The dining room was a sea of polished silver and heavy, ornate plates, all set with a precision that would have made even a drill sergeant weep with joy. As I carried the final tray of steaming beef stew, the very same dish that had been the backdrop to my tangled web of lies the night before, I moved with a grace that was entirely foreign to the original Miera.
I aligned the dishes with geometric perfection, a silent efficiency that I felt sure didn't go unnoticed.
The table was nearly full. Snow sat at the head, her regal posture unaffected by the day's activities, while Maine and the Calico brothers occupied the sides. There was a notable vacancy, however: my seat.
As I moved to pour the wine, Cassius leaned back in his chair, his eyes scanning the empty chair with a predatory, mischievous glint that made my stomach turn. He tapped his fingers rhythmically against the tablecloth, his ruffles from the day before replaced by a crisp, high-collared tunic.
"You know, the atmosphere here is remarkably quiet. Almost... boring. Miera, surely you've seen her? Where is our dear, blushing rose? I had a few more 'romantic' developments planned for the evening, and it's a tragedy to let such excellent teasing go to waste."
Cassius said, his voice dropping into that familiar, taunting drawl.
The brothers chuckled, and I felt Maine's gaze shift toward me as well, his expression one of quiet, observant curiosity.
I kept my face a mask of polite, indifferent service. I didn't let my eyes flicker or my hands tremble as I poured the wine. I had rehearsed this line a dozen times in the kitchen while scrubbing the pots.
"Lady Roxy? She left the manor at dawn, sir. She left quite suddenly, something about urgent matters of the guild that required her immediate attention out of town."
I replied, my voice steady, soft, and perfectly attuned to Miera's humble attitude.
Cassius groaned, throwing his head back in a dramatic display of disappointment.
"Gone? At dawn? What a cruel twist of fate!"
He leaned forward, flashing a grin at his brothers.
"Well, I suppose the proposal, the ring, and my inevitable victory will simply have to wait. My marriage plans will continue tomorrow, when she returns to face the music." Cassius said
"Perhaps she simply realized she couldn't handle your fashion sense, Cassius," Calix chimed in, earning a round of laughter from the table.
I stood by the sideboard, head bowed, a dutiful servant witnessing the planning of my own "capture."
Maine, however, didn't join in the laughter. He looked at the empty chair for a long moment, then looked at me, really looked at me, with a strange, lingering intensity. For a second, I felt the cold sweat of discovery, but then he looked away, turning his attention to his stew.
I maintained my composure, my two hands clasped firmly in front of my apron. I was playing a character in a drama where I was simultaneously the writer, the star, and the absent protagonist. As the brothers continued to plot their teasing, I felt a strange sense of dark amusement. They thought they were planning for tomorrow, waiting for the girl who had challenged them to dodgeball. They had no idea she was already in the room, standing right behind them, pouring their wine.
The exhaustion finally caught up to me. With the last of the chores finished and the dinner service winding down, I allowed myself the indulgence of sitting in Miera's chair. The stew in front of me was hot and savory, a small reward for a day spent scrubbing floors, running errands, and maintaining a facade that felt more like a cage than a costume. I took a slow breath, sinking into the seat.
"One more night. Tomorrow, the real Miera returns, and I can finally shed this skin." I told myself.
"Pitful act, Roxy." Plasma added
"Oh my, what have you been to, Plasma? Are you mental?"
"I have one question, Roxy. What happens if Maine asks you to have sex with you, while wearing Miera's body, would you accept it?"
"What question is that, Plasma? I'm eating here."
"Suit yourself."
But the dinner table was not a place for peace tonight.
I had barely taken a spoonful of stew when a sudden hush fell over the room. Maine stood up, his movement smooth and deliberate. He didn't head for his seat; he walked straight toward me, his hands held behind his back. The playful chatter of the Calico brothers died down, and even Snow seemed to watch with a faint, amused curiosity.
Then Plasma soon interrupted me.
"Huh, it seems that my future is correct. You will have babies, Roxy!"
"Shut up, Plasma."
Kiera, sitting right beside me, let out a sharp, delighted gasp. She nudged my ribs with her elbow, her eyes dancing with wicked glee.
"Oh, look at that, the lovebirds are at it again. How sweet, a little post-dinner surprise for your lady, Maine?" she teased, her voice loud enough for the whole table to hear.
I felt my face heat up, the blush was real this time. I shot Kiera a look that was meant to be a warning, a sharp, silent command to cease and desist, mirroring the same withering glare I'd used to silence Cassius earlier.
"Shut up, Kiera. You're embarrassing me."
"Ahh, my little sister has grown up to be a fine woman."
