"You know, I can cook more tasty food. How about we make another deal?" Xion asked, his face leaning closer to Darius.
His sudden movents made Darius wonder what this silly healer was up to now.
"What?" he asked in a calm voice. It was because he was bored and definitely not because he had eaten Xion's food and had the urge to try more.
"I can cook for you while also treating you," Xion whispered near Darius' ear. "In return, can you keep away from your father?"
Darius had never been this close to anyone. It was even more true since he passed the age of thirteen and sat on his throne.
Suddenly, a warm breath fell on his ear, making his whole-body tense in alertness. He was curious about what this healer wanted. He had enough riches to reward this person.
However, the sheer audacity left Darius montarily frozen. Few dared to speak so informally, let alone propose bargains, to him.
Yet this odd healer behaved as if Darius were just any other boy. A muscle twitched in his jaw. He wasn't offended. No, he was entertained.
"My father..." Darius said slowly, his voice dropping into a quieter, almost dangerous register.
A wave of cold emanated from him, snaking out beyond the confines of the carriage.
Outside, Ray's horse neighed uneasily, sensing the ominous aura. Ray tightened his grip on the reins, stealing a glance toward the carriage.
Had that fool of a healer just infuriated his Grace? Ray grimaced. It seed likely.
The knight glanced at his surroundings filled with trees. Well, at least the place was good enough to dump dead bodies. While thinking so, he strained his ears to catch any voice from his master.
He was not wrong. Xion really angered the cruel Archduke and was blissfully unaware of it.
He even praised himself for coming up with such a perfect solution to the problem.
Ignorantly, he leaned even closer until his lips were almost touching Darius' ears.
"I accidentally bumped into him this morning," Xion admitted, his voice lowering as if confessing a dire secret. "He looked really angry. So... I ran away."
Darius' entire body stiffened even more. Yet he refrained from pushing the teenager away.
Was it not I who this silly person crashed into? Darius took another bite of the bread and continued to listen.
His face remained the sa, nevertheless, the temperature in the vicinity rose a bit.
Xion rubbed his arms to get rid of the goosebumps on his body. He, now thoroughly uncomfortable with the shifting temperatures, reached for the nearby blanket.
Without much thought, he draped it over the silent boy seated beside him. His wide, satisfied smile returned when Darius didn't object.
"There you go," He smiled so brightly his whole face seed to glow.
He leaned in once again to convince the child. This ti, albeit a bit, the boy too leaned forward. This simple action made Xion happy. Trust was the first basic between the doctor and his patient.
"I ran away without properly apologizing. Ray told that his master is very scary. So, can you hide from him? I promise I will make very delicious food for you. How about it?"
Xion blinked his eyes, silently urging the boy to answer him.
Darius speechlessly listened until the end. He swallowed the last bite and unlike Xion, he ate very cleanly.
Wiping his already perfect lips with a cloth, Darius glanced at the healer whose eyes had beco comically wide in eagerness.
"So, you want to hide from -... The Archduke?"
Xion nodded.
"And Ray told you Archduke is very scary?"
Xion nodded again. This ti with more enthusiasm.
The Archduke's gaze fell on Xion. It remained on his face, making him feel as if he were being watched by a venomous snake.
Xion was almost unable to bear such strong scrutiny when the heavy sight finally left him and so did the trendous pressure it brought along.
Outside, Ray suddenly felt a chill behind his back. He opened a distance between him and the carriage while praying that the stupid healer would not say any nonsense.
The said stupid healer gulped as his mind raced.
Was he being too hasty to take cover from a child against his father? He might be.
However, it was not like he had any other choice to begin with.
If he wanted to treat Darius, sooner or later he had to et that scary Archduke. His only bet was to seduce the kid with food to save his neck.
Slowly, almost painfully, Darius' lips curled up. Rather than a smile, it was more like a smirk.
An amused glint danced in those green eyes as he finally answered.
"Sure."
That one word sounded heavenly to Xion's ears. His entire body lit up with happiness.
"Thanks!" he said while grinning from ear to ear.
Darius' sharp green eyes glead. The boy was entertaining, if nothing else. However, Darius had no intention of disabusing the healer of his misconception, not yet.
Xion was relieved. So much so, that in his giddiness, he completely missed the very similar interest in those scary green eyes, he had observed in the "scary Archduke".
The silly Xion was unaware that this inattentiveness was going to co back and haunt him for the rest of his life.
Black Box-
The grown-up Darius cornered the trembling Xion against the wall.
"My treasure once said I am scary."
Xion panicked, "...N-No, Not scary,"
Darius smirked as his thumb rubbed Xion's lower lip, "Sleep with , then. Prove it to , and ...you won't be trembling from cold anymore."
Xion gulped, "I-I think I can handle the cold."
The next second, the whole room went colder, almost to the point of freezing.
Darius directly hugged the quivering body and went to his bed. "It's too cold. Let's do so exercise to warm our bodies up. Okay, my sweet?"
Xion, flushed and panicking, could only moan all night.
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