The girls and Maya had gone to bed, wishing us a good night as we went to our separate rooms. Once Casimir and I made it into the loft, I knew I couldn't hold my tongue any longer. Casimir was nearly dragging his feet as he gathered his sleeping clothes, his expression morose and gaze unfocused.

"We need to talk," I demanded, cutting the awkward silence with the sharp tone of my voice.

Casimir lifted his head, somewhat confused. "Hm? Talk about what?"

"The reason why you've been in one of your moods all day," I explained. The young man's face immediately turned red, and he avoided my gaze. He seemed shocked that I had actually noticed. "What, were you trying to hide it?" I scoffed.

Casimir let out a long sigh, slowly sinking to sit on the edge of his bed. "I probably should have just skipped the party," he admitted with a slow shake of his head. I made my way over to the bed, sitting next to him in a large flop. As I placed my arm over his shoulder to comfort him, I could feel him tense momentarily before relaxing.

"Come on, let's talk," I urged. "I know I'm not Maayan, but I'm told I'm a good listener." A smile crossed his face, and I took it as a good sign. I gave Casimir a quick half-hug before releasing him, letting my finger drag across his hair as I pulled away. I couldn't help but grin as I remembered when we first met. "I can brush your hair, like old times," I offered, tugging lightly on a strand.

"I'm fine!" he coughed, clearly embarrassed. "Really, Azar, don't worry about me. I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine," I insisted. "So tell me about it."

We stared at each other as Casimir took a moment to reflect on my question. Long ago, he had admitted to me that as a child, he had been taught to hold his tongue and bottle up his own feelings just to appease others. As he grew older, his methodical and pragmatic way of thinking often put him at odds with most people. I found his honesty on most subjects refreshing, even if it caused us to bicker from time to time. Yet as I looked at the worried expression on his face, it was clear to me that something was bothering Casimir.

As I waited for my answer, I pulled out my okashis, gesturing at them briefly to get Casimir's permission to smoke in his room. He nodded, and I snapped my finger, giving in to a moment of anger so as to light my finger and thus my snack stick. The flavor was sweet and filling. I was enjoying the taste, my eyes locked on Casimir as he pondered his next words. Eventually, his shoulders sagged and he clasped his hands together, almost as if praying.

"I... shouldn't be here," he whispered, curling deeper into himself, his eyes focused on his hands.

"Here? What do you mean?" I queried.

"I shouldn't be near her."

This statement gave me pause, and I took a slow drag of my okashi as I pondered my own response. "I assume you mean Diana?"

Casimir nodded.

"Did you rage out on her again?" I asked softly, trying to keep all judgment out of my voice. Due to his blessing, Casimir had some trouble controlling his emotions. His most recent burst of battle rage came from when Diana mentioned the Dark Prince, whom she ran into at the nightclub. I knew Casimir had a history with Alpheus, but not much beyond that.

"No, I haven't had any problems with my temper recently," Casimir finally responded.

"Well, she did seem upset about something," I pondered, thinking back to the events of the party. Diana had returned from her search for ice with a most unpleasant expression on her face. Zola told me she had found her outside talking to Casimir. Zola was quick to corner me in private to ask if I knew what the tension between Casimir and Diana was about, and I confessed I was unsure. It was time to ask directly. "Do you know what Diana was upset about?"

"I...we...we ki-kissed," Casimir responded with a croak. As the words tumbled out of his mouth, I couldn't keep the surprised look off my face.

"No shit, really?!" I spat out. Casimir glanced over at me, his hands tightening together. He knew I was rooting for the pair to reunite, seeing as how Diana was the reincarnation of Casimir's lost love, but any pushing I did was met with firm resistance. I took another drag from my okashi before asking my next question. "Dang, okay, so you kissed... wait, did Enki find out?"

"GODS no!" Casimir whispered harshly. He stood up to pace slightly, his worried expression growing deeper. "And you can't tell him becau-"

"Tell him?" I scoffed, cutting the young man off. I snubbed out my okashi as I shook my head. "What, are you crazy? I'd never tell him that, but... he won't like that you're keeping something like this a secret."

Casimir groaned deeply as he continued his pacing, muttering to himself as he went. "I shouldn't have come here. I should have kept my distance. I told myself not to get directly involved, I promised myself-"

"It's not like you had much choice," I said with a small wave of my hand. Casimir stopped to listen as I went on. "Master Enki needed you, and Terra is well..."

"Not exactly welcoming anymore," Casimir said, finishing my sentence.

"Yeah," I muttered. "Plus, it seems like the older Diana gets, the bolder those wraiths become. It's... just a bad situation."

"I'm not sure I help all that much," Casimir admitted. "Wraiths just keep coming in faster than we can catch at times. And the Dark Prince seems to be pressing forward in his attempts to reach Diana. Everything is just so complicated."

"Eh, thus is life," I replied lamely, grinning as I said it. To his credit, Casimir laughed, and it made me smile. We both decided to finish getting ready for bed, and I turned my back to give Casimir his privacy as he changed. Once finished, Casimir busied himself tidying his room and getting out a sleeping bag for me. I watched him work with one last question on my mind.

"Did you want to kiss her?" I blurted out as Casimir handed me a spare pillow.

"I was drunk on elfenberry wine and half asleep," He confessed, his mouth set in a hard, thin line. "I honestly dreamed she was someone else."

"Hmm, awkward. Does she know that?"

Casimir hesitated slightly before shaking his head. "I don't think so, well, maybe... I mentioned it, but we got distracted."

"Distracted? By what? More kissing?" I joked, grinning at him.

"Azar!"

"Come here," I laughed, reaching out to pull the young man into a hug. I could hear Casimir grumbling, but he still accepted the affection. Eventually, we pulled apart, but I could see he was smiling. "You probably know what I'm going to say next," I began, my tone more serious. "Talk to her. Honesty is your best play here. The girl has been lied to enough in her life."

"You're right," Casimir agreed, softly. He was moving towards the bed when I threw out one last question.

"Do you have feelings for Diana?" I asked.

Casimir paused before saying, "I don't know what I feel, honestly."

"There it is! That honesty I like so much," I grinned, placing my hand on my heart. Casimir chuckled lightly, and I breezed past him, jumping quickly into the bed before he could. I patted the covers playfully. "Come on, let's go to bed."

"Azar, that is a single bed," Casimir grumbled, slightly annoyed.

I patted the bed once more, scooching to the edge so we could both fit. "What? Like, we haven't shared tight quarters before? Come lie down. I need someone to fall asleep near me, or I sleep so badly."

"You keep using that excuse, but I don't think it's true," Casimir said, suppressing a yawn. I just smiled, and the young man eventually relented, and soon we were fast asleep.