Kiera just pressed her lips together, hiding a laugh behind her hand.
Maine stopped directly in front of me. He didn't look at the others; his entire world had narrowed down to me. With a gentle, confident grace, he placed a beautifully wrapped gift and a velvet-cushioned box of chocolates on the table in front of me.
"For you," he said, his voice low, intimate, and warm.
He leaned down, his face mere inches from mine. His eyes, usually so analytical and detached, were swirling with a genuine, charismatic heat that made my heart stutter in a way that had absolutely nothing to do with my shapeshifting.
"Open it tomorrow, it's a surprise." he whispered, his breath ghosting against my ear.
He didn't wait for a response. He straightened up, gave me one last lingering, charismatic glance that felt like a secret promise, and strolled back to his seat. He picked up his spoon and began to enjoy his stew as if he hadn't just turned the entire room into his own private audience.
I sat there, stunned, staring at the gift sitting on the pristine tablecloth. The room had returned to its normal rhythm of clinking silverware and low conversation, but the air around me felt charged. Kiera was practically vibrating with excitement, leaning in to whisper,
"Well? Aren't you going to thank him properly?"
I stared at the back of Maine's head, my mind racing. I had set out to tether him, to give him a reason to keep living, but I hadn't prepared for the weight of his attention. I hadn't prepared for the gift, or the surprise, or the way he looked at me like I was the center of his universe.
Tomorrow, Miera will come back. Tomorrow, she would have to explain what was in this box. And as I looked at the gift, I realized with a jolt of genuine terror that I had created a romance so convincing that it was starting to outrun its creator.
After an hour has passed, I left the dining hall.
"Roxy, how are you gonna tell Miera about today's incident? The gift? The dodgeball?"
"Oh, it seems she'd figure it all out by herself."
"Utterly disrespectful, Roxy."
The heavy mahogany doors of the dining hall finally swung shut behind me, sealing away the performance. I carried the velvet-boxed chocolates and the wrapped gift like they were made of spun glass, my pulse thrumming against my fingertips.
I didn't dare peek. This was Maine's gift to her, not to the shape-shifting shadow who had spent the day scrubbing his floors.
I slipped into Miera's room, the sanctuary of order and lavender. With a final glance at the door to ensure I was alone, I let my concentration break.
[DNA trace depleted. Shapeshift deactivated.]
The familiar, sickening sensation of reality snapping back into place washed over me. The skin of Miera's face receded, my own features reforming in the dim light. My left arm, so gloriously whole for twelve hours, faded into the familiar, jagged stump of my own body. The pain of the phantom limb returned, a dull ache that I had learned to live with, but the exhaustion was worse, a bone-deep weariness from being someone else.
I folded the maid's dress with the same military precision Miera used, placing it back in the wardrobe. I set the gift and the chocolates on her vanity, pulling a scrap of parchment from my pocket. I scribbled a single, urgent instruction:
"Open it."
Leaving her room felt like shedding a skin. I crept through the darkened corridors, my movements silent, an adventurer once again navigating the shadows of her own home. When I finally reached my own room, the door was calm.
I stepped inside, my heart hammering, only to find Maine sitting at my small wooden desk, a book open in his lap. He looked up, his expression shifting from the studious calm of a researcher to a warm, gentle smile the moment he saw me.
"There you are, I was beginning to worry. You've been gone all day. Where have you been?" he said, his voice soft in the quiet room.
I stood in the doorway, the mask of the day still clinging to my mind. I had to be quick; I had to be believable.
"I went to the hospital," I said, my voice steady, though I kept my eyes focused on the floor to hide the lingering traces of the day's events.
"Luke and Luck... they're struggling with their recovery. I needed to see how they were holding up."
Maine's face softened instantly. He didn't question me, didn't cross-examine me, and showed no sign of the sharp, analytical suspicion he had leveled at 'Miera' in the garden. He simply nodded, his eyes filled with a quiet, trusting empathy.
"I'm glad you went, they're lucky to have you looking out for them. You look exhausted, Roxy. You should get some rest." he said, closing his book.
He stood up, offered me a brief, affectionate nod, and moved toward his own sleeping quarters.
As he passed, I felt a wave of relief so intense it almost buckled my knees. He suspected nothing. He was still the man I had set out to save, the man who loved a woman who didn't exist, and yet, right now, he was treating me with a kindness that made me feel like the greatest traitor on earth.
"Goodnight, Maine," I whispered to the empty room as he closed the door behind him.
I sat on the edge of my bed, the silence of the room pressing in on me. The day was over, the mission had been a success, but as I looked at my own scarred arm in the dark, I couldn't help but wonder if the lie was becoming the only thing keeping us all from falling apart.