress anyone! Even if it was very shiny and kind of suited him. And he had what must have been a new scarlet cloak draped over his shoulders. Seeing that made the young prince blush all over again, as he remembered how the man had given him one on the night he helped them escape and how warm it had felt wrapped around his shivering shoulders. His maid paused a moment, turning to give Marcus one last look over. She hurriedly brushed his fringe with her free hand and rearranged a few of the ribbons on the collar of his dress. "There." She nodded with satisfaction. "Are you ready, Marcia?"

"Yes, Mama." The young prince replied nervously, even though he wasn't quite sure. He tried to recapture his earlier confidence, going over everything she'd taught him about acting girly as she pulled him towards the looming statue by the hand. She'd put so much effort into making sure this worked. He had to do the same! Then Castus turned and saw them, and his face lit up with a delighted grin.

"Ah, ma'am!" He waved to Coraline. "I'm so glad you could make it."

"Oh, don't worry, Lieutenant." Coraline replied. "My Marcia would never have let me hear the end of it if I made her miss her big day. Speaking of, come out here dear." Marcus had been keeping her between him and Castus as they approached, but now she gave his wrist a firm tug and pulled him round in front of her. Her hands settled on his shoulders, holding him tightly there. The soldier paused, taking in a sharp breath. His dark eyes flickered over the young prince's body, something like wonder in that lingering stare. Marcus thought his blush couldn't get any worse, but just like that he felt it prickling to his ears. The way this man was looking at him...like he was some perfect angel or something.

"You're gorgeous." Castus breathed. "Oh...apologies, where are my manners?" He straightened, shaking his head like he was trying to clear it. "A pleasure to see you again, Marcia. I've been looking forward to this a lot since we first met." He smiled at the young prince, leaning over slightly. Marcus glanced up in turn, meeting that eager gaze with difficulty. He'd forgotten how tall the older man was compared to him, and seeing that now gave him a strange little thrill. Plus, out of the dark and panic of that awful night, he suddenly noticed other things. Like...how the soldier was kind of handsome, with a strong jaw, nice, soft brown hair and dark eyes that looked so warm.

"Hello, Sir." The young prince replied quickly, trying not to shiver as he lowered himself into a little curtsy like Coraline had taught him. Oh, this was so embarrassing! Doing it himself was one thing, but with this soldier staring at him so intently he felt like he was going to keel over with shame. Why'd the man have to stare at him so much?

"Not quite as shy as the last time we met. I'm glad to see you're getting used to me." Castus grinned back, that same teasing smile Marcus had found so annoying then. Now though, he couldn't even muster up irritation. Instead, he just stared shyly at the older man's chest, knowing his furious blush must be so very obvious. His belly was fluttering like there were a whole swarm of butterflies living there as Castus just kept staring at him. "You have a very polite and pretty daughter, ma'am." The soldier continued, finally glancing back up at Coraline. "You must be very proud."

"Oh yes, I am!" The maid replied eagerly, her grip on Marcus' shoulders getting a little tighter. "She's such a good girl, and she was so eager to see you today. You should have seen how long it took for her to pick the right dress to wear!" She chuckled lightly as Castus looked even more delighted. The young prince bit his lip. That hadn't happened at all! Coraline had been the one to choose this dress, not him! Only he couldn't say that, not without revealing he was a boy, so he just **** himself to smile shyly. At least the soldier seemed entirely convinced he was a girl so their plan was working...just rather too well for his liking.

"Come, follow me, both of you." Castus waved them over as he turned towards one of the streets leading off the square. "There's a tavern just down this way. Not a rough place, don't you worry. It's reserved right now for Officers and their guests only, so no-one's going to bother your daughter. And the food is excellent. We can enjoy a meal together and hopefully get to know each other better."

"That sounds lovely, doesn't it Marcia?" Coraline cooed, her hand stroking the young prince's shoulder.

"Yes Mama." Marcus replied quickly. It would be nice to get indoors so he didn't have all these men looking at him, but the thought of ending up in such close quarters with Castus was getting more and more worrying. Stick to the plan, he told himself firmly, as his maid led him gently by the hand after the annoying soldier. He just had to be shy and innocent, and act like a good girl. Coraline would make sure this all worked out okay and Castus didn't come after him or anything, right?