"Uhn!" He grunted in response, taking her silence right after as a cue she was done, he turned around to leave once more.
"And I'm sorry." She whispered watching him leave.
Opening her door, she plopped down on her bed exhausted, wondering what could go wrong more than it already is.
"Lance! We really need to stop ending our meetups with a shove in the bush. I hope you weren't mad I did it once again." She laughed at the fond memories, squealing into her pillow.
Outside the door was Leo listening in on her by placing his ear to the keyhole. At first he had suddenly remembered why he had rushed back in the first place, but what he heard made him reluctant to be the bearer of bad news.
His grip on the strands of hair tightened in anger, he shoved his hands into his pocket.
Her words certainly confirmed his suspicions–it was indeed a person, and what's more he got a name as an added bonus.
'Who is Lance? Why would she go to great lengths to protect this person? How had they met?' Leo rubbed his chin, adjusting his position, he sat on the floor, resting his back on the wall.
'I might as well fulfill my promise to stay here until those guards get back.' He wiped down his face in frustration.
–––––––––––
"Sir." Barth whispered, lightly tapping Leo on the shoulder to wake him up.
"You two are back! It's about time." He wiped the sleep off his eyes, getting up he dusted the dirt off.
Yawning, he covered his mouth before he could finish, "What hour is this?" He looked around, a little confused.
"It's actually late at night right now." Barth whistled, guilt tugged on his chest at having stayed at the request of Vin for quite a long time.
"N... night?!" Leo raised his voice in shock, all traces of sleep gone, he looked down the hallway to be sure no one had heard him.
Carefully opening the door to Mae's Chambers, he made sure to check if he had unintentionally woken her up, heaving a sigh of relief, he watched her toss and turn in her sleep on her bed, one of her feet out of the covers, he let out a chuckle at least she was still sound asleep.
Closing the door quietly, and being turned to face the guards, there was something a little off about Vin. "What's wrong with him?" He pointed at Vin who was restless while resting on the wall.
"We are deeply sorry Sir for the delay. Vin here..." He made a strict emphasis on the latter, holding back from hitting him, rushing to hold him before he lost his footing while resting on the wall.
"...drank a little too much, even for him." He sneered, wrapping his hand over his shoulder, holding onto Vin, providing support for his drunken state.
"You really think I'd let you two stand guard over the Princess with his condition?" Leo nodded towards Vin's behaviour. "You should be more concerned about taking him to his quarters, he won't be a cause of query for me by His or Her Majesty. Whatever you all do affects me."
"So..." Barth's voice trailed, unsure of what to do next, slightly getting pissed as Vin's actions were starting to get lewd–his free hand roaming his shirt.
"That's disgusting, you idiot!" He hissed, pushing Vin away, adjusting his shirt before reluctantly squatting and pulling a groaning Vin up from the floor.
Leo watched the both of them in amusement, he had not really gotten to have an in-depth interaction with his subordinates so watching this couldn't help but bring a smile on his face.
"You two may leave, do take care of this idiot while you are at it." He laughed.
"I don't have a choice." Barth complained, "I am deeply sorry for making you go through this, I would make it up to you tomorrow Sir."
"Whatever." Leo shooed them away.
"You always find a way to disgrace me Vin." Barth barked, hitting him on the head in annoyance as he led him to his quarters.
Leo had a broad smile on his face to what he had witnessed, this was a change to the usual attitude he was used to and if he was to be honest, he enjoyed the closeness he had experienced a few minutes ago.
Suddenly he felt the urge to see the Princess one more time. His hand rested on the knob, deep in thought he contemplated if that was a good idea, he still couldn't bring himself to tell her what he had witnessed.
Forgoing his urge, he dropped his hand to his side, resting his forehead on the door. Various unanswered questions running through his mind.
"I might as well keep guards over her Chambers instead of brooding on what had happened." he mumbled to himself, his resolve strengthened.
–––––––––––
The next morning, Mae opened the door slightly, poking her head to observe who stood watch who was no other than Leo, his face a few inches away from hers.
"Waaah!" She staggered backwards in shock at having to meet with him at such close proximity.
"I deeply apologize for the scare. It was the only way I could watch your Chambers without sleeping while doing so." He took a step forward into her room, stretching out his hand to pull her up.
"Were you planning on sneaking out?" He asked with a voice full of curiosity, pulling her up. He stared at her waiting for an answer like last time, but this time he was determined to be as calm and collected about it.
"Why do you suddenly care?" She replied with a huff, dusting herself. "It's a habit I haven't shaken off yet."
"Do you mean sneaking out, poking your head out to check on the guards assigned to you, or..." He pretended to think of the last possibility.
Mae looked away awkwardly, not ready to admit he was likely going to be correct if anymore spilled from his lips.
"I don't know what you mean." She quickly replied.
"Hahaha!" Leo laughed at how her mood had changed the moment she heard 'sneaking out' and 'or'.
"What's funny?!" She pouted, clearly not amused being put in the dark.
"You would like to know huh?" Leo's face sparked up in delight.