Sleeping arrangement

Perry was sure he had misheard him. "What do you mean you don't know?"

Before Mal could answer, soft footsteps pulled Perry's gaze away from him. Galana stopped a short distance away from both of them and bowed her head. 

"Forgive the intrusion, Your Highness, but I am preparing to close up the library. If there are any books you wish to study further, I will be more than happy to separate them for you," she said. 

"Oh. Sure. Um…" Perry studied the books, trying to decide which he should set aside to look at later. He wanted to study better all of them, but what if the Clan Leader discovered he was looking into magic and thought Perry was trying to somehow break their bargain. The left side of his chest ached with the phantom memory of the glass needle and Perry rubbed at it absent-mindedly. "Just these," he finally answered, indicating the book Mal had suggested and one about natural plants and herbs. 

Those were pretty harmless and wouldn't cause any alarm, right?

"As you wish, Your Highness." Galana bowed her head again and collected the books. "I shall escort you out in a moment."

When she left, Perry got to his feet, wincing at the way his body protested the movement. 

"Are you in pain?" Mal asked.

"Nothing major, just a long day." 

Galana soon returned and guided them out of the library. When she locked the door behind them, Perry remembered he and Mal hadn't finished their conversation about their sleeping arrangements. 

Well, Perry had made his position pretty clear. He just wasn't sure if Mal had accepted it. 

"So, I don't suppose you remember the way to my room?" Perry asked, trying to sound as disinterested as possible. 

"I do. Follow this hallway and when you reach an intersection, turn right." Mal gestured with one hand and Perry nodded. 

Other than Mal's occasional instructions, they walked in silence. Every now and then, a Royal Guard stationed along the corridors would bow and say 'Your Highness'. Perry acknowledged the first three, but decided to ignore the others. 

The world outside the Palace seemed to be completely dark and silent. Perry's footsteps echoing on the stone floors almost sounded too loud. 

When they reached a familiar-looking door, Perry's limbs became heavy, and even walking proved to be too much. It was as if his body had finally been given permission to feel how tired he was. 

"Well, good night, then. I, uh, will see you in the morning." As quickly as he could, Perry swung open the door and tried to close it behind him. 

A single hand pressed against the door stopped him. "Your Highness, I must first check your rooms."

Perry wanted to say that there was no reason for that, that he was perfectly safe inside the room. Except, that wasn't true. 

He glanced back at the secret passageway the Clan Leader had forced him through and sighed. 

"Fine, you can check my room." He wanted to say more, but he wasn't sure if the Royal Guard stationed a short distance away could hear him or not.

Mal slipped easily into the room and locked the door. Perry ignored the way the lock clicking into place made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. 

There was no reason to be nervous. No reason whatsoever. 

Mal quickly and efficiently swept his way through the room and then into the second area, where the office and bathroom were located. After checking behind the privacy screen and opening all of the trunks, he stopped in front of Perry, both hands clasped behind his back. 

"Everything seems secure," Mal said. 

Perry nodded and gestured to the door. "Great. Wonderful. You can go now." It occurred to Perry that he might not have anywhere to sleep. "I'll ask one of the guards to set you up… somewhere."

Maybe they had some kind of guest room in the Palace. It looked big enough to have more than one, actually. 

"I cannot open that door," Mal said.

"Why?" Perry asked, wary.

"It has a magical lock. Only you are able to open it."

"Oh." That was actually good news. Perry let himself relax a fraction. Then a thought occurred to him. "So if someone managed to sneak into my room and you were on the other side of that door…"

Mal nodded as Perry trailed off. "You would have to let me in."

Perry glanced at the wall and saw in his mind the secret passageway hidden behind it. He would be completely helpless inside this room. 

Just like his brother had been. 

The thought sent a prickle of unease down his spine and Perry shifted half a step away from the wall. 

"Consider the benefits of keeping me close," Mal said, pulling Perry away from his spiraling thoughts. "And believe that I have a vested interest in keeping you alive and safe."

It couldn't be just because the prince and Mal had had a conversation. Could it? There had to be something more to it.

"Why?" Perry asked bluntly. 

Mal seemed to consider him for a moment before finally answering. "I am looking for something and I believe keeping you safe will help me find it."

Okay, that made some kind of sense. Not a lot, but it was a start. "What are you looking for?"

"Something that was taken from me."

"You don't say," Perry said dryly. "What exactly was taken from you and why do you think keeping me safe will help you find it?"

"I lost myself. And I know keeping you alive will help me because you called me here."

Perry pressed the heel of both hands against his forehead. Mal had to be doing this on purpose to annoy him. He had to. No one could be so oblivious as to answer two very clear questions with vague words. 

Perry's eyelids felt heavy and grainy. His entire body felt like it was being pulled down by led weights. He was too tired to have this discussion. 

"Okay, so you'll keep me safe because you want something from me." Perry ignored the slight sting he felt at that. "And in exchange, you want to sleep with me. I mean, uh, in the same room as me. Not the same bed. Definitely not the same bed."

Mal smirked at him and Perry ignored the way it made his cheeks burn. "Sharing the same bed would be efficient and-"

"Absolutely not." Perry slashed one hand through the air. He didn't think he could survive sleeping in the same bed as Mal.

Because he thought Perry was the prince. That was all. That was the only reason why. 

There was no other reason. None whatsoever. 

"You can… sleep in the bathtub!" Perry gestured to the adjacent room and nodded, pleased with himself at his stroke of genius. "Yes, that works. You're close enough to come running if someone tries to kidnap me in the middle of the night, and far enough for… well, you'll be close in case anyone tries to do something… untoward."

Perry mentally facepalmed. Untoward? Really? 

Mal looked like he wanted to argue, but Perry was too exhausted to keep the conversation going. 

He sighed and rubbed at his temple with one hand. "Look, it's been a rough couple of… I want to say days, but things were bad even before the whole bathroom incident. Don't ask." He waved one hand in the air even though Mal looked like he wasn't planning on asking. "I really need some sleep. Can we continue whatever this conversation is tomorrow?"

There were a lot of things Perry wanted to ask his bodyguard - for example, how had he ended up standing outside the prince's room if he didn't know where the Palace was? But right then and there, the bed was like a siren-call Perry wanted badly to answer. 

"Very well." Mal inclined his head in the direction of the adjacent room. "If you require anything, you need but call me."

"Sure. Yeah." Perry wanted to say something else, but he was just so tired.

As soon as Mal disappeared from view, Perry climbed into the bed with all the grace of a beached seal. He should change his clothes, but he barely managed to kick off his shoes before he fell face-first onto the soft, soft bedding and almost instantly fell asleep.