Build yourself a myth

Maybel smiled cheerily when he greeted her and he started to help her with her small sleep potion. It felt like that, anyway. If magic and witches were forbidden, Ketiga came quite close to a wizard himself. She took the parcel from him, and she couldn't help but open it and smell. It had a weird, pungent smell, which wasn't all that pleasant. She pulled up her nose, but did not complain.

Maybel's eyes lit up when he smiled at her joke, and even cracked one himself. She hid her grin behind a gloved hand for a while. ‘‘You insult me, murder?! I would never. Don't put those words in my mouth,’’ she said theatrically. ‘‘But I'll remember the offer, mister.’’ She winked at him playfully. But when he asked if someone was troubling her, she sighed and leaned forwards against the counter again. ‘‘No, not really. Not yet,’’ she answered him. She didn't even notice how easily she started talking to him. ‘‘But it would be nice to just put someone that annoys you to sleep so they won't bother you for a few blissful hours.’’ She could think of a few people. Duchess Winter, for example. That woman scared the creeps out of her. And if she was in a kind mood, she could take out Alison's little guard. And specifically the newest thorn in her side. ‘‘Like evil step-mothers.’’

Maybel twirled a strand of her hair around her finger as she listened to him. People like them/ She put her elbow on the counter and leaned her chin in her hand, while her pale green eyes studied him. He was quick to put himself in the same tax bracket as she was. But she felt like they were nothing alike. Unless he knew something she didn't. ‘‘Perhaps,’’ she answered slowly. ‘‘Not so fond of doing dirty work?’’ she eventually joked to lighten the spirits again. Because by Renestrae, she would never get her hands dirty. Maybe there was truth in Ketiga's words. She chuckled softly when he commented on the smell. ‘‘Duly noted,’’ she said with a roll of her eyes.

Maybel perked up a bit more again, when Ketiga told her he had something for anything. She felt like he was starting to thread on thinner ice, and she enjoyed it. She was a bit of an adrenaline seeker herself. And for a woman in her standing, this was as exiting as it would get, trying yo deceiver a hidden meaning behind spoken words. ‘‘Do I know you, though?’’ she replied with a small smirk. He had locked her eyes in hers and she narrowed them for a second. But when he replied to her words about her step-mother-to-be, she sighed dramatically and perked up again, her hands down on the counter. ‘‘Praise yourself lucky,’’ she started to complain. ‘‘This is my second one. And somehow this is worse, because.. well I'm not a child anymore and- never mind. I won't bore you with my petty thoughts.’’ She placed her hands on her small parcel. ‘‘I can handle myself. Two scoops max, right?’’

This was just Maybel getting bored. She liked to dance on the boundaries of society. But just chatting up with mister Alphelion was barely pushing the limits. They both knew they were joking. They both knew this didn't mean anything. She was not entirely stupid. She knew sometimes people dissappeard in mysterious ways, but it was better no to go and pry if you valued your own skin. If someone disappeared, they most likely deserved it. And when Ketiga was the first to give in, a small smirk hung on her lips. ‘‘Boo,’’ she said with a pouted lip.

So that was a no. Ketiga avoided the question, and Maybel perked up a bit again. She gave a small shrug at his answer. ‘‘I hope so,’’ she said. ‘‘One would get very lonely.’’ She blinked slowly while she moved her gaze back to him. He could have the busiest shop in the world, talk to every costumer and nobody would ever know him. Maybel did think you would grow a bit lonely after a while, hearing the same stories day in and out. But somehow he was good in it, by only saying a few words. You could never bore me, while he placed his hand so close to hers.

Oh, she shouldn't. Her eyes were down at the counter, looking at what was happening between them. What kind of game was he playing? She looked back up at him. ‘‘And that would be you?’’ she asked with a tiny smile. Maybel felt like just now they had started to play chess. She had the white pieces, she had started with a simple opening, placing her pawns forward. But it was Ketiga who had put his knight on the board, temping her to take it. But she had to be careful for who was guarding the knight and if her pieces were worth sacrificing for it. She was shit at chess anyway. ‘‘Like you said, I don't even know you.’’

A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Maybel did enjoy this kind of game. But she knew he would not disclose anything today, he was being a bit stubborn. And she did not feel like prying in the hitman for hire business just yet. Maybel had no true enemies, just people she did not like. And like in every family, there were people that did not like each other. She just had to ignore evil aunts and step-mothers. So she gave a small shrug, with eyes telling that she was up for the challenge. But she was also horrible at playing cards, unable to keep them close to her chest. Her poker-face was laughable. However, never too late to learn.

Ketiga did show himself as a true man. She rolled her eyes. She also did not like being told what to think, or that a man wanted to prove that she was wrong. ‘‘I disagree,’’ she replied to his remark about knowing somebody truly. ‘‘You might not be alone, but you could still be lonely.’’ Maybe men just liked to hide their feelings all the time, trying to be rough and tough all the time. She looked up at him defiantly. ‘‘But I understand you would prefer being a mystery.’’ And it was annoying that she wanted to solve that mystery. He was a puzzle she now needed to solve.

Somehow the spotlights were now on her. Ketiga was a much tougher opponent then she would have expected. She felt the brush of his thumb on her hand and her eyes flashed back down to the counter. He was trying to reel her in and it was very tempting. Or maybe she was just overthinking. Maybe he just liked her? She glanced back up and listened to his words and she had to suppress a smile. ‘‘But then you would get to know me. Deeply, intimately...’’ It was a paradox. ‘‘And then it's not true anymore.’’ She gave him a smug smile. She was not all beauty and no brain. If it was true what he wanted to offer, if he wanted to pry in her mind. After all, it was all still hypothetical. Nothing was real, yet. Still a game. And she could play defensive, or offensive. And they both knew it was her style to just take that damn chess piece and move forward, not being able to resist. Her pinkie extended to his hand, her eyes trailing back down again. ‘‘And you might not like me then.’’

This man was impossible. She listened to him, tried to understand the words and make sense of it all. But it just, did not. After a while, she just gave up and laughed it of. She could just not understand how you could just have that happy live all by yourself. She would feel miserable. Yes, she could entertain herself for a short while by herself, but she thrived in society. She enjoyed small talk and creating a bit of chaos on the way. That was why she lingered here. She could have been long gone already, picked up her little parcel and be on her merry way. But no, she had to talk to the only man in the city who would rather be alone. And that was why she was hanging around, because maybe it would annoy him a just a little bit. Or maybe because she was enjoying herself a bit too much.

‘‘Well, maybe you are not alone alone.’’ That sounded weird. ‘‘But I would be terribly miserable,’’ she replied to him. She would not be able to convince him, or would he be able to convince her. He still was a bit weird though, but well. He was hiding underneath the surface. Listen, but not speak. She should be bored of him, but his funny little words kept her on edge. And when she thought she was being witty, he was being cleverer. ‘‘But, if you change your mind. I'm always down for good company.’’

The smug expression on her face wilted away as he told her she could decide, and maybe he wanted to get to know her. What a peculiar tactic, giving her the reins but also expression that he would like to now her. She tilted her head to the side. So she would ask. ‘‘Why?’’ The furrowed her brows a bit, but she liked the little smile on his lips. And she giggled as he noted that he would never dislike her. He was exactly where she wanted him to. Saying sweet nothings, making promises he could never know he would be able to keep. It was the same song, every time. But she had to admit, she had not heard this couplet yet. So it was time to set the trap, open herself up a bit more. He did not move anymore, so she would take charge once more, by placing her dainty fingers on his wrist know. ‘‘I would like to think that too.’’