@fmkonig
Against his better judgement, Frédéric smirked. The Lithuanian princess was, at the very least, not boring. The ineffable air of tragedy she’d once worn like an overwhelming perfume had faded somewhat, leaving behind something he could only describe as ‘not giving a fuck.’ As controlled as he was, the prince could enjoy and even encourage chaos in others, as long as it didn’t mess with his carefully crafted image and plans.
“My crime would never be something so common,” he scoffed in return, another little joke with himself - although he hadn’t exactly been punished for that particular crime all those years ago. “And you mean to tell me that you don’t believe we were gathered here for our own safety?” Frédéric raised an eyebrow, the mocking evident in his tone. Safety in numbers was bullshit when the entire future of most monarchies could be wiped out with one targeted attack. “What was your crime, then?”
"Ah," Rasa smiled derisively at the words. "Never something as pedestrian as that," she shook her head, and a heavy exhale surpassed her lips. Pushing a book far into a shelf, the Lithuanian stood to her full height and smoothed out the skirt of her black dress. "No. With you, it must be something far more egregious," she teased, and light footsteps made their way towards the surly Swiss man in a chair.
Her life had been punctuated by bad decisions, this might only add to her list. Plucking the book from the prince's fingers with a hand and set it down on the end table closest to them. "So, what is it? What have you done to tarnish your flawless reputation and end here?" she wondered, eyes slightly narrowed towards him as she sat across his lap, pulling her legs up the chair's arm. "I don't know about you, but I came here to avoid having to hear my parents pitiful whispers behind my back when they thought I wasn't listening. I got tired. And don't be foolish. We all know you think that is beneath you. Safety is nothing more than an illusion.
