Good Company

Charming heaved a sigh as he closed yet another book in his collection. He tossed it to the ground with most of the others that revealed little to no information on this goddess Cybele. He looked at his mostly emptied shelves and sank down into a chair at his desk. He knew he’d have to clean these up later, before Miles saw them. Otherwise the guard would take it on himself to be Charming’s maid as well. Though the thought did bring a smirk to his face. What he wouldn’t give to see Miles in a maid dress…face flushed bright red from embarrassment.

He shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. He couldn’t let himself get distracted now. With a resigned sigh, he lifted himself back up out of his chair, intent on going through yet another of his many shelves in his manor’s library. That is, until, he heard the door creak open from behind him.

“Well, you’ve made a mess of the place haven’t you?” A gentle, teasing voice called out to him and he knew exactly who it was that had come to visit. He had a relieved smile on his face as he turned around to face Maddox, someone he’d become much closer to than he ever expected. They didn’t quite have a label on their relationship, but Maddox was different than the others he’d taken home before.

“Darling, you don’t know how good it is to see you,” he said with a heavy sigh. The two met halfway and Charming draped his arms dramatically over Maddox’s shoulders. He leaned most of his weight against the other man for a moment, causing Maddox to squeak and protest cutely.

“H-Hey! You’re heavy, you know!”

“How rude, here I am, languishing, and you’re calling my heavy,” his words were dripping with sarcasm and he pulled back just to ham it up a little more. He pressed the back of his hand to his forehead and started to swoon.

“Oh woe is me, my own dear Maddox won’t even comfort me in this trying time.”

His display had Maddox rolling his eyes, but the author couldn’t help letting out a giggle.

“Oh hush, you. Come on, let’s pick these books up together and you can tell me what’s got you in such a sorry state.”

Together, they put every book back on the shelves. Having a librarian like Maddox around to meticulously put the books back in their proper places expedited the process immensely. After merely an hour, every single book was back in its place.

Charming collapsed back into his chair and Maddox walked over to him before making himself comfortable over the prince’s lap. The author wrapped his arms around Charming’s shoulders and made himself comfortable.

“So, what has you tearing apart your library?” Maddox asked while carding his fingers through Charming’s somewhat messy hair.

Charming let out a sigh and leaned his head back into the touches in his hair. He let his eyes close and his shoulders relax before he started to recount the day’s unfortunate circumstances.

“I happened to be walking by the Greedy Cauldron earlier today. Vanessa seemed to be at her wit’s end when I entered. She was searching for information on the supposed goddess, Cybele.”

Maddox looked down at Charming with an incredulous expression. “I never took you for a believer,” he questioned with a healthy amount of skepticism. And it was true, Charming never truly considered himself religious. He recognized all of the holidays and traditions centered around the gods and goddesses, but only because it was expected of him.

“I’m not, but it seemed important to her. And gods forbid I try to help someone for once in my life,” he said with a heavy sigh. The statement earned him a gentle smack to his chest from Maddox.

“You help plenty people every day, Charming.”

He grinned at Maddox’s naivety before he opened his eyes to look up at him. “I help people for my own benefit, that’s different from helping people out of the goodness of my heart. Not like you.” His hands traveled up to Maddox’s hips and he held them gently. How Maddox ever decided he was interested in Charming still baffled the prince.

“Anyway, I tried to help. I searched through all of those books that littered my floor, but I couldn’t find more than a passing mention of the goddess. This is only cementing my beliefs that the gods are mythological figures.” He wore his frustration plainly on his face, he knew it was useless to hide it from Maddox anyway. The author was much too perceptive to his emotions for Charming to hide them successfully.

Maddox looked as though he was thinking carefully about something and Charming raised a brow at him. “You know, I expected more than just a quizzical stare for opening up to you, dear.”

Maddox’s face immediately flushed when he realized he’d been staring and thinking for too long. “Sorry! Sorry, I just.” He took a deep breath and calmed himself down before he smiled down at Charming again. “You’re frustrated and I was trying to think of ways to help you relax. And I think I have just the thing.”

“Oh do you now,” Charming asked with a sly grin. Maddox immediately flushed and shook his head, covering parts of his face with his hands.

“N-Nothing like that! Charming, don’t tease me!” He smacked half-heartedly at the prince’s chest again and Charming couldn’t help but laugh.

“Fine, fine. I apologize for teasing you.” Charming gently squeezed Maddox’s hips to get him to settle down. “I’m yours to do with as you will. I’ll follow your lead.”

Though Charming hadn’t meant anything by the words, apparently those flustered Maddox even more than his teasing. Maddox flushed bright red and cleared his throat before awkwardly removing himself from Charming’s lap.

“Yes, well, come with me,” he said, still averting his gaze from the prince. Charming was surprised but amused by this turn of events. When Maddox offered his hand, Charming took it and followed after the other moo. Maddox led him through most of the manor.

They made a brief stop in the kitchen where Maddox grabbed a couple of wine glasses along with a bottle from Charming’s collection. He couldn’t help but chuckle when Maddox seemed at a loss over which to pick. The wines here were likely much different from the ones in Maddox’s home. But, thankfully, he settled on a fine vintage, so Charming let Maddox continue to take the lead. They wound up in his living room and Maddox pointed to his plush sofa for the prince to sit.

He raised a brow but sat down, leaning back against the soft cushions. “And is this where you give me a private show?”

That certainly got a rise out of the author. He blustered a little before he let out a soft huff. “No! Get your mind out of the gutter for once, Charming.” Maddox poured them each a glass of wine and then made himself comfortable under Charming’s arm.

“What you need is a night of good drinking and good company,” Maddox confidently stated before he sipped at his wine. Charming couldn’t help but smile fondly at the other man.

“Darling, I do believe you’re right,” he said in a soft tone, softer than he normally took with Maddox. He brushed a bit of Maddox’s hair behind his ear before he started to sip from his own wine. He was left with his thoughts for a moment before he raised his glass towards Maddox in a cheer.

“To good company,” he said with a genuine smile on his face. Maddox couldn’t help but flush at his gentle expression before he returned the cheer and let his glass lightly clink against Charming’s.

“To good company.”