It was the weekend. So Ceci, ideally, should be strolling the streets as she pleased, free from the ails of studies and hard work. There should be no Nightmares to haunt her or January's nagging and such.
The reality was a lot crueler than her ideals, however. Because January was definitely there, looming before her with an eagle's eye. Princess Ceci sulked, slouched over her desk, littered with textbooks and notes.
She squinted at the sheet below her pencil but she was pretty sure she had read the same sentence about the theories of some great foreign philosopher at least five times and hadn't understood a single thing. The essay she was supposed to produce come the following week had not progressed even one word.
Princess Ceci sighed for the twentieth time and looked up at her unyielding maid, "January…" she whined.
"What is it?" January's voice was clipped, "I see that you haven't written a single word for the past hour or so."
"I have to read the article first!" She slumped in her seat and glared a hole into the rows of words that refused to relinquish their meaning to her.
January looked at the miserable Princess and then at all the homework she had piled on the desk. But her expression did not change. "Work harder then," she said mercilessly.
The Princess grumbled and poked her homework with her pencil. She would soon cover the page with dots rather than words.
Luckily, the door burst open. Princess Ceci jolted up on her seat.
"Your savior comes and he brings to you the elixir of the gods!" March held up a paper bag with a giant grin upon his face.
Ceci squealed and pushed passed an annoyed January, "You're the best! I love you March!"
March, the bastard, held her precious coffee just out of her reach and smirked, "Yes good, praise me more!"
Well... Ceci supposed she didn't mind stooping a little low if it was for the sake of caffeine. "You're so handsome March! Super strong and powerful!"
March laughed with an obnoxious voice and graced upon her with her cup of coffee. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him upon the cheek. "I love you!"
March suddenly froze and twitched like a broken toy. Princess Ceci laughed and twirled around with the coffee now in her hands and pumped a fist up in victory. "Hah! I win!"
January let out a long exasperated sigh and shook her head. "Stop being ridiculous," she scolded them both. But it would take a miracle for either of them to listen to reason. Princess Ceci stumbled back to her seat and glared at the homework before her. She pulled her drink out of the back and allowed the perfect mixture of bitter and sweet fragrance filled her mouth and throat.
Perfection.
Feeling a little more refreshed she looked back at her homework. The words in the article were starting to make a little more sense to her.
March strolled over and hunched over her, eyes scanning the slew of papers and notes thrown about the desk. "So what's all this," he hummed, plucking the article from below Ceci's hands!
She squeaked and pouted at him, "Give that back!"
"Can you even understand any of this?" He smirked playfully at her.
"Of course I can! That's Prince Liang's 'The Art of War'. I'm not stupid, March."
"Our Princess isn't stupid!" He chuckled and handed the article back to her. "What's so interesting about it though? Why are you studying work from a different country?"
Princess Ceci frowned. That was something she couldn't quite understand either. There was a reason wasn't there? Someone had told her a very, very long time ago.
"Prince Liang, huh…?" March hummed. When her eyes flicked up, she thought she caught him making a very strange expression. "Why does that name sound so familiar?"
"How am I supposed to know?" Princess Ceci huffed, "He's long dead."
March blink, "Oh, is he?"
They shared a look.
Princess Ceci had nothing to say. And neither did March. She coughed and turned her attention back to her homework. But her mood felt sour. She really wasn't interested in reading. And even if she didn't finish by the coming week…surely could convince her professors to forgive her, couldn't she?
A new idea flashed through her mind and she tugged at March's sleeve, keeping him at his side when he was about to move away.
She beckoned him closer, eyes cautiously motioning towards January who was in the other corner of the room, straightening some of the decorative plants there.
He leaned in, ear close to her face, "What is it, Princess? Thinking of causing some trouble?"
"Well, it's technically my day off so…"
He raised a brow, but the smirk on his face showed that he wasn't in disagreement.
Princess Ceci grinned, matching him in mischief, "I want to escape."
