The sight of the Grand Duke of the North, a man who had been detached from the world for seven years, being used as a climbing frame by three children was nothing short of a miracle.

Julian leaned against the doorway, his arms crossed as he watched the chaotic procession move through the hallway and toward the gardens.

Even the knights didn’t seem to understand completely exactly what was going on.

Alaric looked back over his shoulder, his eyes meeting Julian’s for a fleeting second. The frustration from the carriage was still there, simmering in the depths of his gaze, but it was tempered by a strange, new softness as he adjusted his grip on Lucius and Cassian.

I am doing this for you, his eyes seemed to say, even as Liora nearly yanked a handful of his golden hair out of the scalp.

"Don’t look at me like that, Your Grace," Julian teased, his voice light. "You look like a very capable father. Perhaps you missed your calling as a nanny?"

Alaric let out a huff that was halfway to a growl.

"I prefer it if you call me a strategist, Julian. If the fastest way to get you alone is to exhaust the Imperial lineage and my own heir, then I shall deploy every muscle I have." Julian chuckled at that declaration. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

"Uncle, you’re squeezing too hard!" Cassian complained, though he didn’t actually try to get down. The ’thug’ prince seemed secretly thrilled by the rough-and-tumble attention.

It was a new kind of play that no one would have with them, and so he could not fully hide the excited smile curling on his lips.

Julian followed them into the moonlit garden, the cool air helping to finally settle the last of the heat in his cheeks. He watched as Alaric actually—to his utter shock—started a game of ’tag’ that mostly involved him fast-walking while the children tried to outrun his massive strides.

Lucius was beaming, his earlier tears completely forgotten as he chased his father’s cloak, his small legs moving faster than Julian had ever seen them.

This set a warm flame in Julian’s heart. This satisfaction... it felt like the peace was back, but for how long? How long would the Emperor let them be?

As the moon rose higher into the sky, the children were not only exhausted but dirty and satisfied. They had gotten the fun of their life.

"The Prince and Princess have to leave now," the head of the guards who had escorted the Imperial Heirs here announced, and Julian nodded.

"I can... still play more," Casisan grumbled, rubbing his sleepy eye.

"You can play more tomorrow," Julian said to him, patting his head. Then, the guards carried the prince and princess, heading out of the estate in their carriage.

Now, it was just Lucius left. The boy was rubbing his eyes on his father’s arms.

"I’ll get the maid to take care of him." The Duke signaled for the maids on standby, and they stepped forward. Julian watched them carry Julian away, but just as they were walking past Julian, Lucius caught Julian’s sleeve.

Julian looked at him, watching the boy as he tried to speak words with his lips but couldn’t, and so he pursed his lips and let go.

But Julian caught his hand and smiled at him.

"It’s alright to be a little late, Lucius. You can take your time."

He would hate for the child to feel pressured about speaking and cause himself mental distress.

Lucius nodded, and Julian let go, watching the maids leave. And as soon as he turned his head back to the Duke, the Duke placed something in his hair.

Julian’s breath got caught at the sudden surprise. The Duke was standing right before him, hardly any space between them, staring into Julian’s eyes and caressing his face softly.

"I wanted to tell you this back then..." the Duke confessed. "You’re beautiful."

Julian could feel his heart hammering again.

"W-when?" he asked.

"Remember the forbidden garden in the Palace." He said, and flashes of that event came back, though he was too occupied with ’borrowing’ the ingredients to even notice what the Duke was feeling.

And when he did notice, he blamed it on the pollen.

"You mean, back then, when you held me and refused to let go," Julian recalled, and the Duke’s gaze dropped softly. "You said it was the pollen."

"I said, perhaps." The Duke recounted. "But I couldn’t tell you my real feelings back then."

Julian’s heart just wouldn’t calm down, and he equally dropped his gaze. They shouldn’t be doing anything here. The servants were likely still around.

"Lucien," Julian called, but the Duke suddenly dropped his head on Julian’s shoulder, and Julian stiffened.

"You were going on with ’Your Grace’ a lot earlier, and I got upset," he confessed.

"That... That’s because the prince and princess were here and... Ack–" He felt the Duke’s teeth graze his collarbone.

"I’m still upset," he said. "How will you make it up to me?"

Julian could hear his own heart beating in his ear. The Duke seemed to be throwing a tantrum. It was cute.

"Then, shall we continue this discussion after we take a bath?" he asked, and the duke’s ear perked up, clearly misunderstanding what the ’we’ meant, and Julian quickly clarified. "Separately."

The Duke’s perked-up ears fell in sheer disappointment.

"A-and then after that, we can have snacks, sweets, and a glass of wine," Julian added, thinking of anything that could interest this man to lift his mood.

"Wine," Alaric muttered. "I guess that’s a nice idea. I’ll bring the wine."

"Alright, then... Can you let me go now?"

But the Duke did not let go right away. He made sure to taste Julian’s lips, take his brat away, and grip his waist firmly before anything else. The kiss was long, daring, and incredibly sensual.

"A little appetizer," Alaric said, grinning and watching Julian pant heavily over his flushed face.

Julian was left standing in the moonlight, his fingers grazing his own lips as he watched the Duke’s retreating figure.

The ’appetizer’ had been more of a main course for Julian’s nerves, because he felt like he was walking on air and through a minefield all at once.