He looked down at her, his expression changing. The corner of his mouth turned up slightly and his grey eyes softened, although he still raised an eyebrow almost playfully. "Luce makes a mean eggs benedict," he told her. "No pun intended."
"Good choice," she said, nodding approvingly before looking up at Ben. "And the ushe for you, Benny? Are you gonna be in the library again?" Ben hesitated before nodding, as if he was sensing an impending lecture. "Yes. I have some things to finish up." Luce had a stubborn frown across her face and she opened her mouth to say something before she was interrupted by a call from one of her chefs. "Luce! We need you!" Luce sighed, glancing over her shoulder for a moment before shooing them away. "Fine, I'll bring it to the library. Make sure he takes a break, Calliope!"
"Don't listen to her," Ben murmured, turning her away gently as Luce went to go save a burning soup. "She just likes control."
He laughed a little as they headed back to the stairs. "Lots of clever things," he replied smugly, glancing down at her out of the corner of his eye.
She was watching ahead, but looked interested. He would be able to tell when she was comfortable and not as nervous. Her gaze would be relaxed and she didn't feel the need to fidget with her hands or feet, or look around anxiously. "That's a little vague."
His laughter was quiet and low, and he shook his head as they walked. "It's intentionally vague," he confirmed. "As I say, I don't want to have to lie to you, but I do have secrets that I need to keep. I do a lot of different things in there. Right now, I'm mostly trying to get a better understanding of the mechanism within the Ortus."
He noticed her mood change and fell silent for a moment before speaking, his tone a little quieter, but also a little stiffer as if he too had remembered something. "I haven't lied to you yet, Calliope," he told her. "I know it's a big thing to ask, but I need you to trust me on this. This is the only way to make things right."
She crossed her arms, looking at the floor and not meeting his gaze. "I'm not saying I won't do it. I just remembered that's the only reason I'm here," she said quietly, her voice a little down.
He looked down at her and seemed genuinely confused, his brow furrowing as he squinted at her. "What do you mean?" he inquired.
"I'm not your friend," she said with a small shake of her head, going to sit down once they got to the library. "I'm just.. leverage. That's it."
He seemed very confused now, crossing his arms as he considered her with a raised brow. "Forgive me, Cal, but you did call me a terrible person less than 24 hours ago. Now you want to be friends?"
"I was upset. You knew I wouldn't be able to return home, but gave me that sliver of false hope anyways. Would you rather me be upset all the time?" she sighed slowly, resting her head on her hand and looking anywhere else, resignation on her face. "I forget myself. You should go do your research."
He squinted at her before sitting in the seat opposite of her, folding his hands in his lap as he leaned forward. "I really don't understand you."
"You realize... that we don't want you to be a prisoner, right?" he said after a moment of contemplation. "We want you to help us, and we think you could be effective, but we don't want you to feel trapped. Even though..." He laughed a little. "I guess you kind of are."