"Hmm, you'll have to do better than that Ceci."
What!? Ceci huffed, how could March betray her like this!
"C'mon Princess! I need something more than that if I'm going to risk my life for you…"
"What are you two mumbling about!" January snapped at them and came them a glare full of suspicion. "March!" She barked, causing him to flinch, "If you're just going to distract the Princess then go make yourself scarce! Do you want her to become an embarrassment to the Royal Family!?"
Luckily, March was smooth with his words and a fine actor. He smiled at her and replied with ease, "Don't worry about a thing Jan! I'm just helping our pretty Princess out, right Princess? I've read 'The Art of War' too when I was in school."
"Really-" She was in the middle of asking when March's hand flew over her mouth. Oh right! Woops!
January continued to glare but slowly she turned back to tending the plants. Princess Ceci let out a long sigh of relief before kicking March's leg, "Look what you've done!"
He winced, "Me? Why is it my fault?"
A chill traveled down their spines and with a small peek they could see January glaring again! So they quickly turned their attention back to the homework and waiting for the coast to clear.
"..."
"..."
"So? What's on the line here?" March nudged her.
Princess Ceci grumbled, "Is helping me not good enough of a reason for you? Aren't you supposed to be my Knight?"
"I'm no Knight in Shining Armor, Princess." He smiled. A pang of strange guilt rumbled in her stomach. "Think of me more like…a Dark Knight! Yeah, that sounds pretty cool, right?"
She frowned, "As if…" She thought and she thought and tried, "How about a raise?"
"What? As if money is ever an issue in Arcadia."
"Then…How about a holiday!" She beamed.
March wasn't impressed, "Not interested."
"Uh…I'll set you up with some pretty Ladies…?" Princess Ceci didn't really know what men wanted to have in their lives. Especially not March of all people!
"Nope!" He shook his head, "Still not interested! Gotta try better than that, Princess!"
What!? She pouted. What else did March like aside from pretty ladies and swords? It wasn't like she had a blade better than the treasures he could summon! "Can't you gimme a hint…?"
March grinned, "Well…Since I'm a poor dog that's driven to death by his master from all the hard work she's putting upon me…"
"What! I just offered you a holiday!"
"Don't you think it's only fair that she repays the favor for me…? Just for a day."
Princess Ceci furrowed her brows. Did March want her to follow his orders for a day? Mischief was gleaming in his eyes. That couldn't be a good idea at all.
"What are you two doing?" January barked again.
"There's no need to shout!" March singsonged easily. "We're discussing Prince Liang's interesting war tactics on castle sieges and the hidden ethics about his methods!"
January's eyes were cold, "There are no ethics in war."
March smiled back at her, "Well, he's a foreign prince. His beliefs are different."
January didn't seem particularly convinced but she was at least placated. And left the two of them alone.
"Okay fine."
March blinked and looked down at the Princess who didn't meet his eyes. "What?"
"I said fine!" She peered up at him through her lashes, "I agree to your terms! Even if they're totally stupid."
A grin lit up March's features and Princess Ceci was reminded that he was quite handsome as well. Of course, she'd never admit that to March's face. "You know I love you, Princess."
She rolled her eyes at his silly flirtatious words. "Hurry up and do something about her. Please!"
March hummed, "Sit tight, Princess. Big Brother March will work his magic. Just keep looking down at your homework."
Princess Ceci nodded as did as told, eyes veering down to her homework. If there was one thing March was good at, it was conjuring lies and sweet words with his lips. He was a trickster through and through and one of Ceci's best spies. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't interested in what kind of cunning plan he'd deploy to get her out of her situation.
But January wasn't a woman so easily fooled. She was full of suspicion when March strolled up to her. "I don't know what sort of mischief you're planning but keep me out of it." She hissed, hands folded neatly over her maid's apron and back straight.
March smirked. Without batting a single eyelash he said plain and simple, "Princess Ceci is going to run away from homework right about now. And I'm going to help her!"